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BIONIC WOMAN REAPER STMUBB Mmie Magic pteseitts JANUARY #362

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BORQ CHRISTMAS GIFTS. A 50-FCX5rW0MAN CMRISmAS r\a\jl'D, WISH.

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WHEK/6EEKS GET TIME H4CHIKiES FDR X-mS IN TME FUTURE. WHERE'S VOUR UP?" 4 STARLOGAnuoryMff www.starlog.com 1 munes

QUOTE OF THE MONTH Werewolf, Fear Cay) and #14 (celebrating "Mr. Turtle is my father, dude." the saga's 75th anniversary with the very first —Crush, Finding Nemo Doc adventure The Man of Bronze, plus The Land of Terror and an introduction by Doc's STUPID DECISION creator Lester Dent). These yams are almost OF THE MONTH all by Dent, writing as Kenneth Robeson. Home Entertainment. For And this is the Nostalgia Ventures republica- unexpectedly delaying the Ray Harry- tion effort headed by Anthony Tollin. Each hausen in Color DVD Set from December 4 volume (tpb, $12.95) features historical (the day this issue goes on sale!) to June essays by STARLOG's pulp expert Will 2008, exchanging holiday sales for.. .what? Murray and Tollin illuminating the stories' Despite this last-minute postponement, our backgrounds. They're highly recommended special CINEMAGIC Edi- by STARLOG. For more info, see the web-

tion (its pages already at the printer) site (www.nostalgiaventures.com). nonetheless appears on page 55. Meanwhile, Pulp Double reprints of The Spider are being published by Girasol Col- FIVE OF OUR lectables in two-story volumes (tpb, $14.95). CG-ANIMATED HEROES These crimson carnivals of carnage (so to Together, these five men—aided by hun- speak) are by "Grant Stockbridge" (mostly dreds of skilled colleagues at Ani- Norvell Page). So far: #1 {Prince of the Red mation Studios—have truly changed the face Looters, The City That Dared Not Eat), #2 of . And what's more remarkable, {Death 's Crimson Juggernaut, Claws of the they're all nice guys. Golden ), #3 {Slaves of the Crime They include , the Walt Master, The Spider and the Fire God), #4 Disney of the Pixar Generation. He has given {Dragon Lord of the Underworld, Satan 's animation a future, but continues to honor its Switchboard) and #5 {Builders of the Black Shackles). For more info, storied past and those who made it great. Empire, Satan's "REPUCANT The late . Some call him the see the website (www.girasolcollectables soul of Pixar. .com). THEY'RE ETHER A , the gentle man behind Mon- sters, Inc. So talented, it's scary. WHERE TO FIND... BENEFIT OR A HAZARD. Andrew Stanton, (co-)writer ...FANGORIA RADIO? Check out Sirius IF THEVRE A BENEFIT, IT'S of Pixar's earliest , who then gave us the Satellite Radio (Channel 102) Friday nights, touching odyssey of Finding Nemo. 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. (an encore of the live show , the incredible writer-director immediately follows). See the website for NOT MY of The Iron Giant, The Incredibles and Rata- subscription info (sirius.com/fangoria). touille, the trifecta of modem toonery. THE LAST FAREWELLS PROBLEM." BLOODY PULPS! The science fiction universe sadly salutes Rey is unleashing a terrific three-vol- these fantastic talents who died recently. Del (j)^ljji ume set of The Best ofRobert E. Howard Richard Compton (August) The prolific -DE (tpb, $16.95), all beautifully illustrated by director who helmed episodes of Jim & Ruth Keegan. The first. Crimson (including "The Gathering" TV movie ). Shadows, is already out. Each samples vari- Star Trek: The Next Generation ("Haven"), ous arenas of Howard's works: the Breckin- The X-Files, The Lone Gunmen, Charm- ridge Elkins Westerns, ed, and Profder. Fighting Costigan's He was married to act- two-fisted yarns, Solomon ress . Kane's adventures, horror (STARLOG PLATINUM A R R S O stories, poetry and, of #3) course, the savage tales of Richard T. Heffron THE FINAL. CUT Bran Mak Morn, King KuU (August) The director of and Conan the Barbarian. the : The Final Battle The second volume is Grim TV mini-series and the Lands. Westworld sequel Future- VD and Hi-Def Here's an updated line- world. (STARLOG #83) up of further double Doc Alice Ghostley (Sep- BLADERUNNERTHEMOVIE.COM Savage pulp magazine re- tember) The quirky char- prints: #9 {The Majii, The acter actress best known Esmeralda in Golden Man), #10 {Dust of as TV's iinHiiiHiiiiinnii [iniiiEMiimni Death, The Stone Man), #1 Bewitched and as wiiiiriiiiiiiiuiiaHiiiiiiiJiiiiiwniiiiiiwaiaiiinBB'iHiiEniinnsn'nnuiiH {Cold Death, The South Captain Nice's punainiiini'-iiiiU!iiniii«niiiaiiimiiaiiiiiiiiinn"«ifiBi-iii(inii Pole Terror), #12 {The mother. She also guested

I RI RESTHCTHl SDH Squeaking Goblin, The Evil Thanks to Nostalgia Ventures, on Kolchak the Night

the flLNftft is a Trademark CWned The Blade Runner PsrtnasWp. Gnome), #13 {Brand of the Doc Savage is bacl< in action! Stalker, Tales from Spedal Featutas *a Nd MPW-flawl a EOH BtAEC O 2007 J\\i BMa Flunner Painership All rights resenied.

www.5tarlog.com Darkside, Ghost Story and Get Smart. President sters, Creature from the Haunted Sea, Not of THOMAS DeFEO Lois Maxwell (September) Forever This Earth (1957), The Undead, The Wild Miss Moneypenny. She played the role in 14 Angels, Death Race 2000 and /; Conquered Publisher James Bond films {Dr. No through A View to the NORMAN JACOBS World (uncredited). (FANGORIA #1 1) a Kill). She also co-starred in The Haunting Assistant Publisher (1963) and guested on TV's Stingray, UFO, RITA EISENSTEIN BY OUR CONTRIBUTORS The Avengers and The Saint. The man in black fled across the desert, Executive Art Director Madeleine L'Engle (September) The and the gunslinger followed." And so W.R. MOHALLEY beloved, Newbery Award-winning author of began the epic odyssey of Roland Deschain, Editor A Wrinkle in Time (as well as the series' sub- a.k.a. the Gunslinger. 's 30- DAVID MCDONNELL sequent volumes A Wind in the Door, A year obsession concluded with the series' Swiftly Tilting Planet, Art Director Many Waters and An seventh novel. The Dark Tower, in 2004, but HEINER FEIL Acceptable Time). In 2004, President George Marvel has delved into Roland's beginnings W. Bush presented her with a National with a 2007 comics series. Now, The Dark Managing Editor ALLAN DART Humanities Medal. Tower: The Gunslinger (he, $24.99) Robert Jordan (a.k.a. James Oliver collects all seven of those issues. Personally Contributing Editors Rigney, ANTHONY TIMPONE Jr., his real name) (September) overseen by King himself, the graphic novel MICHAEL CINCOLD The revered fantasy author whose Wheel of reveals Roland's past in four-color glory by TOM WEAVER Time saga became a bestselling phenome- artists Jae Lee and Richard Isanove, and IAN SPELLING JOE NAZZARO non. A decorated war hero (the Bronze Star) adapted by longtime King expert WILL MURRAY Furth and STARLOG contribu- IF ONLY WE MADE 'EM DEPT. STARLOG GROUP tor-comics wunderkind Peter A CREATIVE GROUP Company David. It's the perfect introduc- JOSEPH V. AVALLONE, CEO tion to the Mid-World Universe.

Executive Assistants: Dee Erwine, Lizzie Don McGregor continues to Benbow, Meghan D'Anton. script new Tales from the Crypt Technicai support: Steve vallianos, Jesse RAV HARRVHAV^S€KI*S lost Thornton. comics stories. Issue #4 is out Correspondents: (LA) pat Jankiewlcz, Bob this month from PaperCutz. Miller, Marc Shapiro, Bill Warren, Dan Yakir; Herbie J. Pilato who dis- (IMYC) Dan DIckholtz, Mike McAvennle, — Maureen McTigue, Keith Olexa; () sected TV's Wonder Woman in Kim Howar(a Johnson; () Bill Flo- STARLOG #260—has written rence; (D.c.) Rhonda Krafchin; (Orlando) Bill Wilson; (Canada) Mark Phillips; (Booklog) The Bionic Book: The Six Mil- Penny Kenny, Jean-Marc & Randy Lofficler, lion Dollar Mem & The Bionic Michael Wolff; (Toons) Alain "bortQ." Chap- Woman Reconstructed (Bear eron, Mike Fisher, Tom Holtkamp, Bob Muleady; (Photos) Donn Nottage, Lisa Orris, Manor Media, tpb, $29.95). It Albert L. Ortega. has an introduction by Richard TlianKs to: , Reiko Aylesworth, , John Bllllngsley Anderson (coincidentally inter- Michael Broldy Joanna Cassldy, Rob Caves, viewed this issue, see page 26). Bobby Coleman, NIkolaJ Coster-Waldau, info, John cusack. Ana Maria Da velga, Phyllis For more see the website Douglas, Miguel Ferrer, Mike Fink, Deborah (Bearmanormedia.com). Forte, Evan Fowler, Cade, Kerry Cam- Lee Goldberg's latest origi- mill, Dennis Gassner, Barry Clbbs, Suzanne Gomez, Howard Green, Bret Harrison, Ray nal Monk novel blasts TV's Harryhausen, Leslie Hoffman, Lana Kim, obsessive-compulsive detective David KIrschner Ken Kolb, Arnold Kunert, Johnny Lewis, Damlan Mitchell, Steven Long squarely into the science fiction Mitchell, Ruth Myers, Nicole Nassar Andrew universe. Yes, beyond the Neskoromny, Grace IMIu, Steven Pasquale, "^^jf- Amanda Peet, Karen Penhale, Mike Rau, "T beyond, it's Mr Monk in Space Rebecca Rosen, Dan ScapperottI, Richard (NAL, he, $19.95), now launch- Schenkman, Conor Sellers, Corey Slenega, ing. See the website (www.lee- Lisa Stone, Colin & Greg Strause, Joan Taylor, Anthony Tollln, Craig Van Sickle, Undsay DRAWN DRAMATIC l!>WAM3!iIfOTi goldberg.com). Wagner, Jeff walker Chris weltz. Randy & Jean-Marc Loffici- Cover images: Golden Compass: ©2007 New Une Cinema; AVP: Requiem: James E and history buff, he also wrote seven Conan er's Black Coat Press has two new Fantdmas Dittlger/02007 20th century Fox. All Rights the Barbarian novels. (STARLOG #162) entries. Nick Carter vs. Fantdmas (tpb, Reserved; Blade Runner: ©1982 The Ladd Denny Martin Flinn (September) Company/Courtesy Warner Bros. He $20.95) by Alexandre Bisson & Guillaume For Advertising Information: co-wrote Star Trek VL- The Undiscovered Li vet, adapted by Frank Morlock, is a 1910 (212) 342-8122; FAX (6461 723-2273 Country. And he scripted and directed the play pitting the American pulp detective Ad Director: Rita Elsenstein West Coast Ads: Robyn Faust, 2111 255th off-Broadway show Groucho (as in Marx). hero against the French master villain. Fan- Street, Lomita, CA 90717 (STARLOG #205) tdmas in America (tpb, $24.95) by David (424) 558-1523 Cel (310) 710-8146 FAX (310) 373-8760 Charles B. Griffith (October) Roger White, based on the character by Marcel international Licensing Rep: Robert J. Gorman's top screenwriter in the early years. Allain & Pierre Souvestre and the movie by Abramson & Associates, Inc., 720 Post Road, His work includes Little Shop Scarsdale, NY 10583 of Horrors, A George Eshenfelder & Edward Segdwick, is Bucket of Blood, Attack of the Crab Mon- a delightful "sort of novelization of that

STARLOG (ISSIM 0191-4626, Canadian GST number: R-124704826) Is bublished monthly except for February & September by STARLOG GROUP INC., a CREATIVE GROUP Company, 1560 Broadway, Suite 9th Fir, York, 900, New NY 10036. STARLOG and The Science Fiction Universe are registered trademarks of STARLOG GROUP iNC This is Issue Number January 362, 2003. Entire contents are copyright ©2008 by STARLOG CROUP, INC. Ail rights reserved. Reprint or reproduction in part or In whole—includ- ing the reprinting or posting of articles and graphics on any Internet website—without the publishers' written permission is strictly forbidden. STARLOG accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or other materials, but if submittals are accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope, they'll be consid- ered and. If necessary, returned. Please do not call the editorial office re: this material. Due to time constraints, freelancer phone calls will not be accepted STAR- LOG does not publish fiction. Fiction submissions are not accepted and are discarded without reply Products advertised are not necessarily endorsed by STARLOG and views expressed In editorial copy are not necessarily those of STARLOG. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. Subscription 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 directly to STARLOG Cre- ative Croup, 1560 Broadway Suite 900, 9th Fir., New York, NY 10036. Notification of change of address or renewals send to STARLOG Subscription Dept ' RO Bok 430 Mt. Morris, IL 610S4-0430. POSTMASTER: Send Change of address to STARLOG Subscription Dept., PO. Box 430, Mt. Morris, IL 61054-0430. Printed In U S A

6 imm/JanmrylOOS www.starlog.com Here are new volumes for your STARLOG Contributors Library!

long-lost 1920 Fox serial Fantdmas. It's play's structure (and maybe its story). For newly written today (complete with stylish the complete, extensive catalog, see the web- in-jokes) while using the unseen chapter- site (www.blackcoatpress .com).

NEWS item: vs. PREWlBRlT* OPEN FANTASY CHRISTWftS \>Pt1! CALENDAR Release dates are extremely subject to change and may shift without notice. December: The Golden Compass {.nil), I Am Legend (12/14), Alvin & the Chipmunks (12/14), Sweeney Todd (12/21), National Treasure: Book of Secrets (12/21), The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (12/25), Persepolis (12/25), ALIENS vs. Predator: Requiem (12/26). January 2008: (1/18), Fanboys (1/18). February: Jumper (2/15), The Spi- derwick Chronicles (2/15). March: 10,000 B.C. {3/7), Norton Hears a Who (3/14), Inkheart (3/19), Wanted (3/28). 2008: Iron Man (5/2), Speed Racer (5/9), The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (5/16), Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (5/22), SUBSCRIBER SERVICES Starship Dave (5/30), (6/6), Missing copies? Moving? Renewals? The Happening (6/13), The Incredible Hulk Receiving duplicates? Subscription questions? (6/13), Wall*e (6/27), Hancock {111), Jour- Write to: STARLOG ney 3-D (7/11), Hellboy 2 (7/11), The Dark Knight (7/18), The Mummy: Tomb the Subscriber Services, P.O. Box 430 of Mt. Morris, IL 61054-0430 Dragon Emperor (8/1), Death Race (9/26), Inquiries to editorial offices only delay matters. Scanners (10/7), City ofEmber {10/10), Igor (10/24), James Bond 22 (11/7), Madagas- THE FIIMAU CUT NEW SUBSCRIBERS: car: Escape (11/7), Harry Potter See subscription ad in this issue. and the Half-Blood Prince (11/21), Star Trek send money to above address. Do NOT (12/25), The Day the Earth Stood Still Attach Mailing Label Here (12/28). VD and Hi-Def 2009: The Spirit (1/16), Watchmen (3/5), NAME Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (3/27), BLADERUNNERTHEIVI0VIE.COM vs. Aliens (3/27), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (5/1), G-Force (5/1), Avatar ADDRESS (5/22), Up (6/12), 2 (6/26), Ice MIIIlHllllinini imiieiHiiiiiiim Age 3 (7/1), Hotel Transylvania (9/25), The >>itiiiii ii-iiiiiiiirniiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiuMniJiiniiifiiiiiHininiirEWiiiiiiEiiiiMiiisiiiriiiiLiuii Fantastic Mr Fox (11/6), How to Train Your ui(iiiainiiini'-9ii>uiiiMnnKiiainirniiuHiiiiniHn-«i(iBi*iiiB»ii Dragon (11/20). • CITY. *^ Narnia: ' ssa 2010: The Chronicles of Voyage of 1 ,.„°^..,J'°'l- iE.

the Dawn Treader (5/7). Speaal Features de Ha MPAA-Haei) a SOH BLAOt RLfJIfR is a TrademiuK Ometi TUs Blaife Runner Parlnaatilp. STATE ZIP... O2C07 The Blade Runner Partnership All tigTits i« saved. THE REMAKE GAME with abnormal abilities who are recruited for new Star Trek The movie, filming shortly, a secret government organization nick- has its (re)cast. They are Chris Pine as named Section 8. Kirk, Heroes' Zachary Quinto as Spock, J.J. Abrams and his Star Trek movie writ- Lord the Rings' Karl of Urban as McCoy, ers & (who are 's Simon Pegg as Scotty, also Alias and Lost veterans) are tackling John Cho as Sulu, Anton Yelchin as Chekov another TV project. They've created Fringe, and Zoe Saldana as Uhura. Eric {The Hulk) mm a sort of The By DAVID MCDONNELL X-Files meets Robin Cook's Bana will play the villain, Nero. medical mystery novels, for Fox. Despite having been terrorized by King Speaking of The X-Files, it's an influence Kong, Naomi Watts will nonetheless star in COMICS SCENE (along with and the remake of Birds. The Martin (Casino is filming The Spirit in stu- Moonlighting) on . SCI FI has Royale) Campbell follows in Alfred Hitch- dios in New Mexico. Paz Vega and Jaime ordered a two-hour TV movie/pilot, scripted cock's shoes as director. King have joined the cast. by STARLOG favorite Rockne {) Brad {Casper) Silberling will helm the Jonathan {T3) Mostow will direct the O'Bannon, Jane {Buffy) Espenson and D. big-screen version of Lxind of the Lost. Chris film version of Robert Venditti's graphic Brent Mote. It shoots this month for a sum- Henchy Dennis & McNicholas scripted. It novel The Surrogates. T3 screenwriters mer premiere. It follows a pair of FBI agents begins lensing for Universal in March. Michael Ferris and John Brancato are adapt- reassigned to deal with paranormal artifacts Steve {The Kill Point) Shill is directing ing it. and relics {a la The Librarian) acquired over NBC's latest reimagined Knight Rider TV & Terry Beatty's the decades by the government and stored movie/pilot project. Johnny Dynamite graphic novel is being (supernaturally) in a Raiders-Wke. warehouse Video game veteran Jerry Flaherty will mounted as a TV series pilot. It would utilize in South Dakota. Our will also search direct the CG-animated version of Thunder- 500-style greenscreen technique to pit its out new mystical items for the collection. cats for Warner Bros. detective hero against the devils. J.H. Do really we need another live-action Wyman is scripting. D.J. Caruso will direct. FANTASY WORLDS version of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Warner Bros, has acquired yet another Bookl Well, maybe. BBC wildlife filmmak- SEQUELS/PREQUELS children's fantasy book series with er John Downer will direct, trying to obtain The next movie begins lensing movies in mind—the first volume is Skul- the perfect "real" footage of the animal stars. early next year. Unrelated to the TV spin- duggery Pleasant by Derek Landy. Richard Kirti and Bev Doyle are adapting off premiering on Fox in January, this Halcy- Eric Bress is adapting The Alchemyst Kiphng's novel. on production will be distributed by Warner (based on Michael Scott's book series) for Bros. It's titled Terminator Salvation: The New Line Cinema. Future Begins. UPDATES Tobe Hooper—who helmed the 'Salem 's Tonight, He Comes, the Will Smith super- is charting an Lot TV mini-series almost 30 years ago as hero flick, is now known as Hancock. Open Season 2. It will focus on the MacWee- well as The Mangier in 1995—is back in Meanwhile, Disney's animated American nie character and be a direct-to-DVD ani- Stephen King country. He'll direct King's project Dog has been retitled Bolt. And the mated flick. , as adapted by Jonathan Wolverine solo film has been dubbed X-Men Another direct-to-DVD Starship Troop- Schaech & Richard Chizmar. Origins: Wolverine. ers sequel has been shot. It's Starship Troop- DreamWorks nabbed a live-action SF Publication of Kenneth Johnson's V: The ers: Marauder. script known as Gullible 's Travels. It's by Second Generation—which he discussed in Ron Friedman and Steve {Open Season) STARLOG #360—was delayed slightly. CHARACTER CASTINGS Bencich. Announced for October, the Tor Books Genre veterans Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Marvel veteran Avi Arad will produce a release will actually be out this month. Weisz and Susan Sarandon star in Peter movie version of the EverQuest online game Jackson's adaptation for Sony. Michael {300) Gordon is scripting. of the Alice Sebold novel The Lovely Bo- VOICEOVERS nes. A literary ghost Snoot Entertainment has assembled an story, it's shooting in impressive troupe of voiceover actors for Pennsylvania. its CG-animated Terra (which chronicles the With The Dresden conflicts between a peaceful world and the

Files behind him, Paul human warriors intent on colonizing it). The Blackthome has a new genre veterans speaking up include Ron gig. He's now Brooke Perlman, Dennis Quaid, James Gamer, Brian Shields' husband on Cox, Danny Glover and Chris Evans. Also in the mid-season show the cast are Luke Wilson, Amanda Peet, Lipstick Jungle (re- Evan Rachel Wood, Rosanna Arquette and placing actor Chris Justin Long. Wiehl, seen in the Animation veteran John Goodman has pilot). the big gig. He'll voice Paul Bunyan. Eddie Supporting Steve speaks out as Babe the Blue Ox. Martin in The Pink Oscar winning FX wizard Jim Rygiel is Panther 2 are Alfred directing the CG-animated Bunyan & Babe. CHIPMUNK TIME Molina, Andy Garcia and, taking over for The script is by Michael A. Nickles & Julia They're back-—and ready to party! as Inspector Dreyfus, STAR- A. Wall (with a rewrite by Ian La Frenais & Simon, Alvin and Theodore! Ross (Rear LOG favorite John Cleese. Dick Clement). The score is by the late Basil Window/^ Bagdasarian Sr.'s creations Poledouris. And the plot? Bunyan teams have a new look in Alvin and the with two kids to rescue Chipmunks, a live-action/CG-animated GENRE TV Babe from the circus. has ordered six episodes of a psychic Gee, that one seems combo in theaters December 14. ABC "mything" from previ- spy series. It'll focus on the normal folks ous legends.

8 Smm/January2008 show for strip (daily) broadcast beginning Renewed for a fourth (and final) 22- in fall 2010. Ratings have been declining episode season by SCI FI, which compared to Season One. Heroes: Origins,

begins in April. 1 1/24: "Razor." the spin-off series, bows in April. BIONIC WOMAN JOURNEYMAN Airs Wednesdays on NBC. Ratings, ini- Airs Mondays on NBC. Ratings keep tially promising, are declining. declining. In danger of cancellation. {The Sopranos) Cahill has taken over as showrunner. Bionics boss Miguel Ferrer KYLE XY debriefs on page 30. Part two of its second season bows this month on ABC Family Channel. BLOOD TIES Renewed for a third, 10-episode season. Airs Sundays on Lifetime. 12/7: "We'll Meet Again." 12/14: "Deep Dark." MOONLIGHT Airs Fridays on CBS. Ratings are OK so far. CBS ordered four more scripts. NEW AMSTERDAM ew series about an immortal detective n;is scheduled to debut 1/11 (or possibly in February instead) on Fox. Fox cut the

episode order from 1 3 shows to the seven already produced. And that can't be good. Series lead Nikolaj Coster-Waldau reports in on page 71. PUSHING DAISIES Tanya Huff's tales of Blood Ties Airs Wednesdays on ABC. Renewed for continue on Lifetime. They follow the the rest of the season. Ratings are exploits of vampire Henry Fitzroy promising. (Kyle Schmid), private eye Vicky Nelson () and cop lUIike REAPER Celucci (Dylan Neal). Airs Tuesdays on the CW. Ratings are OK. The CW ordered more scripts. CHUCK Bret Harrison e-mails in on page 40. Airs Mondays on NBC. Ratings are OK, but declining from early airing results. ATLANTIS NBC ordered more scripts. Renewed for a fifth, 20-episode season. Fourth season shows air Fridays on EUREKA SCIFI. 11/30: "Miller's Crossing." Guest 3- Just renewed by SCI FI for a third, 1 starring Kate Hewlett. 12/7: Tori episode season, bowing next summer. Higginson guests. TERMINATOR: Airs Fridays on SCI FI. 11/30: "Proof." THE SARAH CONNOR At presstime, SCI FI hadn't yet CHRONICLES announced its renewal. This spin-off series has been renamed, adding Terminator to its title. It pre- GHOST HUNTERS mieres 1/14, airing Mondays, 8 p.m. on Renewed for another season on SCI FI. Fox. (It was earlier announced for nuinntsn The network has also ordered a spin- Sundays.) THE FIIMAt- CUT off show. Ghost Hunters International, that will focus on a new investigative team's paranormal searches set in Europe. Six-hour mini-series debuts 12/2 on SCI Let the Old World Poltergeists beware! FI. Writers Craig Van Sickle & Steven DVD and Hi-Def It'll premiere on SCI FI next month. Long Mitchell preview the show on page 22. HEROES BLADERUNNERTHEMOVIE.COIVI Airs Mondays on NBC. The week's cur- TORCHWOOD rent will then be rerun British series airs Saturdays on BBC episode The jiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii» iinlllliMllllllin Wednesdays, 8 p.m. & Thursdays, 5 & 8 America. 11/24; "Captain Jack .iinii iiiiiiif[niiiiinii«Hiiiiiwww*wiiiniNiii»BBrtiiiiiEniiiiKiixn'(iiiuiiii p.m. and Saturdays 10 p.m. on the MOJO Harkness." 12/1: Season finale "End of muhiigHiniiinniiii:niiiiiwMiEBiii!iKiMHiiiiHiiMi-«iiiBi*iiMnii • network. G4 and MOJO also acquired the Days."

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Speaal Features ks Hy: MPM-Raet) « SDH BUDE fl^W^£fl is a TrademaA CMrned The Blade Runner Paiineiship. O 2007 The Blaile Runner Paiinership All righis reserved Note: Airdates shift without notice. Airtimes are EST. Series are only listed for which STARLOG has new info. www.starlog.com —

The New World by Michael A. Staclipole Pip will quickly be caught up in their latest Heart of Stone by C.E. Murphy (Bantam, tpb, 416 pp, $15) adventure. Foster is a wordsmith of the first (Luna, tpb, 448 pp, $14.95) conclusion The of the "Age of Discovery" order; with only a few well-chosen hnes, he He has watched her from the shadows for trilogy has the fabled land of Nalenyr threat- creates entirely believable alien worlds and years, but now the gargoyle Alban needs ened on all sides by magical war. Qiro characters. Likewise, he deftly balances Margrit's help to prove he's innocent of mur- Anturasi's three grandchildren are on sepa- action and reflective moments in the briskly- der As the determined lawyer enters the dan- rate and desperate missions to prevent disas- paced narrative. While this penultimate gerous world of the Old Races, she discovers ter Pursued by assassins, accompanied by the installment is obviously part of a larger story- that while a gargoyle after dark isn't human, dead and facing a god's powers, Jorim, Nirati line. Patrimony stands as a complete story on he's still all male.

and Keles stand balanced on the edge death its of own. Fans of Disney's Gargoyles owe it to as a world of warriors and magicians slowly —Penny Kenny themselves to check out this grown-up take awakens around them. on the material. The plot falters a bit under Stackpole can write epic adventure—his the weight of the accumulated characters past works attest to that. But he has fallen but, oh, what characters! Vivid, charming deeply in love with language and, unfortu- and delightfully dangerous, they will nately, that's severe a disadvantage here. The entrance readers. Meanwhile, the sparks that reader has to struggle through alien words fly between danger-junkie Margrit and and phrases, as well as dialogue which is not sweet, sexy Alban guarantee that people will only purple but, at times, borders on the be lining up for the sequel. Highly recom- turgid. A leaner prose style would have made mended. this series the fantasy jewel it was intended to —Penny Kenny be, but only dedicated fans will arrive at the other end unscathed. Hurricane Moon by Alexis Glynn —Michael Wolff Latner (Pyr, tpb, 399 pp, $15) Hard SF with a heart is an apt descrip- Humpty Dumpty in Oakland by Philip tion of Hurricane Moon. Latner serves up K. Dick (Tor, he, 256 pp, $24.95) generous portions of space science, biolo- It's quite extraordinary to discover how gy, ecology and theology without ever los- Dick's obsessions were already present in ing sight of her characters. They talk, his 1950s mainstream fiction. In this newly argue, make love and fall in love—and published early novel, car salesman Al readers will believe in them. Miller has his lot sold from under him by While Latner skillfully juggles a large refiring garage owner Jim Fergusson. Al cast, the main focus is on Catharin—a | decides he wants to play with the big boys, medical doctor intent on fostering a Gold- ( too, and becomes involved in what may en Age on humanity's new home world— | well be a dubious real estate venture in and Joseph, a molecular biologist who can Marin County. But isn't Al —and never perfect everything but his own life. Their j will be—one of the big boys. Like William Thirteen by Richard K. Morgan ideals will clash, change and shape the H. Macy's Fargo character, his delusional (Del Rey, he, 416 pp, $24.95) future of the last humans in the universe. schemes will only precipitate his end. Carl Marsalis is part of a government Atmospheric, haunting and evocative.

Humpty Dumpty in Oakland is pure program to genetically engineer a separate Hurricane Moon is not to be missed. Dick. Al's plight isn't too different from race of soldiers. Circumstances result in —Penny Kenny that of the many losers who populate the Marsalis wasting away in a jail cell. His author's other novels. The mysterious, ever release comes, but with the insistence that Making Money by Terry Pratchett unseen puppeteers, and their charming yet he use his skills to hunt down a rogue (Harper, he, 400 pp, $25.95) diabolical representative, remind one at member of his own kind. "Moist von Lipwig, you've just made the times of Dick's Faith of Our Fathers, The Obviously, this is only a thumbnail Ankh-Morpork postal service a success. Man in the High Castle and other works. sketch of the story. Beneath the surface. What are you going to do next?" The nightmarish world of those who have Thirteen slowly unfolds an ambitious look "Run the Royal Bank and Mint!" money and control the destinies of men into a future where the social polarization Yes, the reformed thief has been given a like Al has never been so mercilessly of our species has become pandemic. The license to print, giving readers a license to depicted. Highly recommended.— character of Marsalis serves to illustrate laugh. Pratchett takes his humor seriously, so Jean-Marc Lofficier the possibility of people being pro- his readers don't have to. Instead of depend- grammed to accomplish certain goals, with ing on one-liners and pop-culture references Patrimony: A Pip & Flinx Adventure by one of the goals, apparently, being the sat- (as some are wont to do), Pratchett builds up Alan Dean Foster (Del Rey, he, 240 pp, isfaction of an ingrained desire to find his comic scenes, combining slapstick, word- $24.95) something (or someone) for the masses to play and character humor. This 13th installment in the series finds vent their resentment. Speaking of characters, Pratchett respects Fhnx and his mini-dragon Pip on the planet Morgan doesn't skimp on the action or his. They're more than one-note punchlines. Gestalt seeking Flinx's biological father. suspense, but this story reaches beyond Eccentric and odd as they are, they're still Despite help from the natives, his efforts are blood and guts, and touches the heart and people. Sharp and satiric, but never mean. hindered by the world's harsh terrain, his own mind of the reader. The author's aim here Making Money will please fans and new read- doubts and the bounty hunter tracking him. is slow, but accurate. ers alike. Even readers unfamiliar with Flinx and —Michael Wolff —Penny Kenny

10 SmiOG/January 2008 Ross Bagdasarian's beloved characters. Visit Alvin, Simon and Theodore at www.chipmunks.com

This column showcases websites for SF, MOONLIGHT WEBSITE fantasy, comics & animation creators A vampire private investigator haunts the and their creations. Websites are listed for streets of LA—can you say , any- free entirely at STARLOG's discretion. body? Well, if you want to discover what's Site operators may nominate their sites for different about this new CBS series star- inclusion by sending relevant info via e- ring Alex O'Loughlin, check out the offi- mail only to cial site. [email protected] www.moonlight.com

THE GOLDEN COMPASS PAGE MR. MAGORIUM WEBSITE Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Dustin Hoffman and Natalie Portman star Sam Elliott and Dakota Blue Richards star in Mr. Magorium 's Wonder Emporium, the in the fdm version of Philip Pullman's His tale of an eccentric toy store owner who Dark Materials series. A parallel, magical hands over his magical shop to a young world awaits you at and insecure manager. Wonders abound at www.goldencompassinovie.com www.magorium.com

JOHN BILLINGSLEY WEBSITE FRED CLAUS WEB PAGE This Enterprise-'mg actor has discovered First, there was Bad Santa. Now, there's

there is life after Star Trek, appearing in Fred Ctaus. Vince Vaughn essays Santa's , Journeyman and 24. But bitter older brother in the holiday comedy. Trek fans, fear not, Billingsley returns to Paul Giamatti plays St. Nick. SF with Jerome Bixby's The Man from www.fredclaus.warnerbros.com Earth. www.johnbillingsley.net THE WATER HORSE SITE This Christmas, a lonely boy {Millions' ENCHANTED WEBSITE Alex Etel) discovers a mysterious egg that Things aren't quite going "Happily Ever hatches into a sea creature of Scottish leg- After" for Giselle (Amy Adams). The end, a.k.a. The Water Horse: Legend of the beautiful princess is banished from her Deep. Every big secret starts small at magical, musical, animated land to the www.thewaterhorse.com strange and gritty streets of modern-day . Susan Sarandon, Patrick WEBSITE Dempsey and co-star in Want to know what's going on in Danes' this Disney Picture, so-called life? The Terminator 3 actress www.disney.go.com/disneypictures/ plays a falling star in the film adaptation of enchanted Neil Caiman's Stardust. Learn more about the Stage Beauty at ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS SITE fansites..com/~clairedanes AAAAAAAAAlvin!!! Jason Lee tries to manage the rodent rapscallions in SIENNA MILLER WEBSITE this CG/live-action adaptation based on She made a splash as Factory Girl Edie Sedgwick. Now, Miller enters the mag- ical worlds of authors and Michael Chabon in Stardust and The «i(X/RE KOTHEPESERJ THERE'S A WOlSE LAqiM& Mysteries of . It's always 0(ilt6B^cK,rr8 BELLAS Miller time at mWeWIHE HOT Sflh^. www.sienna-online.org

NoTWltHOOficXlRHEli; HEROES WEBSITE They thought they were like everyone else. ..until they woke with incredible rrunntsn powers. Claire, Hiro, Niki, Nathan, THE FIIViAl. CUT Peter and Sylar are now household names since this NBC show became a

hit. Check out the greatest American Heroes at OVD and Hi-Def www..com/Heroes

ROMBOTS WEB PAGE BLADERUNNERTHEM0VIE.COM Fans of those tin robots from the '40s, '50s '60s should take a look at this and llIKIIiillinillin lUilBBIIIlllllln site, which features robot-theraed •Jini KiiiiiiiirnniiiiiiiiiiiiiiniJiM!iiii!*winHHiiiiiiHBariiiiiEti«(ii«%iriiiiuuii games, applications and activities. IIIIDallllllAai°->IIUniMII«HIIIBni!HllHligillBII'HUiai*IIH»ll Retro-robots rule at —• TeST OKlSIKiN-W, THE VolGWT-KK^\?ff WA'S www.rombots.com ssi F ,.,SS..,J°'h iiL W

Spsoal femes tte N« MPAA-Raed n SOH. BLADE RUNFEH is t Inaermik Owned b« The Blade Runnet PatnashipL O 2007 The Blade Runnet Pistietstnp. Ail rights lestneA www.sfrarlog.com —

TV ON DVD The Manfrom U.N.C.LE.: The Complete Series Betcha nobody this one coming: Star also arrives with nearly 10 hours of bonus mate- Trek's Sulu just had an asteroid named rial, such as a new 90-minute Vaughn-McCal- after him. Yes, if you've been wondering why lum interview, plus chats with other U.N.C.LE. it has been a while since you last heard anyone crew members (directors Richard Donner and mention the 1994 GT9 asteroid, that's because , writers Dean Hargrove and it's now called 7307 Takei in honor of actor Peter Allan Fields, photographer Fred George Takei. Betcha everybody saw this one Koenekamp, more). coming: Now that the special FX in the classic The parade of extras continues with nine fea- show have been CGI-upgraded, Paramount is turettes (among them "The Cloak and Swagger seizing this opportunity to release it on home Affair: The Untold History of The Man from By ^ video yet again. The process begins with the mmTOM WEAVER ," U.N. CLE. "The Spy-Fi Tour: Archives, Art & 10-disc Star Trek: The Original Series: Sea- Artifacts," "Guns, Gizmos, Gadgets and Garb," son One ($129.95), which beams down to us as an HD DVD and "The Music from U.N.C.LE.'" and "The Girls of U.N.C.LE."), the standard DVD combo, and comes with a space ark of supplemental original color U.N.C.LE. pilot Solo, McCallum's home movies material, including the featurettes "The Birth of a Timeless Lega- from the set, the Tom & Jerry cartoon "The Mouse from cy," "Reflections on Spock," "Life Beyond Trek: " H.U.N. G.E.R." and the 1966 theatrically released episode compila- and "Kiss Tell: & Romance in the 24th Century," plus home movie tion One Spy Too Many. It's a 41-disc set that comes in a special footage shot the set. on For the purists, there will be comparisons of "attache case" collector's packaging, and it's available exclusively the remastered vs. the original FX. via the Time-Life website (www.ManFromUncleDVD.com) priced Animated crimefighters the making DVD scene this month at $249.99. Too steep for now? Wait for the upcoming 1 1 -disc set include , Robin and , battling baddies The Man from U.N.C.LE.: The Complete First Season, also avail- Killer Moth, Black Mask and Everywhere Man in Warner Home able through the Time-Life site as well as direct-response TV com- Video's two-disc The Batman: The Complete Fourth Season, 13 mercials. episodes with bonus features. WHV is also DVDebuting Teen For a very different type of adventure, try : The Titans: The Complete Fourth Season, in which Robin, , Complete Third Series (six discs, BBC Warner, $99.98), in which , Beast Boy and Raven cope with the woes of being the Time Lord (David Tennant) encounters at teenagers and, more threateningly, "The Terror of Trigon." It's also the Globe Theatre in Elizabethan , Daleks in 1930s NY, etc. a $19.98 two-discer, with added-value material. liyou want to travel back in time, you can do so...kinda...by instead The truth is out there—the whole truth—and now so is the investing in BBC Warner's vintage Doctor Who episodes "Arc of whole X-Files enchilada in one big package. The Complete Collec- Infinity" and "Time-Flight," both with Peter Davison, both $24.98, tor's Edition (Fox Home Entertainment) is a 61 -disc set incorpo- and both including extras (audio commentaries, deleted scenes, rating all nine seasons' worth of episodes (198 of 'em), the 1998 outtakes, music-only track, more). More goofy fun can be had with theatrical film The X-Files and nine-plus hours of bonus material. Mork & Mindy: The Third Season (four discs. Paramount, $42.99) The mega-box set also features several collector's items, including with Robin Williams as the nutty Orkan alien and Pam Dawber as a Season One comic book, classic art cards, a theatrical poster and his human sidekick. more, as befits an item with a $329.98 price tag. On the animated side, there's Turner Home Entertainment's The Next up, government-agent-wise, we have the IMF operatives Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy: The Complete Season One toppling petty dictators and crushing crime rings here and abroad ($19.98) and Shaggy & Scooby Doo, Get a Clue!: Volume One in Paramount's seven-disc Mission: Impossible: The Third Season ($14.98), Warner's The Adventures of : The Complete ($54.99). A hundred years before the IMF team, it took just two Collection ($26.98), Classic Media's Best of Rocky & Bullwinkle: agents to protect the American frontier: James West (Robert Con- Volume Two ($12.95), 's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: rad) and Artemus Gordon (Ross Martin), Secret Service agents Season One: Part Two of Two ($16.98), Paramount's SpongeBob assigned to The Wild Wild West. In the new Third Season six-disc SquarePants: Atlantis SquarePantis ($16.99), Walt Disney Video's set (Paramount, $54.99), our heroes have a few more "convention- TaleSpin: Volume Two and DuckTales Volume Three (both $34.99), al " assignments than Sony Pictures' Claymation Creature Com- usual, but there's sdll the Mi- forts America: The Complete First Season guelito episode "The ($29.95) and S'more Entertainment's The Night Dr. Loveless Died"... Littles: The Complete Unedited Series not!, the spy-fi "The Night of ($39.99). "Unedited"?? the Falcon" with Robert Duvall And then there's this month's "You Shoul- as a costumed megalomaniac, da Waited, Sucka" special, Paramount's 10- the genre-bending "The Night disc Twin Peaks: The Definitive Gold Box of the Undead" in which West Edition ($99.99), incorporating Seasons One and Gordon take on swampland and Two, plus the pilot (both the U.S. net- zombies, the gender-htnAing work and international versions), for less than "The Night of the Running the total of their original, individual prices Death" and, we swear by our and there's even an exclusive feature-length Great Aunt Maude, much addi- documentary, "Secrets from Another Place." tional weirdness. Here's a secret from this place: Patience is a Open Channel D, and open virtue! your wallets, as The Man from U.N.C.LE. comes to DVD—all at once! It's the first time on ROYAL PERFORMANCES any home video format for the The Duke of Dynamation, Ray Harry- entire series—all four seasons' hausen, continues to dominate the DVD worth of -David kingdom, this time with a trio of his 1950s McCallum-starring episodes, classics as colorized by Legend now available from Time-Life Films. The Ray Harryhausen in Color Gift and Warner Home Video. In Set (Sony, $59.95) is made up of the 50th addition to the 105 episodes. Anniversary Edition of his 20 Million Miles

12 limaWknuarylOOS www.starlog.com When you Meet the Robinsons, rem( to Earth, which was released back in July as a stand-alone ("You the frogs are not what theY seem. Shoulda Waited, Sucka, Part Deux"), 1955's It Came from Beneath the Sea and 1956's Earth vs. the Flying Saucers. Each is a two-disc Special Edition, with the movie itself in color and in black-and- white on one, extras relating to that inovie on the other. Also included is a six-inch figurine of 20 Million Miles' Ymir (see page interviews with Harryhausen (page 55) . Read more about it all in 56) and Joan Taylor (page 61). You'll have to wait for the set, though. At presstime, Sony delayed it to June 2008. We're disap- pointed, too. Stupid Sony. In other breaking news for royal watchers, the classic "fractured " has turned 20, and MGM Home Entertainment is com- memorating it with an Anniversary Edition: director Rob Reiner's The Princess Bride, available for $19.98 with an entourage of new feature-length special features, among them "The Official Princess Bride Video From the creators of The Simpsons comes a Big Game" and the featurettes "'Princess Bride: The Untold Tales," action epic "1,000 years in the making": : Bender's "The Art of Fencing" and "Fairytales and Folklore." Score (Fox Home Entertainment, $29.99), in which the Futurama Speaking of fairy tales, Stardust (Paramount, $29.99) features gang battle to save Earth from nudist alien Internet scammers. movie is an airborne pirate ship (captained by Robert De Niro), a dying Making a "special guest star" appearance as himself in the has acci- king, evil witches (including Michelle Pfeiffer), ghostly princes, ad Al Gore—who may not like to know that Homer Simpson could spell absurdum, in a Princess Bride-like romantic adventure yam. It's dentally caused an environmental catastrophe which based on the Neil Gaiman- illustrated novel. doom for Springfield in Fox's The Simpsons Movie, soon to arrive with the usual extras (ani- The king of vampires is also on DVD in a Collector's Edition of on DVD ($29.99) and Blu-ray ($39.98) director 's Bram Stoker's Dracula (Sony, mators' and producers' commentary, deleted scenes, etc.). penguins? But, $24.96 DVD; $28.95 Blu-ray). Gary Oldman is Drac, Anthony What stranger sight could there be than surfing invented the sport, at least according Hopkins is Van Helsing and Coppola is the audio commentator cowabunga, apparently they (and on-camera introducer). Featurettes include "The Blood is the to the CG-animated Surf's Up (Sony Pictures, $28.95), which World Surf- Life: The Making of Dracula" and deleted scenes. Stupid Sony. offers a behind-the-scenes look at the annual Penguin In DreamWorks Animation's Shrek the Third ($29.99), our ing Championship and its newest participant, up-and-comer Cody on Blu- favorite ogre must find a suitable king for Far Far Away if he does Maverick (voice of Shia LaBeouf). It also rides the waves not want to get stuck with the job himself. Among the special fea- ray ($38.96) and UMD for PSP ($28.95). Stupid Sony. tures: "Meet the Casf (an all-star roundup), "lost scenes" and "Shrek's Guide to Parenthood." For $10 more, it's also on HD DVD. DVDS IN BRIEF And how's this for "some kind of wand-erful": Harry Potter Tekkonkinkreet (Sony, $26.96; also on Blu-ray and HD DVD): title "sug- and the Order of the Phoenix flying onto DVD in time for the hol- An film "with a deeply resonant story" and a that amassing idays. DVD-wise, the Warner release is available on a single disc gests the warring images of steel and concrete cities for $28.98 and as a two-disc Special Edition for $34.99; it's also an against the powers of the imagination." Stupid Sony. HD DVD Combo for $35.99 and on Blu-ray for $35.99. Among the Grindhouse Presents: Planet Terror (Weinstein Company, two-discer's special features: 17 minutes of additional scenes, a $29.95): What started out as just half-a-movie (writer-director tour of the Order of the Phoenix stages, the A&E documentary Robert Rodriguez's over-the-top tale of flesh-eating zombies in "The Hidden Secrets of Harry Potter" etc. Muggles and wizards Grindhouse) is now an extended, unrated two-disc Special Edition its stunts alike might also enjoy the Harry Potter Limited Edition DVD Gift that comes with Rodriguez commentary, featurettes on Set, a 12-disc collection that comes in a "suitcase" and includes and "Badass Babes," etc. Entertainment, two-disc editions of all five Potter pictures (Standard Definition, Pink Panther: A Pink Christmas (MGM Home $119.97; HD DVD and Blu-ray, $149.99). $14.98): As swells with holiday cheer, the Pink Pan- ther, alone and friendless, trudges the snowy streets hoping to find something to eat. Honey.. .are you sure we want to let the kids see STRANGE SIGHTINGS this? Plenty of paranormal activity in vidstores these days, starting It's a Wonderful Life (Paramount, $24.99): A Special Collec- with a 25th Anniversary Edition of Poltergeist (Warner, tor's Edition of director 's 1946 holiday perennial (in $19.98), and a Gift Set (Sony) that comes with a limit- color on Disc One, and in a black-and-white "60th Anniversary ed-edition replica of the Ghost Rider with "movie-accurate cos- Edition" on Disc Two), in which small-town banker James Stewart tuming." For $59.95, we should hope so! Warner's Twilight Zone: finds personal problems and the holiday blues moving him to sui- want... The Movie ($19.97) is an omnibus chiller dishing up four cide. Honey, are we sure we terror tales, three of them remakes of episodes from the Christmas Time in South Park (Paramount, original series. $19.99): A collection of Christmas-themed Author John Cusack, a debunker of paranormal phe- episodes of the irrepressibly irreverent ani- nomena, takes a shine (or perhaps a Shining?) to the idea mated series, including the classics "Mr. Han- of staying in a Manhattan hotel room where a number of key, the Christmas Poo" and "Christmas people have died under mysterious circumstances in Time in Hell." Honey, are we sure... 1408, psychological thrills based on a Stephen King yarn. Bizarre Cartoons of the Past (Alpha, Cult The two-disc Collector's Edition is $32.95 from the Wein- $7.98): The newest entrant in Alpha's stein Company; a single-disc version is $29.95. Classics Collection is this disturbing-sound- The CGI-animated Meet the Robinsons (Walt Disney ing conglomeration of rare, "often uninten- Video, $29.99) finds a time-traveling young inventor mov- tionally frightening" and no doubt ing forward to the world of 2037, where he finds hip-hop- politically incorrect black-and-white and pin' frogs, bespectacled dogs and invaluable life lessons color cartoons from 1932-42. Honey...

You 'II also find deleted scenes, the all-star (Mickey-Minnie- Panther says, "Think pink for the Builders" and other Donald-Goofy) 1938 short "Boat holidays." extras.

STARL0GAni/ory200« 13

the creature goes down. He will die many been some of the most fun—the They keep me as much times tonight. guns that I get to shoot," she chuck- in the dark as they can."

As the night wears on, the humans work les. "All for play, of course. And Still, Pasquale is their the toward way up ramp the helicopter, you'll actually believe this charac- looking forward to it. "I take by soggy take. More and more Aliens ter is able to do these things. It isn't grew up on the ALIEN come slinking and creeping out of their holes. just someone walking around in and Predator movies," They're met by erupting gunfire from all high heels who says, 'I can shoot a he comments. "I loved directions. No matter what planet you hail gun.' She has had Army training. what they did to me How often do women get as a teenager The way

to play these roles? I feel they're shot, it's terrify-

incredibly lucky." ing. I see the guys walk-

Kelly's relationship ing around in the suits, with her fellow survivors, and I'm like, 'Oh, that's

Dallas and Ricky, is not so scary.' But then I

forged in the fire of inter- see how it looks on the species combat. "That's Requiem's setting of monitors. There's a real ambiguous, actually," she Gunnison, Coiorado is art in not showing too smiles. "Before all the worlds apart from The much." O.C., but Lewis action starts, we share an Johnny Working with the gladiy reiocated for ambiguous look. Then Strause Brothers makes extraterrestriai action. everything breaks loose Pasquale feel confident and we're thrown together." that Requiem will revitalize both franchises. Working for the Strause Brothers "These guys want to get back to the basics," he is anything but ambiguous. "It's notes. "And they want to get away from the great!" she enthuses. "They work almost gentle nature of the Predator and return really well together. I've had people to terror, the horror and the gore of the team up before, and the thing you're original movies. They're doing a great job of worried about is when they're bicker- that." ing in front of you. But these guys Lewis describes Ricky as "an angry kid have worked together for so long that who doesn't have much of a family. He's an they truly do speak with one voice. outcast in a really small town. And he's one of

And they elevate each other's direct- the people who gets caught up in and is forced ing. Another great thing is their back- to deal with this encounter. So he has to grow ground in special effects. They're up—quick!" going to make this movie look so The actor is nursing a makeup FX bloody good." shoulder injury, so his character's future does not look bright. "I've got a wound," Lewis Unearthly Predators acknowledges. "There is damage done, and Pasquale is up next. "I Ripiey, beiieve it or not, but tfiere's a new heroine The other human prey, er, cast includes play , an ex-con who in the ALIEN saga: Re'iko 24's Ayiesworth. She Steven Pasquale (pictured), John Ortiz, Ariel Gade goes back to this small piays soldier Keliy O'Brien. and Shareel

She can handle herself in a firefight, but she it a crack. I'm having a great time." isn't exactly Rambo. The inevitable compar- Pasquale packs a Predator isons to ALIEN franchise icon Ripley weapon for part of the film. "There's

() arise, and are modestly a scene where I can't quite figure out shot down. how to use it," he says. "We use hand "I would be incredibly flattered if anyone guns, M-4s and the futuristic guns. drew any sort of comparisons," she replies. And Reiko gets up on a tank and "Ripley is an amazing character—one of the uses a giant Catling gun. It's pretty rare ones in film. I wouldn't presume to draw fantastic." any comparisons myself but I do think that But he has yet to meet Wolf "I Ripley was the prototype for this really incred- haven't dealt with him," Pasquale ible, strong female character." confesses. "I'm hearing the same

Not that Ayiesworth isn't trying. "That has rumors you are. I know nothing.

16 'imm/JanmrylQOS to agree. "I barely dator. We wanted to bring some of that per- there are consequences to being invaded. Aylesworth seems [

Ricky is always trying to fight the world, and remember the Predator movies," she admits. sonality back." isn't for atmos- when the world gets attacked, he learns to "I recently rented the ALIEN films, and I loved The relentless rain only : is concealment," unite with it to some degree." them. There's something about having a phere. "The biggest thing

As noted earlier, Ricky is Dallas' younger strong female lead. I like that better. Also, it's Greg explains. "You know, having shots where the of the you can't see the creatures until there's a flash brother "It's an ambiguous relationship," says amazing that they established look ; Lewis, "insofar as Dallas has done a great deal Aliens back in the late '70s. They were so of lightning—and then they reveal themselves. for Ricky, and Dallas has taken quite a fall for scary and advanced. With all the technology It isn't like rain affects them in an adverse that has [been developed] since, the Aliens way. Actually, it gives them a greater advan-

haven't really changed much. And they're just tage and makes it harder for the humans to see as scary today." them. These creatures can be anywhere and Gade has her favorite, too. "The Aliens are everywhere as they start taking over this city. more interesting," she offers. "One time, we They're like ninjas dressed in black sweeping were sitting by the heater and getting warm, over a village: You hardly ever see them, and because we had just come out of the rain, and then suddenly everyone starts getting taken an Alien was there. He was dancing and doing out."

a jig! He was a real funny guy." AVP was criticized for its lack of sympa- thetic human characters, so the Strause Human Elements Brothers decided early on to reverse that trend Back on the set, a problem has arisen: The for Requiem. Hence, the small-town American water tower suddenly refuses to sprinkle. setting and cast. "That's pretty important,"

Filming is suspended. In the comfort of their Colin asserts. "And that's what I desired the

trailer, the Strauses ponder the whimsical most in the last movie—more of a developed nature of weather. was chosen human element. There has been a great effort

because of its year-end rains. to put that into this one." "Basically, we've been shooting the movie "If you get rid of the humans," inserts

in order," says Colin. "This is technically the Greg, "you might as well be watching end. Everything we've been shooting before- National Geographic. As cool as that stuff is,

hand is the first two acts. Now, we're focusing people want to see movies where they can on Act Three." relate to other people. Otherwise, it turns into "Yeah," adds Greg. "The movie starts off a video game." in nicer weather Sunshine. days. That So whether this Christmas release will helps us set up that classic calm before the exceed the last chapter lies in the hands of the storm. Because of that, and being in people, not the creatures. And that verdict lies Vancouver, we had to shoot all those earlier off in the future. scenes while we had the good weather." And, ironically, shooting is rained out for The Strause Brothers are focused on cap- tonight. turing their creatures practically, Wolf is a "Cleaner"—he cleans up others' Capturing the Aliens practically, rather CGI. "Yep," not through extensive messes--and a more combative and than via CGI, was one of the filmmakers' says Colin. "That was the plan." Predator than AVRs Scar. top priorities. "Especially in dealing with him. Ricky is angry at Dallas—along with these atmospheric effects that everyone else. And Ricky takes out his aggres- we're bringing to the film: lots of sion and feelings of abandonment on Dallas smoke and steam jets—and the because there's no one else around." rain," Greg details. "Those are all No one except vicious antagonistic ex- organic phenomena that are still traterrestrials, that is. "I guess in these movies, very difficult to do in CGI." the Predators are getting more and more intel- Continues Colin, "There's ligent, in terms of having sentient thoughts something terrifying—especially and feelings," Lewis observes. "Wolf is an from an actor's standpoint—about aware organism with a highly-developed sense having an Alien three inches from of combat and nobility. In this film, we're try- your face, quivering lips, and it's ing to make the Predator a singular entity that just pouring gallons of drool on you can relate to and empathize with." you. You really can't do that in Lewis resists the speculation that Wolf is CGI. Nothing beats shooting it for the new Scar. "He's an anti-hero," Lewis cor- real in-camera." rects. "Wolf isn't on anybody's team, but there "We'll have our fair share of

is a bit of a symbiotic relationship. We have CG effects in this movie," Greg brushes. The Aliens and the Predator and peo- adds. "But every effort has been

ple all intermingle." put toward doing stuff practically As for his favorite combatant, Pasquale re- first."

sponds, "The Predator, of course! It has to be ADI FX wizard—and ALIEN the Predator They're just so sophisticated, and franchise veteran—Tom Woodruff

their weaponry is fantastic. The Aliens are Jr. is back in the Alien suit. "Tom much more primitive and leech-like—and a brings so much character to the

whole lot uglier, frankly. So I go Predator all creature," says Colin. "And the way." [AVP's] Ian Whyte reprising his "Like to grab a cup of coffee with—or run role as the Predator has brought away from?" returns Lewis. "I find the Aliens the Predator stuff up a notch, too. fascinating. They're the ultimate nightmare. We also reference Kevin Peter They're the worst-case perfect species." Hall's work in the original Pre- www.starlog.com Smm/January 2008 '

ANIMATION Spellbound by hand-drown By BOB MILLER artistry Jannes Baxter brings his expertise to Disneys modern fairy tale.

Pity poor Princess Giselle. She comes from a world of talking animals and singing princes and everybody lives happily ever after. But evil Queen Narissa has banished her to a strange and terrifying world far beyond her wildest nightmares: New York City. Fantasy collides with reality in Disney's Enchanted, starring Amy Adams as the beautiful but

naive Giselle, X-Men's James ? Marsden as her handsome true love Prince Edward, Susan Sarandon as the vile, shape- changing Narissa and Patrick'! Dempsey as Robert Philip, th^the fuddled city attorney who aids Giselle, who in turn falls in love with him. "It isn't like , where it's a combination film," says hand- drawn animation supervisor James Baxter.

"We aren 't animating over live-action plates. There are animated sequences that take place in an animated world, and then live- action sequences that take place in a live- action world." But who would animate Giselle's world? Disney returns to hand-drawn When production began in 2005, Disney had animation with Enchanted, a fairy already dismantled its traditional hand- tale comedy that mixes drawn animation department. Despite the classic illustration with box office and successes of DVD Lilo & live-action adventure. Stitch ($145.8 million gross in theaters alone) and Brother Bear ($85 million), the for Belle on Beauty and the Beast, As major American studios abandoned Michael Eisner administration closed the animating the memorable "Tale as Old as hand-drawn animation, Baxter decided to studio's facilities in , Sydney and Time" ballroom sequence (and discussing it pursue his passion for the art form—by Orlando, and switched the in in COMICS SCENE #24). He also super- forming his own studio. "Personally, I didn't Burbank to CG production. With no func- vised the animation for Rafiki in The Lion go out on any type of mission to save hand- tional pipeline in place, Disney had to look King and Quasimodo in The Hunchback of drawn animation or anything lofty like that," elsewhere for hand-drawn animation. Notre Dame. he says. "I only started my studio as a way to

Then Jeffrey Katzenberg left Disney to keep doing it, because it's what I enjoy Once Upon a Time... co-found DreamWorks, and offered Baxter a doing. It was more of a selfish act than any- To the rescue came Baxter, who had position there, supervising animation for thing else. I've done CG animation. I did it established his own studio specializing in Moses in Prince of Egypt. For the next for a couple of years at DreamWorks, and high-quality hand-drawn animation. decade, Baxter worked at DreamWorks on learned so much, and I'm glad that I did it, Originally from , this old Disney (supervising Tulio), because now I can speak that language and hand started on Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (Spirit), communicate with those guys. So if I need to progressing from in-betweener to animator. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (Sinbad) do it, I can just jump right in. But the act of After The Little Mermaid and The Rescuers and then moving into CGI with and drawing is much more pleasurable to me, so Down Under, he served as the supervising Madagascar. I wanted to find a way to do it on my own.

18 STARLOGAnuory^M "We started very small, with no invest- "Working on our deal with Disney to do •g ment, so that we could start pretty much this film, we got a little held up, because the 5 from the ground up. We kept putting the entire legal department was busy buying ^ money that we made back into the company. Pixar," Baxter chuckles. "It couldn't have | Setting up a small studio that specializes in happened at a better time for us." I" hand-drawn animation could be construed as With many traditional hand-drawn ani- 5 risky, but I felt like the industry as a whole mators out of work, Baxter could choose ^ talent pool. was a bit of a safety net. If I fell flat on my from the cream of the crop of the |- from face, I didn't see why I couldn't come back. "We put together a crew of guys, some §

I left DreamWorks on very good terms with Disney, some from DreamWorks," he S" I could get my Jeffrey, and I figured that if I did fall flat on remarks. "I picked whomever g part, had about = my face, it wasn't going to ruin me. So why hands on. For the most we not try it? six or seven animators working on it. They ^ "I wouldn't get involved in a difficult came and went. I suppose, ultimately, a h

[endeavor] if it looked like it wasn't going to dozen animators went through on g work. It's all our own money; we aren't Enchanted!' s beholden to anybody. I thought that was important for the kind of control we wanted Meanwhile... I Pasadena studio handled all the §> to maintain—to set it up exactly the way that Baxter's we wanted, and be the size that we wanted to hand-drawn animation in-house, including .g S be. We have a core group of eight people or the in-betweening. Since Disney had dis- so, and we grow to accommodate any long mantled its CAPS system, Baxter relied on i projects that we get." "off-the-shelf Animo software for its digital g o During its first year, James Baxter ink-and-paint system. The studio ended up Animation worked on Curious George, as using 50 people to produce 14-and-a-half f well as a Dolby Digital ad in conjunction minutes of traditional animation. 1 with the film. Then came the opportunity to "Kevin went out to New York to shoot the m Veteran artist James Baxter's love of do Enchanted. "Disney was looking around live action, and we were animating out here | traditional animation led him to form his the animation," on the West Coast at the same time," Baxter town for a studio to do own studio, which handled Enchantecfs ^ explains. "But there was lots of communica- Baxter says. "I knew Kevin [Lima, the direc- hand-drawn segments. He's seen here in | because many of the m tor]." A Disney veteran, Lima has directed his Disney days as supervising animator tion that had to happen, both animation (A Goofy Movie, ) and of Beauty and the Beast's Belle. characters are both animated and real. As far live-action (102 Dalmatians, Eloise at the as the costume and character design, there Plaza, Eloise at Christmastime). "I had same film at the same time. I wanted to make was a great deal of back-and-forth going on never worked with Kevin on a movie at sure that Kevin knew that we were out there while they were casting the film and the cos- Disney, but we had been there at the same and were available, so I invited him over, we tumes were being designed. We had to match sure that time; we just never quite touched on the talked and he thought it was a great idea." the live-action stuff and make

v\nw/.sta rlog .com Smm/January 2008 1 9 —

everyone was on the same page." us their model. So we looked at each other's And the animated characters' perfor- stuff to make sure that we were doing the mances had to match their real-life counter- same character—although the story is writ- parts. "I watched a couple of Amy and ten in such a way that he's supposed to be James' screen tests, so I could see what they different. When Pip changes into a real chip- had done in their auditions, but I hadn't been munk, he can't talk anymore, which frus- given any footage of them from the final trates him. But as long as people recognize

movie," Baxter says. "We had already ani- him as the same character, that's what is mated a little footage by that point, and then important." they started sending us dailies—^but not every day. They would send us bits and Happily Ever After... pieces that they thought were really good, so Shrek started the trend of films making we would check out what the actors were fun of musical fairy tales, followed by the doing. And when we had completed enough Lilo & Stitch trailers in which the latter animation, we sent that over to them, so the invaded several classic Disney movies. "I actors could see what we were doing. don't like comparing this to Shrek," Baxter "We had a discussion at the beginning, offers. "It's very different, and more warm- and Kevin was extremely clear about what hearted. Enchanted doesn't so much poke he wanted from these characters. He was fun at the characters as it embraces them. It also very definitive with his actors that he isn't a twisted fairy tale. This is a real fairy

Pip the Chipmunk has two incarnations: Baxter's taiking toon, and 's tongue-tied CG rodent (pictured).

tale, but that being said, the animated

sequence that sets up the movie is tongue-in- cheek. They go way too far. There are way too many animals that follow them around. They fall in love way too quickly. And they sing at the drop of a hat. All the Disney

cliches are pushed to the limit. I think the

will get the fact that it isn't sup-

posed to be taken seriously. But it was done with lots of love. "Disney was ready to embrace their roots again," he adds. "Especially since animation has been stretched in different directions some of them not as successful as they want- ed them to be. When Enchanted came along. wanted them to be classic Disney heroes and heroines. Fortunately, he cast really well.

Amy and James perfectly understood what it means to be a naive, classic Disney hero. And I had been at Disney for a long time, so I knew exactly what Kevin wanted when he talked about certain Disney aspects. He would say, T want this to be like that part in

Sleeping Beauty.' And I would reply, 'Oh, I know what you mean.' The whole film is very self-referential, and it was easy to com- municate precisely what was needed." Tippett Studio in Berkeley, handled the CG animation, which involved Pip the Chipmunk, various birds, rats and a menacing dragon in the real world. "We had a little with them on certain sequences that transitioned our world into the live-action world," Baxter states. "There are a couple of in-between shots, where things are half-and-half. We did our bit, and then it went over to Tippett, where they added more stuff. "We both did animated versions of Pip. Tippett created a much more realistic chip- munk for the live-action world, and our car- toon chipmunk resides in the animated So, will things be Happily Ever After for hand-drawn animation? Baxter doesn't know, world. I sent drawings to them, and they sent but believes that "audiences just want a good story with good characters."

20 STARL0G/joniHjry2M Maya or whatever software afterward. If you're a CO animator—regardless of where you work—every studio seems to have their own proprietary system and little bells and whistles. So you always have to go through

a little training period whenever you join a major CG studio. "It's much more important to know how to animate, how that world really moves and understand performance and mechanics, so that you can quickly adapt in a training situ-

ation. Of course, it's valuable to have CGI in

your arsenal. But I usually encourage people

to first put pencil upon paper. It's more immediate. You get the animation into your system quicker without the software getting in the way. With pencil and paper, you don't have to think about rigging, lighting or ren- dering. And you do learn quicker that way." Concerning the return of hand-drawn animated features, James Baxter says, "I'm

not sure if it will be like the '90s. It's going

to be a little different, for sure. I think

Disney's plan is to make it more of a special

I believe they want to it was a chance for them to say, 'Let's iden- how to interact with the software. commodity. But don't tify ourselves as what we're all about: The "Many of the problems that [animation] do anything close to the volume they put out traditional fairy tale.' And they jumped at students are having these days comes from in the '90s. Maybe they'll make one every that." not concentrating on the basics of animation two or three years, which is a good idea. the audience wanting more!' Is there any pressure for Enchanted to first. Then you can worry about learning Keep ^ succeed and open the door wider for hand- drawn animation? "I'm really not sure," Baxter answers. "Sometimes I feel that in the animation community, certain people are looking at the viability of hand-drawn ani- mation. I'm not sure how the public feels

about it. They like looking at stuff that's good, and they don't seem to care how it's done. Audiences just want a good story with good characters." Currently, Little Mermaid writer-direc- tors and are preparing Disney's return to hand-drawn animated features with The Princess and the Frog. According to Baxter, "That's still in the early stages. They're just starting to hire animators. They won't be seriously getting into production until next year." Baxter hasn't been contacted about working on that movie, "But we're doing a one-and-a-half- minute opening sequence in a DreamWorks film coming up next year. We seem to be all about opening sequences," he chuckles. As for advice for aspiring ani- mators among STARLOG read- ers, Baxter says, "You have an advantage when you know how to animate [on paper]. I know that sounds stupid, but it's easier and quicker to learn the basics when you use pencil and paper. Then you don't have to worry about learning software at the same time you're learning how to animate. So for me, the transition to CGI was very easy. Since I already knew how to animate, it was more a question of telling Baxter & co. referenced classic Disney films and chiaracters, as evidenced by this latest wicl

wvvw.starlog.com ^mm/knmy200S 21 GOODBYE, YEII^OW BRICK ROAD. THIS SCI FI MINI-SERIES REPAVES & REIMAGINES THE WONDERFUl WIZARD OF .

By WILL MURRAY

Attempts to reimagine L. Frank of different lands with lots of interesting crea- Baum's children's fantasy classic The tures, human beings and societal changes."

Wonderful aren't any- "It was an intentional move not to define it thing new. 's Zardoz was set in too much," Van Sickle notes. "Part of the joy the future. was an all-black Broadway of the Wizard of Oz is being in this world, and

musical version which became a film starring making of it what your imagination makes of

Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. Philip Jose it. One of the visual trademarks of the place is Farmer's 1982 novel A Barnstormer in Oz told that we do know that the O.Z. has two suns the tale of 's aviator son blundering and two moons." into the land his mother had visited. "And they both play into the overall story Then there was DC Comic's The Oz- in a big way," Mitchell foreshadows.

Wonderland War, which combined Baum's Yes, this is a reboot. But why call it Tin

This ain't exactly the . Tin Man's Raw (RaoulTrujIllo), DG (Zooey Deschanel), Glitch (Alan Cumming) and Cain (Neal McDonough) travel through the O.Z. in the SCI FI Channel mini-series premiering December 2.

Although Tin Man is a new take on the tale, DG as a waitress resembles the Dorothy of L. Frank Baum's books and the 1939 film with Judy Garland.

over-the-rainbow fantasy world with Lewis Manl "The genesis of it was that Steve and I Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. 's were actually pitching the SCI FI Channel The Lost Girls took that crossover into more another idea, which they clearly hated," laughs graphic and forbidden territory. The contem- Van Sickle. "After about 20 minutes, they porary Broadway production —based were like, 'Oh boy, what is this?' And then on 's 1995 novel—takes the they said, 'There must be something you guys " witches' point-of-view. Even the memorable are passionate about.' 1939 Judy Garland film was criticized in its " 'Something you've always wanted to do " time for taking creative liberties with Baum. that you never thought anyone would do,' But there has been nothing like the SCI FI Mitchell inserts. Channel's six-hour mini-series Tin Man, "So we had this idea," continues Van which veers into dark, dystopian directions Sickle, "and the way we pitched it was: 'What " unimagined by Garland and company. Steven if we did a cop in Oz?'

Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle are the "And he's a Tin Man because he has a tin writer-producer team responsible for this sur- badge," Mitchell reveals. "When you meet real cyber- spin on the Baum him, it's in a Blade Runner-esqut world. He's books. It isn't the anymore, but the called to a crime scene where an old woman O.Z.—otherwise known as the Outer Zone. has been murdered. Everyone in the neighbor- And she isn't littie , either, but a hood says that she was just an old bitch. tough-talking Kansas waitress named DG. They're looking for a runaway, who's the sus- "The geography is that there's Kansas, the pect, and her name is Dorothy Gale. And that's world we all live in, and then there's the Outer all we had. It really intrigued them. Literally, Zone," explains Mitchell. "The Outer Zone in when we got back to our office, we got a its entirety contains Central City and dozens phone call: 'We want to do a four-hour mini-

22 mm/January 2008 series about the Tin Man!' Craig and I looked procedural pitch," says Van Sickle. "So you'll lenge, but it has turned into something that's at eacii other: 'What's the show? We don't see the threads of the Wizard of Oz tale rein- original on its own. It was kind of daring, " know what it is!' vented and retold. They basically encouraged because you're damned if you do, damned if

us to take the whole epic icon and turn it into you don't when you play with something pop- Outcasts of Oz something brand new. Going into this, we ular." From the start, everyone agreed that the truly tried to reinvent that world with a whole According to Van Sickle, they had a virtu- police protagonist was merely a jumping-off new look, attitude and sensibility." point. "The consensus was, 'Let's do more of "And, at the same time, pay homage to the a reimagining of the oiiginal story vs. this cop original movie and characters from the book," adds Mitchell. "So it was an interesting chal- —

ally unlimited budget. "SCI FI said, 'Look involves the people he loves. Cain's story is cut loose. Don't worry about money. Just go about revenge. So we still have a flavor of a 1^ with your imagination.' Steve and I felt like for Tin Man who's searching for a heart, but he's

this thing to have a chance, we couldn 't play it searching to get his heart back, because it has safe. We had to take some chances with a leg- been broken and taken away from him. He's

endary property. We did, and we totally turned basically an action hero in this, and DG's pro- everything upside down, and came up with tector, but in a very different way than in the new worlds, new characters. SCI FI kept say- original movie."

ing, 'Great, great! More, more, more!' And it "And we designed his character to be a tra- eventually evolved into a six-hour mini- ditional, iconic Western-type hero in the vein series." of John Wayne or Clint Eastwood," Van Sickle

"We had to retool it," Mitchell elaborates. notes. "When it came to casting, Neal was the

"Because in many ways, it's a [Joseph] guy Steve and I wanted. We've worked with Campbellian epic like Lord of the Rings or Neal on several occasions. He's excellent. Star Wars. You can't just pour in two hours of Luckily, we were able to work out the sched- crap. We expanded all of the characters and ules to get him. He brings an American their storylines, so each separate movie basi- Western hero quality to the role." cally continues the story, and grows in depth.

Unlike many mini-series, the second night is Will DG andloto better than the first, and the third is better than make it back the second. Which is rare." home? Well, The partners took no direct inspiration after Elf, The from earlier, off-trail Oz interpretations. "I Hitchhiker's remember seeing The Wiz when I was Guide to the younger," acknowledges Mitchell. "Ours is so Galaxy and

much different from that movie that it's hard Bridge to

to even describe how different it is. And I've Terebithia, never watched Zardoz." Deschanel Is at home In the "That was a little darker all around," Van genre. Sickle comments. "We did SF years back with

Alien Nation, and it was great to get back to Tin badge. Tin our imaginative roots." Man. Steel heart. Despite the title, the story doesn't revolve Cain actually does around the tinny tide character. "Dorothy is have a heart, but a the protagonist," Mitchell asserts. "It's DG's past tragedy story. It's the story of a woman coming back broke It. His and finding out who she is." journey is about "Tin Man was just the catchiest title we regaining the could come up with!" laughs Van Sickle. ability to care. Elfs Zooey Deschanel plays DG. "Obviously, we made the character older than If he only had a

what Dorothy is in the books, and even the brain! His grey movie," says Van Sickle. "We gave her more matter may be missing, but the of a rebellious attitude toward life. She doesn't zipper-headed fit in. She's kind of an outcast—with a little Glitch can still get more sass in her vocabulary. Her journey dif- a laugh. He's the fers from Dorothy's quite a bit, but it's a jour- story's ney nonetheless that taps into her identity, and and comic relief. how she fits into the world." "There's a twist to that," hints Mitchell, "but it isn't at all like the backstory from the Monkey Bats of Oz movie or the books." Tin Man's Scarecrow simulacrum is known "But we don't want to spoil it," cautions as Glitch. "We wanted to have someone who Van Sickle. "We needed to update the charac- was really fun, and could play off the Tin Man ter and deepen the journey so it would res- character," says Mitchell. "Alan [X2] onate more with today's audience. With DG, Gumming is a fascinating actor, and the role we really think we've hit an interesting 'build.' was created in a totally different way than the And her journey does build, through twists and Scarecrow character. Glitch has a great back- turns, the things she learns along the way, her story that he doesn't know about. He has a zip- friends and the world that she's in. That was per across his head. Somebody took his brain. the biggest challenge: Keeping DG's quest full He wasn't born with straw in his head. And he

of surprises for the audience as well as herself. has to find that brain, because it's very impor- Zooey is such a unique actress, and she tant to DG's overall quest."

brought lots of personality to it. The character "The part was written to be comedic," Van really pops off the screen." Sickle reveals. "We knew that Glitch and Cain Neal {Minority Report) McDonough plays would be like oil and water. They butt heads Cain, the Tin Man. "Cain, unlike the Tin Man all the time. It's real interesting watching Neal in the movie or the Tin Woodsman in the book, and Alan going off on each other." was a cop in Oz," Mitchell explains. "His story "And a real reinvention of the Scarecrow, is much more of an Outlaw Josey Wales-like [with him] serving as the lost knowledge in

tale of a man who has lost his ability to care your quest in life," adds Mitchell. "Glitch is a because of a tragic event in his past that fascinating character to pull that off with."

24 Smm/January 2008 wv/w.starlog.com " —

Raoul Trujillo plays the leonine Raw. "In Mitchell admits. "Without giving too much sibility and her own feelings of inadequacy. still no place like some ways. Raw is our ," Van away, we tried something in an earlier draft For her, the story is 'There's Sickle reveals. "The character was a real chal- where, when we meet him, he's the most twist- home,' but home isn't what she expected." lenge, because he has maybe 25 to 30 lines of ed character you've ever seen. So he isn't your British director Nick Willing helmed the dialogue in a six-hour movie. So we had to find father's Wizard of Oz." mini-series. He landed the job as a result of his somebody who has an expressive, silent kind "And he isn't your bumbling Professor Photographing Fairies. "Nick of face. And we found Raoul from Apocalypto. Marvel that we all know and love," Van Sickle brought a real international sensibility to this," Raw has a big presence in the group, but it's adds. "He has a unique twist. And Dreyfuss, of praises Mitchell. "He's the most energetic and more of a spiritual, empathic presence that course, is excellent." inspirational guy. Nick would act out each draws the other characters out of their emo- A new face is the regal Lavender Eyes, role, because almost every scene was in front — act out what was tions. I know that's a little ethereal, but played by Anna Galvin. Her imprisonment of a greenscreen. He would air, coming..." "Raw is an empath who can feel others' helps drive the storyline. "She's a significant flying through the what was emotions, and he has an almost ESP quaUty, character to DG, and a guiding force in her "And do the voices," chuckles Van Sickle. where he can see your future and your past," quest," Mitchell allows. "DG is searching for "Yeah," agrees Mitchell. "Nick is an inter- Mitchell expands. "It's a unique thing. The her place in the world, and discovering that esting guy who understands this very magical fear he carries is based upon dealing with the wherever you are, you will find it, if you find world, in a very special way." fill Tin Man's six gift he has been given—and whether he should it in yourself. But her quest is quite epic, Thousands of FX shots "This show has more spe- have it, embrace it or not." because everything she thought she knew mesmerizing hours. "He also has a past with our antagonist, the about her life—up until the moment she went cial effects shots than anything SCI FI has ever evil sorceress," Van Sickle notes. through this storm—she realizes that she has done, and probably more than has ever been That's Azkedellia, played by Kathleen never known who she was. DG learns that done on television," Mitchell observes. "When

Robertson. "Azkedellia is the counterpart to the she's much more special than she imagined, Craig said eai-lier that SCI FI told us to let our ," Mitchell states. and then has to come to grips with that respon- minds wander and not worry about money, we "We really wanted to go different with that. We didn 't" wanted a young, sexy Angelina lolie-type who "Right off the bat, there's an extremely total- has an agenda, and is the toughest person in all cool storm," Van Sickle enumerates. "It's of the O.Z., but also has a very personal story ly awesome. We tried to take Dorothy through those that is tied to taking over the O.Z. The threat to different worlds, and within each of her achieving everything that she wants, and stops, they are unique in and of themselves. the threat to her emotionally, dealing with her- We mixed hi-tech, low-tech and no-tech. We point self, comes in the form of DG." liked the idea of a world that at one was Yes, Azkedellia commands a battalion of very reliant on technology, but that day is long flying monkeys. "She has what we call since gone. But there are still remnants of Mobats, or monkey bats," Mitchell reveals. technology, so there are some bizarre mechan- "They materialize in a veiy interesting ical visuals. We also go into worlds with way," Van Sickle teases. organic and carnivorous creatures that Uve in their own dark part of the O.Z. It's a nice mix Rainbow worlds of Oz of visual styles." "Central City It wouldn't be Oz without a wizard- "Also," inserts Mitchell, this case played by veteran actor Richard with all of its special effects and computer Dreyfuss. As Mystic Man, he's first encoun- graphics—is fantastic. Going back to some of tered performing in Central City's the iconic things, there are places where you Club. "That role was one of the more chal- suddenly realize: 'Oh, this is the new interpre- lenging ones to come up with a big twist for," tation of the .' Instead of the poppy fields, they go through a place called the Fields of the Papay. The Papay are these bru- Far from a tal creatures who chase them." frightful, green- skinned hag, "We have the Old Road," notes Van Sickle, Azkedellia "which is our homage to the Yellow Brick (Kathleen Road. And visually, there's a littie of that sort Robertson) is of playing there, but, again, we tried to turn it

wicked, but she's on its ear a bit." a bit easier on the Tin Man airs this month. And the mini- eyes. And, yes, series may not end there; Mitchell and Van she does have Sickle are already thinking sequel. "Ab- flying monkeys. solutely," Mitchell affirms. "We would like to do a sequel, then spin the Tin Man off into his own series." A question still hangs in the air: Exactly what is the O.Z.? Another planet? A parallel dimension? A psychedelic dream? "It's some- Writer-producers where over the rainbow, but it's a dijfevent pot Steven Long of gold this time," ducks Mitchell. IVIitchell and Craig "We want people to bring a surreal sensi- W. Van Sickle took bility it," dodges Craig Van Sickle, "because the Cowardly Lion to and made him when you're in Oz, watching Dorothy, you Raw. The leonine don't question that world, or where you are. It character is a just is!' clairvoyant Steven Long Mitchell offers the last word empath. on the O.Z.: "How about this? It's somewhere under the rainbow, and the skies are no longer blue!" As head of hear about it," laughs Anderson, always a the O.S.I. (Office of STARLOG favorite. "I have fans from all Scientific Investigation), over the world because of it! I'm an example of the American dream. And I'm grateful for was a hero in his what this country has own right. And given me. I'm so Richard Anderson touched to be seen as Oscar Goldman, a has the action figure career man in government service. Oscar

to prove it. always told the truth, and he believed that the country needed protection, and that was his job. His responsibility was the Republic,

and he took it very seriously; he had to." The Six Million Dollar Man was a 1970s phenomenon at a time when most SF TV didn't last long. "One of the main reasons why Six Million was a hit was because we brought back 'The Hero,' " Anderson ex- plains. "We had just come off of Watergate and Vietnam, and everybody wore a black By PATJANKIEWICZ hat—even in movies, with guys like Paul Newman playing anti-heroes. We were the ones who brought back the white hat! The country was ready for more positive, uplift-

ing characters, as it is right now. People want THE heroes; they want something fun." Anderson's life changed "when my agent called and said, 'You wanna do a little num- ber called The Six Million Dollar ManT I LIFE said, 'Yes,' and it ran for five years! I got a call to come in for the two-hour TV movies. We did one, and then [producer] Glen Larson said, 'We're going to series on Friday nights at 8!' So we skipped the third movie and went right into series. One of my daugh- ters told me, 'Dad, all the kids at school were " running around in slow-motion!' BIONIC Austin wasn't the only character who got After all these years, Richard Anderson in on the action. "Goldman would occasion- ally join Steve in the field," Anderson says. still loves being Oscar Goldman. "They had me climbing fences and sneaking around on missions due to the fact that poor The Beverly Hills Starbucks on Santa even when they were airing on two different Lee was in every shot. They were paying me, Monica and Wilshire is always a hive of networks. so they said, 'Let's put him out on the adven-

industry types. There's that actress While The Six Million Dollar Man isn't ture.' So I got to do some of the legwork, from The O.C. in a hat and big sunglasses currently on DVD or syndicated in the which gave Lee a little break." sipping her mocha frappachino, desperately States, "It runs worldwide—believe me, I Anderson's iconic narration over the trying to be noticed while several producers quietly hold court. Even though it's Hollywood protocol to pretend not to recog- nize anyone, that all changes when Richard Anderson arrives. All pretense ends as the tanned, hand- some character actor walks in. The produc- ers' jaws drop. Since all are former 10-year- old boys, they run over and greet the 81 -year-old Anderson like a dignitary. Another guy approaches and shoves his debut CD into the actor's hand. Anderson smiles, chats them all up, then confides,

"Happens to me every day of my life, pall I love being Oscar Goldman!" Although he has worked with , Orson Welles and Robby the Robot, Anderson will always be Oscar Goldman, the terse, no-nonsense govern- ment man who headed O.S.I.—the top- secret organization that created The Six Million Dollar Man and . As their boss, Goldman dispatched cyborgs () and Jaime Som- (Lindsay mers Wagner) on dangerous mis- Originally, Goldman supervised The Six Million Dollar Man (Lee Majors). Later, he sions, appearing on both shows (remarkably) added The Bionic Woman () to his agenda.

26 STARLOG/ionuoryMS —

to "Lee and I had a great relationship. And I "With Steve Austin, Oscar had be notes. "Steve was found a way to loosen Oscar up, first by hav- careful," Anderson reluctant and often didn't want to ing him call Steve 'Pal.' 'Pal, we have to do do the mission." this!' When Bionic Woman started, I was try- ing to find something for Jaime. So, one day

I said, 'Jaime, you have to go on this mis- sion, but we'll take care of you, babe,' and that's how 'Babe' started! When the new Bionic Woman came on, the

Times reviewed it. The female critic said, 'With his aviator shades and politically incorrect way of calling Jaime "Babe," I

miss Oscar Goldman!' I thought that was nice. She noted that you can't call a lady

'Babe' anymore, but at the time, it was so

colloquial and right, using it in admiration of a beautiful woman." The Bionic Woman also lightened up the no-nonsense Goldman. "I hardly ever smiled on Six Million—everything was so serious but on Bionic Woman, we approached it dif- ferently," he says. "Lindsay had an impish and light sense of humor that brightened "Lindsay was absolutely perfect for a things up. Lindsay had just been dropped by leading lady gorgeous, smart and — the studio when Fred Silverman said, 'I want funny," says Anderson. "It's no wonder Bionic WomanV Universal didn't she won an Emmy." her for think she was all that great, and dropped her

show's opening credits is still being re-used from under contract. They could have had in commercials. " 'We have the technology her for peanuts! Boy, what happened was to make him better than he was before. wonderful: Universal tried to replace her, Better, stronger, faster!' " Anderson quotes and Fred said, 'No, I want herV Lindsay got

himself, chuckling. "When I recorded that, everything she deserved. She's a fabulous

producer Harve Bennett really put it togeth- lady, and we're still close friends. Lindsay

er, because Glen had other things to do. was just at the house last week. She was also Harve called me on the set and said, 'On serious; Lindsay had many things that she movies when I started out. Characters like your way out of the gate, would you stop in? wanted to get right on that show. Her mes- the Bionic Woman changed all that, and, as for I want to get your opening lines for the cred- sage was anti-violence. She wanted less vio- the father of three daughters, I'm grateful that. whole thing was an adventure. I its.' We were putting in 14-hour days, and I lence, and Lindsay is all about that—she's The fine got to the gate and realized I forgot, so I still working on new ways for people to get look upon Bionic Woman as a very show violent in kids. turned around. I had had a full day, and was together and help. that wasn't overly and drew

plain tired. I went to the recording room and "Women have taken their place on the There were comic books, and Kenner Toys apologized. Then Harve said, 'Go ahead, screen, where they're no longer stuck play- made all kinds of things..." Richard!' At that point, I simply didn't care. ing homemakers or ladies of gaming houses, "All kinds of things" included a Goldman After the first few lines, he said, 'Richard, I which were the only parts for them in doll. "Let's get it right—they called it a can use this!' And that's how it happened."

His Bionic Pals A change in the show's airtime led to a new character. "ABC moved us to Sunday nights, and Universal decided we needed some romance in the story, so Kenny Johnson wrote a two-parter called 'The Bio- nic Woman,' and they hired Lindsay Wagner," Anderson recalls. "She did the show, and the place went crazy. [Then-ABC executive] Fred Silverman decided he want- ed Lindsay to have her own show. The Bionic Womanr In that two-parter, Goldman urges Austin to let an injured Sommers die, because he doesn't want to make her bionic. "You know how it is in Washington—you always keep your eye on the bottom line!" Anderson chuckles. "The way Oscar dealt with each of them was different. Lee played Steve as reluctant to get involved. 'Oscar, I don't

want to do this! Oscar, I have had enough. I want to have a life!' So Oscar would have to

tell him, 'There are serious things going on in the world, and there are only one or two Essaying the hero facing the Curse of the Faceless Man, Anderson "just played it as an

people who can do something about it.' incredible situation."

www.starlog.com SmiOG/JanuarY2008 27 —

"Sandy was great," Anderson compliments. "We saw a tape of her from New York and brought her in. When the director and I met Sandy [in person], we were like, 'Let's get her!' It was her first big gig." In the last TV movie, Bionic Ever After? (STARLOG #211), Goldman got to walk Sommers down the aisle as she finally mar- ried Austin. "I have to confess, when we

were doing the third one, I wanted to make 10 more of them and not marry them off," Anderson reveals. "But Lindsay said, 'Aww, Richard, let's marry them.' I said, 'OK.' And

there it is!"

Inspired by the TV movies' ratings, "I wanted to do a Six Million feature film. Uni- versal agreed, and I was on that for seven

years. Six scripts later, it didn't get made, for various reasons. wrote the original novel Cyborg, which became The Six Million Dollar Man. When 20 years were up, there were negotiations between his estate and Universal. Miramax found out

about it, and paid the heirs a lot of money to Anderson attributes the success of io its story and a "good cast" led by Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. get the rights. Miramax now has the rights to

make the movie, and that's where it stands. 'doll,' but it's now an action figure," The first script I read for it didn't work, and Anderson laughs. "That was the topper, and the second tried to make it into a Jim Carrey I was amazed to get an action figure of me! comedy. Carrey decided not to do it. It was And it was a pretty good likeness. They even pay or play, so he got paid. Bob and Harvey had an action play set of office! my My Weinstein have it, they want to make it, and action figure goes for lots of money on eBay, they're doing a documentary to generate and it also tells me that I made something of interest." myself in this business. Because of those Meanwhile, NBC has a new Bionic shows, I'll always be remembered. They'll Woman on the air, starring Michelle Ryan be running these series 400 years from now. and, in a variation on the Oscar Goldman In addition to that, they made a hero out of character, Miguel Ferrer (see page 30). me!" What's his view of this Bionic Woman! In Tfie 40 Year Old Virgin, Rogen "Well, it's a very different show, a darker picks up the Goldman action figure and asks take on it, and I don't want to get into it," Steve Carell, "Is this the Six Million Dollar Anderson replies. "Lindsay and I have Man's boss?!?" "He sure did," Anderson decided to stand on what we did, and what- says happily. "Steve also brings the ever's going on there is different in every Goldman figure back later in the film and way from [our show]. The times have puts it right in front of the camera. He says, changed, but I will say this: If they had a T really treasure this one because they made Darren less of him.' I enjoyed that a lot!" McGavin "was a real character and Decades later, Wagner and Anderson a tough guy," Anderson recalls. But, they His Heroic Efforts remain pais (in a photo taken in October). got along well on The Night Strangles "We're still close friends," he says. Having appeared on both shows, Anderson has his favorite episodes. "I liked that Oscar would spend on him was a mil- the Six MillionlBionic Woman crossover lion, so Jaime called him 'Maximilian.' We where the Fembots kidnap Oscar ["Kill had fun with that dog. When Six Million and Oscar"]," he notes. "We learn that Oscar left Bionic Woman were cancelled, our ratings standing orders that he be assassinated in were still good, but they felt bionics had had case of kidnapping, so as not to endanger its time. I was fine with that."

anybody's life in rescuing him. They make a Nonetheless, it was Anderson who was robot out of Oscar, so I had two things to do: the driving force behind the three Six play Oscar, as well as a robot duplicate of Million/Bionic Woman reunion TV movies. him. It was a wonderful part. You play a He even produced them. "It was my idea, so robot by having a slightly different walk I went to the studio head, and he said, 'Go just slightly—and you give a look with your get it!' and I went to the networks," eyes once in a while. At the very end, the Anderson offers. "We got three made in nine robot is standing next to Oscar, and Steve years. They got huge ratings, top of the

has to shoot one of them. Oscar then asks game. The people still loved it." Steve how he knew it was really him, and That first reunion was Tlie Return of The " Steve says, 'Robots don't sweat.' Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Near the end of Bionic Woman's run, a Woman. Bionic Showdown, the second TV Bionic Dog was added to the mix. "I remem- movie (and an unsold pilot, STARLOG ber that dog fondly," Anderson reflects. 'T #143), introduced a pretty new Bionic liked how he got his name. The maximum Woman, played by a young Sandra Bullock.

28 Smm/JanuarylOOS —

Forbidden Planet was the first picture "to really treat science fiction seriously," and a B-unit," he notes. "When the techni- Anderson observes. Warren Stevens and Leslie Nielsen co-starred. cians were out of work on the A-pictures, they would go work on the Bs. So the movies always had a great look. was produced by Nicholas Nayfack, the nephew of [MGM studio chief] Nicholas Schenck. Nick made some good pictures, like , which I was in with William Holden. Nick was a fighter, and he really wanted to make Forbidden Planet. They hired Anne Francis, because she was under contract. And they used me,

because I was under contract. And Leslie Nielsen had just been signed. They were try- ing to save money by using us. They had a [small] budget, and Nick was always going

insane. He needed more money to make it. After a week of shooting, the guys upstairs at MGM said, 'It's looking pretty good...' and put in a little more money. "I thought Robby the Robot was amaz- ing. He was unlike anything I had ever seen before. Robby came on the set, and we all treated him like a member of the cast. Hollywood had been making science fiction movies since the serials of the '30s, cheap

little things... But this was the first one to really treat science fiction seriously. For- conception of doing whiat everyone remem- top-secret organization that helps rich men bidden Planet did very well. SF, unlike any bers about the original show, I would specu- their own deaths, get new faces and other genre, always comes back." late that there would be a tremendous audi- escape all responsibility. "That's a weird Now, a half-century after Forbidden

ence for it." movie," Anderson opines. "I love it. I'm the Planet, Palm Springs is giving Anderson a plastic surgeon, and I got to say the famous star on its Walk of Stars, beside such lumi- His Offbeat Roles last line. I changed [John Randolph to] Rock naries as Frank Sinatra and Lucille Ball. Anderson has discussed his career Hudson's face, but when he tries to expose "That will be fun," he says. "It's nice to which includes Kubrick's and us, we need to have him killed. After that, I receive accolades. It says something, in a " The Long, Hot Summer—in past STARLOG say, 'Too bad, he was my best patient.' way. But it doesn't take me over. I'm right in interviews (#4, #156). Some genre movies As The Night Strangler, he terrorized the center of things on Palm Canyon Drive!" deserve another mention. For example, tabloid hero Carl Kolchak. That 1972 TV Anderson enjoys his life. "I'm able. I Anderson saved the world from the Curse of movie "was set in Seattle, but my scenes in play lots of tennis. I'm down to singles. The the Faceless Man (1958). "I had just gotten the underground city were all shot here key to a good life is stress—I try to avoid it. off The Long, Hot Summer, when they called [LA]. My character, Richard Malcolm, was I have three beautiful daughters: Ashley, me, looking for a leading man for Curse," he a doctor in the Civil War. This happened to Brooke Dominique and Deva Justine.

says. "I read it and said, 'C'mon, let's have him during that war, and he took women's Everyone asks me, 'Don't you care about

some fun!' That's all it was. The story is blood to stay alive. He was a real Dracula having a son?' And I always say, 'Are you about a man in ancient Pompeii who is killed type. It was a wonderful part that I played kidding? I'm the luckiest guy in the world!' by lava, and returns 3,000 years later looking absolutely straight, with a great script [by Happily, I enjoy my life!" for his lady! How could I possibly turn that Richard Matheson]. Richard Anderson then hops into his down? It was made in six days, which was "Darren McGavin [as Kolchak] was the Range Rover, which sports a vanity plate impossible, but you could do that back then. lead, very bright and Irish, and he liked me. reading "BIONIK." "It would have been

I just played it as an incredible situation, and We got along, but he was a real character and BIONIC with a 'C,' but somebody in when [the Faceless Man] starts acting up, I tough guy. Darren gave me a couple of sug- Denmark got it first!"

have to deal with him. I love the scene where gestions. He said, 'Ya wanna try some-

I hit him with an ax! I made the movie and thing?' I did, and it worked. I didn't play

forgot about it. Twenty years later, it shows Malcolm as a monster; it's more interesting up on late-night TV and becomes an icon." to not play it evil. Based on that movie, I'm He played Colonel Murdock in Seven not 81. That's absolutely wrong. I'm 140 Days in May (1964). "That was a really good years old!" military story written by Rod Serling and Other Anderson TV guest shots include directed by —good The Green Hornet ("Bruce Lee was agile") cast, too," Anderson extols. "The success of and The Wild Wild West. "That was with Bob that movie was because of the story: The Conrad. I liked that part. We shot that on

military is trying to take over the govern- location, way up north. Wild Wild West was a ment. Hello, sound familiar? Freddy March fun show because Bob made it fun. He was

and Burt Lancaster are great in it. John fine, and never took things too seriously. always wanted the best. He had a great way What a great movie face that guy had." with the camera, and was a helluva guy, too. But, of course, above everything else, Never met Serling, but in those days, the Anderson traveled in 1956 to the Forbidden for an writer never came on the set. I did another Planet (see STARLOG #351 imag- It's true! "It would have been BIONIC with film for John, Seconds!' ined "set visit" that includes a real chat with a 'C,' "Anderson explains, "but somebody Seconds (1966) is a cult classic about a Anderson). "MGM had two units: an A-unit, in Denmark got it first!"

wvvw.starlog.com %mm/knmylOOS 29 MIGUEL FERRER COULDN'T BE HAPPIER PLAYING

Crossing Jordan had just ended its six-year run, and co- cated family life and a drinking problem. "It has been exciting and star Miguel I^errer wanted to stick witli TV, but not sqi refreshing, because Jonas is complex, enigmatic and a guy who has badly that he would sign on for Bionic Woman. Funny: to make some very, very difficult decisions and sacrifice people thing, then, that he's on board the NBC show as Jonas- along the way for the greater good. He's just a complex, interesting Bledsoe, the head of the Berkut Group and the grumpy,! man who I think will be fun to play for a while. I wouldn't want sardonic guy who gives Jaime Sommers (Michelle Ryan) her' him to get too light and fluffy, and get into the Oscar Goldman orders marching every week. zone. That's completely uninteresting to me. Jones is much more "I'm very happy that this came along, although when I firsti like Dick Cheney. I want to see where the writers take him, because heard about Bionic Woman, my answer " was, 'Absolutely not. Not interested,' Ferrer says. "And basically they said, 'Well, not so fast. This isn't what you

think it is.' And it's not like [the show from] 30 years ago. People die. It's dark. She doesn't want to be bionic. And, of

course, it has , the executive producer of Battlestar Galactica, which was, I think it's fair to say, an extremely [poor] franchise that he has turned into some of the best TV in the last 10 years.

So all those things considered, I read the

script, met with David and I changed my mind. And I'm really glad I did!

"First and foremost, it's a beautiful dramatic piece on the page. It's unpre- dictable, imaginative and also, now, given the advances in biotechnology that

we didn't have 30 years ago, it's not just about bolting on some robotic arm.

There are nanocites and anlhrocites. If it isn't quite possible yet, you can close your eyes and imagine it will be in the On NBC's new Bionic Woman,V Jonas Bledsoe (Miguel Ferrer) and Jaime Sommer not-too-distant future. I've heard it (Michelle Rvan)Ryan) don't aalways see eye to eye.

As the head of the Berkut Group, Bledsoe must deal with Washington—Isaiah Washington, that is. The actor plays the mysterious Antonio Pope. called 'science fact,' and that's really well-said."

Jonas, meanwhile, is a very different figure from the original show's bionic boss character Oscar Goldman (Richard Anderson, see page 26) and Garrett Macy, Ferrer's alter-ego on Crossing

Jordan. Macy was medical examiner Jordan Cavanaugh's (.lill Hennessey) supervisor on that show, a decent guy with a c(nii|)li- Photo: Carole Segal 30 Smm/Janumy 2008 www.starlog.com —

he isn't simply a one-sided, villainous boss, which doesn't interest me in the least. I'm excited to find out where they go with him."

Bionics Boss The Bionic Woman audience has watched as the writers ^jmMe have slowly and steadily built the relationships between the characters. .lonas and Jaime are getting used to one anoth- er, with Jaime realizing he's the boss, and Jonas realizing that she isn't a toy. There are boundaries to how far he can push her and, for that matter, hoM much he can spy on her via her internal GPS system—without violating her privacy. Wt "I've been pretty happy with the development so far, and we're getting to it in stages," Ferrer says. "The script that I'm happiest with is the one we're doing right now, which I believe is #107. Those men and women in the w riting room are really begin- ning to find a voice now. Strangely enough, this episode is the one that I appear least in, but it's the best episode overall in terms of discovering a wonderful tone and just finding these voices. It takes a while, you know? When you start up on something like this, there are growing pains no matter what. It's impossible to hit the ground running with a full stride. Television shows define themselves over time, and now Bionic Woman is really starting to become more cohesive." Much was made in the press about the reported turmoil behind the scenes at Bionic Woman. Writer-producer Laeta Kalogridis left after the pilot and, citing creative differences, showrunner Glen (The X-Files) Morgan exited a handful of episodes later. Ferrer argues, however, that that's pretty much business as usual in Hollywood. "It's the norm," the actor assesses. "This is a more extreme case for a couple of reasons. Number one, there has been so much promotion and talk and expectation and hype, if you will, surrounding this show, that Bionic Woman got more attention.

Before there was Sommers, there was Sarah Corvus (), the original Bionic Woman. —

Crossing Jordan was a great experience for In 1988, Ferrer chatted with STARLOG about RoboCop, in which the actor, who enjoyed six years essaying Garrett IVlacy he played the loathsomely ambitious Bob iVIorton, here buttering opposite Jill Hennessey. up the Old Man (Dan O'Herlihy) and Dick Jones (Ronny Cox).

Also, I think it was more intense due to the vast amounts of money that the network and the studio have poured into this series. So the stakes were higher.

"In the two or three weeks leading up to the pilot's airing, every- body went a little nuts. And more and more so as the launch date approached. Now, things are getting back to normal and have decom-

pressed a bit. The show is doing well. Hopefully, it will continue to do better. But the writing is much more of a piece now. Sometimes, in the beginning, different scripts feel like different TV series entirely, until a common voice is found, until a tone is set. And that's happening. So,

given the attention that Bionic Woman was initially receiving, it made matters more difficult than in most cases." Though the show kicked off with stellar ratings, they have since lev- eled off into solid, respectable territory. Ferrer, for his part, hopes the numbers shoot back up, since he likes the Bionic gig. "Crossing Jordan lasted six years, and I have to tell you, on balance, that was the most wonderful job I've ever had," he explains. "Not that there weren't bumps in the road, but overall it was just great. It was a group of peo- ple that I was crazy about, and so I'm looking forward to that happen- ing again. I'm a big fan of everyone in this cast. I can tell you that there are no prima donnas, jerks, problematic personalities or egos that I can see anywhere on the horizon. We all genuinely like and respect one another, and it's fair to say that we're all excited when we come to work." Genre Guy Anyone reading this article is no doubt familiar with Ferrer. The son of acting legend Miguel Ferrer and music legend Rosemary Clooney has immersed himself in the science fiction universe over the years. He is one of us. His childhood hero was Batman. He owned a dog named The Stand mini-series was Ferrer's first visit to Stephen King country. Spock. He has written comic books ("That 50 bucks a page came in pretty handy on more than one occasion," he admits, "but I think I'm done"). He lent his voice to numerous animated shows, played in a don't forget, that was before all the TV series made Star Trek more band with in Bill Lost Space's Mumy and acted in more than a dozen commonplace—or more ubiquitous, certainly. But back then it was shows and movies that fall into the SF and/or horror categories. really, really special. It was nothing short of a dream come true." Among those credits: Star Treic HI: Tire Search for Spock, RoboCop, And, yes, as mentioned earlier, there was a dog named Spock in

DeepStar Six, Mr Magoo, Mulan, The Night Flier and The Manchurian Ferrer's life. "There sure was," he laughs. "He was a black lab that I got

Candidate (2004). TV roles include Twin Pealcs, three Tales from the when I was 1 1 years old. And I got to work with Mr. Nimoy again on Crypt episodes. Project ALF, Brave New World, : The Brave New World. We had some scenes together, and became reac- Animated Series, 3rd Rock from the Sun, The Stand and Night Visions. quainted with each other. Shortly after working on that, he bought an

Ferrer graciously and patiently agrees to look back at some of those apartment in the building in Manhattan in which I lived. So we saw a experiences. lot of each other in New York for a while. I saw him about six months One of his earliest credits was Star Trek III (1984), in which he had ago at a fundraiser for the LA County Museum of Art. He looks incred- a small role as the executive officer aboard the U.S.S. Excelsior. "That ible. He's just one of my absolute heroes, one of my favorite people on was the first one directed, and I had met Mr. Nimoy the planet." years ago with my Dad," Ferrer recalls. "We went to dinner together. Back in 1988, Ferrer told STARLOG (issue #129) that shooting his

This was 1969 or 1970. And he remembered that evening. One time, he death scene in RoboCop was a "lot of fun." Two decades later, Ferrer was directing and he hadn't had time to take off his ears yet from his who played RoboCop project leader Bob Morton—stands by that state- acting chores. So, I'm looking at Leonard Nimoy, with the ears, and ment. "I remember that night very, very, very well," he says. "It was he's directing me. And I'm in the Star Trek suit. It was beyond.. .and supposed to be shot over the course of two nights, but we were com-

32 SmiQG/January 2008 DeepStar Six Photo: Copyright 1988TriStar Pictures, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

DeepStar Six sunk at the box office. Ferrer calls the His second King adaptation, The Night Flier, was a flick "a very, very bad movie." disappointment thanks to production problems.

pressing the schedule and trying to get the budget back under control, ry: in a recording studio providing the voice of an animated character. and so they told [director] Paul Verhoeven that he had to shoot all that And it's no humdrum figure, but rather J'onn J'onzz, a.k.a. Martian Frontier. work in one night. He wasn't happy, and he was very sick at the time, Manhunter, whom he's portraying in : The New Sisto as Batman, as I remember. He was ill with the flu, and he was just in a foul temper. Also in the voice cast are Jeremy Patrick Harris as the "That was the first and only time he ever raised his voice to me dur- Green Lantern, Kyra Sedgwick as , Neil ing the shooting of that movie. With Paul, you could count on at least Flash, Phil Morris as King Faraday and as Wonder Frontier as a direct- one screaming tantrum per day, and I guess that night was my night. He Woman. Warner Home Video will release The New really barked at me, and I didn't feel that I deserved it, so I turned to-DVD movie in early 2008. to use his around and said something like, 'Why the hell are you yelling at me? "I love the art," enthuses Miguel Ferrer—who's hoping in a proposed biopic about the leg- Go screw yourself!' It was something eloquent along those lines. And Bionic hiatus to play Buddy Rich end. "The art in that he looked at me, kind of startled, and he laughed and gave me a hug. endary drummer—as the conversation comes to an really went back and Those were the last cross words we ever had." show is interesting. Batman in particular They took that #27 Batman, with the short gloves and the big ears and the sort of small black bat on his chest. It's pretty cool. I so I didn't As for some of those other credits, Ferrer describes DeepStar Six think that's going to be good. It was just me in a booth, know (1989) as "a very, very bad movie," and Mr. Magoo as "another very, I was in such nice company." ^ very bad movie." Over on TV's Twin Peaks, he co-starred as Agent

Albert Rosenfield. 'Twin Peaks is one of the things I'm most proud of," he says. "[Co-creators] and Mark Frost are enormous tal- ents, and that was unlike anything that had been on TV at the time. I'm

really proud to have been a part of it." Around the same time, Ferrer turned up in his trio of Tales from the Crypt entries, namely "The Thing from the Grave," directed by Fred Dekker and co-starring ; "As Ye Sow," helmed by his Twin Peaks co-star Kyle MacLachlan and featuring Hector Elizondo, John Shea and ; and "In the Groove," directed by Vincent Spano, with Ferrer joined by Wendie Malick. "The first one was my favorite," Ferrer says. "In every succeeding season, they had less and less money

in the budget, so the schedules got tighter. And it turned out to be a lit-

tle less fun." And while the Stand mini-series helmed by STARLOG pal Mick Garris turned out "pretty well," Ferrer considers Tlie Night Flier a dis-

appointment. "There were two guys who produced it who just didn't care as much as they should have," he explains. "There were an awful lot of day players who they refused to bring in from either New York or LA, and they felt that the local hired guys were going to be just fine

because, after all, it was only a vampire movie. And I think the picture

really suffered. I thought I was good. I know I tried my damnedest. But

it was a first-time director [Mark Pavia] who didn't really have the con-

fidence or the balls to tell these guys how it should go. So that was probably a disappointment." More recently, Feirer shared the screen with Denzel Washington in Jonathan Demme's remake of the John Frankenheimer classic The Mancliurian Candidate. Ferrer played Washington's superior officer, Colonel Garret. "I don't know why that film wasn't better received," Ferrer says, referring to the fact that the film proved to be both a criti- cal and financial flop. "But with Denzel, Jonathan and Meryl Streep, my God. And the screenplay by Dan Pyne was extraordinary. So I don't

know. Sometimes it happens." And the actor's upcoming project finds him back in familiar territo-

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dramas with an SF tinge aren't and co-star from Identity, and Anjelica (Bobby Coleman), who spends most of his familyexactly John Cusack's stock in trade. Huston, another longtime friend with whom day in a box and claims to be from Mars. the star But just couldn't turn down he had co-starred in The Grifters. Plus, it David ultimately gives it a shot, much to Martian Child. And how could he? was an opportunity to work again with the joy of his friend and burgeoning love The job was a firm offer. New Line writer-director Menno Meyjes, who had put interest, Harlee (Peet), and much to the dis- Cinema gave him a hand in all the Cusack through the paces a few years ago in may of his sister Liz (Joan Cusack), who major casting decisions. And he got the drama Max. refers to her own children as "Omen I" and to share the screen with his sister, Joan And, finally, Cusack—most recently on "Omen IL" Muddling matters further, Cusack, as well as Amanda Peet, his friend view in the sleeper horror hit 1408—liked Dennis seems to do things—guessing M&M the Martian Child screenplay. In the big- colors with his eyes closed, willing a base- screen adaptation of former STARLOG ball player to hit a home run—that suggest columnist David Gerrold's award-winning maybe he does possess some otherworldly short story "The Martian Child"—which powers. However, just as David and Dennis Gerrold later expanded into a novel of the connect, the folks at Social Services threaten same name—Cusack plays David Gordon, to separate the two. an SF author still grieving over his wife's "I like that David is somebody who's an death. David decides to adopt a child, and is artist and somewhat accomplished, but also paired with a troubled young boy, Dennis a little isolated," Cusack says. "You can

Going to a baseball game Is just one of ado theiiic ways thatiiicii. DavidL^aviu (Johnlouiiii Cusack)wuddl^rvi bondsuuiius , _ _ By IAN, with the young boy. ^ SPELLING martian David Gerrold's acclaimed tale of science fiction father i alien soi becomes a touching motioi picture.

SF writer David Gordon's world is turned upside-down when he adopts Dennis (Bobby Coleman), the Martian Child. 36 STARL0G//onuofy2(?0fi www.starlog.com —

Changing David's sexuality opened the door for a female love interest, Harlee, played by Amanda Peet. relate to that. And wanting a bit more in of trying to reach out and touch this other your life, and wanting to find a deeper soul—is sweet and true. And how he con- purpose, I think everybody can relate to nects with this boy who finds it hard to fit in that. Also, the relationship with the kid is pretty interesting, too. "Then there's the question of what is nor- mal. How much should you try to fit in and be like other people, and how much should you be like yourself even if you are consid-

' , ered eccentric and all those things? Would you want to give Albert Einstein

; , Ritalin? Not that everybody is going to grow up to be a genius, but the idea of people's individuality vs.

conformity is a big issue in

, life. So I thought there was some interesting stuff in this story."

Child Play While most of the pieces fell easily into place on Martian Child, one of the tougher tasks was finding the right young actor to play Dennis. The film's casting depart- ment whittled down hun- dreds of prospects to a bunch whom Cusack, Mey- jes and producers David {Child's Play) Kirschner and Corey {Seed of Chucky) Sienega met. Eventually, Coleman—who was eight years old at the time, and had played Jesse in several episodes of the short- lived SF series Surface—landed the role. "We worked with a bunch of people and went through the process, and Bobby was the one," Cusack recalls. "[On the set], we just did the scenes. We read the scenes and talked. He's eerily evolved and professional. Bobby knew, 'Dennis wouldn't do that. Dennis would do that.' He had a very specif- ic point-of-view. Bobby was so good, I for- got that he hasn't been doing this for that long. He has only been around for eight or nine years. That's pretty wild." Coleman, meanwhile, reports that he likes SF and fantasy. He has read Eragon, for example, and he loves the Star Wars movies. Acting with Cusack, he notes, was a unique experience. "John came up to me one day and said, 'I'm not going to play with you right now, in the beginning. We should just work things through like they play out in

mm/k!)uary2008 37 replies, "I don't know, because I didn't develop the project, and I wasn't there. The only thing I saw was something that wasn't that way. There was always a relationship with the wife who had passed away, and then there was the budding thing with Harlee. So

I never saw any version of it that way. It would have been a totally different film, and

it would have been all about the politics of

gay rights. I just don't know if it would have been as intriguing. Maybe, if the script was great, yeah, that would have been fine, too." Shedding additional light on the subject are Kirschner and Sienega. Yes, they bought the rights to the short story, but when the book arrived in stores, the film had yet to roll, meaning there might have been time to weave the character's sexuality into the screenplay, thereby adding another layer to David and the drama. (They had also pur-

c the script,' " Coleman remarks. "So that's s LU what we did. John gradually started talking u E to me more, and then, by the end, we were o good." (£ O Face to face, Coleman is bright, curious "o and lively—in other words, he's a far cry Q. from Dennis. "I didn't stay in character between scenes," Coleman explains. "I knew

Dennis. My parents and my sister and I, we played around with things. And I fully understood Dennis. So I could flip into Dennis mode pretty easily. So, no, I'm not like Dennis at all." [SPOILER WARNING] By the film's end, it's still not entirely clear whether or not Dennis actually arrived on Earth from Mars.

Some moviegoers may feel that it's obvious Dennis is from Mars and chooses to stay on Earth with David as his father. Others will no doubt think that Dennis is simply an emo- tionally troubled boy who finally came Is Dennis truly a Martian Child? The film's ending is but around when David made him feel safe ambiguous, Coleman has come to believe his character is human. enough to do so. Coleman, for one, believes that his character is not an alien. than that. David wasn't gay in Gerrold's chased the book rights, too, to protect the "I like the fact that I wasn 't an alien," he original 1994 short story, but when the short story rights). On the other hand, as declares. "If I was an alien, it would have author expanded that into The Martian Child Cusack noted, it might have transformed defeated the movie's message. So I like it the novel in 2002, he revised the character to Martian Child into a different kind of a way it is. I like that I don't turn out to be an reflect himself, and by then Gerrold had film—and possibly less of a family film. alien. For a while, the script was such that publicly come out of the closet as a homo- "I'm torn on that answer, because when you weren't really sure if I was an alien or sexual man and father. you say it isn't as much of a family film... not. It kind of is still like that, but I believe "It's kind of ironic," Peet acknowledges. Gay families is our co-writer [Jonathan most people would go for that Dennis isn't Asked if it might have been more inter- Tolins], who just adopted a child and lives an alien, and that the powers are just a coin- esting to play David as homosexual, Cusack with his partner," Kirschner explains. cidence or something. But it was [up in the "They're an amazing family. But this is what air] at one point." we sold them, and this is what we stayed with, because we felt this is what the story Family Way should be. If you're asking if we would have Peet didn't have to think long and hard bought the story [if David Gordon were gay about joining the Martian Child cast. It was from the outset]—we may have. I don't quick work, and work with an old friend. know the answer to that. But the story that Plus, she was impressed by the story. "I real- we bought and sold to the studio was this ly loved the script," she notes. "And I love one, and we said John would be great for it. -

John. I had previously done Identity with Four of the studios bid on it in one day, and him. And is so adorable Bobby and cheerful. New Line purchased it. This was the story .1 I adore him." that they bought, and that's where we went." i Although is Peet wonderful in the film, "I'm hoping this is a movie for all fami- | the character won't be to everyone's liking. Starting with 1983's Class, Joan Cusack lies—for all kinds of families," Corey J" And that's because the David Gordon char- * and her brother John have appeared in Sienega concludes. "In this case, he's a sin- acter in Gerrold's semi-autobiographical several movies together. She plays his gle father who is adopting. But it celebrates ~ story is gay. Actually, it's more convoluted sister in Martian Child. acceptance of all kinds of differences." ^ o

38 mm/immylOOS www.starlog.com i-ClSIT THE SCIEIMCE FICTION URIIVE^

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facts of life to you? Not the birds & the . No, these facts of WHO life are for you alone. Before you were born, your loving parents sold your soul to Old Scratch. Otherwise known as the Devil. Yes, that Devil. And for the rest of your unnatural life, your thankless task is to collect fugitive PEAKS souls who have escaped the hot coals of the Devil's playground, and return them to eternal damnation and everlasting fires. You have just Tutu been deputized as a bounty hunter for Hell.

That's the premise of the CW's situation dramedy. Reaper. Bret Harrison plays Sam With his soui soid Oliver, slacker, college-postponer and employee at the Home Depot knockoff The to Satan, Work Bench. Harrison landed the fiery part thanks to work he had done for Reaper pro- Bret Harrison is ducers Tara Butters and Michele Fazekas on Law & Order: SVU. So accepting this weird- deiightfuiiy departure role aroused no hesitation whatsoev- er in the outwardly normal actor's heart. In doing the fact, Harrison claims it was an easy decision. "It was a combination of many things, not Devii's worl(. the least of which was the talent already involved," Harrison explains. "Come on, writ- As Reaper unfolds, Sam will do ers from Law & Order, producers from Grey's more than simply chase escaped Anatomy and Kevin Smith directing [the damned souls and demons. "I see pilot]. How could I not sign on?" Sam slowly and reluctantly coming to

grips with his lot in life," Harrison Hell's Bounty Hunter reveals. "He'll constantly be trying to A rising star, Harrison doesn't very much find ways to get out of this deal, but resemble his character. Or so he claims. "Sam unless the show is about to be cancelled, I and I share a high regard for friendship and an don't think that will happen. Otherwise, it ability to contort our faces into often ridicu- wouldn't be Reaper, just Sam." lous expressions, but that's about it," he notes Sam's strange relationship with his par- wryly. ents—who, to be completely fair, sold not

Cut him slack! Sam Oliver (Bret Harrison) has been having one Devilishly j bad year. I

Dealing directly with the Devil can be dicey for Sam. Harrison

finds it "humbling" to work with an actor of Wise's caliber.

40 mRlOG/January 2008 —

"Actually, the episode we're shooting now stands out," he offers. "It isn't like most of our other episodes, in that we're finally getting a chance to see what some of the other charac- ters do when they aren't around Sam, which is always nice. Let's just say that Sock [Tyler

Labine] finds love, and it's very amusing. Of course, this means the three amigos—Sock, Ben [Rick Gonzalez] and Sam—spUt up. But don't worry, we come back together in the end."

Satan's Little Helper Every week, Sam locks horns with Beelzebub, in the form of actor Ray Wise (STARLOG #361). Not much fun for Sam, but

Harrison is having a blast. "Ray is great," he praises. "One of the best parts about my acting

career so far is that I seem to constantly be

paired up with more experienced—I daresay more talented—actors, from whom I'm able to learn amazing things. Every time I'm in a scene with Ray, I'm humbled. As a person and a professional, he's truly a treat." Invasion'^ Labine, who plays Bert Wysocki, evokes a different reaction—at first. "He's all right," Harrison says dryly. "Next

question. Just kidding. Tyler is awesome. He's sooooo talented. We have loads of fun impro-

vising on set. He's also becoming not just my Joining Sam for more Worl< Bench shenanigans on the CW are (front) Ben (Ricl< best friend on set, but a great friend period." Gonzalez), And! (Missy Peregrym); (rear) "Sock" (Tyler Labine), Josie (Valarie Rae One of Reaper's, only completely sympa- MiWer) and the Devil (Ray Wise).

his particular soul, but the hypotheti- cal soul of their first-born when they thought they couldn't have will , children— be explored as well. "I don't know how much more strained their relation- ship can get," Harrison muses. "I mean, his parents sold his soul to the Devil! If he can forgive them for that, he can pretty much for- give them for anything. That said, look for some continuing developments in the parents' story- lines—not so much between Sam and them (although the new revelations will affect Sam), but more between them and their past." It's a situation that the actor—who was raised in Portland, —doesn't have to stretch too much to imagine in his own life. Or

so he likes to project. "I'll tell you this much that would explain a lot of things!" he quips. Including, perhaps, the eerie synchronicity IVIisslon: Implausible? that has been haunting the 25-year-old's acting Should any of the career. He has been playing characters named Reaper team be caught or barbecued, "Sam" almost exclusively since starring as the Devil, err, won't Sam Sullivan in the short-lived 2006 TV series really care. The Loop. In fact, the Law & Order: SVU breakout role that led to his becoming Sam Oliver was another Sam: Sam Cavanaugh. Before that, Harrison played such non-Sams as Charlie on That '70s Show and Brad Andi remains the O'Keefe on Grounded for Life. Getting back girl of Sam's dreams. to Reaper, Harrison is having a hot time mov- Against all odds, ing through the wild procession of scripts and she's actually sorta, situations thrown at him by the show's writers. kinda, fond of him, So much so, they're all blurring together in the too. Who'd have frantic pace of weekly TV series production. thought? wvvw.starlog.com mm/JanumY2008 41 The Devil owns thetic characters is Andi (Missy Peregrym). Sam body and She is Sam's unrequited love interest not soul. Especially — that the confirmed slacker the soul part. is doing much But it's cool. about his unexpressed affection for the object of his desires—and fellow Work Bench co- worker. Will their smoldering attraction ignite? Can a minion of Satan find true love with the innocent girl next door? Harrison waffles on that score. "I think the writers will—and rightfully so put off pulling the trigger on that rela- Tracking down — tionship for as long as they can," Harrison Hell's AWOLs speculates. "I'm sure it will can be a grow, because if it troublesome doesn't, that means we're standing still—and gig. Most lost standing still is rarely entertaining. When and souls don't if it does move to the next level, it'll be inter- want to be esting to see how the revelation of Sam's found. predicament affects things between them." Reaper'^ so-far successful mix of hor- ror, humor and satire has struck a sympa-

thetic chord with viewers. It looks easy on the small screen, maybe because the cast—which also includes Dark Angel's Valarie Rae Miller as Josie and Allison Hossack and Andrew Airlie as Sam's

guilt-ridden parents—makes it look easy. But is it? "While it's true that there aren't a ton of shows on the air that attempt the

balancing act like we do, it's actually eas- ier than you might think," Harrison

replies. "After all, real life isn't entirely

serious nor entirely comedic. If it's any-

thing like my life, it definitely has ele- ments of both."

Harrison is also adapting to the unfa- miliar requirements of acting opposite special FX that have yet to be inserted into

the mix. "Yeah, it's definitely weird at times to be acting scared of a guy who's

supposed to be throwing electricity at me, but is actually just waving his arms," he

allows. "Oddly, I've gotten used to it." Asked a hypothetical question, Harrison surprises by reveahng that the

possibility really exists. The question is: What kind of Reaper episode would he write if he had the opportunity to script? "The

best one, of course!" he counters. "Actually, if the show gets picked up for additional episodes, there has been talk of me helping to write one. Unfortunately, that means I'm going to have to keep my ideas out of print,

but keep your fingers . It would be a great moment in my career if that happens." It's still early on in the Reaper season, so on-set anecdotes are at a premium. "Not one story in particular," Harrison admits, "but, in

general, I get hit in the face with something

just about every week. In the pilot, it was a

bottle of bleach. In the second episode, it was a soda can—although the scene got cut. I've had more bruises on this show than anything

else I've ever done. The makeup artist and I have a running joke about how much touch-up I need every morning to hide my wounds." Wounds that are certain to accumulate over Reaper's first 13 episodes. And speaking of that unlucky number... "Nice touch with the 13 questions, by the way," Bret Harrison

And if bounty hunter Sam does find his quarry—some danger may be involved. smiles. "Very dark and demonic." Also pointy things, fiery explosions. And pain. Spoken like a true Son of Satan...

42 imm/JammylOOa wvvw.starlog.com Explore 30 Years of

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In the interest of accuracy, it should be pointed out that the tears are actually painted- on glycerin; the wilderness in question is in fact a vast expanse of greenscreen, dotted with a few Styrofoam boulders; and the bear is — — —

pretty much a pole-arm-mounted animal head, tasy franchise. And with the Materials books, duction. "Just to give you a littie context for more silly-looking than serious. Welcome to the studio may have found a winner. With 14 what you're going to see," says Forte, "for me, the magic of moviemaking. million copies of the trilogy—comprised of this project started almost 1 1 years ago, when

This is the final week of principal photog- The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife and I read the manuscript for The Northern Lights, raphy on The Golden Compass, first in a pro- The Amber Spyglass—sold worldwide, which is the name of The Golden Compass in jected big-screen trilogy based on the best- Pullman's award-winning books have devel- the UK.

selling fantasy series His Dark Materials by oped a devoted fan following usually reserved "When I read the manuscript, I thought to

Philip Pullman. Starring Nicole Kidman, for such fantasy authors as J.R.R. Tolkien and myself, 'This is an extraordinary writer, and

Daniel Craig, Eva Green and Sam Elliott—as J.K. Rowling. wherever he's going, I want to go with himi'

well as newcomer Dakota Blue Richards—the But while New Line is hoping for another And it struck me that this material was singu-

film takes place on an alternate Earth in which box-office success this Christmas, they also larly visual, emotional and cinematic. I called

witches and armored bears co-exist, and peo- acknowledge that The Golden Compass Philip about making a film, and he said, 'I ple's souls are manifested in the form of ani- (which is budgeted in the neighborhood of think it's a good idea. Even though films never

mals. $150 million) may require a bit more of a hard get made from books that are optioned, let's

Behind his monitor, screenwriter-director sell than, say, the latest Harry Potter adven- see what happens!' It took a very long time

Chris Weitz watches the playback and calls for ture. After all, Pullman's lushly detailed trilo- it's 10 years later, so it has been a really inter- another take. A makeup artist dashes across gy also features an examination of religion esting journey." the set and redaubs Richards with fake tears. that is considerably more thought-provoking For anybody unfamiliar with The Golden The bear head-on-a-stick is raised to its origi- than the Christian-friendly stories of C.S. Compass, the story takes place on a parallel nal position—it's a lighting reference that will Lewis or, to a lesser extent, Tolkien. world, where Lyra Belacqua is a rebeUious be removed from the shot during post-produc- Maybe that's the reason why, on this par- tion and replaced with a photo-realistic digital ticular January morning, studio marketing version that will take many long months to execs have invited a group of journalists from create. around the globe for a day-long visit to After transforming Shepperton Studios outside of London, where into one of the most successful film series in some of the film's key behind-the-scenes peo-

history, it seems only logical that New Line ple will discuss various aspects of its produc- Cinema would want to find the tion. right property for their next big fan- Animal Daemons After a short visit to the set, where the aforementioned farewell scene between Lyra (Richards) and her ursine com-

panion lorek Byrnison is being shot, the visiting press members are ushered back to an adjoining stage, which has been decked out as a massive Golden Compass

show-and-tell. An entire wall is covered with pieces of concept art that depict every aspect of the film's production, while collec- tions of furniture, costumes and assorted props have been Director Chris grouped into their respective Weitz had big sequences. A long set of tables aspirations for the cast. For is hned with carefully detailed Lee Scoresby sculptures of every animal the aeronaut imaginable. These are the balloonist from "daemons" from the story the country of human souls which take the —they form of different animals, landed legendary depending on the personali- Sam Elliott. ty of their human compan- ions. These shapes can shift from one creature to anoth- er until a person reaches a certain age, at which point their daemon settles into orphan living as a ward of Oxford's Jordan one permanent form. College. In this world, the governmental body

Producer Deborah (called the Magisterium) is tightening its grip Forte steps forward to on the population, while a rash of child kid- make the initial intro- nappings has been taking place thanks to a mysterious force called the Gobblers. While His Dark Materials is no one knows for sure what is happening to about her story. In the missing children, rumors have been The Golden circu- lating among the Compass, young Gyptian boat people (who Lyra (Dakota Blue have lost a number of their own kids) that the Richards) ventures abductees are being taken to a station in the to a magical, north where they are being subjected to alternate Earth. unspeakable experiments. When Lyra's best —

friend Roger (Ben Walker) disappears, she vows to track him down. Meanwhile, Lyra's gruff explorer uncle

Lord Asriel (Craig) is about to set off on an expedition to the same area, where he hopes to harness the power of a mysterious substance called Dust that he believes can be found where the Northern Lights play over the Arctic Circle. Denied the chance to accompany her uncle, Lyra encounters Mrs. Coulter (Kidman), a glamorous scientist and world traveler who offers the girl an opportunity to leave Oxford behind for a life in London. But before leaving, Lyra is given an ancient device called an alethiometer, which can reveal the truth to its bearer—if only she can figure out how to use it. Oscar-winner Dennis handled the production design. Escaping from Mrs. Coulter, Lyra embarks Gassner Inspired by fabled architect Christopher Wren, Gassner created a world furnished in on an epic adventure that brings her into con- ornate metals and glass. tact with the seafaring Gyptians: the powerful challenges was finding the right young actress to play Lyra—a search that reportedly encom- passed 10,000 candidates in different cities across the UK. "I'm very proud of the fact that we found Dakota," Forte says, "because she's both an uncommonly good actress, and she also embodies many of Lyra's characteristics as a person. "It was one of those really wonderful moments when we asked New Line if they would allow us to go forward with an open casting call for this film, which is risky on a big movie. But they said, 'Let's see who you can find.' We did three call sites: one in Kendall, one in Cambridge and one in Oxford. The first was Cambridge—which actually turned out the most promising candidates because these girls traveled the farthest. The

witch Serafina Pekkala (Green), the Texas air- rations, in terms of the cast," Forte recalls. man Lee Scoresby (Elliott) and the armored "When Philip and 1 sat down to talk about the warrior bear lorek Bymison, who becomes her film 10 years ago, we both said that our first protector. pick for Mrs. Coulter would be Nicole

Finding the right person to tackle Pull- Kidman. So we had our little dream-cast man's multilayered material was a difficult lunch session that all producers have, but are task. After a number of prospective candidates yery rarely able to realize, and thus many and false starts, the production enlisted Weitz years later, we do have Nicole Kidman, we {About a Boy, American Pie) as screenwriter have Daniel Craig and we have a fabulous cast script, of wonderful actors who populate this story and director. Armed with Weitz's they Ten years ago, producer DeDoran r-orte began putting together a top-notch internation- and are all authentic to their roles and the and author Philip Pullman wanted Nicole al cast. material." Kidman for Mrs. Coulter. Well, a decade "It was clear that Chris had pretty big aspi- Not surprisingly, one of the biggest casting later, they got their wish! www.starlog.com miOG/January 2008 47 kids who were most passionate about tlie world, creating a bit of magic in the world that material were willing to travel any distance to Lyra visits.

audition. Dakota was among the first group. "For me, it's about the emotional content

"I stayed in close contact with Philip, who of the pieces I react to as well as the material. kept calling me to ask how it was going and if You can say, 'Oh, that feels about the right size

we had seen any promising candidates. I told and shape and proportion, because emotional- the casting agent, 'Just send him the DVD ly that's what should be happening at this

with the 40 kids we've selected, because it's point in the script,' but the environment is just going to take weeks to go through them. We the backdrop. Like any piece of architecture or have two other locations. That will keep him environment that we go through, it's about busy for a while!' But Philip called me 48 how it feels in space." hours later and said, 'It's one of two girls...' Gassner is joined by costume designer And one of them was Dakota, so that was Ruth (L.A. Confidential) Myers and prop mas- interesting, and when Chris saw Dakota, he ter Barry {Oliver Twist) Gibbs, who take over felt the same way. He went through another the presentation for a joint tour of the various month-long exercise to make sure that he had setpieces. "1 had a much easier job," claims looked through everyone and turned over Myers, "because I came into a world that was every stone, but he knew all along that he already created in two senses. First, the books wanted Dakota, and we're very proud of her. said very clearly at the beginning, 'It's this

She has been an important part of this film." world, and it's not this world.' Secondly, Roger Parslow Dennis' work gave me all sorts of references. (Ben Walker) is Warrior Bears I've been doing this for a long time, so many a kitchen boy With preliminaries out of the way. Forte things came to mind very quickly. With Mrs. and Lyra's close introduces production designer Dennis Coulter, for example, I wanted to give you the friend. His Gassner, an Oscar-winner for his work on sense of her being the most glamourous disappearance

Bugsy and a veteran of such films as Barton woman in the world, but I didn't want it to be sparks Lyra's Odyssey. Essaying a character poles apart from James Bond, Daniel Craig is Lord Asriel, Lyra's gruff explorer uncle. 'now' glamour. So I had to go back to when I thought the most beautiful-looking women [lived]."

Gibbs also claims to have had an easier job, simply because the look of his specialty props had already been created. "Dennis had given us some fantastic designs," he says, "and we received lots of inspiration from Anna Pinnock, the decorator, to try and give Oxford a completely different look. So from the orig- inal concepts, we stuck almost identically to their designs. "The first prop we were asked to make for the film was the Spirit Projector, and back in March 2006, James [Enright, props manufac-

turing supervisor] and I started discussing how we were going to create things. He convinced me to put a forger into the budget, so we could make everything in brass for real. We knew the detailing that was going to be required, so we set up the forge back in May, and as soon as

the concept was signed off, the Spirit Projector

was the first thing to be made. It took around Fink, Big Fish, Road to Perdition and Water- Every journey begins with a first step. And if all goes well, moviegoers will get to see world. Demonstrating the old adage that a pic- Lyra's adventure continue in The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. ture is worth a thousand words, Gassner uses some of the concept art on display to explain how he began each of his concepts by estab- lishing simple shapes—such as the sphere of the golden compass—which then became recurring motifs throughout the design process. "You start to build the world from there," he says, "so that's how I started—very simple and direct." As an example, Gassner points to his sub- tly different take on London, meant as a homage to 17th-century architect Christopher Wren. "He redesigned London, but never real- ly got to realize it—except for St. Paul's and some churches," Gassner observes. "So I've used the symbol of St. Paul's as the keystone, developing a more metal-and-glass world around that, rather than a brick-and-mortar scene of Lyra talking to her not-yet-fuUy ren- dered daemon. Pan; Kidman's show-stopping entrance into a dining hall (which establishes Mrs. Coulter as a character in just a few sec- onds); and a bearded Craig as Lord Asriel, looking nothing like his James Bond persona. While the 10 minutes of footage represent

only a small part of the film, it certainly pro- vides a telling glimpse of what The Golden

Compass is going to look like. Once again, it's

impressive stuff.

Following lunch, the group is directed to a different stage, where stunt coordinator Paul Jennings and his team are re-creating one of the major action sequences from the film, in which some of the children try to escape their captors with the help of the Gyptians, while the enemy Tartars do their best to catch them.

Present among the group is Richards' stunt double Sophie, a world champion martial

artist. Jennings takes them through the sequences, once in slow-motion and again at

full speed. Nearby, another group of stunt performers demonstrate the wire rigs used for the flying scenes featuring Green's character and the other witches. The rigs (which will be erased during post-production) aren't unlike the wires

15 weeks to produce the piece. We had to cre- uring out the scale, adding muscles and fur employed in stage productions of Peter Pan, ate everything from scratch—we made a and started animating it. Actually, this but are even more advanced. And as if the day model, and then moved on to molding, forg- sequence is where we were about a month ago, isn't interactive enough, the journalists are ing, polishing, fitting, etc." so the bear is now much further along." asked if anyone wants to give it a try. A couple After examining everything from Mrs. of volunteers quickly step forward and are Coulter's suite aboard her Sky Ferry to the Dark Materials wired up for their first flying lesson. The more Gyptian camp, the group returns to their seats Just before breaking for lunch. Forte sensible ones (including this writer, thank you for a presentation from visual FX supervisor announces that she has one more surprise for very much) prefer to keep their feet firmly Mike -Men) Fink, who shows some work- her guests. "I'm sorry that Chris isn't able to planted on the ground. To each his own. in-progress footage for the Noordelike, the be here," she apologizes for her director, who For today's final presentation, Damian ship that carries Lyra to the North. "When is still shooting (although he'll grant STAR- Mitchell, the film's armorer, unveils a dazzling

Chris saw it, he said, 'Wouldn't it be great if LOG a one-on-one interview in October, see collection of guns used by various charac- we saw Lyra in the crow's nest?' " Fink page 50), "because he should be standing up ters—from Lee Scoresby's Winchester to a recalls. "Of course, we didn't have a crow's here for this first look at some very early film series of beautifully crafted pistols that look nest, so Dennis designed one, we built it and footage. It's always risky to show people a more decorative than functional but in fact are we shot Dakota on the crow's nest against work in process, but we're proud of where we both. "We tried to find weapons that perhaps green screen. When we finally get it all done, are on this movie, so we wanted to share a few aren't from the correct time," he explains. we'll have Dakota on top of the Noordelike, scenes with you." "They're not only functional, but slightly with the wind blowing through her hair and Among the rough-cut assemblies are a quirky, different, more beautiful and ornate. Pan flying as a bird around her" We've come up with various The second part of Fink's talk involves a A flight of fantasy, The Golden items that haven't really been sequence in which lorek carries Lyra on his Compass features animal seen on film before." daemons, armored bears, air back through a wasteland. Although While it's far too cliched to balloons and seafaring still unfinished, it's pretty damn impressive. point out that the day ends with Gyptians. It launches Fink is also quick to point out that Torek isn't a bang, in this case, it's also December 7. just a polar bear, but an even more impressive quite accurate—albeit with a warrior bear, which is fiercer and more intel- number of bangs, pops and ligent, as well as possessing opposable assorted explosions. As Mitchell thumbs. and his team pack away their

"When I started on this film, we did a pre- guns, the final high-flying jour- sentation shot—which was handled by nalists are lowered back to the FrameStore CFC here in London—to help get ground and de-rigged. the movie greenlit," Fink says. "That was And while it remains to be hugely successful. From that, Dennis started seen how The Golden Compass developing the look of the armor, the scale of will actually turn out when it the bear and Lyra and how the bear worked premieres December 7, there's into the story. We did an incredible amount of no disputing the fact that today's research—everything from the way fur moves brief glimpses are intriguing, to to their muscles to how they bite. The three- say the least. Is it New Line's dimensional bear in our computers has mus- next big fantasy franchise? Let's cles, weight, fur.. .it has everything. We sculpt- face it—it's hard to go wrong ed a bear in different poses, and turned that when your leading man is a war- into a CG model. Then we kept refining it, fig- rior bear. www.starlog.com Smm/Janumy 2008 49 Chris Weitz directed a film About a Boy. Now, he helms a movie about a girl and her Golden Compass. was the kind of news that sends rabid ably has to do with the fact that a) there's especially demanding movie, because the

Itfantasy fans scrambling for their favorite still a movie to finish, and b) his priority is daemons are quite photo-realistic and dis-

chat rooms, and makes studio executives to make it as good as possible while staying play emotion, but they don't do it in a car- wonder if maybe they should have pursued a true to the source material. "I suppose I toonish way. Getting those things right takes less stressful career in bookkeeping: Just could have waited until the fans actually saw a long time, as well as numerous passes back weeks before New Line Cinema's much- it on screen," he admits, "but I figured I and forth. So that's where we are right now: anticipated release of The Golden Compass, owed it to them. I'm a fan as well, so I would We're rushing to get things finished, without writer-director Chris Weitz announced that want to know. It just makes more sense in rushing so much that the quality goes down." he was reworking the ending to part one in terms of the first movie's end and the sec- What is ironic—considering that Weitz his adaptation of Philip Pullman's best- ond's beginning, but it's understandable that has directed what may be the most visual selling fantasy saga, His Dark Materials. the fans are very protective of things. FX-laden film of the year—is that it wasn't Weitz explained that he was shifting the final "With Lord of the all that long ago when he An avid fan of Philip three chapters of Book One to the beginning Rings, Peter Jackson was seemed to be leaning in Pullman's His Dark Materials of the second film. The Subtle shooting the whole thing the opposite direction. As Knife. books, Weitz went through If all this bit familiar, it's prob- in fell swoop, so I recently as 2004, he told sounds a one some diversities before ably because, half a decade earlier, Peter don't think it was as realizing this dream project. an online interviewer: "I Jackson made his own structural changes to painful to people if some- believe that very soon, if New Line's Lord of the Rings trilogy. But the thing didn't correspond not already, there will be a big difference this time is that within a day precisely with the book, backlash against CGI- or two of Weitz's announcement, Pullman like Saruman's death or heavy movies." issued a public statement supporting the Frodo being stung by Needless to say, some filmmaker, pointing out that even bigger Shelob. I forget exactly of those feelings have changes had been made in the critically which bits they moved changed a bit. "You know, acclaimed National Theatre stage production around, but in this case, it I was young and naive," of His Dark Materials. shows that New Line has he concedes. "But I still "Every film has to make changes to the confidence that this movie sort of stand by that, story that the original book tells—not to is going to do well, and because the CO animals in alter the outcome, but to make it fit the that they want to make the this film are potentially dimensions and the medium of film," second and third ones. So actors, so directing them Pullman explained. that's the upside of it." is like directing actors. For a director who ignited a mini- It's a crisp autumn And the world we're por- of controversy just a day earlier, evening in London, and traying is one that is

Weitz is surprisingly low-key, but that prob- Weitz is just getting home familiar to its inhabitants, AfflOriG

HIS By JOE NAZZARO

FlLMAdAKER CHRIS WEITZ BRINGS The Golden Compass TO THE SILVER SCREEN.

after attending a Golden Compass scoring so I didn't want a world in which people are session with composer Alexandre Desplat. constantiy 'oohing!' and 'aahing!' over the "We're really far, but not far enough!" Weitz stuff that's happening. In the Harry Potter notes about where they stand in the post-pro- films, everyone is always saying 'Magical duction process. "Alexandre is writing some this' and 'Magical that,' and their jaws drop

beautiful music and recording it, but right open with amazement. But I wanted to make

now, it's really about getting the visual a realistic film that just happens to be set in effects in on time, and doing justice to all of a parallel and different universe. the amazing effects that have already been "The reason I'll stand by what I said

finished. before is that special effects aren't going to "I'm really lucky, because Mike [X-Men make up for anything. They aren't going to 2] Fink is a great supervisor, make up for lack of interest in the story or and the poor man has been working himself for characters feeling right or for their emo- to the bone to get this stuff done. It's an tions being compelling. What I will modify

Smm/January 2008 51 How do you get Nicole Kidman? Having executive producer lleen IVIaisel be a friend of tiie actress certainly helped.

about my attitude—which I think is an atti- Paul. He was immediately attracted to the tude held by many people who haven't story of 12-year-old Lyra, set in an alternate worked closely with CGI professionals world populated by witches and talking yet—is that these people are real artists, and polar bears, where human souls are mani- they care very deeply about the aesthetics fested in the form of animals, or daemons. and the animation of their characters in Weitz knew that he wanted to tackle the film terms of portraying emotions. But they're adaptation, but despite his previous success- often dismissed as the guys with computers es as a writer, director and producer (which Polar Express this film is nof. But if you want to see warrior bears in combat, then who do everything that isn't about acting also include Antz and American Pie), he The Golden Compass is for you. and emotion. I've gained a tremendous understood that his name was unlikely to be

amount of respect for them as artisans, and near the top of New Line's go-to list. this, I wasn't going to direct anything. I did just because they're working with pixels "They did take a chance on Peter," he not see myself continuing to be a director

doesn't mean that they aren't every bit as points out, "who had done Heavenly unless I did this film. impressive as the guys who used to do the Creatures and The Frighteners before Lord "And to be honest, there were more like- glass matte paintings in the old days. At least of the Rings. I would say of the various stu- ly suspects who, for various reasons, either in that respect, I've changed my tune." dios. New Line has more of a record of didn't want to do the movie, couldn't figure

investing in mavericks and their films. Not out a way to do it based on the budget or

First Adventures that I'm particularly a maverick, but one what have you. So I would be lying if I said Weitz was first introduced to Pullman's thing that worked to my advantage was that the studio wouldn't have rather had Sam

award-winning fantasy epic while making I had nothing to lose. I've never really been Mendes or Ang Lee do it back at that time, the 2002 film About a Boy with his brother a jobbing director. If I wasn't going to direct but I was able to show them how the film could be shot, what was important about the movie and how the script could be written in such a way as to successfully break down the book." Weitz's solution was to put together a 30- page "manifesto" consisting of two docu- ments: a treatment that broke the proposed film down into its major sequences, and a personal statement explaining his feelings and commitment to the material. Looking

back, he also believes that it may have helped his case to offer his services as a writer and director, which in some ways helped streamline the process.

"Overall, it increases the production's

efficiency if you can adapt things on the fly, as opposed to just being the director and having to tell a writer what to do," Weitz points out. "[In that situation], things inevitably go through various stages of

divergence from the central idea. So, yes, it

absolutely helped that I could quickly adapt to the circumstances and was able to come up with ideas that I could immediately exe- Weitz admits to getting cold feet when faced with the formidable project, but time and cute." maturity assuaged his apprehension. One of his earliest priorities was contact-

52 Smm/January2008 —

Asriel, Lord Asriel. "You want to put together the 1927 Yankees,"Weitz says of collecting his cast, which includes Casino Royale's Daniel Craig.

it would be something like the Soviet do it, and Anand is a great guy, but once that Communist party in the 1970s, or the mul- happened. New Line came back to me. I lahs in Iran, not the Catholic Church of think [they went with me] because there was

today. So I felt that I could work in those a degree of familiarity, since they had themes in a subtle way—which the fans already gone through the business of hiring would appreciate—while at the same time me [the first time]. I'm sure it was a case of not insult people." the contract already being drawn up, so it ing Pullman to make sure they were both on was just easier to do things that way." the same wavelength as far as the story was Second Thoughts But if Weitz had originally left The concerned. "The first thing I did when I With pre-production finally moving Golden Compass because of the technical thought I was going to get the gig was write ahead on The Golden Compass, Pullman challenges of helming such a film, one can't to him and say, 'Look, this is how I plan on fans were stunned in December 2004 by help wondering what happened during the " doing this movie. Is that OK with you?' Weitz's unexpected announcement that he intervening months to change his mind. "In

Weitz recalls. "As far as I was concerned, if was pulling out as director, citing "the tech- the meantime, I had grown up a bit," he

Philip wasn't along with what I was going to nical challenges of making such an epic" as explains. "I had worked with my brother do, I didn 't want to do it, because these are the reason. "I had tremendous regrets about making small- to middle-sized movies. some of my favorite books of all time. And I leaving the project," he reflects, "but at that Just nice his lead character Lyra (Dal

I try to run things by him as much as possi- "Also, at that time, I didn't have the life ble, and while we've sometimes disagreed circumstances around me to undertake such about individual shots or ideas, for the most a daunting effort, but what happened part, it has been a really happy collabora- between then and when I took up the reins tion." again was that I had spent lots of time writ-

If there's a significant difference between ing and rewriting the script, so I felt that I

Pullman's book and Weitz's screenplay, it's had a purchase on how to do it. I had also the portrayal of religion—or, more accurate- fallen in love and had a life, and one that ly, its perceived anti-religious message. The could be taken with me, because my wife studio was reportedly less than enthusiastic was kind enough to come along. That all about emphasizing those themes—particu- sounds very sentimental, but it truly was the larly in a big-budget commercial project case. It was torturous to step away from the but Weitz insists that most of them are still film, because I love the books, and honestly present in the finished film, albeit in a sub- felt that of the people who were then avail- tler form. able, / was the one who should adapt the "There are elements in the film that books. So that was tough." should satisfy fans of that aspect of the New Line ultimately hired Anand (Shop- book," he elaborates. "But we absolutely girl) Tucker to take over as director, using didn't need to bang people over the heads Weitz's screenplay, but Tucker eventually with it. To me, what Philip is really talking pulled out as well, with "creative differ- about is any kind of autocratic system, ences" the reason for his exit. His replace- whether it be a theocracy or whatever. ment? None other than Weitz. "I had been People also get very upset about what they working closely with Anand the whole time perceive as religiosity, but the book isn't he was director, and I thought he would really about that. If you [wanted to compare] make a great version of the movie," Weitz a real-world institution to the Magisterium, says. "I didn't feel that he was unqualified to —

pretty good at assembling together the right Circle, and in the time between then and team of actors," Weitz remarks. "What you now, I've moved countries, gotten married want to do is put together the 1927 Yankees. and had a baby. So this has been with me a It's like what any fan does when they dream long time, and I look forward to the day up the ideal casting for something, and we when I'm not thinking about The Golden didn't go wrong. We were very fortunate in Compass 24/7. getting this cast; the books' quality often "As for The Subtle Knife and The Amber convinced people." Spyglass, that really depends on the fans If the filmmaker was going for the 1927 and not just the fans of the books. Yankees, his promising rookie was newcom- Unfortunately, they aren't enough to push

er Dakota Blue Richards, who was chosen this one over the top financially. It depends after a worldwide casting search of more on the fantasy movie fans and people who than 10,000 young actresses. "When you're are willing to engage with the story because casting children, you're not just casting the of their interest in the actors and the story kids; you're casting the entire family," Weitz itself So [those things have to] work out for observes. "Dakota and her mother are a very New Line to undertake the huge financial Both Pullman and Weitz felt strongly close family unit, and I felt that they could investment of making parts two and three." about casting an unknown, English withstand the rigors of the months and Weitz disputes, however, any reports that actress as Lyra. months of shooting that this was going to a second film would have to be green-lit where we pretty much had autocratic control take. There was only one famous actress in quickly in order to accommodate a still- over every aspect. But if you apply that to a the world of Dakota's age, who also happens growing Richards. "It actually plays to our movie of this size, you're bound to go to be called Dakota [Fanning], but my advantage," he counters, "because things get insane, so one thing I needed to learn was to instinct—and I think it was Pullman's a bit lovey-dovey by the third book. There's be able to trust and delegate. And some- instinct as well—was to go English and a romantic element that I think would be where along the way, I realized that. I real- introduce people to somebody new. One of uncomfortable for a 12-year-old girl, so ized that I didn't need to know where every the nicest revelations about watching the Dakota growing up in the interim—and single pixel was going to be. film is that you haven't seen this person growing taller and older—would be a good "Another thing that happened—which before, so you have no reason not to believe thing. And we'll be able to cast Will, her reflects well on Anand—is that he had hired that she's Lyra, and Dakota's performance is counterpart, accordingly."

Dennis Gassner, one of the greatest produc- astonishingly good and natural." Working on His Dark Materials is tion designers in the world. I was lucky Weitz's first real excursion into the genre, enough to inherit Dennis, and I begged him Third Chances but it isn't likely to be his last. Waiting in the to stay on. So that served me really well, As the film finally inches toward comple- wings is an adaptation of Elric ofMelnibone, because there was such a level of confidence tion (and a December 7 premiere), Weitz based on 's legendary there." admits to being conflicted about the end. "I albino warrior saga. "It's going to happen if Weitz surrounded himself with a top- guess there are two aspects to that," he I have anything to say about it!" he promis- notch crew that included director of photog- muses. "For one, I'm tremendously relieved, es. "My brother and I have written a script raphy Henry Braham (an Emmy winner for because this has been several years of my that Michael likes, and I'll be producing it as

Shackleton) and editor Anne V. Coates (who life. It began when I was single, and I went soon as this stuff is oven Michael is another won an Oscar for Lawrence ofArabia). "You on a boat and started writing the script while of my favorite authors, and he has been very try to get people who are simpatico," Weitz circumnavigating this island in the Arctic patient and entrusted us with the rights to his says, "because you're going to be work, which he hadn't done with anyone for If 7776 Golden Compass is a hit, the working with them for a long time. years, and never with Elric. Reading Elric director would welcome the chance to film the You also want people who have an saga's other volumes. when I was a kid was one of the formative enthusiasm for the material, imaginative experiences of my reading life, because they're going to have to so this is very important to me." put up with quite a lot in terms of And as Weitz puts the final touches on the physical drain of making the The Golden Compass, he shares some final film. I inherited the amazing and thoughts about his long journey. "I suppose incredibly experienced [visual FX two things spring to mind," he considers. supervisor] Mike Fink as well, but "One is that we were able to cash all of the I will take partial credit for the checks that we wrote—in terms of promis- cast. Ileen Maisel, one of our exec- ing people that the daemons, the bear and utive producers at New Line, was other things were going to work, and that very good friends with Nicole they would be beautiful and emotionally Kidman, and I think she told moving. So sequences like the fight between Nicole, 'Look, you can trust this lorek and the bear king are exciting and guy. He isn't an idiot,' and helped amazing to watch. convince her to come on board." "And on a completely different level, The Golden Compass cast there's something else that has nothing to do proved to be equally impressive. In with special effects, which is the scene addition to Kidman as the glam- toward the film's end, where Mrs. Coulter orous villain Mrs. Coulter, it fea- and Lyra have a moment of understanding," tures Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel; Chris Weitz says. "It's an emotionally

Craig's Casino Royale co-star Eva charged scene, and when I watch it, I see Green as the witch Serafina probably the most famous actress in the Pekkala; Sam Elliott as Texas world and a child who hasn't acted in a aeronaut Lee Scoresby; and Nonso movie before, both acting beautifully oppo- Anozie as the voice of the polar site one another, in a scene that's a combina- bear lorek Bymison. tion of elements from different scenes in the "My brother and I are actually book—and it worksl"

54 mm/knuary2Q08 www.starlog.com

The master of the Land Beyond Beyond, Ray Harryhausen poses with a sketch from The 7th Voyage ofSinbad, which hits Legendary the half-century mark next year (and will be honored with a 50th Anniversary Special Edition DVD). stop-motion master

Ray Harryhausen is

still on the go after all these years. By TOM WEAVER IfilMGmTION

Some fans continue lastfeature film Clash of the Titans was released in 1981, and to cast stones at the Hisyet in the decades since, Ray Harryhausen has gotten more concept, but the media attention and accolades than many working genre colorization of hi film- makers and their contemporary projects. That veritable real-life "feat early features, li

20 Million Miles t of magic" comes as no great surprise, though, when it's pulled off by Earth, appeals to this master of cinemagic, whose string of fantasy film hits stretches

Harryhausen. back to President Harry Truman 's administration—and whose fascina- tion with fantasy film subjects began during the first run of the original , a movie made during Herbert Hoover's! Part of the reason for the ongoing interest is that the man himself has gone from being the master of stop-motion to the master of go- motion, indefatigably making himself available for public appearances around the world—some of the most recent promoting Sony Pictures' new home video release of his personally supervised colorization of the formerly black-and-white 20 Million Miles to Earth (1957). On

December 4, its 50th Anniversary Edition—p/wi newly colorized trans-

his It Came from Beneath the Earth vs. fers of — Sea (1955) and the Flying Saucers ( 1956) will DVDebut as the Ray Harryhausen in Color Gift Set. —

STARLOG: You've gone from being tight- STARLOG: What made Charlott Knight the lipped in the past about how the FX were right person to write the screenplay? done in your movies, to books and more HARRYHAUSEN: She knew about characteri- books about your work, and now tell-all zation. Charlott had been my teacher in night audio commentaries. A change of heart? school, when I was taking a dramatic arts course RAY HARRYHAUSEN: The reason for while I was still in high school. That's when I first that [past tight-lippedness] was mainly that, met her, and we seemed to have mutual interests, when I first saw King Kong [1933] when I so she helped me with the writing over the years. was 13 or 14, I didn't know how it was Charlott worked on the fairy tales [his stop- done. The mystery haunted me for motion short subjects] as well, on the narration. months years, in fact. So once I began STARLOG: She was an actress in the 1950s. Did making films, I felt that it was a mistake to she ever end up in any of your movies? tell people how things are done. It's like a HARRYHAUSEN: No, not as an actress, just as magician explaining how they're going to a writer. pull the rabbit out of their hat. If you tell the STARLOG: As long as the ideas were coming audience, they're no longer interested in the from you anyway, why have you never tackled a magician. screenplay? STARLOG: So why the change of heart? HARRYHAUSEN: [Laughs] Well, I'm not capa-

HARRYHAUSEN: Everybody was expos- ble of writing. I had so much to do just to create ing [their "FX secrets"]. Today, before the the characters [create and animate the models]. I movie even comes out, the filmmakers tell was very modest in those days, and I didn't real- you how they did it, in magazines like ize for a good many years that "modesty" is a Cinefex and whatnot. There used to be a dirty word in Hollywood. certain mystery about films; there isn't any- STARLOG: So all that held you back was that more. The mystique of making movies is you had too much work to do otherwise on the gone. As an audience, you aren't supposed movies? Seven real-life marriages resulted from to know those things. You're just supposed HARRYHAUSEN: Yes. People also ask me why Jason and the Argonauts—witli Ray (seen to go along with the story, with the fantasy, I didn't direct the pictures, but I didn't want to liere with wife Diana on their wedding I it spoils the if water myself down. It's a big task to lay out the and think fantasy you know day) among those exchanging "I do's." how those things are done. I used to feel animation, let alone the whole film. I wore many very strongly about that, and I wasn't being coy. I really tried to keep hats. I always worked with every writer on every screenplay, but I never it a mystery. claimed credit until many years later, on the Sinbad films [The Golden STARLOG: How have your books been received? Voyage of Sinbad (1974) and Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger (1977)]. HARRYHAUSEN: They've been very well-received, and I get lots of STARLOG: In the 1950s, there was a stretch where you worked on fan mail saying they've been an inspiration to people. I'm glad for that. only five pictures in five years. Did those pay you enough to live on? But the general public probably thinks they're too technical, and HARRYHAUSEN: I got a fairly good fee from the initial work, and they've never been properly reviewed. The Art ofRay Harryhausen and then a small percentage of the pictures. And I don't live extravagantiy. Ray Harryhausen: An Animated Life aren't bestsellers like Harry I wasn't married at the time; I didn't wed until I went to Europe. I got Potter. married when I was doing Jason and the Argonauts [1 963]. Seven of us.

STARLOG: [Laughs] I'll settle for Harry- . hausen\ HARRYHAUSEN: Right! Well, they both start with Harry anyway! STARLOG: On to the subject at hand, 20

Million Miles to Earth. I was surprised

when I learned that you originally wrote it to take place in Chicago. HARRYHAUSEN: That's right. I usually submitted to producer Charles Schneer a three-page outline of how [an idea] of mine could be made as a film, and after writing

20 Million Miles to take place in Chicago, I thought, "You know, I've always wanted to

take a trip to Italy, so.. .why not have the rocketship returning from Venus crash off the coast near Italy?" [Laughs] STARLOG: You made that change before

you submitted it to Schneer? He never saw

an outline with Chicago in it? HARRYHAUSEN: That's correct, he

never saw Chicago. Originally, it was sup-

posed to crash in Lake Michigan, but then I

changed it to Italy. STARLOG: If 20 Million Miles had been set in any big American city, the film's whole would have been too much like King Kong.

HARRYHAUSEN: It would have been. There was a big King Kong influence in 20 20 Million Miles to Earth's locale was changed from a major American city to Rome,

Million Miles, of course. So setting it in so that it wouldn't "play" foo much like King Kong. But Harryhausen also had an ulterior Italy changed that. motive—he always wanted to see Italy. vwvw.starlog.com Smm/January2008 57 areas. We also went to a Uttle village called Sperlonga for the opening

scenes where the rocketship crashes. I destroyed Washington [as seen

in Earth vs. the Flying Saucers], I destroyed [It Came

from Beneath the Sea], I destroyed New York [The Beast from 20,000

Fathoms] and, in 20 Million Miles to Earth, I made new ruins among the old in Rome! [iMughs] For 20 Million Miles to Earth, Charles formed a company, Mor- ningside Productions, and the picture was released by Columbia. On the previous Columbia films [Beneath the Sea and Earth vs.], Sam

Katzman was the executive producer. He left Charles, the writer and I to formulate the stories—he would approve them at the end, of course—and we had to do them on a low budget. We didn't have all the money they have today. Katzman made very low-cost films, and we had

very tight budgets—which I welcomed. It was an experience, and it Talos' approach strikes fear Into the hearts of Jason and the taught me to think. If you have all the money in the world, you can take Argonauts—one of the overseas film assignments that led the easy way out. Our pictures were considered B-movies at the time, Harryhausen to move his base to Europe. but I think they're more appreciated today, and they've lasted longer working on Jason, got married that year! [Laughs] STARLOG: Did you iiave time to enjoy your- self on your first trip to Italy, scouting loca- tions for 20 Million Miles, or was it strictly business?

HARRYHAUSEN: I was mainly location scouting. But while I was looking for loca- tions, I was enjoying myself. I enjoyed work- ing—that's the story of my life! We had a con- tact there, an Italian associate, and he showed me around. I was there a couple of weeks, and

I took lots of pictures, brought them back and used them when I did my storyboarding. On my second trip over [August 1956], Charles, second-unit director Lawrence Butler and star William Hopper came along. William was a very nice man, and I enjoyed working with him. In Italy, we did all the shots of him Ray rocl

San Francisco Is next! It Came from Beneath the Sea and took on the U.S. Navy. The outcome: No ship, Sherlock!

Even on the ocean floor, no one is safe from Harryhausen's animated monsters, as divers learn off the coast of .

than some so-called A-pictures! STARLOG: I've talked to so many actors who didn't want to make the

SF oldies, but who say today, "Thank God I did 'em, because I would

not be remembered at all if I hadn't!" HARRYHAUSEN: That's right! used to badmouth One

Million Years B.C. [1966]. In one interview I read, she said she just wanted to get to "swinging England," and that she didn't think much of the picture. But she'll always be remembered for One Million Years B.C. STARLOG: Talk about the recent colorization of 20 Million Miles to And Ray ravages Rome! Now you coll-see-'im, now you don't, as Earth. theYmir plays hide-n-seek with the Italian Army. HARRYHAUSEN: I worked with , who have this new

58 Smm/Janumy2008 colorization process. I also brought to their attention She, the old Merian C. Cooper pic- ture made by RKO in 1935, and we colorized that film as well [now available on DVD from Kino]. Cooper wanted to do She in color, but at the last minute RKO cut the budget in half, so he had to shoot it in black-and-white to keep within budget. We hope to colorize RKO's The Last Days of Pompeii [1935], which they also wanted to film in color, but again, budget restrictions. So that may be in the future. STARLOG: When fans first found out that you were starting to colorize your movies, there was lots of skepticism. A guy on one message board figured "old Ray's cheese had just about slid off his cracker"!

HARRYHAUSEN: I know that many fans are prejudiced against colorization, and we're try- ing to overcome that. The new Legend Films process is much better than the colorization of

10 or 15 years ago. On the films that were col- This planet's largest land animal Is no match for Harryhausen's Venuslan Ymir, which orized back then, the color isn't up to the qual- came 20 Million Miles to Earth and took on all comers. ity it is today. She looks like it was shot in color now. But there's so much prejudice, and other actors. But I threw my hip out of there are still people who say, "Why did you joint, so I had to quit! [Laughs] I wanted to want to colorize it?" I certainly wouldn't want know how it felt, so I could properly ani- to colorize something like ; there mate the . Anyway, I get lots of fan are certain pictures that look better in black- mail from people who say Kerwin was the and-white. But we would have shot our early best Sinbad. In each picture, we had a dif- films in color if we had had the budget. The ferent one. colorization on 20 Million Miles to Earth gives STARLOG: Is it possible for me to

it new life. And there are also lots of bonus squeeze out of you the name of your features on the new DVD. favorite Sinbad? STARLOG: I interviewed Joan Taylor, star of HARRYHAUSEN: I can't have a favorite. Earth vs. and 20 Million Miles (see page 61), [Laughs] Just as I can't have a favorite and she said something that made my jaw model, because the others get jealous. drop: The space center we see in Earth vs. was STARLOG: You're 87. When are you ever actually a sewage treatment plant? going to slow down? HARRYHAUSEN: [Laughs] Yes! They had HARRYHAUSEN: [Laughs] I don't

all these wonderful pipes and so on. Charles know. I haven't done a film in years.

and I went on a location hunting trip, and we STARLOG: Yeah, but you're writing looked at a place where they launched rockets. books, dealing with a comics imprint and But the sewage plant was better, and so much running around the world. At 87, don't you Raquel Welch may have acted in One Million more impressive than the actual rocket place! ever want to take the phone off the hook Years B.C. just to get to "swinging England," So we shot the interiors and exteriors at the and lock the door for a while? but it's the film for which she'll always be sewage plant. And when Charles heard the remembered, says Harryhausen. HARRYHAUSEN: No! I like to hear what sound of the goop going through the pipes, he people think today. They seem to have dif-

said, "Let's use that for the flying saucers!" [Laughs] So the flying ferent values than we had in our youth; it's a different world. One tries

saucer sound you hear is everybody's contribution to the goop that goes to grow up, but.. .you don't have to accept it. I still prefer the world I

through the sewage plant! I don't like to say that; it spoils the illusion... lived in. It was a different world when I grew up. There seemed to be

STARLOG: [Laughs] And how! more stability than there is today. In the 1960s, they did the anti-hero

HARRYHAUSEN: But I guess we've finally let the cat out of the bag. business, and even over here in England, there was a period when this STARLOG: Would you comment on the recent death of Kerwin horrible concept "Work is a dirty word" came into vogue, which didn't Mathews, who starred in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) and The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (I960)? HARRYHAUSEN: That was a sad affair. I didn't know he was 81; I thought he was much younger. Turns out he had been a teacher before

he started his career in acting. I hadn't seen Kerwin since the second

film we did together [Gulliver]. He moved to San Francisco, and I went

to Europe. I was sad to hear that he had passed. He was our first Sinbad, he was a contract player for Columbia and he was very cooperative. As you know, on the sets of my films, the actors had nothing to react to [no monsters, flying saucers, whatever], because there wasn't anything

there. But Kerwin had a way of looking [at things not there] that made you think he was actually seeing them. Kerwin also had to "shadow-box," for example, in his swordfight with the skeleton in Sinbad. Before we would shoot, Kerwin would

have six or seven rehearsals with Enzo Musumeci-Greco, the sword- Before ' Sinbad could add swordfighting to his play coach. Incidentally, I knew nothing about swordfighting, so I final- 7th Voyage itinerary, skeleton animator Harryhausen had to go to ly took lessons from Ralph Faulkner, who used to teach Errol Flynn and a fencing great and bone up. www.starlog.com mm/January 2008 59 ! —

help the country any at all. STARLOG: Do you still own a piece of STARLOG: Why do you live over there? these films?

HARRYHAUSEN: I came over to make a HARRYHAUSEN: A small piece. I was picture. We needed to use the Denham never difficult about money! [Laughs]

[sodium light] traveling matte process for 3 STARLOG: Wouldn't it have been nice for Worlds of Gulliver, because the story Willis O'Brien [animator of King Kong et

involved big people and little people. al.] to have lived long enough to get a little Hollywood never went in much for travel- piece of what you've been getting? All the ing mattes; they preferred rear- projection. movies available on DVD, fan mail, per- But some of the scenes we wanted to do in sonal appearances around the world, the Harryhausen and 20 Million Miles star Joan Gulliver wouldn't have been possible to do star on Hollywood Boulevard, the Lifetime Taylor flank iiber-fan and producer Arnold convincingly with rear projection. So we Achievement Award... Kunert.The three are DVD MVPs in the bonus went over [to England] mainly because of HARRYHAUSEN: I wish he had, features of Sony's new Ray Harryhausen in the availability of the Denham process. And but.. .you know.. .he problems. Color Gift Set, out December 4. had You we wanted to find new locations. know his history [in 1933, O'Brien's wife

STARLOG: Yeah, but that was 50 years ago! Why are you still there? shot and killed their two sons, then shot herself]. That was a great

You've been over there so long, people sometimes forget you're tragedy, and I don't know how he survived it. I didn't learn about his

American tragedies until many years after I had worked with him. But I don't

HARRYHAUSEN: [Laughs] I know! I almost forget it, too. I feel like know if O'Brien would have been [amenable to accepting the fans' adu-

a foreigner when I go back! But what keeps me [in England] is, I got lation]. Everybody has a different personaUty. married to a Scottish subject [his wife Diana], and we have our home STARLOG: Was there any job in the movie business that you wanted here.

STARLOG: I can't think of too many Hollywood old-timers who have a more dedicated fan base in the 21st century than you do. HARRYHAUSEN: Well, movie actors

have loyal fans, too. Many of them are still respected by the fans who really want to delve into Hollywood's history. Today, act-

ing is entirely different. Everybody wants to be [sneeringly] "re-al-ist-ic." And with computer-generated images, they try to

make fantasies realistic, which is a mistake.

Half the charm of King Kong is that you

know it isn't real, and yet it looks real. And

that gives it a fantasy quality that is very difficult to [duplicate]. STARLOG: Your movies are certainly popular on home video. Sony keeps finding excuses to release the ones they control over and over! HARRYHAUSEN: Yes, and now the color Drawing storyboards (like this Valley of Gwangi sketch) and making and animating his addition enables them to again release the models left Harryhausen with no time to fulfill his one un-granted wish: directing. early [black-and-white] ones.

to do, and never got to?

HARRYHAUSEN: I would have liked to

direct, but I was afraid I would water myself

down. It's a big job to plan a film. I always

worked with a writer on every film, although I

never got credit. Again, I was very modest in the early days. In fact, I wanted to change my

name because I thought it was too long. But

[by sticking with Harryhausen], I get longer

screen credit, because they time it by the length of your name! STARLOG: What's next for you? HARRYHAUSEN: Well, that's in the lap of the gods!

For more on Ray Harryhausen's fantasy worlds, see these interviews in past issues of STARLOG: Hairyhausen (#10, #51, #100, #127), Charles Schneer (#151-3), (#141-2), Eugene Lourie (#193), Ken Kolb (#312, page 66 this issue), Kerwin Mathews (#119-20), John Phifiip Law (#228), Edward Judd (#160), Kenneth Tobey (#62), Harry Hamhn (#46), Lionel Jeffries Harryhausen dreamed up all sorts of scenarios (like this man vs. man-eating plant (#205), Joan Taylor (opposite page). sequence initially intended for Mysterious Island) that, sad to say, never got made.

60 mm/January 2008 www.starlog.com s

he time: June 30, 2007. The place: the new imuLandmark Theatre at

\ the corner of Pico and Westwood in LA. The occa- ision: the world premiere {screening of the new col- f orized version of the popular monster-on-the-loose epic 20 # Million Miles to Earth, origi-

I: nally released a half-century

il earlier, almost to the day. And, m standing in the long line offans m waiting to be admitted, an older

f : woman. Rose Freeman, unexpect- I edly turns and aslcs another m standee, "Why are you here?" It's tan unusual question for one movie- goer to asic another, but the expla-

" nation is that Freeman is better

known as Joan Taylor She 's the star of 20 Million Miles, and she's having

believing that there 's I a hard time such a large turnout for her 50-year-old I movie! I Some otherfilm and TV credits from her 1950s heyday may have faded into obscurity, but 20 Million Miles to Earth and Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956) have been "kept alive " by the continuing fascination with the FX work of stop- motion master Ray Harryhausen, who pro- vided the formerfilm's Kong-sized monster from Venus, "the Ymir," and the latter' amazing alien spaceships. The star of these

%3

Kj|||^f??'^\ Being the moum By TOM WEAVER ^<7%;-"'~' wife of TV fi^L^ writer-producer Leonard Freeman, Taylor decided to desert tl^e acting world in 1963 to fully concentrate on marriage and motherhood. Fifty years & movies retired from acting in 1963, content to devote herself to being the wife of writer-pro- 20 Million Miles ducer Leonard Freeman CHawaii Five-0, Route 66, The Untouchables et al.) and moth- later, Joan Taylor reflects on her SF career. er of their three daughters. However, in recent months. Rose Freeman

mi%/January2008 61 has reappeared in the spotlight, attending this premiere and also doing when Victor Jory came up to me. Vic worked at the Playhouse, and I an on-camera interview for Sony Pictures' recent DVD release, 20 had stage-managed a play that his wife Jean [actress Jean Inness] and

Million Miles to Earth: 50th Anniversary Edition. Sire 's doing her bit to daughter had been in, so I knew Vic. He said, "Come on. Rose..." So I " help "keep alive the two movies that have done the most to keep "Joan went with him—and he was probably the worst driver I've ever driven Taylor" alive. with in my whole life. I was scared to death! Vic took me to some inde-

pendent studio, where I went in and auditioned for a picture, [producer STARLOG: I just saw your interview for the new 20 Million Miles Nat Holt's] Fighting Man of the Plains [1949]. DVD and.. .you're lookin' good! Still instantly recognizable, face and I had been doing [a Playhouse production of] John Loves Mary on voice. the road in Santa Maria, and I got sick, and they had to take me to the

JOAN TAYLOR: That's interesting, because my grandson Matthew, 1 8, hospital. I had appendicitis, and they took my appendix out. Somehow, recently saw 20 Million Miles to Earth, and he really wasn't aware of Nat Holt found out about me being in the hospital, and he sent me beau-

what I had done as a younger person. He said, "That's not you. tiful flowers and a note that said, "You have the part." Is that

Grandma!" [Laughs] Well, I've put on a few pounds, and I'm going to be Hollywood? I had 10 days to get out of the hospital, get to the studio

80 in another year, but I don't have any complaints. And nothing hurts! and ride a horse. And I did it! STARLOG: When did you get the itch to perform? STARLOG: Who came up with the screen name "Joan Taylor" for TAYLOR: My Mom was a dancing teacher, and my Dad became the you?

manager of a motion picture theater in Lake Forest, Illinois. We would TAYLOR: Nat. I told him, "No, I want to be Joan Freeman',' because

go to movies at my Dad's theater on Friday nights, [and I saw] Shirley at the time, I knew I Temple on screen and, whoops, suddenly I wanted to do "On the Good was going to marry

Ship Lollipop." [Laughs] My first job was as a cashier at the theater. Len. Ijust/:new it. But

When the war years came, my Mom had a bunch of us dance at Nat insisted, "No, it's Great Lakes for the [servicemen] who came back, and we did lots of gonna be Joan Taylor,"

USD stuff. After graduating from high school, I applied to the Pasadena so I said, "OK, you're Playhouse. Everyone said, "You'll nnnnever get in," and I said, "Oh, payin' me..." What did yeahT—and I got in. My parents put me on a train for Pasadena, feel- I care? So I became Joan Taylor. STARLOG: What did

it feel like to be 20 years old and sixth- billed in a movie?

TAYLOR: It felt good. [Laughs] The world premiere was in

Kansas. I remember going there on a train, and playing cards with tDl$CHI VOLANfl Dale [Robertson, who «k//MARlDWEjD4/v TAYLOR, portrayed Jesse Ja- NG VAnS .SAVKONO T MMJGUS, swim .~ EUR" a«30tW; aw*. fls«.™f p, chahleb a smme H mes]. Then I went on to Chicago and was A &e//a Taylor dominates met by the newspaper the Italian Earth vs. the people. There were Flying Saucers film poster. pictures in the paper,

and all of that Holly- Marlowe not only saved wood stuff. Earth from flying saucers; he taught Taylor some of STARLOG: Back in the do's and don't's of your own home state. dealing with directors. TAYLOR: Yes! Then Washington monuments crumble, and Hugh Marlowe and Taylor casually cower, when Martian marauders buzz our nation's capitol.

ing that that was the safe way to travel. What

they didn 't know was that, after it left Chicago, the train picked up a bunch of Marines who

were going out to San Diego! I was on a troop

train! Then when I got off the train, my aunt and uncle, who were out in Hollywood, picked

me up, and they couldn't believe I had like 15,

16 guys carrying ray stuff! [Ixiughs] It was

fun. At the Playhouse, I lucked out: As a sec-

ond-year student, I was put into a number of plays in the little theaters, and I also did lots of plays on the Main Stage, which young stu-

dents never got the chance to do. I Uved in a Playhouse dorm, a marvelous old Pasadena house that had been taken over by the Playhouse. STARLOG: And how did you go from acting there to the movies?

TAYLOR: One day, I was sitting in the patio,

62 ^mm/knuaty20Q8 — — —

Ymir in 20 Million Miles to Earth. It's difficult—you really have to dig deep. You have to get some sort of a picture [of the menace] in your head. They give you a focal point to look at—a stick, a banner, some- thing—and you need to say to yourself, "OK, I'm not looking at that stick. The Ymir, or a flying saucer, is what I'm looking at." So you have

to be creative. But that's what acting is all about.

STARLOG: The director of Earth vs. was a former actor himself, Fred Sears.

TAYLOR; I don't have any recall of him. I mostly remember - ducer, Charles Schneer—a very special and very, very nice person and of working with Hugh Marlowe. From Hugh, I learned about the unions and the , because he was a strong union per- son. At one point, when we were about to break for lunch, the director

asked, "Will you do this scene?" I answered, "Sure," but then Hugh

said, "No, you won't. It's time for lunch." That's when he started telling me, and teaching me, about the union rules: what to do—and what not to do—on a set. Which I truly appreciated. STARLOG: Did he say, "No, you won't do that scene" right in front of the director? TAYLOR: Absolutely! Also, on that picture, we were shooting in Washington, DC, in front of the Senate, in front of the Pentagon. You

can't film there anymore, but we were all over Washington! And then we had to stay in Washington longer than anticipated, because there

was a hurricane coming [the killer storm Hurricane lone], and so I was

not home for my daughter Robin's first birthday. I swore, after that, that I would never be away on location, away from my family, for more than

two weeks ever. Missing your daughter's first birthday is just horri-

ble. I know she doesn't remember, but / do! My husband didn't like it, either. At that time, he was busy being a writer. It's all smiles and hugs for the publicity pix—but Taylor thought STARLOG: On Earth vs., how did you shoot in Washington without the Earth vs. armored aliens were the "ugliest things" she had it in morning? ever seen. passersby interfering? Was extremely early the TAYLOR: No, no, the police were there, keeping people away. No we went into Lake Forest and had a "premiere" at my Dad's theater problems. We went wherever we wanted to, including on the Potomac, with, of course, pictures of me putting my own name up on my Dad's right there by the Pentagon. Imagine, to be filming at the Pentagon! marquee. "Hometown Girl Makes Good!" STARLOG: Nowadays, when I watch the saucers kamikaze-crashing STARLOG: You were in a couple of movies at Paramount, and then into those Washington landmarks, I can't help but think of 9/11. Rose Marie [1954] atMGM. TAYLOR: I saw it again recently—after not seeing it for so long—and

TAYLOR: That was a huge picture, directed by Mervyn LeRoy, with I couldn't believe it. Seeing the saucers knock down those buildings Howard Keel, Annie Blyth and Fernando Lamas. And Bert Lahr, the was.. .[^roan]... scary. dearest man. Working with Busby Berkeley on Rose Marie was an STARLOG: In the old days, so often in movies you would have an experience. He always said you weren't on a Busby Berkeley picture actress who was a teenager (or in her early 20s) playing "The Girl," and unless there was blood. There was this huge, mountainous thing that I her leading man would be old enough to be her father. For instance,

was supposed to come running down, and land, going full-out on the Marlowe in Earth vs. Was it awkward having to do love scenes with

ground. I checked it out and said, "Move all these stones," because they these Methuselahs? had gravel where I was supposed to go down, and I wasn't about to do TAYLOR: I didn't even think about that. I was so thrilled to be work-

anything until they cleaned it up. As it ing with him that it never dawned on me turned out, when I went down, I did cut it never even crossed my mind—to even myself. At another point. Busby wanted me think about age. Also, I was married to a to be thrown off a precipice and land 30 man who was eight, nine years older than feet down below, in a net. I told him, "Get me, and I had done lots of stage work with the stuntwoman. Fm not about to do that, older guys. So it never crossed my mind. thank you very much." Directors, God bless The [second male lead in Earth vs.] was them, will ask you to do things that you Donald Curtis, a very nice man, and a good really shouldn 't. You sometimes have to say actor. But there are some people—who no if you want to live. [Laughs] shall go nameless—whom you don't want STARLOG: Science fiction fdms were to discuss, who aren't gentlemen. And you "big" when Earth vs. the Flying Saucers learn who they are, and just stay away from was made. Did you think appearing in an them. It's that simple. SF movie would be a good opportunity? Tom Browne Henry was also in that pic- TAYLOR: I'm going to be very honest ture; he played the admiral. He was a big

with you: I was grateful any time anybody mucky-muck at the Playhouse, one of the offered me a job. I wanted to work, and teachers who taught me there, and now here each new job was another experience, and a we were playing in a movie together, which challenge, a test of what I could do. And was kind of fun. Morrie Ankrum, my father those Harryhausen pictures were a chal- in the film, was another person with whom lenge, all right. In stop-motion animation I worked on the stage at the Playhouse. movies, you're looking at things that aren't STARLOG: Wasn't Ankrum also a teacher

I looking up in at flying at the Playhouse? there! was the sky "Very neat, very pristine and looked technical" saucers that weren't there, and pretending is how Taylor describes the location passed off TAYLOR: Yeah, and he was on Main to see a flying saucer that has landed on the as a space center in Earth vs.—the El Segundo, Stage all the time. The years that I was at beach at Malibu. The same thing with the CA sewage treatment plant! the Playhouse, a number of guys who had vvww.starlog.com imiWiamary 2008 63 —

been in the service were also there. That's how I met my husband: He things I've ever seen!

was at the Playhouse, and I saw him on stage doing something, and I STARLOG: Earth vs.

said, "Whoever the hell that guy is, he better quit now, 'cause he's and 20 Million weren't

awful!" [Laughs] It's true! However, I also said, "But I like him. I think big-budget pictures.

I'm going to see if I can get to know him." And within three weeks, I Did you wear your had a date with Len. We went down to Santa Monica, walked along the own clothes? beach and the pier, had our pictures taken.. .and the rest is history. Now, TAYLOR: I did, in I live in a place where I can look out at that pier practically every day both of those. And for of my life. 20 Million, my clothes

STARLOG: Obviously, on a -produced movie like Earth went to Italy, but I did

vs., actors who could get it on the first take were valuable. not! They shot some

TAYLOR: That's why Charlie Schneer liked me [laughs]. I was exteriors in Italy, and

rehearsed, and I knew what I was doing. William Hopper went STARLOG: Were you a "one-take actress"? over there with them

TAYLOR: The only time that I wasn't a one-take actress was in Omar for that, and I guess

Khayyam [1957]. The director, William Dieterle, had me do one scene they figured that if

maybe 15 times. I wasn't [blowing my lines]; I just didn't know what they needed shots of he wanted. I have such a memory of that, because you don't want to go my character on one of those Italian locations, DAUA TkJWM they would have a WILLIAM HjPPEI^JOAH TAYLOR double wear my clothes. Now, they've colorized 20 Million, On the Italian and they didn't get my movie poster, clothes the right color! Taylor shrieks at So, yes, for both of the sight of an those movies I wore Ymir who came my own clothes and 30 Million I did my own hair. Kilometers to Earth. STARLOG: You did

20 Million Miles to Earth's Taylor and her on-film father Frank Puglia get their first gander at the newly hatched Ymir.

Taylor's one real "close encounter" with the Venus visitor She didn't get to know William Hopper very well because, on involved a performer with an arm's-length glove. For the rest of B-flicks like these, "You met the person you were working with 20 Million Miles, she reacted to a missing monster. maybe two minutes before you started doing the scenes."

15 takes—it's horrible! Incidentally, a moment ago you called Earth vs. not know who Ray Harryhausen was in 1955-56 when you were mak- a Sam Katzman picture. I thought of it as being a Charlie Schneer-Ray ing these movies. But he has turned out to be quite a name.

Harryhausen picture. But, you're right, it was a Sam Katzman picture. TAYLOR: I know now that he was on those sets, but I really don't have STARLOG: Did you get to meet him? any recall. I think, on 20 Million for instance, he must have been telling

TAYLOR: Thank you very much, but I did not. No comment! us where the Ymir was and how big it was, because, again, we were

STARLOG: Really? OK, I won't pry. working off of nothing.

TAYLOR: He was not a... [pause] No, that's it. If you can't say some- STARLOG: Your leading man in 20 Million Miles was William

thing nice, don't say it all! [Laughs] Hopper. STARLOG: Where were some of the other places you shot on Earth TAYLOR: William was the son of Hedda Hopper [the powerful

vs. the Flying Saucers'! Hollywood gossip columnist]. He was pleasant, but I can't tell you

TAYLOR: We filmed at the Hyperion sewage plant near El Segundo. much more about him than that. When I did a movie, I went in and did

STARLOG: In the movie, that place is passed off as a space center! my work, and I didn't do lots of schmoozing. I worked on the TV series

TAYLOR: It was very neat, very pristine, and looked "technical." It The Rifleman [playing Milly Scott], and on that show, there was more

had those round cylinders that contained God knows what. [Laughs] schmoozing, because it was over a period of three years. But with these STARLOG: Did you think that the armor-wearing aliens in the movie fast movies, you met the person you were working with maybe two

would look impressive on screen? minutes before you started the scenes, and you did it. The quicker you

TAYLOR: No! [Laughs] Are you kidding? They were the ugliest could get the lines out and get it done, the happier everybody was, so

64 %mm/knumy2Q0S —

TAYLOR: In 1963, I stopped working. I woke up one morning and

said, "That's it!" [Laughs] Len was doing well, and he said, "Why

don't you just do a picture a year for the insurance?" As it turns out, I had done enough work to merit having Screen Actors Guild hospital-

ization and so on, which is great. I probably could have stayed in the business and worked but, you know, there's a time and there's a season.

I chose to leave it, to raise my children. And as it turns out, I'm glad I

did, and I have no feelings of missing out on anything. STARLOG: Well, obviously you could have gotten work. You could have been in any number of your husband's shows!

TAYLOR: That's true, but I wouldn't have done that. I would have liked to work in production, like behind-the-scenes on Hawaii Five-0,

because that's really exciting. But at the time, I was home raising the kids, because Len was making a buck. God, to get that kind of a show The on-camera star of Earth vs. and 20 Million Miles gets a 2007 on the air was not easy. And for it to have lasted... my golly, it will be smooch from their behind-the-scenes FX master Harryhausen. 40 years since it hit the air in 1968. "He's such a flirt!" Taylor reveals. STARLOG: I know where I was that night in 1968: 1 was watching the

there wasn't time for being social. / certainly didn't have time to be first Hawaii Five-0. And it was so well-done, I thought, in my 10-year-

social. I had kids at home and a husband. old brain, "Boy, this is more like a movie than a TV show!" And I just

STARLOG: You went to the world premiere of the colorized 20 loved it. Million Miles to Earth. TAYLOR: You watched "Cocoon," an episode that Len wrote. [Then- TAYLOR: Yes, at the new Landmark Theatre in LA. It was a full CBS executive Fred] Silverman said that was probably one of the best

house, relatively young people. It was a good group of people with pilots ever written. Len had a nephew who was a psychiatrist, who some very good questions. They asked me to come forth and answer knew the head of psychiatry at Oklahoma University, and from him,

questions. Len got the idea of the deprivation tank, where Jack Lord is put in the

STARLOG: Also participating in that Q&A were Arnold Kunert water [by the villains] and deprived of... everything. who produced the special features for the DVD—and Bart Braverman, You mentioned loving that episode at 10 years old. Well, it was the kid actor in the movie. designed for you, for the kids that were watching. Len always said, "If

TAYLOR: Yes, and the gentleman who did the colorizing [Barry I can keep them watching past the second act, if they're wondering how

Sandrew, president of Legend Films]. It was a fun "happening." Then it's going to end, then I'll have done my job." That's what was so good

about a month later, Ray was here [in the U.S.] for the San Diego about the show. Len died after the first six years, and then Hawaii Five- Comic-Con, and before he went back to London, we had lunch here at O changed. Those were wonderful stories.

my place, and I met his wife. That was very nice. I hadn't seen him in

50 years. If there's a word like "coquette" for a guy, that's what Ray is.

He's such a flirt! [Laughs] I loved it! Just absolutely adorable.. .won-

derful sense of humor.. .and, of course, terribly bright. It was so excit- ing to be with such a creative and special person. STARLOG: Many movie fans get bent out of shape over the whole concept of colorization. Are you one of them? TAYLOR: You want to know something? You have to go forward. You

can't go backward. I can take it one way or the other. If there's a need

for colorizing.. .so be it. No problem. You can see the movie either way. There's a Hawaiian word that I learned after my husband died—Kam Fong [who played Chin-Ho Kelly on Hawaii Five-0] used the term imua, which means "Go forward." That's my motto: "Go forward. Don't look back, just go forward." As for the colorizing on 20 Million,

I think they did a wonderful job, I really do.

STARLOG: Not long after The Rifleman, you called it quits on the act- ing career.

STARLOG: And now you've made a "mini-comeback," appearing on camera on the 20 Million Miles to Earth DVD. TAYLOR: I'm terribly grateful to Ray for "keeping us alive" with his animation and

his talent. At first, I wasn't going to be on the DVD, but then I thought, "No one else

is here to thank him." And I just really wanted to say thank you to Ray, for creat- ing such fun pictures and for being so cre-

ative and, again, for keeping us alive. I mean, can you imagine, sitting with your

1 8-year-old grandson in a theater, watching a picture that you did 50 years ago? Who would have thought?

mm/JanumY2008 65 Harryhausen says that, still today, any time he mentions the ay Thirty Voyaged title of his proposed fourth Sinbad film, Sinbad Goes to Mars, years ago, 7th

it brings polite smiles to the faces of his listeners. This unmade scribe Ken Kolb charted movie's campy title—and the ridiculous images it conjures up—has certainly made many fantasy film fans smile in the decades since it was first announced in the late 1970s. what might have been when Does any of this upset the man who wrote the script of this non- existent but nevertheless notorious movie mix of Arabian Nights and Sinbad Goes to Mars. outer-space flights? "No," laughs Ken Kolb, "because the premise was repugnant, even to me!" By tom weaver Kolb's initial association with Harryhausen and Mmmf K JIf his producer-partner Charles H. Schneer was in the

1950s, the 30ish writer still to tap when was new Hollywood. A Phi Beta Kappa out of Berkeley with a Master's Degree in English literature, he crafted the screenplay of their first mythological movie, Columbia's The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. "It was a 0^7 ilovm lunch pail job that I didn't want," but the resultant Technicolor production became one of the top grossers of 1958-59, prompt- ing Schneer to offer Kolb additional writing gigs. He toiled on or a screenplay based on one of Antarctic explorer Richard E.

Byrd's expeditions (the film wasn't made), and wrote a first draft of 196rs Mysterious Island.

"I did that right after 7th Voyage',' Kolb says. "I was still young in

Hollywood, but I couldn 't bring myself to screw up Jules Verne's novel other [mythological monster] pictures with Charlie, and none of them enough to suit Charles. I had too much respect for Verne, because were as good or as popular as 7th Voyage',' says Kolb.

Mysterious Island was one of my favorite childhood books. 1 wrote an "Then, in 1977, my agents came to me and said, 'Hey, Charlie is entire first draft trying to give Ray plenty of opportunities, but Charles about to make another Sinbad picture, and he would like to talk to you.' and I finally came to disagree when I Charlie had made more money with my Sinbad film than with anybody realized what Charles wanted to do with else's, so I was willing to try it again. But Sinbad Goes to Mars wasn't it: He wanted a monster behind every my idea. Writing 7th Voyage wasn't such a delightful experience for me " corner. I wasn't used to destroying the that 1 looked up Charlie and said, 'Hey, now let's do thisV classics yet, so I didn't want a credit on It was in a phone conversation with Schneer that Kolb—a resident that." of Northern California—learned that the new movie was to be titled Sinbad Goes to Mars. "I thought to myself, 'Hey... bizarre. You're mix- Sinbad on Venus ing genres,' " Kolb recalls. "But Charles doesn't think in those terms at For the next two decades, the paths all. He thinks in terms of marketability, and Sinbad and space were of Kolb and Schneer-Harryhausen did both highly marketable products. So combining Sinbad and Mars was not cross, the former becoming one of their idea, absolutely. I could never take credit for an idea like that. / TV's busier scribes {Have Gun— Will wouldn't have sent Sinbad to Mars! Incidentally, when Charles asked

Travel, Dn Kildare, Dragnet, Hawaii me, 'How about Sinbad on Mars?', I wise-assedly replied, 'How about Seen here in a recent Five-0, scores more), and the latter con- Sinbad on VenusT shot, Kolb retired in 1981, tinuing to produce their FX-laden fanta- but, being a writer "Then Charles asked me, 'You wanna come down and talk about sy films for Columbia and Warners. who "can't stop," he it?', so I flew down [to LA] and discussed it with him, at his office at

"During that time, Ray made several still dabbles. Columbia. On 7th Voyage, I got input from Ray in the form of pictures:

66 mm/knuary20Q8 He showed me 8x10 glossy blow-ups of his black-and-white charcoal drawings of the skeleton, the Cyclops, the dragon and the two-headed " bird. This time around, I had two words: 'Sinbad. Mars. Go!' Writing a story partly set in space and on another planet was some-

thing new for Kolb. "Yeah, I'll say!" he concurs. "I never considered myself a fantasy writer. My novels are strictiy realism. It doesn't real- ly thrill me to be writing in the Arabian Nights genre or in the future. The present seems difficult enough for me. I don't need to invent stuff.

"But apparently I have a facility for it. During my 25 years in tele-

vision, it didn't matter whether I was writing Honey West, Court ofLast

Resort or Wild Wild West. I understood what each series was, and I

understood that it was going to be made very quickly, it was going to

be made on a soundstage, and so on. I had a good grasp of the medi-

um's limitations. I was raising a wife and three children, and I was pret-

ty much unbothered by the ethics of writing trash! I never saw the innate universal usefulness in loading boxcars in 7th Voyage was the a cannery [one of Kolb's earliest jobs], and so I most profitable in felt that what I was doing was no worse than the tlie Sinbad series, manual labor most of us have to do. So 1 enjoyed Kolb, says Ken it." and perhaps that's Two decades before dispatching Sinbad to Mars, Kolb In preparation for this interview, Kolb re-read why producer scripted 7th Voyage of Sinbad, an experience he described parts of his Sinbad Goes to Mars treatment (see Charles Schneer in-depth in STARLOG #312. sidebar) and first-draft screenplay, many of the rehired him to send the swashbuckler details of which he had forgotten. "[It feels] like As for similarities in plot and characters, both Sinbad Goes to Mars into space. it was done by someone whose shell I inhabit and Star Wars hearken back to comic strip tales of space adventure and now!" he admits. "I enjoyed creating the charac- 1930s serials, which Kolb unhesitatingly admits he had seen. "Oh, ter of Filcher [the roguish merchant who befriends Sinbad and Princess yeah!" he declares. "I watched the old Flash Gordons and even Buck

Tanila and shares their adventures on Earth, in space and on Mars]. I Rogers. Every page of Sinbad Goes to Mars is a deep bow to the cliches

like Filcher, and he's the best characterization that came out of all this. of Arabian Nights as well as Flash Gordon. In the treatment, I estab- "I would have loved to see Sinbad Goes to Mars made, because lished that if Zangor gets ahold of the Ion Crystal, puts his heat-ray

Filcher had genuine comic possibilities. Filcher shows the influence of weapon in place and becomes ruler of Mars, he'll then invade Earth. I my work with [cartoon producer] Joe Barbera. There was a time when felt that that was 'sound plot thinking,' to have Earth involved." Joe wanted to make pictures with live people, and he hired me to write There's also a subplot in which Zangor plans to drain the blood of a bunch of things, most of which never got made. I've got a finished Sinbad and Filcher, because he has learned that Earthling blood—when script that Joe paid for, about the Thief of Bagdad. transfused into Martians—enables them to live 1,000 years. "The "As for the character of Sinbad, well, you can't mess with Sinbad. notion that Sinbad's blood carries the secret of eternal life up there on Your villain [the reptile-like Skaler, Zangor] also has to be a certain Mars, that the guy is going to be slowly drained in order to give per- kind of guy. And you need to have a princess. Jeez, what else are you manent life to the heavy—I thought that was a decent touch," Kolb gonna do? You can't have Sinbad rescue a chorus girl from Mars, right? says. "And I enjoyed creating some of the 'surprising' things that hap-

Or a reformed crackhead prostitute! Sure, it's gotta be a princess!" pen. There are a few special effects that would have been new in '78.

For instance, 1 suggested that the Genie of the Pyramid be a three- Sinbad in Space armed Genie, and that the Ion Crystal be wrapped in a three-cornered Naturally, one assumes that any 1978 script featuring a swashbuck- silken cloak with a mystical knot that only the Genie can unravel. hng hero, villains bent on galactic domination, spaceship battles, a "I also mentioned that Zangor and the other Skalers don't look any- princess and outlandish aliens had to have been commissioned as a thing at all like humans; Ray might have given them extra limbs or

result of the success of the original Star Wars (1977). Although, at that whatever. And I thought there was plenty of room for Ray to operate in

time, Kolb hadn't yet seen Star Wars, he agrees that it was probably the the fact that Zangor is also a magician and, when necessary, can go into motivating factor. a trance and create anything he wants. So, yeah, there was lots of juicy

"Yeah, very likely," he agrees. "I mean, every week Variety pub- stuff in the treatment that could have been stretched out. It would have

lishes the box office receipts, and Charles would be watching that, and made a good movie," he muses. "Not that I would have been proud of

always wondering whether he could make a picture cheaply of the kind it, necessarily!" that had the biggest take that week." Kolb says that his main problem was "tying all of Ray's abilities together. No wonder people worship Ray: He creates monsters who In both 7th Voyage know where to go and what to do!" Kolb laughs. "It has always inter- and Sinbad Goes to ested rae that no one has ever shown any interest in whoever plans Mars, Kolb created when these creatures ought to appear and what they ought to do. But I situations that gave Ray Harryhausen do think that the story is what makes 7th Voyage the best of Ray's pic- ample opportunity tures. It holds together—there's a reason for the things that happen, and to strut his stop- there's a rooting interest as you go along. Which, for me, some of his motion stuff. movies did not have." Three-dimensional viewing screens and holograms are called for in Kolb's Sinbad treatment. Interesting notations and "asides" include ref- erences to NASA's Mars-bound Viking I and // (comparing them to the Martian listening station inside the Great Pyramid); suggestions that the Genie of the Pyramid be neither he nor she ("A genie should actu- r ally be robotic. That would make it seem less controllable."), and that its metallic voice be provided by a Moog ; and that some of Zangor's spaceship's engine sounds be taken from the 1968 Switched-On Bach by Walter Carlos. Throughout the writing process, Kolb received letters from Schneer telling him that Columbia was happy with the treatment, and learned

www.starlog.com mm/ianmy2008 67 that Harryhausen was also pleased with it. its, it's always a wonderful idea to do so. I'm

Correspondence from Schneer also mentioned sure that on most or all of Charles' pictures, that space illustrator Chris Foss and production there was a big return on the investment, right designer Seamus Flannery had been engaged, the back to his first one with Ray, the black-and- former to design the spacecraft, weaponry, Martian white It Came from Beneath the Sea [1955]. landscapes (some shown on this very page), the lat- So turning down Sinbad Goes to Mars was not ter to commence work on the actual sets. So it a good business decision by any means." came as a surprise to Kolb when, after all this positive news, he was told that Columbia had Sinbad in Limbo decided not to proceed. He and his wife For Kolb, one fond Mars memory is that he Emma were preparing to leave on a trip when was much better paid for his work than he was he got the word. for 7th Voyage. "Charlie decided to pay me a lit-

"The money I had been paid for the first draft was tle better for another go-round, and as I recall, I taking my wife and I on some trip—it might have been got six times as much for Sinbad Goes to Mars to the great falls of Iguazu in Brazil," Kolb comments. "I For Sinbad as I did for 7th Voyage," he says. "There would Goes to Mars, have been more [money] coming after I did a Zangor mdy derive his illustrator Chris second draft, but they cut us off." powers from the realm of the Foss was hired Kolb has learned now (2007), for the first occult, but his spaceship looks to draw Martian time, that in 1979, Beverley Cross—screen- more like something from a weaponry, landscapes and spacecraft—like the ship which brings Princess Tanila to Earth.

As Zangor's ship contends with magnetic mines, Sinbad, Tanila and Filcher make phoned Charlie from a Chinese restaurant their getaway in the big San Francisco development in plastic bubbles. called the Cannery, and the news wasn't good. The news was, 'Columbia isn't inter- ested.' It was a total turnaround from their great approval of the treatment. I was told in writing that they were very pleased with it, but now, suddenly, the script was 'unsat- isfactory.' And the script wasn't that differ- ent from the treatment; it was, if anything, an improvement on the treatment.

"As I returned to the table, I was trying to figure out whether I was glad or sorry.

Emmy and I went on our trip, and when I got back, I was still 'hot.' My agents had other work for me, and I really never gave Here's a look Sinbad Goes to Mars another thought. at the control

That's the way it all ended for me, as I went room in on a trip between the first and second which Zangor carries out his drafts, and it turned out there never was a megalomaniac second draft. plan to "I do believe Sinbad Goes to Mars conquer the failed on a personality basis," he continues. solar system. "Charles probably got into some argu- ment—one of those clashes where every- body is trying to flex their muscles—with whoever was running Columbia at that time, and the guy at Columbia probably said, 'Hey, [bleep] off. We're not gonna fund it.' Charles knew how to irritate peo- ple—without hardly trying!

"Whoever it was [that pulled the plug] must have been one dumb-ass executive, because if you have the opportunity to fund a picture for Charles and take half the prof-

68 Smm/Janumy 2008 Want to experience just how base in the Marsh of Eternal Fog. Sinbad Goes to Marsl Here's On foot and tracked by Skalers, a plot synopsis of the unmade Sinbad, Tanila and Filcher make their movie, as based on Ken Kolb's SimnoontiUnm way to a deserted, war-ravaged city revised treatment of April 7, 1978: through the cone at its peak and, with the where, in an ancient temple, a section of In the Sultan's bed chamber, the beauti- help of the Genie of the Pyramid, find the floor gives way, revealing a monstrous ful Scheherazade—who has already told Ion Crystal chamber. Zangor and his sec- anemone creature. Through Sinbad's clever- him 1,001 wondrous tales of Arabian ond-in-command, Radek—who entered ness, their pursuers blunder into the beast. Nights—now tells the one she has saved for through a subterranean tunnel—then strike. Sinbad, Tanila and Filcher board a rescue last. In the story that she relates (and we Zangor ensnares our hero and heroine in craft sent by the King, with Sinbad in the an see), a multi-colored, laser-like THE AGE OF gunnery position destroying beam of light emanates from the OUT OF WONDERS enemy air cruiser. -one of the most wonderful motion pictures ol our timel golden cone atop Gizeh's Great In his underground fortress, Pyramid and up into the night sky. Zangor uses the Ion Crystal to com- The Caliph orders the valiant plete a heat-ray device. Despite the Captain Sinbad to investigate. Genie's admonition that misuse of From the deck of his ship, the Crystal will unleash occult pow- Sinbad and his men watch as two ers beyond control, Zangor destroys spaceships engage in battle, the the yacht of General Rudoro—and smaller sustaining a hit and plung- the entire lake in which it was sail- ing into the Mediterranean. An ing. He uses the ray to destroy a escape capsule bobs to the surface, major city and one of Mars' three its one occupant being Princess moons, which turns into blazing Tanila, daughter of the King of meteors that spread fire over the Mars. For years, that planet has entire planet. been embroiled in civil war, its True to the Genie's warning, the benevolent monarch battling the TECHNICOLOR heat ray can no longer be deactivat- evil sorcerer Zangor and his ed. As the Ion Crystal approaches mutant race of Skalers. The rep- critical mass, Sinbad and Zangor bat- His rep as the sultan of Sinbad screenplays is no tle throughout the laboratory. Zangor tile-like Zangor, master of scien- source of pride for Koib, wlio would rattier write about our tific and occult powers, has come trying present days than Arabian Nights. kills onlooker Filcher with a knife to Earth (in the other ship) to steal before a blow from Sinbad sends him the Ion Crystal, a power source installed in coils of magical wire, and takes them—and reeling into the white-hot framework of the the Great Pyramid centuries before by its the Ion Crystal—to his spaceship, where Ion Crystal chamber Zangor vanishes in a Martian architects to help keep track of the their friend Filcher, a comic-relief mer- flash of fire. As Sinbad and Tanila escape in state of Earth's civilization. With it, Zangor chant-, is already imprisoned. Just a spaceship, the Ion Crystal explodes like a can construct a doomsday weapon and rule outside Mars' atmosphere, the ship encoun- hydrogen bomb, and lethal clouds spread the solar system. ters magnetic mines. In the commotion, over the entire planet. In Tanila's escape capsule, she and Sinbad, Tanila and Filcher escape in Ending her story, Scheherazade tells the Sinbad descend to the ocean floor and her "emergency evacuation" plastic bubbles. Sultan that the Martian holocaust destroyed rapidly flooding spaceship. Aboard, they Zangor learns that one of his generals, all life there, and that when men look upon locate a map of the Pyramid and leave the Rudoro, has surrendered and ended the war its surface in perhaps 1,000 years, they'll ship just before it explodes. The upheaval of in his (Zangor's) absence. Infuriated, still find the red planet desolate, but with water destroys Sinbad's ship and crew. Zangor destroys a squadron of interceptors two moons remaining in its sky. Sinbad and Tanila enter the Pyramid and heads the ship toward his emergency —Tom Weaver

writer of the Schneer-Harryhausen Jason and Sinbad Goes to Mars the Argonauts, Sinbad and the Eye of the didn't become a fnoy\e, but in 2007,_it Tiger and Clash of the Titans (and husband of ^ actress )—was hired to write a ^^F?!^^ u°"?^u „. bool< (although With , ,„ ,, , >cTu J -J " Sinbad Goes to Mars script. I had no idea, ^ storyline) says Kolb, "and I have no qualms with that. Apparently, he had the same kind of luck / did. Which would tend to support my theory that there was a clash of personalities going on. Beverley was a competent writer, and if neither of us could churn out a script that Columbia would accept, then there probably was some other problem." A synopsis of Cross' script appears on page 293 of Ray Harryhausen: An Animated Life (Billboard Books, 2004).

August 1 1 of this year was the 50th anniversary of the Kolbs taking possession of their country-style home in California's Plumas National

Forest, where they still live. Although he retired from the business more

than 25 years ago, "I'm a writer. I can't stop." The project on which he now occasionally works is called The Lord of Loolc Behind, a tale of skullduggery in the dangerous wilds of Jamaica's interior And, as for Sinbad Goes to Mars—the unmade movie which next year marks its 30th un-anniversary—Ken Kolb offers up one final comment. "I did a pretty good job. Considering the fact that the

premise was repugnant to me, I've had some fun re-reading it today. It

would have been a tremendous hit with Ray's fans, and I still don't

know why it never got made. But I wouldn't put it past Charles to get

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I Coster-Waldau's credits Nikolajinclude Bent, Black Hawk Immortality Down, Wimbledon, Kingdom of Heaven, Firewall and 20- is both blessing something European films and TV shows, most of which & curse for were shot in his native Den- mark. All of which makes him the ideal guy New Amsterdam to star as the title character on an American genre television series, right? "I got the pilot script, and I liked it," cop Nikolaj Coster-Waldau says in his Danish accent. He's sitting in a director's chair on the New Coster-Waldau. York City set of that American show, Fox's freshman series New Amsterdam. He plays John Amsterdam, a NYC cop who just hap- pens to be immortal. "I flew out to London from Denmark to do an audition. And then

they called me. I spoke to [pilot director] Lasse Hallstrom and [executive producer]

David Manson. It was the easiest thing ever.

I thought they were kidding when they

offered it to me. So that was it. New Amster- dam wasn't on my radar at all. But there was Subways didn't something about it. exist—but Dutch "I remember when my agent called and soldier/NYC cop said, 'There's this show about an immortal Jolin Amsterdam guy...' I said, 'Oh, come on, that's ridicu- (Nllcolaj Coster- lous.' That was my prejudice. Then I read Waldau) did—in

the script, and I really enjoyed it, because it 1642 New raised so many interesting questions. As an Amsterdam. he st/7/ lives actor, you always look for secrets in a char- And there! acter—and this guy is nothing but secrets. But because I've never done a TV series before, I didn't know what to expect. And I'm finding that out now" Fox initially planned to debut New Amsterdam this past September, during the traditional launch window for freshman series. At the last minute, however, the net- work bumped the show to the winter, and now it's scheduled to debut January 11. The considerable disadvantages of such a move:

Many observers consider it a lack of confi- dence in New Amsterdam, and think it means the show will be DOA. The pros: It wasn't stuck among the huge glut of new fall programming, which included an unusu- ally high number of genre shows vying for attention, press and ratings. Plus, New www.starlog.eom have a clue. How can you even begin to understand what Amsterdam has been through? Amsterdam is extremely lonely. He has grief, but when we meet him, he has

rediscovered the belief that maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel. Amsterdam now thinks that he might actually be able to

have some sort of closure to his life." Closure, however, would mean not sim- ply love, but death. "It would be, yeah," Coster-Waldau confirms, leaning back in his chair and nodding his head in agreement. "In this case, that would be the ultimate beauty:

just to know that life will end. His whole life has been about forming some kind of rela- tionship with somebody—a female, a male, anybody. It doesn't necessarily have to be with a woman. He just wants a friend. And every relationship he gets into, he realizes, Solving criminal cases is the show's focus, but as it continues on Fox, we'll learn more about Amsterdam's long history. 'I'm going to have to say goodbye to this person eventually' —and it's impossible for him to explain who he truly is. But for the first time in a long time—because of what happens in the pilot—Amsterdam believes that maybe he will find someone with whom he can share his life."

The contentious Amsterdam may have found a friend in Eva. As for Robinson, Coster- Waldau lauds, "Zuleilcha is great. She's a very sweet person, and a very good actress."

Amsterdam gets the benefit of having pro- more), the hospital doctor who just may be mos air during that juggernaut phenomenon Amsterdam's elusive Mrs. Right. known as American Idol. "Every week, we'll have a case that he's solving, and we'll also get to know John Old Amsterdam Amsterdam," Coster-Waldau reports. "We'll As for the basics, John Amsterdam was a be using history—and his history—to help Dutch soldier fighting in the colony of New solve present-day crimes. So the crime sto- Amsterdam (later NYC), when he was ries have some kind of reflection on the past.

cursed/blessed in 1642 with immortality by When I first read the pilot, I had many ques- a young Native American woman he saved tions for the writers, and they were very hon- from death. Her gift will end only when he est and said, 'We have absolutely no idea. finds true love. Cut to the present day, and We know he's from Holland, like 400 years Amsterdam is a NYC cop whose reputation ago. And we have a few ideas. But we're for being prickly, argumentative, unortho- going to have to make this up as we go

dox, reckless and the like hasn't endeared along.' So I read a great deal about the histo- him to his fellow officers—particularly the ry of New York, and that gave me a clue many partners he has put through the about what had happened around Amster- wringer over the years. dam, and what he was involved in, which

And now he's paired with Eva Marquez was interesting. But I didn't have an end {The Lone Gunmen's Zuleikha Robinson), result. And the end result would be, of who's at once flustered and intrigued by course, that he finds true love. The idea is Amsterdam, and eager to make their partner- that Amsterdam will fulfill his quest. ship work despite his death wish. Other "He's a very lonely man," Coster-Waldau (L to R) Alexie Gilmore plays important regular characters include Omar continues. "Amsterdam only has one person Dr. Sara Dillane, Stephen McKinle\ (Stephen McKinley Henderson), the jazz he can really confide in, and that's whom Henderson is club owner and club owner/confidante who knows Amster- Omar. He's the sole person who knows who Amsterdam's friend Omar and dam's secret, and Sara Dillane (Alexie Gil- Amsterdam is, and, really, Omar doesn't Zuleikha Robinson essays Amsterdam's partner, Eva Marque2 72 SimQ/Janumy2008 —

Eternal Amsterdam ed him. I hke acting in those scenes, because

Coster-Waldau goes on to explain that it breaks up the procedural elements. When I although he's playing a character who is get a new script, I can't wait to read it. I'm immortal, he's portraying Amsterdam pretty like, 'Where are we heading now? On much as he would any character. .with a Tuesday, I'm going to be a drunk in twist or two. "You know what has been Brooklyn, 1963.' I can't wait!" interesting?" he asks. "The trick—and what The conversation stops for a few is both difficult and fascinating—is that in moments while Coster-Waldau interacts each episode, we go back in time. So it's one patiently and politely—with a man on a bike of those past-informs-the-present things. who has stopped after seeing a film crew at

And that's tough, because he's the same guy, work and recognizing that Coster-Waldau is but he's not the same guy. If you think of the leading man. The biker reveals that he's yourself 20 years ago, it was a different a director, and expresses his hope that New experience, a different you. You're the same Amsterdam's director is treating Coster- person, but you're not the same person. And Waldau and the cast and crew well, because, on the show, it's the extreme of that. he rambles, it's important—and that's what "We did an episode last week where you he does for the people on his projects. This see John 200 years ago, and he's a coach- guy may never have done more than give man. I had one day to go in and do that, and directions to a lost passerby on the street, but it was a whole different world. That was a Coster-Waldau hears him out and thanks him huge challenge. It's tough, but it's also for the advice. inspiring and interesting, because I'm look- Rambling guys on bikes, of course, are ing at what it is that makes us who we are. one of the hazards of shooting on location in That has so much to do with the people who NYC. So are honking horns, helicopters fly- surround us, and you see the people around ing over, unpredictable weather and the even Those do not learn from the past are Amsterdam and how, at the time, they affect- more unpredictable pigeons that loom in the who condemned to repeat it. But perhaps there is light at the end of the tunnel for this eternally dark detective.

trees. But that's another story. For all that, Coster-Waldau loves lensing New Amster- dam in Old New Amsterdam, i.e. Manhattan.

And while the production is based on sound- stages in Long Island City, they shoot sever- al days a week in and around the Big Apple. "It's a cliche, but New York is the whole world in one place," the actor says. "It truly

is a melting pot. I walk down the street and,

I swear to God, every day I meet a Dane, and

I hear the Danish language. I don't know

how. But you see all this life, you hear all these languages from all over the world, right here, on this corner. Now, with my background, growing up in Denmark's coun-

tryside, which is a tiny place.. .it's so far

away from this world. But that's why it's so

great to be an actor I get to experience something different every time." Lately, though, Coster-Waldau has been experiencing pangs of homesickness. He lives in Denmark with his wife and their two young children. They're actually visiting the

set today, but it had been eight weeks since Coster-Waldau last saw them. "That was way too long," he says. "So that was very difficult. The only blessing is that I'm work- ing all the time doing this show. I'm so busy.

That's something I didn't know about shoot- ing a series: you don't stop. I'm in almost

every shot. So it's tough. I never know how long these things will go, but if we were to

do a whole second season, I would persuade my family to move here. But we'll see what _ happens. ^ And how ready is Nikolaj Coster-Waldau s for a long run? "I don't know. I mean, this is = a fantastic opportunity. I'm so lucky, and I'm | ready—but I don't know what I'm ready for. 2 I'm ready for more work. I'm working with great people, and I'm having the time of my ~ life right now. So there you go." o

mmG/Janumy 2008 73 With a snake & a smile, Joanna Cassidy Invites audiences Into tlie world of Blade Runner,

Joanna Cassidy has played different roles in numerous movies and TV

shows, and the actress is proud to note,

"There is no typical Joanna Cassidy role. People tell me, T didn't know that was you!' And to me, that's the highest compliment." While she has worked with everybody from Steve McQueen and Gene Hackman to David Duchovny and Roger Rabbit, the film most people know her from is Blade

Runner. Cassidy essayed the tall, red-haired exotic dancer Zhora, who's also a renegade Nexus-6 Replicant used for political homi-

Snake's alive! It's 25 years later, and Cassidy is all smiles about the DVD release of Ridiey Scott's Final Cut.

ByPATJANKIEWICZ aides off-Earth. She's back with Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) and his crew of disgruntled Replicants, and works as a stripper at The Snake Pit. When Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) tries to terminate her, she beats the hell out of him and leads the Blade Runner on a frenetic chase through the rainy, over- populated streets of future LA before Deckard finally puts her down. "I love the movie, and I'm proud to be part of it," Cassidy states. "I saw Zhora as courageous and loyal to her fellow Re- plicants. It was a matter of survival for her.

Had they actually made it and lived, maybe she could have had several children and set-

74 imm/knuarylOOS .

The seductive Zhora (Joanna Cassidy) is oniy one of tlie Repiicants that Blade Runner Rick Declcard is assigned to tracl< down and terminate.

Run, Zhora, run! Fleeing the night ciub, Zhora attempts to outrun Decl

tied down! I was a big science fiction reader, take on the challenge of coming back to one

and I had read and loved all of Philip K. of my best-known films and shoot a new

Dick's books. I find him fascinating. He was scene for it 25 years later," she grins. "And absolutely brilliant. All of his characters are I'm happy that I've always taken good care

multi-dimensional of myself. I'm in great shape, so I felt I was

"Even though they're machines in Do up to it. I think that's my duty as an actor." Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? [Dick's novel, and the source material for Blade Snake Dance Runner], the Replicants have emotions and The new footage is part of the sequence

have become sophisticated. They realize that where Zhora is hunted by Deckard and ends they've been programmed to die, and they up crashing through glass. "That scene don't want to die, so they're fighting for always annoyed me," Cassidy admits, "and their lives. The Replicants have intelligence so did the fact that we didn't get to film

and inspiration. I always wondered, 'Are we some of Zhora's scenes in the script, like the robots? Do we have blood and organs like a dance I was supposed to do at The Snake Pit. " human, or do we have something else?' It bugged me that I had so little shooting Blade Runner's, 25th anniversary is being time. Lee Pulford, the great stuntwoman, celebrated with a deluxe, remastered DVD wore my costume [and went through the edition (premiering this month). Even more glass]. She was kind of built like me, but she

impressive, Cassidy returned to shoot new had on the worst wig I've ever seen! I was

footage as Zhora. "It was really exciting to not happy about that. But I had come on at the film's end and, by that time, everyone was rushing to get the scene done.

"It always bugged me that, number one, I

didn't do it, and, two, that Lee didn't look like me. So when they proposed shooting some new stuff 25 years later, I said, 'I'm

gonna do it, but it's a little scary!' I tried on

the wig and, suddenly, Zhora was back! I have to say, when you see the film, it's seam- less." In the script, Zhora was initially sup- ...the Replicant posed to make a much more dramatic just isn't quick entrance. "For my dance, this wonderful enough. For choreographer and I worked out an incredi- The Final Cut, ble routine," Cassidy reveals. "We were Cassidy did gonna do an amazing dance as only Ridley a reshoot of Zhora's crash- could shoot it. It was supposed to start with through-the-giass me coming out of a large sand dune, and

sequence. It was then you would see the snake and my hand her idea to cry. emerge. The sequence was meant to be very

mim/ianuarylOOS 75 symbolic and ritualistic. It's too bad that After awhile, though, that self-conscious- Replicants are supposed to be cold killing they didn't get to shoot it, but like I said, I ness goes away when everyone is clearly not machines, and yet, she sheds a tear Zhora joined Blade Runner at the end of filming, looking at you in a sexual fashion but instead just wants to live; there's so much more to and I think the producers had had it by then." in a 'Let's get this movie done' way. There her. She knows that she's being chased. And

Cassidy got the Blade Runner job thanks were other dancers around, so I wasn't the it's interesting that the Replicants have the to her agent, Robert Litman. "He was a only one, which took some of the pressure intelligence to realize that they need to live classy Englishman," she remarks. "Bobby off." as opposed to just going about their busi- read the Blade Runner script and said, ness. They possess self-awareness. Ridley 'Joanna, you must play this part because you Rabbit Run worked very hard to give the Replicants a have a snake.' I'm an animal lover, and I did As for the Blade Runner himself, 'T lov- depth that went beyond the killing," own a snake, a Burmese python named ed Harrison," she enthuses. "He was great to An extremely ambitious production.

Darling. So I read it and thought, 'He's me." Ostensibly the hero, Deckard shoots Blade Runner's awesome (and large) futuris- right! No one else can play this. I have the the unarmed Zhora in the back. "Ridley tic sets made an impression on the actress. "I snake, and I can do the dancing.' Can you wanted to make the film more complex, and was surprised, but I knew that everything imagine an actor trying to grab a snake and he didn't want Deckard to necessarily come Ridley does is big," she notes. "I saw the work with it like that? I don't think so! off as a sympathetic character, which he films he had done before Blade Runner— Ridley gave me a beautiful chance to show would have if he had had a straight fight with The Duellists and ALIEN—and I thought, that character." Zhora. In Deckard's defense, I did try to kill 'This guy has an amazing vision!' Ridley And Darling did end up in her Blade him! It was also his job to kill me. Deckard comes from the commercial world, and

Runner dance sequence. "For an untrained hunted Replicants, and he had to get the job everything he makes is meticulous. Every £ snake, he was very good about the beeswax done. The chase—where Zhora runs through shot is a movie of its own. I knew that Blade | smoke that Ridley used to burn on the set," the seasons, with the leaves and snow—was Runner was gonna be huge. Ridley demands i Cassidy says. "Darling was wonderful, and I something that Ridley designed. I thought it that; he's that kind of director. t believe he got a small working fee, but he was beautiful. And I had things to say about "But as much as I enjoyed the sets, I still c decided not to go SAG! With all the smoke Zhora's character, too. It was my idea to had to get my job done, and in a short s and noise on the set, after we finished. have her cry at the end." amount of time. You know when Zhora is 1 Darling was like, 'That's enough. Mom. I Her death is one of Cassidy's favorite shot? I only had one take to do that! That % " think I'm done with the movie biz!' moments in the film. "It's quite stunning was it. I had the squib in my hand, and had I S Although Cassidy is stunning as the when Zhora goes through the glass to the blown it and not hit the button at the very | Replicant stripper, did she feel nervous beautiful music of Vangelis," she offers. moment I was in focus, I don't know if I ^ about being so scantily clad? "Oh yes," she "That scene is very moving, with the slow- would have gotten a chance to do it again. It o declares. "Stripping down before one person motion, right to the end, where Zhora lets a was so rushed. You get to contribute much | is apt to make you self-conscious, but strip- tear go as she dies. It's those small things more when you're in the whole film instead | ping down before an entire crew?! Wow! that tell you so much about a character. The of a few scenes." m§ Unfortunately, Cassidy arrived on a set Z

where the crew had waged open warfare .S"

with the director "I didn't think about it very £ " much because I was having a good time," she shrugs. "The crew was cruel to Ridley, S and they've had many years to rethink their f behavior. When you're working with a | visionary perfectionist who is demanding, £ you have to make up your mind that you're » gonna go with his vision. Too bad if you £ have to work hard! Nobody got off easy, t Everyone killed themselves on Blade ters, so I just played her as a wise-ass. I tried humanity]. In real life, I'm not removed like Runner, and my feeling about making to make Dolores like a woman out of the that at all! I find it difficult to contain movies is if you don't want to work that hard 1940s—that whole '40s detective movie for- myself, so playing a Vulcan was a real chal- for a director, quit and go do an easy film. If mula." lenge for me. Jolene and Bradford Dillman you're working with a genius like Ridley, In those movies, there's always a sweet are sweet, good people." you have to set aside your ego." girl like Dolores and a femme fatale whose In addition to live-action roles in the She's also fond of her Replicant col- intentions are, at best, unclear. "That would genre, Cassidy has "done cartoon voices for leagues. "Brion James [who played Leon] be Jessica Rabbit," Cassidy smiles. "Our a while, and I really enjoy it. I want to get was a dear man," she says. "And Rutger is a femme fatale was a cartoon!" back into it. On Superman, I played a police- cool guy. Maybe I'm pro- Working with Roger, woman [Maggie Sawyer] who backed jecting, but I really liked my Jessica and the other Toon- Superman up when he couldn't handle it fellow Replicants! And I town co-stars who weren't alone!" hope that the Replicants are added until later on was a Essaying Six Feet Under's eccentric ball seen as more than just challenge. "It was a little of fire Margaret Chenowith, Cassidy turned killers. In today's films, all weird, but so many weird a guest role into an Emmy-nominated sup- you get is the fighting. You things happen in this busi- porting character. "I was only hired for two don't see the characters' ness anyway, you just go shows, and the next thing I know, it's five other emotions—it's just with the flow," she reasons. years later and I'm still on Six Feet Under," people pulling out machine "I got used to playing oppo- she laughs. "I took that character to lots of guns and firing away! site an empty space. places, and to have two kids like she did, Ridley's characterization of Eventually, I said, T can do you've got to be nuts! I didn't want to play the Replicants [fills out] the that!' her in a normal way; I wanted her to be over- film." "Bob Zemeckis and the-top. The way she looked and behaved, Blade Runner's bleak Cassidy has several worked so Margaret was like a sympathetic, pathologi- upcoming projects: both box office didn't affect hard on that film. Bob was cal crazy person." comedy (Kiss the Bride) Cassidy's affection for the so busy that whenever we As for the future, "Women over 50 don't and drama (T/ie American picture. "I've been in several got to hang out, I could tell lose their sexiness, and they don't lose their Standards). films that weren't promoted that his mind was wrapped passion. I'm not gonna lie down and die or marketed correctly," she explains. "Under around some problem. Roger Rabbit was a because a bunch of business people think Fire and The Package are excellent movies huge movie, and Bob was preoccupied with everybody in a film should be 20 years old," that didn't do much at the box office, yet the studio, the shooting and everything else Joanna Cassidy smiles. "The mantra I keep they've become classics. I don't judge like going on. He's a very sweet, brilliant man." in my mind is that actresses in the 1930s and that. I don't consider something 'a bomb.' '40s worked for years. I want to honor wom- That's the business end. Blade Runner is a Alien waltz anhood by working. I've been very lucky brilliant film, and I knew that when I first Asked to explain why she has done so and fortunate to have the career that I've had. saw it. Even while I was shooting Blade many genre projects, Cassidy replies, "I like My entire career has been such a joy. I never

Runner, I realized it was extraordinary and science fiction. It's interesting, and usually planned to do this, and it has gone places I would have a place in cinema history. Ridley well-written." Her other SF film work never thought it would." is an incredible filmmaker, and he really includes Ghosts of Mars went out on a limb to make Blade Runner. ("John Carpenter is a trip. He never compromised." He's one of the great mad- Before she was an actress, Cassidy had a men—an incredibly creative modeling career. "I got into acting because I mind and a good, eccentric had to do something," she laughs. "I had two filmmaker"). The Grudge 2 children to support. I'm from Haddonfield, ("I wanna come back for NJ, and girls from Haddonfield don't neces- Grudge 3\") and playing the sarily grow up to be actresses! I was lucky to town sheriff in Stephen King 's get out. Many people never left town. But Tommyknockers ("I don't real- I've always had a great sense of adventure. I ize that my town has been really never gave being an actor a minute's invaded by aliens. I die quite thought. It's so weird to me that I have an often in movies and TV, and I extraordinary life!" suffer one of my most unique She made her screen debut in the Steve deaths: I'm killed by dolls!"). McQueen classic Bullitt. Did the hip screen Guest-starring in several hero hit on her? "Do I have to reveal that?" Star Trek: Enterprise episodes she laughs. "Steve McQueen flirted with me, gave Cassidy the chance to and that's all I'm gonna say!" play a Vulcan, essaying T'Les, Cassidy played a waitress with a heart of the formidable mother of gold in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (which T'Pol (Jolene Blalock). "It she discussed in STARLOG #135). "That was great to be in that ward- was really something," she states. "It took robe and those Spock ears," six months to shoot that: half here in LA, she smiles. "Being part of that and the other half in London. I was thinking world for a short time was a about Roger Rabbit the other day, when I pleasure. I was a big fan of the saw that Bob Hoskins was doing another original Star Trek. I never film with Bob Zemeckis. It's nice when a missed a show. I thought of director has loyalty to his actors. Leonard Nimoy as soon as "Dolores was a challenging part, because they put the Vulcan ears on she isn't exactly the hero's [Hoskins] girl me. I tried to imagine what it A box office f iop, Blade Runner is now considered a friend. I wished they had delved into that would be like to be a Vulcan cinematic classic. But Cassidy knew it was a "brilliant more, but it was a film about cartoon charac- and be that removed [from film" the very first time she saw it. vvww.stariog.com Smm/Janumy2008 77 —

ohn Billingsley, insists John Bill- Jingsley, is not ubiquitous—despite reams of evidence to the contrary. "You're an actor," he says simply. "So

. you act." Sometimes, there's a hole in his

••. schedule, and a role plugs that hole.

1^ Sometimes, there's a bill to pay, and someone has the money to pay his day rate. And occasionally, a role or a project or the opportunity to col- laborate with someone interesting

; .comes along and compels him to Esign on the dotted line. As a char- tacter actor of the highest order (and pa STARLOG favorite thanks to

|g, TV's The Others and Star Trek:

f': Enterprise), Billingsley snaps

[J.:, up whatever parts come his way E- and—regardless of how or why I he arrived on the set—goes about making those roles his P" own, imbuing them with his

r- Everyman presence and sardonic humor.

Billingsley 's latest venture nudged him just off the beaten path. He co-stars in Jerome Bixby's The Man from Earth, a thinking man's SF drama based on the final script by author

and screenwriter Bixby {Twilight Zone's, "It's

a Good Life"), who quite literally finished it on his deathbed. The story follows John Oldman (David Lee Smith, whose credits include Star Trek: Voyager), a professor who

is leaving town after 10 years, and is visited by his circle of friends who wish to say farewell. To their surprise, Oldman reveals that he's really more than 10,000 years old declaration that sparks an intense debate about life, the past, the future, religion and more. And the debate prompts one to wonder: Is Oldman a lunatic, just toying with his pals,

or could he be. ..might he be.. .is he.. .Jesus Christ? Blessed Immortal Out now on DVD from Anchor Bay Entertainment, Man from Earth was directed on a shoestring budget by one-time STAR- As great character actor keeps demonstrating, there is life after Enterprise. ENCE By IAN SPELLING rous? —

LOG scribe Richard Schenkman (who dis- The differences between religion and spirituality and the story's humane message Billingsley cussed it last issue) and produced by Bixby's attracted John to Man from Earth (now on DVD). son, Emerson. Billingsley's co-stars include a cadre of actors who, together, would form a

terrific SF convention guest list: William (The Greatest American Hero) Katt, Tony (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) Todd, Ellen (Soldier) Crawford, Annika (No Such Thing) Peterson, Richard (Star Trek: The Next Generation) Riehle and Alexis (The Forsaken) Thorpe.

"I liked its thesis," Billingsley says, explaining why he joined the cast to play Harry, one of Oldman's colleagues, and the guy most likely to break the tension with a joke. "To be honest with you, there are so

many movies that I'm asked to do where I fun-

damentally don't jibe with what it has to say about the world. They're violent or misogynis-

tic or piddle-puffle. What I liked about this

script was that it had things to say about the differences between rehgion and spirituality, between what we subscribe to and calcify and

turn into empty gas-baggery, and that ulti-

mately what we should be looking at is simply the message of being fully human and kind to

one another. I thought the movie had a great deal to say about that.

"Structurally, I had some problems with it,

but it was very much worthwhile. Also, it

came at a point in time for me when I could do

it. It came in January, before pilot season had

really kicked in, and it was a pretty short

shoot. They were going to do it over, essen-

tially, a two-week span. So it wasn't some- more modern, rather than caught in something Emerson did a commentary as well, so if you thing that was going to be excessively intru- of a time warp. "Richard himself, at one point, want a more serious examination of Man from sive. And there was a part of me that also in a moment of frustration—at the cast for Earth, you should listen to him." thought, T'll be interested to see if Richard pushing for changes—said something to the " can pull this off.' Can you shoot 12 pages a day effect of, 'Why did you all agree to do this?' Dear Doctor over 10 days, all in a locked room, in effect, BiUingsley recalls. "And everybody to a Bilhngsley's fans are accustomed to him

and make it work? I thought, 'Huh, that's greater or lesser extent said what I just said, cracking wise. He did plenty of it over the

intriguing.' which is, 'Because what it says has lots of rel- course of his association with Enterprise, both "And to his credit, Richard, given his re- evance.' We live in a world where a certain on the show itself as Dr. , and during sources, did a pretty good job. He had all of kind of surface piety has become an excuse to interviews about the Star Trek prequel series,

eight bucks, and given the constraints of trying misbehave. It's like we can't see the forest for which lasted four years before UPN elected

to shoot in one room, I thought he handled the trees. not to renew it for another season. Looking

most of the challenges. If it had been a perfect "What's behind organized religion is sup- back on the experience, Billingsley reports

world, I would have said there needed to be posed to be rather beautiful, a way to live your that, for the most part. Enterprise matched any

some reworking and revising of the script life with great gracefulness. And where has expectations he had for it.

not necessarily to open it up so that we could that gone? But I think Man on Earth is a good "The only thing 1 would say is that because

run around the world, but just to update some film, and I believe there's an audience for it. I everybody was so sure that it would go seven

of what struck me as the fustiness of the lan- did a commentary for the DVD with Richard, years, I was thinking it might, too," he says.

guage. The cornpone quality of some of the and I'm not sure if I was on something or "The other incarnations had gone seven years,

jokes could have been eliminated and contem- what, but it's a lot of me cracking wise. and I wasn't really so tuned into Star Trek that

porized." I had a sense that the franchise had

Only so much could be done, lost such a significant share of its however. Bixby—who had tinkered audience prior to the inception of with the film's concept since the Enterprise—which, as I did later find 1960s—completed the script just out, of course, was the case. The before his death in 1998. So there share of audience had begun to was no sending pages back for decline during Deep Space Nine and

rewrites. Plus, Emerson Bixby spear- Voyager, so, realistically, had I known

headed the project as its producer, that, 1 probably would have been a lit-

and, as Billingsley puts it, "He obvi- tle less sanguine about, 'Hey, hey, ously had a very emotional connec- seven years.' So if there was any sur-

tion to the text as written and, to a prise, it was simply that. It was realiz- certain extent, wasn't that inclined to ing in year two, 'Oh, there are no

tear it up from the roots." guarantees, and this, in fact, is proba-

Still, more than once, the cast bly not going to run that full span of argued to Schenkman that tweaking time.' Billingsley believes that—given his limited the dialogue might make the story resources and shooting schedule—director Richard "And just on a personal level, it and the characters ring truer and feel Schenkman (left) "did a pretty good job." necessitated thinking different www.starlog.com STARL0G//flnuary2008 79 favorite, the idea that you go into work every day and you're there for 13 hours and you're

getting to act is what makes it fun. So episodes like 'Dear Doctor' and 'A Night in Sickbay,'

which I know is right up there amongst the fans' most loathed episodes—and I can under- stand why—were the most fun for me. "I also liked the one ["Doctor's Orders"]

where I put everyone to sleep and had the run

of the ship. I thought some of the best episodes were the ones where the ensemble was used well, like the one where Trip [Connor Trinneer] was cloned. A few others come to mind, like the one ["Twilight"] where they posit a future in which the Xindi succeeded in annihilating the Earth, 20 years had passed and the captain had a form of Alzheimer's. That was the sort of show where everybody Like Earth scribe Jerome Bixby, Billingsley, of course, has a Star Trek connection. He had interesting and fun things to do, and we played Dr. Phlox for four seasons of Enterprise. were around each other all week long. Those thoughts about, 'Well, where are we were certainly creative high going to look for our new house?' points. and 'How much money are we "But there were many going to try to bank?' Fortunately, I instances, however, where my am, at root, a pragmatist, so we role essentially was to come in accommodated ourselves to what I and have one or two scenes in knew was going to be a shorter run. which I would point at the

In terms of the work itself, I didn't screen and say, 'The endocrine really have any expectations except, system of the so-and-so's is

I suppose, that I was concerned that obviously yadda-yadda-yadda,' acting in a rubber head might be and that was the extent of my extraordinarily uncomfortable. It work," Billingsley adds. "It didn't turn out to be that bad, but I was lucrative, and at least I got don't miss the rubber head. to sing my 'Day Off' song. Did

"I can say in all honesty that, for I ever sing you my 'Day Off' me, personally, four years was kind song? It used to drive Dominic of ideal. It was long enough to get [Keating], in particular, up the Closing up Dr. Phlox's office wasn't hard. Billingsley the show into syndication. It was wall. I would breeze in and felt he had spent enough time on the show—and in makeup He long enough for me to generate a breeze out and then be off for doesn't miss the rubber head. nice income. Enterprise was fun to five days, so I would sing [to do and good people and I appreciated the fans' Still, Phlox had his moments. And Bill- the tune of "Banana Boat Song," a.k.a. "Day- tremendous interest, but as the only character ingsley did his best to make the most of the O"], 'Day off, Daaaaaaaay off. Six days off, guy on an action-adventure show. Phlox was Denobulan medic's rare time in the spotlight. but the checks still come.' That always used to never prominent enough for them to dimen- "There were individual episodes that were cer- annoy the handsome boys!" sional-ize him in a way that would have made tainly fun to do," he says. "At the end of the Post-Enterprise, Billingsley has worked it interesting to continue on much past the four day, an actor likes to work, and regardless of often and steadily. In the years since the series years we did." whether Episode X or Episode Y is a fan wrapped, he turned up in guest shots or recur-

Deep-sixed rather quickly, The Nine did give Billingsley the chance to work with his actress-wife Bonita Friederlcy (who played his on-screen spouse).

80 STARLOG/Jonuory^M ring roles on such shows as CSI, CSI: New York, Prison Break, The Closer, , Navy NCIS and Standojf. He co- starred on the short-lived bank-heist drama The Nine, even appearing in a couple of episodes alongside his wife, actress Bonita Friedericy (who's currently on Chuck as

General Beckman), who guest starred as. ..his wife. And he appeared in the low-budget hor- ror films Room 6 and Dead & Deader. "It has been great," Billingsley raves. "Any

actor's concern is, 'OK, I'm coming off a

show. Will I be typed in the eyes of the cre-

ative community? Will people forget that 1 exist?' To be candid, that was the biggest con-

cern. Star Trek is a genre franchise. It appeals to a genre audience. Ninety percent of the casting directors and the creative community in town aren't necessarily hooked into genre shows. They aren't on their radar screen. So

what you kind of hear, backchannel, is, 'John Billingsley. Oh yeah, where has he been these Tim Daly co-starred with Billingsley on The W/ne.The latter feels fortunate that he last few years?' hasn't been typecast. "So you have to knock on doors that you used to be able to walk into, and you have to a frying pan to the head in an early episode of ducers on The Nine—asked for me. It was

reintroduce yourself I was concerned that it Six Feet Under.) In his Journeyman episode, tricky, because I had scheduled a vacation, and

was going to take too long, and I was going to "Game Three," Billingsley played Alan Pratt, they were kind enough to work the schedule

go through a period of atrophy. And I was very a man deeply in debt due to a gambling addic- around that. And it was great fun to do,

lucky in that I didn't. To a certain extent, it was tion he can't shake. Dan Vasser (Kevin because Alex is another guy who's just a class because I was able to double dip while the McKidd) leaps back in time—to right before act with a capital C—and he also directed the show was on the air. [Enterprise executive the Loma Prieta Earthquake of 1989—to save episode." producers] Rick Berman and Brannon Braga him. When 24 returns to the air in January for its were very, very kind and considerate to me "What was fun about Journeyman was, seventh season, Billingsley will be on hand for

insofar as they allowed me to do other things. one, Kevin is just a doll," Billingsley says. at least two episodes. He's locked in as

On episodes where 1 was light, I would "He's one of those guys you meet in the busi- Michael Latham, a security specialist whose scrounge an occasional guest star on another ness who's so modest and self-effacing and future appears less than secure. "I did my first

show, like Nip/Tuck or Cold Case, and I did available. When you meet someone who's two episodes, and I was covered in blood," the film Out of Time at one point. So I kept up playing the lead who is as down-to-Earth as Billingsley notes. "They rip out my finger-

enough of a profile that I don't think I was that, it frankly re-instills hope for you as an nails, so I was walking around all day with

totally off people's radar screens." actor that it's not all just prima donna-ism. I bloody hands. I couldn't read or shake hands have actually been very lucky in my career. or unzip. Great Actor There haven't been too many instances of "It was uncomfortable. Everybody was

More recently, Billingsley co-starred in a bumping into prima donna leads. Kevin is an very pleasant, and I didn't have a bad time,

few pilots that didn't receive network pickups, exceptionally graceful guy. So is Scott Bakula. and though I would love to go back, the phys-

including Suspect, a crime thriller directed by And another one I just worked with is Mark ical reality of sitting around all day covered in

Guy Ritchie; The World According to Barnes, Harmon. But as far as Journeyman, Alex blood... I was Uke, 'Oh, yes, this reminds me

a would-be CW comedy-drama; and Me and Graves—who was one of the executive pro- of Star Trek.' It wasn't quite like prosthetics. In

Lee, with Jamie Kennedy as a loser with a fact, it was actually more unpleasant than

chronically bad back, Lee Majors as a bionics- prosthetics. But it was like memory lane a lit-

obsessed version of himself who tricks tie bit." Kennedy into having bionic surgery and And finally, there's . "Vampires Billingsley in a potentially recurring role as have, in effect, come out and demanded their Kennedy's chiropractor. full civil rights," says Billingsley, who, a few On the film front, Billingsley will soon be days after this interview, started work on two seen in The Least of These—a drama about a episodes of Grey's Anatomy and e-mailed to Catholic boys' school with deep, dark, buried say his character just underwent open-heart secrets, which stars Isaiah Washington, Robert surgery. "So humans are now beginning to Loggia, Bob Gunton and Billingsley as a have to accept the fact that there are vampires "good guy"—as well as American Summer, among us, and we must live with them. It's a

the next direct-to-DVD American Pie movie, recurring role, I believe. I'm the parish coro- which Billingsley describes as a "teen T&A ner. My partner in crime in this episode was sex comedy" in which he's cast as a "college William Sanderson from Deadwood. He's a

professor and a big old reprobate." great guy, really charming. And the lead is As if all that weren't enough, Billingsley Anna Paquin. recently appeared in a Journeyman episode, "So that character should be fun if he con-

lensed two upcoming 24 episodes and shot his tinues to recur, and I hope he will," John first scenes for what will likely be a recurring Billingsley remarks. "If you're the town coro-

role on Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball's ner, and the show is about vampires killing soon-to-debut HBO series. True Blood, based people—with people dying right, left and cen- on the "Southern Vampire" novels by per more, check out Bilfingsley's past ter—I figure I'll get to do a few more of Charlaine Harris. (Billingsley actually died via STARLOG chats in #274, #294 & #322. those." 1^ www.starlog.com Smm/Jai\uary2008 81 - " ;

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You can fax: 646-723-2273 or e-mail: [email protected] Douglas "loved doing Star Trek," but has some mixed feelings about tier guest shots ("The Galileo Seven," "The Way to Eden").

Today, Phyllis Douglas is happy to be out of acting. After a career in real estate, she now sells RVs in Palm Springs.

By PAT JAIMKIEWICZ

guru Dr. Sevrin and his freeloading friends take over the Starship Enterprise. Dedicated to the cause, she even goes so far as to try and arato seduce Mr. Sulu. After two guest shots, "I loved doing Star Trek," Douglas declares. " 'Galileo Seven' was great. It had Phyllis Douglas knew the interesting sets and good costumes, but the real reason I liked it so much was because my way to Star Trek. acting teacher, Robert Gist, directed the en episode. Besides Leonard Nimoy, my co-stars While still a baby, Phyllis Douglas was et with Mr. Spock in "The GaUleo Seven," were Don [Land of the Giants] Marshall and enshrined forever in film history: She they must survive the night in a damaged shut- Peter Marko. They were both in Robert's act- played Rhett Butler and Scarlett tle as they're attacked by that world's inhabi- ing workshop with me, and here we all were,

O'Hara's beloved daughter Bonnie Blue in the tants—massive, gorilla-like creatures capable crew members on the Enterprise. That made it motion picture epic Gone With the Wind. "My of using strategy, tools and weapons. Douglas fun going to work.

mother says I liked sitting on 's manages to be both fetching and ready to rum- "The whole episode was like an extension lap," she smiles. ble as Mears. (When the shuttle crashes, she of our class. Peter and Don were always great Of course, this being STARLOG, we're far simply laughs her injuries off to Spock as in class, but 'Galileo Seven' finally gave me a more interested in the sweet, petite blonde's "Just a bump on the head, sir.") chance to act with them on-camera, with our

two Classic Star Treks. As Yeoman Mears, the Douglas returned in the third season for the acting teacher directing! I felt safe with Robert

cute crew member with the bouffant hairdo notorious "The Way to Eden," Star Trek's helming it, because I knew he would go with was a Star Trek rarity: a Redshirt in danger deliriously silly hippie episode. As a futuristic our best performances." who actually lives! Stranded on a savage plan- flower child, the sultry hippie tries to help her As for the mysterious Spock, "Leonard www.starlog.com STARL0G//flnuory200fi 83 "

was just wonderful," she praises. "I really to be kind of frightening. I had to have my were, because 'Eden' was the worst episode enjoyed him. Leonard was extremely profes- photo taken with him for publicity shots, and they ever made! I realized that as soon as I

sional and a very kind, genuine, sweet man. It the look of fear on my face was totally real. read the script. It was a dumb song, too. was so nice to watch him playing Spock." The guy playing him [Robert "Big Buck" Unless you know me well, you won't recog-

Maffei] was actually nice, but he was huge, nize or see me too clearly in that episode. I just Guest Treks and scared me in that suit and gorilla face. hid!" "The Galileo Seven" was one of the most Outside of the makeup, he was fine, but in the Mary Linda Rapelye played fellow space

action-packed Star Treks ever. "Boy, it sure costume, he was a very realistic giant mon- hippie chick Irina in "Eden." "She told me, was," Douglas giggles. "It was a tough episode ster!" 'You are so beautiful, and you have a gorgeous

to shoot, because it was really, really physical, Another Star Trek figure who scared her body. I couldn't figure out why you were with lots of running and falling. They would was the Captain, William Shatner. "The only always hiding in the background,' " Douglas shake that doggone shuttlecraft, and we would reminisces. "I couldn't bring myself to tell her all fall on the floor! They would shake it ''I'm the only girl [the truth], because Mary Linda is nice and whenever we had turbulence or were under was the female lead. I wanted to do another attack. By the time we were done, I had bruis- who can't recall great episode like 'Galileo Seven,' and I felt es in a few places that surprised me. I remem- that 'Eden' was a frivolous one— frivolous for ber they made me look all sweaty with glycer- sitting in a serious, high-minded science fiction show ine when 1 said, 'It's getting hot in here.' I had like Star Trek!' quite a few inane lines like that. Clark Gable's lap!" The actress admits that she wasn't into SF when she did Star Trek. "I was a working

actress, and it was just a job," she says. "But 'Galileo Seven' was smart and different and

impressed me. I wanted to be on Star Trek

because it was a big show and extremely pop-

ular. Star Trek got low ratings, but in its own

way, it had as large a cult following as

Batman. Despite not being a hit, actors and

actresses really wanted to be on it, and I don't

know why. Maybe it was because Star Trek was unique and the wrifing so strong. ..but not " on 'Eden.' Baby Booms Douglas' parents were in the industry. "I was literally born on Hollywood & Vine, at a little hospital called the Benedict—it's gone now," she states. "My Mom was a Ziegfeld girl, and my Dad, Ridgeway Callow, was an interesting man. He was born on the Isle of Man, graduated from Cambridge and was in the R.A.F. He moved to NY, where Howard Hughes hired him to be his personal assistant and CPA. "Hughes took my Dad to Hollywood and Welcome to show business! Douglas debuted in the biggest of big motion put him to work as a third assistant director. pictures, Gone With the Wind. She was young Bonnie Blue Butler, daughter of Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh. When Dad heard they were going to audition 500 two-year-olds for [producer David O.

"But I liked my character. Yeoman Mears thing I can say about him is that he was a play- Selznick's] Gone With the Wind, he called my was pretty brave in that situation, and she tried boy," she remarks. "After work, he tried to put Mom and said, 'Bring Phyllis right over!' Dad to be tough, even though she was scared and the make on me—he chased me around the said it wasn't nepotism—I got the part fairly

always saying silly stuff," Douglas laughs. soundstage! Let's just say I took off running. It because I looked the most like a combination

"She wasn't a bimbo, and she tried to help wasn't a problem when I came back for my of Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh. My intro-

Spock get everybody out of there. And while I next episode, but on 'Galileo Seven,' I don't duction to show business was playing Bonnie thought my Yeoman uniform looked like a think his ego was ready to accept a polite 'No Blue Butler, sitting on a horse with Clark

cocktail waitress' outfit, 1 preferred that little thank you.' Gable in Gone With the Wind.

red dress to my space hippie get-up!" "The Way to Eden" is the oddball entry "My Dad told me it was fun to watch,

When the shuttle crashes, Mears does a where goofy space slackers bond and bicker because they had me suck my thumb, which I

cute little bunny-hop upon impact. "You know with the Enterprise crew, then take the ship on had never done as a child. The other actors in what? I wasn't acting when I did that—my an ill-fated trip to the planet Eden. "I was the scene would walk up to Gable and say, 'I 'hop' was completely by accident," she recalls. embarrassed to be in that one," Douglas con- see little Bonnie sucks her thumb,' and I would "Because they shook the shuttle so hard, they fesses. "If you watch the episode, you'll notice pull my thumb out of my mouth and complain,

made me do that. That's also when I fell to the that I hide in every single scene! I did 'Galileo 'No, 1 don't!' They would yell 'Cut' and tell

floor on my hands and knees. You see that hap- Seven' first, and I was really proud of that me, 'Keep your thumb in your mouth and

pen on the show. We went over schedule show, so I was excited to be in another one. don't say anything.' If they had told me, 'Of

shooting 'Galileo Seven,' and the studio was After I got the job on 'Eden,' I learned that the course you don't suck your thumb; you're a

not happy about that. But it was a smart space hippies were going to sing. I thought, big girl,' I would have shut up! People tease

episode with loads of action. We filmed it in 'Singing on Star TrekV. That's absurd!' I just me that I'm the only girl who can't recall sit-

seven days, mostly in the shuttle, while the knew it wasn't going to work. ting in Clark Gable's lap!"

creatures pounded on the hull outside." "It was really funny, because when I was At age four, she played Leigh's daughter The alien apeman "was very scary in per- on the show, several regular cast members again in That Hamilton Woman. "I remember son," she confides. "I found the giant monster came up and told me how embaiTassed they that one vividly, because they made me get

84 STARLOG//(inuory» www.starlog.com into a crib," Douglas grins. "I liad a fit because ducer] Bill Dozier's office on

it was a baby crib, and I wasn't a baby! Tliey the Fox lot," she reveals. "I gave me a doll as a bribe, and that shut me up. walked in, and he was standing The censors cut my scenes, though, because there, back to me, staring out a you weren't allowed to speak of an illegitimate window. I had no idea why I child in those days, let alone show one on was there, when he turned screen. around and said, 'How do you

"At 10, 1 was in a movie called Canon City. do? Are you having a good

I loved acting, but my parents wanted me to time on the show?' I said yes,

grow up normal. As a teenager, I did [produc- and he told me, 'We like your er] Albert Zugsmith's film The Beat Gene- work very much. Your dailies

ration. They wanted me to shower naked, but I are wonderful. I appreciate you

refused, so they put me in a bodystocking. I coming here. Thanks.' With

did a film [A Global Affair] and that, I was dismissed and taken

some B-movies such as Atlantis, the Lost Douglas wasn't so fond of being a singing back to the set. I found out later

Continent. I liked [Atlantis director] George hippie in "Eden," preferring her first Tre/f "Galileo that the studio was interested in Seven" (pictured). Pal, but what I really enjoyed was that my Dad me for Batgirl in Season Three, but the network and money people favored Yvonne Craig, a nice, pretty

girl. I was flattered to be in the running. I

loved doing Batman. Like Star Trek, it was something different, cleverly written, and did not look like anything else on television." Douglas disappeared after a handful of guest shots on various TV shows. "After Star

Trek, Batman and Mannix, I decided that show business wasn't for me," she quietly relates. "I

was very shy, so it was difficult for me to pre-

tend to be outgoing, although you can't tell

that when you watch my stuff. I also had sev- eral bad experiences with the casting couch. The crowning blow against acting for me was a producer at Paramount who shall remain nameless. "After seeing me on Batman and Star Trek, he called me in for a lead in his film. Once in his office, he said, 'Let's go,' and took me to

his car. I wrongly assumed he was driving me to the set to meet the director. Instead, we left

the lot, and 1 got a really creepy feeling. I asked him, 'Where are we going?' He gave me a quizzical look and said, 'You know where She enjoyed making the action-pacl

"I was in it with Sally Kellerman, Peter Marko cover it up with white makeup. I loved walk- work for me.' I cried all the way home. I felt so and Paul Mantee." ing around the Batcave and Wayne Manor sets. used, and that was the end for me.

At lunch, I would wander around other stages. "I decided that I wanted to do something Bat Times On the Lost in Space set, I saw a chimp in a with my brain, rather than a job based on my

Douglas made the trip to Gotham City to diaper [Debbie the Bloop]. I held her, and she looks. I went into real estate, loved it and did guest on the other big cult show of the '60s, ripped my false eyelashes right off!" that for over 30 years. Now, I sell recreational Batman. She played Josie, 's hench- Douglas was almost recruited full-time to lots for RVs in Palm Springs. I met a hand- woman, in "The Joker's "/"The join the Caped Crusader's heroic battles some man named Bob Boyce at a Palm

Joker's Epitaph." "Batman was so much fun. against evil. "One day, I was mysteriously Springs resort, and as I showed him the prop-

Adam West and I were already good friends, pulled off set, put in a limo and taken to [pro- erty, he gave me a great line: He told me that I because we had been in an acting workshop was his absolute fantasy with my black-cat together before he got the show. He was happy eyes. We got married, and later renewed our to see me, but then he made things difficult," 'Eden' was the vows on the 18th hole at that resort. We even she remarks with a fond grin. "Any time they played 'Tara's Theme' from Gone With the shot over his shoulder, Adam would make worst episode they Wind. faces at me! He would say a straight line like "I run into Star Trek fans, and they're

'I love you' and make a face. I would then ever made! I always happy to see me. Bob and I are amazed laugh and blow the scene! I had lots of fun at the popularity of my episodes, and all the with him. We had a make-out scene that was realized that as shows are now on DVD, so it's great that new hilarious. audiences are discovering Star Trek. I'm proud "Doing scenes with Batman wasn't weird, soon as I read to have been Yeoman Mears," Phyllis Douglas because mask or no mask, he was still Adam smiles. "But I'm still embarrassed by 'The to me. And Cesar Romero was just wonderful. the script/' Way to Eden!' " #

Smm/January2008 85 Embarking on When Star Trek: Enterprise began airing sands of Web-savvy Trekkers have been new in 2001, many Trek fans were disap- doing—watching a fan film series in which the

pointed that the franchise had turned of some 300 years hence is still prob- Odysseys, Star Trek away from the 24th Century, feeling that the ing the unknown and discovering secrets that fan universe charted by The Next Generation, could shake the cosmos. filmmaker Deep Space Nine and Voyager still held Produced under the aegis of creator Rob Rob Caves Chronicles "strange new worlds" worth exploring. Caves' Areakt Pictures, Star Trek: Hidden Yes, there was 2002's Nemesis and plenty Frontier managed to deliver 50 episodes in its his Web exploits. of novels, but it wasn't really the same as tun- seven seasons, and though it recently conclud- ing in for another new episode. However, for ed with a feature-length finale, it's already the last seven years, that's exactly what thou- being followed up by two spin-off series,

Slipstream technology- adapted from Hidden Frontier enemies—got the U.S.S. Odyssey to the Andromeda galaxy, but its loss is one of many casualties the crew suffers.

"I'm a big fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation and onward," Rob Caves notes. "We're trying to l

86 mm/January 2008 —

o

With Hidden Frontier f\na\e co-writers Caves and Dan A wedding helps conclude Hidden Frontier. In attendance are Crout on hand, J.T.Tepnapa directs Julie Gardner and Jorian Dao (Adam Browne), Captain Faisal (Savene), Captain Shelby Rebecca Wood (as villainesses Vorina and Betras). "J.T. (Risha Denney), Vedek Ro Dahkvura (Andrew Foster), Ro Nevin has directed some of my favorite episodes," Caves says. and Corey Aster (Tepnapa).

Odyssey and The Helena Chronicles, as well Star Trek: New Voyages—the Internet as a short film. Hidden Frontier also directly series which has been around nearly as long as inspired the Scottish fan film series Intrepid Hidden Frontier, but released only a fraction and shares a character and the same comer of of the episodes—costs about $70,000 a pro- the quadrant with the audio series The Section ject. Hidden Frontier and its sequel series are

31 Files, and in its forums can be found fan produced for only $500 an episode. "If that!"

fiction based upon the Hidden Frontier sub- Caves laughs. His studio is his home, and the

universe and its characters. Not bad for some- sets don't actually exist. "It's all filmed against thing that those who were with Hidden a green screen, so once we have the equipment

Frontier at its earliest stages didn't want seen. in place, the props and the costumes, the cost Caves, who works on the shows' CGI of producing episode after episode is pretty effects and also writes and directs episodes, low. We can't afford to build sets. We don't "joined a Star Trek fan club in college, and even have the space for that. But we do lots Hidden Frontier actors Larry LaVerne, they wanted to make a film." What they devel- with virtual backgrounds, and we have people Heather Asleigh, Sharon Savene and oped was Voyages of the U.S.S. Angeles. around the world contributing their artistic Barbara Clifford are joined by the However, the group, fearful of legal repercus- skills to create virtual sets and starships." The non-costumed assistant director David sions (but mostly just embarrassed), didn't drawback to this method is that a green halo O'Neill and Caves. want it posted on the Web. "It was when we surrounds the cast in earlier episodes. "Wait started to improve the production values that until you see OdysseyV Caves declares. "The we said, 'Why don't we put that out and see green lines are totally gone!" " how many people want to download it?' Hidden Frontier is as much as

it is space opera. Planned seasons in advance,

Hidden Frontiers its plotiines and character arcs wind around Hidden Frontier is set in and around the and away from each other. Shipmates get pro-

Briar Patch, the -inhibiting region moted, transferred, fall in love and sometimes

of space introduced in Insurrection. Since are killed off. Some characters head off to the then, Starfleet has built Deep Space 12 in orbit far reaches of the quadrant pursuing missing

above the planet Ba'ku. The station was ini- family members, while others never meet at all tially intended as a place to study the area's over the course of the series, though their unique properties as well as a staging area for actions impact one another. And unlike other As a Betazoid tactical officer, Maya Stadi the Excelsior—a Galaxy-class dreadnought Star Trek sagas, both amateur and profession- (Julia Morizawa) is "able to anticipate first captained by the avuncular Ian Knapp al. Hidden Frontier eschews the usual focus on people's moves, attacks, that sort of (David W. Dial), and then Elizabeth Shelby a command crew that stays with each other at thing." Now, if only Ro Nevin (Bobby Rice) (Risha Denney) and the Independence, com- all times, responsibilities can keep her from reading the crew's — regardless of rank, or thoughts. manded by DS12's former administrator. interests. Instead, it follows its central figures Commodore Jennifer Cole (producer-director as they take up their individual quests. Jennifer Cole). However, Hidden Frontier wasn't always But that was before the first conflicts with set up like that. The first two seasons—while the highly advanced yet drone-like Greys and they introduce a number of important charac- their psychic masters, the Ethereals, and the ters and concepts—offer routine Trek stories, discovery of the massive Tetrahedrons and the website where the entire series can be weapons so overwhelming that control over found (www.hiddenfrontier.com) even warns them could easily tip the balance of power in newcomers that those early episodes aren't the quadrant. And once the secrets of the quite of the same caliber as the later ones. Currents—passages through the Patch that "We realized that with the limitations of allow for warp-like speed get out, the sector green screen and our production budget, we Most of Hidden Frontier's plot threads — is torn asunder by Federation forces, Klin- really weren't going to be all that different were planned far in advance, but the romance between Myra Elbrey (Clifford) gons, Romulans, Cardassians, Tholians, Breen from any other amateur production by just and Henglaar (John Whiting) wasn't one and just about every other spacefaring race making generic Star Trek stories," Caves of them. ever mentioned in Star Trek. argues. "So that's why we decided to take this www.starlog.com •imm/iamarylOOS 87 —

relationship that simmers over the course of the series are the unlikely pair of Henglaar, the Excelsior's curmudgeonly Tellarite doctor, and Myra Elbrey, an upbeat Betazoid coun- selor with a direct professional style. "Heng- laar was one of our breakout characters," Caves reveals. "He's a crotchety jerk some- times, but there's something really human about how John Whiting portrays him, so peo- ple identify with Henglaar anyway.

"We didn't really have it plotted, but when the actress who plays Elbrey, Barbara Clifford,

got the first script and read it over, she said,

'Oh, wait a minute. I see! There's sexual ten-

sion here!' So, she played it that way, and it worked. We didn't plan on them having a rela- tionship, but when you see chemistry between

people on screen, you go with it." New Odysseys Much of the action from the third season

on is driven by the ages-old enmity between two men, Tolian Naros and Siroc. "When we promoted Knapp up to Admiral, and made Shelby the driving force in the show, she need-

ed a first officer, and we were fascinated by the idea of an NCO who had been manipulating things in Starfleet and the region for literally hundreds of years," Caves says. "Because of Naros' experience with the Patch, Starfleet pulls him out of retirement to take a command position. Larry LaVerne had the perfect look radical, serialized, epic storyline and do some- the third season, Shelby often finds that the and demeanor for the character. We gave Siroc thing compelling." command she so anxiously pursued isn't all a backstory that really helped to flesh out the

As for not focusing on the characters as a that she expected it to be. Fortunately, she's early days of the Patch and the idea of Naros group, "There are logistical reasons for that," balanced by the more pragmatic Lefler, her and Siroc as onetime pals—treasure hunters, Caves admits. "We would have actors not chief engineer, eventual first officer and—in a thrill seekers and society manipulators. Jim available when other ones were, so literally, nod to Peter David's New Frontier novels Davis has enormous range and scene-chewing they wouldn't meet each other for a year It best friend. ability. He was a natural for the role." forced us to write plots and stories that worked "The book series hinted at that, so it was a The emotional core of the series is the within those limitations. So we came up with natural progression to expand upon it and developing relationship between Ro Nevin multiple ships doing different things." make them friends," Caves says. "It harks back (Arthur Bosserman, later Bobby Rice) and Although most of the major players are to the Kirk, Spock and McCoy relationship. Corey Aster (J.T. Tepnapa). "J.T. has the dis- original characters, two are carried over from That is one of Star Trek's trademarks: people tinct honor of playing the first openly gay Next Generation: the aforementioned Shelby, working together under harsh situations who character in Star Trek," Caves comments. "I and Robin Lefler (played in all but the second are.. .it's not romantic, but they love each other know he is very proud of that, and he should and third episodes by Joanne Busch). After in a friendship sort of way." be! But we always wanted Aster to be just being promoted to Captain of the Excelsior in Two characters who do develop a romantic another member of the crew, not 'The Gay Crew Member,' and I think J.T. has found a nice balance there." Rice joined the cast with Season Five. "Bobby jumped headfirst into the character of Ro," Caves says. "The energy that he brought

to the character and the show is something that

I'll always admire."

Things won't be easy for the Helena crew. "Characters are really fun to watch when you put them under stress," Caves says.

Two Hidden Fronf/er carryovers, Captain Faisal and Jorlan Dao, head up "a crew of misfits" In the new series The Helena Chronicles.

88 mm/January 2008 Guns blazing, the Archeins emerge from their wormhole to attacl< the Romulans and their allies.

especially. It was a way to show that by the 24th century, this isn't an issue any more, and that the universe isn't going to blow up because there's a gay character on the ship." With Hidden Frontier's finale wrapping up all its storylines. Caves and his crew—which now includes SF authors E. Robert Dunn and Brian Matthews—looked about for inspiration for a follow-up, and found enough for two shows. Classic Treic had introduced the Kelvans, an advanced race whose native

Andromeda galaxy is enduring great strife. By the 24th century, the Kelvans have fallen to the Michelle Laurent, Tim Foutch and Rice (as T'Lorra, Josh Gillen and Ro Nevin) work "Bad guys in the Andromeda galaxy are Archeins, who are using a stable wormhole to on an Engineering section that only way more advanced than people in our reach our galaxy, attack the Romulan Empire exists as CGI. "It's prohibitively costly to own galaxy," Caves comments. and prepare their newly won space for colo- build 15 sets for an episode," Caves nization. Using experimental slipstream tech- says. Instead, they use "virtual sets" and nology, a Federation ship with Ro and a digital locations. Romulan observer aboard and a ves- sel with Aster on hand journey to Andromeda Lieutenant Commander Ro must pull his sur- to shut down the wormhole. The mission ends viving shipmates together for the journey in a pyrrhic victory: while Aster's ship home, a mission that echoes a classic voyage.

escapes, Ro's is left behind, severely damaged "We wanted to use Homer's Odyssey as a and its command crew all dead. Now, rough canvas for a Star Trek show," Caves

Tepnapa guides Mark Ashton Lund and Sterling Greene (playing doomed Starfleet officers) and Morizawa through a sequence in the Odyssey premiere.

Ro is the more serious younger brother of Next Generation's, wayward Ro Laren, and his

upbringing malces it difficult for him to acknowledge his feelings for Aster. "We used

Ro to tell this coming-out story over the course of a number of seasons," Caves says. "It was a

way to tell that story for people who have never gone through that, or just wondered what

it was all about. And the gay community just When the Odyssey launches, its crew is unaware of how badly things will turn out. "It's loved the whole thing. They identified with Ro, a play on the Voyager concept," notes Caves, "but taken to a new level of severity." v/ww.starlog.com Smm/JanuarY2008 89 —

Gillen, Dr. Vaughan returns as the Captain of the Helena. "She's a

(Matt Montgomery), real novice," Caves says. "This is her first T'Lorra, Ro Nevin, command, and she's back against the wall Maya, Chief Bixx with all this stuff that's going on with Starfleet (Foster), Alex and Aster pushing her to do these experiments Wozniak (Sam with Omega which is completely illegal, Basca), Captain — T'Lel< (Greene) because, if you remember from Voyager, it and Commander goes boom! She's going to be pulled in all Conner (Lund) may directions, and that's when characters are real- begin the Odyssey ly fun to watch."

together, but On Hidden Frontier, it wasn't uncommon not all survive the for actors to take on more than one role, and so first show. Savene is pulling double duty, playing key

parts on both series. "Sharon is having a blast

with all these high-visibility roles!" Caves grins. "She had such sporadic character devel- opment in Hidden Frontier's last couple of seasons, and now she's getting lots of positive reviews for her Odyssey villain. After seeing her play a dominating part in that, I'm excited

says. "Way back when we were thinking of tons of his people all at once; and then he's to see how she brings some of that into her ideas, many people were being hard on screwed. portrayal of Captain Faisal on Helena''

Voyager for not taking the chances it should "Believe it or not, we're going to be fol- Also, notes Caves, "Brian came up with

have taken and not being the serialized show it lowing the Archein characters almost as much new characters—he's writing a bunch of should have been. So, with that in mind, we as the U.S.S. Odyssey characters. Like in Helenas,—and he created some that are a little were thinking, 'What if we could take some of Hidden Frontier, you're not just on the ship; bit out there. He has a tactical officer who's

those Voyager concepts that were good, and you're following all these different plotlines. half-Bolian and half-Nausican, so she's a bit mix them with something that has a good out- The Archeins are a matriarchical society, so like Worf. And then, he wrote a doctor who line, like The OdysseyT you have a ruling family that's women, and the has these implants; he isn't a Borg, but he's "It was an experiment in meshing together men are more subservient. There are varied always doing stuff with his physiology, chop-

two ideas, and we thought, who better to do shades of grey in all these characters. The ping off limbs, and it freaks people out.

this than Ro, because he comes from a reli- queen [Cole], who's supposed to be control- There's also a chief engineer who's a bit nutty;

gious background? And what we're doing ling things, is being poisoned by her daughter. he talks to himself. Basically, Helena throws

with Helena Chronicles is telling the Penelope Very Greek, of course. And the general together people who are misfits. It's like [The side of Odysseus' journey through Aster, [his [Whiting] isn't necessarily a bad guy, but he Odyssey's,] Penelope: She has her suitors in the ex-lover] Dao [Adam Browne] and some other isn't really in a position of power, either. So, house, and things are going to Hell."

characters." it's lots of playing with Greek themes and stuff With these two series, "Everything has

On Odyssey, Ro (now Brandon McCon- that is hopefully compelling to our audience." been plotted out right through to the end. It's

nell) has little choice but to make the battle- basically three seasons of each that [will run] hardened Romulan T'Lorra (Michelle Lau- Trek Chronicles concurrently. We've scripted most of Odys- rent) his first officer. "She's at odds with Ro The Helena Chronicles begins six months sey's, first season and Helena Chronicles'

almost from the start," Caves says. "They have after the end of Odyssey's, premiere, with Aster Season One and Two. So, it's just [a matter of] a pretty big arc as far as their relationship with just recovering from his injuries and being told shooting stuff." Odyssey's initial episode has

one another developing over time [is con- that only his ship has returned. "He wants to already been posted, and production will soon cerned]. Ro has a Betazoid tactical officer rescue his husband, but he can't, because they rotate between the remainder of Odyssey's, five

[Julia Morizawa] who reads people's minds, don't have a means to do it," Caves explains. first season episodes and all three of Helena's,.

so he has to have a talk with her in the first "Helena Chronicles is about him working with If all goes well, Helena's, pilot will go online episode. There's a doctor [Matt Montgomery] people to try and find a way to rescue this crew before year's end. who's of Welsh ancestry, and we're going to that Starfleet has given up on. Many different December should also see the premiere of find out some surprising secrets about him. political things come into play." the first-ever full crossover between two fan The chief engineer was killed, so there's this When Naros was promoted to Captain on film series. An upcoming character from Star ensign from Canada [Tim Foutch] who's sud- Hidden Frontier, he was given a first officer Trek: Intrepid was already introduced in pass-

denly the chief engineer. Much of this is what named Faisal (Sharon Savene), who did little ing in a Hidden Frontier episode, and Captain happens in Homer's Odyssey: Odysseus loses more than acknowledge his orders. Now, she Shelby cameoed on that Scottish series' first offering. But now, crews from both will meet The fan film in Orphans of War. "They were coming over crossover short here on vacation, and said, 'Hey, why don't we Orphans of War "is shoot a scene?' Well, that scene turned into 16 a little bit of a bridge" between pages, so we basically made a short. It's just the three Hidden long enough to have a beginning, middle and Frontier shows end, good character interaction and some

and will also have interesting plot, but it isn't a full-on episode. It an impact on the nicely dovetails between Hidden Frontier, Intrepid crew. Odyssey and Helena!' So why keep doing these Star Trek fan film productions? "That's a good question. We're

nuts, I guess! It pretty much started out as a

hobby," says Rob Caves. "It still is a hobby. Basically, a group of Star Trek fans and bud- The Orptians of War ding filmmakers get together, and this is what we do on the weekends!"

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