SciFiAndTvTalk

Sci-Fi Blast From The Past - Victoria Pratt (Cleopatra 2525)

 
Victoria Pratt as Sarge in Cleopatra 2525. Photo copyright of Renaissance Pictures.

In today's Sci-Fi Blast From The Past, Victoria Pratt talks about playing the tough, no-nonsense freedom fighter Sarge in Cleopatra 2525.

In 1969, Zager and Evans wrote a song called In the year 2525 that foretells a bleak future for humankind.  Set in the same year as the song’s opening lyrics, the new action-adventure series Cleopatra 2525 suggests the same thing.  Monstrous creatures known as the Bailies rule the surface of the Earth and humans have been driven underground in order to survive.

Sadly, most of humanity has abandoned any hope of ever reclaiming the surface, but there are some courageous individuals who will never stop trying to do so.  One of them is Sarge, a spirited, no-nonsense, fearless resistance fighter who teams up with two other strong and beautiful warriors, Hel and Cleopatra, to kick some Bailey ass! While Sarge could easily give Rambo and the Terminator a run for their money, Canadian actress Victoria Pratt wants her character to be more than just an unemotional demolition machine with a one-track mind.

“When you’re playing a really tough female character the danger exists to make her very one-note and the last thing in the world I wanted Sarge to be was a meathead,” laughs Pratt. “I mean, you’ll watch some actresses in similar roles and all they bring to their performance is physical strength and/or just meanness. I want there to be a few different levels to Sarge. She can be lusty, angry, funny and so much more, and I didn’t want to sacrifice a thing when making her tough as nails. Certainly the biggest challenge, though, is keeping her a bit vulnerable and sensitive, but only a little bit.”

“Sarge’s personality is also very much dictated by her past. She saw her whole world ripped apart when she was a kid and escaped into this subterranean realm she knew nothing of and did whatever she had to do to get by. Then when she hooked up with Hel [Gina Torres] this gave her a reason for staying alive and the idea that, ‘Yeah, we can fight the Bailies.  We can take back the surface.’ So I think Sarge really respects Hel for helping her turn her life around. They have a special relationship, much like sisters, and, because they’re fighting for the same cause, constantly depend on one another to save each other’s hides.”

In 1998, Pratt guest-starred as Cyane, Queen of the Amazons, in the two-part Xena: Warrior Princess episode Adventures in the Sin Trade. The actress’s performance impressed series executive producer Robert Tapert so much that he wrote the part of Sarge in Cleopatra 2525 for her.

“Cyane is forced to wander the Land of the Dead after Xena [Lucy Lawless] kills her and her fellow Amazons, so needless to say she’s pretty bitter,” notes the actress. “This was the first time I ever had to play a character that felt no joy or happiness, and it’s probably the one I enjoyed the least only because it was the farthest from my true personality. I’m a bit of a nut. My first reaction to most things is laughter, but there was none of that with Cyane. She couldn’t even feel despair because there was no chance of things getting better, you know? There was nothing left in her soul and it was a challenge to play that.  Rob told me that he liked Cyane’s strength and the physicality I brought to the role and it was because of this that he developed the character of Sarge with me in mind, which I thought was very nice of him."

Ironically, when Pratt was initially offered the part of Sarge she had to turn it down because of a prior commitment to a feature film project. As fate would have it, however, funding fell through a few days before principal photography was due to begin on the movie. “So I called my agent in Los Angeles and asked, ‘Have they begun casting yet for Sarge?’ They hadn’t and I got the part. So I’m really fortunate that things turned out the way they did.”

Two days later, the actress was on a plane for New Zealand to begin work on Cleopatra 2525. She recalls with great amusement the very first scene she and co-star Gina Torres filmed for the episode Home. “Gina and I arrived on the set in our costumes all ready to go.  The director was setting up the action for us and explained to us, ‘A Betrayer robot is going to walk into the room and you shoot him.’ Gina and I looked at each other puzzled and then at him and said, ‘OK, we shoot him…but with what?’ Our stunt coordinator Peter Bell, who can make anything look cool, pointed to the gauntlets on our arms and said, ‘Just use your arm like a cannon.’ If only you could have seen us trying to pretend that laser blasts were coming out of these things. It was pretty funny.

“Of course, then we got good at it. In fact, too good, ” chuckles Pratt. “In the next scene our instructions were, ‘A big swarm of mutants is attacking from atop this ledge and you’ve got to take them out!  Action!’ So Gina and I fired away – bam, bam, bam!  The next day, our co-executive producer Eric [Gruendemann] looked at the rushes and then had all the laser effects put in. That afternoon, he told us, ‘Just so you know, those laser blast cost a thousand dollars a pop.’ We ended up going thousands of dollars over-budget on the very first day! Gina and I said, ‘Jeez, we’re sorry,’ but we had no idea, you know? Now we make sure to aim at the enemy,” she laughs. “The first few weeks of filming were a big learning curve and, thank God, everyone was very patient and supportive.”

Steve Eramo

As noted above, photo copyright of Renaissance Pictures, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Sci-Fi Blast From The Past - Jennifer O'Dell (The Lost World)

 
Jennifer O'Dell (center) as Veronica in The Lost World.

In today's Sci-Fi Blast From The Past, actress Jennifer O'Dell talks about her early career and playing her vine-swinging alter ego Veronica in The Lost World.

Besides being an actress, Jennifer O’Dell is also a trained singer and dancer. She was eight years old when she made her TV debut in a national candy advert. “I was like, ‘Hey, I like this job. I get paid and I don’t have to go to school.’ When you’re a kid that’s pretty neat,” she laughs. After doing two other commercials, her mother decided to take her little girl out of the business so that she could have a normal childhood. O’Dell went on to appear in plays throughout high school, but it wasn’t until a while after graduation that she considered pursuing an acting career.

“I was doing 9 to 5 jobs, everything from massage therapy to secretarial work and even selling shoes at Nordstroms [department store],” says O’Dell. “I was working myself into the ground and not making very much money. One day I asked myself, ‘What am I doing here?’ I always knew what I wanted to do with my life but was afraid to take a chance. Finally, when I was around 21 or 22, I got so fed up that I said, ‘Forget this lifestyle.’ So I moved to Los Angeles, where I met my best friend, who’s also my agent. She’s one of the most wonderful people in the whole world and we clicked immediately. The day we met she arranged an audition for me and I got the job. She’s sent me out on many different auditions since then and I couldn’t be more happier with the way things have turned out.”

O’Dell’s feature film credits include Sometimes They Come Back…For More, Point Doom and Molly. On TV she was a regular on The Hollywood Squares, and has also guest-starred on such series as Renegade, Silk Stalkings, Pacific Blue, Beverly Hills 90210 and Diagnosis Murder. Even with all her previous acting experience, working on The Lost World has turned out to be an eye-opener for O’Dell.

“I was 23 when I came to Australia,” she notes. “There I was halfway across the world by myself, I didn’t know anyone, so it was a pretty big growing experience for me. When we did the pilot I thought, ‘Just go for it,’ and I ended up having a blast. However, there was so much more to the actual filming process than I initially imagined. I was and still am very eager to learn it all. I don’t just mean acting-wise but also technically insofar as everything that goes on behind the cameras. It’s great when you know all that stuff as well because it makes everyone else job much easier

“Although I had been acting for some time I hadn’t been on a show that shoots this intensely for such a relatively short period of time,” adds the actress. “This [third] season we did 22 episodes in six months, which is unheard of. In the two years previous we did it in eight months, whereas series such as Xena and Hercules took 10 months to film the same number of shows. Our cast and crew are doing 12 to 15 hour days with 10-hour turnarounds Monday through Friday, so we’re working our little butts off down here,” laughs O’Dell. “Thank goodness, though, everyone loves what they do.”

Long-time viewers of The Lost World know that a young Veronica was left to fend for herself when her parents, who were part of an earlier expedition to the Amazon plateau, disappeared. She grew up to have a healthy respect for the jungle’s beauty as well as the dangers lurking behind every bush. More civil than savage, the character has changed quite a bit since she first swung onto the scene.

“Veronica has matured by leaps and bounds,” says O’Dell. “When we shot the pilot I didn’t exactly see eye-to-eye with the director on how to portray her. He wanted me to play Veronica as a young, naïve little jungle girl, and that just didn’t work. My character is much stronger than that. I mean, this is somebody who has grown up in the jungle and taught herself how to survive. To be honest, I don’t like mentioning the pilot. I’d rather skip right to the first season where I was able to begin making some changes to my character. These were the result of my own decisions, which I felt were correct and that I should have gone with from the very beginning.

“I’m really pleased with how the writers have developed Veronica this season. After three years, they’ve become comfortable with who our characters are and are writing more for each individual’s story line. They’ve taken bits and pieces from all The Lost Worldshows we’ve done over the past two seasons and woven them into their writing this year. So we’re learning more about who Challenger [Peter McCauley], Roxton [Will Snow], Marguerite [Rachel Blakely], Ned [David Orth] and Veronica are, and I think the fans are really enjoying that.”

As The Lost World’s resident action gal, O’Dell has found herself in a number of interesting situations over the past three seasons. “In one of the very first episodes we did [Nectar], Will, David and I were covered from head to toe in goop,” chuckles the actress. “I remember another episode where Rachel and I had do a fight scene and we ended up wrestling in mud. It was so funny because when the director yelled, ‘Cut!’ all the crew guys held up scorecards. We have a ball working on this show and I’m pleased to say everyone gets along very well.

“I’ve fallen off a horse a couple of times and taken a few big jumps,” she continues. “I’ve also [accidentally] hit one or two people during fights. There was one take where I nailed a ‘cannibal’ right in the nose. Because he wasn’t a stunt guy he didn’t know how to snap his head back before my fist could made contact. He was standing a bit too close to me and I clipped him. I felt terrible, but luckily he wasn’t badly hurt. It’s a miracle, actually, that I haven’t hurt myself considering I’m such a klutz. I’ll bump and fall into anything in front of me. I’ve got really good balance, however, and I’m flexible. I can also hyperextend my whole body, which is one of the reasons why I can fight so well.

“I do all my own stunts, at least everything the producers will allow me to do. It’s all part of the fun. I’d rather handle my own fight scenes or whatever before turning it over to someone else. I will admit, though, that I have learnt to pace myself. If I’m filming a fight scene first thing in the morning I’m so tired by the end of the day that I can’t do anything else. I’ve got to keep my energy up, so that’s when my stunt girl will do my wide-shots and then I’ll step in for the close-ups.”

Steve Eramo

Sanctuary's Robin Dunne Answers Your Questions - Part One

 
The one, the only Robin Dunne and the equally unique Sanctuary creator/executive producer Damian Kindler on-location in Japan. Photo courtesy/copyright of Martin Wood.

Here it is, folks! Sanctuary's Robin Dunne (a.k.a. Dr. Will Zimmerman) recently found a window in his very busy schedule to tackle the first half of the questions that SciFiAndTvTalk readers sent in. If your question is not below, fear not, Robin's answers to the remaining questions are still to come. For now, sit back and enjoy the answers below (and trust me, you will enjoy them)!

What’s your most embarrassing moment on-set so far from season 3? Thank you. (from Kes)

ROBIN DUNNE - Having been born without the gene that causes embarrassment it’s hard to say. I’m usually the reason for embarrassment in others. There was one instance that comes to mind. Early in the season, Will is in bed when he is attacked by mind-sucking creatures. In the scene I was in my boxers and I had to leap out of bed. After seeing the dailies, a note came back from the network that, apparently, the camera got a glimpse of “more than it should have”. Again, not so embarrassing for me as for the poor person at the network who had to call up and explain why the scene needed to be re-cut.

Hey, Robin, thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this. And thanks to Steve, as well! My question for Robin is - you're a writer as well as an actor. Is there a certain story line for a Sanctuary episode you've been wanting to write? If so, could you tell us what that story line might involve? On a less serious note, after the grand Holden McPhillips scandal with Martin Wood, care to share any thoughts on who your next prank victim may be? Promise we won't warn them. (from Puffandruffle)

RD - I love to write, and I feel extremely lucky to have been able to do both in my career. Writing on Sanctuary would be a lot of fun (except for the fact that I would then need to work in close proximity with Damian, who likes to write wearing nothing but a pink unitard and a silver sequin cowboy hat – not a pleasant sight). The difficulty is the timing. We are under such a crazy schedule when we’re doing the show that it’s just not possible. That and any storyline I would pitch would more resemble Jackass than Sanctuary.

Robin! Thanx so much for your time (and your talent!) You work so closely with Amanda Tapping and have such chemistry together on the show. How in the heck do you keep from falling in love with that sweet, sexy lady --even just a little bit? (from Deb)

RD - How do I keep from falling in love with Amanda? I am in love with Amanda. And I’m not alone. Everyone on our show is. It is impossible not to be. Sanctuary is the most amazing experience I’ve had in my career for many reasons, one of the biggest is I get to work with Man Tap everyday. She is my evil twin sister and we have so much fun together. There is a very specific responsibility for the actor who is number one on the call sheet. Yes, you must carry the show. But you also are the quarterback and you’ve got to set the tone. Amanda never fails to make everyone feel at ease. She’s generous, kind, and sickeningly talented. Then, you put her in those Magnus heels? Forgetaboutit.

Was wondering how you made it into the acting field. I am a 37-year-old who’s always wanted be an actor, but never found my way. (from Jon)

It sounds corny, but I always knew I wanted to be an actor. I was extremely lucky to have the opportunity to attend an arts high school where I was able to act everyday. From there I got an agent and started auditioning. Breaking into acting is more difficult than say, being a musician. If you want to play music, you can learn an instrument and at the very least busk in a subway station. What is an actor supposed to do? Stand on a street corner doing Shakespearian monologues? I guess you could. I think the best way to break into acting is by doing theatre. There are hundreds of theatre companies (amateur and otherwise) all over who are constantly holding auditions. Have a couple of monologues prepared and read industry newspapers for upcoming castings.

Thank you Robin! I would like to know when are you coming to Europe next? I'd really like to see you at next year’s Fedcon! Lots of Love and greetings from Austria. (from Maggie)

RD - I may get a trip to Europe in before we go to camera (which will most likely be in late winter/early spring). If I can get to Austria, I certainly will.

Where in the world do you continue to keep visiting because you love it so much, and where haven’t you visited yet and hope to one of these days? (from Gail)

RD - I try to visit Dublin as often as I can, as all my family live there. It is a city I’ve been going to all my life and I really love to see all my aunties, uncles, cousins, etc. Who am I kidding? I only go there for the Guinness.

Was it difficult to learn the dance moves that you did in part 2 of "Kali," and what type of training did you have to do? (from Abbi)

RD - I think I only had three actual dance rehearsals for the Bollywood dance. For an uncoordinated, rhythmically bankrupt person like me, I could have done with three years of rehearsals. I honestly believe I became possessed the day we shot that. I don’t really remember much of it. It was like I went into a trance.

Can you tell us about the Roxy Hunter TV movies you’ve written and how you became involved in that? Thanks! (from Iggy234)

RD - My writing partner at the time and I were trying to figure out what type of script to write that would have the best chance of getting made (I don’t think there really is one). We came up with the character of Roxy Hunter. She was kind of like Humphrey Bogart’s character Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon. Except in the form of a nine year-old girl. We wrote the first film and didn’t get too far with it in terms of finding someone to produce it. Until, one day a friend of mine who was working for a producer involved with Nickelodeon, said they were looking to do a family film franchise. I gave him the script. They called back and said they loved it and only had one question – how fast could we write a sequel? We ended up doing four movies, and it was an amazing experience. To be involved in a production from a writing perspective rather than an acting one was so cool. To see amazing actors bring your words to life (and even make them better) is awesome. It’s probably how Damian feels every time he sees me in the show.

What was the make-up process like for you in the “Warriors” episode of Sanctuary; was it difficult to act under all that stuff? (from Mike)

RD - The suit that I wore for Warriors was a challenge indeed. It was like being trapped inside a mattress for fifteen hours. It also happened to be one of the hottest days on record. I tend to be a little claustrophobic, so you can imagine I was struggling to keep myself form tearing the thing off me. My incontinence problem didn’t help, either.

If you had people over for dinner, what would you be cooking (or would you order out)? (from AlliCat)

RD - I love to cook. It’s one of my favorite things to have friends over for dinner. It’s not fancy, but I have mastered the art of the Sunday roast chicken dinner. I go all out, too. Roast lemon potatoes, baked Brussels sprouts with bacon. It’s epic. (Of course, all meat is free-range, organic, cruelty-free, etc. I can’t support the torture of animals and the poisoning of our food – but that is a different topic).

Physically, what has been the toughest Sanctuary episode for you to shoot so far? (from Jim)

RD - Um…Let’s see. We’ve done 46 episodes of Sanctuary so far. So I guess it is a 46-way tie. I love that every episode comes with huge challenges, physically, mentally (even emotionally when Marty Wood is directing). If I had to pick one, it probably is the Bollywood episode.

If you had a chance to go back in time and meet one person, who would that person be? (from Michael55)

RD - I think I’d go back in time to Graceland and I’d be like “King, let’s put away the fried banana sandwiches, let’s get on the treadmill. The world isn’t ready to lose you yet. While we’re at it, let’s fire that crook Colonel Parker. And do you mind if I borrow a few pairs of shades?” Either that, or I’d go back in time and tell my agent “Get me an audition for this low-budget space opera movie called Star Wars.” I’d be auditioning for the part of Han Solo, naturally.

In all the years that you’ve been acting so far, what would you say has been the toughest part of the business for you? (from Jillian)

RD - I think the toughest part of the business is the feast-or-famine aspect to it. When you’re working (particularly on an amazing gig like Sanctuary) there’s nothing better in the world. When you’re not working it can be a lonely and structure-less purgatory. That’s why I started writing. Because I think the key to surviving this absurd business is to constantly stay creative.

Thanks again, Robin, for your time and enthusiasm! SciFiAndTvTalk readers should continue to check back in for the upcoming second half of this Q & A.

As noted above, photo courtesy/copyright of Martin Wood, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Being Human (UK Version) Returns To BBC America In February For Season Three

 
The gang's all here (L-R): George (Russell Tovey), Nina (Sinead Keenan), Mitchell (Aidan Turner) and Annie (Lenora Crichlow) in season three of Being Human. Photo copyright of Touchpaper Television and BBC America.

BEING Human, BBC AMERICA’s original hit supernatural series about a group of friends trying to live normal lives despite their unusual afflictions, is back – and, notes creator and writer, Toby Whithouse, "It is, without doubt, our best season yet.

“A third season is a unique opportunity because it allows you to take all the best bits of season one and season two," he says. "What we took from season one is the domestic element and very strong stories of the week with very strong guest characters. Season two had much more of an epic sweep and a breadth of ambition. Season three has allowed us to combine all those things.”

A BBC America co-production, Being Human stars Russell Tovey, Sinead Keenan, Lenora Crichlow and Aidan Turner as werewolf George, werewolf Nina, ghost Annie and vampire Mitchell - four friends doing the best they can to cope with the supernatural challenges of their lives while trying to blend in with their human neighbors. The showdown last season with Kemp (Donald Sumpter) and Lucy Jaggat (Lyndsey Marshall) has forced some changes for the friends. Couple George and Nina plus Mitchell have fled their beloved house in Bristol and are looking for a new house to rent in Wales. They are also without Annie, who is stuck in purgatory and desperately trying to escape. Being Human premieres on Supernatural Saturday, February 19th @ 9:00p.m. EST/PST for eight episodes.

Leaving the memories of their much-loved former house behind, George, Nina and Mitchell settle into their new home – a kitsch bed and breakfast named Honolulu Heights that boasts many benefits for supernatural sharers – a large basement providing a safe and sheltered environment on a full moon, for one.

Season three boasts an impressive array of guest-stars, including Lacey Turner (EastEnders) as Lia, who Mitchell meets in Purgatory, Robson Green (Wire In The Blood) as primitive werewolf McNair, Michael Socha (This Is England '86) as McNair's son Tom, Paul Kaye (It's All Gone Pete Tong) as twisted vampire Vincent, Craig Roberts (Young Dracula) as teenage vampire Adam; Nicola Walker (Spooks/MI-5) as social worker Wendy, James Fleet (Four Weddings and a Funeral) as George's father George Sr; and Jason Watkins making an eventful return as vampire leader Herrick.

Being Human first premiered on BBC America in 2009 and quickly won over fans and critics alike, and has even spawned a US remake. The New York Times recently said that the UK series “has energy, and interesting characters, and a pulpy momentum that keeps you engaged in its kitchen-sink drama meets Bram Stoker story lines,” and Variety called it “improbably absorbing, wonderfully sly.” In addition, the cast and creator have appeared to sold-out crowds at the last two years of San Diego Comic Con. Season one and two of Being Human are available on DVD and Blu-ray on the BBC AmericaShop and iTunes.

As noted above, photo copyright of Touchpaper Television and BBC America, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Syfy's Warehouse 13 Opens Its Doors For A Third Season

WAREHOUSE 13, The Syfy Channel’s most successful series ever, will begin production on its third season in Toronto beginning February 9th, with key questions left hanging from the gripping season two finale. Has Myka Bering (Joanne Kelly) left the Warehouse team for good? Have we seen the last of villainous H.G. Wells (Jaime Murray)? Warehouse 13 will return with 13 new episodes beginning this summer.

Sci-Fi Blast From The Past - Marti Noxon (Buffy The Vampire Slayer)

 
Producer/writer/director Marti Noxon.

In today's Sci-Fi Blast From The Past, Marti Noxon talks about her work in season seven of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Many people are skeptics when it comes to fortune-tellers and their “predications.” However, when she was a little girl, Buffy the Vampire Slayer scribe Marti Noxon was told something by one of these soothsayers that turned out to be quite true. “This person said that I was going to become a writer when I grew up,” recalls Noxon. “I remember thinking, ‘No way. I want to be something really exciting like an actress. Even better, a movie star.’ Now, of course, I think that being a writer is an exciting career and one of the best jobs in this business.”

Besides writing for Buffy, Noxon is also one of its executive producers and directors. She was first hired on the series as a staff writer for its second season and was promoted to story editor halfway through the year. Since then, Noxon has worked her way up the creative ladder and gone from co-producer to supervising producer, and was made an executive producer at the start of the show’s sixth year. On this January day, Noxon is dashing back and forth between her office and the Buffy set. Despite her hectic schedule, she is happy to take time out to talk about the show’s seventh, and possibly last, season.

“I’m very pleased with how this year has gone so far,” says Noxon. “I think we’ve achieved a good balance between the comedy and the more serious stuff when it comes to our storytelling. Buffy [Sarah Michelle Gellar] isn’t moping around as much, which I’m sure the fans are happy about. She’s taken up a stronger, more heroic position on the show, which is great. Also, Buffy and the rest of the Scooby gang have had to face up to the consequences of their actions from last season. For example, Willow [Alyson Hannigan] is learning how to better control her magic. She’s had to come to terms with Tara’s [Amber Bensen] death as well. As for, Xander [Nicholas Brendon], he’s been dealing with what he did to Anya [Emma Caulfield] and the repercussions of that. So I feel like everyone has sort of been cleaning up the wreckage of last season and doing a good job of it.

“If there’s anything I’m disappointed with this year is that we didn’t figure out how to better utilize James Marsters [Spike] earlier on. Spike is such a strong character, and at a certain point we all realized, ‘He’s been down in that basement acting crazy for quite a while. It’s time we got him out of there.’ It would have been nice if he could have done more at the start of the season, but we’ve tried to make up for that in recent episodes.”

In Buffy’s seventh season opener Lessons, our stake-wielding heroine is apprehensive about her little sister Dawn (Michelle Trachtenberg) going to school at the newly reopened Sunnydale High. Not surprisingly, Buffy’s instincts prove to be correct. While looking around the new school, she confronts the vengeful spirits of the people she failed to save. “One of the great things about this year is that we’ve been able to revisit high school life though Dawn,” notes Noxon. “So to me, the season opener was a fun way of saying to the viewers, ‘Look, we’re back to some of the old school themes.’

“I really love the scene in Lessonswhere Buffy and Principal Wood are talking and the action shifts between them and what’s going on in the basement with the kids. The character of Principal Wood is a great addition to the series. I like the mystery surrounding what he and Buffy know about each other and who Wood really is. When it came to casting the role, we were looking for an actor who was extremely dynamic and had a real presence. The person we chose also had to be able to play that mystery of the character that I just spoke of. We found all these qualities and more in D.B. Woodside and we’re pleased to have him as part of the cast.”

When asked to name her favorite stories so far this year, the executive producer is quick to reply. “I have two. The first one is Conversations With Dead People. That’s probably our strongest episode so far this season just because to me it was firing on all cylinders. The scary stuff is some of the most frightening that we’ve ever shot on this program. Just take the scenes with the poltergeist and the things that Dawn saw. I literally gasped the first time I saw them and that hardly ever happens. After all, I know what I’m going to see, so it’s unlikely that it would make me jump, but this time it did.

“The other episode I’m quite fond of is the Anya one, Selfless, which I think is just hysterical. I really enjoy Emma Caulfield’s acting so it was nice to see her have a bit more to do than usual.”

In Selfless, Noxon had the opportunity to reprise her role, albeit briefly, as the singing Parking Ticket Lady. Regular viewers of Buffy will recall that she first belted out a tune in the sixth season episode Once More With Feeling. “I used to sing in high school musicals and community theatre productions, but that was a long time ago,” chuckles the executive producer. “One day I jokingly said to Joss, ‘Why don’t you put me in an episode,’ so he did. When I found out I immediately said to him, ‘Take me out of the program,’ but he refused. Joss was adamant that once he wrote the part I was going to do it.

“Yes, it was totally self-indulgent, especially since I’m not an actor. That said, it was also a bit of a fantasy come true. I had my own little trailer and I got to go to hair and make-up. It was interesting to see what our actors go through on a daily basis, even if it was in a tiny microcosmic way. I discovered that there’s a lot to acting that’s pretty difficult. It looks easy to stand there and wait for your cue, but, in fact, it’s very exhausting because you have to keep your energy level up for hours and hours. I’ll take scriptwriting over acting any day.”

Steve Eramo

Sci-Fi Blast From The Past - Jared Martin (The Fantastic Journey)

 
Jared Martin as Varian in The Fantastic Journey. Photo copyright of NBC.

In today's Sci-Fi Blast From The Past, Jared Martin talks about his work on the 70's Sci-Fi series The Fantastic Journey.

Like his character of Varian in the short-lived 1977 NBC science fiction series The Fantastic Journey, Jared Martin has travelled a long and sometimes rocky road in his career as an actor. During the seventies and eighties the handsome and unassuming Martin appeared as a guest star on countless popular television shows and as a regular on the nighttime soap opera Dallas and the science fiction series War of the Worlds. For him, being cast on The Fantastic Journey was like receiving manna from heaven.

“I was a young actor in Hollywood,” recalls Martin. “I was living in a garage without a bathroom.  I used to go to the house next door and use theirs. My young son was visiting me for the summer and he slept on my only couch - this is all true by the way, although no one has ever asked me about this before -  while I slept on the floor next to him. I was obviously in a severe slump and I got a call from my agent at the time, who told me that he had gotten me an audition for The Fantastic Journey. I went in to read and they liked me. They called me back to do it again and they must have really liked me because I got the part. Needless to say, it turned my life around.”

In the original pilot for The Fantastic Journey, a small scientific expedition sets off across the Caribbean to the Grand Cayman Islands to study a natural phenomenon known as “red tide.” Led by Professor Paul Jordan (Scott Thomas) the team consists of several individuals including Jordan’s teenage son Scott (Ike Eisenmann), Eve Costigan (Susan Howard) and Doctor Fred Walters (Carl Franklin). Not long after setting sail the ship travels into the Bermuda Triangle where it is enveloped by a strange storm that deposits its passengers and crew on an uncharted island. There they meet Varian, a twenty-third century scientist whose spaceship has crashed and who has been attempting to find his way home by using the many rifts in time that exist naturally on the island.

Although the network was happy with the premise of the show they were disappointed with what they felt was the lack of on-screen chemistry among the cast. Much to his surprise, Martin’s character was pushed to the forefront in the second episode and together with Eisenmann’s and Franklin’s now comprised the lead cast.

“To be honest, I can’t tell you what happened,” explains the actor. “I was very much on the outside then and was just happy to have a job and my first break, as it were. They certainly didn’t consult me, so when I heard about this I was quite surprised and kind of shocked that something like this would really happen.

“The series was always in turmoil. They were constantly changing or tweaking it and bringing in this element and that element. My guess is that they looked at the pilot and decided not so much that I was the best thing since sliced bread but that they just didn’t like the chemistry or where the series was headed. The program was in a death time slot opposite Welcome Back Kotter and The Waltons and they were desperately trying to come up with something that would capture the attention of the viewers. They decided to go with the future aspect and make it more of a science fiction or fantasy show as opposed to the typical American family in peril. The future aspect was represented by me and my character of Varian, so they kind of took me and shoved me up front.”

The first glimpse audiences have of Varian is of a well-built man disguised as a Native American Indian wearing only a loincloth and a headband. It took some technobabble and a change of clothes for him to convince people that he was actually from the twenty-third century. “He was a very simply drawn character. He was a nonviolent healer who, I feel, was an exemplification of all the good things people hoped humanity would evolve into.  Varian was almost absurdly simplified and rather difficult to play. It was like playing an angel. He had emotion but no sexuality or any real personality. Varian was kind of a cardboard cutout. He was difficult to play because the guy was always running in and doing the perfect thing. Yet, in spite of that, I did like the role very much.”

In their quest to find a way back home, Varian, Scott and Doctor Walters are surprised to meet up with two others who are seeking the same thing. They are the half-human, half-alien woman Liana (Katie Saylor) who has the ability to communicate with animals, and an eccentric scientist from the 1960s named Jonathan Willoway (Roddy McDowell).

“Katie and I didn’t get along,” Martin says candidly. “It just did not work. Carl I liked a lot and always have and I saw him occasionally after we finished the series. He’s turned into one of the very, very best directors in the business and I take my hat off to him. Carl is an intelligent, natural guy and the type of companion you can only hope to get cast alongside when working on a series. With Roddy, all I can say is what you see is what you get. He’s a consummate professional, always available but kind of distant, basically part of his own legend. Ike was a cool kid, bright but even at that age very professional.

“I often wonder what has happened to Ike and indeed what has happened to Katie,” ponders the actor, “whom I’ve softened my opinion of because she was up against a lot of stuff, too. We were all trying to make a success of the series as well as ourselves as actors. Sometimes I think we were probably a little bit more aggressive than we should have been.”

Steve Eramo

As noted above, photo copyright of NBC, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

This Week On Being Human - 01 - 24 - 11

 
We discover more about Sally's (Meaghan Rath), Josh's (Sam Huntington) and Aiden's (Sam Witwer) pasts in this week's episode of Being Human. Photo by Philippe Bosse and copyright of The Syfy Channel.

SPOILER ALERT!! - In a flashback scene from six months ago, we open on Sally's (Meaghan Rath) face - lifeless. As blood pools around her head, we move to... Her wake. Sally's there, in ghost form. She desperately tries to get people to see or hear her, but to no end. She reaches out to touch Danny (Gianpaolo Venuta) - but he walks right through her. Sally realizes she's totally alone, stuck somewhere between life and death.

Flashback to 1778. Aidan (Sam Witwer) lies dead amongst a pile of bodies. Suddenly, his eyes slam open - a ghastly shade of black.

We cut to another flashback, this time two years ago from the present day. Park rangers rush through the woods to a ravaged campsite. There they find Josh (Sam Huntington), battered and bloodied. Next to him, his friend lies dead, mutilated - victims of a gruesome attack. One month later, Josh transforms into a werewolf for the first time.

One month ago from the present day, Rebecca (Sarah Allen) wakes up in the basement of a funeral home, completely healed - and undead. Bishop (Mark Pellegrino) is there, reassuring her as she screams out for Aidan...

Present day. We pick up from the end of episode 1, with Josh and his sister Emily (Alison Louder) locked in the basement of the hospital. Josh's transformation is nigh, placing Emily in grave danger. Aidan is feeding at the vampire den, giving in to his bloodlust. But he's conflicted, and minutes later he's sprinting out the door, having listened to Josh's calls for help. There Goes The Neighborhood - Part II airs Monday, January 24th @ 9:00 p.m. EST/PST on The Syfy Channel.

As noted above, photo by Philippe Bosse and copyright of The Syfy Channel, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Sci-Fi Blast From The Past - John Leeson (Doctor Who)

 
John Leeson and his Doctor Who alter ego K-9. Photo copyright of Virgin Media.

In today's Sci-Fi Blast From The Past, John Leeson talks about providing the voice for the Doctor's faithful mechanical travelling companion K-9 on Doctor Who.

One of K-9's first adventures in time and space begins when the TARDIS materializes aboard a spaceship situated at the edge of the universe. In The Underworld the mechanical dog, along with the Doctor and his fellow travelling companion Leela (Louise Jameson), quickly becomes involved with the crew's quest to locate its lost civilization. This was one moment in Doctor Who history that Leeson and the rest of the cast and crew were eager to forget.

"It was extremely boring for everybody," he recalls. "Essentially, there was no set. Instead one of the BBC studios was covered entirely in blue to allow the crew to film in CSO [colour separation overlay]. The actors had to virtually run along corridors in this bare studio, following marks put down on the blue in yet another shade of blue. It just took so much time to do. At least a couple of days I remember sitting around in the studio doing absolutely nothing because filming was so slow. And in television time, of course, is money."

At the end of Doctor Who's fifteenth season actress Louise Jameson decided to leave the programme to pursue other acting jobs. Her character of Leela was left behind on the Doctor's home world of Gallifrey along with K-9. The following season had the Time Lord, along with K-9 Mark II and their new companion Romana (Mary Tamm) battling a host of bizarre and deadly enemies including the bloodthirsty Ogri in The Stones of Blood. This was Doctor Who's one-hundredth adventure and one of Leeson's favourite stories.

"I remember we were filming in Oxfordshire," he says, "and one day I was sitting in a truck about a mile away from the location shoot. K-9's voice was being fed through a microphone and coming out through little loudspeakers they had on the set down the road.

"The cast and crew broke for five minutes to take refreshment and suddenly heard Tom [Baker] on my headphones saying, 'John, are you there?'

"I answered," 'Yes, I'm here.'

" 'Have you got your copy of The Times with you?' "

"Tom and I used to always try our best to get The Times crossword finished during the course of the morning," continues the actor. "I said, 'Yes, I've got the paper with me.' And, of course, down the road my voice was coming over the microphone as if K-9 were speaking. What I didn't know, and what I couldn't have ever seen because I was so far away, was that K-9 was sitting next to Tom on this verge [grass shoulder] surrounded by all these onlookers who had come to watch the filming. There it was - Tom and K-9 doing The Times crossword between them! If only I had been there to see it. Talk about suspension of disbelief.

"Another funny incident took place this same season in the story The Pirate Planet directed by the very astute Pennant Roberts. There was one scene that took place in the city centre, which was lined with all these colonnades. Pennant instructed the technicians that K-9 should go trundling along these colonnades, pause for just a couple of seconds behind one, and then move on again, creating the impression that K-9 had used the colonnade as a fire hydrant. Perhaps there should have been an oil slick as a result, I don't know, but a nice little thought, that one."

Steve Eramo

As noted above, photo copyright of Virgin Media, so please no unauthorized copying or duplicating of any kind. Thanks!

Buffy The Vampire Slayer's Adam Busch - Leader Of The Pack

 
Actor/musician Adam Busch.

I recently discovered several interviews I did a number of years ago that, for one reason or another, were never published. Rather than have them continue to gather "dust" in my computer, I thought I would share them with you. In this interview - actor/musician Adam Busch talks about playing Warren Meers on the hit TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Whether he’s performing in front of a camera or onstage with his band Common Rotation, Adam Busch gives 150% to his audiences. During the fifth, sixth and seventh seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the gifted actor and musician gained a brand new legion of fans with his portrayal of Warren Meers, leader of The Trioka. The nerdy Warren joined forces with fellow geeks Jonathan Levinson and Andrew Wells and delighted in causing problems for the Slayer and the rest of the Scooby Gang. Many of their comedic-like attempts at evildoing were right up Busch’s alley, whose love of comedy eventually sparked his interest in an acting career.

“When I was 12 years old I became obsessed with old-time radio,” recalls Busch. “I used to collect and listen to tapes of The Jack Benny Show, The Jack Parr Show, Amos and Andy, George Burns and Grace Allen, you name it. So I started out wanting to be a comedian, but my focus then turned to acting when I enrolled at the Lee Strassberg Acting Studio in New York City. I hooked up with a great group of people there who showed me what real [acting] work is all about and how to express myself as a performer.

“I was a miserable kid. I really hated school, probably because I came from a family of elementary and junior high school teachers,” he jokes. “I didn’t have time for things that didn’t interest me. However, at Lee Strassberg’s I met other kids who felt the same way I did. Suddenly, it was like, ‘Oh, my God, it’s not just me.’ I made friends with people who I’m still friends with today and we’re all still working in the business. What could be better than that?”

Busch made his debut in front of the cameras in a TV commercial for Teddy Grahams cookies. During his high school years, he played Noah in the Nickelodeon children’s series The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo. “I moved to Orlando, Florida and worked at Universal Studios where the show was filmed,” says the actor. “I had a tutor and for the first time in my life I discovered how to absorb real concepts and ideas. I was so much happier and ever since then I’ve never looked back.”

While working on Shelby Woo, Busch was also a panelist on the series Figure it Out. He went on to guest-star on such shows as Law & Order and The Fugitive. His feature film credits include Leon, Alien Vacation, Sugar & Spice and Magic Rock. Busch’s association with Buffy actually began with an audition for the pilot episode of Angel.

“All I can remember about that audition was that I felt fairly awkward and uncomfortable and it didn’t go well at all. I just wasn’t right for the part,” he says. “Much to my surprise, though, I got a callback to try out for the role of Warren. I read two or three times and at my last audition Joss Whedon [Buffy creator and executive producer] was in the room. Unfortunately, he was ill and slumped down in a chair. I walked into the room and went over to him to introduce myself but he said, ‘No, don’t shake my hand. I’m really sick.’ I started reading the sides and after two lines I spied out of the corner of my eye Joss nodding his head. It wasn’t clear whether or not he liked what I was doing but he must have approved of something because before I knew it I had the job.”

For some guys it’s tough enough to find a girlfriend, let alone two. In the fifth season Buffy episode I Was Made To Love You, Spike (James Marsters) shows up at a party and ends up being thrown through a window by a girl named April (Shonda Farr). Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) discovers that April is, in fact, a robot created by Warren to be the perfect girlfriend. Unfortunately for April, Warren has fallen for a flesh-and-blood girl and is trying to hide from her. Busch’s debut as Warren remains memorable for him even two years later.

“I’d worked with the show’s assistant director on another project, so just having him there made me feel more comfortable,” notes Busch. “He brought me right over to meet Sarah. She immediately struck me as being a brilliant director, or should I say someone with the potential to be one. I was amazed by her knowledge of the camera and angles. Some actors think only about what they can do to make their performance the best. Sarah, on the other hand, thinks about what’s going to make the story the best it can be. The choices she makes with you and for herself are those that will help make the show better.

“So it was a pleasure to work with her. James and I hit it off right away, too. It was great to make a friend on the first day. The two of us have the same taste in music, and it was fun to have someone to sing Bob Dylan tunes with on the set.”

Later that season, Busch reprised his role of Warren in Intervention. He had no idea that the show’s producers were planning to team him up with Buffy semi-regular Danny Strong (Jonathan Levinson) and Tom Lenk, who played Cyrus in the episode Real Meand make them “the big bad” for season six. “I was at a supermarket in Los Angeles and a fan came over to me and said, ‘You play Warren on Buffy.’ And then he went on to say, ‘Are you excited that you’re going to be working with Danny Strong?’ I said, ‘Who?’ And he said, ‘He plays Jonathan. You’re going to team up with him and somebody else and you’re going to be these three evil guys.’ I hadn’t a clue. No one had told me. In fact, I was making plans to go on vacation. It was that same afternoon when I got a phone call telling me that they were going to need me for a bunch of episodes and that I’d be working with Danny and Tom. The actor is always the last to know,” he laughs.

The Troika came on the scene as Buffy’s new nemesis in the season six story Flooded. Although he had never met either of his two co-stars, it didn’t take long for Busch to realize that they made the perfect team. “Things could not have worked out better,” enthuses the actor. “Danny, Tom and I became good friends and we hang out with each other away from the set. Regardless of us being on a TV show, we often get some funny looks when we’re out together. We make an odd threesome, I must admit. Have you ever looked at a group of people and thought, 'How did they ever get together? They don’t look like they have anything in common.’ I think we fall into that category.”

Warren and his cohorts hatched all sorts of plots in an effort to get rid of Buffy and take over Sunnydale. Their constant scheming gave audiences greater insight into the trio and allowed Busch to further flesh out his character. “Warren doesn’t like himself very much,” he explains. “He’s scared of communicating in a relationship and getting to know people. My character would rather resort to skullduggery in order to get a date instead of simply asking a girl out. As a result he gets hurt and ends up blinded by that hurt. One of the neat things about playing Warren was that as the series went on and his personality progressively became darker, there was always a chance for redemption. However, he’d either try to do what’s right and fail or would be presented with the right choice, consider it, and then immediately do the wrong thing because he was scared.

“When it comes to his relationships with Jonathan and Andrew, he doesn’t want to feel out of control even for a second. Warren will coerce people and play on their weaknesses. Oddly enough, the three of them are like parts of one great guy. Warren is confident in his follow-through – for lack of a better word – and the ability to get the job done. Jonathan is the one with heart and then there’s Andrew’s innocence and trust. If you put the pieces together you wind up with someone I bet even the Slayer would fall in love with. It’s when you split them up and give them different heights and hair colours that you’ve got a mess,” chuckles Busch. ”You end up with three needy egos running around trying to find love and acceptance and having no idea how to go about it.”

The Troika’s darkest hour comes in Dead Thingswhen their plans go awry and Warren’s ex-girlfriend Katrina (Amelinda Embry) is killed. A few episodes later in Seeing Red, Willow’s (Alyson Hannigan) lover Tara (Amber Benson) is accidentally shot and dies, again as a result of the trio’s scheming. In Villains, Willow decides to extract revenge on the threesome, beginning with Warren. She casts a spell that literally rips the skin from his bones.

“We shot my character’s death scene over two or three nights in Griffith Park [Los Angeles’ largest city park] and boy, was it freezing,” says Busch. “If you remember, there’s a point where Warren is strung up by vines. It was such a complicated process to get me down in-between takes that it was easier to just hang there. So in that regard it was a rather torturous few evenings, but the final result was well worth it. Alyson was amazing to work with. She and the rest of the show’s cast have been doing this for so long that you basically just look them in the eyes and let them take you wherever you need to go."

When he’s not acting, Busch keeps busy singing with the folk rock band Common Rotation, which he formed at age 17 along with his friend and business partner Eric Kufs (singer/guitarist). The group also includes Mike Uhler (bassist) and Ken Beck (drummer). They released their second album, The Big Fear, in February, and have plans to tour Europe in June.

‘It’s a lot of fun. We’ve played a number of shows here in LA and we’ve even performed with James Marsters [Spike]. He sat in with us and did Sunday, Bloody Sunday by U2, which I thought was appropriate for him. Then, ironically, we sang that song in Belfast, which was remarkable. There we were a bunch of American kids from Hollywood singing an Irish protest song. I wondered if we might be lynched,” he jokes,” but instead it turned into a drunken sing-a-long.”

Although his character died last year, Warren’s spirit has returned to the Buffy fold this seventh season in no less than five episodes. With the show coming to an end this May, Busch will likely be saying good-bye to Warren forever. It’s with a heavy heart that the actor does so.

“I got to be a good guy and a bad guy. I got to do love scenes and fight scenes. I got to be an insecure little boy and then a super villain and battle Buffy. I even got to fly. There aren’t many TV shows where an actor is allowed to play so many different things. I’m going to miss that.”

Steve Eramo