Send to a friend

 

 

Our second day at Creation Entertainment’s SciFi Summit we began with Anthony Stewart Head from BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER. It was good to see Head since he now lives back in England and doing work over there.

 

Head began mentioning Joss Whedon, "He is who should be worshiped every morning." Head says he will be staring in a new television show HIM AND US, playing a gay iconic rockstar. Kim Cattrall will also be starring with him. His character will be called Max Flash, and the project is produced by Elton John. “I pulled together footage of the various bands I was in when I was youngerand a lot of childhood footage that you may very well see in HIM AND US,” Head says.

 

Going back to BUFFY, Head says that when he auditioned for Giles he used a mixture of Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman, for befuddled and "on the metal" respectively.

 

Joss Whedon still talks about THE RIPPER, Head says and that the idea would be to do some back stories on the various characters on DVD. Spike (James Masters) would probably be first one.

 

When asked why the BUFFY was shorter in England, Head says “contracts are different in the U.S. and U.K. In the U.S., you sign a multi-year contract before you audition, so that you can't ask for more money, (he laughs) if you know they want you. In the U.K., they're always surprised when actors want to return for a second series... for more money of course!”

 

 

When asked if he preferred stage or TV, he says “I am the luckiest man alive. I’m able to take part in many variations on a theme.”

 

(C) 2006 Sue Schneider

Anthony Stewart Head, aka Giles on BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER, greets the crowd at the 2006 Creation Entertainment's Sci Fi Summit.

---

And what’s the difference in humor styles between the U.S. vs. U.K., Anthony says “they are heavy on irony in England.  BUFFY did well here and there, so there are some things that are universal...except for German humor. It's Germanic!”

 

Before leaving, Anthony sang us a riff that started, "God Gave Rock and Roll to you."

 

**********

 

Late in the afternoon of day two, Jonathan Frakes came on stage to a full auditorium – there’s no doubt that STAR TREK still draws the crowd. "It's good to be home." Frakes yells out walking onto the stage. “In this time of dire straights around the world, it's good that there is this community that is based on an optimistic view of the future.”

 

Frakes spent much of his time on stage belying the normal convention speaker, by not just answering questions, since he's answered them all before anyway, and rattled off story after story about "Old Baldy" (Patrick Stewart) and the rest of the crew.

 

Frakes gave us an impression of Picard, "25 years in the Royal Shakespeare Company for this!" and much to the delight of the audience.

 

He then brought up 16 year old Wil Wheaton (who now has a 16 year old kid of his own) saying, "I can tell that you used to be cool, didn't you."

 

When STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION used to always be at conventions one of the fun things that Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troy on ST:TNG) used to do is to start rumors about the other cast members so Jonathan decided to start a rumor himself – that Deanna Troy/Marina Sirtis will be nominated for an EMMY for her guest role in CLOSER.

 

(C) 2006 Sue Schneider

STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION'S Jonathan Frakes loves to tell stories to fans at Creation Entertainment's Sci Fi Summit 2006

---

 

Frakes complimented Scott Bakula for being a “mench” when he and Marina guest-starred on the final episode of STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE.

 

Continuing on his rumor theme Frakes stated the next installation in the LIBRARIAN series (December 5th), produced by Dean Devlin, will film in New Orleans. He told a story about encountering elephants when scouting locations for the LIBRARIAN, and being told by the guide to walk backwards slowly, which was followed quickly by "Not THAT slowly."

 

Frakes mused that if he dressed like Avery Brooks, Wil might actually call him cool. Jonathan and his wife Genie Francis now live in Maine and Frakes related to the crowd that he plays on a curling team and loves it!

 

Next on stage was Alice Krige – the Borg Queen in STAR TREK: FIRST CONTACT and in the seventh season of STAR TREK: VOYAGER. Krige began by telling discussing her new movie coming out based on the game SILENT HILL, directed by Christophe Gans of BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF. It's a mixture of Sci-fi, Horror and a philosophical meditation on the nature of good and evil.

 

She was lucky she stated to be in GHOST STORY with many great actors a year after she started acting. Later, working with Morgan Freeman on THE CONTRACT where she once again experienced the feeling of working with someone great.

---

 

(C) 2006 Sue Schneider

The Borg Queen herself, Alice Krige, tells her stories of working with the STAR TREK crew on FIRST CONTACT and more at Creation Entertainmnet's Sci Fi Summit 2006.

---

 

And finally Avery Brooks takes the stage.

 

"I'm still alive,” he says. “Talking about the present through the future truly allows us to go places we can't fix in ourselves."

 

Avery introduced to the many fans David Livingston who directed many episodes of all the STAR TREKS and who Avery told the fans got him the role of Sisko on STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE. As a matter of fact when Jonathan Frakes saw him standing in the corner, camera in hand (David now shoots for Getty Images), Frakes stopped his on-stage monologue to talk to David.

 

In the autograph rooms there were numerous other stars from Brent Spiner to Chase Masterson.

---

(C) 2006 Sue Schneider

 Avery Brooks, who played Captain Sisko on STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, has fun at Creation Entertainment's Sci Fi Summit 2006

21727-21747

---