Buy Me A Coffee :D

Buy me a coffeeBuy me a coffee

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

More With Harrison Ford

Hey all,

Another quick note to drop off another link, this time to a taped interview with Mr. Ford from IESB.net/The Movie Reporter.com. The interview is longer than you'd expect and so much more in depth than most of his interviews. Very nice.

HERE

Remember, it's "physical acting" not stunt work hehe

Enjoy the interview.
Leah

New Art!

Another drawing in between other drawings. This one seemed to take forever because I was switching between other projects but it really didn't take all that long.

Yes, it's a departure, albeit a temporary one, from the "love" theme....I hope you enjoy it.

New Art!

Cheers!
Leah

Monday, January 30, 2006

Actor and Site Updates!

Blog and Site update

Donald Austen (Yoda facial features - TPM) Mr. Austen was kind enough to help me with his credits which were seriously lacking information. Mr. Austen worked on some terrific children's shows and had a few Actor Connections with the most recent being Saturday Showdown with Tim Rose (Admiral Ackbar in ROTJ and the voice of Salacious Crumb in the video game ROTJ).

~~
Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker - PT) may play Phil Hellmuth Jr. in a film about the "Poker Brat". Hellmuth was the youngest world champion poker player at 24 years of age. He is noted for his less than mature attitude. I don't see any resemblance between the two...usually there is some, but Mr. Christensen is frequently seen, informally, in a hooded black sweatshirt or a black jacket, a baseball cap and sunglasses which are trademarks of Mr. Hellmuth. I think maybe the speculation is there because he's scheduled to film Poker Nights with Sam Jackson and Nick Gillard. We'll see!

~~
Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi - PT) and Nia Vardalos (Various voices in ROTJ radio drama) have teamed up with several other celebs (including Mr. McGregor's co-star on The Island, Scarlett Johanssen) and recorded an album called Unexpected Dreams: Songs from the Stars the singing is backed up by the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

McGregor will sing: Sade's The Sweetest Gift
Vardalos will sing: Lennon & McCartney's Golden Slumbers.

The proceeds from the album will benefit Music Matters , the LA Phil's musical education fund.
The album is due to be released on March 28, 2006 on the Rhino record label.

~~
Robin Sachs (various voices in KOTOR video game) will play the role of Alex in the stage production Hitchcock Blonde. Hitchcock Blonde was a huge hit in London and it was the late William Hootkins who originated the role of Hitchcock in the London Production.The show will start at the South Coast Repertory's Segerstrom Theatre in Costa Mesa, CA in February (3rd with the opening on the 10th) and will run until March 10, 2006.The play tries to unlock the dark secret that pushed Hitchcock to obsess about blondes in peril. Here's an article at Playbill.com.

~~
Felix Silla There was a near full-page article in the January 18, 2006 edition of the Las Vegas sun about Mr. Silla. You can check out the text and two pics HERE. A big thanks to Neta for sending me the article!

~~
The children's classic Curious George will be opening in February and its core cast have worked together several times in Star Wars and non-Star Wars vehicles alike. For voice-over work they are the cream of the crop...essentially it's a voice-over all-star film.
Jeff Glen Bennett - Man in Yellow Hat (voiced characters in 5 Star Wars video games including characters Kyle Katarn, Dooku, Jango, Bren Tantor)
Bob Bergen (voiced Luke Skywalker in 12 of 15 of his SW video game credits)
Grey DeLisle (voice of Padmé, Shaak Ti and Asaaj Ventress - Clone Wars)
Kath Soucie (voices in 3 Star Wars video games)
Frank Welker - George (voice characters in 3 SW video games including: Pekt, Utric Sandov, Sunry/Jorak Uln/Gar)

~~Updates to existing actors in the
STAR WARS ACTORS DATABASE
Joe Alaskey (update - Theatre)
Donald Austen (BIG update...ALL)
Jeff Glen Bennett (update - Film; TV)
Samantha Bennett (update - Commercials)
Bob Bergen (update - Film; Video Games)
Caroline Blakiston (update - Theatre: The Real Inspector Hound - Thanks to Mr. Wood; All theatre credits under 1968)
Grey DeLisle (update - Film; TV; Video Games)
Ronald Falk (update - Theatre: Henry VI~1963 and a huge load of other theatre credits, most of those without dates)
Peter Geddis (update - Theatre: Henry VI~1963)
Jennifer Hale (update - TV)
Ewan McGregor (update - CDs)
Natalija Nogulich (update - Miscellany) (Thanks to Emily!)
Robin Sachs (update - Theatre)
Felix Silla (update - News article) (Thanks to Neta!)
Kath Soucie (update - Film)
Nia Vardalos (update - CDs)
Larry Ward (update - cleared up some name confusion) (Thanks to Mr. Sea!)
Frank Welker (update - Film; TV)
Valerie Wildman (update - TV)
Billy Dee Williams (update - Film; TV)
Time Winters (update - Theatre)

~~Newly added actors:
David Ankrum
Toby Burns (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Micky Clark (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Terrence Johnson (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Ellison Kemp (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Quentin Pierre (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Barry Summerford (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Marilyn Turk (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)

~~Actor ConnectionsSTAR WARS ACTOR CONNECTIONS
Unexpected Dreams: Songs from the Stars (CDs)
Curious George (Film)
Henry VI~1963 (Theatre)
Blake's 7 (TV: Gambit & The Way Back)
Campion (TV)
Dr. Who (TV: Armageddon Factor & Golden Age of Dinosaurs)
A Year in Provence (TV - "Y")
Back in Business (Film)
Saturday Showdown (TV)
Spitting Image (TV)
Untitled Cartoon (TV)

~~References
Main Page
COMICS/COMIC STRIPS >>> THE BOONDOCKS - New and Improved!!
COMICS/COMIC STRIPS >>> FOXTROT Under "2006" (Thanks to John at Obroa-Skai.com!)TV D-F
The Fairly OddParents #9 (Thanks to DarthRyoohki!)

Enjoy!
Leah

Saturday, January 28, 2006

Harrison Ford Interview

Just a quick note to share..
Harrison Ford had an informal Q & A session in Boston last week. Click here!


Enjoy!
LM

Friday, January 27, 2006

Mozart and Mark Hamill

In honor of the celebration of Mozart's 250th birthday I thought I'd share connections between Mozart and Star Wars.
I'll expand upon the most well-known of the group.

Mark Hamill got the part of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Peter Schafer's Amadeus, first on tour nationally, starting in May of 1983, then landing on Broadway (yes, THE Broadway), at the Broadhurst Theatre at 235 West 44th Street in NYC.
In order to prepare for his role in Amadeus he was coached on the keyboard by Nathan R. Matthews who was and is a New York based music director, conductor vocal coach, pianist and composer. In spite of the piano training, Hamill admitted that he only got as far as Jingle Bells in real life yet still managed to pull of the look of playing the piano for the stage production.

Trivia tidbit: Hamill moved to New York with his wife and two sons (Griffin, the youngest, was only 3 months old), from California, to make sure that the family stayed together during the run of the play.
Trivia tidbit:
Hamill turned down the opportunity to play Amadeus in the film version in 1984, that part eventually went to Tom Hulce.

~~
These are the other Star Wars actors that have Mozart connections:
Click the links for more information on each actor:

*Kenny Baker - 1984 (Film) - Parody Commendatore

*Todd Boekelheide - 1984 (Film) Sound designer (Received an Oscar for his work on the film)

*Marc Bauman - 1998 (Stage) - Antonio Salieri (Deerfield Academy, Deerfield, MA)

*David Dukes - 1980 (Stage) - replacement Antonio Salieri (Broadhurst Theatre, NY)

*Dermot Crowley - 1979 (Stage) (Royal National Theatre & Her Majesty's, London)

*Peter Firth - 1981 - Amadeus (Stage) - Mozart (Broadhurst Theatre, New York, NY)

*Robert Machray - 1999 (Stage) - Salieri's Cook/Citizen of Vienna/understudy for Baron Van Swieten (Music Box Theatre, New York, NY)

Mozart fans are in heaven as the classic stations, orchestras, philharmonics and symphonies, etc. are putting extra effort to celebrate Mozart's legacy this year.

For more information on Mozart go to The Mozart Project.

Enjoy!
Leah

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Solo and Jones

Our heroes, Han Solo and Indiana Jones, why do they win our hearts and admiration?

We love to wonder what it is about our favorite heroes that stimulates our senses, other than their outward appearances that is. *wink*

These two men are tough guys disguised in very appealing good-guy exteriors, what makes them so endearing?
Both characters have a certain power over their situations, either through intellect or through common sense or both. They overcome their failings and move forward. This in itself is enough to win our confidence. But we feel great when watching these characters and we have an almost inescapable sense of wanting to emulate their behavior and live their grand adventures in our own lives...OK, mostly vicarious, but still.

*Our two heroes are opinionated, passionate yet rarely arrogant. Their decisiveness makes us feel secure and they hold true to their beliefs and why they believe as they do. Take Indy's good-guy line, "it BELONGS in a museum", his noble notions of doing right and sharing his great finds (or others finds) with the world, not being a self-serving collector, is truly admirable.

*No excuses, no looking back. They've been beaten, chased, bountied, nearly killed, have had several human failings yet never blame others for their circumstances. Their hardships are only a temporary state and they always know that hope and recovery are not far from reach.

*They are active. By this I actually mean "pro"active. They never stop thinking on their feet and never wait for things to happen (save for some sketchy moments in the first moments on the Death Star) to them or for them. They are in tune with their world and other worlds and have the innate ability to connect to those around them. Which brings us to...

*Likability! They are leaders...strong, tough (in the good-guy sense), intelligent and ultimately inspire loyalty and friendship. They conquer their fears have little ego and rarely enter the realm of self-defeat.While written for the screen these characters are still very human but their personable tough-guy personas give them a powerful edge that's so very inviting.
For the women out there, and, ahem...some men, Han Solo and Indiana Jones represent a set of traits that are so deliciously tempting and sexy that we (gals and guys) can't help but be attracted to the source.

Although these characters are written for the screen I believe that anyone can follow their footsteps and become, in some way, like their heroes. These sorts of men (women too) are all around us and it doesn't take too much to find them. I can think of a few that fall into this realm personally and I adore them...I feel inspired by them and want to be a better person because of them.

Isn't that what heroes are for?

Monday, January 23, 2006

New Art!

I've been thinking on love a lot.
How amazing it is to be in love/to be loved, how awful to be apart from a love and of the awesome feeling a reunion brings (no matter the length of time between the parting)...so, in keeping with the theme of my last drawing and my ever present thoughts of attraction, love, togetherness, separation and reunion...

R + B


Enjoy!
Leah

Actor and Site Updates!

Hello all!
Hope your weekend was terrific. Another busy week overall. Working and helping my parents find a house here. They did find one but only after three were purshased from under them...crazy market out here in the season.

It's shaping up to be a delightful day heading into the 76° range.

I'm completing another Star Wars related drawing that will be up soon.

Note: I did not get another chance to see Samuel L. Jackson here over the weekend. I hope I have a better go at it next year. You can see some pics of him at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic at his page mentioned above.

~~
OK, to the updates:

Beatrice Arthur (Ackmena - Star Wars Holiday Special) will be attending a Golden Girls reunion and show screening at the 23rd Annual William S. Paley Television Festival in the Director's Guild of America Theatre, Hollywood, CA on March 10, 2006.

~~
Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker - AOTC/ROTS) starts filming Crash Bandits with Joe McTiernan (Die Hard) starting in February. The film is about a group people who track down crashed aircraft in search of their valuable cargo. The filming will take place in Thailand (in the mountains).
He'll also be attending the Bangkok Film Festival where film legend Christopher Lee (Count Dooku - AOTC/ROTS) will also be making an appearance at the film festival in Thailand.

~~
Julian Glover (Admiral Veers - ESB) will be The Narrator in The Soldier's Tale starting on February 4, 2006 at The Old Vic in London.

The play is based on an old Russian legend (a Faust-like tale) by Alexander Afanasiev and L'Histoire de Soldat a musical libretto by Igor Stravinsky and Charles Ferdinand Ramuz (music and text, respectively).
The tale speaks of a soldier who sells his soul for wealth and youth. But this retelling, re-imagining if you will, stars 14 Iraqi and British actors set in The Red Room, a room devoted to torture and killing in Iraq under Saddam Hussein. It will be presented in English and Arabic. Translation (in text form, will be available. It should be noted that this is the world's first collaborative effort between Iraqi and British actors and that the director, Rebecca Lenkiewicz, had to search Baghdad for Iraqi actors that could act in the Naturalistic style rather than their traditional Declamatory (rather pretentious and ostentatious) style.
Again, February 4, 2006 at The Old Vic in London.

James Earl Jones (voice of Darth Vader) will be speaking at Oakland University in Auburn Hills (Michigan) at the Meadow Brook Theatre. The event is free but is limited to the first 600 people. January 24, 2006 at 7pm.

~~
The annual film night at Tanglewood this summer will feature the music of John Williams, the festival announced.
The composer and conductor, the former conductor of the Boston Pops will lead music from his own score for the film Memoirs of a Geisha and his Grand Suite from Star Wars on August 12 at 8:30 p.m. Actor James Earl Jones, who voiced Darth Vader in the films, will narrate the Star Wars Suite. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma will appear as soloist for the Memoirs of a Geisha score, reprising his performance on the film's soundtrack. Tickets for the 2006 season at Tanglewood go on sale on February 12 through SymphonyCharge, at 888-266-1200, and www.bso.org.

Ian McDiarmid (Emperor Palpatine) will reprise his role as Teddy, the loyal manager, in Faith Healer on Broadway in New York starting in February 2006. It was 2001 when McDiarmid starred in the London production. This production will start in February, stars Ralph Fiennes and Cherry Jones and is also directed by Jonathan Kent.
It was Kent and McDiarmid who were responsible for changing the face of British theatre. The little Almeida in Islington (London) became THE theatre under the pair and they consistently produced quality works to high acclaim. Stars came to work for very little and brought even further praise to the setting and themselves.
Kent and McDiarmid, who were co-joint artistic directors of the Almeida for a decade, were also rewarded for their work on the theatre itself.

~~
Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi - PT) will make a cameo appearance as Ian Rider (Alex Rider's superspy uncle) in Stormbreaker. The film is based upon a series of teen spy novels written by Anthony Horowitz, the Alex Rider Adventures. The production designer, Ricky Eyres, worked on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace.
Mr. McGregor has also been nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor as Sky Masterson in the London stage production of Guys and Dolls. Winners will be announced at a ceremony in London on Feb. 26.
For a complete nomination list, go to www.officiallondon theatre.co.uk/awards.

~~
Michael Pennington (Moff Jerjerrod - ROTJ) On January 26, 2006 Mr. Pennington will bring us An Evening With Michael Pennington at the Hampstead Theatre in London. He will speak about his life and work...check out his link to see the breadth of his theatre accomplishments. Pennington will also star in The Best of Friends which will start in March 2006.

~~
Billy Dee Williams (Lando Calrissian - ESB/ROTJ) will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his numerous contributions to the entertainment industry at the NAACP Awards in Los Angeles, CA on February 20, 2006.

~~
Treat Williams (Jess Alloshane - ESB) was a participant in the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise Celebrity Sports Invitational (Banff, Canada) in mid January and he was also spotted attending one of the final performances of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels on Broadway starring John Lithgow (voice of Yoda - Radio Dramas)

~~Updates to existing actors in the STAR WARS ACTORS DATABASE
Beatrice Arthur (update - Live Appearances)
Graham Ashley (update - birth date info) (Thanks to Skippy!)
Jay Benedict (update - TV; Theatre; Video Games)
Hayden Christensen (update - Miscellany)
Pam Hyatt (update - Film)
James Earl Jones (update - Film: Stormbreaker; Live Appearances)
Ewan McGregor (update - Awards: Laurence Olivier)
Daran Norris (update - Video Games) (Thanks to DarthCharlie!)
Michael Pennington (update - bio and character pics; Theatre and theatre pics; Live Appearances)
Paul Reubens (update - Film)
Felix Silla (update - TV) (Thanks to NETA!)
Harold "Howie" Weed (update - Film)
Billy Dee Williams (update - Awards: NAACP)
Treat Williams (update - Miscellany)

~~Newly added actors:
Michael Boomansall (Thanks to Convention-Guests)
Doug RobinsonKeith Waters (Thanks to Convention-Guests)

~~Actor Connections
STAR WARS ACTOR CONNECTIONS
K-19: The Widowmaker (Film) (Thanks to Jilliann!)
Aliens (Film)Dragonheart (Film)
The Island (Film)
The Living Daylights (Film)
My Giant (Film)
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (Film)
The Russia House (Film)
Shining Through (Film)
Spies Like Us (Film)
Splitting Heirs (Film)

~~References The main page
Foxtrot (Thanks to John at obroa-skai) Very good one, still makes me giggle.

~~Star Wars Art
The latest sketch:
Han and LeiaT

hanks for visiting!
Cheers
Leah

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Boba Fett Looks A Lot Like Darth Vader

Another notch in the post of journalists who cannot seem to find the fact-checking skills so important to the breed or for those just waking out of that 30 year old coma.
Click

OK. I might give a little benefit of the doubt, or a teeny bit of credit, to the person who might interchange Jango and Boba Fett...at least for going down the right path. But this, one of the most iconic figures on the face of the planet called...Boba Fett? I guess they also didn't realize that Boba Fett wasn't even IN Revenge of the Sith.

Even my 92 year old grandfather and my 3 year old son could say with utmost certainty that the figure standing next to the lovely Donna Dixon was not Boba Fett.

*sigh* ..it really is funny.

Thursday, January 19, 2006

Samuel L. Jackson at Bob Hope Chrysler Classic

date posted: Jan 19, 2006 1:21 PM edit
Hey there.

Just a quick note to show a few pics of SLJ in action. He'll be here until Sunday the 22 at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.
SLJ BHCC bottom of page!

I'll see what I can do for more pics over the next couple of days!

Enjoy!
LM

EDIT:
Comments are grouped together.

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Another New Sketch!

Actually more of a drawing than a sketch. But you get the picture...get it? I couldn't sleep so I kept working tonight.

I really dislike the way files are slightly mutilated (not as sharp) when they're saved. I'll have to figure something out.
Anyway...
Han and Leia

Enjoy!
Leah

Monday, January 16, 2006

Actor and Site Updates!

date posted: Jan 16, 2006 8:34 PM edit

Hello!
The weekly update has arrived! I'm aiming for "weekly" here to shorten the time I spend blogging the info as I am working heavily*.

Here you are...I had planned several weeks ago to get out a Star Wars actors upcoming movies "update" but Mr. Ens (Ghent) beat me to that.

Here's the scoop. And here are a few notes on those actors...not in glorious alphabetical order like our Mr. Ghent but nonetheless...

Brian Blessed (the voice of Boss Nass) will also be starring as Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini (the IMDB, wrong on so many things, omitted the "i" on the end of Piccolomini), better known as Pope Pius II, in a TV production of The Conclave, a drama set in Rome in 1458 after the fall of Constantinople (now Istanbul - *has They Might Be Giants song in head now* ) and is about a Cardinal who struggles to save his life and his job.

~~
Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) will also star in E-Girl this year as herself. The story revolves around the true story of Heather Robinson who used her position at AOL to mine the information of celebrities (through their AOL accounts), to gain access to them and, ultimately, to seek fame and fortune of her own. Carrie Fisher worked together with Ms. Robinson as a writer on this project.'
The book Hollywood, Interrupted (Breitbart and Ebner) had a section based on Ms. Robinson's tale but painted a far darker picture than what Robinson and Fisher have written for the upcoming film.
Fisher will also star as a reporter in The Suffering Man's Charity with David Boreanaz and Alan Cu-mming (those darned filter monkeys!!) which I mentioned last year.

~~
Christopher Lee (Count Dooku - PT) will star as King Haggard in The Last Unicorn. He reprises his voice role from the 1982 version...only this time in body as well. Additionally, Mr. Lee is starring in Cowboys for Christ which is a "re-imagining" of The Wicker Man (1973) in which Mr. Lee starred as Lord Summerisle, cult leader. Mr. Lee is credited as the "Town Magus" for Cowboys for Christ so he's really just reprising his role as Lord Summerisle from the '73 version.

~~
Samuel L. Jackson (Mace Windu - PT) keeps his status as America's king of movies, in the 90's he made more films than any other actor of his calibur...and more than most actors not not at his level. Other films he's attached to but have only been announced and haven't even started pre-production yet are:The Jailhouse Lawyer - this one's just a rumor.Pre production films or TV:Poker Nights (with Hayden Christensen and Nick Gillard)
Afro Samurai - A TV mini series as the voice of Afro Samurai (No. 2)Also see 2004: A Light Knight's Odyssey below.

~~
Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi - PT) - Miss Potter, Mr. McGregor is only in talks for a part in this biopic on Beatrix Potter (Renee Zellwegger) of Peter Rabbit book fame. He would play Norman Warne who was Potter's publisher and her love interest.

~~
2004: A Light Knight's Odyssey - This is an animated educational film made for IMAX. Most of this film was made two years ago under the title Quantum Quest: A Cassini Space Odyssey.
Star Wars alum attached to this project are Samuel L. Jackson (Mace Windu - PT), James Earl Jones (voice of Darth Vader - OT & ROTS) and David Warner (Grand General Brashin in Star Wars: Force Commander).
There's been a bit of confusion about this project and still is. People thought it was going to be a made-for-TV film, then thought it was a hoax, then a regular release film. When asked, Mr. Jackson said he'd never heard of the project but the name had been changed after he'd recorded the voice for the character Fear.

~~
Julian Glover (General Veers - ESB) will play a role in The Impressionists for BBC TV which also stars another Star Wars alum Richard Armitage (Naboo fighter pilot in TPM) who plays a young Claude Monet. The three part mini-series will focus entirely on documentary evidence about Impressionist artists - Cézanne, Degas, Manet, Monet and Renoir - but will also use special effects to transport the viewer into some of the world's most famous Impressionist paintings. Sounds wonderful!

~~
Nalini Krishan has been attached to the Nature's Guard project for some time now as have other alum: Peter Mayhew, Michael Sheard (d) (Admiral Ozzel - ESB), Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett - ESB/ROTJ), Alan Harris (Bossk - ESB), Jerome Blake (various - PT), Aron Kincaid (Reborn 2 in SW: Jedi Knight II vg) and Warwick Davis (Wicket in ROTJ).

The site for Nature's Guard has been up for well over a year and a half. The backstory according to the official site:
"On distant planet of Forestya, the sylvan peace of the sentient forest animals is about to be shattered by the evil machinations of the SpiderSect Empire led by the vile Empress Webula and Grandsilk Weaver.The Nature's Senate is quick to respond, calling for the best of the best to stop the impending threat. An elite team of animal warriors is assembled at the hidden Fortress Ironwood; they are called NATURE'S GUARD."

~~
Michael Gilden (Ewok - ROTJ) in addition to starring in Southland Tales as Mini UPU is doing stunt work on TV: The Movie set to be released this year which also stars Star Wars alum, and fellow Ewok in ROTJ, Tony Cox.

~~
Liam Neeson (Qui-Gon Jinn - PT) is still in talks for a supporting role in the Angelica Huston directed The White Rose starring Christina Ricci.

~~
Treat Williams (Jess Alloshane - Rebel trooper in ESB) - Will be starring in Circadian Rhythm

I missed a few but I don't have that much time.

~~
The Updates

Roy Staite (Yerka Mig in Cantina - ANH) - Somewhere along the line this actor was billed or credited as Roy StRaite and not Staite. In The Art of Star Wars (1979) he was written on a John Mollo sketch sheet for the Cantina as Roy Staite and his autograph is clearly S-T-A-I-T-E. This was called to my attention while looking for information on Salo Gardner. I found a few more bits of information on Mr. Staite and know there is more out there, just not on the internet.

Salo Gardner (Cantina Patron/Stormtrooper - ANH) - There's been some interesting news on Mr. Gardner recently. After many, many years of seclusion from fans Mr. Gardner, who was recently seen as a Zombie in Simon Pegg's Shawn of the Dead, will do signings. Mr. Gardner is in his 70's, slightly frail and has the most incredible face. Great for drawing!

Rick Baker (Figrin D'an/ Hem Dazon - ANH) - Baker is thought to be attached for make-up effects to a new film called Enchanted, while that's not been 100% confirmed as yet it is a good possibility that he'll help with this fairly tale retold.

Hope everyone got a glimpse of the Golden Globe Awards tonight to catch sight of Harrison Ford and Natalie Portman who are both presenting awards and Keira Knightley who's in attendance.

~~Updates to existing actors pages at the STAR WARS ACTORS DATABASE
Rick Baker (update - Film)
Tace Bayliss (update - character pic correction) (Thanks Pabawan!)
Guy Boyd (update - character pic)
Paul Campbell (update - Film ADR)
Diahann Carroll (update - TV)
Rob Coleman (update - Awards: Golden Satellite; VES)
Fionnula Flanagan (update - bio and character pics)
Nancy Giles (update - Live Performances)
Kes Green (update - correction of character pic and role in TPM)
Roger Guyett (update - Awards: Golden Satellite; VES)
Drewe Henley (update - character pic; Theatre)
James Earl Jones (update - Live Appearances)
John Knoll (update - Awards: Golden Satellite; VES)
Bai Ling (update - Film) (under "B" LING BAI her true name)
George Lucas (update - Music Videos - Director; Awards: People's Choice)
Aubree Miller (update - character pic)
Denise Ream (update - Awards: VES)
Peter Serafinowicz (update - Film)
Roy Staite (update - Correction on his name)
Eric Walker (character pic)

~~Actor Connections
STAR WARS ACTOR CONNECTIONS
Tough Love (TV)

~~No newly added actors this week.
I know, you can't believe it! Fear not, there's still loads of them on the list.

~~References
MUSIC
Guitar Vader (Thanks to Shea Turner!)

FILMS R-ZWolf Creek (Thanks to Son of a Bith!)

~~Star Wars Sketches
LM'S FAN ART with the latest sketch:
Shaak Ti
I have another sketch which I'll upload later this week.

*I've been working 16 hour days, amazingly without any hand cramping, well, with very little, I did have cramping yesterday but I was down to my last white pencil and it was whittled down to a teeeenny tiiiny little stump of whiteness...I was barely holding on the little devil.

Normally I have a small stockpile of base colors but this time I did not, I had received two white pencils from my mother-in-law a couple of weeks ago and didn't take a good look at them. Turns out they were "Charcoal" and not regular wax...oy. I went down to "AaRunOnthings Brothers" art supplies and they were, gee-no-surprise, fresh out of white. So I had to travel to the more expensive, far-ther (darn monkeys) out, but much more reliable blue print shop to get my little white guys.

Thank you and Enjoy!
LM

Sunday, January 15, 2006

A New Sketch!

So, I took a break from working and what did I do? More drawing of course. *sigh*
The fruits of my break.

Enjoy.
LM

EDIT:
I put all comments in one comment post.

Saturday, January 14, 2006

My Lightsabre Interview Is Up

date posted: Jan 14, 2006 4:04 PM updated: Jan 14, 2006 4:20 PM edit

Hello everyone,

My interview at Lightsabre.co.uk is up.

This is a new section at Lightsabre and will feature interviews of Star Wars webmasters from around the globe. I was lucky enough to be the first and I am most honored and happy to have been so.

Mr. Newbold, janlomona, is a lovely young man and I'm pleased to have met him. Thanks Mark for a great interview!

Look for other webmaster interviews in the upcoming months..."webmasters, site founders, fan film makers, blog managers, fan fiction writers - Lightsabre brings you interviews with the fans who have made important contributions to the star wars saga..."

As far as I'm aware this is the first time anyone has made an effort to showcase or feature Star Wars fan-site webmasters anywhere. I've been privy to a partial list of future interviewees and I'm excited to hear what they have to say and look forward to those interviews! Keep your eyes out for all future interviews HERE.
Thanks to all the guys at Lighsabre for taking notice, it means a lot.

Thanks for taking a peek.
Look for an Actor Update Monday!

Enjoy!
Leah

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

John Williams Wins Another Award

2005 Broadcast Film Critics Awards chose John Williams the winner of Best Composer for Memoirs of a Geisha...though oddly enough didn't turn his nomination for the same film for best soundtrack into a win....Walk the Line won.

Neat.
LM

Petaluma's Salute to American Graffiti

I wasn't even a twinkle in my parents eyes in '62, but George Lucas's American Graffiti made me feel as though I'd been there.

I always enjoy watching this film and especially when I'm in need of a lift of spirit. Part of that, I'm sure, is due to the brilliantly edited soundtrack...and the use of Wolfman Jack, who I had listened to well into my childhood. This film has never aged, it is classic Americana at its sweetest and most charming moment.

Last year Petaluma had an event to celebrate that film, much of which was filmed right downtown in 1972, called Petaluma's Salute to American Graffiti. The event was so popular that they've made it an annual event. This year it will be held on May 20, 2006 in, of course, Petaluma, CA. (10 am - 9 pm)

There will be 200 cars on display of 1972 or earlier vintage, they start taking applications for display cars this Sunday the 15th of January (last year they sold out in a month). There will also be a "cruise" following the display.

Several stars and two vintage cars from the film will be there as well.To mark the 35th anniversary, in 2008, organisers are hoping to gather the stars of American Graffiti and it's director George Lucas for a reunion.

Funds raised at the event will go to local charities.

For more info.

What a great way to spend a day.
LM

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

ROTS Receives 4 VES Nominations!

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion PictureYou can go to the VES site and see who all the nominees were HERE.

Congrats to the guys and gal!

Star Wars Parts Recycled

date posted: Jan 10, 2006 6:20 PM edit


Here are just three examples of the Star Wars recycling program. I know there are more out there but If you know of more please present what you have and we'll add them to the site!

Eerie Similarities
The first set of photos shows Luke Skywalker at the Mos Eisley Spaceport Cantina, after he's asked Wuher for a refreshing drink and is just starting to get harassed by Dr. Evazan. Recognize the head of a certain bounty hunter from ESB?

The second set of photos is of the short order fry cook from the Droids TV series (episode: Pirates of Tarnooga). Dex sure does look familiar.

The third, while not Star Wars recycling per se is a reverse reference comparison, shows Flo the waitress (on the far left) from Mel's Diner in the TV show Alice (1976).
And the shot on the right of Flo the droid waitress (Mel's Flo's namesake ) from Dex's Diner in Attack of the Clones. Notice also here that Mel (Vic Tayback) looks like the model for both cooks from Star Wars.
You may think momentarily that the show Alice was influenced by American Graffiti somehow but it was actually based on the Martin Scorcese film Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) which was based on a screenplay by Robert Getchell.

The fourth set of photos shows the cycle wheel used by a character in the Droids TV series (also episode: Pirates of Tarnooga) and the subsequent re-use of the vehicle by that coughing, sinister character from ROTS. One of those vehicles you always wanted to see fleshed out in 3D form as a kid only to marvel at it in ROTS.

Again, I know there are many other examples out there, let me know! Let's see what else is in the recycle bin!

LM

Monday, January 09, 2006

Actor Updates!

Hi, haven't had a regular actor update since December 22, 2005...so here you go in a slightly different format...

~~Updates to existing actors pages
SWAD
Jerry Baker (update - Bio pic; Film; TV)
Paul Bannon (update - bio pic)
Long John Baldry (update - Miscellany)
Erik Bauersfeld (update - bio pic)
Paul Brooke (update - character pic)
Stephen Fitzalan (update - bio pic)
Celia Fushille-Burke (update - Theatre)
Milan Cheylov (update - TV Director)
Rick Cimino (update - bio; TV: Streets of San Francisco; Radio; Audio Books: Three Great Tales; Video Games)
Dominique Chionchio (update - character pic)
Alfie Curtis (update - character pic)
Harrison Ford (update - TV)
Ernie Fosselius (update - character pic)
Salo Gardner (update - bio and ??character pics)
Glynn Jones (update - Theatre)
Trevor Jones (update - bio pic)
Goran Kleut (update - bio info; Theatre)
Keira Knightly (update - Miscellany)
Larin Lahr (update - character pic)
Christopher Lee (update - Miscellany)
Robert Machray (update - Theatre)
Ewan McGregor (update - TV)
Dean Mitchell (update - update - bio pic)
Terence Mustoo (update - bio pic and character pics)
Daran Norris (update - Video Games)
Kevin Pollack (update - Film; TV)
Natalie Portman (update - TV; Miscellany)
Kevin Michael Richardson (update - birth year) (Thanks to KMR!)
Peter Roy (update - bio and character pic)T
erry Sach (update - bio pic; Film; TV)
Raphael Sbarge (update - Theatre)
Tony Starr (update - character pic; TV)
Cree Summer (update - Film)
Kristoffer Tabori (update - Video Games)
David Warner (update - Film)
Brian Wheeler (update - bio pic)
Billy Dee Williams (update - Live Performances)

~~Newly added actors
Tace BaylissPaul Campbell (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Dee ChudasamaMark Duffy (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Lindsay Elliott (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Laurie Goode (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Sara Kestelman
Goran Kleut
Katie Lynch
Derek Lyons
Sergio Marini (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Michael Randall (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Chris Staff (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Darren White
Dave Whitely (Thanks to Convention-Guests.com!)
Crystal Wright
Philip Wade

~~Actor Connections
Actor Connections page

Audio Books
Three Great Tales
Film
Quadrophenia
TV
63rd Annual Golden Globe Awards
Dr. Who (Planet of the Daleks 1973)
Dr. Who (The Mutants 1972)

~~References
Main Site Access
BOOKS A-C
Bare Hands and Numb Skulls
Cascade: A Collection of Poems
Catching Light: Looking for God in the Movies
The Cost of Commitment
BOOKS D-F
Discovering Grammar
BOOKS K-O
The New Mainstream
MUSIC
Howard Stern
TV D-F
Drawn Together #7, 8 (Thanks to John at Obroa-Skai!)


Thank you and Enjoy!
LM

Sunday, January 08, 2006

A Late Year-End Update

date posted: Jan 08, 2006 4:42 PM edit

Hey everyone.

Sorry for the lack of updates recently, I've been working and working.

2005 - summary:
General stuff.
Many actors were added to the Star Wars Actors Database this year and the grand total as of January 7, 2006 is 862. Many more are still in the pipeline.

Hundreds of references were added to the references pages, hovering in the 7,000 range. Over 730,000 visits were made to the site throughout 2005, more than I ever could have imagined. In the early days I was excited if 2 or 3 people visited.

Much of what I added in 2005 was from the actors themselves (many of whom I still remain in contact with), their assistance was and is invaluable. Other submissions came from all over the world (Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, UK, Belgium, Spain, China (Hong Kong), Russia, Canada and others) throughout the year and I thank everyone for being so kind and for being generous of their time and help.

~~
Celebration III was a complete blast and the snow was an interesting sideline. I met some terrific people, hung out with old and new friends. Meeting neat people along the way, bumping into Star Wars alum throughout the halls (see pics of CIII here), being interviewed by Sky Wilson for a documentary on Star Wars fans, called George and Me (trailer is finally out now, the doc will be out sometime later this year), saw my grandfather for the second time in 30 odd years (he met his great grandson and they got along famously), enjoyed seeing George Lucas...I sat in the front row but to the side for the first presentation.
Jay Laga'iaia was a great host as well being very easy on the eyes. The events kept me entertained and I simply enjoyed every minute. Well, except for a few interesting moments with my 2 year old son.

~~
Revenge of the Sith - what's there to say that hasn't been said already. I enjoyed watching this film. It was a delightful beginning to the summer and continued to please almost 'til the beginning of Fall (I love the dollar theatre!) I saw the film in Santa Barbara a few times with all my friends (who live there still), then went to Los Angeles to see it digitally (very nice), then viewed it here in town several times.

I loved the Boga, Grievous, Tion Meddon, Obi-Wan's sense of humor, Yoda and the Emperor (was it me or did Palpy enjoy that far too much?), Anakin and Padmé's highly dysfunctional relationship (it ain't love or a family reunion unless somebody cries), the great fight on Mustafar (poor Obi-Wan he went through the emotional ringer) and...of course, Anakin to Darth Vader....likey, likey.

~~
ComicCon was a good bridge for the mid-summer blues (it was a record-setting hot week for July in the desert) and San Diego is the perfect remedy, nice and cool. I would have liked to have stayed for the whole weekend but had to drive home to work each day and just couldn't swing it on Sunday.

I overstayed my welcome while visiting with Cynthia Cummens, Randy Martinez and Justin Chung...the solitary lifestyle of an artist in the deep of a very hot summer came through too vividly. *chuckles*
Come to think of it I probably scared off Daniel Logan and Matthew Wood as well...poor dears. (see pics of Comic-Con here)

~~
December brought a surprise interview. Bonnie Burton was kind enough to ask me if I wouldn't mind being interviewed for Featured Blog at StarWars.com. I gladly accepted and I'm so very grateful to have been chosen for such an honor.

Shortly after I was asked for that interview I was asked for another interview, this time by Mark Newbold of Lightsabre.co.uk. He asked me to be the first interviewee for their Star Wars webmaster series for the new year, look for it on January 14, 2006. I'm looking forward to seeing the following interviews with the other webmasters.

I thank both Ms. Burton and Mr. Newbold for their kindness, their great questions, for making me feel at ease and for giving me the opportunity to share my love of Star Wars with everyone.

~~
The Future for Nerf-Herders Anonymous holds more additions to the SWAD...yep, that upcoming Star Wars TV project! With the actors I've got lined up the SWAD should read more than 1000 individuals. Unbelievable.

Beyond the databases I have several projects on the Horizon for NHA.n, one of which involves Ewoks. I don't expect that to be ready for quite some time...hoping to pull it off by year's end. And there will be other surprises as well, at least I hope to offer some surprises.

I can't wait to share!

~~
Personally I had a rather rough year. Undeterred, I continued to *work (Pets Illustrated) as usual and get on with life.

Work, and my son, have been steady sources of joy for me yet, I have found...am finding, balancing the scales of child-rearing/life and freelance illustration is not easy by any stretch. Tired is an understatement but it doesn't fully hit me until my nose hits the drawing board at 4 am.

*Beyond Pets Illustrated I worked diligently to make a deadline (Oct) for the La Quinta Arts Festival I powered it out and made it early. I found out a month later that I'd been juried in...aren't waits torture? The show spans 4 days in mid March 2006. I have much work yet to do before then but I'm very excited.


Highlights
~~
A few actor highlights:
I discovered the voice of Salacious B. Crumb, that cackle belonged to, Mark Dodson. After the discovery I was able to interview him. He gave a great interview and some serious bonus extras to boot. A funny and great guy.

~~
We solved a mystery of who the original Captain Antilles was in ANH - Peter Geddis

~~
The most bankable/marketable Star Wars stars (from a list of other, non SW related stars) were: Christopher Lee, who was considered to be the most bankable star of 2005 that's a mighty accomplishment from an octogenarian, Ewan McGregor and Samuel L. Jackson.

In a similar list (IMDB - most searched actor/actress) the most popular stars (picking out only Star Wars related, again) were Keira Knightly (8) followed by Natalie Portman (9).

James Earl Jones made more headlines, with substance (not a trace of gossip), than any other Star Wars star. He's constantly on the move and working. He works very hard speaking at schools, etc., to get children to keep reading. He had time to fit in a Broadway play as well, taking the lead role of Norman Thayer Jr., in On Golden Pond.

Ewan McGregor starred in Guys and Dolls in London.John Lithgow starred in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels on Broadway which was very popular and garnered him a Tony nomination for the performance and shoed him into the Theatre Hall of Fame. Jonathan Pryce will be taking over Lithgow's part this year.

Natalie Portman shaved her head for the role of Evey Hammond in V for Vendetta coming out this March and made an appearance at Comic Con in San Diego in July.

Peter Mayhew became a US citizen - Arlington, TX.

Bai Ling (Senator Bana Breemu ROTS - deleted scenes) "sang" on TV's But Can They Sing?, very "interesting." Not that this is a "highlight" but it was different. Note: The words Bai Ling mean a type of Chinese mushroom but her name is actually Ling Bai.

We saw Deep Roy (Droopy McCool/Ewok - ROTJ; R2-D2 stand-in ESB/ROTJ) - in a truly unforgettable role as an Oompa Loompa (well, Oompa Loompas) in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. A role for which he trained for months to get just right. Amazing.

Books:
Tim Dry: Falling Upwards (autobiography)

John Lithgow:
Ladies or Gentlemen: A Pictorial History of Male Cross-Dressing in the Movies (introduction)Marsupial Sue Presents the Runaway Pancake (children's book)
Boredom Blasters: Halloween Edition (parent/child activity book)

John Coppinger: Tertiary (Sci-Fi novel)

George Lucas was covered in Michael Rubin's George Lucas: Droidmaker

Steven Sansweet: Star Wars Poster Book (with Pete Vilmer)

J.W. Rinzler: The Art of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith & The Making Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith

Carrie Fisher announced that she would release her Star Wars diaries at some point in the future.

Music/recorded performances:
Sean Crawford and Tim Dry (as Tik and Tok) put out a teaser CD for their upcoming album. First in 20 years.

Cree Summer released an album

Grey DeLisle released an album

Hamilton Camp finished an album (his last before passing) which looks to be released this year.

James Earl Jones used his incredible voice on two CDs:
The American Christmas Carol (as narrator)
Golden Slumbers, A Father's Love (as reader/participant)

David Warner had a performance (from a past production) on The Essential Shakespeare Live as did Lindsay Duncan.

Awards and nominations:
Adam Arkin
Samuel L. Jackson
James Earl Jones
Harrison Ford
Keira Knightly
John Lithgow
George Lucas
Ian McDiarmid
Ewan McGregor
Liam Neeson
Natalie Portman
Phil Tippett
Matthew Wood

And, finally, those Star Wars actors who became one with the Force in 2005:
Long John Baldry - Ewok voices (Ewoks TV)
Hamilton Camp - Rune Haako/TIE Bomber Pilot (Galactic Battegrounds)
Stephen Elliott - voice of Prestor (Bail Organa) (ANH Radio Drama)
John Hollis - Lobot - Lando's Aide (ESB)
William Hootkins - Jek Porkins (ANH)
Brock Peters - Lord Darth Vader (ANH, ESB, ROTJ Radio Drama)
Charles Rocket - Nym (Star Fighter)
Michael Sheard - Admiral Ozzel (ESB)

Thanks to everyone!
LM

Would You Believe?

From the Monterey Herald this morning...
Talking of New Year's Eve celebrations and celebrities:Elsewhere on St. Bart's, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen let friends live out their rock 'n' roll fantasies at the New Year's party aboard his 416-foot yacht, Octopus.

Martha Stewart, George Lucas, Eve, Owen Wilson, Simon LeBon, Ron Perelman and Ellen Barkin, Stephanie Seymour and Peter Brant, Harvey Weinstein and Georgina Chapman, Barry Diller and Diane Von Furstenberg, and Russell and Kimora Lee Simmons got to play with Allen's custom karaoke machine -- outfitted with instrumentals commissioned from the likes of Paul McCartney, Bono and Gregg Allman.

I'd loved to have seen Lucas singing Karaoke. I wonder what song he picked.

Friday, January 06, 2006

Ewoks Star to Present Award at PSIFF

Hey all!

Short break to give a little tidbit of news.

Right here in town this weekend is Fionnula Flanagan (Catarine Towani in The Ewok Adventure) who is presenting the Breakthrough Performance Award to Felicity Huffman at the Palm Springs International Film Festival (a few miles from me) this Saturday (January 7, 2006) at the black tie awards gala.

The Festival, which attracted 108,000 people last year, is California's most popular film festival. Ticket sales this year are up 22% from last year. And as usual Entertainment Tonight is covering the event with Mary Hart as a co-host for the gala events. Some philanthropists are shelling out $15,000 for a table at the Saturday night gala.

Some of the celebrity honorees, guests and presenters this year are: David Cronenberg, Shirley MacLaine, Jake Gyllenhaal, Charlize Theron, Felicity Huffman, Terrence Howard, Keanu Reeves (presenter), Fionnula Flanagan (presenter), Virginia Madsen (presenter), Peter Sarsgaard (presenter) and Q'orianka Kilcher (guest - Pocahontas in New World which screened tonight and also stars Colin Farrel).

Two of last year's honorees were Samuel L. Jackson and Liam Neeson, you can check out which honors they received.Hope everyone's new year is starting out well.

Enjoy!
LM

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

George and Me - Documentary

Last April I was interviewed for a documentary called George and Me (by Sky Wilson of Inside-Report) that will be released later this year.

Here's the trailer with a small glimpse of yours truly. And you might see some other familiar fans there too.

Enjoy!

LM