|
United Fan Con IX Report |
|
|
United Fan Con IX Report |
|
November 6-7, 1999
Springfield, MA
This is more of what Lisa talked about on Saturday and on Sunday at the con. [I missed the first ten minutes or so of her Sunday talk, however, so if anyone who was there remembers something interesting that's not in this report, feel free to drop me or Marie a line!] I was impressed at how, even though she was new at this, Lisa knew right away to repeat fans' questions for the rest of the audience when they were very soft-spoken. I also loved how she talked to us personally, like there were just one or two fans in the room and not a whole huge audience. Anyway, on with the show:
What's in the blue tank? [asked our own LHFC member Jane] Lisa replied, "Nothing. The blue tank is notorious. Whenever one of us messes a line it's like, 'ohhhh here comes the blue tank.' Our d.o.p [director of photography?] makes a sound [she demonstrated--it sounds like something from the soundtrack to Psycho--a demented scraping violin-- ranh! Ranh! Ranh!]. What's that sound, Mike? 'Oh they're wheeling in the blue tank.' You sit there on a stool and make a pose as if you're floating, they hook things up to you. In my blue tank scene they had a harness rigged up to me underneath all that stuff, and they were going to suspend me, but it looked just as good with me sitting on a stool. Later they paint in what looks like water; they stuck my hair back so you couldn't see that my hair wasn't floating in all the water. They do it all in visual effects later."What's Lisa's relationship with the scriptwriters?
"Very often it's reactionary, I get a script and I'm in damage control, reaction mode, because of the time factor. You're too busy. But the phone lines are always open and very often Paul Gertz will call and say hey what do you think of this idea, or, we're thinking of going this way do you think this is a good idea? If I ever have any idea they're completely open to it. Or they'll watch the dailies and they'll say you know that thing you did with Sandoval we really like that. Let's try to lay that in as much as we can . Or I always find what's most effective is to put it up there on the screen. I can't go to them and say [quickly, in her valley girl accent] I wanna have a really interesting relationship with Augur where it's kind of you know, flirting, but kind of sparring, like brother and sister, like he's pulling my pigtail. [Back to regular voice] They don't get that. But if they see it up there, if they ever have a boring scene about some sort of technical stuff and Richard and I can lay in some of that interesting chemistry on a boring scene, then they'll write scenes for us later on. So I find it more effective to do it in the work than on the phone."
A fan mentioned that former Hercules star Kevin Sorbo's signed on for a new Roddenberry project, and Lisa was surprised. "Get out of here! You guys know so much more than I on that sort of stuff. [laughingly] Why doesn't he come on our show? Why not? There's room Kevin, come on over!"
Lisa did not know Leni before she took the role. She asked us, "Did you guys guess that Da'an was played by a woman? No? [audience's reaction is fifty fifty.] Her actions are feminine, I think the androgyny was very important. Now that you know that Da'an was played by a woman, who knew that Zo'or was played by a woman too? Right. I think it was a good idea, to make them androgynous, and I thought Leni did as good a job as you could for keeping that a secret for as long as she did. And then Anita does a wonderful job too [as Zo'or]. But Leni was the first one so she got to develop the hand movements and the whole energy of the Taelons which again is a wonderful creative experience for an actor. . . .I didn't see Leni without makeup for months! And it was unfortunate, because she'd sit down at lunch and you'd go [noncommittally] 'Hi,' and then [realization dawns] 'Ooh! Hi! Leni!' It was very very disconcerting. She'd walk through set and people wouldn't say anything to her because there are so many people on set, and strangers all the time. I felt really sorry for her because nobody recognized this girl without her head, even on set, even people she worked with. It took a good six months before people were clueing in to Leni. We're all a little thick anyway... overworked."
A little girl asked how long has Lisa been acting?
She answered, "I have been acting for...hmmm...[had to stop and mentally count back--then said dryly] a looong time...long time. I did my first play when I was 11 and then I went to theater school when I was 17, in Toronto, and then I moved to New York when I was 19 to study. I started working pretty much off the bat when I was around 19 years old so, like, 14, 15 years. It's a long time, [mock-crying, pretending to be sad] such a long time!"My question for Lisa was--would you like to go back to the theater?
"I would love to go back to the theater. When you have a kid, you think time frame. A theater gig would be so great because you go to work at 7 o'clock at night when the kid's ready for bed, so you spend the whole day with them and then you're home by twelve-thirty, one in the morning and you can be up with the baby. It would be a really good thing. But I live in L.A. and there's no good theater in LA. Kevin [Kilner] moved to New York to do theater because there's not a lot in L.A. I would love to do that. You start thinking in terms of the best job for a family. Sitcoms are good too because you're home for dinner every night. But you start something like Earth Final Conflict, you develop a character, you're there from the ground [up], I want to see it through. I would love to, because hopefully it will go for five years. [applause] It breaks my heart when I watch the show and I'm like, ooh, I'm not there. I miss everybody. I'm pretty sure that they have a fourth season going, it's like 99% sure that they're going another season, and a fifth, who knows. But I'd love to bring in the rear, you know? I started it, I don't want to let it go. And then after that, I think gosh, a sitcom would be nice, because it's nine to five pretty much, or theater. I love to work [in theater] because there's rehearsal . . . and it's great. I haven't been in a play in six years and it really breaks my heart. But it's just not in the cards these days, unfortunately. Do you guys know Rick Biggs from Babylon Five? We used to do theater together, because he was on Days of our Lives with me, during that time period, 88-91. He was on a lot longer. And Rick Biggs and Michael Weiss went to college together, so we were pretty thick the three of us. He just had a baby, Rick did, a little boy [audience awwws]. Sofie's got a prom date. [laughs] We're gonna hook 'em up."
What are some of her other soap costars up to now?
"If there's any Days fans in here, remember Conrad Dunn? No, at that time he was George Teneski., he played Nick Corelli, Nick the pimp. I loved Nick the Pimp! He's up in Toronto, I hooked him up with my agent and got him his working papers, and said there's so much work in Toronto, you've gotta go. So he's been working up there a lot. And I can't believe he hasn't done my show! He's not really sci-fi. He's so contemporary. Most of them are still doing soaps. Charlotte Ross who played Eve when I was there, she's gone on to do lots of TV stuff. Once you get in that soap world, it's pretty cozy. If you're smart you stay put, but I was done after three years, I was like, uh, something else please! It's a really good job when you're young, or when you're having a baby or when you're really old. Put me out to pasture on a soap. When I'm sixty, they can wheel me around the set, it's a really good gig, but in the meantime I've had such a good time traveling with work and doing other stuff."Fan after fan mentioned that Lili Marquette is sorely missed on the show, which it was evident really warmed Lisa's heart. A good question was how she researched for the part. "I got on the Internet and hooked up with this girl Rachel Vance. She was in boot camp at the time. I figured that Lili would be in boot camp in 1998 so that by the time the aliens came in 2014--?? the year keeps changing , it's like very vague, 8 years in the future. So I figured that Lili would have been 17 or 18 years old in 1998 and would have been at boot camp. So this girl's father sent me her diaries of what it's like, the day to day life, the emotional ups and downs, so I started building Lili's character from boot camp on through the help of this man and his daughter. They were just wonderful and very generous in sharing their experience. I decided that this girl WAS Lili, she's completely Lili. She's absolutely everything. Her leadership abilities, how she interacts with the other recruits. She was a fascinating study and it was the most detailed biography I could have asked for. It was very helpful. Plus I had [only] two weeks--you're hired and they say okay we'll see you in two weeks on the set. And you have to pull out that info pretty fast. So I got lucky on the Internet like that. I also did study over the past five years kick boxing and martial arts... I did two action movies, two bounty hunters movies with Michael Dudikoff who's like 'Mr. action guy,' so he got me going on getting some training, which has come in handy. Although [on EFC] they don't let you do a lot of stuff. I thought there would be a lot more action involved in what Lili does, but with science fiction you just pull out a weapon, and--[searching for phrase] bomb somebody with your shuttle. I was hoping it would be a little more hand to hand, because that stuff is fun. We have a really incredible stunt coordinator and I have the most incredible body double, Kelly Bodanis, who was very busy during my pregnancy. Her fighting is so much better than mine, I'm only too happy to pass the reins because she makes me look so much better!"
Would Lisa consider doing an action film with Jackie Chan?
"I LOVE Jackie Chan! Oh, he's my favorite! I'm such a fan. Isn't he cool? He goes to Vancouver to shoot a lot of his stuff and so some of the stunt guys I've worked with in Vancouver have worked with his movies and I just go [reverential whisper] 'oh what's it like, what's it like?' I would LOVE that."This fan said he pictured her in an action movie with Harrison Ford. Lisa went all a goggle and seemed to melt on stage as she sighed: "Aaaaahhh, Harrison Ford! He can't do action, anymore, does he? [laughingly] He's getting up there. We gotta make sure he stays in one piece, I'd get too worried if he did action, like-- Harrison, take it easy, don't get hurt!" [Fan mentions Ford's planning to film another Indiana Jones movie and that surprises Lisa] "I don't know how I feel about that. [humorously] Lots of makeup. He'll grow old gracefully, and I'll watch him. I'll pay six bucks, eight bucks and watch him do anything." She saw him in Six Days Seven Nights, and liked his character in it. "I swear, I didn't care that it was a lousy movie."
I talked in part one about how Lisa sounds as if she was born and raised in California, or the States anyway, but I just noticed on the tape there's one very Canadian remark she made when she said "I'm sorry" in that northern way, "soary." Otherwise, you'd never guess her background. It was charming, and I only mention it in an attempt to convey what she is like in person, what she sounds like. Meanwhile, back to the Q & A:
For those fans who can never watch EFC at a decent regular time, take heart in the fact that even its stars have the same problem! Lisa said forcefully at one point, " I can't find it. I can't find EFC. They change it constantly. It's on funky times, like 3:00 on a Saturday night, really drives me crazy so no, I don't watch the broadcasts, I can never find it. When I do happen to remember when it's on it's on at a weird time or either I'm sleeping or I'm at the park with my daughter or something. So I get the episodes from the editors at the end of the season and I'll sit down and just watch the tapes."What are her favorite episodes?
"Well, I like Strandhill, for obvious reasons as you can tell, and I haven't seen In Memory but I liked shooting that one the best. I loved shooting Bliss, because it was me and Richard Chevolleau the whole episode, so I was in heaven. And it was inside, we didn't have to be outside in the cold. Off the top of my head those are my favorites. What's your favorite? [smiles] You don't have to say Strandhill."Why did Lili change her hairstyle between seasons?
"I get bored. That's my fault. I get so tired of looking at myself looking the same every day. And also second season they wanted to soften me up a bit. I liked first season's haircut, but my producers hated it. They really didn't like it at all. I liked it. ...Gosh, when I came back this season to do those episodes, I'm not thinking about my hair, I'm thinking about the baby. I'm like, oh, it's horrible, my hair's awful this season. But if I go back for another season I'll come up with something else again too, because I get so tired of it. You sit there in the makeup chair for three hours looking at your face, every day-- [groans] oh, I can't deal. Give me something else."Some more words about the CABARET: I have Lisa's Shuttle Shuffle on audio tape, but since it's such a visual thing, I won't transcribe that word for word here. (The tape's a little bad for this anyway, because I was too close to the speakers and too far away from Lisa.) Suffice to say it was interesting, and funny. Lisa is great at adding humor to the simplest descriptions. She described each move, giving the reason why she put it in the sequence; for example, when flying a jet you first bring up the diagnostics, so that's the first move, the horizontal "swoosh" across and above her head. There was also the Robot, named for the robot in Lost In Space, where he moves his arms up and down and says "danger, danger!" Another move she calls Change the Channel--ala using a TV remote control--which moves smoothly into the Bruce Lee, a pseudo-martial arts arm chop. Next time we're together for a fan club event we have to teach everyone in the club how to do the moves, so that we are all proper disciples of Lili Marquette. [grin]
Lisa told us that one day she got a royalty check in the mail from America's Funniest Bloopers and Practical Jokes. "And I never catch the show, so I didn't know what it was that I did-- that obviously I was making a fool of myself, but getting paid for it, which is not too bad. You get these checks in the mail, you don't know why. So I asked Marie, who runs my webpage, to ask the fans if anybody had seen it, and sure enough, there's a couple dorky soap opera tapes that I did, and I get checks for! Me bumping into the chandelier, making a big dramatic exit [makes whoosh noise] and hitting the chandelier. Oh, Michael Weiss splitting his pants. We were running and hiding behind the sofa; we hid behind it and [makes ripping noise]...and then he stood up and said oh my ,...--[she's miming all of this] And I'm in the shot! So he split his pants but I still get a check! Had I known that that's all it took to get a check every six months, I'd have been messing up a lot more than I did. I'd have been doing it on purpose. It's nice! Six hundred bucks comes in the mail every six months, and I'm going shopping! Michael, thank you for splitting those pants! [She noted that EFC doesn't appear on Bloopers much. Fan explained that you have to send in the footage. Lisa says they should send theirs in because they have a lot of funny stuff.] "You could really make a fool of me because when I'm doing my shuttle stuff, basically it's just me sitting in my thingy in the spaceship but there's nothing in front of me, so to the untrained eye--you guys are all trained now!--it just looks like I'm flapping my arms. My mom came to the set one day and she said 'What are you doing up there? You look SO silly!' Trust me, mom, they're gonna paint it in and I won't look like such a jerk. She goes, 'Are you sure?' I look pretty silly. In front of a green screen. All the technical mumbo jumbo is so hard to say."
There aren't really any practical jokers on set, but Lisa volunteered that Von "will do very creative line flubs. So that you're doing a scene with him and he'll be saying his line and then he'll go off [verbally] and bring in an entirely different scene that makes no sense at all and [she says all of the next bit in one long breathless rush] I'm sitting there with a look of panic on my face thinking 'aaaaahhhh! I don't remember that line, I don't remember that line, oh I guess I didn't read my script' and I'm trying to follow and [back to normal speed] here the whole crew is cracking up and I'm like what's so funny? [low sarcastic voice, as a muttered aside] Von's off on a tangent again. And I'm really easy to fool. And Leni cracks me up." At the end of one scene she was supposed to hand Lisa a global and instead she handed her this Da'an doll a fan had made for her, and said, 'congratulations it's a boy.'
We all want to know where Lili is headed in that shuttle with her black blood and all.
Lisa turned it on us: "Where do you think I'm going? Some war planet? Jaridian planet? [The audience spouted their theories about that and Sandoval] In episode ten [In Memory] you find out where I went, and I might not be going too far. MIGHT not. Sandoval's agenda is very unclear, and I love that about our show. . . . If I had my way, what Lili is doing off in space somewhere--when she comes back to earth in the next season, she's got another agenda entirely. I think it would be great if Lili stood for something other than the Resistance. In the Resistance, she's answering to Liam okay? [using a slightly sarcastic emphasis] And if she's working for the Taelons she's answering to Da'an, but if she's working for something else then she's answering to nobody. I like that! I want her to lead the...Because if it's Earth Final Conflict, the more conflict the better! So there's the Resistance on one hand, there's the Taelons on the other hand, and then Lili fighting for this other cause which will become clear-ER in episode ten, then you've got some juice going on. Because, come season four, we've got to get to the conflict part of Earth Final Conflict, you know what I'm saying? We've done the earth part, we gotta get to some major conflict, we've got to get this show on the road, get the war going on and see who's going to win. So I have a feeling season four will bring real excitement to the show in that respect, everybody going in full force. And I would love Lili to be leading her own [something]. I was kind of shocked when they didn't have Lili be the leader of the resistance [note to Lisa-so were we!!!] but [turns to teasing tone of voice] I guess Liam with his special powers is better equipped to deal with , you know, and I've got my cute little shuttle..."What was Highlander like?
[sad tone of voice] "I never got to do that fun stuff. It was a really hard role to play because everybody was dressing up and doing all that flashback stuff and sword fighting and I was boring in my stupid hospital greens. I was so jealous of them with their sword fights and all."She described plugging in 'destination coordinates' and other details of shuttle flying for someone who asked. Sometimes what she does in the shuttle cockpit is chopped off below screen because they didn't have enough budget that week to film the effects, so she's hitting mysterious controls off camera.
Speaking of sword fighting! [She was asked about her Sinbad episode--she really perked up at this question]
I didn't get to sword fight in Highlander but I did an episode of the Adventures of Sinbad. We shot in South Africa, which was a really cool gig. My husband came and we went on safari. It was really fun. I got to do an upside-down sword fight, where I got roped at the ankles and swung up from the ceiling and I was hanging upside down swinging across the room doing a sword fight. It was SO much fun. It was really really fun, I loved it. I did it myself. The stunt coordinator on Sinbad is now coordinating Earth. He does an incredible job. His name is John Stett and he actually directed an episode of Earth this year, I believe. He does all our second unit directing and all of our fight stuff. I think that was the most fun I've ever had. They put a harness on me and swung me up from the rafters and I was whacking away with my sword. I loved that character, too, Talia the pirate queen. It was like every little girl's fantasy, to be a pirate queen."
Taelon architecture question
Exteriors are painted in, interiors are real sets. Explosions are all green screens, she's never seen any fire or explosions on the set. One time Von was doing Sinbad in Africa and he wasn't back in time for a few of his scenes, so she acted to a green screen and he came later and said his lines. She wasn't there for him either, she figured he wasn't there for her he should have to do the same thing!
What projects does she have in the works, if any?
"I'm not interested in working right now. Maybe nest year I'll do something during hiatus. I was going to do more Suddenly Susan, but they fired Judd Nelson, and I played his ex-wife Margo Fargo--I had such a good time doing that character--but he's no longer on the show so that would mean old Margo Fargo has been put to rest as well. I had a good time working with Brooke [Shields]--she's so [astounded voice] unbelievably perfect!! I was actually pleasantly surprised to know that somebody lives up to their reputation. She's so sweet and incredibly smart, and PERFECT!"
The BOONE question
"I don't know, it was funny, when Boone was on our show-- I have to be honest with you-- everyone went 'ooh we don't like him' and once he left, everybody loved him. I don't understand that. It was a weird weird thing. I was nervous because when you switch lead characters it is a really risky thing for a show to do. But I was not as nervous as poor Robert Leeshock must have been, because those are big shoes to fill. He had such a difficult job to do. I think he's doing a good job. I really miss Kevin's passion, and his enthusiasm, but he's so much happier now...Robert's having a blast. Whereas Kevin wasn't really happy on the show, Robert is so thrilled for the opportunity and so excited to be part of the cast. There's nothing worse than working with somebody who is unhappy. Robert is a delight to work with and such a sweet guy. He's way too busy to do conventions but you guys would really love him if he ever found his way out here."
Another question by one of The Girls in LHFC: Deb's question--where does Lisa see herself after EFC ends?
"I don't know. I've been acting for fifteen years, and this mom thing is pretty cool! I've been so career-driven all of my life, and it's always been about acting, and traveling, and now, everything is just upside down for me. Part of me [feels] I just want to stay home with my baby and other parts of me think I want to work with my husband, because he's a writer and he's starting to produce now. Wouldn't it be great to write with him and get on that end of it. But every once in awhile I'll go back on set and I'll think oh this is where I belong. . . . I hope I would find an acting job that would coincide with my family life because my priorities are completely different now, my family comes first and nothing has ever come before my acting before. [lots of applause] If I'm lucky I can do both, but I don't know many people who can do both [but we'll see]."
Speaking of working with her husband Daniel
"He gives me scenes and I rewrite the women's dialogue: 'she would not say that...let's make her stronger, make them the hero chicks.' He's really great, he appreciates it and won't hand anything in 'til I look it over. It makes me feel good. Because very often as an actress on the set nobody listens to you. They pretend to but they're like 'oh it 's just the actress'. My show is pretty good. Paul Gertz always listens. . . . It's going to be really hard to go back to another job after Earth, because when you're on a big network show you've got so many other factors going on, but on a syndicated show you really are your own machine and you get to be more creatively involved in the process. "
"We'll definitely partner in that [producing shows with husband]. And do more behind the scenes stuff. And that will enable them to have jobs in the same city for a change."
Then when the spate of questions died down for a moment, Lisa changed tack to something we had briefly talked about when sitting at the autograph table with her. "So I was thinking the other day, does anybody know my background as far as what my family does for a living? This is how I saved money to go to acting school. I thought this was a fitting post-Halloween story. My father cremates people. And I grew up inside the gates of a cemetery, so the cemetery was my backyard because he managed the cemetery. I wanted to move to New York when I was fifteen to go to acting school, so I cremated people...I got fifteen bucks a body! I was soooo underpaid. It takes three hours to cremate a body, and I got paid fifteen bucks a body. And that's a LOT of dead bodies to get to New York. I had to take off all the metal hinges and handles off the coffins first, because they don't burn. Then you put the coffin in the oven, coffin and all, so I never had to look at a dead body, and I never did. I was very superstitious about that. And then you crank up the ol' oven to two thousand degrees, and then you sit there for two hours and watch it burn! [There are many appropriate groans and gasps of amazement flowing from the audience at this point!] So I should do the math someday and figure out how many dead bodies that is to get me to New York. But you can see why I started acting young. Because I was like, I am NOT doing this for a living for the rest of my life! Because my sister went into it--my sister is now a cemetery manager My dad just recently retired, my grandfather did it. It was like, I have to find some way to get the heck out of this business, it's really gross. But it certainly was a fertile ground for imagination having a cemetery in your backyard. I think there's a story in there somewhere, and if my husband and I ever start to produce something I have SO many funky cemetery stories, so many dead body stories...I think we'll be dipping into that well for some stories!"
Then Lisa asked us, "Who thinks they have that shuttle shuffle down pat?" and one guy and later four women said they did, and showed her their piloting skills in the aisle. To the women, Lisa joked, "You guys are like the Supremes of the Shuttle Shuffle! Now try doing it with techno mumbo-jumbo dialogue." She explained that some moves changed after the first few episodes, like the one where she pulled her arms back from in front of her face to back on either side of her head, because a producer said she looked like she was doing a Jane Fonda workout move. So they got rid of the stuff "that made me look really stupid." And in the episode with astronaut Paul Chandler, when she shows him the shuttle, she got to say something like "We've made some modifications" to the shuttle to cover for the fact that they changed some of the operating moves.
Does Lisa ever wish to direct episodic television?
She emphatically answered, "I don't wanna direct, ever. I NEVER want to direct. I don't understand why actors want to direct. Von wants to direct, I think Chevolleau talks about directing, but I think it's way too hard. All these people on the set looking at YOU to have the answers to everything. I don't want that kind of responsibility! I don't find it a particularly creative process, it's very technical, and I'm a technical idiot, I know nothing about anything. I suppose it can be a creative process once you have the technical stuff under your belt... I can see it, [but] I don't' know how to communicate it to a bunch of people. I leave that to the professionals, and thankfully they leave the acting to me, otherwise [laughs] I'd be out of a job too. There are some incredible directors out there and I think they deserve a shot before some stupid actor gets behind the camera. [applause] There are a lot of guys on our crew who deserve a shot before the actors do, who try to become directors by working their way through the crew, because that's what they really want to do. And I can't believe I'm doing this sci-fi thing where I play a character who's really smart with all this stuff because I'm such a fool. With my computer and...it's ridiculous. [Fan yells out, you fooled us!] I did? It's called ACTING!"
On HoloLili
"I love doing HoloLili! I really liked the I Dream of Jeannie one. I really thought I looked like Barbara Eden. They did a really great hair and makeup job on me and the costume was exactly, every stitch was totally the same as Barbara Eden." [There followed a short discussion on which season Eden was allowed to show her navel--fans are such experts on these things!] She asked us our favorite HoloLili characters. The cheerleader--"Did you see how pregnant I was? I think I was seven months pregnant when I did that one. And I did this one outtake that didn't make it to the reel, I don't know why, I thought it was pretty funny. It's kind of racy. I had my little pompoms--they had to shoot me straight on so you couldn't see my belly. So I went, '2-4-6-8! Oh my god my period's late! '"[and she quickly turned sideways and leaned back as if she was still pregnant, sticking her belly out. See photo! We were rolling in the aisles laughing it was so unexpected and funny] She continued, "I love doing the HoloLilis because it's just me and a green screen and three guys. It's not like the [whole] crew, so we can totally goof around and we do all the time. But it's hard because I can't move my arms, [out from her body sideways] I have to keep them really tight. And I can't move my feet at all. There's no tube actually but they say 'imagine there's a tube' so all my gestures have to be really tight. "
She asked us for HoloLili suggestions, and fans came up with several: Catwoman, Xena, Emma Peel, Morticia Addams, Augur's mother, Patsy from Absolutely Fabulous, Marilyn Monroe. Lisa actually suggested MM but they said it was too "done," too cliched. Carmen Miranda. Lisa loved them all. "These are so good, I have to remember these!. . . And then I did HoloLili again when I was so pregnant you couldn't hide it. But when I got on camera [for the pregnant HoloLili] they said for this joke to sell, you have to look pregnant, and I didn't look pregnant enough even though I was 8 months pregnant. So they added padding! I thought, you're kidding! I felt like such a house...first of all I was too pregnant for the scene and now I'm not pregnant enough; I couldn't win." Now that HoloLili's turned off, we need her back, but Lisa said that Lili wouldn't be the one to restart her. "HoloAugur! That's what Lili would do! And I could dress HIM up as Marilyn Monroe! I love that idea!" She would like to do Jeannie again, but "we set a precedent that each time she comes back as someone different. . . . It's funny because, Lili would never ever be silly like that and I'm such a silly person it was such a nice thing for them to do to give me a chance to be a goof." [The audience was still talking about possibilities for her or for a HoloAugur, and someone suggested HoloSandoval] "Von in drag would be very scary. I think he would like it too much. He auditioned for the movie version of M. Butterfly, and he got so close to being in the movie that they made him dress up like a woman and shave his legs for the audition. So he's been down that road before. I really wish he had pictures. He said it was a very depressing experience because he got to see what it was like to be a chick for a day. He said it's a lot of work! He was very depressed for days after that. So I think all men should for one day shave their legs and see what we girls go through!"
Lisa reassured us that the broad story arc of the show, with the Jaridians and the Taelons' agenda hasn't changed since the beginning, but how we get to the end, show by show, evolves as the cast and staff change. Gene Roddenberry's original idea of how to get to the end may have been changed a bit in the process, but she said, "I think he'd be okay with that, I think he'd roll with it. He's flying up there in orbit every 90 minutes looking down on us going oh, you guys, get it together..."
[spoiler alert!]Lisa hinted, "In Memory deals with what happens to that Jaridian [from the episode Gauntlet, where Liam and Lili are held hostage on the Jaridian ship] and to the shuttle he took, once he gets home."
[end spoiler]
On shooting the episode Bliss
"That episode was so easy for us. First of all we love working together, so this was just me and Richard locked in a room for a whole episode, I couldn't have been happier. There was a lot of joking on the set like there is with Richard all the time [but] because it was a serious subject we took it very seriously. Because my relationship with Augur is so established it was so easy to hook into it and just go there. We did everything in one take. Instead of [the usual] twelve hours we did all that in five hours so we were home for dinner. When you are working with another actor you really trust, you can go to some really sensitive emotional places because you feel safe with them, then it becomes really easy. That was one of my favorite episodes. Most of the episodes are action-oriented. Once in a while they'll give you a character-driven one. Those are my favorite ones because I think you're interested in the action only when you care about the characters, and every once in a while you have to have an episode in which the characters' relationships deepen, in order for you to be interested in the action in the next few episodes. In Memory is a good one too. I wish they'd do more character stuff but the network seems to think that it's explosions and fighting that keeps you watching . I think you need to have a good balance. I hope if I go back for the fourth season they can explore that in a deeper way."
How much of the "arc" does Lisa know?
"The actors aren't privy to a lot of stuff. Majel is really weird about that, she doesn't want us knowing anything because she knows that at these conventions we have big mouths! [she laughed as she said this!] We get chatty up here. And she knows; she's pretty chatty herself. I prefer it that way, I don't really want to know what's going on story-wise. I want to know what' s going on with my character, because I don't want to be playing a scene a certain way and find out that oh my gosh Lili really was lying in that scene and I was playing it differently. I know broad strokes but ten bucks says you guys know more about it than I do! Because I'm paying attention mostly to my character but you guys know the big picture. . . I'm too busy concentrating on keeping Lili consistent and making sure she stays on track. The writers have ten, twelve characters to take care of and I only have Lili, so if there's something inconsistent with Lili on screen I can't blame the writers, I blame myself, because it's my job to keep it consistent. I'd never blame a writer for making a lapse in Lili's character because really and seriously it's my job to do it. Sometimes I fight and lose, and then, THEN it's their fault. [She smiles] I think all actors should take that responsibility. When you put stuff out there for the audience they depend on that character to react in a predictable way, and I think it's really unfair to the audience when you allow your character to do something that's not in keeping..." She gave an example from second season where they had Lili put a gun to a guy's head; Lisa thought it was overly violent for Lili. She begged and pleaded not to have to shoot the guy cold blooded in the back. Writers said no, you have to do it, but the director agreed, so he filmed it so that headlights are in the lens and it was as if the character thought the gun was to his head but when you look back Lili's taken off. "I feel really responsible for Lili's integrity, and all the actors on my show are like that. Sometimes you get too busy and you let things slide, you watch the show and you go 'oh how did I let that happen?' You make mistakes, but you give it your best shot."
And there you have as good a summary as any of why Lisa Howard is such a good actress, why her generous nature shines through in her work--she really cares about the characters she plays and cares about how they are perceived by the viewer. I have to say one more time how much fun I had this weekend, it was such a privilege and an honor to meet Lisa and hear her thoughts on all kinds of topics, and to share our mutual love of the show Earth Final Conflict with everyone. Oh good grief, there I go getting all sappy, sorry folks! [grin] Lisa was so accommodating and friendly and patient with everyone. I know she had a good time at the con and hopefully will be able to meet many more fans in the future. I wish her all the best with her new family and many happy years to come, and look forward to her future creative endeavors both on and off the screen.
Christina Getrost, your con reporter, signing out.United Fan Con IX
Photos - Gallery 1United Fan Con IX
Photos - Gallery 2United Fan Con IX
Photos - Gallery 3United Fan Con IX
Report - Part IOther websites with fun United Fan Con Reports & Photos
Wimzadi's UFCon report & picturesHome | About Lisa | Earth: Final Conflict | Message from Lisa
Photo Gallery | Why the Giraffe | Message Board | Fan Club| Lisa Store
E-mail the
Lisa Howard Fan ClubThis page is for information and entertainment purposes only. Last updated: December 9, 1999
Copyright © 1997-1999 Lisa Howard Fan Club
