https://www.nme.com/news/film/al-matthe ... 75-2382913
Not long after learning that Jacob Within died; now we've lost a 3rd voice actor.
RIP Caliban / Professor Hagen.
RIP Al Matthews
Resurrecting an old thread, but having met Al Matthews due to his role in Aliens, I only learned he voiced Star Fleet a few months ago.
When I met him in London back in 2007 I was on a mission to confirm for my friend that he was uncredited in Spies Like Us.
He indeed was. But to know he was uncredited in Star Fleet breaks my heart. I missed out telling him how much I love the show.
Jay Benedict is another one, but never got to meet him.
I saw Mark Rolston was in Tulsa a few months ago so made the short drive up there.
Also got to email Constance Gregory to thank him for his work shortly after.
Sadly when a show gets to this age...those who made it real for us just aren't going to be around much longer
When I met him in London back in 2007 I was on a mission to confirm for my friend that he was uncredited in Spies Like Us.
He indeed was. But to know he was uncredited in Star Fleet breaks my heart. I missed out telling him how much I love the show.
Jay Benedict is another one, but never got to meet him.
I saw Mark Rolston was in Tulsa a few months ago so made the short drive up there.
Also got to email Constance Gregory to thank him for his work shortly after.
Sadly when a show gets to this age...those who made it real for us just aren't going to be around much longer
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Crash
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I was thinking about this the other day.
It must be a great sadness to their families that a lot of actors from the shows our childhood are no longer around, and it's disappointing for the fans as well.
But at the same time, these people worked on a lot of projects (Star Fleet is just one example) that will live on for a very long time.
With Star Fleet, 40+ years on, people are remastering the show and upscaling it and working on projects related to it.
So, for one thing, I hope they find themselves in a better place than here, and for those of us who are here, they've left us with a lot of enjoyment that will outlive them by a long stretch.
It must be a great sadness to their families that a lot of actors from the shows our childhood are no longer around, and it's disappointing for the fans as well.
But at the same time, these people worked on a lot of projects (Star Fleet is just one example) that will live on for a very long time.
With Star Fleet, 40+ years on, people are remastering the show and upscaling it and working on projects related to it.
So, for one thing, I hope they find themselves in a better place than here, and for those of us who are here, they've left us with a lot of enjoyment that will outlive them by a long stretch.
Dream big and bold and daring.
Their legacy is assured for a while yet I'd wager.
Having the impact that they did on a generation of kids, at a time in their lives when they were at their most impressionable, I think will end up leaving quite a level of nostalgia and member berries for a hell of a lot of people.
Take Mark Ralston for example. Aliens is one of my favourite movies, yet you say Mark Ralston to me, and it's John Lee I think of first. Every time!
I was fortunate enough to meet Garrick Hagon at a con about 10 years ago. It was my eldest's first con, he was about 5 at the time. It was predominantly a Star Wars con, and most people queuing to get an autograph with Garrick inevitably wanted to talk to him about Biggs Darklighter. We were in no particular hurry so by the time we got in line we were at the back of the queue. It was a bit of a wait but by the time we got to the front there was a lull behind us and he was good enough to spend a good few minutes chatting to both me and my eldest. I told him that I knew him as Captain Carter long before I ever realized he was actually in Star Wars, and I told him how much I loved that show. He spoke of it very warmly and he seemed really pleased to be recognized for something outside of Star Wars. I remember him being surprised when I asked him to do the "Damn Makara!" line, and after doing it my eldest just looked at him and said "Captain Carter?", which both confused and delighted him I think. I explained that we'd literally just finished going through the DVDs and that he'd loved the show just as much as I had back in the day. We spoke to a few people at the con, but by far that was our highlight. A wonderful man. Unfortunately I didn't think to take anything Star Fleet-related for him to sign, and not too surprisingly I guess, neither did he so we made do with a signed copy of Biggs Darklighter
And that's how their legacies are preserved perhaps. I saw Star Fleet at just the right age. I then introduced it to my eldest at just the right age. He's 16 now, but if he's around when I put it on he'll still sit down and watch it with me. Star Fleet was already a wonderful part of my childhood, and as such it has a very special place in my heart. Sharing that just makes it extra special, and makes me ever more grateful to the people involved in it.
Having the impact that they did on a generation of kids, at a time in their lives when they were at their most impressionable, I think will end up leaving quite a level of nostalgia and member berries for a hell of a lot of people.
Take Mark Ralston for example. Aliens is one of my favourite movies, yet you say Mark Ralston to me, and it's John Lee I think of first. Every time!
I was fortunate enough to meet Garrick Hagon at a con about 10 years ago. It was my eldest's first con, he was about 5 at the time. It was predominantly a Star Wars con, and most people queuing to get an autograph with Garrick inevitably wanted to talk to him about Biggs Darklighter. We were in no particular hurry so by the time we got in line we were at the back of the queue. It was a bit of a wait but by the time we got to the front there was a lull behind us and he was good enough to spend a good few minutes chatting to both me and my eldest. I told him that I knew him as Captain Carter long before I ever realized he was actually in Star Wars, and I told him how much I loved that show. He spoke of it very warmly and he seemed really pleased to be recognized for something outside of Star Wars. I remember him being surprised when I asked him to do the "Damn Makara!" line, and after doing it my eldest just looked at him and said "Captain Carter?", which both confused and delighted him I think. I explained that we'd literally just finished going through the DVDs and that he'd loved the show just as much as I had back in the day. We spoke to a few people at the con, but by far that was our highlight. A wonderful man. Unfortunately I didn't think to take anything Star Fleet-related for him to sign, and not too surprisingly I guess, neither did he so we made do with a signed copy of Biggs Darklighter
And that's how their legacies are preserved perhaps. I saw Star Fleet at just the right age. I then introduced it to my eldest at just the right age. He's 16 now, but if he's around when I put it on he'll still sit down and watch it with me. Star Fleet was already a wonderful part of my childhood, and as such it has a very special place in my heart. Sharing that just makes it extra special, and makes me ever more grateful to the people involved in it.
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
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Crash
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That's a fantastic picture and story to go along with it.
I can imagine the recognition from Star Fleet being a lot less frequent than that of Star Wars, but then Star Wars was a cultural phenomenon in the 70s, in the same way that Star Trek was in the 90s.
I don't know what the situation is with sci-fi conventions nowadays. They used to be huge, but I wonder where concerns about safety, travel costs and restrictions have left them today.
I tried selling Star Fleet to our little one last year. She's probably still a bit young for Stingray but loves it anyway. It's pure adventure, that show and it has great charm.
Because she'd seen that first, I think Star Fleet seemed like a counterfeit item.
Since then, she's taken a bit of an interest in Terrahawks: particularly the zeroids and Hiro.
Gotta say, I've not seen Aliens in a long time. I really like that film myself.
I think the events of the last few years have changed me a bit and put a slight damper on my enjoyment of sci-fi horror and the like, but Aliens was so well done that it was always likely to be impossible to deliver a further sequel that measured up to it.
I think I'll give Star Fleet another try with Leelu. I fancy watching it myself, now that I've fully expended all there is of Babylon 5.
I can imagine the recognition from Star Fleet being a lot less frequent than that of Star Wars, but then Star Wars was a cultural phenomenon in the 70s, in the same way that Star Trek was in the 90s.
I don't know what the situation is with sci-fi conventions nowadays. They used to be huge, but I wonder where concerns about safety, travel costs and restrictions have left them today.
I tried selling Star Fleet to our little one last year. She's probably still a bit young for Stingray but loves it anyway. It's pure adventure, that show and it has great charm.
Because she'd seen that first, I think Star Fleet seemed like a counterfeit item.
Since then, she's taken a bit of an interest in Terrahawks: particularly the zeroids and Hiro.
Gotta say, I've not seen Aliens in a long time. I really like that film myself.
I think the events of the last few years have changed me a bit and put a slight damper on my enjoyment of sci-fi horror and the like, but Aliens was so well done that it was always likely to be impossible to deliver a further sequel that measured up to it.
I think I'll give Star Fleet another try with Leelu. I fancy watching it myself, now that I've fully expended all there is of Babylon 5.
Dream big and bold and daring.
I've found that there's no predicting what kids will or won't like. It was like throwing paint at the wall and just hoping that something stuck. Transformers, Thundercats, He-man, Jayce & The Wheeled Warriors, Dungeons & Dragons.....I tried all of those and nope, no interest. I was more than a little surprised that Star Fleet stuck, but pleasantly so.
I haven't been to a con this side of COVID so I'm not sure how they're going either. To be honest, they were rapidly becoming a lot less enjoyable even before COVID so I can only imagine that they're probably a lesser experience now. A shame, they used to be a great thing back in the 90s/00s.
Stingray is a good one. I picked up the blus when Network released them a few years ago but haven't gotten around to them yet. Our eldest did enjoy Captain Scarlet though, although not so much Thunderbirds. Might have to give Terrahawks a try. I have it on blu but don't think I've ever run that one past him!
I haven't been to a con this side of COVID so I'm not sure how they're going either. To be honest, they were rapidly becoming a lot less enjoyable even before COVID so I can only imagine that they're probably a lesser experience now. A shame, they used to be a great thing back in the 90s/00s.
Stingray is a good one. I picked up the blus when Network released them a few years ago but haven't gotten around to them yet. Our eldest did enjoy Captain Scarlet though, although not so much Thunderbirds. Might have to give Terrahawks a try. I have it on blu but don't think I've ever run that one past him!
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.
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Crash
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Terrahawks is a very odd show at times but the music carries it along really well.
The score from Richard Harvey sets the atmosphere well: it's very electronic and sugary but also a bit ominous and mysterious.
And then it has a lot of pop music and a lot of entertaining nonsense with the recording studio and the aliens on Mars.
I think Leelu finds its eeriness enjoyable.
I tried to find out a little bit about Christopher Burr who seemed to have had a lot of influence over the direction that the show went in.
As I remember from various interviews, he was involved in financing the series, but there's very little information about him available to say how he had amassed this money to be able to fund Terrahawks.
When you go looking online for stuff about him, it mentions that he was involved in Terrahawks and that's about it.
An interesting little mystery ...
The score from Richard Harvey sets the atmosphere well: it's very electronic and sugary but also a bit ominous and mysterious.
And then it has a lot of pop music and a lot of entertaining nonsense with the recording studio and the aliens on Mars.
I think Leelu finds its eeriness enjoyable.
I tried to find out a little bit about Christopher Burr who seemed to have had a lot of influence over the direction that the show went in.
As I remember from various interviews, he was involved in financing the series, but there's very little information about him available to say how he had amassed this money to be able to fund Terrahawks.
When you go looking online for stuff about him, it mentions that he was involved in Terrahawks and that's about it.
An interesting little mystery ...
Dream big and bold and daring.