From Joseph Mallozzi's
blog update for August 7, 2008:
(Please follow the link for the complete blog update. NEW 19 behind-the-scenes photos from the NEW Stargate Atlantis episode, 'Brain Storm,' including guest stars
Dave Foley,
Bill Nye and
Neil deGrasse Tyson. The photos are available in their original full-size, high-resolution format at Joe's blog.)
August 7, 2008: Road Triiiiip! And The Weird Food Purchase of the Day
ROAD TRIIIIIP!
...We pulled into the parking lot, right behind Special Features Producer
Ivon Bartok who was documenting Martin Gero's foray into the dark side of directing, and followed him into the high school - down a flight of stairs, around a corner, and into the gymnasium that - through the magic of television - had been transformed into the Carl Binder Memorial Theatre. Extras milled about in tuxes and cocktail dresses while Marty G. set up his next shot.
Jewel Staite looked, well, nothing short of drop-dead gorgeous in her evening best while
David Hewlett exuded the roguish charm of a nerdy James Bond in his flash jacket and pants. Sitting by the monitor was former Kids in the Hall/News Radio alum
Dave Foley who, for reasons unknown, had been given a way-too-early call and was good humouredly killing time until his first scene. As we were chatting, I received a call from the production offices informing me that a network employee named Averie was a HUUUUGE Dave Foley fan and would it be possible for me to get him to sign something, anything for her? Hearing this, Dave suggesting going one better. So, I phoned up Claire at SciFi who put me through to Averie's cell. Unfortunately, I got her voice mail. "Hi, Averie," I greeted her. "This is Joseph Mallozzi, the show-runner of Stargate Atlantis. I hear you're a big Dave Foley fan. Well, I have Dave Foley sitting right here."
At which point, Dave took the phone and left his own message: "Hi, Averie. This is Dave Foley. How are you? Sorry I missed you but if you have time, swing by set. I'm here all day."
And I capped off the message with: "Doesn't this just call you? If you leave L.A. right now, it'll take you maybe three hours to fly, an hour to clear customs, and then another hour traveling time to get here."
Dave Foley = Class Act.
Equally pleasant and engaging were the sovereigns of science
Neil deGrasse Tyson and
Bill Nye. They turned out to be a lot of fun both in front of and away from the camera, regaling the rest of the cast and crew with stories of their empirical exploits. They seemed to be as happy to be there as we were to have them.
**snippage**
Thanks to everyone who posted questions for Stargate Atlantis Director of Photography
Jim Menard. He is working on them as we speak. And now, on to our next guest blogger…Andromeda's A.I., SG-1's Dr. Carolyn Lam, The 4400's Wendy Paulson, and
Michael Shank's wife, the lovely
Lexa Doig will be swinging by to answer your questions next week. So if you have anything you'd like to ask her, start posting. I'll be gathering your questions through Saturday.
Also - finish up Cordelia's Honor. Discussion begins on Monday when I'll start gathering questions for author
Lois McMaster Bujold who is the guest of honor at the WorldCon in Denver happening NOW until August 10th. If you're in the area, go check it out and report back on the Stargate-14 Boot Camp being held on Saturday
(
http://www.denvention.org/index.php).
Today's blog entry is dedicated to husband-to-be Kyle Hanson. Best of luck, buddy.
Today's pics: Brain Storm - A Marty G. Joint.
Today's video: The Weird Food Purchase of the Day - Shrimp Chips. In case the video [embedded at the link above] doesn't play…
http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/BaronDestructo/?action=view¤t=ShrimpChips.flv
Today's mailbag:
**snippage**
PG15 writes: "1.
Chris Judge recently said that it's possible that the 3rd movie might start shooting in January of next year. Is there any truth in this? 2. Any new info regarding the Ancients' war with the Wraith in Season 5? 3. Will the Wraith try to get to Earth again in Season 5?"
Answers: 1) Hey, anything is possible. We're a long way from an actual production date but I'd be VERY surprised if a third SG-1 movie wasn't in production in 2009. 2) Off the top of my head - nope. 3) Wouldn't that be interesting!
Jean writes: "Seems like SciFi is going to air all 20 episodes without a large break as usual after the mid-season cliffhanger. From a producer's point of view, do you prefer this or rather a longer break between the 2 halves of the season? Do you think it impacts ratings at all?"
Answer: Although it is a bit more work for the production, I think running the show straight through is preferable to taking an extended mid-season hiatus. I find that the hiatus tend to break a show's momentum. As for how it impacts the ratings - time will tell.
**snippage**
Smiley_face06 writes: "Thanks for answering my question about Ba'al. It makes me feel better knowing Sam isn't sulking after being relieved of command in Atlantis."
Answer: One of the things we wanted to make sure of was that Carter's being relieved of the Atlantis command isn't seen as a demotion because, as our team pointed out in The Seed, she was actually a victim of her own success. As such, the next time we see Carter (in episode 20), she'll have assumed another command position.
Sandra writes: "First question: What would be the Daniel, Mitchell, Vala, Teyla, and Ronon commercials be for "With a Little Stargate Anything is Possible?" Second: If you could write a crossover episode with any other book or TV show what would it be? Third (and this is new): what, in your mind, happened to SG-1 while Sam was on Atlantis? Now that she's back, will she rejoin the team?"
Answers: 1) Not a clue. 2) Dr. Who. 3) With the Ori dealt with, things were decidedly quiet on the Milky Way front. While not disbanded, SG-1 (made up of Daniel, Teal'c, Mitchell, and Vala) curtailed their off-world exploits.
