Michael Hogan as Saul Tigh in Battlestar Galactica
Michael Hogan will be among the stellar cast of celebrities at Fan Expo Vancouver next weekend. Devoted Battlestar Galactica fans will flock to the Vancouver Convention Center April 20th and 21st for a chance to cheer on the actor who played Colonel Saul Tigh on the SyFy series.
I had the opportunity to speak with Hogan in this exclusive preview of his upcoming appearance at Fan Expo Vancouver. I asked the veteran actor how playing Tigh had changed his career.
“I had been acting for 37 years before BSG came along. I’m a journeyman actor. I guess you can say a veteran. I appreciated what was going on. I knew how fantastic this was. Eddie (Edward James Olmos), Mary (McDonnell) was aware. This was incredibly special.”
Attention Pacific Northwest geeks! If you missed out on Emerald City Comicon or just can’t get enough then get ready to head north on April 20th and 21st for Fan Expo Vancouver! This is the second major comicon for the beautiful British Columbia city where many sci-fi films are shows are filmed. Since my Comicon for Virgins helped some first time Seattle fans enjoy Emerald City Comicon here’s an updated version that might inspire you to head north!
Michael Rooker as Merle Dixon on The Walking Dead courtesy AMC
Michael Rooker (Merle Dixon of The Walking Dead) will join the cast of celebrities at Fan Expo Vancouver. Rooker has appeared in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Slither and video games like and Call of Duty: Black Ops II. Rooker will be on hand to meet Vancouver fans on both Saturday and Sunday.
Norman Reedus (Daryl Dixon on The Walking Dead) has had to cancel his appearance due to a conflict with the premiere of a new film at Tribeca Film Fest but he thanks his ‘big brother Merle’ for stepping in.
Fan Expo Vancouver is April 20-21, 2013. Rooker joins the stellar roster of stars including Stan Lee, Nichelle Nichols, Sean Astin, Michael Hogan and cast members of Continuum.
By Editor
(Op/Ed: I had the pleasure of meeting Michael Rooker at Emerald City Comicon and he was amazing to his fans!)
DC Comics kicks off year two of a campaign that empowers comic book fans to help the hunger crisis in the horn of Africa.
“Get something good. Do something great.”
This is the theme of DC Entertainment’s We Can Be Heroes giving campaign raising funds and awareness. President Diane Nelson announced a collection of exciting new initiatives that will support the continued success of the We Can Be Heroes (http://www.WeCanBeHeroes.org) giving campaign.
David Tennant as The Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose in Doctor Who Series Two courtesy BBC One
David Tennant and Billie Piper join an all-star cast celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who. Tennant played the Tenth Doctor. Billie Piper played Rose Tyler, who was first companion to the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) and then Tennant.
David Tennant as The Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose in Doctor Who Series Two courtesy BBC One
The new Doctor Who evolution blasted off with David Tennant taking over the role. Steely yet cheeky. Tennant’s Time Lord could be a powerhouse menace against any invader who dared to threaten Earth or tear our hearts out as he crumbled over the loss of a loved one (like a companion or genetically created daughter.)
In Season Two Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) continued her journeys with the Doctor until the heartbreaking goodbye after a Dalek/Cybermen conflict in Doomsday. Dr. Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) would pine away for the Doctor for one season before Donna Noble (Catherine Tate) matched wits with Tennant for the final season. Tennant and Tate were an amazing team with perfect comic timing – essential for a Time Lord!
Billie Piper as Rose, Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness in “The Empty Child” courtesy BBC One
As we celebrate Doctor Who’s 50th Anniversary with a new companion, new monsters and the return of old enemies. As we wait for the return of the eleventh Doctor on March 30th I’m flashing back to the “fantastic” rebirth of the Time Lord.
The Time Lord’s television adventures ended in 1989 except for a Fox movie in 1996 and I had stopped watching with the end of the Peter Davison era until hope arrived in 2005.
Christopher Eccleston (Shallow Grave, 28 Days Later, The Others) clad in black leather and uttering “fantastic” was an exciting modern jolt of cool energy under the guidance of producer Russell Davies during The First Series. The Ninth Doctor was joined by Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) and later the omnisexual alien rogue Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) for a series of adventures with a haunting image in each episode. The new series began with an unlikely old enemy – the Autons – but ended with a bang – Daleks! Harkness would rejoin the series and lead his own series, Torchwood.
My favorite episodes were definitely the creepy The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances set in World War II. I saw a kid dressed as one of the gas masked children from the episode at Fan Expo Vancouver. I asked the kid if he was paying homage to the Doctor and he replied, “are you my mummy?” and I slowly backed away! Still chilling and thrilling!
The first season featured the debut of the Slitheen, a guest appearance by Charles Dickens in The Unquiet Dead and actor Simon Pegg in The Long Game.
Eccleston left after only one season but went to several films. He will play Malekith, leader of the Dark Elves in Thor: The Dark World this November.
