Welcome to 2006! We’re busy cooking up a smack of new interviews and special features for the new year, as the U.S. heads into brand new episodes this week. Stay tuned for a very fun, face-to-face video interview with Ben Browder this week, plus an exciting new addition (or two!) to GateWorld Blogs.
While we get back to work on that, here’s a run-down of the latest Stargate news bits:
Articles on this week’s SCI FI Friday mid-season premiere have been published by such prominent publications as the New York Times (including an interview with Amanda Tapping — free registration required) and New York Magazine. Will Robert Picardo (“Richard Woolsey”) be back next season? Word on the street is yes. Fan tsaxlady wrote: “I saw Robert Picardo today at a charity auction and he said that he has been contacted by the folks at Stargate for an appearance in an episode in Season Three of Atlantis and possibly a Season Ten episode of SG-1.” We’ll keep our ears open for confirmation. Meanwhile, watch for Picardo in the upcoming SG-1 episode “The Scourge.” An excerpt from the first chapter of the upcoming Stargate Atlantis novel “Reliquary” has been published at the author’s Web site, MarthaWells.com. Canadian viewers! Season One of Stargate Atlantis will start its run on the SPACE network on Sunday, January 22 at 8 p.m. Eastern with “Rising.” The SciFi World has published a new interview with young actor Reese Thompson (“Jinto” on Stargate Atlantis). The SciFi World has also published an interview with frequent SG-1 guest star Alex Zahara. Zahara has played such characters as Michael (“1969”), Xe’ls (“Spirits”), and the Unas Kor Asek (“Enemy Mine”). Also check out the site’s recent interviews with actress Daniella Evangelista, who plays Denya in Season Nine’s penultimate episode “Crusade,” and veteran actor Tony Amendola (“Bra’tac”).
The Women of Sci-Fi 2007 Calendar, featuring the photographic work of Christopher Judge (“Teal’c”) and produced by Michael Shanks (“Daniel Jackson”), is available for ordering at WomenOfSci-Fi.com. The calendar features such actresses as Stargate‘s Lexa Doig (“Carolyn Lam”), Rachel Luttrell (“Teyla Emmagan”), Brandy Ledford (“Inferno”), Teryl Rothery (“Janet Fraiser”), Ona Grauer (“Ayiana”), and Erica Durance (“Krista James”), and costs $15.99. A 2008 Women of Sci-Fi calendar is now in the works, as well as a 2008 Men of Sci-Fi calendar.
Beau Bridges (“General Hank Landry”) recently guest starred in an episode of NBC’s hit comedy My Name Is Earl. Bridges played Earl and Randy’s dad in the episode “Cost Dad the Election.” Several fans are reporting that their recent purchases of Stargate SG-1 Season Eight on DVD include the full 1 hour, 5 minute version of the episode “Threads.” This implies that Sony immediately corrected the release, and only the first shipment(s) included the shortened episode. The updated disc does not include an audio commentary for the episode. Rainbow Sun Francks (“Aiden Ford”) is co-starring in “This Space For Rent,” a new series premiering January 4 at 9 p.m. on CBC in Canada. Francks plays 25-year-old, socially inept computer geek Barnaby Sharpe. Amanda Tapping (“Samantha Carter”) returns to the U.K.! After the wildy successful “Amanda Tapping: A Weekend With Her Fans” convention in November, Gabit Events has scheduled another event for this fall. Tickets are now on sale for the November 17 to 19, 2006 event in England. The newest TV Zone special issue (#67) is now on newsstands! The issue packs in details about the second half of SG-1 and Atlantis‘s current seasons, leading up to March’s big season finales, including interviews with Ben Browder, Amanda Tapping, Chris Judge, Michael Shanks, David Hewlett, Lexa Doig, Gary Jones, Brandy Ledford, and David Nykl. In the U.S., look for the magazine at retailers such as Borders or Barnes & Noble, or order online at the publisher’s Web site ($9.99). Excerpts are also available here and here.
Michael Shanks talks about his recent guest appearance on CSI: Miami in an interview with Eclipse Magazine. Ben Browder (“Cameron Mitchell”) talks about his first year on SG-1, also with Eclipse Magazine. The University of Washington offer a 2 credit course called “Stepping Through the Stargate: Applied Ethics with a Kwoosh” this winter quarter — the first university course to teach applied ethics via Stargate SG-1! Students will be watching episodes of the series, which will be paired with classical and contemporary ethical writings, as well as some works on pop culture. Topics to be discussed include human torture, just war theory, bioethics, environmental ethics and population control. Convention Alert! London Film and Comic Con has announced that Torri Higginson (“Elizabeth Weir”), Rachel Luttrell (“Teyla Emmagan”), and Don S. Davis (“George Hammond”) will attend this year’s event, July 1 and 2. Also in convention news, Wolf Battlestar Atlantia is coming to Germany (Bad Salzdetfurth, near Hannover) January 27 to 29, with special guests Joe Flanigan (“John Sheppard”), Rainbow Sun Francks, and Battlestar Galactica‘s Aaron Douglas (who played Anubis’s Jaffa in “Redemption, Part 2”) and Kandyse McClure (who we’d love to see on Stargate on of these days). The Wolf Pegasus One event is set for February 3 to 5 in London, with guests Joe Flanigan, Jason Momoa (“Ronon Dex”), Rainbow Sun Francks, Craig Veroni (“Peter Grodin”), and Ellie Harvie (“Lindsay Novak”).
Visit GateWorld’s conventions calendar for a complete list of upcoming events. Know of one that’s not on our list yet? E-mail us!
Digitally Obsessed gives Atlantis‘s freshman DVD set high marks overall, with a few dings for the image transfer and bonus features, which the author believes to be somewhat lacking in substance as the cast and crew spend more time joking than illuminating the audience. Michael Shanks talks about his new action figure and the upcoming video game Stargate SG-1: The Alliance in an interview with About.com. (Thanks to Gilles, Morjana Coffman, Rajan, Julia Houston, Dan Heaton, Bryan, Fay, Kelly, Angela, Marla Reed, Trialia, James Muscat, Sonja Rasmussen, Kelly Barger, Mark Mistkawi, Denise, Nathan, Ron Wolfe, and Nathaniel for contributing)