Beginners Guide to Collecting Marc Singer's Movies by Tamie Kwist

We all know the man so well. He plays the leading man in our beloved V.
Perhaps some even find this great talent attractive for physical reasons, while others are attracted to his great acting style, or both. And from viewing Beastmaster (1982, 1991, 1995), V (1983), and Lancelot: Guardian of Time (1997) it is clear to see what Marc does best. All three of them feature Marc in the lead role as a hero. And not surprisingly, we get to see Dar, Donovan and Lancelot on a white horse. A mere coincidence? I think not! And how romantic it was to see Marc as Lancelot, one of the greatest romance legends of all time! Though Donovan and Dar are Marc's signature roles, these characters have many differences. Dar was born a prince with supernatural powers, capable of communicating with animals and rescuing busty damsels in distress. Okay, so Donovan rescues Damsal's in distress too. But Dar seems to be a much gentler kind of hero, whereas Michael Donovan's got that cocky attitude where he seems to take his sweet time in loosening up enough to let people get to know him. And even ifhe falls in love, he never completely gives his heart to his leading lady. He and his son are the center of his universe. Family is what matters most to him. While Dar, on the other hand, is the more vulnerable sort who wears his heart on his sleeve.

So now that I have pinned Marc Singer as a heroic type actor, I will move onto his finest performance of all time. Of course I am talking about William Ball's production of William Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew" (1976). No Marc Singer fan should be without this award winning play. Marc gives us his best. And it is not very often we get to see him in a comedic role. Marc's Petruchio is said to be one of the best of all time. Petruchio's prime objective is to tame his wife, the meanest woman in all Christiandom. At first it seems impossible, and even poor Petruchio seems to be in denial. No one believes it can be done, but in the end she pays him great honor and he knows that it was worth the wait. When I got this play from The Broadway Theater Archive, I had never witnessed Shakespeare before. At first I found the dialogue hard to follow, but caught on quickly, and then I thought I would die from laughing so hard. I have never laughed at a movie the way I laughed at this great comedy. If there are any of Marc's performances. worth having it is this one. It blows V and Beastmaster out of the water by far! And it is one of the earliest Marc Singer performances recorded on video.

Another favorite performance is Marc Singers portrayal of blind musician/singer, Tom Sullivan in his college years in 1981's, "If You Could See What I Hear." This is one of the few other of Marc's comic roles. He's a playboy who struggles to find meaning in life until he finds that special someone to make his life complete. He's totally obnoxious, a real attention getter, and best of all, he sings and plays the piano in this. We see a side of Marc in "If You Could See What I Hear," I do not think has been shown in any of his other projects. Marc Singer comes from a family of musicians. His father, Jacques, was a great symphony conductor. His mother is a pianist, his sister Lori (Footloose, VR-5) is a Cellist, and his brother, Greggory is a violinist. In spite of one critic's harsh review of Marc's performance in this movie, the man CAN sing, and has a beautiful voice at that!

For those of you who have been tracking Marc's movies over on Ebay, it is not hard to see which of them goes for the highest price, up in the $50 range. I'm not sure what it is with "Something For Joey," (1976) but Marc gives us an emotionally charged performance as Heisman Trophy Winner, John Capeletti. John is as committed to the care of his baby brother, Joey, who is dying of leukemia as he is his own football career. Whatever Joey wishes for, no matter how challenging, John is willing to take the risk. And the wishes he grants his brother leads him to win the most coveted trophy in college football. As we reach the end of the film, when John accepts the award, he gives it to his little brother who he insists, his face awash with tears, is a hero due to his determination to fight leukemia. And you thought Little House On The Prairie made you cry? Marc Singer will bring tears to your eyes as he delivers one of his best performances ever!

Returning to his action-adventure roots, Marc gave us some pretty riveting, bang em up flicks in the 1990's. Some of his best heroic performances included the roles of Paul in Watchers II (1990), Mike Justice in Street Corner Justice (1996) and returning as Dar in Beastmaster II: The Portal of Time (1991). In Watchers II, Marc's character befriends a super-intelligent dog. One scene in particular will leave you in stitches as Marc engages in a rather interesting conversation with the dog who outsmarts him. This is one of four films Marc did for Roger Corman Studios between 1989-1990. And it is also the third one in which his co-star is Tracy Scoggins (Babylon 5). In 1996's Street Comer Justice we see Marc as an aggressive cop who is willing to do just about anything to take down some local gang members. Mike Justice's sidekicks are rather interesting. He's got a former prostitute and an ex-con turned Christian on his side. Of course, there's also the red headed lady who plays his love interest and beautifully sings the soundtrack for the movie. Mike Justice has all those romantic qualities we've come to expect from a Marc Singer role. In Beastmaster II: Marc's leading lady is none other than MTV veejay, Kari Wuhrer. Set in modern day L.A., Dar must stop his brother, Arklon, from destroying the earth. The dialogue provides a lot of laughs in this one as does Juliet Parrish style hairdo that Marc is sporting. And even better, the film reunited Marc with V: The Final Battle vixen, Sarah Douglas. Sarah makes a great witch in this movie!

And there you have the beginnings of what would make a great Marc Singer film collection. Of course this is just a minute overview of his works. As you start your collection, you may find that some ofthese are out of print. Do not fear. Just keep your eyes peeled on Ebay and bid away! For a more complete look at Marc's film career, be sure to visit the Internet Movie Data Base at www.IMDB.com

Cult TV Festival 2001 by Carol Duggan

Last October I went to the Festival for the first time. Held in Liverpool, England, it was a three hour train journey from London. I confess that I was a little anxious given the reputation Sci-Fi Conventions have with the "general public". As it turned out very few people were "in costume', but it was a little un¬nerving to find myself standing next to a life-size Captain Scarlet. The Festival was based in a hotel that was the subject of a "fly-on-the-wall" documentary! Luckily it turned out to be the swankiest place I'd ever stayed. I had threatened not to retain to work afterwards as
I was going to run off with a "Trekker". For some reason, they didn't believe me.

GREAT NEWS GANG-WE ARE NOT ALONE

At the opening ceremony they showed a number clips including an episode of Diagnosis: Murder. This video was about a murder at a Sci-Fi Convention. Afterwards the compere commented that the costumes look like cast off from "V". I was astonished at the number of people in the audience who nodded in agree¬ment.

PREVIOUS FESTIVALS

The first one was held in a Holiday Village in Norfolk 1994. The videos on show that weekend ranged from The A-Team to The X-Files. Those with a lot of stamina were able to stay up until 2 A.M. to Watch V: The Return.
The following year ''V'' was again included in the Video Rooms. This time around "The Wildcats" was shown at a more civilized time of 8 a.m., after the final episode of Twin Peaks.

No mention of V in the 1997 program. However the Highlights video for 1998 included Eric Pierpoint (Alien Nation) who made several references to Ken Johnson.
All was quiet again until Sarah Douglas attended in 2000. Her interview was included on the Highlights Video. Also the Brochure included a full page article with her photo and a list of the V movies and T.V. series episodes. Oh yes, Beastmaster 2 got a mention as well.

SO WHAT DID I GET UP TO?

Well, the first thing I did was cause a bit of chaos in the Dealers Room. I innocently admitted that I'd never seen Babylon 5 and asked one of the Dealers to show me the pictures Lady Ladira. Some of us knew her better as Fredi Olster, Marc Singer's costar in Taming of the Shrew. Eventually all of the available B5 fans were consulted and NONE OF THEM HAD THE SLIGHTEST IDEA!

There were several Video Rooms and I got to see lots of old TV programs like Target and The Sweeney (two English "Cops" shows), Robin of Sherwood and one I've never heard of before, Space: Above and Beyond. There was an episode of Buffy and the pilot for Smallville. 1 was rather disappointed with the latter but I hear it has had rave reviews. So I guess it was just me that didn't like it.

The Dealer Room had a variety of merchandise with a huge amount of Xena "stuff'. I spent a long time lurking by a stall crammed with folders of photos, stickers, key chains, etc. Plenty of pictures from "V" so you can guess which Dealer got most of my money!

Of course there were Celebrity interviews and autographed signings too. The ones I queue for were Sarah Sutton (Nyssa from Dr. Who), Sally Knyvette (Jenna from Blakes Seven), Nickolas Grace (Sheriff of Nottingdam from Robin of Sherwood).

Saturday was Awards Night, with prizes for the Best of...and The Worst of ... in all sorts of categories. The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Sylvia Anderson. I was amazed at the reception she got, as I hadn't realized that she is the equivalent of royalty!

Sunday was Cabaret Night. The first part was the Delegates Competition. This was won by two women as characters from The Simpsons. Complete with yellow faces and blue hair they had a comedy conver¬sation about McGuyver! Finally came the Celebrity party Pieces. Now although I'm a Hercules fan as well as an all time V Fan , I had always thought of Michael Hurst as the " irritating one". This meant that I didn't go to his interview or his signing, a fact that I now regret. His cabaret act was aimed well and truly at his English audience. Starting with a Victorian Music Hall Melodrama and including a song from Jesus Christ SuperStar and a sketch of an Irish Priest giving a sermon. His Finale was a British Pan¬tomime favorite -Nobody Loves a Fairy When She's Forty. He later signed the Fairy Wings and donated to the auction. If you ever get the chance to see him perform "Live" on stage, don't hesitate. This man is a GENIUS!
It was especially nice that the celebrities felt comfortable enough to mingle with the fans, who in turn didn't pester the stars. Michael Hurst was able to enjoy his breakfast in peace in the same restaurant as the rest of us.

Do you get the impression that I enjoyed myself? You bet I did, in fact I was one of the first 50 to sign up for next year, even before they had announced any guests!
The Cult T.V. Festival 2002 is in October, as it is every year. This time it is in Southport a Sea Town and famed for the beach where the Racehorse, Red Rum, was trained during his record breaking run

Of being 1st or 2nd in 5 consecutive Grand National Steeplechases. The guest announced to date don't in¬clude anyone with V connections I'm afraid. However, 2003 is their 10th Anniversary and to celebrate they plan on inviting back guests from previous years. As you will guess, I will be doing my besUo get Sarah Douglas included on that list. After all, 20 years of V and 10 years of The Cult T.V. Festival, what a perfect way to celebrate.

Go to http://festival.culttv.net.