I watch a lot of T.V.. I like TV, like I like short stories. That doesn't mean I don't like novels and movies, I just like it all. I find I have twenty minutes to blow on a silly sitcom (see Whoopi) much more often than I have several hours for an epic film (see LoTR). The addition of TiVo to my lifeplus the fact that I am an adult and have cablemeans that I'm catching up on all the small-box wonders that my mother and her feud with Time Warner denied me till now. And to this end I've watched some of the best tv (ER) and the worst tv (Tarzan)... and a lot of stuff in between... and mostly what I come away with is thus: there are some fucking cool actors on television. By my count there are approximately 14 of them. I know. Cause they're in everything.
I saw a lot of tv this weekend. I had the house to myself, still grubby from Halloween, and about a million loads of laundry to do. So I filled up the TiVo with junk food -- stuff I could listen to as I did chores, walk away from and not be confused. I watched Babylon 5, MI-5, La Femme Nikita, MacGyver. I caught the new episode of Tarzan and some old Angel. And saw many of the same old faces.
Daniel Dae Kim, for example. He shows up in Angel as the crooked legal eagle Gavin Park. He's lunch for The Beast after a couple seasons, but he must have gotten on board the Excalibur for the Babylon 5 series Crusade -- I caught him there just this weekend as Sci-Fi started playing that series through again. Last year he was hanging out at CTU, with Keifer Sutherland. Mr. Kim gets around, I suppose... evil, psi-corp, or 24-style government agent.
One of my favorite faces -- and one I've seen more than about any other character actor, including Kim -- is Jeff Kober. This man really has been in everything, from V to Buffy. I take great delight in being able to pick him out in any role, no matter how much make-up or how old the television show. Just yesterday, with my back to the television, I heard him speak 2 lines on an episode of MacGyver. I identified him immediately.
A popular female face is the unforgettable (as long as you're not in a Wedon-verse, of course): Gina Torres. She's the wife of Laurence Fishburne, and has been in nearly every series I've metioned so far. This season, she's the powerful Senator Milliken's wife on 24. She played the goddess Jasmine on Angel, Sydney's arch-nemesis Anna on Alias, and showed up on La Femme Nikita once. In between all the TV work, she played a part in the last two Matrix movies.
Some crossovers we expect -- for instance, between La Femme Nikita and 24. Both series are from Joel Surnow, and it's never surprising when people choose to work with people they know. The most obvious of these -- to my delight -- was the appearance of Robert Eugene Glazer (Nikita's 'Operations,' head of Section 1) as a drug dealer / power broker of unknown origin. We're still waiting to see if he shows up this season or not.
But more fun to pick out are the unexpected visits -- the shows that have no connection whatsoever, yet share the same actors. From La Femme Nikita to MI-5 (overseas, "Spooks"). Totally different production companies, totally different backers, directors and the like. But yet Nikita's Jurgen is MI-5's Mickey (Bruce Payne, who I also identified by voice alone, since his face and hair-style were completely different). Buffy also lent a visit to the same, as Anthony Michael Head (Buffy's Rupert Giles) appears as an rogue MI-6 agent.
Some shows are great for guest-actor pick-ups. The cheesy Charmed somehow has snagged a great run of guest stars, including Julian McMahon (from Nip/Tuck), Steve Valentine (Nigel from Crossing Jordan) and Jeff Kober. Charmed has also played host to minor movie celebrities: Chris Sarandon (from The Princess Bride) and Coolio. Bruce Campbell. Balthazar Getty. Jake Busey. (Given ths show also starred Shannen Doherty, maybe they should have had a re-hab tent on-set.)
But it's not about the somewhat drug-addled former sort-of stars (or children of former stars). It's about solid character actors. Maybe an unknown actor. Maybe someone whose big break is just around the corner. Or just a great actor with a day job and no head for fame.
Here's my list of the ones I think keep TV in business: