Darth Vader...the Dark Lord of the Sith. One of the greatest villains in cinema history. From his fearsome look to his commanding voice to his dangerous mastery of the dark side, everything about him screams 'ultimate bad guy.' He's been impressing audiences since his first appearance in Star Wars in 1977 and now generations of fans have grown up with him through movies, animated shows, games, books, and toys. Join your Planet 8 crew as we discuss this legend - our earliest memories of Vader, favorite moments, and other thoughts.
Then, join us as we talk to... Darth Vader! Of course, fans know that David Prowse played Vader in the original trilogy (and James Earl Jones has provided the iconic voice of the character). But Prowse has not been the only actor to portray Vader. At Creatures Con in San Ramon, California, we had the good fortune to interview C. Andrew Nelson. Nelson has had an extensive career in the motion picture industry, beginning in visual effects with LucasArts and ILM. It was there that he was tapped to play Darth Vader! Nelson has played Vader in games, commercials, TV shows, and in the Special Edition. We got to talk to him about what it was like putting on that costume, and the many amazing experiences he has had! He's a fantastic storyteller. You can find out more about him at his site: http://candrewnelson.com/
Then, join us as we talk to... Darth Vader! Of course, fans know that David Prowse played Vader in the original trilogy (and James Earl Jones has provided the iconic voice of the character). But Prowse has not been the only actor to portray Vader. At Creatures Con in San Ramon, California, we had the good fortune to interview C. Andrew Nelson. Nelson has had an extensive career in the motion picture industry, beginning in visual effects with LucasArts and ILM. It was there that he was tapped to play Darth Vader! Nelson has played Vader in games, commercials, TV shows, and in the Special Edition. We got to talk to him about what it was like putting on that costume, and the many amazing experiences he has had! He's a fantastic storyteller. You can find out more about him at his site: http://candrewnelson.com/
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| Larry, C.Andrew Nelson (applying Force choke), Karen (on ipad), and Bob |
For our Sensor Sweep, Karen looks at Marvel's Darth Vader comic series. She recommends the first 25 issues, by Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca, which picks up with Vader right after the destruction of the Death Star (the first one!). It's a great glimpse into the personality of the Dark Lord. These comics have been collected into trade paperbacks and can be found in stores, libraries, or at Amazon or sellers like In-Stock Trades.
That's all for this time! We hope you enjoy the show. Please share your thoughts in the comments section, or head over to Twitter or Facebook:
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Thanks for Listening!
As I listened to your comments about Vader, I just could not help believing that without James Earl Jones’ voice the character would not have been as memorable. That voice does so much. The mask while “scary” is expressionless; the voice carries all of the fear inducing creepiness and strength.
ReplyDeleteAs you indicated, I also don’t believe they should have ever shown Vader’s face. Even in death it should have been a mystery. Leave it all to the imagination.
I think that is why the Phantom Menace and that trilogy failed. The less we know about Vader the better. Seeing him as a scrappy youngster did not help. I know it made money but sometimes the mystery is better.
Another strong podcast...cheers all!
Hey Martinex, you are spot on with the James Earl Jones comment. That voice is so powerful! We joked -and I think this was offline - that Vader is sort of a split personality -made up of many men, with Jones doing the voice, Prowse in the suit for most of the basic acting, a few different guys doing the fencing and stunts. Of course, later you had our guest Mr. Nelson, and now there are two actors, Spencer Wilding and Dnaiel Naprous, who played him in Rogue One.AND the CGI version. So he's a real Frankenstein, composed of many men.
ReplyDeleteI also believe the prequels hurt Vader; as you said, it demystified him. Similar to Wolverine, the way they kept revealing more and more of his past. It was so unnecessary. The prequels made Vader/Anakin out to be a whiny, unbalanced brat, and his fall to the dark side didn't feel so horrible because he never felt very likable or heroic to begin with.
Thanks again for listening and chiming in! Your comments keep us going!
Very much enjoyed the interview with C. Andrew Nelson - and loved especially the anecdote about making Oprah a bit frightened, if only for a moment. Of course, that's not too hard to do when you're wearing a Vader suit.
ReplyDeleteWhich brings me to the larger point of Darth Vader: yes, he has to be one of the most visually striking villains in the history of popular culture. The design is so effective at conveying menace and malevolence - and when you add Jones' voice, it just ramps it up to 11. And yes, I agree, probably the biggest of the many faults of the never-should-have-happened-and-I-usually-pretend-they-didn't prequels is the way they ruined the Vader mystique.
Otherwise, I completely agree with Nelson's observation about how talented Hamill is, and in particularly his voice acting and his awesome impression of Harrison Ford. A really good example of that is in the Bad Lip Reading of the Force Awakens (all of the Bad Lip Readings of the various Star Wars movies are hilarious, but this one is my personal favorite).
By the way, Larry's story about his grandmother falling asleep during Star Wars made me laugh, and also reminded me of my dad: he always used to fall asleep during movies, including nodding off when we saw Empire Strikes Back - one of the few movies that didn't put him to sleep was Raiders of the Lost Ark (which is another point in its favor in my book).
Anyway, great show yet again, everybody.
Edo Bosnar
Memories!!!
ReplyDeleteI saw the same Creature Features with the trailer, and the Lobby Card set shown by Bob Wilkins. Larry, I also saw it at the Piedmont Theatre back then, it wasn't until my 4th viewing that I got to see it at the Coronet in SF. Seeing Darth Vader, and Peter Cushing as Grand Moff Tarkin was awesome!!! I wanted to see so much more than what we got to see on film. My favorite film in the series is also "The Empire Strikes Back". The Empire is on the hunt, and the Rebels were on the run, even after their victory over the Death Star (SPOILER LOL!). It was awesome, and we got more Darth Vader, as well as introducing the cool Bounty Hunters (my favorite being Bossk), and the quirky, Jedi Master Yoda. I totally lost my young mind when I heard Vader say: "If you only knew the power of the dark side. Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father. Luke: He told me you killed him..., Vader: No, I am your father! So much cool going on in Empire. Definitely one of those very rare sequels that surpasses the first movie. The interview with C.Andrew Nelson was quite entertaining! Great Job Guys, and Gal!!!
By the way...,
ReplyDeleteKaren, you are absolutely right about the Marvel Darth Vader Series, it is a damn good read! Dr. Aphra and her Droids are a welcome addition, to Vader's crew. Have you read the Thrawn, or Tarkin comic adaptations? They did a good job with them as well.