Goodbye Tchéky Karyo

We have terrible news to share today: veteran actor Tchéky Karyo passed away on Friday from cancer at age 72. Karyo was an extremely talented veteran Turkish and French actor who was known for crossing between roles in French cinema and Hollywood. Americans will know him in La Femme Nikita, Goldeneye and The Patriot to name only a few, and space fans in particular will remember his appearance as Georges Méliès in the grand finale of From the Earth to the Moon. Our own Wing Commander movie club recently spotted him in 1492: Conquest of Paradise and immediately declared him to be the only bright spot of the film! I myself knew him for The Bear and Eric Rohmer's Full Moon in Paris well before he ever graced our franchise with his talents. We want to send our strongest condolences to his family, friends, fans and everyone else that loved him. You can read a more complete account of his passing and career at Le Monde.

But of course he is beloved by the Wing Commander community for one role in particular: Commodore James "Paladin" Taggart in the 1999 film. Karyo's Paladin, a grizzled veteran of two wars who starts the movie seemingly as a grizzled privateer with divided loyalties but who is revealed to be a secret agent working against the Kilrathi. He is a mentor to Freddie Prinze Jr.'s Blair and the man that holds the secret to the movie's Pilgrim backstory. He becomes a divisive presence on the Tiger Claw, butting heads with the racist Commander Gerald but ultimately earning the loyalty of the crew and taking command. He might not have been one of the top billed twenty-something flying heroes but he was the glue that held the entire movie together, both the narrative and, thanks to his vast acting talent, the production itself. Heck, he's even the one that saves the day at the end rescuing Angel! He speaks about the role on the movie's EPK:

Even the movie's loudest detractors, who complained endlessly that his Paladin was no true Scotsman¹, couldn't begin to question his talent. Part of Chris Roberts' vision for the movie was that he would use experienced European actors for the veteran space sailors that would contrast with the young American stars playing the wet-behind-the-ears replacement pilot leads. He believed strongly that using highly experienced actors for these roles would bring the project a level of humanity above what would be expected from a lower budget science fiction film. In Jamie Russell's 2012 book, Generation XBox: How Video Games Invaded Hollywood, producer Todd Moyer talks about how Karyo and these other actors helped sell the movie in Europe where distribution partners didn't know Prinze or Lillard: "Moyer added Saffron Burrows and David Suchet for the UK, Jürgen Prochnow for Germany and Tchéky Karyo for France. 'You would never do that on a big studio movie. It was all about trying to get a bigger number from those territories,' he says." That's an interesting part of the decision but it's removing a fair amount of the passion that went into the casting. In fact, Chris Roberts was so keen on getting Karyo specifically for the role that he was was offered significantly more than any of the rest of the cast, the young American heroes included.

Karyo didn't do a great deal of press for the film but SFX magazine interviewed him for an August 1999 article embarrassingly titled Game Boys. You can see he has a wonderful grasp on the character that he says is a cross between Captain Nemo and Admiral Nelson:

Alongside the young bucks who fight and die in the war with the Kilrathi are the older cadré of seasoned warriors; beside actors like David Suchet (Executive Decision, Poirot) as the Tiger Claws commander Captain Sansky and genre veteran David Warner, who takes on Malcolm McDowell's role of Admiral Tolwyn from the games, are two of Europe's hardest - working film stars, Tcheky Karyo and Jürgen Prochnow. "I think that in a story like this, there is more at stake for the imagination," says Karyo. "We have to deal with the unknown, navigate quasars and singularities, jump black holes... we have to discover realms beyond what we know." The actor plays Paladin, a character originally envisaged as a Sean Connery -type, later played by Sliders' John Rhys Davis in the games, the hardened loner and mentor figure to the troubled young Blair. Having previously played out action roles in contemporary movies like La Femme Nikita, GoldenEye and Bad Boys, the unreal world of Wing Commander is something of a new frontier for him. "The difference (comes from) the designers who merge these very futuristic costumes and sets with the looks of the ships. But there's also this human side, a desire to bring humanity to the stars because this is not just an action movie, not just a sci -fi movie it's both, but it has a human implication and a connection between its characters."

While at first Paladin appears to be an outsider, the veteran pilot soon reveals a hidden side to his personality as the action unfolds. "That (duality) is basically his essence. He's like Captain Nemo, like Admiral Nelson who was always sent on the very shady, difficult missions. People don't like him, and he's bold but also very alone. It's nice to be a little schizophrenic at times, to play a character on two levels." Karyo mentions the relationship between his character and that of Freddie Prince. "He's important in teaching Blair about his heritage as a half Pilgrim. Through Paladin, the young pilot discovers his innate Pilgrim gift, an instinctive ability to navigate the dangerous gravity wells of a black hole jump- point." The actor adds a little of his own take on the human condition to his portrayal of the tough space warrior. "It's becoming more real every day to think of us flying up there in space; without wanting to sound mystical, if we are here now, we could be there in the future." Karyo, a man with a lineage that encompasses Turkish, Greek and Spanish goes on to describe the Wing Commander shoot as a melting pot of international talent. "For me, this is like being at home!"

Karyo also spoke very highly of Roberts' directorial skills. The movie's production notes proudly included this comment:

Tcheky Karyo (Paladin) is best known for his roles in the feature films Addicted to Love and Nikita (La Femme Nikita) and is an accomplished actor with a long list of films to his credit. Working with directors like Griffin Dunne (Addicted) and Luc Besson (Nikita) gave him different approaches to filmmaking, but Chris Roberts' Wing Commander was a unique experience, according to Karyo.

Like the rest of his castmates, Karyo has great respect for his director. "Chris is very aware of every technical aspect—he knows this field very well. Therefore, it allows him to focus on everything else: the actors' performances and the story. He is very ambitious and has a drive that leads him to achieve whatever he sets his mind to. As members of the cast, we wanted to contribute to his goal of giving this story humanity—and not just limit ourselves to making an action or science fiction film."

The Paladin role as shot was considerably more complex than what is present in the final cut. As filmed, we learn early on that Paladin isn't just an old spacehand, he was aboard the TCS Iason when it first discovered the Kilrathi. He is, in essence, the representative of the entire setting of the film and the conduit for all of the knowledge the audience will eventually receive about the Pilgrims and Kilrathi that form the backstory. Here's a cut scene where he tells Blair about the Iason and the meaning of his Kilrathi tattoo:

You can still experience this version of the movie by reading the novelization which is based on the script as shot. Fans of deep lore will also enjoy that the Confederation Handbook includes a great backstory for Paladin that is largely focused on the Iason story:

To share some of Karyo's wonderful work on Wing Commander, AD has provided four never-before-scene versions of his scenes that use material from the longer cut of the film shown to test audiences.

Touched By God

Torpedo, Ejection, and Rescue

Barring a Miracle, We have Failed

Broadside

We would also be remiss if we didn't mention another way Wing Commander gave Karyo some immortality: it was his first (and to the best of our knowledge only) film to result in a 3.5" Star Wars-scale action figure!

We hope you've enjoyed these memories of M. Karyo's work on Wing Commander. I would like to close with a couple of stories of my own that are ever so tangentially connected to his character. I think the funny little stories we add to our own history is ultimately the real value of fandom. I never got to meet Tchéky Karyo but I have some cherished stories of my own because of the character that he gave life to.

Back in 1999 when the movie's release was fast approaching, Digital Anvil launched its official website, wcmovie.com, which opened with a captain's log entry "written" by Paladin complete with letterhead and a headshot of Tchéky Karyo. But hardcore Wing Commander fans were immediately frustrated by a typo: the date was inverted, saying the movie was set in 2564 and not 2654. Knowing that would be repeated elsewhere, I convinced a friend whose identity I will take to the grave to give me the login for Digital Anvil's FTP. I snuck in and changed the file and, being a complete dork, added a graphic: Paladin's signature from the Confederation Handbook which I knew also featured a letter written by the character. Frustratingly, their webmaster saw the change and reverted it later that day. And after a few rounds of changing it myself I was locked out of the system. So I did what any other dumb teenage nerd would do: I registered a fake Chris Roberts e-mail address and sent the webmaster a note telling him to fix the date and to add the signature. And it worked!

We saw above that Paladin had a Kilrathi tattoo in the original cut of the Wing Commander movie, something that was branded on him after he was captured when the Iason was destroyed. He says he keeps it to remember that the Kilrathi (and not humans or Pilgrims) are the real enemy. It's barely visible under the collar of his sweater in the finished cut so for many years no one knew exactly what it was supposed to look like (though you could tell it seemed to match the Kilrathi typography used elsewhere in the film). For years I thought it would be amazing to have a Wing Commander tattoo… but I knew that obscure but so-important-to-the-lore one would be the one to get. When I was working on Star Citizen, it finally occurred to me to reach out to the set photographer for the movie to see if he'd caught a photo of it. And he immediately wrote back that he had! He shared a picture of Karyo with the tattoo visible and I went right out and had it done. (He also invited me to come to Luxembourg and see his racing motorcycles; people can be just so nice.) It felt like such a good way to honor the source material and also the community that has been so important to me all these years… with the time and effort it took to discover the thing adding this magic layer to it all.

I've already seen a lot of fans taking to social media and Discord to mourn Tchéky Karyo and I am right there with all of you. His take on Paladin was transformative to me, he really added something new to the character while still fitting right into the general idea of who he was and his role in the ur-story. One thing he inspired me to start years ago was writing a fictional biography of Paladin; the texture he adds to Paladin just made the concept of using the character to tell the story of the entire 27th century make sense to me. I've fiddled with versions of the project back and forth forever and even took a dive into turning it into a CIC article earlier this year… so my resolution here is to return to and finish that for everyone. I hope you'll all take your own moment to think about his work and what it has meant to you and where it has helped take you over the years. We're all connected to such an interesting degree. Please feel free to share your stories on the forums.

(Oh yeah, one more thing: fuck cancer.)

¹ - The Paladin character originated in the first Wing Commander game in essentially the same role of Blair's mentor. But in this original incarnation, Paladin was defined by his thick Scottish brogue (though he was intended to be from a space station). Karyo's Paladin is, like Karyo, French, to the point of his adding touches like his "merde" during the Broadsword torpedo attack. In fact, by the time the movie was made the Wing Commander IV novelization had long established that Paladin's accept was fake: "Paladin appeared to have lost his accent. He'd always suspected Taggart's thick, Scottish brogue had been a put-on. A spy with a burr just didn't fit Blair's image of a secret agent."

Goodbye Emmanuel Karsen

Sad news to report today: French actor Emmanuel Karsen passed away on Thursday. M. Karsen had a lengthy list of film credits but he is best known for his voice work, which included performing the French dubbing for actors Sean Penn and Norman Reedus. You can find an obituary here.

Wing Commander fans–French ones, at least–knew him for his work on Wing Commander III as the voice of "Radio" Rollins. Rollins is actually one of the biggest roles in the game since he appears in unique videos at the end of nearly every mission! Here's a sample of M. Karsen's work, the start of Rollins' first one-on-one with Colonel Blair outside the elevator:

Thank you to Sergorn for reporting this news.

Goodbye Steve Sanders

We are sad today to report the passing of a man whose connection to Wing Commander we didn't know until it appeared in his obituary. Steve Sanders was a Austin-based voice actor who appeared in numerous Origin games starting with 1995's BioForge who died earlier this month. You can read his obituary here in the Port Aransas South Jetty; it's particularly well written and gets across that he was a good person.

Mr. Sanders is credited with three 'name' roles in Origin games. He played the main villains in both BioForge (1995) and Cybermage: Darklight Awakening (1996), the Mengele-esque Doctor Mastaba and the cyberpunk supervillain NeCrom respectively. He did double duty in BioForge as Dane, a cyborg at the emotional heart of the game. He was also credited with performing additional voices in Ultima IX, the credit given to most of the game's cast.

What we did not know is that he also acted in Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom (1995) and at least one of the Crusader games. That's not an indication that he wasn't important; Origin did not always credit their voice actors on projects like the full motion video games that had to adhere to specific SGA-related rules. His work in Wing Commander IV could've included anything from background talk to the comm lines for any of the game's distinctive redshirt wingmen.

We'd love to know more about Mr. Sanders' work in our favorite games and it's so sad to think that we can't get those stories from him. Our thoughts are with his friends and family; from his online presence it certainly seems like he was both loved and kind. We're including YouTube clips of his BioForge and Cybermage characters below; if you have a better ear for human voices than we do, please let us know if you can figure out who he played in Wing Commander IV!

Dr. Mastaba

Dane

NeCrom

(Thank you to OpenBioForge for passing along this news.)

Goodbye Peter Jason

There's sad news today: the Wing Commander universe has lost another commander. We've learned that prolific character actor Peter Jason has passed away. Wing Commander fans best know him as Daniel (Eugene) Wilford, a Terran Confederation Captain and a Border Worlds Vice Admiral. Jason's Wilford first appeared in Wing Commander IV where he played the Border Worlds admiral giving orders to Colonel Blair and the Intrepid. Much like Ricardo Montalbán in Star Trek II, Jason never actually shared a set with the rest of the cast: his orders arrived via viewscreen. In Wing Commander Prophecy, Jason stepped in following Jason Bernard's untimely passing and played the Wilford character as the captain of the Confederation's new Midway megacarrier. There he worked more directly with the cast, giving briefings and either praising or chewing out the player based on their gameplay.

Goodbye Benoît Allemane

Sad news today: French voice actor Benoît Allemane passed away on Sunday. To say that M. Alleman was prolific would be an understatement; he performed the French voices for characters from Doctor Claw to Baloo and in the process dubbed countless film and genre roles over the years. He was likely best known as the official French voice of actor Morgan Freeman, who paid tribute to him on Instagram.

You can find an obituary here. He is best known to Wing Commander fans, however, as the French voice of Captain William Eisen in localized releases of Wing Commander III and IV. Here's a briefing from Wing Commander IV showing his dub work in action:

Our thoughts are with M. Allemane's family, friends and fans.

Thank you to Sergorn for reporting this news.

Goodbye David McCallum

HELSMAN: Crius planet control, this is cargo 1-0-4-6 Canera. On plan and requesting ejection marker 1-1-5.
CRIUS PLANET CONTROL: Very well, Canera. You are cleared for re-entry. Proceed to Mendra spaceport. Good day.
CAPTAIN: Who are those clowns?
SECOND OFFICER: We're in unequivocal commit! We can't even manage a skip out!
HELSMAN: So much for staying hypersonic. And we're too big for them to tractor in...
CAPTAIN: ... and keep us from bouncing. Range to Mendra?
COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER: Six hundred fifty.
CAPTAIN: Hit it now!
HELSMAN: Nothing left but altitude dials.
CAPTAIN: Launch all communications. Tell them to scramble all emergency equipment to Mendra. Nice try, Rog, nice try.

In Studio Two they've already started shooting one of the spaceship crash scenes. David McCallum is rigged up to a complicated pulley system and six burly looking blokes are clutching the rope at the other end, tug-o-war style. The director screams for total silence and everyone holds their breath.

BANG! WHOOSH! The six blokes holding the rope tear across the studio and David McCallum flies into the air, landing a few seconds later in a heap on the floor.

Debris and smoke fill the set. The director screams "CUT!" and a flurry of make-up and costume people dash, coughing, through the smoke to swiftly patch up Mr McCallum's face and intergalactic apparel. The rest of the crew stare expectantly at the director, who just shakes his head. Shoulders slump and the crew automatically begin to set up the shot once again with an air robotic precision which, if you didn't know better, could easily be mistaken for abject boredom. David McCallum pulls himself to his feet and prepares himself for another re-take. The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was a very long time ago.

Approximately one hour later they are still shooting the same scene. Incredibly, once it's been edited and re-edited this small part of footage will last for no longer than a few seconds in the final game. It's already taken a whole morning to get this far and time is running out. Tension is understandably high and everyone's keen to move onto the next scene.

Goodbye, Earl Boen

We are sad to report the passing of a veteran Wing Commander actor. Earl Boen, who voiced two characters in the first episode of Wing Commander Academy, passed away on January 3 at age 81 after a battle with lung cancer. Mr. Boen is best known for his appearances in the first three Terminator films as psychologist Dr. Silberman who continually finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time with regards to futuristic android appearances. Gamers know him best as the voice of Ghost Pirate LeChuck through most of the storied Monkey Island series (he had retired from acting just prior to development of the recent Return to Monkey Island). He was beloved throughout the entertainment industry, appearing in dozens and dozens of roles in every medium imaginable. You can read more about his career in this Variety article.

Mr. Boen guest starred in the first episode of Wing Commander Academy, "Red and Blue", where he played two major roles: the Terran Confederation Space Force Flight School Commandant, a contemporary of Commodore Tolwyn, and the Kilrathi blockade runner commander who plots to steal the Academy's classified data. He was one of several Academy actors whose massively succesful acting careers overshadowed their Wing Commander parts; others include Dana Delany, Jessica Walter, Jennifer Hale and Ron Perlman.

More Memories of David Warner & Extended Wing Commander Scenes

I'm saddened to hear of the passing of David Warner. He may have had no more than 5.5 min of screen time in Wing Commander (if you count the disk audio), but it was memorable and added a touch of class. In his honor, enjoy a couple brief extended scenes...

First up, his call with Blair:

Also, Tolwyn comes across as kind to Blair in the theatrical cut. The scripted ceremony would have had Tolwyn admit he had pretty much sent Blair and the Claw as sacrificial pawns and tell Blair he expected him to hate him, possibly setting up a rivalry for future sequels.

About Blair's parents: part of the main heart of the shooting script is Blair's accepting his heritage, and the realization that he's not fated to be terrorist simply because of who his ancestors were. It's a interesting thought exercise to imagine the reception of an uncut movie (hopefully with a better budget) being released two years later post 9/11.

Which brings us to the last scene of the movie. Blair returns Tolwyn's ring to him and their brief exchange is a nice little bow on Blair's journey through the movie, and again, note Tolwyn's mention of Blair's parents:

I'm not much of a poet, but I will add that while we knew David Warner from his work, his family knew him and loved his as a person, father and more. My sincere condolences to his family and friends.

Goodbye, David Warner

"Remember, once a wolf always a wolf..."

"We need a resounding victory, or this war is over..."

Last Words

To end with a short personal recollection: I was lucky enough to meet Mr. Warner at Dragon*Con 2013. I was working the convention to promote Star Citizen and opted to skip lunch for a rare chance to meet both Admirals Tolwyn who were both signing autographs in a hotel ballroom. The line for Malcolm McDowell was long and took about half an hour; he was friendly but clearly busy and had to move quickly to serve his considerable crowd. David Warner, sitting under a banner showing him in alien makeup from various Star Trek roles, had no line at all and I was nervous to approach him because there would be no one waiting behind me. I shouldn't have been: he was the kindest, most effervescent convention celebrity I ever met. It is absolutely no fun to sit in a sweltering room packed with thousands of autograph seekers in every direction and one can never fault celebrities for their willingness to make such an appearance, but Warner seemed genuinely interested to chat with me, which is either a tribute to his dignified patience or his ability to act. He explained to me that he had never seen the final cut of Wing Commander and did I like it? Did I remember his part? What did I think of how he'd played the Admiral? He recalled being so impressed with the sets and costumes, presumably recalling the Concordia's battleship bridge and his naval sweater and peacoat. While his old co-star had happily signed my copy of Action Stations (a fictional biography of the Tolwyn character) without question, Warner was seemingly fascinated and wanted to know what it was and what the connection to him was. It was a small, memorable encounter that I'm so happy to carry forward with me. To paraphrase that same book on the subject of that same character: kind soul, may you rest in peace.

Goodbye, John Hurt

When a great actor passes, the world tends to focus on one or two roles. John Hurt necessarily defies this convention due, if nothing else, to the sheer number of performances to which he lent his considerable talent. Visiting his IMDb you are struck first by the weight: it takes measurable minutes simply to scroll through his listed work. For every part you remember, he gave the same passion to a dozen others.

But one of the wonderful things about a dedicated, torch-carrying community such as ours is that we can keep alive the memory of just one of those lesser-known roles: John Hurt played Joseph Kane in Privateer 2: The Darkening, a unique part of the expansive Wing Commander universe.

Kane, best known as ‘Joe the Bartender,’ is the proprietor of The Sinner’s Inn, a ‘hive of scum and villainy’ located on the planet Hermes. Called alternatively “without a doubt the most dangerous place in the galaxy” and “the place to obtain the kind of things and services you wouldn't normally find in the Hermes telephone book,” Joe plays liege to a court of drunken oddballs, lowlifes and criminals, always acting the able fixer to protagonist Lev Arris.

And so John Hurt introduces you to the weird and wonderful world of Privateer 2: The Darkening, literally. Who better to bridge your transit from reality to a Hitchhiker-inspired far future at the far edge of Wing Commander than a talent who could so capably exist simultaneously as both everyman and denizen of the fantastic? Someone who has so capably been both trucker and astronaut, statesman and time traveler, monster and human? Surely, the choice to open with John Hurt as one of the smartest, simplest design decisions the team made.

Or, as the entire YouTube description of a 2010 Let’s Play of Privateer 2 reads, simply: “Joe is the coolest bartender I’ve ever seen.”

A collection of Privateer 2 cutscenes featuring Hurt are available here.

Privateer 2: The Darkening is available configured for modern PCs through GOG.

Joe’s Commerce & Communications Network booth system entry:

NAME: Kane, Joe

AGE: 56

PLACE OF BIRTH: Hermes

PROFESSION: Proprietor of the "Sinner's Inn"

BACKGROUND: Ser Kane is suspected of dealings with the criminal classes; certainly he seems to be aware of criminal activity in his area. Despite his rather heavy handed culinary and cocktail mixing skills, Joe has earned a reputation for being a firm but fair licensee, providing a useful sounding board and 'Fixer' for his more favoured regulars.

Criminal Record: 36/G/2769 Possession with intent to supply of a class-3 prescribed substance (Dongleberries), 29/E/2778 Convicted of Gross Unhygiene in breach of 2694 Food and Safety Edict.

Together Again for the First Time

Klavs spotted a fun pairing in the 1983 film Blue Thunder. Jason Bernard plays "The Mayor" while Malcolm McDowell is Colonel F.E. Cochrane in the film. You can watch them together on YouTube. This mirrors the episode of Beauty and the Beast where Mr. Bernard acted alongside Chris "Hawk" Mulkey. These guys really got around!

Malcolm McDowell & Jason Bernard in 'Blue Thunder' also staring Roy Scheider! It's probably been posted before, but it just tickled me pink. :)

Goodbye, Simon MacCorkindale

Actor Simon MacCorkindale, known for his starring role in the British series Casualty, passed away on Thursday. He was 58. Wing Commander fans knew him best as Flight Boss Raznick in the Wing Commander film, the man responsible for flight operations on the Tiger Claw (credited only as FLIGHT BOSS). Appropriately, MacCorkindale dreamed in his youth of flying jet fighters like the Lightnings used to make the film before poor eyesight lead to a career in acting. Though his role in Wing Commander was limited, he still managed to steal a scene in which he orders a hot-dogging Maniac to abort his landing approach. Novelist Peter Telep expanded Raznick's role in his trilogy of Wing Commander-based novels.

Goodbye, John Spencer

Actor John Spencer, best known for his starring role on The West Wing, passed away on Friday. He was 58 years old. Wing Commander fans knew him best for his role in Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom. Spencer played Captain Hugh Paulson, the Third Fleet bureaucrat/tool of the conspiracy who relieves Captain Eisen as commander of the TCS Lexington. Paulson gives Colonel Blair orders for several missions before meeting an unfortunate fate at the end of Seether's laser knife. Spencer played the unlikable character perfectly - fans to this day continue to despise the slimy, sycophantic Paulson.

Rest in peace, Mr. Spencer. Our sympathies go out to his fans, family and friends. He will be well remembered as one of cinematic Wing Commander's brightest stars, if not one of its favorite characters. Yahoo has published an obituary, available here.

Spencer is the second Wing Commander actor to pass away this year - Privateer 2's John Vernon died in February. He is also the second Wing Commander Captain to die: the TCS Lexington's previous commander, actor Jason Bernard (Captain William Eisen), died tragically in 1996.

Goodbye, John Vernon

Actor John Vernon, best remembered for his role as the evil Dean Wormer in "Animal House," passed away on Tuesday. He was 72 years old. Wing Commander fans, however, knew him best for his role in Privateer 2: The Darkening. Vernon played Errendi "Fark" Farquharson, the assistant to Xavier Shondi. Fark spurs one of the game's cinematic missions, contacting the player to report that Shondi is under attack by the Kindred. Afterwards, he joins Arris and Shondi for a well deserved beaker of Cobalt Blue at the Surgeon's Blunder Bar.

Letter From Jason Bernard's Widow