Great 17th Precinct Info Post. (James Callis-heavy)

Monday, April 11th


I just have to post this, because it's a VERY GOOD OMEN INDEED.

theaarondouglas: BTW. Spoke to James Callis, said 17th precinct was a great shoot & everything he hoped it would be. Check it out when it airs, gonna be gold

I know James must have had high hopes for the show, after BSG. So hearing it's what HE hoped it would be, I have extremely high hopes myself now. Eeee!


Sunday, March 27th


Tricia Helfer just tweeted a photo from the wrap party!! Handsome alert! Chest hair alert! HELP! They are too pretty together!! Also, James' ears never cease to amuse and endear me. Very cute.

So that's a wrap then. I dunno how I can wait until September. I hope we get some teasers and stuff before it...


Oh, and I almost forgot to add this, the most adorable James/Jamie photo yet! They're trying to figure out a word in a crossword puzzle. Look at James' thinky brow!!!! Thanks to Craig A. for the photo.

Thursday, March 24th


And we have news on the name! Jeff was turned into John, so the final name is John Bosson. Awesome! It's a bit rhymey, but then so is James Callis. I don't know why I feel so strongly about this, but I just simply cannot see James as a Jeff, and I'm very happy they switched it to John. It's a slightly dull name, but it has no strong connotation with "American guy", and this helps me believe in the character. I like the last name Bosson a lot, too.


The shoots in Vancouver will end this week. After that, there are some screenings, and the shoots continue in May if NBC people like what they saw. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

A big article on the pilot script. This one is more positive-sounding than the taragel one. There are many spoilers, so I won't reveal everything. But it sounds very cool, and James has some powers of his own! Also this:

Caolon (pronounced ‘Kay-Lawn’) Longstreet, played by Bamber, is a blonde thirty-something copper who project a seriousness and deep focus. His partner Jeff Bosson, played by Callis, is a Brit; unlike Caolon he’s a bit more down-to-earth and not exactly fit.

Not exactly fit?! O.o Does that mean they will REFER TO THIS on the show? Because if they will, I have a feeling I will forgive many, many plot holes and suspend lots of belief. 

An article from YVR shoots, by Susan Gittins: 

I arrived to see detective partners Jamie Bamber and James Callis filming a scene exiting from their strange police car to investigate a crime scene in the alley. Between takes, the two ex-BSG castmates proved inseparable, giving each other playful shoves and taking breaks at the craft tent together. 

Playful shoves!!! Sounds so "dude" and amusing. Obviously they're great friends, and I'm sure this chemistry will show on their scenes too. Excellent.

Lots and lots of photos at zimbio! James and Jamie, James alone. Craig Anderl from the set has also been tweeting many photos. But how to link to them all at once? Oh I know, browse through my Tumblr. (The link is to the "17th Precinct" tag, so it should find all posts with that tag, no matter when you read this post.)

Oddly enough, James has SHORT hair. So much for that squee. But hey - he looks like a cute hedgehog! :D So not too shabby. He looks chubby to me, although not everyone agrees. But needless to say, I am happy! You can tell from the photos with James and Jamie that James is meant to be a slightly more down-to-earth character, someone who may be a bit of a maverick. I wonder if the coffee is part of the script, or if he just brought his own. He looks laid back though. This will be interesting. Although I will say that I'm sorry for Jamie if he has to play the straight man again while James gets to goof off/have more variety to his character.

Oh and look at this! I think he's actually picking up a donut!!!! I think, I  mean it could be a bagel or a muffin or something, but... *drools* He looks SO happy. :D My dream is to see him eat a donut some day, but this is really good too.

Meanwhile, James is obviously getting into character by listening to some Dire Straits, and was shocked over Japan. Many new tweets at his twitter. (And yes, it's really him.Craig said so.)


Tuesday, March 8th
The shooting started today!

Tricia has dyed her hair brown for the role, and the result can be seen here. Very classy! I was worried they might give her jet black hair, but this looks much better.

M and I were discussing the pilot scoop - found in taragel's post linked below - that "Jeff" is sleeping with his partner's wife, "Susan". So what will the character be like? Will this be another morally ambiguous character? Will he be remorseful or turned on by the secrecy, or both? Will we get James Callis love scenes again?!

We joked that, since everyone else on the show has more exciting names, Jeff and Susan might be bonding over their dull names.

Jeff: I feel somehow... inferior and dull next to "Caolan" and "Morgana".
Susan: Well, what about me? Susan.
Jeff: We have so much in common.
Susan: Let's make love!

Either way, not looking forward to all the "Oh he's a traitorous manwhore like Gaius!" comments on Twitter.

Saturday, March 5th. 

I'm going to start this now, even if we still know very little. I plan to put all the news on the show here until it airs, so that you don't have to weed through endless newsposts here. 

Facts known as of today: 

-created and produced by Ron D. Moore 

-shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

-the pilot will be directed by Michael Rymer 

James Callis' character is, a homicide detective. He's long-haired and British. 

Jamie Bamber plays a crime scene investigator who's very focused. 

Tricia Helfer plays Morgana, a necromancer, acting as a coroner. 

Other cast members include Stockard Channing and Matt Long. 

There's a review of the pilot here (taragel's LiveJournal). It sounds like the show is set in a sort of alternate universe where both the cops and the villains use magic. Ah! That sounds interesting. I thought it'd be more like regular people in our universe fighting evil magic. I love the idea of plants inside houses, and I think this might look really neat. Many of the aspects sound interesting. However, I'm a bit worried about the fact that it sounds so police-procedural and so little character development. Like taragel, I'm worried it's going to be a little cheesier than BSG and not as compelling. (The linked post was written before James and Tricia were announced, so it doesn't discuss how central their roles are. I'm hoping James' will be more central than Jamie's, since Jamie is apparently not very prominent in the pilot.) 

The show could really go either way for me. I could love it, or I could be kind of meh. I like supernatural elements in shows, but I don't love police procedurals. I've never been drawn to shows that operate on "crime of the week". I'd rather see characters and themes building up. That said, those two don't have to be mutually exclusive; I just don't want to see another CSI with magic thrown in. As for the magic being cheesy, I might still like it. I do enjoy Medium and The 4400, because I love the actors on those shows, their chemistry, and the characters they build little by little, even if the plot doesn't always compel me. I have a hard time believing that James, Jamie, and Tricia wouldn't bring something more into the roles than is on the page. 

I'm going to be cautiously optimistic about this. I trust RDM, Michael Rymer, James, Tricia and Jamie. (Not necessarily in that order.) And I promise, if I don't like it, this is not going to turn into "17P Hate Blog" where I rant each week about how much I hated the latest episode. (Note how I'm omitting the possibility that it won't be a series.) I want to support this project because these people are like... (family? No, way too cheesy for ppl you haven't met) (TV friends? Hmm) people I feel warmly about, without ever having met them. (Eh.) I hope I'll also get to squee though. 

Most Exciting James Callis Casting News Since Forever!!!!

Ok, now I actually have news. No wonder James sounded so excited, because!

FANFARE!

HE WILL BE ON THE NEW RONALD D. MOORE SHOW WITH JAMIE BAMBER! 

The show is called 17th Precinct, and it will be like "Harry Potter for adults", a cop show with supernatural stuff. James' character, Jeff, is a homicide detective, "slender, long dark hair, British accent". 

The good:

-Ronald D. Moore!

-Michael Rymer!

-Jamie Bamber! How great that he gets to act with someone he is friends with, and has worked with before. That will definitely show in the performance.

-long hair!

-British accent!

-With RDM and MR, there will be lots of possibilities for ad libs. James will have real influence on his character here, unlike on, say, Eureka.
-This will give him great visibility and possibilities for future roles. 

-Cops like their donuts, so maybe he can do some character study... ;) (Toby had to remind me of this, I hadn't even thought of it! He tells me I'm going loose on the donut associations.) 

The bad:

-It's only a pilot, so it's still possible it won't make it into full series. But I mean, how could it not? Let's be optimistic. And gleeful. And incredibly hyper!!! EEEEE! 

-The premise sounds a little silly and could easily be dumb. But so did BSG, and RDM made it glorious. I hope this one will also be gritty, political, real, with multi-layered characters. I believe it will. Besides, I can handle a bit of suspension of disbelief. I watch The 4400 and Medium. 

-I have to continuously spell "precinct". I might actually go for 17P, so I don't have to expose myself to endless typos and frustration. (Hee, pee. OMG, grow up, self.)

-Jeff. Really? It doesn't fit him at all, and it doesn't sound remotely British. Blah. 

-Homicide detectives have to be pretty gruff sometimes. I hope James will get to be sensitive too and do the sad puppy eyes. I can't really imagine him as an overly-macho type. 

UPDATE: OMG OMG OMG TRICIA HELFER WILL BE ON HTE SHOW TOOO EEEEEEE 


I dunno if I'm ever going to calm down now, this is my wish come true, James and Tricia on the same show again <3 <3 <3 and probably a quality show at that!!! I love them so much!!! JAMES AND TRICIA FOREVER!!!!!! *hyperventilates, faints, etc. etc.* I may say something calmer later but I'm not sure. I'm not sure I'll ever be calm again. OMG OMG OMG!!!!!!

This is SO exciting! I read about this last night when I was just going to bed, and I wanted to wait until today when I can calmly write about it and say:
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE long hair British accent this will be soooo great I love him so much EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! 

James with Children = awwww.

This is an adorable interview with the America child actors, Jefferson and Anslei Shelton. Overall worth seeing if you like kids. But there's this adorable, very small clip with James Callis that just made me melt.

Jefferson: "One of my most favorite characters is Mr Leverett, really silly and fun." That's James' character. OMG I HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE LIKE BURNING. I haven't seen James interact with children much on screen, and I really want to see it.

Here's a screencap - it's from the America website, so it has that red stuff, but I'm too lazy to take another one from the Youtube video:

How cute is that?! James is saying "This is Star Wars" something, but it cuts off there. Toby suggested they're playing Lego Star Wars on the PSP. James really looks like he's bonding with the child and talking to him on the same level. Which I love. (Also, nice nerdy touches with the hair/glasses/undershirt.)

I dunno if it's my hormones responding to "good Daddy material" or what, but every time I see a man being kind to children it's just awwwwww. And if it's James, it's extra awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww with hearts and glitter. And now I sound twelve but honestly, how cute is he?

That's all I have to say. I know there's no real substance to this post but who cares.

James Callis in America

EDIT: ah, they already have it on Youtube? Embedded.

Edward James Olmos' film America, starring his wife Lymari Nadal, has a website now at americathemovie.net.

If you're interested in the film: watch the trailer. It seems interesting, I'll probably watch this. Someone was complaining on Twitter about the overpowering soundtrack, and I can already tell by the site and trailer that it has that. I'm interested in the premise though. Based on the trailer, it could go a little too much in the "violent husband is evil" direction, although I'm not sure how sympathetic you can make a beating husband. What I like is that the protagonist, America, is trying to change her life. 

If you're only interested in James Callis: skip the trailer and go straight to the selected scenes for him. (Edit: it's the same as the above embedded video.) There's a brief interview with behind-the-scenes shots, where you can see him talking to the cast. (And laughing and being adorable <3.) He plays Mr Charlie Leverett - another Charles? -, who he says is a computer nerd who likes comics, and he's the opposite of America's violent husband. Also, you can see him at the piano a little, so I'm hoping he's going to be playing some music in the film too. (In fact, if he's playing the overpowering soundtrack, I forgive it.) He looks boyish, with spiky hair and kinda nerdy thick-rimmed black glasses. It's amusing that he went straight from this to Gabriel McDow, whose hair was very messy and bushy. I guess it's all in the styling. He's in two photos in the photo gallery: 5 and 42. I can't link directly because it's a flash site. 

Here's what James says about the movie (and this is why I'm interested in it too): 

"It's quite a feminist movie, if I can say that. Women have to stand up for themselves and... seize the power, seize control. And if you're in a relationship that is no good and you can't change it around, you actually have to get out of it and start fresh, start something new." 

James Callis = Enthusiastic Rugby Player?

So I was browsing through James' Wikipedia entry, and for some reason had linked it to Toby as well. He asked me, "Wait, he plays rugby?" I was like wtf? But yes, it says so here:

In 1993 he graduated with a BA degree in English and Related Literature at the University of York, where he was a member of Derwent College for whom he was an enthusiastic rugby player.

???? This entry has been edited on October 15th, 2010. Up until then, there's been no mention of rugby anywhere.

This was Earth-shattering for me. Could James have an athletic past I had no idea of? My teeth clattered, my brain chattered. (It may have had to do with being drunk, in part, but come on.) Toby laughed his ass off. He couldn't believe I found it anything but hilarious - tiny James in such a tough contact sport, probably getting battered!

Upon further inspection, I found nothing on James and rugby. Other than this: ... wait, where is it now? It was a 2006 interview where he mentioned that his teachers taught rugby wonderfully but weren't as good with science. But this was school, not college, as far as I can tell. I'll um, link to it once I find it. This is all very confusing. Maybe I dreamt up that interview.

There are three options:
1. Random Wikipedia vandalism (like the time his entry read "Callis is Christ" instead of "Callis is Jewish")
2. One of his contemporaries decided to add this snippet of information, which he wants to keep secret (??)
3. He's been confused with Jamie Bamber, who did play rugby for his college.

If we get no clarification, I'm going to assume this is Wikipedia vandalism. Mind you, I could see James doing some sports. He's mentioned horseback riding, swimming, running; I can see him doing any of these. But rugby sounds incredibly rough for such a small guy. Until he was about 30, he was very skinny indeed. So could he have been an athlete? Hmm yes or no... All pictures I've seen of rugby players, they're super muscular. But maybe that's just professional rugby. I really have no idea.

Edit: Robyn informs me that rugby is more of a "gentleman's game" in the UK, rather than a big bloodbath. So it's feasible James would have played. The plot thickens!

I took the liberty of drawing my idea of how such a rugby match might end up. Note James' enthusiastic attitude on the game. (I didn't go to much detail here, but you get the idea.)

(umm, just to clarify, the muscular guys are NOT naked. I just didn't bother to color them much.) 

James Callis Brow Acting.

Got a search just now for "james callis brow acting". That's an awesome search. Does it mean the forehead, or the eyebrows? Either way, James sure knows how to brow act, and I feel like I haven't given this enough attention. So here's a picspam of James' Brow(s) in action. Enjoy!

                                           STERN AND SURPRISED BROWS 

SILLY BROWS 

SAD BROWS

Oldie But Goldie: The Sci Fi Guys w James Callis

I know this is an old thing, but I've never claimed that this blog is all about the latest news.

If you haven't heard the Sci Fi Guys interview with James Callis, it's a must-hear. You can stream it here. It begins around 40 minutes and goes on til about 1 hour, and after that they gush over him, calling him one of the most humble guests ever. Someone who will praise anyone but himself. So true. Nothing wrong with tooting your own horn a little, James. But it's totally sweet, of course. He also talks about how human beings are basically animals and in denial about it (I don't remember what the question was but it wasn't that deep :D), and discusses his first roles. I love how he mentions Soldier, Soldier and is like, "I made great friends from that". That's the only positive thing he has to say about it. Hee!

One thing I really love about this interview is how he talks about Tricia Helfer and Lucy Lawless. He gets the usual question of how gorgeous they are and how it is to work with them. He's like, yes they're gorgeous. BUT they are also so talented, and I'm so impressed with them, and I love Tricia as a person. This is one of those very proud fan moments. It's a very feminist thing to say, really. And just a very respectful thing, seeing her as a human being who has a beautiful face and body, but also a lot more. You can tell that the other stuff is more important to James.

I find Tricia to be amazing. I have a connection with that lady, we have a kind of chemistry we play off.. and that takes.. I can't explain,but I think it comes very naturally to her, she is a natural actress, and the things she has to do... if she couldn't do it, I couldn't do it. We are like twinned to the hip, somehow. She's a beautiful lady but she's beautiful in the inside as well. She's generous and kind and sweet, and working with someone like that, it's another gift. 

And he sounds SO warm talking about her, really. You can hear in his voice that he means it all and more.

Lately I've thought of Tricia more again. From the beginning, she was part of my fandom, but it's kind of become all about James. I do miss Tricia sometimes, though. She seems like a lovely, genuine person, much like James, and I imagine they're great friends. But I don't know if my heart can handle two equally powerful fangirlisms, so James it is.

James Callis Secrets.. Revealed

Sunday secrets:

This is the end of Sunday updates. Just FYI. (I forget what day it was when I last updated.)

Reminder: You can send secrets by posting comments in this entry. The comments are screened; only I will see them until they're up here. Tinypic or photobucket works for images.

Tuesday secrets:

"I don't think Edward J. Olmos and Jamie Bamber can act. Secret because they're your friends."

"I'm glad you deleted your first tweets. The angry ones made you sound like a jerk, and by deleting them you showed you're not. Oddly, that makes me admire you more than if you never tweeted that stuff."

Monday secrets:

Text only:

"James, its no secret that you should not have made Merlin and The Book of Beasts-really bad..."

James Callis With a Dog!!!

This is so... how can this be? It's like two of my favorite things in the same video. James!!! With a dog!!! I...

I dunno if I can handle this!!!

Also? He's totally hilarious! I love how he whispers to the camera, as if the dog would care what he says. :D And he's totally sweet to the dog too.

Check out the Meet Pursuit Delange Youtube channel for many other outtakes.

This post was brought to you by I Love Cutesy Animals!!! and I Hope I Usually Sound Saner than This.

James Callis on Twitter!

(He took his original tweets down so I took the original post down. I'm not sure what his plan is for now, but people are allowed to change their minds, and I have often wished I could erase or edit something from this blog after people read it. So I can relate. If his Twitter goes down, this post disappears too.)

So - James Callis! On Twitter! Here! I won't quote any tweets but it's very cute and very James, highly recommended. Deep thought mixed with silly jokes. Also: he likes rhymes. (Which goes well with his name. Even after two years as a fan, I giggle at the rhyminess of James Callis.)

What does his Twitter say about him? That he's pretty much like I expected. Which is kind of odd. I think it's because he sounds the same as in his Forum messages, so I knew what to expect. (And most likely the private James is different, and this is just his public persona.) He's following some pretty philosophical sites - Dalai Lama, Deepak Chopra, etc. - and seems very influenced by Oriental philosophy. Also: many book sites. (L)! Apparently he's also following WebMD and a family health thing, so maybe not as non-healthy as I imagined? And he seems politically liberal. Whew! I thought he would be, but you just never know. I'm not going to start a political debate with him or anything, but if he had been fiercely conservative, I may have been more than a little disappointed.

I still feel like a gushy fangirl every time I talk to him, so I try not to talk to him very much. (Not that I have all that much to say except "LOL" or "so true" to every tweet, so maybe it's best to shut up.) Most of his tweets bring a smile to my face though. It seems like a safe way to follow James without an uncomfortable closeness or distance. Which, ironically, was pretty much what the James imposter said about Twitter last year.

He still seems super nice and interesting based on the tweets. I'm a little surprised at this, because usually when you get more exposure to a celebrity, you realize how normal and boring they really are. I don't get that vibe with James. It might be because he doesn't post fiercely private or mundane stuff; if he tweeted things like "scratched my neck, wonder why it's itching", it might get tired real fast. (Incidentally, that's pretty much how I tweet.) On the other hand, when he mentioned cornflakes, I squeed at the fact that I, too, eat cornflakes. So I may be biased.

Some fan-feelings stuff here on my LJ, for those who care to read. I'm still very emotional, but I will post on Eureka soon, I think. Still very happy, it's just all new and I need to give things some thought.

New James Callis Post!

James has posted at the Unofficial website! Read the post here (it's spelled lazarus, lol.)

James asked that people NOT reproduce the post elsewhere, so I won't quote anything this time.

He took down his tweets today - not sure if he's taking down the entire account - and discusses that in the post, among other things. Other news: he's in India, and while there, had his appendix removed. Apparently he's been in a lot of pain. Poor James. (L) And the appendicitis also caused some belly distention during Eureka shootings. Um, now I feel a bit bad for all the gushing. But he did look good.

Read more at the link! It's long and lovely. :)

This Face.

OK, I think I was finally able to figure out the order of screencaps here.

Grant tries to share something with Carter (see the post on "Momstrosity"), but Carter shoots him down. Grant's face goes through three stages - open and ready to share, disbelieving and hurt, and then hardened and angry. Beautiful.

I don't know how James Callis does this, but he does. Note the very subtle changes in his eyebrows and mouth, and the way his eyes change expression. It's hard to spot in still images, but I just had to make this its own post.

Facebook Glee

(Written on LJ on the 7th, so I'll just cross post here. I'm slightly calmer now, a week after it happened. But still happy. The only part that didn't apply was the idea that I would fetishize him less. Um, much fetishizing coming in the next Eureka post.)

I'm incredibly hyper in one way, but on the other hand... I feel at peace. Because I know James Callis reads my stuff, and thinks kindly of me, and is an awesome guy. I'm at peace with him. It feels good. It feels healing and cathartic and... I don't even know.

I may need a day or two.. or week or two.. to just chill out and get used to this. It's a huge thing for me. I feel so good right now. I feel like it would be boring to keep repeating how good I feel, but I will indulge myself at least with this one post.

I can't believe he contacted me. Obviously I've fantasized about him doing just that, but when it happened, I was blown away bc it was like... an alternate universe or something. Worlds colliding. My first reaction was just pure shock. The joy came after I had time to parse through it a little. Even if you fantasize about something, that doesn't mean you expect it to happen. It's a bit funny because I started my relationship with him in my head, so in that sense it's like marrying someone first thing and then getting to know them. And I'm shy and nervous and want to keep a certain distance, after being all over him for so long. It's all sort of blown away when I talk TO him. Or - swoon - HE talks to ME. (I should probably talk in imperfect tense, because I doubt he's meaning to start a long-term correspondence.) HeadJames is still in my head, though, so it will probably stay on the side. Or not? we'll see.

Does this change anything about the blog? Probably not ALL that much, because I've always written knowing he might read - and suspecting he does - so I haven't really censored any of my feelings. I won't send him PMs about his belly/hair/smoking/whatever, but I may squee about them in the blog bc it's a part of my fandom. Obviously nothing I see on his FB goes on my blog. I may have to separate the two realms a little.

It's possible that the nature of the fangirling will change slightly. The main difference for now is that I see him more as a real person, someone with a personality defined long before I became a fan. I think I've seen him slightly as an extension of my own dreams and fantasies. I imagined it would be, on some level, disappointing to have contact. It's not. It's not HOW I pictured it, but it's really joyful, soothing and rewarding. In a way, it makes him appear smaller though, like he's more equal with me than before. I don't know what it is. It's not specifically anything he does or says, just that... he's just another guy using Facebook, not presented as "THE STAR OF THE DAY, JAMES CALLIS". His updates show up highlighted, but then so do everyone else's - there's no difference between "Nicole likes x's status" and "James Callis likes x's status". I've never considered this, but the fact that he's always on stage, on camera, etc. is probably a part of why I see him as something Higher. Maybe I need to bring him back on my level a bit.

In time, this might lead to him becoming less fascinating and attractive in my eyes. BUT. I think it will be really good for my self esteem and the way I treat James on the blog. Knowing he approves of me, I can't imagine becoming crushingly disappointed or upset, even if he said something I can't really agree with. I don't have to build him up as a superhero. I think. This has not yet been tested, but I'm pretty good with people disagreeing with me once I trust them.

I can't see the most private stuff on his FB, and that feels comfortably distant, like he has a space for himself too. I'm not intruding on something he doesn't want to share. I'm still a little shy and don't feel overly comfortable communicating with him on FB. I've browsed thru his photos but so far, I'm not "liking" any, bc I don't want him to come to FB to "you have 300 notifications - Deniselle Baltar likes your photo, Deniselle Baltar likes your photo, Deniselle Baltar commented on your photo, etc. etc.". I don't want him to regret adding me.

So I'm a little nervous still. But then I do this with everyone I find cool. The first times I interacted with Nicole, for instance, I always thought I must sound SO DUMB. Because, you know, Nicole is so judgemental and scary that there's real reason to worry. :D

James Callis at Comic Con: The Eureka Panel

And the panel is online! The Youtube direct links are in the titles ("Part 1" etc) so just click on those if the Blogger frame doesn't allow for a wide enough view. The problem won't go away if I switch layouts, unless I take a layout that is so wide the text will be unreadable. But I want to embed when there's a James video, godsdamnit!

You can also go into my favorites page and watch them there.

So I'm going away for the weekend and I have to make some preparations today, and I may not be able to write much anything about this until Sunday. I have watched the panel; James is very sweet, very cool with the others, the panel host is squeeing over him. (And does a pretty good Tricia impression with "Gaius"!) He doesn't answer that many questions, but he's very animated and listens carefully when the others talk. Lots of great expressions too. (And he takes sips of Coke!)

They didn't ask my question about James' accent, but I don't mind because he answered that so well in the interviews. I will probably provide a transcript with commentary after the weekend. Meanwhile, enjoy the videos! :)

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4

James Callis at San Diego Comic Con, 2010

Last updated on Thursday, 29th of July, 11:15 PM Finnish time.

Thursday update 2: Ooh, PanelJames x 4!!

We've got the entire panel up on Youtube! Yay! (Syfy seems to be posting full panel videos also, so probably soon, we'll have it in one piece.) I've embedded and linked in a separate post, because I want to transcribe and comment when I come back home. The post is here.

A couple of new photos as well: photo with a fan here - James was especially friendly, apparently (L) - and two more from the Syfy party here. Is he wearing the party suit with the cap in that fan photo? :D It's a lovely cap but come on.

Aand that's about it. I'm going away tomorrow and will be gone the weekend, so if there are updates during that time, I won't report them until Sunday. So if you're still hungering for more James con goodies, you're gonna have to hunt yourselves. It's possible the updates are done for now though. I didn't expect this much video footage - I'm very happy with what we got. A good con coverage online is almost like you were there, but without the crowds and lines and high prices.

Thursday update 1: Ooh, PanelJames.

Photos from the Eureka panel here!

His Coke can does seem sugary - also, it has some kind of soccer theme. So we can assume that in his life, James has seen the picture of a soccer ball. (Ehh?? How would he live in the UK without ever seeing one? That one was a bit strange even for me.)

I've decided that I love this cap. It's my favorite cap ever. It's cute, tiny, and makes him look boyish. Aww, CapJames. (that's Jaime Paglia next to him. His face looks even thinner than James'. That's quite unusual.)

Can't see a lot of other updates.. *skims thru Google search* Haha, someone's spelled Baltar as "Baltzar"... That's hilarious but I don't think there's anything worth noting in that link. Frankly I'm getting lazier as the days go by. It's almost been a week, after all. I will be away this weekend, so today's updates are the last ones for a while.

Wednesday update 4: One more for Wednesday.

A couple of photos of him here! Hee! I thought first he must be drunk, but I think it's just a silly pose, because he looks sober in the last one. And very stylish. I'm liking that black coat better than the white ones he had on. Somehow it goes well with his hair color/general look.

There have been quite a few updates today, haven't there? We'll see what tomorrow brings. If it doesn't bring anything new, I'm still happy with how much we got, especially the two interviews. Con time is always good, I get a whole new energy tracking down James updates.

Wednesday update 3: Another Interview! Yay!

Direct link here. It's not quite as long and squeeworthy as the other one, but he's adorable. The interviewer is a little fangushy, and James seems to take it in stride and be very nice. He's also a bit hot and touches his neck and/or hirsute chest a few times. Drool! (What is he drinking? I thought in the other int it might be ice tea, but it looks more like another Coke. I should have some myself, it's a hot day.)

My favorite bit is when the guy asks if Grant sees people that isn't there and James admits that does happen once, but not like on BSG. Hee! Well, Eureka has had ghosts and androids and god knows what, but I don't think they will have angels sent by god(s).

James mentions, as he did in the other int, that he's been Gaius for five years, so it's understandable that ppl write "I don't like him doing that", or "I didn't expect him to do this". Interesting. I mean, I've seen those comments, mostly on Twitter, but I didn't know he read that much. Maybe that's because I'm tired of reading the comments already, and prefer to look at what the James fans are saying, because we know him from other stuff too. He sounds confident though, and it seems like he thinks about not only the comments people write, but the reasons for those comments. It's a pretty empathetic way of dealing with criticism. I would probably be a little pissed off by now that so many people said my accent sucks.

In other news, Flickr seems to have some kind of tracking system for links, because well, check out the comments section again. :D Sorry about the crappy camera comment; I totally understand if it's the SCREEN that's distorting.

I almost feel like apologizing to Lomara for saying that his/her picture was the worst ever taken of James. I did get a good laugh.. and it's not thier fault the screens were bad. But it's a bad, bad picture still. So I'm not aplogizing.

Wednesday update 2: Random Thoughts on the Interview.

Some very cute panel pictures in this post.

Also:

James conducts an orchestra.

This looks like a cool look, but the camera is too crappy to tell. (I can relate. I, too, have a crappy camera.)

James at the... is this at the panel? I thought it was at the Eureka screening. I also thought that was Salli Richardson-Whitfield, not Erica Cerra. Not to nitpick. But James looks cool either way. I love the way his hair falls over his ears. (L)! That's a very sexy shape.

I don't want to discuss the interview below (under EEEE!) in more detail yet, but it touches me how much he really thinks of the characters. "I had two days", and then he talks about watching 40's films, wanting to be a man's man, and how, after World War II, people had seen the best and worst of mankind. O.o

Cue this conversation on LJ where we talk about how cool it would be to have a James con - but instead of panels and autographs, it would be all... "what do you think of deep topics?" We'd just sit and listen as he talks about this stuff, and get an intellectual education. He has the intellect and that warmth behind it and it's just irresistable. I really think that I'd like a good conversation with James more than anything else - and that includes validation for my blog and general James kindness.

Wednesday update 1: It's already Wednesday in Finland.

Nothing big has shown up during Tuesday, after the *sparkle happy joy joy* interview. But a few nice photos:

James introducing the Eureka episode, here. He looks so happy and so does Salli R. Another view of the same situation. I love his expression here but it also kills me because I don't know what he said that was so funny.

And here's Salli talking and James looking on, looking attentive and kind.

Eureka panel! Setting up, the cap on, and fiddling with his microphone (to take it lower, hee). Why do I love it so when he has downcast eyes like that? It makes him look humble, and sensitive, and somehow very boyish. Awww.

And Nicole's not-at-all stalkerish picture of James' back (and some other people's) in her blog comments, here. (And I managed to squee at it too.) (What is he carrying?! What does his cap say in the back? Ah, mysteries and questions abound.)

There are so many aspects of the interview below that I want to discuss, so I will probably make a separate post about it soon. But it's so hot in here that I have to flee into airconditioned places and I don't always have internet there. So you know, I hope you can enjoy a James interview without my unique observations. ;)

Tuesday update 2: EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

Sorry for the screaming but there's a 7-MINUTE JAMES INTERVIEW HERE!!! So beyond cool! James talks about the accent - he's been reading people's responses and says it's funny that they don't "believe" him to be from the 40's but they do believe he's travelled in time. :D

He would have loved to keep the hat on all season! :D We all would have loved that, James.

I think I'll make a transcript of this later, because it's all really cool. Awesome.

Edit: ah, it's also on Youtube. So this is Maureen Ryan talking to James.

Oh, and look into comments, there's a note from the person who took the photos I linked to last night! James was apparently laughing, not trying to pose for the camera. And he linked me to this photo - LOL!! Watch out, Neil - James will eat you!

Also - this is not con-related but James is apparently in LA doing post-production. So here's a picture of him, re-recording lines in the studio. A man of sorrow? I think he must just be posing.

Tuesday update 1: The mystery of the cap - revealed.

Two new photos. Thoughtful, smiley boy. The smile looks almost a little overdone, like he's specifically posing for someone. But I always love his eye-squint when smiling. (L)! The color in these pictures is very good, so I'm assuming this photographer was sitting near James. (lucky bastard.) Also: chest hair!

The cap says IRONHEAD! But why? I googled "ironhead" and came up with nothing but motorcycles. Is James into that stuff? I knew Tricia and Katee are, but I didn't really associate that with James. It could be the caps are completely random, of course, but I'm curious.

The can of soda looks specifically sugary to me, being red at least at the top. Which is good, because I hate diet Coke. Um, not that I pick my soda simply based on James' preferences, or anything.

With these two mysteries unraveled, I'm about ready for bed.

Monday Updates 2: Quiet day.

Yeah, not many updates are coming in. It could be that, since he wasn't giving autographs or photos this time, there may not be a lot.

But he's being quoted from the panel, regarding why he joined Eureka. This site has a transcript of the answer. He wanted to do the role because of the challenge - the whole 1940's time travel thing. Which is also why I'm happy he did it. It's something new and exciting for the fans also, to see him like this. (Even if some people are - insert eyeroll here - already saying he's soo much like Baltar.)

And another version of the Twitpic we earlier saw: James posing with some other Eurekans, in this gallery. He looks happy and relaxed, like he loves these people. I'm glad. There's a positive energy about him in all these photos, and it feels good to see that. I feel like telling the Eureka people a big thank you for welcoming James like that. A few of them are on Twitter... OK, I just did it. I hope it's not odd.

Monday updates 1: Love you Nicole!

There are no updates. Except - a really big one in my LJ from Nicole_Anell who was there! YAY! So I've decided to use her whole response. (It's in public, so I'm sure she won't mind. -Right?)

* I guess you've seen some Saturday pics already - yellow hat, chest hair, drinking a soda (diet coke?), looking good. (I like him skinny, grr.) Also looked friendly with the other people on the panel, occasionally talking on the side to them and stuff.

LOL, I like his face skinny too! I just miss the belly. ;) Hmm, if it was diet soda, maybe that would explain the weight loss. I think he looked positively glowing with the Eureka people, and it felt good to see that. Like he feels right at home with them, friends already, something like the BSG cast. I suppose I didn't expect it yet!

* First of all, the moderator of the panel (Allison Scagliotti of Warehouse 13) was adorable and a total Callis fangirl. She introduced him with "You knew him as sexy Dr. Baltar on Battlestar, and now he plays sexy Dr. Grant." XD

:D :D!!! Honestly, so weird to hear so many people suddenly admit he's sexy! Have I ventured into a parallel universe where everybody loves James? I think I like it here.

* And again the first time she addressed him, she joked about "geeking out" that he was there and said, "There's something I've always wanted to say to you... (lowers voice, doing a Six imitation) Gaius... (normal voice) That's it!" LOL.

LOL!!! :D :D That is awesome.

* Let's see... he was asked a question about the fact he's doing another sci-fi show, and he said he wasn't looking to do sci-fi again but he really liked the character and the idea of him coming from the 1940s into the future.

That's the same reason that I like him doing it. That's awesome! (James and I are totally on the same wavelength about, well, everything. This just proves it.)

* The cast was asked something like "if you could change something about your character's reality, what would it be?" James was totally befuddled by the question and made a series of hilarious "...?" faces. The other panelists started joking about wanting to look younger, have more hair, etc. and he was like "I don't get this question at all. Like, for our characters?" Eventually he kinda realized that everybody was just giving silly answers, so he made a joke about wanting to keep his '40s car.

LMAO!!! :D :D Poor James, he always overthinks things. (I can relate.)

* The most he talked during the panel was a long riff he went on about the tone of the show. He admitted he used to look at the show as "simple" in the way the plots moved and stuff? But he has a lot more appreciation now for how they're all so quick and funny and it really is hard to do that kind of tone while also showing emotions, etc. And then in this Jamesy way he started talking about how the show is not just fun but kind, and it has this homey atmosphere of people being good to each other. And then he ended it like "unlike something else I've been involved in." (Which left me going UM, DID JAMES CALLIS JUST INSULT BSG? for a minute or two, but I think it came out a little worse than it was intended, lol.)

Awww. :D Kindest guy in the world wants to be on a kind show. I don't think he meant to insult BSG. Probably he meant that on BSG, people were petty and showed their most negative sides. (Which I'd call realism in that situation, but if the show were set on Caprica before the fall, they may not be that way.) Or he could even have meant that Baltar often wasn't nice to others, or others to him. He had to play a universally hated character for a few seasons, after all.

I wonder if James has a much more rosy view of human nature than Ron D Moore. He probably does, coming to think of it. That's fascinating. Maybe he should do more "feel-good" shows, because he probably has that kind of sweet-yet-naïve side that wishes we could all just be friends.

* Funny moment I'm not sure I can really explain: They were mentioning a story about the actor who plays Zane (who wasn't there), and Jaime the show creator joked that he wasn't sure whether to believe it or not because he heard it from Gaius Baltar. The guy who plays Fargo confirmed it, and James did a comically snotty voice: "Yeah, now you've heard it from Fargo" and stuck his tongue out at him like a five-year-old. Heee. It got a big laugh.

LOL!!! :D :D Don't worry, it sounds really funny.

* As you already heard, yes, he revealed that his "name was in the mix" for Eleven on Dr. Who, but he implied he was reluctant to do it right after BSG. Wow.

Wow. O.o In one way, I feel like saying DO IT JAMES DO IT!!! On another level (;)), I dunno. If he does BSG-FlashForward-Eureka-Dr Who, that's a lot of sci fi for one career. He should really do something else in between. But Dr Who is, I hear, a solid show, and it would probably be a good choice in that sense. I know he'd rock it - oh DO IT JAMES DO IT!!!

* A little moment but you'd probably appreciate it. A bunch of the Eureka writers were standing in the room and the creator was acknowledging them by name. When he was trying to remember if he was leaving anyone out, James jumped in with another name. I thought it was sweet that he JUST joined the show this year but he knows all the writers' names. :D

Awww!!! :D :D He really cares about the people he works with. *Snuggle*!!!! Kindest Guy in the World.

* Lots of "on that level", "in some sense", etc. XD

LOL!! :D :D He didn't use them so much in the latest interviews so I thought he had kicked the habit! Maybe it's creeping back in, like addictions tend to do. ;)

Sunday updates part 3. Slim pickings, slimmer James.

OK, this LJ has the WireImages in bigger size. Very stylish indeed. Mmmm. I still can't decide if I like him better with or without glasses. And - hmm. Maybe he's actually lost some weight since the Eureka pictures, because his belly doesn't look at all remarkable here. He's not skinny but he looks more like last summer. It's a good look, but... Oh well, I'll always have Eureka. (I reserve the right to call him James Cuddles though, unless he's completely skinny.) This is my last word. I won't go back anymore. I promise. :D

From the press roundtable. (We can probably expect some interview snippets soon!) He looks a bit depressed here, but maybe it's just the effort of trying to hear what they're saying. That room was noisy. I know because I tried to watch a Colin Ferguson interview, and the background noise was pretty distracting.

Sunday updates Part 2: Slim pickings.

WireImages has two pictures of James here, but you apparently have to purchase them to see the bigger size. Anyhow, in the thumbnails: stylish in black, and we've got English gentleman glasses! (I wonder about those glasses. Does he really need them? If so, does he wear contacts most of the time? I'm an all-glasses kind of girl, but I know many people prefer contacs.)

I must say his con getup was all stylish this time. Even the cap looked new and good. No too-tight boy next door shirt; no trucker chic. I'm impressed! I love his "white shirt with rolled-up sleeves" panel style, as well. Kind of between casual and formal wear.

From the panel: James talking. You can see him twice in this picture but both angles are a bit off. But still, he looks happy and kinda wistful. Oh James. (L)

The updates are simmering down now. Live tweets and twitpics are pretty much done for, and the con people will be sleeping for some more hours. I think I'm off duty and going out for a good con-celebratory meal. If I can pry myself off the comp. *pries*

Sunday Updates Part 1: Con hangover. (And I wasn't even there.)

This will be the last time I stay up til 4 looking for updates. The last time! Ever! It wasn't worth it since the updates don't come that quickly. I dissolved into a puddle of stupid jokes in the end. Here's one: James Callis walks into a bar. The bartender says "What will it be?" James says: "As Shakespeare once said - a beer please!" ..Yeah. I was that tired.

So the updates. There are some beautiful, beauitful photos on Flickr. But before that - and I thought I'd never say this - a remarkably UGLY picture of James. He looks so bad in this one, horsefaced and...unnatural. I know what happened here: the photographer was watching a screen, and was in a slanted angle to it, and somehow that made his face look odd. But I mean, is this really worth sharing? He looks positively EVIL. I showed it to my girlfriend and she laughed and laughed and then linked to this. So you know it's bad. Sorry, James. You're not remotely horsefaced in reality.

OK, onto the actually good pictures. The Eureka screening - James apparently got on stage. Charming smile, standing in the back. Looking very stylish indeed. (And chubby. Why was I worried about that? James Cuddles! (L)) Anybody know what he was saying?

A couple of panel pictures in this stream. Swoon, he looks dreamy! And friendly and happy. Plus chest hair! His cap seems to read... something HEAD. (Union head?) Hee - and also what? I wonder why he chooses to wear caps for cons. It's a fascinating part of his image.

A photo from the goodbye party! James with @BambolaBambina aka Alessandra Torresani (from Caprica): dapper in a black suit. With a really tall guy next to him. It always emphasizes how cute and tiny he is.

Nabbing a few tweets from Sproing, because she seems to adore James and is thus sane.

Will James be on Doctor Who? - not sure! #eureka

1. James: hanging out with these guys is like hanging out with a bunch of comedy writers. #sdcc #eureka
   
2. James and @neilgrayston wondering what's making so much noise in 6A behind them. #sdcc #eurekaabout 9 hours ago via txt

People asked him about Doctor Who again? ...but he said "not sure" instead of "no"? O.o Maybe he will be on the show! Wouldn't get my hopes up just yet though.

LilFerret: @gatedialer OMGOMG He was asked about Dr. Who, and he said he WAS approached...

O.o!!! He was approached! That's... What if he really does it? wow. I've never watched the show but I hear it's GOOD.

Also - lots of people are loving the way he looks! It feels new and unexpected, yet exciting. There are some comments about how as Baltar, he wasn't sexy at all (what?) but now as Dr Grant, yum!

No real details aside from those yet, but there seems to be a buzz that James will stick around for a while - and that may be very, very promising. As in 20 episodes rather than 10 promising, but then not everyone knew he was doing more than a few eps. *trying not to get my hopes up* This sounds good though:

James Callis is sticking around for the rest of the season of Eureka. I’m happy about that! The show runners emphasized that they don’t want to change the world back, which personally I’m glad.

Yay!! That might mean he's there for good. :) And I can honestly say after seeing some - I'm happy, and he really fits the show well.

On a less James-related note:

They had to drag Colin off the stage. Wow!

I was hoping Colin would have been drunk or stoned and there was some drama. But in fact, the panel was just ending. Sigh. (My girlfriend was particularly disappointed. Can you blame her? She listened to my increasingly sleepy/ditzy comments about James updates with remarkable patience.)

Saturday updates

A new photo: the panel is starting. James is ready with his cap (a new one!) and his sunglasses and chest hair. And what appears to be another Coke can! Hee!

And.. he looks thinner to me again. Damn. See, I keep going back and forth and I have to stop doing this. Someone once said to me that I pester him with pictures of the fat guy in Ace of Base like, "Does he look thinner or fatter? I must know. These photos were taken five minutes apart." I'll try to focus on other aspects. (Chest hair. Coke. Hair. Mmmm.)

I may have to give up and go to bed, because LA time is so far away from Finnish time. So don't expect panel details just yet.

Jaimepaglia Tweeted a few photos from the "Café Diem" at Comic Con:

http://tweetphoto.com/34627289Hanging at Cafe Diem with Allison Scagliotti from WH13, James Callis and Neal Grayston.

And here's the other one, where James seems to be something funny to Neil! (He can stand still for a photo, but not TWO of them! ;)) He looks like he's having fun and feeling at home with these people. Aww. Also: the white shirt and coat (beige? off-white?) look pretty stylish. Not a bad con look!

Just a few things, not real updates:

-James has been spotted circulating the floor in "various disguises" but the source didn't specify WHICH ones and now I've lost the link. He could be anyone! This is too exciting! Edit: oh, there it is! We want PICTURES of James in disguise!

-If you want to send a question to the Eureka panel, you can do that on Twitter: Use the hashtag #ScagsEurekaPanel.

I asked how James came up with his accent, although I want to ask so many more things. "What were you eating at Café Diem just now?" Or... "Do you always have your cigarette in the left side of your mouth?" Or some other, censored questions... :D But really, I won't bombard them with silly question ideas. I'm not sure how many people are going to ask stuff, so they won't have time for everyone.

Two photos posted by SyFy on twitter. These are from last night.

James waiting for the screening of episode 3, All the Rage! He has such a mischievious look on his face. Hee!

Other observations:

-His hair is longer.

-He has the trademark sunglasses on his head.

-I think he's still chubby. Yip yip yip! OK, I'll try to be really calm about this. Really really calm. *tries very hard* Ooh he's so cuddly! He's like James Cuddles! I'd love to cuddle with him! Eeeeee. :D :D :D

And the Eureka cast eating at Café Diem. Looks like James has Coke again! But what is he eating? Something orange - and high... Looks mysterious. Others are having soup and salad, so I'm guessing this is the starter, not the main course. So it's probably not a strangely orange hamburger. If you have any guesses, please post in comments.

Either way: he is wearing suspenders!!! :D Why so! It's just unbearably cute.