I love program guides, and I love digging into the behind-the-scenes info of my favourite television shows. Virgin Publishing UK had the best run of such books, covering shows from Doctor Who to Star Trek, Buffy & Angel to Babylon 5, Farscape to The West Wing, and more. Each one had excellent critical analysis of various episodes, loads of quotable dialogue snippets, and juicy production notes.
That said, occasionally the best thing about these books are the official cast lists. Sometimes, you have to wonder if actors REALLY want to have such roles on their resumes, when trying out for new parts in TV or film.
Take the third season Angel episode That Old Gang of Mine — just LOOK at some of the credited roles:
Josh Kane as Cowering Demon
Sam Ayers as Tough Guy Demon
And, best of all…
Steve Niel as Huge & Horrible (I’m not joking!!!)
But none of those tops the second season Star Trek TNG episode The Dauphin, which has the funniest acting credit EVER:
Cindy Sorenson as Furry Animal
One day, a famous actor will be the guest on a talk show…and these unforgettable roles will be trotted out to remind them of their misty, barely-employed past…
Ahh, the joys of reading program guides…try it some time! :-)
