So what about the 80’s?
I left Happy Days in the 80’s. My last season was in 1980. And it was a whole new phase that I was entering. For a while I did a lot of Theater. I went on tour with Dick Van Dyke in the play - "Damn Yankees", then I started doing shows like Chips, where I played a heavy metal rock guy. I did some Love Boat episodes… and a few more TV movies. That was pretty much the 80’s…lots of Theater and TV shows.
I think this is why you are such a great role model, because you were able to do a variety of roles and not just have the comedy side. You’ve been a very versatile actor. It shows that even if you are known for something for many years, you can still pull away and do other things and genres.
So how about the 90’s?… what does that make you think of?
I continued to do some television and interesting roles. But I started to pursue directing. I directed some plays. I was looking to see if I could make a move into independent films. Theatre was a great way for me to see how I would do, see how it felt and if I liked it. Then I started looking into some film scripts that I could direct.
On the acting side, there were a couple of interesting roles I did. One called Dead Man’s Island, which had a great cast - William Shatner and Roddy McDowall.. I did a show called Sliders and Dark Skies… I played Timothy Leary in an episode of that show . I also did a film called Acting on Impulse, with C. Thomas Howell, Linda Fiorentino and Nancy Allen.
And then I got to direct my first film, a dramatic film called the Last Best Sunday, so that was the 90’s
I have to ask you of course about your role in Star Trek since The Star Trek Culture is such a big phenomenon… tell us your experience…
That happened in 2001… I went on an audition. It called for me to play a doctor. I was a fan of the original Star Trek in the 60’s.. so to be cast on this was amazing. It was an extra special treat to be on set, and see how it was all made. As a result of being on that show, I have been invited to some of their conventions and I get to be part of that family.