Sliders.tv → Sliders Bboard → I might be meeting Cleavant Derricks this weekend
He's in the musical "Jelly" and I have a friend that works there. He'll probably be able to set something up so I can meet him. It'll probably just be a "hello, I'm a fan" but if it's more, what questions should I ask?
- SliderNum5
Send him here, ask him if he wants to rewrite his dialogue? :-D
I'm just wondering what his most lasting memory is of the show. I wonder what, if anything, his first thought about it would be. Something generic like "working with great people" or if a specific scene or episode really sticks out for him.
For a lot of people, acting is just work. I know Cleavant cared about the show more than, say, Robert Floyd, but I'm just curious what, again if anything, his memory of Sliders is.
I guess I'd ask him to talk about David Peckinpah. David Peckinpah has become my primary area of interest for the time being, mainly because as miserable a show as SLIDERS became, Peckinpah's life was truly wretched and so much worse than anything SLIDERS fans had to endure. He fired Cleavant's friends, his incompetence made the show degrade to the point where the lead actor had no affection for it whatsoever, he permitted the show to become totally unrecognizable by the end -- and Cleavant was his friend. Admittedly, that says more about Cleavant than Peckinpah.
I just wonder if he would he as interested in seeing Sliders return in some way, the way Jerry or Tracy Torme have discussed it in the past. Would he want to be a part of whatever future Sliders has.
Never ask someone a yes/no question if you're looking for insight. I'd ask him what he sees his part being in SLIDERS were it to be revived in some form and how he'd like to play Rembrandt (experienced slider? Flsh out of water? Elder statesman or clueless oaf? Deadly serious or goofily comedic? Showbiz superstar or low-key music teacher?).
Also, does he think this painting was worth $5?
And what does he make of these ones? Were they worth the 10 bucks?
Did you paint those?
Ha! I wish. They're publicity stills run through an app called Prisma that turns photos into 'paintings.'
Ah, I was about to be really impressed!
Well, I made the poster with the sliders looking at the Golden Gate Bridge with the all-lower case logo that I think is pretty sharp?
Well, I made the poster with the sliders looking at the Golden Gate Bridge with the all-lower case logo that I think is pretty sharp?
It looks like the Azure Gate Bridge, but otherwise is great.
Oh. Well, you caught me.
It IS the Azure Gate Bridge.
Also, maybe you could see how Cleavant Derricks has aged and take a photo! I've been trying to create images of the sliders at their 2016 ages. For this image, I added weight gain on all the actors and deepened the lines in all their faces, but I don't think it quite achieves verisimilitude.
Did you meet him? It was just too far for me to travel just for this. There are a few conventions later in the month I could have done a double on, but the play ends this weekend I think. I'd figure he'd be nice leaving or entering at the stage door though, without any special invite.
Play starts in an hour or so. I'll let ya know if I get a chance to meet him!
- SliderNum5
Okay, so I didn't get to meet him afterwards, which was to be expected. The rest of the cast/crew said he usually doesn't come out after a performance and that he does the Irish Goodbye all the time. He actually would've come out because it was the final performance, but he had to take a flight immediately afterwards for something.
That said, Cleavant was fantastic in Jelly's Last Jam. Never heard of this musical before, but he played "Chimney Man" -- kind of like an aggressive version of Clarence from It's a Wonderful Life. The other performers were great too. It was a Jazz musical with lots of impressive dance numbers a tap dance breaks. Really cool. Glad I got a chance to see it and to see Cleavant perform again. He hasn't lost his touch and his voice is as good as ever.
- SliderNum5
He seems to have a good and positive memories regarding his time on "Sliders". I am sure that he would love to talk about it. I'd love to be there and hear what he has to say.
Love to get his insight on Sabrina Lloyd, the fun working relationship he had with the O'Connell brothers, his thoughts on Kara Wuhrer in Season 3 and what it was like working with her the rest of the way.
He was a good soldier and professional all the way. He had won awards for his stage work and like JRD he had quite a resume, but it never went to his head. He did the job and was happy to do it.
I'd love for someone to put together a Sliders panel at a convention or something. Even a podcast event would work, or a documentary. There is a lot of story to tell.
Well. It's too bad you couldn't meet Cleavant. But the important thing is that I've finally accumulated a good amount of Prisma-enhanced graphics to run a SLIDERS social media campaign. I'm not sure what one has to do with the other, but let's call this a victory!
I'd love for someone to put together a Sliders panel at a convention or something. Even a podcast event would work, or a documentary. There is a lot of story to tell.
I would look forward to it. Seems like the following for Sliders and us fans are few and far between. I've been to a Trek convention and there were guests from various sci fi shows but no sliders. Every year during comicon I check the guest list looking for a slider guest speaker but so far zilch.
I would just like to meet anyone from the show. the day I find one at a convention, I will be first in line to purchase tickets.
Footnote: I did meet Chase Masterson at the Trek convention back in 2001 but she was there to promote her role on Deep Space Nine and not necessarily the Sliders episode she appeared in (Season's Greedings).
I think Sliders guests could do well at cons, but most of the stars probably have no interest. JRD does cons often enough for other projects, but I can't picture Sabrina going. JOC, maybe. Not sure about Cleavant.
I don't know if con organizers recognize the cult status of the show.
I think we might scale down our hopes and aim for an online convention where the stars could participate over Skype and Reddit.
That'd be cool... Someone make it happen.
Hey! I'm busy scripting the series finale and planning a social media campaign for it. You try making TWELVE posters for SLIDERS REBORN when you have no new images and no photo sessions with the cast. I have my hands full on the Slidology front. YOU make it happen!
Dude, I have FIVE novels in editing (plus one that isn't mine that I'm helping on), and have covers and promoting to work on.
Okay, so we'll put that plan on the back burner. 
So what you're saying is that you do nothing for our common cause while calling for others to raise the torch! Unless your novels are some sort of long game to revive SLIDERS...
I've asked promoters before, they haven't been interested. JRD does cons because of Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings. O'Connell could do okay I guess.
As for Cleavant, he's gotta leave the premises somehow! Stinks you didn't see him, but a big reason I didn't travel that far was I was completely unfamiliar with the venue vs. Broadway in NYC which I know well.
I was recently considering a project wherein I would rewrite some of the weaker Sliders episodes and see if I could do better with the same basic plot... But I don't think I have time for a big fanfic project right now.
I would like to do something new with my someplacethatiselse site though. It is just sitting there.
I've asked promoters before, they haven't been interested. JRD does cons because of Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings. O'Connell could do okay I guess.
Much to Jerry's chagrin, a con would likely be more interested in his wife; but that could lead to him appearing as a package deal.
I've asked promoters before, they haven't been interested.
I think although there's overlap, the convention crowd is a different type of audience than who the core slider fans are, and certainly different than the typical sliders audience.
The Sci-Fi Channel market research supports this.
http://www.earthprime.com/wp-content/up … liders.pdf
Target Audience
Primary target is sci-fi susceptibles who are Sliders fans. Having held a steady 5.5 rating on FOX,
if we can tap into even a fraction of these viewers and alert them to the fact that SFC will be
running all-new exclusive eps of the show, our ratings will be proportionally excellent.
According to our research department, loyal Sliders fans are primarily urban Males & Females
(50/50) 18-49, who are likely to be highly educated homeowners with families, and probably
have slightly higher-than-average income. Many of them are professionals, or in managerial
positions. They enjoy classic rock radio, sports, travel, and apparently read Cosmo more
than any other magazine. They tend to be "techy", owning and enjoying video games,
computers, expensive audio-video equipment, etc., yet they don't tend to read magazines
devoted to these pursuits.They are a mainstream television audience who appreciate quality science fiction but would not
classify themselves as "sci-ti fans". These are people who will be interested in thought-provoking
television drama. They are not into sci-ti that's too "out there". More interested in becoming
involved in stories revolving around people, where the action emerges naturally out of the
relationships between the characters, not to fulfill a special effects quota. These people are
probably not terribly impressed by gratuitous SFX at the expense of good storytelling.
People who enjoy working as part of a team. The ensemble cast is a tightly-knit unit, almost a
family, trying to survive among an infinity of parallel earths.
They are not teenagers.
If Jerry needed the money, he could get booked easily to smaller conventions around the country, no problem. Trust me. Casper Van Dien does a million of them, and he is basically only known for one cheesy sci-fi film that bombed at the box office.
If Jerry needed the money, he could get booked easily to smaller conventions around the country, no problem. Trust me. Casper Van Dien does a million of them, and he is basically only known for one cheesy sci-fi film that bombed at the box office.
Well smaller ones sure. The thing is there are different ways Conventions pay special guests. Either a fee (and travel of course) or perhaps some small travel costs and the invitation to sell their autographs and meet and greet. If the convention is going to pay a fee of any significant they have to believe it will help drive people to the convention. That's fine for small conventions who don't really have headliners but it starts not to make sense for bigger ones if the person isn't going to really move the needle enough. John Rhys Davies is more attractive to a convention than Jerry is in that respect.
Jerry was at WonderCon last year - but I'm pretty sure the project he was working on paid for him to be there. It was in LA too, so not much of a big deal traveling or scheduling wise.
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