Charles Cyphers recalls his time on "Isis," "Wonder Woman" and "The Dukes of Hazzard"

Special thanks to guest blogger Brian Lombard!

Halloween is almost here, and among the many annual traditions is Monster Mania, a horror and sci-fi themed convention In Hunt Valley, Maryland. Last weekend saw the likes of such masters of horror as George Romero, Dee Wallace Stone and Meg Foster, among many others.

 

While horror has never been my go-to genre, the convention always allows for the opportunity to meet with the actors and discuss some of their other roles, the ones that the con organizers don’t necessarily advertise on the flyers. Early roles in television and film, before they made it big.

Dee Wallace Stone was amazed that I brought up her 1977 episode of Sid and Marty Krofft’s TV series "Bigfoot and Wildboy," as most fans were interested in discussing "Cujo" or "E.T." Meg Foster was equally amazed that anyone remembered her trilogy of episodes on the series "Quantum Leap," rather than her role in Rob Zombie’s "Lords of Salem." But inevitably you’ll find a role on their IMDb page that’s just ripe for a BRBTV guide. Enter Charles Cyphers.

 

Most famous for his role as Sheriff Brackett in the "Halloween" movie franchise, Cyphers began his career like any other actor, taking roles in television and film hoping to establish a name for himself.  And fans of BRBTV are sure to have seen his work.

 

Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Leigh Brackett in "Halloween" (1978).

 

In 2012, BRBTV released "Superchicks: A Guide to TV’s Wonder Woman and Isis." Cyphers has the distinction of having appeared in both series.  So I asked him to discuss those two early roles.

 

“'Isis,' that was one of my very first roles,” he said. “And I got to play a car thief.” 

Cyphers and I had been discussing his roles and their availability on DVD. He was not aware that "Isis" was released until I mentioned it. 

“That really shocks me. I had no idea that that series was still around. Just the other day, I got a royalty check, a BIG one, for 'The Six Million Dollar Man.' For the DVDs. 'Isis'?  Never saw a thing.  I don’t know who owns it, but we shot it for Filmation.”

 

On "Wonder Woman," Cyphers played Kurt in the first-season episode “Wonder Woman in Hollywood,” one of the episodes in which a very young Debra Winger played Wonder Girl.

 

“That was a great episode for me. The director (Bruce Bilson) was a friend of mine, and while we were shooting that episode, he was also directing me in a play. He would tease me about that for a long, long time. And Lynda Carter, yes, she was great to work with.”

 

A few years later, Cyphers would appear in two different roles on "The Dukes of Hazzard," as chronicled in "Them Dukes! Them Dukes!" He appeared in one of the very first shows shot in Hollywood, “Limo One is Missing.” Five years later, he would return to Hazzard in the sixth season’s “Dead and Alive.”

 

When asked about the experiences, Cyphers says that he had a lot of fun filming "The Dukes," but he adds that “those boys were full of themselves. I had more fun on 'Wonder Woman.'”

Brian Lombard is the author of "Bradypalooza: The Unauthorized Guide to TV's Favorite Family."