Knight Rider Festival: The stars, part 2

Though the Hoff couldn't make it to the first-ever Knight Rider Festival in Las Vegas last weekend, there was a Michael Knight in attendance. It was the new Michael Knight, Mr. Justin Bruening, a former soaps hunk who held quite the nice court as he signed the original screen-used KITT car also in attendance at the festival, above, on Vegas' glorious Fremont Street.


Catherine Hickland shares a laugh with a festival attendee while signing autographs at the event. She's joined here by seasoned stuntman Jack Gill, who also served as a stunt driver on our beloved "The Dukes of Hazzard." During the Q&A session that preceded this autograph time, Gill talked about his work on the '80s "Knight Rider."

“From my standpoint, the car came apart every time I hit the ground," Gill said. "You’ve got to figure, I’m dropping out of the air 30 feet. It was one piece, but the front end was bent up three feet, and I was kinda half-semi-unconscious inside of it, trying to get my bearings. I mean, they were all really hard landings, but I still wanted to do it every week, because we were always breaking new ground. The best part about the car was that, with the character you can say, let’s drop over two buildings, or jump between two buildings, or jump across Main Street. There are all kinds of things you can think up, that in a normal series, you have to try and find a way to make it relevant. In ‘Knight Rider,’ because the car could do anything, you could actually come up with anything you wanted.

"The only thing I can say, though, is that when we did go into super pursuit mode, I all of a sudden got like 19,000 switches inside this thing that I had to push on and push off. I’m saying which one is this, which one is that, and people are screaming at me on the radio. Things are popping out on the hood and popping up in the back. It made things a little more difficult, but it did make the series a lot more interesting because it gave it a different look.”



As April the mechanic in the show's second season, Rebecca Holden had the task of keeping KITT in great working condition while Michael Knight was out and about making a difference. “I had done a lot of shows for Universal and for NBC," Holden said, "and so when they called me about doing this show as April, I was thrilled and delighted, because it was such a hit show, and David Hasselhoff, as you all know, is such a fantastic guy, along with Edward Mulhare.

"It was such a wonderful cast to become a part of. There was such a camaraderie between everyone. Although we didn’t see Bill Daniels a lot, ‘cause he had the cushiest job in television, I think. He came in about a half an hour each week just to do all the lines for KITT. He was a wonderful guy. I think he made KITT come alive, and had the personality that he did, that we were able to react off of. We actually on the set, just had a script girl reading his lines, but we could just imagine his voice and what he would do with the character. So we had a lot of fun. It was a great, great feeling of bonding between that group.

"But I have to tell you, it was such a pleasure to play the role of April. She was a smart, and in a time of television when there was a lot of 'T&A,' she was smart, she was intelligent, she had integrity. She invented a lot of the things for KITT to do, to assist Michael and Edward in their fight for truth, justice and the American way. So she was a great role model for girls, and I still hear that a lot from fans that write in. What has been so nice to me is that we’ve kept this friendship with the fans for so many years. Even on my website, I get letters from all over the world. Yesterday it was Croatia. And last night it was so much fun meeting so many of you. Some of you are from Hungary, and Germany, and England, and Brazil, and all over the world. But you’ve taken this show into your hearts and embraced it. It has meant something to all of you. It’s just so gratifying and heartwarming to us, and I can’t thank you enough. Because you really are the ones that are responsible for making this show the success it became.”



Michael Scheffe, who has an impressive resume in visual effects in the acting industry, designed the KITT car for the original "Knight Rider" show. Here, he signs the dashboard brought cross-country from Detroit by BRB's buds. That dashboard, complete with working KITT lights, sure got a whole lot more valuable last weekend!

It was a fun time, all in all, and the BRBTV News Blog rounds out this week's coverage of the event with the note from the festival site ... "we will see you in 2010!"

Photos by Billie Rae Bates / BRBTV

Copying with credit is OK; a link would be grand!

Knight Rider Festival: The stars, part 1

What happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas, as far as the BRBTV News Blog is concerned. We want to tell you all about it! (We'll even tell you all about the road trip there and back, alien jerkey, Area 51, cows, hail, snowstorms, desert, birds, fly-away hats and all, if you really want to hear.) Today we continue our coverage of the first-ever Knight Rider Festival with a look -- and a listen -- to the celebs who appeared at the event.


George Barris, the custom-car guru behind the Batmobile, the Munsters Koach, the General Lee, the Beverly Hillbillies car and much more, had some interesting things to say during the event's Q&A sessions. Shown here with (from left) Catherine Hickland and stuntmen Dennis Braid, Jack Gill and Buzz Bundy, the newlywed Barris talked about the beloved KITT and working on the 1980s "Knight Rider" show.

“We built a pursuit car," he said. "It was the hardest car we ever built for any TV show. I’ve been on ‘Knight Rider,’ ‘Dukes of Hazzard,’ ‘Batman,’ ‘Beverly Hillbillies,’ ‘Green Hornet,’ all those shows. But ‘Knight Rider’ was the number-one hard car. The pursuit car was a car that had a goal of speeds of 150 miles an hour in the air with rockets. I had my dear colleague, Dennis here, he had to maneuver how to put this car in the air with all the speeds of 150 miles an hour. That means everything had to actuate. Front end would come out, back end come out, up come the back, rocket tubes, side panels. Now that was pretty good. We got that, and he was inside the car making everything move, as we were watching him and of course, the director was filming everything. But the hardest part was, what happens when you’re up there in the air, at 150 miles an hour – how do you stop? So just like a jet aircraft. If you looked at a jet aircraft, whenever it would come in to land, those wings would come up and cause the airbrakes. So Dennis got the top to come up, the hood to come up, the door panels to come out, the back end to come up, to cause airbrakes. Now all of this had to happen all at one time. That was the hardest car we had to do.”

Stu Phillips, second from left above (and on the left is Rebecca Holden), is the man responsible for the theme music of "Knight Rider." Phillips has worked on a ton of other TV stuff over the years, such as the original "Battlestar Galactica," "The Monkees," "B.J. and the Bear" and "The Hardy Boys / Nancy Drew Mysteries."

“For television or films or anything else," Phillips said, "you get an assignment, and you either get lucky and get inspired, or you don’t and you work hard. In this particular case, it was a little bit of both. It was a direction that everybody wanted me to go, which was definitely to try to be electronics, to be one of the first electronic scores or television themes, at least, on television, in the history of television. Until then, there’d only been slight usage of synthesizer. But this was going to be an all-out attempt to go hog-wild with electronics since the car was fitted out to be that way. The idea was given to me to do that.”

Above, Catherine Hickland runs back off the center stage area after signing one of the KITT cars on display. The star of "One Life to Live" and onetime wife of David Hasselhoff (who, by the way, was scheduled to appear at the festival but wasn't able to make it) played Stephanie ("Stevie") March on "Knight Rider" and even wrote one episode and performed some songs in others.

Photos by Billie Rae Bates / BRBTV

Copying with credit is OK; a link would be grand

Knight Rider Festival: The cars

At the first-ever Knight Rider Festival in Las Vegas this past weekend, custom vehicle icon George Barris had an amusing story to tell about the Hoff. “When David Hasselhoff first came to film ‘Knight Rider,’ we were on location," he said. "As you know, David was a big film star in the soaps. So he was a big star. He comes up and he sees Knight Rider in front of my place. We all walk up. He looks at it, and he looks at me. He says, ‘George, am I going to play second-fiddle to a car?’ I said don’t worry about it. As you well know, he became a star just like the Knight Rider.” Well, truth be told, both the car and the man certainly are big stars, and the BRBTV News Blog continues its coverage of this classic-TV event with a look at some of the autos on display.


Most KITT cars you see out and about are, of course, replicas. But there was this screen-used beauty at the event, as well. When "Knight Rider" was canceled, Carl Casper's Hollywood Promotions purchased three KITT cars from Universal Studios, including this one. The cars toured the country as part of the Budweiser World of Wheels. This particular one was then sold, placed in storage for several years, then sold again in 1997, when it was lovingly restored to the condition of the show's first season. A 1982 Trans Am, it has only 2,392 miles on the odometer.



The event was heavy on Mustangs, as the new KITT for the 2008 "Knight Rider" show is a Mustang.

Craig Martin of Toronto owns this beauty, definitely a unique KITT with not only the different car doors and the amber light on the front, but also a large flat screen set up in the trunk to entertain eventgoers with "Knight Rider" episodes all day Saturday! He says he's owned his KITT for two years. "Everybody else likes to make the exact showing of the car," he told BRBTV, "I like to do something a little different to where it's modified, so it's not the same. It's one of a kind. That's what I represent."

Photos by Billie Rae Bates / BRBTV
Copying with credit is OK; a link would be grand

Knight Rider Festival: It's Vegas, baby

Ahhhh .... thank the Lord we're comin' up for air from a jam-packed weekend in Las Vegas for the first-ever Knight Rider Festival. We're going to bring you all kinds of fun tidbits from the event, but for today, here are a few images to whet your appetite, from BRBTV's own experience driving across the country with a couple fervent "Knight Rider" fans, one friendly KITT GPS unit and a KITT dashboard in the back all primed for star signatures ...

Yippeeeeeee -- 30 hours of quality car time! BRB left outta Detroit with her two buds last Thursday morning for the cross-country journey to Vegas ...

The "Knight Rider" GPS unit -- fully equipped with the voice of KITT, actor William Daniels -- guided us through the mountains and much more.

After 12 hours of much-needed sleep, BRB headed out on Fremont Street for a quiet walk at 5 a.m. Saturday, before anyone else was up but while the beautiful lights of this "annex" of the Vegas strip were still lighting the way. The Golden Nugget (above, which includes a Starbucks, bless 'em) and the Four Queens (below) were the host hotels for the festival.

The Q&A sessions and entertainment for the event were set up on two different staging areas on Fremont Street. Tune in tomorrow for coverage of the event itself, and check out BRB's Facebook author profile page (and "become a fan") to see the whole "Vegas, Baby" photo album ...

Photos by Billie Rae Bates / BRBTV

Copying with credit is OK; a link would be grand!

Take a journey into "The Inexplicable Lives of Dolls"

We interrupt our coverage of great '80s TV shows and their stars to bring you this update on BRB's writing projects ...

As a little girl, Billie Rae Bates had some pretty interesting friends: Dolly Parton, Cher, the Archies, Catwoman and Wonder Woman.

At least the versions of them that are plastic and about a foot tall.

This year, our own author and journalist BRB is finding out just how photogenic these "stars" of her childhood are, as she follows up her 2008 yearlong raw-photo essay project, My Mother's Clothing, with a new project for 2009: The Inexplicable Lives of Dolls.

One part history, one part sociological study, and heavy on the whimsy, the photo project will spend a full 52 weeks highlighting the various dolls -- fashion dolls, not baby dolls, just so you know -- of BRB's collection.

"Dolls are like dreams, I believe," she says. "And it works in both directions. When we're little, they represent the grown-up life we can only wish for. When we're grown-up, we then look back and dream about being a kid again! And all of these dolls, most of them from my childhood but some from more recently, represent memories for me. My dolls were companions, just as my real-life friends were."

Like My Mother's Clothing (http://mymothersclothing.billierae.com), The Inexplicable Lives of Dolls offers one raw, untouched photo per week, posted on a Sunday, of one or more of BRB's dolls, most of which were boxed up at the family farm in her hometown in mid-Michigan for nearly 30 years. Each week's accompanying essay not only takes a trip down memory lane, but also veers to the sociological, even anthropological.

"I've always loved the study of pop culture," she says, "and our dolls can tell us quite a lot about ourselves, both individually and as a culture."

This project differs from My Mother's Clothing in that it's not self-photography and it's not tied to Sunday morning each week. Each photo might be taken anytime the preceding week, and in any location, whereas My Mother's Clothing was based at her Metro Atlanta home.

"I wanted to free it up that way because for one thing, my house is all spent, been-there-done-that, and there are so many other possibilities when the photos can be taken anywhere at all. And while the self-photography of last year was a fun challenge, I'm glad that the project has been freed up from that, as well!"

Insisting that she's strictly amateur where photography is concerned, BRB is shooting the photos as medium-resolution jpegs with her point-and-shoot digital camera, on all auto settings, no frills or tricks, then loading them directly onto the web page, http://dolls.billierae.com, without any alteration.

"I actually can use Photoshop!" she laughs. "This is not a cop-out! But I think in our day and age, photo-correction is overused. We're twisting reality. There comes a time when we need to embrace reality. Be real. That's why I photographed myself just the way I was, for better or worse, in My Mother's Clothing, and that's why my 35-year-old Malibu Barbie doll won't have any retouching, either!"

BRB, who holds a bachelor's degree in journalism and English from Michigan State University and spent 10 years in the daily newspaper business before moving to the corporate world, says she expects topics such as materialism, mass consumption, and how females are viewed in our society will factor into the weekly essays for The Inexplicable Lives of Dolls, as well as her own faith and beliefs. The author, whose websites include BillieRae.com, and BRBTV.com, says she is relishing every moment of this new project, which highlights dolls that range in age and value from the Mego Batgirl she received in 1972 to Mattel's Poison Ivy and Wonder Woman Barbies that were Christmas gifts from her family just a couple years ago.

"I felt so blessed by the My Mother's Clothing project. I very much looked forward to it each weekend. And it wasn't just because I loved the wardrobe, and that I felt it was a link to my mother. As writers, we don't just execute noun, verb and compound modifier. We inspect the world around us. We play armchair philosopher. So that's what I'm looking forward to in this new project. Having a voice."

She adds, "I believe it's innate in every human being, that need to have a voice."

It's about time -- and it's about "The Dukes"!

We know them Duke boys were always racing against a lot of stuff on our beloved "Dukes of Hazzard" -- the Hazzard County Sheriff, the Chickasaw County Sheriff, maybe some poor girl's daddy, and even time itself! Artist Pat T. of Indiana has captured that sentiment in this ceramic clock she hand-crafted for a friend, featuring the General Lee jumpin' right over ole Father Time. We just had to give you a look-see, to brighten your day. A one-of-a-kind "Dukes" item, for sure. Pat even pointed out to BRBTV that she purposely lined up the number on the car with the appropriate area on the clock! Thanks for sharing the pic, Pat.

Special news alert: Look for coverage on this very BRBTV News Blog of this week's first-ever Knight Rider Festival on the Las Vegas strip!!!!

Who's Working: "The Dukes of Hazzard"

It's time to round out our sweep of the casts of the four major BRBTV shows, with a look at the folks from Hazzard County. Now, events like DukesFest have been keeping these guys busy for a number of years, but they do still dabble in some acting gigs ...

- John Schneider
aka, Bo Duke
Now: Everytime you check John-John's page on the IMDb, a few more projects have popped up. Here's some of what he's got going on this year, in the wake of his regular role on ABC Family's "The Secret Life of the American Teenager."
Collier & Co. 2: High Octane (2009) (in production) .... J.R. Collier ... aka John Schneider's Collier & Co. 2: High Octane (USA: long title)
Hollywood Boys (2009) (pre-production) (rumored) .... John Litgown
The Gods of Circumstance (2009) (post-production) .... Mick Jeremiah
Holyman Undercover (2009) (completed) .... Satan
Set Apart (2009) (completed) .... Pastor John Gunn
H2O Extreme (2009) .... Crash

- Tom Wopat
aka, Luke Duke
Now: Besides his steady work on the Broadway stage, he takes an occasional small role on the screen, such as John Phelps in this year's "Taking Chance," as previously reported on this blog.

- Robert Morse
aka, Dewey Hogg
Now: Bertram Cooper, the enigmatic former owner of the ad agency Sterling Cooper, on AMC's "Mad Men"

By the way: John Schneider and his fellow Duke, Catherine Bach, are both scheduled to appear at this year's Motor City Comic Con in Novi, Michigan!

Archie Comics for March

ARCHIE #595
"Home Insecurity": After robbers break into his safe, Mr. Lodge upgrades his security system to protect his property... but who will protect him from the ever-pervasive new system?!
SCRIPT: Arie Kaplan.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
"The Fall of Reggie": Realizing how much sympathy accident-prone Archie gets from the ladies, Reggie decides he'll take a few falls of his own... but will the girls "fall" for his scheme?
SCRIPT: Craig Boldman.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
"Prom Preparation": The perfect recipe: the annual prom plus the eternal love triangle equals a comedy of errors!
SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 25, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 7, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

ARCHIE & FRIENDS #129
"The Cartoon Life of Chuck Clayton" concludes with this latest installment. Tony Messina is a troubled kid, always getting into mischief. When he gets caught spreading graffiti in his neighborhood, his mother decides it would be best if Tony learned how to use his artistic abilities in a more positive way and enrolls him in Chuck's class. But there's a reason Tony's painted the walls in his town, and when Chuck finds out why, he decides to take action. What reason could Tony possibly have to deface property? Can Chuck find a solution beneficial to everyone? It's a poignant tale you won't want to miss, brought to you by children's educator Alex Simmons.
SCRIPT: Alex Simmons.
ART: Fernando Ruiz.
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 11, 2009
On sale on newsstands: March 24, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

ARCHIE DIGEST #252
"A Cheap Date Contest": The local paper is sponsoring a contest to see who can go out on the most frugal date - don't they realize "cheap dates" are a fact of life for Archie?
SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
"Mow Me Down": Archie enters his modified lawn mower in a special race for former clippers - after all, they get great "grass mileage!"
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents.
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 11, 2009
On sale on newsstands: March 24, 2009
88-page, full-color digest
$2.69 U.S.

ARCHIE'S DOUBLE DIGEST #197
"Write on, Dude!": For Archie, modern homework is more about text messaging than text books!
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
"2 of a Kind": Little Archie visits his grandparents' farm and meets all their new animals, including a monkey that's just like him!
SCRIPT AND ART: Dexter Taylor.
"Snack Attack Flak": While waiting for Veronica to get off the phone, Jughead and Archie eat all the appetizers prepared for Mrs. Lodge's fundraiser! Time for the merry munchers to make fast with alternate hors d'oeuvres!
SCRIPT: Bill Golliher.
ART: Pat Kennedy.
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents.
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 25, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 7, 2009
176-page, full-color digest
$3.99 U.S.

BETTY #179
"Those Nasty Budget Cuts": The kids want to hold a "green day" ecological event at the school, but Mr. Weatherbee worries about how much "green" it would cost to hold it!
SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
"Greeting Card": Betty gets a job with perks - literally - when she takes a position as a perky store greeter!
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
"Yo Taxi": Betty offers to chauffeur Archie around until he earns enough money to fix his own car. Hope she has a lot of gas money!
SCRIPT: Bill Golliher.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
"Dog Daze!": Canine chaos ensues when Betty agrees to dogsit a neighbor's seemingly well-behaved pooch.
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski.
ART: Stan Goldberg.
On sale at comic specialty shops: April 1, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 14, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

BETTY & VERONICA DOUBLE DIGEST #169
"Big Brother Sister is Watching!": When they find out she's working at the Pembrooke café, Betty and Veronica enlist Marcy to spy on Cheryl and her friends. That includes Archie, who's been spending an awful lot of time in Pembrooke since Cheryl moved back there... and getting quite cozy with Cheryl's friend Becky!
SCRIPT AND ART: Dan Parent.
"Dance, Dance, Dance!": It's time for "Dancing with the Students" when Riverdale High holds a charity dance marathon!
SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Bob Bolling.
"A Good Dressing Down": When it comes to work clothes, Veronica doesn't have a thing to wear!
SCRIPT: Kathleen Webb.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
"Promotion Commotion": Veronica finds Archie's job as a radio DJ impressive - until he promotes a hot female singing act live in the studio!
SCRIPT AND ART: Tim Kennedy.
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents.
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 18, 2009
On sale on newsstands: March 31, 2009
176-page, full-color digest
$3.99 U.S.

BETTY & VERONICA SPECTACULAR #88
"Geeks Rule": Betty and Archie get jobs on the "Geek Patrol," a group of computer tech-sperts seen in last month's VERONICA #193. To keep Betty from spending so much time with Archie, Veronica joins the squad, too... and it isn't long before she inadvertently unleashes a vicious computer virus! Co-starring computer gurus Dilton and Veronica's cousin, Marcy, this "geek-tacular" issue also features a "techie" quiz, internet tips, geek-chic fashions, and more!
SCRIPT AND ART: Dan Parent.
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 18th, 2009
On sale on newsstands: March 31st, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

JUGHEAD #194
"Unfair Fair": Reluctantly attending the Job Fair at his parents' insistence, Jughead has a plan: he'll scare away potential employers with tall tales about jobs he's botched. Will his ruse succeed, or will Jughead's fears of gainful employment become a reality?
"A Rude Awakening": Hot Dog tries everything he can to wake Jughead up for the grand opening of the "Rise and Shine" bakery. But which is stronger: Jughead's desire for sleep, or his massive appetite?
"Sandal Scandal": Ethel buys Jug a pair of ergonomic massage sandals which keep our lovable lazy-boy on his toes all day long!
SCRIPTS: Craig Boldman.
ART: Rex Lindsey.
On sale at comic specialty shops: March 18, 2009
On sale on newsstands: March 31, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

JUGHEAD & FRIENDS DIGEST #32
"Getting His Goat": Jughead and Archie really kick up a ruckus - literally - when they bring goats to the school's "Pet Day!"
SCRIPT: George Gladir.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
"Missing Link": Jughead waxes poetic about a few of his favorite things... and they all happen to be edible!
SCRIPT: Mike Pellowski.
ART: Tim Kennedy.
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents.
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
On sale at comic specialty shops: April 1, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 14, 2009
88-page, full-color digest
$2.69 U.S.

PALS-N-GALS DOUBLE DIGEST #130
"Snap Decision": Riverdale's resident prankster Reggie takes center stage in this hilarious tale of vanity, camera phones and text messages gone awry!
SCRIPT AND ART: Fernando Ruiz.
"Science Flair Drama": Raj Patel is back! This time, the aspiring filmmaker decides to help his sister Tina with her volcano exhibit at the science fair. Of course, he can't resist spending more time taping the event than Tina. How long before Tina's temper erupts?
SCRIPT AND ART: Fernando Ruiz.
PLUS: Other new and classic tales!
SCRIPT AND ART: Various talents.
BONUS: Puzzles, games and pin-ups!
On sale at comic specialty shops: April 1, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 14, 2009
176-page, full-color digest
$3.99 U.S.

SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH #101 PRESENTS - "YOUNG SALEM"
This reader requested story-line offers everyone's favorite magical cat Salem in a special 4-issue tale that harkens back to the days when he wasn't an enchanted feline, but an actual boy wizard! In this thrilling tale, you'll journey to Salem's original home on the Saberhagen Farm for the first time! You'll also meet his mother, Felicia, and scruffy Uncle Mort. The tale begins when young Salem finds a talking frog who was once a wizard. The thrills, spills and surprises build from there! Don't miss out on the start of this magical mini-series!
SCRIPT: Ian Flynn.
ART: Chad Thomas.
Fabulous first issue cover by Chad Thomas!
On sale at comic specialty shops: April 1, 2009
On sale on newsstands: April 14, 2009
32-page, full-color comic
$2.50 U.S.

Who's Working: "Dynasty"

We've done a sweep of the casts of "Santa Barbara" and "Dallas," so now we'll take a look at what the folks from "Dynasty" are up to nowadays, in terms of regular acting gigs ...

- John James
aka, Jeff Colby
Most recently: Eric Decker on "As the World Turns" last year

- Jack Coleman
aka, the second Steven Carrington
Now: the amazing and oh-so fun Noah Bennet on NBC's "Heroes"

- Diahann Carroll
aka, Dominique Deveraux
Most recently: Jane Burke on "Grey's Anatomy" in 2007

- Catherine Oxenberg
aka, Amanda Carrington
Most recently: Leandra Thames on "Watch Over Me" in 2007

- Emma Samms
aka, the second Fallon Carrington Colby
Most recently: A return to the '80s role of Holly Sutton Scorpio on "General Hospital" in 2006

- Leann Hunley
aka, Dana Waring Carrington
Basically now: Anna DiMera on "Days of Our Lives"

- Terri Garber
aka, Leslie Carrington
Most recently: Iris Dumbrowski on "As the World Turns" in 2007

- Wayne Northrup
aka, Michael Culhane the chauffeur
Most recently: the longtime Roman Brady on "Days of Our Lives" in 2006

- Ted McGinley
aka, Clay Fallmont
You might see him guest-hosting "Live With (Regis and) Kelly"; you might also see him in the occasional TV movie such as Hallmark's "Taking a Chance on Love."
Also recently: Charley Shanowski on "Hope & Faith" in 2006

- Stephanie Beacham
aka, Sable Colby
Most recently: Phyllida Oswyn on the UK's "Bad Girls" in 2006, plus that dancing gig

- Bill Campbell
aka, Luke Fuller
Most recently: Jordan Collier on "The 4400" in 2007

- Ray Abruzzo
aka, Sgt. John Zorelli
Most recently: John Sciarra on "Boston Legal" last year and Little Carmine Lupertazzi Jr. on "The Sopranos" in 2007

- Billy Dee Williams
aka, Brady Lloyd
Now: Touissant DuBois on "General Hospital: Night Shift"

- Tracy Scoggins
aka, Monica Colby
Most recently: Grace Neville on "Dante's Cove" in 2007

- Kevin Conroy
aka, Bart Fallmont
Now: Occasional voicework as the unforgettable Caped Crusader in "Batman: The Animated Series" and its many offshoots

- Kerry Armstrong
aka, Elena, Duchess of Branagh
Most recently: Louisa Atherton on "Bed of Roses" last year

BRBTV birthdays for March

- Jed Allan, the final and most commanding C.C. Capwell on "Santa Barbara," turns 72 on March 1.
- Catherine Bach, lovely Daisy Duke on "The Dukes of Hazzard," shares an exact birthday with Rick Edwards, hunky Jake Morton on "SB." They both turn 55 on March 1.
- Cassie Yates, who was Sarah Curtis on "Dynasty," turns 58 on March 2.
- Gordon Thomson , a BRBTV double-shot as Adam Carrington of "Dynasty" and the third and final Mason Capwell on "SB," turns 64 on March 3.
- Stacy Edwards, the sweet Hayley Capwell on "SB," turns 44 on March 4.
- Arlen Dean Snyder, who was Texas Energy Commisioner George Hicks on "Dallas" and Lt. Cobb on "Dynasty," turns 76 on March 5.
- Linda Gibboney, who played the first Gina DeMott (and really, the one we preferred for the role), turns 58 on March 7.
- Alice Hirson, who was Mavis Anderson on "Dallas" and was married to "Dallas" castmate Stephen Elliott (Scotty Demarest), turns 80 on March 10.
- Frank Welker, the voice of Isis the cat on "Batman: The Animated Series" and Ace the Bathound on "Batman Beyond," as well as the General Lee and Uncle Jesse's pet raccoon on "The Dukes" cartooon, turns 63 on March 12.
- Julia Campbell, the cute Courtney Caroline Capwell of "SB," turns a young 46 on March 12.
- Steve Kanaly, our own Ray Krebbs of "Dallas," turns 63 on March 14.
- Dennis Patrick, who was Vaughn Leland on "Dallas" and was also married to a castmate, Barbara Cason (Iris Porter), was born on March 14, 1918 and died on October 13, 2002.
- Patrick Duffy, our Bobby Ewing of "Dallas," is one of our St. Patrick's Day (how ironic) birthdays, turning 60.
- Lesley-Anne Down, who played Stephanie Rogers on "Dallas" and Nurse Ellena Corey on "Dynasty," is our other Patty's Day prize, turning 55.
- James L. Brown, that shrewd Det. Harry McSween on "Dallas," was born on March 22, 1920 and died on April 11, 1992.

Happy birthday to all!