I used to love The X- Files. No, that is not exactly true. I used to live and breathe and adore The X- Files. Mulder was the love of my life,
Scully was my role model,
The Alien Bounty Hunter
made me feel the first naughty feelings that my pure, innocent love for Mulder would not allow, and the flip-flopping loyalty of Assistant Director Skinner kept me on my toes. Trust No One, indeed.
I lived for Sunday nights and eventually, when the series went into syndication I watched it every night before bed and strangely, no matter how scary or upsetting the episode had been only moments earlier, I slept like a baby. I eventually figured out that it had something to do with Mulder's voice. His soothing, droning monotone, especially during his frequent narrations, relaxed me and lulled me to sleep. I would miss that if I had not found a man in real life with the same ability. I used to have recordings of Mulder's voice on my cellphone for when I could not sleep. Now, I have my Mr.Cham, whose well-educated and well-read mind jumps tangentially from one subject to another with such quiet passion and ease, requiring only my appreciative ear to keep him going, and with his soft, yet rumbling baritone and enveloped in his big bear arms I am rocked to sleep in a warm cloud of brilliant blather. (I love you💗)
My love for the series was so intense that I even registered as an Extra hoping to have an opportunity to work on the show, to go to the studio, see the sets for Mulder's apartment,
the office,
etc. to be in the milieu, and perhaps get a glimpse of David or Gillian.
(my mother met Mitch Pileggi
in Whole Foods once and was completely smitten by him! She LOVES big men. We have that in common, if nothing else, so why does she not love my Mr.Cham?)
Being naturally shy and not harboring any "artistic inclinations" as TCC loves to say, it was a huge step for me to even go to Central Casting to register, have my picture made, call the work line every day (which I did diligently for two seasons before there was a rush call, I was chosen and I grabbed my garment bag and flew out the door knowing that this could be my only chance. And then I got stuck in 5 o'clock traffic on the 405 Freeway. (If you are from California, you know that was a disaster) My little dream was about to end. I burst into tears. "Stop that!," my mother said. "You'll ruin your makeup." (Not the comforting words I was hoping for). I did not care about that. I was heartbroken.
Miraculously, we made it to 20th Century Fox Studios. I was a little late but they were just stopping for dinner and that saved me. Two experienced extras took me with them to the sound stage next door where there were tables and chairs set up and then we went out the huge back doors where a catering truck sat in a permanent sort of alcove and we were given Chinette paper plates plates with salmon fillets, wild rice and fresh steamed green beans,
(I did not take pictures on the set, we were not allowed, but I wanted to give you a visual
Mmm, that looks so good. I think we will have that for dinner tonight.)
There was coffee, iced tea, and lemonade to drink but I was a milkaholic then and a motherly extra found a carton for me in the cooler. I saved the milk carton and one of the green beans as my memorabilia of The X-Files. I think I still have them somewhere. Another time, we had grilled steak with mushrooms, wild rice, and zucchini. Yummy. After dinner, the wardrobe supervisor came around and decided that he did not like what I was wearing. It was my first time, and apparently I had not chosen the right dress for a "hospital visitor" but luckily they have you bring two other choices and he liked my blue dress and asked me to change but did not tell me where.
When I was dancing we sometimes changed in the wings with our mothers or nannies or our teacher helping us to do so discreetly. My mother had left me and I did not want to keep anyone waiting so after a bit of looking around I found Scully's apartment bathroom and changed in there! What fun! It was empty except for the mirror (her bathtub was out in the hall for some reason and Mulder's apartment and the office sets were already gone because the episodes were filmed out of order and they had already finished the ones that included those sets. That was another disappointment).
We worked (sat) on the hospital set for hours and I never saw anyone from the show and when the episode aired a few months later "Audrey Pauley", neither I, nor any of the other twenty some extras were in it and that scene was not used. I found in my brief career as an extra (13 jobs), that this was common, especially on The X-Files on which I worked three more times, "Improbable", "Jump the Shark" and "Release" and never made it on screen. I thought perhaps it was because my hair was the same shade as Gillian's (was at the time) but there are episodes with other redheads so that was not it. Other extras were blase about it. Most were doing it for the money. I was surprised at how many were not fans of the show and a few had never even watched it! That was the only reason I was there! I remember the catering more than anything else. Of the shows I did, they definitely had the best food, except for dessert, or the lack thereof. I think it had something to do with Gillian. Only melon slices
and Halloween sized candy bars
were made available at the Craft Service table. No doughnuts, cake, cookies, ice cream, or cheesecake which were available on every other set I was on.
"Jump the Shark" was probably the best experience because The Lone Gunmen (Bruce Harwood, Tom Braidwood and Dean Haglund)
were there that day and they were fun during actual filming, but I wondered why the three of them looked rather down in between times, until I saw the episode. I will not "spoil" it for you in case you have not seen it yet.
On "Release" I was supposed to be a "Detective". It was a hot day and when I checked in, one of the makeup ladies waved me over to the makeup trailer to touch up my makeup. "What are you today?" ,she asked while she got expertly removed the mascara from under my eyes. I explained the hot car and she recommended a different brand of mascara. She was right. "Well, " I said. "I'm supposed to be a Detective but..." At that moment one of the P.A.'s (production assistants) walked through and looked at us through the mirror.
For some reason she had taken an instant dislike to me on my first time there, but to this day I still cannot imagine why. "No, she said. "We're going to make you an upscale perpetrator." Then she walked out. The makeup lady looked at me questioningly. "What was that about?" "She does not like me." I said. "Why not, honey?" "I have no idea." But all four times that I worked on the show, twice at Fox and twice on location, that P.A. looked daggers at me the entire time I was there. When I told My Mr. Cham this story years ago, he had a theory but I will not repeat it here because I think his opinion is prejudiced by his feelings for me. But I do think that it is wrong to dislike someone you do not know who has never given you a good reason to do so.
I did not really enjoy being an extra. I think it takes a certain kind of personality. But it was an interesting experience and I thought that I would share it with you.
I suppose my romance with The X-Files began to falter when the series moved from Canada to California. It did not seem like the same show. The constant sunny brightness of Los Angeles and the surrounding areas simply could not compete with the atmospheric weather driven visuals of Vancouver. Then David Duchovny's departure at the end of season seven not only left a void, but the rush to provide closure for Mulder's fruitless search for his sister Samantha ,which was already irretrievably muddled, brought it to an abrupt and wholly unsatisfying conclusion. Frankly, I would have rather the story line had been left unresolved, especially since it could have been given a better treatment after David Duchovny's inevitable return.
The deaths of several characters beginning with The Well-Manicured Man, (John Neville)
( In the feature film The X-Files : Fight the Future -which I hesitate to admit that I watched 228 times over two years because unlike a lot of fans of the series, I loved it), The Alien Bounty Hunter (it was not him, it was one of his clones clearly shown to us in the following scene aboard the spaceship but for some ridiculous reason, Brian Thompson was never seen again!) I was hoping that the character would return eventually, I mean if The Smoking Man can survive being thrown down a flight of stairs in his wheelchair, not to mention a missile attack and Jeffrey Spender can be shot point blank in the face and live to tell the tale, then certainly an Alien Bounty Hunter with shape-shifting capabilities could pop up again! But alas,no.
Then the rest of the syndicate members and Cassandra Spender, and then
Alex Krycek, (Nicholas Lea)
The Lone Gunmen (I always hoped that their deaths had been faked and they were in witness protection somewhere, I need them to fix two broken laptops!)
And what of Gibson Praise?
Last seen on the series finale, he is perhaps in witness protection, but we may never know.
I watched the six episodes of Season 10 with great anticipation and great disappointment although not as disappointing as the dismal and disturbing second feature film "The X-Files: I Want to Believe", which made "The Shining" look like a pleasant vacation in the snow. (I hated it! " I Want to Believe", not "The Shining", although it is not exactly a "fun" time at the movies, but then it does not pretend to be.)
I had hoped that the unanswered questions from the series and movies would finally be .....answered, but they were not. Instead, it veered off into silly directions, introduced new characters that were not interesting or likable and quite frankly, I felt that Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny were merely phoning it in. (My first cell phone was a Nokia just like Mulder and Scully's in FTF. I even put Mulder's name on my mother's telephone number so that when she called me, the screen said -MULDER. I loved that. Until I heard her voice, instead of his.)
There is an old saying : "You cannot go back." It is very true. I do not even want to watch reruns of the original series and the six new episodes that began last Wednesday night (an odd choice) ,have done little to tempt me to watch. I would rather pack up my kitchen for our upcoming move and the thought of having to do that seemed overwhelming a few months ago. But at least that will be a step forward into a hopefully bright and exciting future instead of dwelling in the past.
Fans are upset by the "revelation" that The Smoking Man (William B. Davis)
is the biological father, at least in part, of Scully's son William ,who we were told was Mulder's (that always seemed far-fetched to me). I was not surprised in the least. It made perfect sense from a character who has kidnapped, murdered, lied, corrupted at every opportunity and taken great pleasure in making Mulder and Scully's and everyone else's lives a constant turmoil of fear and danger and sadness. Did you really expect him to be nice now?
I suppose I am in the minority of those who watched Mr.Davis' cleverly written Season 7 episode "En Ami" and had my suspicions about what really happened on Smoky and Scully's little road trip which seemed to be confirmed with Scully's pregnancy confession on the season finale back then. Now, the series has reached back to that episode for inspiration (fifteen years too late) and presumably the next five episodes will revolve around the search for William (daintily stifled yawn).
Even David Duchovny thought that story line was boring when he wrote the Season nine episode, "William" which had the baby placed for adoption with a couple in Wyoming and that was the end of that. I am not interested in watching what will undoubtedly be the standard angry teen, teary-eyed Scully and bored to tears Mulder wasting five hours of my time.( I have forty-seven herb and spice jars to wrap in bubble wrap!) When did television become so dull, when did the audience's feelings and desires become an after thought and who is the "brainchild" behind all of these reunions, reboots, reimaginings, rehashings, and retreads? ( I do not really want to know. I have 23 pot holders and oven mitts to organize by size, color, and holiday.)
But in all seriousness, it does make me sad. Never again will I feel the way that I used to about any of it and that is a shame. But then, there are many things that I used to "love" that I do not anymore. We change, we grow up, we move on and now apparently, so do they. Time was, we could go back and visit the happy memories of our youth and they were right where we left them and it was a reassuring reminder that some things did not change and that we knew where to find them them. Television has changed that, and not for the better. I have not owned one for years. When hour shows were reduced to forty-eight minutes and half hours to twenty-two , padded out with repetitive and annoyingly loud commercials sometimes six in one station break, I gave up. I stopped going to the movies too when people seemed more interested in their refreshments than in the movie and a devoted credit reader like myself was practically swept out of her seat by the very rude, broom -wielding teen readying the tiny multi-plex "theater" for the next showing. Film credits get longer every year. Why, if you are not expected or even allowed to read them?
A friend loaned me their laptop nine years ago so that I could see what all the fuss was about. When it came time to return it, I was miserable and I wanted one of my own which my new employer bestowed upon me that Christmas. I have worn out two since then and that same (and present) employer replaced it right away, knowing how lost I would be without it. And then his exploded and I replaced his. Except for the loss of our beloved Windows Live Movie Makers, I think we are content. With the laptop I have music, movies, television, radio, this blog, my virtual farm, books, shopping, and Google right at my fingertips. It seems perfect except when it blows up and you lose everything but I am trying not to put all of my eggs in one basket this time and I would suggest that you do not do that either.
I do not vent often but it has been a long, exhausting year and I would have welcomed a little paranormal diversion (Calgon, take me away!).
Scully's hair for this season. I do not like it.
I loved it like this, and almost cut my then 33" long hair because I was that crazy about the show and Gillian Anderson's hair, makeup and wardrobe. I came to my senses after everyone I asked about it said the exact same thing to me ...........
" Are you crazy????????????????"
I MUST have had temporary insanity, but thankfully it passed , because if I had done it, I would have regretted the loss of those thirty-three inches and the fourteen that have grown since then, thanks to my herbalist's special hair growth serum used by myself, my mother, several friends and finally My Mr. Cham, (who reluctantly agreed to try it a few months ago.) I think he had envisioned the same abuse that poor Ricky got from Lucy
but it is nothing like that and he is quite willing to have his twice weekly treatments with me now.
Gillian with Charles Nelson Reilly from one of my favorite episodes "Jose Chung is from Outer Space" (with a cameo by Alex Trebek. I love "Jeopardy". I took the test once but I did not do well. That was years ago and I would be in another age group now and I have thought of trying again, but other things must come first.)
Another favorite , "The Unnatural" written by David Duchovny and featuring The Alien Bounty Hunter( Brian Thompson).
Adorable picture. I used to play SuperPokePets online before it was discarded. I had three pets and I made an X-Files scene with my male bunny dressed as Scully in Mulder's office complete with Pencils in the ceiling. I made another with the cornfield, white domes and plenty of bees. I would love to have shown you but sadly they were lost with about 100 other photos when my first laptop died.
Did anyone buy the Mulder or Scully doll? I almost did until I found out that his clothes did not come off. Calm down, I only wanted to be able to change his clothes. I was never a Barbie doll girl. That was my sister. I had a stuffed Chimpanzee (and now I have a real live Monkey Man. Kidding.Sort of.)
that went everywhere with me, wore clothes and I was stopped more than once because she looked pretty real. Apparently I was a big "Beverly Hillbillies" fan and someone found it for my mother for me for Christmas when I was six. I was a "special" child, as my mother puts it. I also had a Herman Munster puppet, but that is another story.
There were no "Thunderbirds" dolls or puppets/marionettes when I was a child but apparently there are now and as My Mr.Cham told you in the Christmas post, I will finally have my very own Virgil Tracy sometime in April. I am very excited. And according to the website, his uniform does come off! Oh, Mr.Cham! What have you done?
So, I do not know if I will ever re-visit The X- Files. At present, I am very wrapped up with THE GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW on Netflix and trying new recipes! Guess who my guinea pig is?
I am almost through with the fourth season. According to IMDb, there were seven so I am trying to find the other three but so far I have not had any luck.
Oh, well. I guess I will have to be satisfied with alphabetizing my cookbooks. Luckily, that will not take too long.
I only have three.
Tess🌷
