Jonathan

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Jonathan HarrisJonathan LancasterJonathan LauJonathan Snipes

Jonathan
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Portrays:	Lucifer
Date of Birth:	November 06, 1914
Date of Death:	November 03, 2002
Age at Death:	87
Related Media
		@ BW Media
[{{{site}}} Official Site]
IMDb profile

Jonathan Harris (born Jonathan Charasuchin on November 6, 1914, died November 3, 2002) was an American actor.

Harris is known by Original Series enthusiasts as the actor who provided the voice of Lucifer, the IL-series Cylon. He may be best known as the villainous Dr. Zachary Smith in the TV series Lost in Space.

Born in the Bronx, New York, the son of Jewish emigrés from Russia, Harris first worked in a pharmacy, and later earned a pharmacology degree at Fordham University. Changing careers to pursue acting, he changed his name and learned to speak without a strong Bronx accent. In 1938, he married Gertrude Bergman.

Harris first appeared on Broadway with Heart of a City in 1942, and went on to perform over 100 plays. His first appearance on television was in 1948, which was then a live media, and he went on to make his film debut in Botany Bay in 1953.

Harris returned to TV, appearing in one of his most recognizable roles on The Third Man as Harry Lime's manservant.

In 1965, he first appeared in Lost in Space in the role of Dr. Zachary Smith. Although Smith was originally cast as a one-shot character, after a stellar introductory appearance, he was made a recurring member of the cast. Smith's relationship with the show's robot is particularly memorable as are his endless putdowns of the machine with such phrases as "You bubble-headed booby!" That Harris would later portray a robot in Battlestar Galactica is an obvious irony.

Harris reprised his role as Dr. Smith in the one-hour TV special Lost in Space Forever in 1998. However, unlike his costars in the original show, he declined to make a cameo appearance in the motion picture version of Lost in Space that was released later that year.

Although occasionally called upon for cameos and guest shots as villains (usually of the Dr. Smith type) Harris spent most of the remainder of his career as a voice actor, appearing in TV commercials as well as animated television and features.

Harris passed away on November 3, 2002 at the age of 87, in Encino, California. He is survived by his wife, Gertrude, and their son, Richard.

Notes

• Harris is the only Lost in Space cast member to appear in the Original Series. However, Anne Lockhart, daughter of Harris' Lost in Space co-star June Lockhart, later came to join the series as Lieutenant Sheba.

External links

• Jonathan article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
• Jonathan Harris - Master of Entertainment fan site
• L.A. Times Obituary archived on Promised Planet

Jonathan
Role:	Set Decorator
BSG Universe:	Re-imagined Series
Date of Birth:
Date of Death:	Missing required parameter 1=month! ,
[{{{site}}} Official Site]
IMDb profile

Jonathan Lancaster is the head of set decoration for the Re-imagined Series.

Career on Battlestar Galactica

Lancaster appears in a video blog episode with David Eick on the sets of Pegasus prior to their debut.

New Caprica Set Design

Lancaster played a crucial role in designing and executing the New Caprica sets that appeared at the end of Season 2 and the beginning of Season 3.

Initial Design Concept

The initial design for New Caprica was conceived as "Tent City," a hodgepodge settlement that reflected Baltar's character as someone with good plans but poor execution who constantly protected himself and shifted with changing circumstances. The settlement was designed to look like it had been assembled from materials salvaged from the Fleet's ships.

Production designer Richard Hudolin designed the overall concept, working collaboratively with Lancaster, art director Douglas McLean, and construction coordinator Chris Claridge. The team used Middle Eastern references to nomadic peoples and how they lived in tents, while Hudolin incorporated modern architecture design for what he called "a more feasible system of housing." The team researched how people actually lived in desert environments and how the military would run such a settlement, reflecting Galactica's status as a military-run organization despite having a President.

Avoiding the "Old West" Look

One major design concern was avoiding an "Old West" or Civil War tent camp appearance with rows of identical tents. To address this, the construction team built aluminum structures down the main roadway as a central concourse. Since the settlement was built from ships made of metal alloy, these structures served as protection from the weather and created a more distinctive visual aesthetic. Lancaster compared the design theory to Vancouver's telephone poles and alleyways with power running through them.

Practical Challenges

The tents were set in sand, but underneath was asphalt from previous film productions, requiring the use of small jackhammers to create holes and drive three-foot pieces of rebar into the ground to secure the tents. All the tents used were authentic 1940s-era Second World War military tents.

Evolution Between Seasons

In Season 2, New Caprica featured more of a marketplace atmosphere, with rebellion against Baltar depicted in episodes 19 and 20 ("Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I" and Part II). In Season 3, the focus shifted to what the Cylons were doing. The Cylons' attempts to create a perfect society ironically caused heavier rebellion, making the city actually worse than before their intervention.

Set Components

The main road area was referred to as the "marketplace," serving as a trading center where people could obtain food and supplies. The industrial area included the market, a school tent (where President Laura Roslin worked as a teacher, reverting to her pre-apocalypse profession), union hall, build site, and other facilities. Additional amenities included a water tank and a bath tent, harking back to Old West traditions.

Cylon Detention Facility

The Cylon detention center structure was originally designed to be new housing for New Caprica. When the production resumed for Season 3, the structure needed to reflect that the Cylons had been present for four to eight months and had started with good intentions of trying to live with humans and improve conditions. The building was designed to show an accomplishment that both humans and Cylons could view positively, before it became the detention center seen in the aired episodes.

Scale and Logistics

The sheer scale of New Caprica presented significant challenges. The set included:

• 26 tents measuring 16m × 16m
• 10-12 tents measuring 32m × 16m
• 2 tents measuring 60m × 16m
• 2 separate tents measuring 20m × 10m covered in tarps, used as base of operations to hold hardware

The logistics of getting tents erected, markets built, and specific everyday life themes incorporated—including food, religion, and bathing facilities—required bringing in truckloads of equipment. Lighting was essential to give the set life.

Filming Location Challenges

The New Caprica set was built on the Richmond Sand Dunes location. During the previous season's filming, the ground was frozen from cold weather. The production was fortunate not to encounter heavy rain during construction, which Vancouver is known for. Lancaster noted that while it was a great set, it was very demanding to work on, and he was happy when filming concluded.

Unrealized Visions

Given more time and budget, Lancaster envisioned extending the aluminum trussing around the streets, adding more definite roadways, and incorporating additional long tents as an industrial park. These ideas were discussed at the beginning of Season 3 but were not pursued due to cost considerations.

Other Work

His other work includes the film Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.

References

Production History

This is a listing of all people who have worked on the various comic books related to any of the Battlestar Galactica series.

Dynamite Entertainment

Salvatore Aiala

Salvatore Aiala is the colorist of the re-imagined Galactica 1980 comic book mini-series.

Dennis Calero

Dennis Calero is a cover artist who created covers for Battlestar Galactica: Ghosts 1 and Battlestar Galactica: Ghosts 4.

Dave Dorman

Dave Dorman is an artist working on covers for Dynamite Entertainment. Dorman has done covers for all five of the comics based on the Original Series.

Romulo Fajardo Jr.

Romulo Fajardo Jr. is a colorist whose works include the Battlestar Galactica: Ghosts series.

Marc Guggenheim

Marc Guggenheim is the writer of the re-imagined Galactica 1980 comic book mini-series.

Jackson Herbert

Jackson Herbert is a penciller whose works include the Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero series.

Brandon Jerwa

Main article: Brandon Jerwa

Brandon Jerwa is a writer whose works include Battlestar Galactica: Ghosts, Battlestar Galactica: Pegasus, Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero and Battlestar Galactica: Zarek.

Jonathan Lau

Jonathan Lau is a cover artist whose works include Battlestar Galactica: Pegasus, Battlestar Galactica: Origins, and Battlestar Galactica 5 through Battlestar Galactica 8.

Lucio Parrillo

Lucio Parrillo is the cover artist for the re-imagined Galactica 1980 comic book mini-series.

Joe Prado

Joe Prado is a cover artist who provided covers for Battlestar Galactica 9 through Battlestar Galactica 12.

Cezar Razek

Cezar Razek is the illustrator of the re-imagined Galactica 1980 comic book mini-series.

Stephen Segovia

Stephen Segovia is a cover artist for various issues, including Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero and Battlestar Galactica 9 through Battlestar Galactica 12.

Stejpan Sejic

Stejpan Sejic is a cover artist for various issues, including Battlestar Galactica: Zarek, Battlestar Galactica: Season Zero and Battlestar Galactica 5 through Battlestar Galactica 8.

Jonathan
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Role:	Composer, Electronic Musician, Sound Designer
BSG Universe:	Caprica and Re-imagined Series
Date of Birth:
Date of Death:	Missing required parameter 1=month! ,
Nationality:	USA
Official Site
IMDb profile

Jonathan Snipes is an electronic musician, composer, and sound designer who collaborated with Bear McCreary on music for Caprica and the Re-imagined Series. Known primarily for his work with the electronic duo Captain Ahab and the experimental hip-hop group clipping., Snipes brought innovative electronic elements to the Battlestar Galactica musical universe.

A childhood friend of Bear McCreary, Snipes contributed custom synthesizer sounds, sample libraries, and source music that helped establish the distinctive sonic identity of Caprica's futuristic nightclub environments. His most significant contribution was the song "Was Love," performed by his band Captain Ahab during a pivotal robot dance sequence in the episode "Gravedancing."

Background

Snipes grew up in a musical household in Riverside, California. His mother played violin while his father worked extensively with the local opera company. When his father died when Jonathan was eight, he left behind an extensive classical music collection that became Snipes' primary musical education.

The pivotal moment in Snipes' musical development came at age 11 when he discovered Philip Glass's 1985 "Mishima" soundtrack, which he described as "the first in a long litany of records that broke my brain." This discovery led him to electronic pioneers like Wendy Carlos and eventually to experimental electronic music.

Snipes received his undergraduate and graduate training in theater sound design at UCLA's School of Theater, Film, and Television, where he has taught since 2008. Unable to achieve proficiency with traditional instruments despite studying violin, trumpet, bagpipe, piano, and voice, computers became his musical salvation, allowing him to compose without technical barriers.

Captain Ahab and the Caprica Connection

In 2001, Snipes formed the electronic duo Captain Ahab with Jim Merson, specializing in what they termed "ravesploitation" - a DIY approach to jumpstyle and electropop. The band's aesthetic proved perfect for Caprica's futuristic nightclub environments, with their music appearing throughout the series' V-Club scenes.

Bear McCreary, recognizing the perfect fit between Captain Ahab's sound and Caprica's technological society, commissioned multiple tracks for the series. As McCreary noted: "His music is a perfect fit for this club, so you'll hear lots more Captain Ahab songs in the V-Club in the coming episodes."

Musical Philosophy

Captain Ahab's approach was deliberately anti-academic and inclusive, rejecting genre elitism and focusing on making music that demanded active listening rather than serving as passive background. This approach, which they called "The End of Irony," emphasized sincere engagement with styles often dismissed as "guilty pleasures."

Collaboration with Bear McCreary

The professional relationship between Snipes and McCreary grew from their childhood friendship based on shared love of movie soundtracks. McCreary began incorporating Snipes' electronic expertise into his film and television scores, with Snipes appearing "more often in my scores than perhaps any other single musician," according to McCreary.

Beyond Caprica, this collaboration extended to Eureka, Wrong Turn 2, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Trauma, and the final episode of Battlestar Galactica. Snipes contributed custom synthesizer sounds, sample libraries, and electronic elements that enhanced McCreary's orchestral approach.

Working Methodology

McCreary would provide Snipes with specific scenes or creative briefs, allowing him broad creative freedom within narrative constraints. For the famous U-87/Philomon dance sequence, McCreary simply showed Snipes the scene and asked for something with a "high-tech feel" suitable for a robot dance.

"Was Love": Crafting Emotion for Artificial Consciousness

Snipes' most significant contribution to Caprica was "Was Love," the Captain Ahab song featured in "Gravedancing" during the U-87 robot's/Zoe-R's dance with Philomon. The track served as a poignant exploration of artificial consciousness and emotional connection.

Snipes approached the composition with remarkable sophistication, explaining: "I watched the scene a lot before and while writing. I wanted to create something that felt both new and nostalgic, and wasn't quite a love song, since this relationship has some pretty ridiculous barriers to overcome." He crafted a song that was "half about a failed relationship, and half about the end of the world that's still beautiful and tender."

The track features additional musicians John W. Snyder on piano and David Rothbaum on guitars, demonstrating Snipes' ability to integrate live instruments with electronic programming. The song's structure builds from simple, repetitive foundations with sudden dynamic shifts and textural changes, maintaining emotional complexity while fitting seamlessly into the Caprica universe's aesthetic.

Technical Innovation and Sound Design

Beyond songwriting, Snipes served as a crucial technical collaborator, providing Bear McCreary with custom synthesizer sounds, sample libraries, and electronic elements. His studio contained extensive analog synthesizer collections including a Prophet V, Oberheim SEM, SH-101, Arp Odyssey, Korg MS-20, and various drum machines and samplers.

Snipes' technical approach combined cutting-edge digital tools with vintage analog equipment. He developed custom Max/MSP patches over 10+ years for live performance and composition, while maintaining a software-agnostic philosophy. His modular synthesizer systems provided unique sounds that enhanced McCreary's orchestral arrangements.

His sound design philosophy drew from musique concrète principles, finding musicality in "broken technology" and unwanted sounds. This approach proved particularly effective for science fiction scoring, where unusual timbres could suggest technological or otherworldly environments.

Musical Style

Snipes' compositional style represents a unique fusion of experimental electronic techniques with accessible melodic content. His work combines classical music foundations from his childhood with underground electronic culture, academic sound design training, and film scoring expertise.

His use of analog synthesizers reflects deep knowledge of electronic music history, drawing comparisons to pioneers like Wendy Carlos, John Carpenter, and Italian horror film composers like Goblin. However, his approach remains distinctly contemporary, incorporating modern production techniques and responding to current technological possibilities.

Other Projects

clipping.

Snipes is a founding member of the experimental hip-hop group clipping., formed with rapper Daveed Diggs and fellow producer William Hutson. The group has received critical acclaim for albums including "There Existed An Addiction To Blood" (2019), which explores horror themes through innovative production techniques.

Film Scoring

Snipes has established himself as a significant figure in horror film scoring, with notable works including Starry Eyes (2014), Room 237 (2013), The Nightmare (2015), and A Glitch in the Matrix (2021). Critics consistently recognize him as a standout composer in the horror genre, with his analog synthesizer approach drawing comparisons to John Carpenter's influential work.

Legacy and Critical Reception

The critical reception of Snipes' work consistently emphasizes his innovation and technical skill. His collaboration with Bear McCreary has been consistently praised, with McCreary stating: "I owe Brendan and Snipes big time for coming through with such amazing compositions. They are both incredibly important components of the BSG / Caprica musical universe."

The official Caprica soundtrack release prominently features "Was Love," indicating the track's importance to the series' musical identity. While his direct contributions were limited to a handful of tracks, Snipes' work helped establish the distinctive sonic identity that separated Caprica from its predecessor while maintaining thematic continuity with the broader BSG universe.

External Links

• Official Jonathan Snipes website
• Jonathan Snipes Bandcamp
• Captain Ahab Bandcamp

References

For direct navigation sans the tabbed navigational aid above, please select one of the following article links:

• Jonathan Harris
• Jonathan Lancaster
• Jonathan Lau
• Jonathan Snipes