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'''Richard A. Colla''' is the director of the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] pilot "[[Saga of a Star World]]" | '''Richard A. Colla''' is the solely-credited director of the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]] pilot "[[Saga of a Star World]]." | ||
He | == Early Career == | ||
Colla began his career performing in high school theater, even though his family encouraged him to become a doctor—and, when asked, would tell others that he was going to be a doctor. Following high school, he became a student at [[w:Marquette University|Marquette University]] in acting, along with actor [[w:John Walsh|John Walsh]] for four years, plus another "couple of years" getting his Master's degree. He then enrolled in [[w:Yale University|Yale University]] to obtain his doctorate, believing that he would be a theater instructor but was discouraged by the political nature of education.<ref name="galtv">{{cite_web|url=http://www.galactica.tv/battlestar-galactica-1978-interviews/richard-colla-galactica.tv-interview.html|title=Richard Colla GALACTICA.TV interview|date=29 April 2008|accessdate=2 June 2019|last=Egnor|first=Mike|format=|language=}}</ref> | |||
Colla first met producer [[Leslie Stevens]] in [[w:New York|New York]] when performing as an actor in Stevens's play ''Bullfight'' in the 1950s, which he "really loved as an actor."<ref name="galtv"/> | |||
Colla relocated to [[w:California|California]], acting in ''[[w:Days of our Lives|Days of our Lives]]'' after being introduced to that series' executive producer by actor [[w:Mac Carey|Mac Carey]], even though he had designs on directing.<ref name="galtv"/> | |||
Colla then shifted from acting to directing, and directed a variety of short films to use as "Calling cards" in order to acquire his first directing gig (and his [[w:Directors Guild of America|Directors Guild of America]] card<ref>Per the Galactica.TV interview, "You have to get three directors to sign your application. So I went to find Leslie [Stevens] because I asked him to sign my application [because] I really appreciated his work. So I knew him, and at the time I don't think I even knew that Glen [Larson] was involved in the project."</ref>) in [[w:Don Siegel|Don Siegel]]'s 1966 half-hour series ''[[w:The Legend of Jesse James|The Legend of Jesse James]]'' for [[w:Twentieth Century fox|Twentieth Century fox]].<ref name="galtv"/> | |||
Colla became a contract director for [[w:Universal Studios|Universal Studios]] under [[George Santoro]], and was offered work on ''[[w:McCloud|McCloud]]'', where he met future "[[Saga of a Star World]]" cinematographer [[Ben Coleman]]. | |||
== ''Battlestar Galactica'' == | |||
In 1977, Colla was recruited by [[George Santoro]] to direct the pilot.<ref name="galtv"/> | |||
After reading the script, he believed it to be a "comic book" insofar as both the story and characterizations were concerned. Despite assurances from Stevens that these areas of opportunity would be addressed, Colla felt that the deficiencies were never addressed.<ref>{{cite book/sswa|48}}</ref> | |||
Due to creative differences with [[Glen Larson]], Colla left half-way through shooting "Saga of a Star World," and the remaining scenes (along with re-shoots) were directed by [[Alan J. Levi]]. | |||
== Post-''Galactica'' == | |||
He also directed ''[[MemoryAlpha:Star Trek: The Next Generation|Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' episode "[[MemoryAlpha:The Last Outpost|The Last Outpost]]", which first introduced the [[MemoryAlpha:Ferengi|Ferengi]]. | |||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{ext-ma}} | {{ext-ma}} | ||
*[http://www.galactica.tv/battlestar-galactica-1978---interviews/richard-colla-galactica.tv-interview.html Richard Colla interview | *[http://www.galactica.tv/battlestar-galactica-1978---interviews/richard-colla-galactica.tv-interview.html Richard Colla interview at Galactica.TV] | ||
==References== | |||
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div> | |||
[[Category:A to Z]] | [[Category:A to Z]] | ||
Revision as of 03:04, 3 June 2019
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| Role: | Director | |||
| BSG Universe: | Original Series | |||
| Date of Birth: | ||||
| Date of Death: | Missing required parameter 1=month! ,
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[ Official Site]
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| IMDb profile | ||||
Richard A. Colla is the solely-credited director of the Original Series pilot "Saga of a Star World."
Early Career
Colla began his career performing in high school theater, even though his family encouraged him to become a doctor—and, when asked, would tell others that he was going to be a doctor. Following high school, he became a student at Marquette University in acting, along with actor John Walsh for four years, plus another "couple of years" getting his Master's degree. He then enrolled in Yale University to obtain his doctorate, believing that he would be a theater instructor but was discouraged by the political nature of education.[1]
Colla first met producer Leslie Stevens in New York when performing as an actor in Stevens's play Bullfight in the 1950s, which he "really loved as an actor."[1]
Colla relocated to California, acting in Days of our Lives after being introduced to that series' executive producer by actor Mac Carey, even though he had designs on directing.[1]
Colla then shifted from acting to directing, and directed a variety of short films to use as "Calling cards" in order to acquire his first directing gig (and his Directors Guild of America card[2]) in Don Siegel's 1966 half-hour series The Legend of Jesse James for Twentieth Century fox.[1]
Colla became a contract director for Universal Studios under George Santoro, and was offered work on McCloud, where he met future "Saga of a Star World" cinematographer Ben Coleman.
Battlestar Galactica
In 1977, Colla was recruited by George Santoro to direct the pilot.[1]
After reading the script, he believed it to be a "comic book" insofar as both the story and characterizations were concerned. Despite assurances from Stevens that these areas of opportunity would be addressed, Colla felt that the deficiencies were never addressed.[3]
Due to creative differences with Glen Larson, Colla left half-way through shooting "Saga of a Star World," and the remaining scenes (along with re-shoots) were directed by Alan J. Levi.
Post-Galactica
He also directed Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Last Outpost", which first introduced the Ferengi.
External links
- Richard A. Colla article at Memory Alpha, the Star Trek wiki.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Egnor, Mike (29 April 2008). Richard Colla GALACTICA.TV interview (backup available on Archive.org) (in ). Retrieved on 2 June 2019.
- ↑ Per the Galactica.TV interview, "You have to get three directors to sign your application. So I went to find Leslie [Stevens] because I asked him to sign my application [because] I really appreciated his work. So I knew him, and at the time I don't think I even knew that Glen [Larson] was involved in the project."
- ↑ Altman, Mark A.; Gross, Edward (2018). So Say We All: The Complete, Uncensored, Unauthorized Oral History of Battlestar Galactica. Tor Books. ISBN 9781250128942, p. 48.