www.falconcrest.org | Deutscher FALCON CREST - Fanclub / German FALCON CREST Fan Club
 

 

 
  

DFCF Meetings with the Stars
 
 
 
April 25, 2010, Royce Hall, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA:
A Tribute to REZA BADIYI — 60 Years of Film and Television

 
In this celebration of his 80th birthday, director REZA BADIYI was honored for his 60 years as an icon in the movie and TV industry, having directed more than 430 hours of television.
One of the highlights of the program was "Remembering Falcon Crest" when WILLIAM R. MOSES delivered the longest speech on behalf of his colleagues from the series and also read the birthday wishes to REZA that ROBERT FOXWORTH had sent in. Following speakers included series creator and executive producer EARL HAMNER, actresses ANA-ALICIA and JILL JACOBSON and first assistant director PAUL SIRMONS. DAVID SELBY, who was unable to attend, sent a highly emotional video message for REZA, which was the most applauded speech in the gala.
Other "Falcon Crest" related guests included actress MARGARET LADD, producer JOHN F. PERRY, hair stylist LAURA LEE GRUBICH, make-up artist KARL SILVERA, set costumer KAREN DAVIS, MARTHA MANOR (JANE WYMAN's stand-in), actor MICHAEL SWAN, who had portrayed Richard Channing in "The Vintage Years", and DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER among others.
"I have news for you. I'm not done yet. I want to work more," REZA BADIYI told a thrilled audience at the end of the program while receiving standing ovations.
The after-show party for VIP guests included a Persian buffet.
 

Some of the guests of honor gathering in the green room at Royce Hall:
JILL JACOBSON (third from left), REZA BADIYI with his wife TANIA HARLEY BADIYI (center), MICHAEL SWAN (Richard Channing, "The Vintage Years"), LOU FERRIGNO ("The Incredible Hulk"), EARL HAMNER (all back row, next to TANIA) and VIDA GHAFFARI (actress and TV host; second from right).
 

"Falcon Crest" group gathering in the green room at Royce Hall: PAUL SIRMONS, JANE HAMNER, ANA-ALICIA with her husband GARY BENZ, JILL JACOBSON and EARL HAMNER.
 
 
 
May 17, 2010, Studio City, CA:
KAREN DAVIS

 
Charming set costumer KAREN DAVIS, who was very close to JANE WYMAN, invited DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER for tea and cake and shared most interesting tidbits about shooting the show with him. She was a joy to talk to and also donated most helpful production documents to the fan club for further research.
The information provided by KAREN will be presented in the Behind the Scenes section soon.
 
 
 
May 18, 2010, Studio City, CA:
EARL HAMNER and WILLIAM SCHMIDT

 

As always, it was a great pleasure to see series creator EARL HAMNER.
After lunch at a very nice restaurant, BILL SCHMIDT, who had worked as writer, story editor and story consultant on "Falcon Crest" between 1984 and 1987, joined the meeting.
 
Photo: EARL HAMNER & WILLIAM SCHMIDT.
 
 
 
May 21, 2010, Westlake Village, CA: ROBERT L. McCULLOUGH
 
DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER also met head writer and supervising producer BOB McCULLOUGH (seasons 1 through 3) again. As always, he had great background stories to share.
These pieces of information will be used for the Behind the Scenes section soon.
 
 
 
May 22, 2010, Venice, CA:
MARIO MARCELINO

 
MARIO MARCELINO — or DR. MARIO PADILLA — met with DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER at "The Rose", a great coffee house near Venice beach.
Now a professor at Santa Monica College, MARIO, who played Mario Nuñez in seasons 1 and 2, still enjoys his artistic skills in the fields of acting and composing whenever possible. It was a pleasant conversation, remembering the DFCF interview for volume 3 of the "FALCON CRESTers Tell It All!" newsletter. Also an interesting discussion of various other topics came up.
 
 
 
May 22, 2010, Los Angeles, CA:
JILL JACOBSON

 

JILL JACOBSON, the talkative and warmhearted actress, who portrayed Erin Jones in seasons 5 and 6, kindly invited DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER to her birthday party at her home. They both enjoyed reminiscing about "Falcon Crest" and recalling the interview they had done in December 2008.
The catered affair with delicious food prepared by master chef BEN DiGREGORIO was attended by many people from the TV & movie industry, including actor PHIL BROCK, actress DYAN CANNON and TV host and actress VIDA GHAFFARI among others.
 
Photo: JILL JACOBSON & THOMAS J. PUCHER.
 
 
 
May 24, 2010, Burbank, CA:
CÁSTULO GUERRA

 

"Priscilla's Gourmet Coffee and Tea" on West Riveride Drive was the place for CÁSTULO GUERRA to meet with DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER. They have known each other from a previous interview for volume 3 of the "FALCON CRESTers Tell It All!" newsletter.
It was an enjoyable discussion with the actor, who guest-starred as Esteben Fierro in season 5 and who later played Cesar Ortega as a semi-regular in season 8.
 
Photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER & CÁSTULO GUERRA.
 
 
 
May 25, 2010, Toluca Lake, CA:
VICTORIA LaFORTUNE

 

VICTORIA LaFORTUNE met with DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER at the "Chez Nous" restaurant. She was impressed with the work of the fan club and enjoyed sharing interesting news, which will be published in an upcoming interview.
The extraordinarily charming lady, who served as associate and coordinating producer for the entire run of "Falcon Crest", has had an impressive career and is now Vice President – Production at ABC Studios.
 
Photo: VICTORIA LaFORTUNE & THOMAS J. PUCHER.
 
 
 
May 25, 2010, Sherman Oaks, CA:
MICHAEL REAGAN

 
MICHAEL REAGAN (son of JANE WYMAN and U.S. President RONALD REAGAN), who played the Del Oro concierge in season 6, met with DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER at "Sisley", an Italian restaurant, in Sherman Oaks and shared interesting facts about his mother and his job on the show. They will be presented in an upcoming interview.
 
 
 
May 25, 2010, Beverly Hills, CA:
ROBIN GREER

 

Attractive actress ROBIN GREER (Dina Wells, seasons 6 and 7) had a pleasant chat with DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER at "Nate'n Al Deli" on Beverly Drive. The interview will be published in the near future.
 
Photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER & ROBIN GREER.
 
 
 
May 26, 2010, Beverly Hills, CA:
JOANIE DIENER & PETER MYERS

 

JOANIE DIENER, the experienced music editor for the first seven seasons of the series, kindly arranged for DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER to interview PETER MYERS, who composed and orchestrated the score for many episodes, particularly during its first five seasons, at "Da Pasquale" on Little Santa Monica Boulevard.
Talkative and charming JOANIE had already met with THOMAS at the weekend before and is a joy to talk to. Equally talkative PETER had a great time sharing his memories with her and THOMAS. Their great stories will be published in upcoming interviews.
 
Group photo: PETER MYERS, JOANIE DIENER & THOMAS J. PUCHER.
 
 
 
May 26, 2010, Westlake Village, CA:
DANA KAPROFF

 

Having been in e-mail contact with DANA KAPROFF for some time, DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER finally met the music composer for an interview at the Four Seasons Hotel in Westlake Village.
In a pleasant conversation, DANA, who also served as one of the core composers of the series, gave an informative insight in his key music cues for the show between 1982 and 1986.
 
Photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER & DANA KAPROFF.
 
 
 
May 26, 2010, Sherman Oaks, CA:
MARY KATE McGEEHAN

 

It was a great reunion for two old friends — beautiful actress and acting coach MARY KATE McGEEHAN (Linda Caproni Gioberti) and DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER had a wonderful conversation during dinner at "Hamburger Hamlet" in Sherman Oaks.
 
Photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER & MARY KATE McGEEHAN.
 
 
 
May 27, 2010, Beverly Hills, CA:
HARRY BASCH

 

"The Polo Lounge" at the legendary "Beverly Hills Hotel" was the place to meet with HARRY BASCH, who played Vince Caproni in seasons 2 through 4.
The retired actor and travel journalist was great to talk to. Details about his work on the show will be available as an interview soon.
 
Photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER & HARRY BASCH.
 
 
 
May 29, 2010, Palm Springs, CA:
STEPHEN BLACK & HENRY STERN

 

Having been in close contact since their interview for volume 3 of the "FALCON CRESTers Tell It All!" newsletter, HENRY and STEVE, executive script consultants (seasons 2 and 3) and co-producers (season 8), kindly invited DFCF president THOMAS J. PUCHER to their Palm Springs home. Both writers' continued support of the fan club's work and their friendship is most appreciated.
The stay turned out to be the great finale of a great research trip.
 
Group photo: THOMAS J. PUCHER, HENRY STERN and STEVE BLACK with their dog, FIONA.