"There`s nobody like Tim Thomerson. Seeing the laconic, square-jawed actor in any number of science fiction/action/adventure movies and TV shows, you immediately know what you`re in for; a witty and tough, wisecracking hero who can take a punch, save the universe and still get the girl.
Best known for his role as timetravelling cop Jack Deth in the Trancers movie series, he`s appeared alongside everyone from Gene Hackman and Mel Gibson. He`s travelled through time, to other planets and other dimensions. He`s stopped rampaging robots and monsters without even breaking a sweat.
And his winning streak ended only when he went face to face with a certain Warrior Princess and "Xena kicked my ass," he laughs.
Thomerson was born in San Diego. and worked a variety of jobs. "I had no intention of being an actor - I wanted to play football. When that didn`t work out, I worked as a ski patrolman. After the military, I began working at the Shakespeare Festival and I got bitten by the acting bug."
WHEN XENA CALLS
His biggest genre role lately has been as a semi-regular(!) on Xena: Warrior Princess. As Meleager The Mighty, he`s a formerly great warrior who has turned into a drunken mercenary. He meets Xena when he does a very poor job of protecting Gabrielle`s village in The Prodigal.
"I`m not really a bad guy in that," Thomerson grins. "Meleager the Mighty, is actually just a wayward alcoholic who Rene(sic)/Gabrielle saves, because I was a famous guy at one time. She hires me to save her sister`s village, I mess that up and then, thanks to Xena and Gabrielle, I get a chance to redeem myself!"
He loves working with the adventurers. "Lucy Lawless is a class act; a cool, funny lady. Rene is very sweet, too," the actor raves. "I`ve done several Xenas and am waiting to hear if I`ll be doing another. In my second, Lucy, Rene and I fight bad guys. I love Xena because you get to do big John Wayne fist-fights and swordfights.
"My fight with Lucy was great fun; she beats me up! She`s very handy at hand-to-hand combat. It`s all `Movie Karate` and stunt fighting, but it`s huge fun! Xena`s production company (Renaissance Pictures) make it easy on the actor. You go down there, do your job and work hard."
The only thing he didn`t like was Meleager`s wardrobe. "It was the most uncomfortable costume in the world," Thomerson laughs. "The show shoots in New Zealand, where it`s always summertime. On that side of the world, there`s a hole in the Ozone layer... Right under that hole is New Zealand, with the hottest sun in the world.
"And underneath this sun, I`m wearing spandex pants, as well as leather shoes and a top made out of rubber, leather and metal!"
"When you do Xena, you fly down to New Zealand in a 12-hour flight. They give you a couple days to get acclimated, you have a `table read` with all the actors and the director. You go to work the next day and put in a really strong day. You laugh, have fun and swordfights," he says happily. "Before Xena, I never did a sword fight in my life!"
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