Gerald Home

Yes, Michal and Anna, see you very soon! It's great to see how much the Polish Garrison has grown since we last met. There are many members I haven't met yet, so it will be good to meet them, and old friends too, of course. I must go now and practise singing "Sto Lat"! Gerald

Hello my friends! I will be doing 3 panels at Celebration Europe II. Here's the first one: http://swce13.mapyourshow.com/5_0/sessions/sessiondetails.cfm?ScheduledSessionID=18A8CA I hope to see some of you there! Gerald

Marek, I've just discovered the reply you left nearly 2 months ago. Sorry I haven't replied before now. Yes, we met at Celebration Europe - and at Dagobah 2007 too, I think. I recognize you in the photo with Hugh Quarshie. This is a small world: I know the guy in the Nordic Garrison who now has your Ackbar costume! You ask an interesting question: the main difference between acting for theatre, TV and film is the size of the performance: - in the theatre, the actor's performance must be big: his voice must carry from the stage to the back of the theatre. His actions must also be big. - TV acting is much smaller. The voice is softer and quieter, and actions and facial expressions should be small. - film acting is the most difficult of all, because the actor's face will be seen on a huge cinema screen, and so he must do very little with his face if it is filmed in close up. The actor must let his eyes show what he's thinking, without moving his face too much. I could say that when acting for the cinema camera, the actor shouldn't do any acting, and that he should just let the camera see his thoughts - but that's not quite true: the acting in this case should be very small, and kept inside, not big like in the theatre. I hope that makes sense to you! All the best. Gerald

Some of you have asked to see my 501st HM trading card, so here it is: http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/2909/gh501sthmtradingcardf.th.jpg http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/8076/gh501sthmtradingcardb.th.jpg I hope you like the little joke on the back of the card! Cheers. Gerald

Hello everyone, I hope you all had a good Christmas. skywalker, thanks very much for your message. I've looked at your profile, but there's no name there - so I don't know if we've met each other! Have we? Yes, this winter in London is the coldest I have ever known. I don't know why, but it feels colder here than in countries with a lot of snow. I think you're right - it must be the wind here that makes it feel so cold. Where do you live in London? Actually no, it wasn't stressful working on the 2 movies: that's what actors like me live for - to work on big productions with talented directors and actors. Don't forget, I've been an actor for 33 years and I've done a lot of acting work since RETURN OF THE JEDI, so I'm always ready when new, exciting acting jobs come along. I agree with you, DARK WATER is a brilliant horror film, but don't expect CHATROOM to be like that. CHATROOM is a psychological drama, not a horror film. Did you all see the pictures of my new 501st Honorary Member trading card on the 501st HM forum? I'll give one to all of you next time we meet! Here's wishing you all a very Happy New Year! Gerald

Hi Everyone, Greetings from freezing cold London! I want to make sure you know my news - my work, Star Wars and personal (health) news. It's all good news, don't worry! You can read all about it in a letter I sent to TheForce.Net which was posted online a few days ago. Here's a link to it: http://www.theforce.net/latestnews/story/Holiday_News_From_Gerald_Home_135688.asp The letter is quite long, so I hope you can understand it. If not, perhaps someone could translate it into Polish for you. I really hope you read it - and I hope you all take the little bit of health/medical advice that I give! Here are 4 pictures to go with my letter: 1. LONDON BOULEVARD poster 2. Me, in costume, at the LONDON BOULEVARD location 3. CHATROOM poster 4. Me, in costume, with director Hideo Nakata, after I finished filming my scene http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/7706/londonboulevardposter.th.jpg http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/3034/ghlb0004crpdsml.th.jpg http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/814/chatroomposter120.th.jpg http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/7677/6x472dpi.th.jpg Here's wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I hope all your imperial dreams come true in 2011! Gerald

I just saw a video of StarForce 2010, and Cezary/Sizar, you did a fantastic bow when Dave Prowse went onto the stage! It was a real actor's bow. Congratulations! Gerald

Hello Everyone, I hope you all had a good time at StarForce 2010. Thanks to those of you who sent me photos and links. It looks like you had a great time with Dave. I knew you would, after all - he IS Darth Vader! I'm really glad that you got him to Poland at last. Again, I'm sorry I couldn't be there with you, but my trip to America had already been planned. I have posted some photos from the Chicago convention, showing me with other actor guests. They're in the In English section. Hope you enjoy them. All the best. Gerald

Here are some photos taken at the convention I went to in Chicago recently, showing me and other guests. Bonnie Piesse, who played Aunt Beru in the Prequels: http://img696.imageshack.us/img696/3444/ghbp2sml.th.jpg Doug Wangler, who is Quinlan Vos in the EU. He's a great guy and he told me he wants to go to a convention in Poland one day: http://img801.imageshack.us/img801/3011/ghdw2sml.th.jpg Richard Kiel, who played Jaws (with metal teeth!) in the James Bond films The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker: http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/1055/ghrichardkielsml.th.jpg As some of you know, after the event I went to stay with my friend Star Wars author Troy Denning (Tatooine Ghost, the Dark Nest Trilogy, Fate of the Jedi are some of his SW books). He organised a meeting in Minneapolis with Star Wars Essential Guides author Daniel Wallace and Star Wars fans from the Minnesota Force, many of whom are 501st members. Here we all are: http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/9855/ghtddwmnforcesml.th.jpg It was a great trip and I met very many Star Wars fans and saw lots of America which I hadn't seen before. Everywhere I go, I show SW fans photos we took at Obi-Wan Kenobi Street, and people are always amazed to hear that such a street exists. In fact, I always talk a lot about my visits to Poland. People in other countries like to hear about them. As I have told you many, many times, Poland and Polish SW fans have a special place in my heart. Cheers! Gerald

Thanks Mariusz. Good luck in your new armour! You're right - a large part of Chicago is Polish, so I'll go to the Polish district and have some pierogi and bigos! Gerald

I hope you all have a great time at StarForce in Bydgoszcz. I'm sorry I can't be there with you, but as you know I'll be in Chicago this weekend. Please give my very best wishes to your Commander-in-Chief, Dave Prowse! Have fun and Happy Trooping! Gerald

My photo is very similar to yours! My post is in the Tricon topic I started in the Eventy section. Here's the link to the thread: http://www.flc.h2.pl/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1508 I look forward to seeing you all again too. It's always nice to meet new Star Wars fans from new territories. All the best. Gerald

Hello Czech Outpost, Make sure you see the photo I've just posted of you in the Events section. All the best. Gerald

Dear Polish Garrison, I want to say a very big THANK YOU for looking after me so well at yet another event in Poland - my 4th event there. You know I love going to your country. I don't know why that is. Maybe it's because you Poles and we Irish have similar backgrounds and souls. Whatever the reason, I always feel very at home in Poland, and love spending time there. I know I'll be back many more times, as a tourist if not as a Star Wars guest. Thank you Cezary for the kind words you said about me to the organisers. Thank you Adam and Daniel for being such good helpers. And thank you Darek for being my "link" to Tricon. Thank you for all the organising and driving you did, and for showing me Krakow and many other places. Your care went way above the call of duty, and I want you to know that I appreciate everything you did for me. Thanks to you, this trip to Poland was extra special. Thanks also to the organisers and sponsors. I don't know all their names, but could one of you, Darek maybe, thank them all for me? Thanks. Surprisingly, I didn't get any photos taken with the Polish Garrison this time, but I did take one of Piotr during his excellent vacuum demonstration. It's not very clear, but here it is as a souvenir: http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/3392/sdc10304.th.jpg And I also got a photo with the Czech Outpost. It was great to meet them, and I'm sure they will grow and grow and be a garrison one day: http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/5760/sdc10303i.th.jpg Next stop Germany. I leave for there at 4 o'clock tomorrow morning! Here's the event I'm going to: http://www.movie-days.com/ Bye for now. I look forward to the next time we meet. Always remember: I am a friend to all of you in Polish Star Wars fandom, and will always help you any way I can. Gerald

But you guys in Poland have spectacular events too! Dagobah 2007 was a very special event, and don't forget our visits to Obi-Wan Kenoki Street, the only street in the world named after a Star Wars character! The Polish Garrison is smaller than some other garrisons, yes, but it's just as impressive as the bigger ones! Gerald

I want to say thank you very much to the Polish Garrison once again for taking such good care of me in Poland. Garrick Hagon and I had a fantastic time in Wroclaw, and we're very grateful to you guys in the PG for everything you did for us. As always, the members of the PG worked very hard, and were most impressive during the whole convention. I salute you all. I know some of you travelled from Wroclaw to Lodz and trooped at an event there the same weekend - I've seen photos and videos of that, and it looks very impressive too. Poland is very lucky to have such dedicated, hard-working Troopers. In particular, on behalf of Garrick and myself, I want to pay special tribute to Maciej Maska Skawinski. He was our link to the organisers, and he worked very hard, along with Cezary, negotiating with the organisers for us before the convention. Thanks to both Cezary and Maciek for that. Maciek is the perfect link between the PG and Star Wars actors: his English is good, and Garrick Hagon, Paul Blake, myself, and many other Star Wars actors enjoy talking to him and working with him. He's a very valuable member of your team. Let's not forget that the first visit of a Star Wars actor to Poland happened because of Maciek: it was as a result of him asking to meet me in London in December 2006 - just 2 and a half years ago. We met, and he said I'd be invited to Poland one day. He kept his promise: later that year, he contacted me with my invitation to Dagobah 2007, which was organised so brilliantly, as we all know, by Cezary. I sometimes think that if it wasn't for Maciek asking to meet me, and us meeting in London - Poland might still not have had any visits from any Star Wars actor. So I, other Star Wars actors, and Star Wars fans in Poland have a lot to thank Maciek for. Thank you, my friend! And congratulations to Arek, the new CO. He did an excellent job and I wish him well in his new post. I know he'll be great. Finally, below are 2 photos of mine as a souvenir of Dni Fantastyki Wroclaw, and here's a link to lots of photos of the event, which was sent to me by Piotr of the Cultural Centre Zamek (there are some photos of Cezary's May 10 event there too): http://www.zamek.wroclaw.pl/CMS/kalendarz_imprez/dni_fantastyki.html May the Force be with the Polish Garrison! Gerald

Hey Mariusz, I'm glad to see the card arrived ok. Hope to see you all again soon. Gerald

Hello Everyone in the Polish Garrison. Here's a photo of me with my latest treasures: http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/7938/polishgarrisonpatchessm.th.jpg Thanks very much to TD-1408, Mariusz, for sending them to me. All the best to all of you. Gerald

Mariusz, I just discovered your video on the Lightsabre report about Dagobah. It's excellent, with several photos I've never seen before, including one of Tomek eating an ice cream......Hmmmm.....no one bought me an ice cream in Gorzow. Here's the report again: http://www.lightsabre.co.uk/celebration3/dagobah_2007/dagobah2007htm 3manko. Gerald

Cezary, Maciek, and everyone who was at CE - here's a video to bring back some happy memories: Gerald

Hello Everyone, I hope you don't mind that I've started a new topic, but I think the subject of this topic deserves a section all of his own: Cezary "Sizar" Zolynski, DZ-6426 and SL-6426, Commanding Officer of the Polish Outpost. As 2007 draws to a close, I want to pay tribute to Cezary, in what has been a fantastic year for the Ootpost - and for STAR WARS in general in Poland. Cezary's contribution to this success has been enormous. The excellent convention Dagobah 2007 would not have happened without him, and he was central to its success. His hard work, enthusiasm and professionalism were stunning, and I wish all other STAR WARS conventions could be like this. It was a true convention, and it gave joy not only to the participants and visitors, but also to the wider community of Gorzow Wielkopolski, where the event took place - not to mention the publicity the visit to the uniquely-named Obi Wan-Kenobi Street brought to Grabowiec. I'm not surprised to hear that Cezary has been honoured with his inclusion in the Encyclopedia of Gorzow City. Congratulations to him for that. And of course my visit to Poland would not have happened without Cezary. For that, I will be eternally grateful. I know I shouldn't single out anyone else for praise, but in this case I must, because he was also instrumental in organising my visit: the Outpost's superb XO - TK-2791, Maciek "Maska" Skawinski. Thanks Maciek. Somehow my thanks to Cezary were left out of Kuba's excellent new interview - my fault, sorry - but Kuba has now corrected my mistake. Here's the link again: Polish version: http://www.starwarsy.pl/opowiadania/wywiad_home.htm English version: http://www.starwarsy.pl/opowiadania/wywiad_home_eng.htm Finally, Cezary - I thank you, and I salute you. And I invite everyone who knows him to join me in calling out, "Hail Sizar!" Gerald Friend of the Polish Outpost

Well done Guys - I'm so happy to see you get the recognition you deserve. Cezary - all your hard work was worth it! Lukasz - all those English lessons weren't wasted! You write like a native. I'm SOOOOO proud of you all. Gerald Friend of the Polish Outpost

Hi Everyone, I thought you might like to see this interview I did with Star Wars Turkey. (Don't worry, it's in English.) In it, I talk a bit about Dagobah 2007 and the Tessek figure you guys gave me. Notice the photo at the top of the page: it was taken by Friend of the Polish Outpost Lukasz "Miagi" Mlotkowski at Torun Castle: http://yildizsavaslari.com/inceleme/geraldhome/index-eng.html All the best. Gerald

First of all, Mariusz/Lysy -what's wrong with BLACK BALSAM? If you don't like the taste of it, you can clean your shoes with it. (That's a joke, by the way!) .......... Jonny, I've just discovered something........one of the photos on my website is yours - the one with Wojtek's photo. I'm so sorry I didn't ask your permission before it was posted: I had so many photos, it was difficult to keep track of who they belonged to. Apologies once again, and I hope you don't mind me using it. .......... Do you all know that various sites have posted reports about Dagobah 2007? Lucasz/Miagi has posted links to them on the Imperial City Online homepage. .......... Have a good time at Polcon. All the best. Gerald Friend of the Polish Outpost

Here be more photos from Dagobah 2007, me hearties. Translation: Here are more photos from Dagobah 2007, my friends. (I've seen Pirates of the Caribbean too, Mr Miagi). My photos are now on my website - click onto the last 2 thumbnails: http://geraldhome.dr-maul.com/gallery.htm I hope you like them. Thanks to Robert/BountyHunter, Lukasz/Miagi, Maciek/TK-2791, and Mariusz/Lysy for your help with the photos. I owe each of you a large drink next time we meet. Would someone please send this link to Dorota, and ask her to send it to Wojtek and his parents? I'd like them all to see the photos of Wojtek. By the way, I know Wojtek's surname, but I didn't use it in the captions, to respect his privacy. If you think I should include it, please tell me. All the best. Gerald Friend of the Polish Outpost