Some actors are lucky enough to strike gold not only once, but twice. John Rhys-Davies is such an actor. I’m more inclined to be enamored by his role in Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull, in which he plays Sallah. He spoke such famous lines as “Indy, why does the floor move?”, “Oh my friends! I’m so pleased you’re not dead!”, and in referring to the ark, “Death has always surrounded it. It is not of this Earth.”
Others would more appreciate his role as the heavily bearded Gimli in the Lord of the Rings trilogy of films. In any case, these are the two standouts for sure amidst a filmography that is longer than Cousin Eddie’s Christmas list.
Many of his productions, particularly the early ones, were British TV series of which I’m not familiar. Others sound like rather unsophisticated roles that he occupied himself with between major iconic characters. For example, John Rhys-Davis somehow became the 8th actor whom I’ve met from the somewhat low-budget film Waxwork, in which he played the part of a werewolf. He did however star in one of the James Bond films, The Living Daylights, as Bond’s unlikely ally Leonid Pushkin, and in Victor/Victoria as Andre Cassell, both films of which are kind of biggies in my estimation.
From my perspective, his prices were too high to go for both an autograph and photo op (the only one of which was available was the professional variety for $50) when he appeared at the Indiana Comic Con on April 30, 2016.
Paying $50 for a photo op doesn’t necessarily mean that the celebrity has to be nice, but in this case it worked out just fine. I didn’t have much time to chat with him, but I received a very warm greeting and heartfelt smile as I moved in for the pose.
Clearly I don’t like the way that many of these encounters are moving toward the brief and very expensive photo op, but if it has to be this way, at least its nice to feel like you’re appreciated.
Celebrities of the 2016 Indiana Comic Con will continue…
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