OnlineHost Copyright 1995 America Online, Inc. OnlineHost Good evening! Tonight, OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, star of "Highlander: The Series." Jim plays Joe Dawson, a member of the Watchers, an age-old secret organization that has been observing the activities of Immortals--people who can die only by beheading--for centuries. OnlineHost The Immortal that Dawson is assigned to Watch is none other than Duncan MacLeod, the Highlander of the title. Growing up in St. Louis, Jim Byrnes learned to play blues guitar at age 13 and continues to play today. An eclectic individual, he studied for the priesthood in a seminary and was even a professional shepherd. OnlineHost In addition to being a musician, acting always seemed to strike a chord, and he studied the craft at Boston University and St. Louis University. Known and admired by millions of viewers for his role on the CBS series "Wiseguy," Jim is an inspiring individual as well as a gifted actor. He lost both legs in an automobile accident on February 26, 1972. OnlineHost Fifteen years later, he landed his pivotal "Wiseguy" role as Lifeguard on the same day. Jim has also appeared in numerous television series and motion pictures, including "The Hat Squad," "Omen 4," and "The Hitchhiker." Welcome, Jim! Jim Byrnes Good evening, everyone! Thanks for being here! And as they say in Scotland... Mind your head! OMNI Muse We're glad to have you! LOL! Now there's a good place to start. :) We have lots of questions, so let's start right in on them. Our first question comes from RIKUS SOTH: Question Do you feel that Highlander contributes to the growing violence in America today? Jim Byrnes Quite frankly, no... I think that the show, although there's considerable action on it... if anyone really watches and paays attention to what we're doing... I honestly think we make a statement about the consquences of violence... and I don't think what we do is gratuitous... That's my opinion. OMNI Muse Horwitz538 asks: Question what happens to all those headless bodies? Jim Byrnes This is a question at we've had and talked about in story meetings and read-throughs... and there has be no definitive answer... although my suggestion, which has been taken with a good deal of support among the Highlander... cognoscenti, is that after the Quickening... the body disintegrates... and the police have found scenes of Quickenings, where things have exploded... but have found no body. OMNI Muse A less gruesome question from LYDIAGAEBE: Question Ah, Jim Byrnes on the virtual side of the CRT! What was your first artistic passion? Music or acting? And when will you play at the JAZZ CAFE? Jim Byrnes My first memory took place in a house that we moved out of when I was three... years old, and country music was on the radio and I was running around in a circle... singing at the top of my lungs. I was about two and half years old... I worked professionally as an actor before I did so as a singer... and I find them equally challenging and rewarding and I would hate to have to make... a choice. As far as the Jazz Cafe, it's just a matter of scheduling... We start to shoot on June 28, so I'll have to see my schedule... before I can make any commitments. OMNI Muse RIKUS SOTH asks the question on everyone's fingers: Question Will Highlander be renewed for a fourth season? Jim Byrnes We're starting the fourth season on June 28... They're calling it "Cycle 4," apparently.... We've got an opening party happening, and the invitation says... Highlander, the Series, Cycle 4. OMNI Muse Aduty asks: Question Hey Jim loved the way you and Peter Wingfield played off one another. Will we see more of the Joe/Methos team in season 4 Jim Byrnes I certainly hope so... I really had a good time with Peter. He's an excellent actor... and a swell guy. We had a real rapport... and I really enjoyed what we were able to do, and I know that Methos... is real popular and will likely return... Whether we'll get to work together is the real question. OnlineHost For those newcomers in the audience: OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, who plays Joe Dawson on the popular syndicated TV series "Highlander: The Series." Jim is answering questions about the show, his role, and his career. If you have any questions about how the auditorium works, please feel free to contact our usher, OMNIStar, by instant message. OMNI Muse Venice730 would like to know: Question Will you do any episodes without your prosthesis? Jim Byrnes I don't know... but I know that there's an episode this season where we're going to address... my disability and where it came from and its consequences... That will be quite early in the season... and I'll thnink that'll be good... I did a lot of episodes of "Wiseguy" without my prostheses. OMNI Muse MaryAnnMc asks: Question I really like your singing and playing. Will we get to see more of your music on Highlander next season? Jim Byrnes I certainly hope so... I've got a new album that's going to be released in September... and you may see Joe singing and I'm hoping to use some of the songs from my new project... on the soundtrack, and I think that's gonna happen. OMNI Muse From JamesB1995: Question What will season 4 bring.....what has been planned for it so far? Jim Byrnes Well, I don't want to give away too many secrets... but in our season opener, MacLeod returns to Scotland and I accompany him.. and we had a ball in Scotland, I must say. I have family there... and it's like going home for me... We're also going to find out more about my initiation into the Watchers... and how I learned about the Immortals and became a Watcher... and I know that Richie will be back... They've got a number of storylines, but I don't like to get too far ahead of them myself... and of course we're also going to see Adrian Paul's directorial debut... He's directing the first episode, which is exciting. For him, anyway. :) OMNI Muse Venice730 asks: Question Are you going to the con in Denver? Jim Byrnes I hope so... That's a little ways in the future, but if I can make it, I will... It's definitely my plan. OMNI Muse For all you fans out there, we have information on the Highlander Fan Clubs... (as well as pictures!) in our OMNIPurpose Library. Keyword: OMNI > File Libraries.... > OMNIPurpose Library. Now, Tuaidh asks: Question What stars may be making appearances on Highlander this coming season? Jim Byrnes I'm sorry, I really can't tell you... I'm sure they've got some tricks up their sleeve... I just don't what they are. I'm sure they'll have surprises in store. They'l be surprises to me, too, which is part of the fun. OMNI Muse RumbellyM asks: Question Just wondering how long have you been doing the voice for Taco Bell commercials? OnlineHost For those newcomers in the audience: OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, who plays Joe Dawson on the popular syndicated TV series "Highlander: The Series." Jim is answering questions about the show, his role, and his career. If you have any questions about how the auditorium works, please feel free to contact our usher, OMNIStar, by instant message. Jim Byrnes It's not TAco Bell... It's Arby's, and I've been doing it for a year... Actually, I *did* do some TAco Bell commercials. I'd forgotten about them... They might be airing. But I'm not *the* voice for them as I am for Arby's. OMNI Muse LYDIAGAEBE would like to know: Question Were you a science fiction and fantasy fan before you got your Highlander role? Jim Byrnes To a certain degree, particularly historical fantasy stuff... Just because of my own genetic background, my ancestral makeup, ... I've always had an enthusiasm for Celtic mythology and all sorts of mythology, really... OMNI Muse Law Borg asks: Question I thought you were great in the Wiseguy! Do you think a movie will be made of this show? Jim Byrnes I have heard rumors... I saw Ken Wahl on "Larry King," saying he's heard rumors... I think it would be great. It would be great to see how we all are... this many years down the road. And I keep in touch with Ken and with Jonathan. OMNI Muse Venice730 asks: Question How old are you and are you married and have any children, what are their ages? Jim Byrnes I'll be 47 in September... I am in a relationship that's gone on for 12 years... We have a daughter who will be 7 in September... I have a 25-year-old daughter who lives in St. Louis... and two stepkids, kids I raised. One is 24 and lives in SAn Francisco... and the other just turned 21 and lives here in Vancouver... As for my past relationships, you can't tell the players without a scorecard. ;) OMNI Muse LOL! Tuaidh asks: Question When will they kill off Dawson so HE can become immortal too? :) Jim Byrnes You never know... Anything's possible. OMNI Muse Rmrey asks: Question What is it like to work with Adrian Paul? He seems very intense. Jim Byrnes Adrian *is* very intense... He's a nitpicker and he's brilliant and a lot of fun.... And a good friend. I like the analytical approach to things that he has... He's a Gemini and I'm a Virgo, so we have Mercury in common. OMNI Muse AnnieRu would like to know: Question I liked the fact that your character on Wiseguy had a love life, a career - all without mention of "disability". Was that your doing? Jim Byrnes It was a joint effort... It was something that they wanted to do. I think the original concept of the character... was to do some of that, and as things progessed, my relationship... with the production company allowed that. We were both very proud of that... I think it's neat that we've done it on this show as well... It's not like "Joe, can I help you?" It's part of life... It's part of everyone's life, whether they have a disability or not. OMNI Muse A question from Venice: Question Why was Dawson so willing to shoot that woman in the back and do you do your own stunts? Jim Byrnes I do my own stunts... when I can. Obviously, there are some things I can't do. But I like to do my own stunts... and I didn't want to shoot that woman in the back in any way, shape, or form... But it was like if you had the plans for D-DAy in World War II and were going to show... them to Hitler. It was something I used for motivation. Believe me,... I thought about that. OnlineHost For those newcomers in the audience: OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, who plays Joe Dawson on the popular syndicated TV series "Highlander: The Series." Jim is answering questions about the show, his role, and his career. If you have any questions about how the auditorium works, please feel free to contact our usher, OMNIStar, by instant message. OMNI Muse Ahakeem would like to know: Question Hi! I have a qeustion. How did you get the snake sword in the show, and Conner Mcloud have it in the movie at the same time? Jim Byrnes I think this is a question for Adrian. I haven't had a sword in the show... They don't let us mortals have swords. ;) OMNI Muse LOL! We have an interesting question from Trigo: Comment Jim, do you have a favorite single malt? What is it? Jim Byrnes It depends on the day and the situation... I can say that I truly enjoy the McAllan... and I also enjoy the Bhunnaibhain... and another smooth whiskey is Oban ... and another is Laphroig, which have a medicinal quality... Sometimes, that's exactly what you need... About 12 years ago, I was on the Isle of Skye... and sampled a number of locally distilled products which weren't marketed... which were extremely good. OMNI Muse A question from BANKS2: Question Good evening, Jim! I admire your character Joe Dawson. The obvious question, how much like Joe are you? Jim Byrnes I'm a lot more like Joe now than when I first joined the show... When the character was first introduced, they didn't know if it was going to fly... They were looking for a direction with it, and they took some of my qualities... the music, the street smartness, etc., and they molded Joe more toward me... and Joe is able to be a lot like me and I a lot like Joe... but I don't know if Jim Byrnes could shoot someobody in the back... But that's showbiz, isn't it? :) Let me also congratulate all the NJ Devils fans... The Devils beat the Philly Flyers. The game just ended. OMNI Muse A question from A Q Source: My apologies. That one was from KatyGale. :) Question Do you find any similarities between the characters of the "Lifeguard" and the "Watcher?" Jim Byrnes Yes, I do... The main similarity is empathy, or a compassion... that they both share. When I was the LIfeguard, I had my charge, Vinnie Terranova... much like I have a charge, Duncan MacLeod, to be obsessed with... It's not just compassion, it's more like an obsession... There is a real connection, I think, between them. OnlineHost For those newcomers in the audience: OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, who plays Joe Dawson on the popular syndicated TV series "Highlander: The Series." Jim is answering questions about the show, his role, and his career. If you have any questions about how the auditorium works, please feel free to contact our usher, OMNIStar, by instant message. OMNI Muse *This* question is from A Q Source: Question What is one of your favourite episodes? Jim Byrnes I'd have to say "The Cross of St. Antoine," I guess for obvious reasons... I got to do actual dramatic acting, and I got to play music... and I really enjoyed the finales this season... that we shot in Paris. I really enjoyed them, and when I saw them... I thought that they were very good. But I really find something in... all the episodes, particularly the ones I'm not in. I enjoy the show... and I think if people pay attention, we're always making a point about... good and evil and the choices one makes. OMNI Muse Trigo asks: Question Jim, tell us more about the scene in Finale 2 when Vemas decks you? How did the filming go? Jim Byrnes It went fine... I've been decked before... And like I said, I love doing stunts. People have to remind me sometimes... that I have a disability. At some point, reality reminds me. I get caught up in things... And I thought the actor who played Vemas was really terrific. He's a gospel singer... originally from Grenada, and lives in London now. We had a good time working together... I thought it was a great performance by him. OMNI Muse FDBunnies asks: Question What do you think of the discrimination of the entertainment industry against actors with physical disabilities? Jim Byrnes Well, it's a reflection of society... When there is discrimination... There was a 15-year period between the time I lost my legs... and the time I got the job on "Wiseguy" where I worked just twice as an actor.... I made my living as a musiciasn during that time... It's changing now, and I don't blame anybody... I don't feel put-upon any more. Since I got a couple of breaks... I feel that my gait kind of works in my favor. It maybe makes me more interesting... than another actor that might come in. Basically, you go with the flow.... Or in the words of Slim Harpo, "You use what you got to get what you need." OMNI Muse A question from CBaker1046: Question At the end of Finale, Part II as Duncan, Amanda, Joe and Methos are walking away from the Eiffel Tower Duncan says, "That was a big one.". Was that line in the original script or was it ad libed? Jim Byrnes I couldn't tell you... The scripts change so much... During that scene, as we were rehearsing it, as Duncan was approaching it... and we were timing it out to make the distances right.... Nopw, you've got to remember this is the end of the season and everyone's tired... Adrian says, "If I was really walking out of the Eiffel Tower... --which he was. You can use your imaginations from there. :) OMNI Muse YostSilk asks: Question Have there been any major cast changes for next season? Jim Byrnes In a word, no... Richie's back... Anne Lindsay's back for a couple of episodes... Charlie's going to be in for at least an episode... Apparently, Adrian's going to be back. :) OMNI Muse From Ezk 25 17: Question Do you have a special swordsman that trains Adrian Paul and the other "immortals" every time you tape an episode? Jim Byrnes Oh yeah... The first two years, it was a wonderful guy named Bob Anderson... who had an incredible history in Hollywood. But Bob is English... and he didn't want to be away from home. So last year, we had a new guy names... F. Braun McAsh. He's very different from Bob, but a very knowledgeable guy... and a good friend of him and a fellow Vietnam veteran, although he's a Canadian... he's a guy I love working with, and a brother to me OMNI Muse From Gibralto: Question I like the TV show better than the movies. Any talk of a movie with the syndicate cast? Jim Byrnes There's been talk but talk is cheap... OMNI Muse KatyGale asks: Question Do you follow any of the online boards? Jim Byrnes No, I don't. I just got a whole bunch of new equipment... and I probably am going to get online soon... but I need to set up my office again. Actually, I'm interested in getting some .... online services, because my lawyer is an avid online guy... so I probably will get online when I have time. OnlineHost For those newcomers in the audience: OMNI Online is pleased to present Jim Byrnes, who plays Joe Dawson on the popular syndicated TV series "Highlander: The Series." Jim is answering questions about the show, his role, and his career. If you have any questions about how the auditorium works, please feel free to contact our usher, OMNIStar, by instant message. OMNI Muse AnnieRu asks: Question Have you enjoyed the fan conventions you've done? It's Question great for us to be able to meet you! Jim Byrnes Yes, I have... And it's great for *us* to be able to meet you! OMNI Muse Gibralto asks: Question Are we going to find out more about the Watchers? Jim Byrnes We've got an episode coming up early in the season... I think it's the second one we're going to shoot... We're going to find out more about the Watchers and how I learned abou;t them... and over the season, we're going to find out more about the group ... and how it's maintained. At least, I hope so. It'll give me something to do. :) OMNI Muse From MaryAnnMc: Question Will we see more of Joe's history next season on Highlander? And will we find out what the watchers think of Joe's friendship on Duncan. It was pretty obvious after Duncan walked into the watchers' "warroom" in the season finale! Jim Byrnes That's actually something we're definitely going to address... There's going to be, I think, serious repercussions... and that's going to be the emphasis of some of the shows that we do, in fact. OMNI Muse Folks, I have hundreds of questions left in the queue, but our time is almost up. We're going to take one last question -- from KatyGale: Question Do *you* want to direct? Jim Byrnes Not this year... Someday, yes. I like to know I'm going to be good at something... before I do it. There's an awful lot to learn as a director, and I'm still learning... technical things. I think I could work with actors. I could direct a play,... something onstage. But as long as I've been in this business, my technical knowledge... is lacking. I just have more to learn. But I'd love to direct someday, when I'm ready. OMNI Muse Jim, thanks so much for coming! Jim Byrnes Thanks so much for being out there... and watching the show... I hope I wasn't too evasive on some of the show. I don't want to give away too much... of what's coming up, because I want you all to stay tuned... And I wish you a lot of love and happiness. Good night! OMNI Muse Folks, we appreciate your coming to the conference! The log of this conference will be available for download tomorrow afternoon at: Keyword: OMNI > File Libraries (in the scrollbox) > Conference Log Library. I'd also like to thank our usher, OMNIStar, for her great work! Good night, Jim! And goodnight to everyone. :) Jim Byrnes Good night, and thanks for attending! OnlineHost Copyright 1995 America Online, Inc.