New England Super Megafest makes 'Flashy' return
Craig S. Semon
Flash! Ah-ah! Savior of the universe.
Flash! Ah-ah! Is coming to the New England Super Megafest.
While it’s too early to say if he will save every one of us, Sam J. Jones will certainly save a spot in line for every man, every woman, every child, who wants to purchase an autograph and/or photo op this weekend in Framingham.
Jones, of course, played the title character in the 1980 camp classic “Flash Gordon.” And a whole new generation of fans have discovered Jones playing an exaggerated version of himself in Seth MacFarlane’s “Ted” and “Ted 2,” about a crude, foul-mouthed teddy bear with a serious drinking problem.
“I refer to ‘Flash Gordon’ as the triple-blessing,” Jones said during a recent interview from his home. “The first blessing is getting hired...The second blessing is if the work we do does well. And the third blessing is what we’re talking about right now, longevity, and the following that it…It’s timeless. It never ends. It’s wonderful.”
Jones credits the qualities of his character for the movie’s long-lasting appeal.
“Flash Gordon, he’s just a guy. He has no superpowers. He relies solely on his wit and his athleticism,” Jones explained. “And if innocence is being abused, he doesn’t call a board meeting and asks what to do? He addresses it immediately and neutralizing the threats. That’s what a lot of us need to do right now, just use the common-sense, practical, thinking approach to everything and eliminate all the nonsense and the unnecessary.”
Jones calls “Flash Gordon” a “visual masterpiece,” which would be difficult to duplicate today.
“You had the production designer Danilo Donati, who did all the Fellini movies. And, then, of course, the costumes they used were tens of thousands of hand-sewn, sequin beads and you can’t get that today. It would not be cost effective to hand-sew all those costumes and sequin beads. Dino De Laurentiis had 200 Italian seamstresses working nonstop. Max von Sydow (who played Ming the Merciless) had at least 30,000 beads in his costume alone. So, when film, when the lighting hit those costumes it’s a whole different look. That’s why it’s a visual masterpiece.”
Going into “Flash Gordon,” Jones had the good looks and physique but he didn’t have the platinum blond hair. So he had to dye his hair.
“It was a long process,” he recalled. “It took many different attempts. It turned out white at one point and gold and yellow.”
Besides Seth MacFarlane, one of the biggest fans of “Flash Gordon” is the Jones, the man who played Flash, himself, who still gets a good laugh whenever he sees it.
“I think it’s so camp and so corny. When he introduces himself, ‘Flash Gordon. Quarterback. New York Jets,’ I think it’s hysterical,” Jones said. “I loved doing the battle scenes with Timothy (Dalton, who played Prince Barin). I love the scene with Ornella (Muti, who played Princess Aura), especially with Brian Blessed (who played Prince Vultan) and Max von Sydow. Everything is memorable. It’s something that you will never forget.”
In addition to his fictional character playing for the Jets (which has had a real-life rivalry with the New England Patriots since the ‘60s), Jones had real-life aspirations of playing for the Seattle Seahawks, who lost against the Pats in Super Bowl XLIX. Being that he’s going to be in the heart of Patriots Nation this weekend, one has to ask where does his football allegiances lie?
“I live in San Diego. It was the Chargers but, obviously, the Chargers moved. I just like watching good, competitive games. And, also, you have to understand, as a Californian, some of my favorite teams are the Patriots and the Cowboys,” Jones said. “Whereas, if you took a survey, I think 90 percent of all Californians for some strange reason hate the Patriots and hate the Cowboys. I don’t know why but they do. But I love the Patriots and the Cowboy and that’s just how it is.”
As for the well-publicized butting of heads between mega film producer Dino De Laurentiis during “Flash Gordon,” Jones blames his naivety, as well as allowing his attorneys to instill in him the fear that he wasn’t going to get paid.
“Dino was a force to be reckoned with. There were not only numerous people who butted heads with him but there was a handful of senior level leadership that left the movie. Look at the director, Nicholas Roeg, he did a year of pre-production and he left. The head stunt coordinator, Vic Armstrong, he left,” Jones said. “But I love Dino. We actually talked 15 years later. I called him and thanked him. And asked him to forgive me if there is anything pending between us … I have the highest respect for Dino. I loved that man. He was very humorous to me in a respectful way. And he really represents a spirit of excellence in having a work ethic.”
As for “Ted,” Jones said MacFarlane personally called him up and immediately let him in on the joke.
“He said, ‘Hey, this is Seth MacFarlane. When I was 8 years old, I saw your movie. It changed my life.’ And, I said, ‘How did it change your life?’ He said, ‘Well, I knew when I walked out of the movie theater that I wanted to be a creative-type guy.’ And, then, of course, he did, and the rest is, basically, history,” Jones said. “Seth made it very clear that he wanted me because of the “Flash Gordon” theme. Also, he said, you will be making fun of yourself, Sam J. Jones, and you will be making fun of the character Flash Gordon. Yeah, that’s fine with me. I have no issue with that.”
Using “Ted’ as an example, Jones advises young actors to always guard their tongue and be careful of their behavior.
“Look at me. Here I am in my 60s. I’m getting calls from people who were once very young children who grew up to be decision makers in this business we’re in,” Jones said. “And now I had influenced and impacted their lives, whether I knew it or not, and now they’re making the calls. They’re making the shots and look he brought me into this billion dollar franchise.”
Jones also encourages young actors who will look down at a part because they are a “serious” actor, to change their thinking.
“Only three percent of every actors and actresses in the world can pay his or her (monthly) bills from (what they earn from) the acting business. What does that mean? Ninety-seven percent of every actor in the world can’t pay their monthly bills unless they have a second income from a different vocation,” Jones said. “So when they hear, ‘I’m just a serious actor,’ I say, ‘Well, really, you need to change your thinking. You need to be a working man. You need to provide for you and your family no matter what it takes, obviously, legally.’”
As for the future, Jones said he would love to be in the Disney-owned/Taika Waititi-helmed “Flash Gordon” reboot, which is in the planning stage.
If You Go
What: New England Super Megafest Comic-Con
Celebrity guests include: Sam J. Jones (“Flash Gordon” and “Ted”), Tyler Maine (Sabertooth in “X-Men” and Mike Myers in Rob Zombie’s “Halloween”), Taimak (Berry Gordy’s “The Last Dragon’), Gigi Edgley (“Farscape”), Karyn Parsons (“The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”), Nicholle Tom (“The Nanny”), Shantel Vansanten (“The Flash” and “The Boys”), Michelle Harrison (“The Flash”), Manu Bennett (“The Hobbit”), Charlene Amoia (“How I Met Your Mother”), Aileen Quinn (“Annie”), Erika Anderson (“A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child” and “Twin Peaks”); Beatrice Boepple (“A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child”), Lisa Wilcox (“A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child”), AEW wrestler Kayla Rossi, and WWE wrestlers Ted DiBaise, Ted DiBiase Jr., Rebecca DiPietro, Maria Kanellis, Tony Atlas and Bob Backlung.
When: 4 to 9 p.m. Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Sheraton Framingham, 1657 Worcester Road, Framingham
How much: adult weekend pass, $49; adult Friday/Saturday or adult Saturday/Sunday pass, $39; adult Friday pass, $26; adult Saturday pass, $30; adult Sunday pass, $26; children (ages 6-12) weekend pass, $20; children Friday pass or children Sunday pass, $8. Also, Gigi Edgley VIP birthday music performance at 7 p.m. Saturday, $45 (plus Super Megafest ticket).