These photos remind me of the notes I'd read from people who went to Gatecon, I think it was, that RDA attended, and they surprised him with a visit from Amanda Tapping on stage on the last day, I think? At any rate, I remember reading the note from someone who said he'd looked at her (with her dark hair for Sanctuary) and said "you used to be blond. So did I."
I've wondered sometimes why he chose to change his hair color--tall dark and handsome would suit him, too-- after all, it's what he was born with. Of course, it's now gray, as is mine--I wasn't tall or handsome, but I did have very dark hair so it's still a shock when I see the white haired lady in the mirror these days!
It actually wasn't his choice. I believe it was Henry Winkler that made the call to put highlights in his hair at the start of season 2 of MacGyver. Apparently RDA was so tall and thin, Winkler thought that his brown hair made him look like "crap on a stick" (and crap ain't the word he used...)
I've seen interviews where he's mentioned that "on a stick" part, in reference to why he colored his hair, but he was doing it before MacGyver--his real hair color is what it was when he played Emerald Point, which is a dark brown, correct? (I've only been interested in him since 2005, so though I've found lots of old shows, interviews, etc., I'm well aware other fans know far more than I).
I know that the medium to light brown that he had from the start of MacGyver isn't his actual hair color and it kept changing to even lighter, so I rather thought, like the length, it was probably mostly his own choice.
In later years, he had his own hair color for Pandora's Clock (dark brown shot with gray), then for Stargate, they or he chose a medium chestnut brown, not the best color choice, imho, but then around second season I think he decided he'd do what he wanted to and let it be his own color, which is when it started going to dark brown plus gray and kept on that way the rest of the SG years.
But as I said, you long-time fans jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong. Melissa M.
*sheepish look* Confession time . . . I was the audience member at Gatecon who asked him about the hair colour.
He had his real hair colour for the pre-MacGyver roles: Emerald Point NAS and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Here, for example: http://lolmac.livejournal.com/252359.html
It was still dark for Mac S1. Winkler didn't like the dark hair -- RDA's story was that because he (RDA) was "so skinny" (WTF??), Winkler said the dark hair looked like "sh*t on a stick". So they started "putting highlights" in. RDA joked that they had kept fiddling with the colour, and maybe they went a bit too far at one point (audience makes agreeing sounds), but that he figured they eventually reached a "happy medium" (audience makes disagreeing sounds).
It was very clear that RDA's approach to his hair was and had always been to let the producers do whatever they liked: colour, length, style, etc. (I had actually been maintaining, on the forums at MOL, that this had to have been the case. This was one of the reasons I asked the question.)
I saw an interview clip from right after MacGyver, when he was getting ready to film Eyes of a Killer. They dyed his hair very dark for that. He had it pretty much normal colour for Legend, but shorter, and grew his moustache.
I saw another interview clip from just before he filmed Beyond Betrayal; his hair was a bit shorter than before, and the host -- Leno, I think -- was asking him about it. RDA said he'd been cast as a cop, and had to cut his hair very short, and he was doing it in stages -- Leno razzed him, and RDA complained that he'd had long hair for fifteen years and it was too much of a change to do all at once! (It was more like ten years since Emerald Point, but we know how bad his memory is . . . )
I think he had pretty much his real colour for Firehouse as well as Pandora's Clock.
He started to show a little grey quite early -- you can see glints in the later MacGyver seasons -- and when he was cast in Stargate, they tried to dye his hair to conceal the grey, so he wouldn't look "too old". I personally think the first season dyed hair looks awful, and I'm really glad they let it go back to natural after that.
Good to get all these facts, thank you! One can never have too much detail where RDA is concerned, don't you think? (smile)
I've now been carrying on a discussion among my SG1 RDA fan friends via email and we have had a good time debating, reading your comment and looking over the Blond LOL you linked. One fan friend has "researched" and found various pictures on the internet which she's sent to us all for comparison purposes. A good way to spend a Sunday afternoon!
Well, we can always throw in Eyes of a Stranger -- for which he had the long shaggy blond hair, but had grown his beard, which of course came in dark. I really wish he'd had his natural hair for that one. But I also wish he'd had a script with real lines instead of the horror that is that movie.
Yes, that movie's hair choice was surely not one of his better ones! Blond is one thing, blond with very dark roots, not so good! And of course the very dark facial hair, just in case the viewer hadn't figured out that bleached blond was not his natural color!
My friends and I are on our second day of this topic, we keep coming up with more pics as examples of our various points. He's easy on the eyes, regardless of the hair!
p.s. I really didn't think, personally, it was very dark in the first year of MacGyver, more a medium brown, lighter than his natural color. My friends and I have had a lively debate on that particular issue!
I've always thought he was gorgeous no matter what color hair he was sporting, but it was the tousled, highlighted mullet (like in the 3rd pic, above) that really did it for me. *squeeeee*
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2011-07-09 05:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-10 12:54 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-09 06:12 pm (UTC)I've wondered sometimes why he chose to change his hair color--tall dark and handsome would suit him, too-- after all, it's what he was born with. Of course, it's now gray, as is mine--I wasn't tall or handsome, but I did have very dark hair so it's still a shock when I see the white haired lady in the mirror these days!
Melissa M.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-09 06:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-09 08:07 pm (UTC)I know that the medium to light brown that he had from the start of MacGyver isn't his actual hair color and it kept changing to even lighter, so I rather thought, like the length, it was probably mostly his own choice.
In later years, he had his own hair color for Pandora's Clock (dark brown shot with gray), then for Stargate, they or he chose a medium chestnut brown, not the best color choice, imho, but then around second season I think he decided he'd do what he wanted to and let it be his own color, which is when it started going to dark brown plus gray and kept on that way the rest of the SG years.
But as I said, you long-time fans jump in here and correct me if I'm wrong.
Melissa M.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-10 12:52 am (UTC)He had his real hair colour for the pre-MacGyver roles: Emerald Point NAS and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Here, for example:
http://lolmac.livejournal.com/252359.html
It was still dark for Mac S1. Winkler didn't like the dark hair -- RDA's story was that because he (RDA) was "so skinny" (WTF??), Winkler said the dark hair looked like "sh*t on a stick". So they started "putting highlights" in. RDA joked that they had kept fiddling with the colour, and maybe they went a bit too far at one point (audience makes agreeing sounds), but that he figured they eventually reached a "happy medium" (audience makes disagreeing sounds).
It was very clear that RDA's approach to his hair was and had always been to let the producers do whatever they liked: colour, length, style, etc. (I had actually been maintaining, on the forums at MOL, that this had to have been the case. This was one of the reasons I asked the question.)
I saw an interview clip from right after MacGyver, when he was getting ready to film Eyes of a Killer. They dyed his hair very dark for that. He had it pretty much normal colour for Legend, but shorter, and grew his moustache.
I saw another interview clip from just before he filmed Beyond Betrayal; his hair was a bit shorter than before, and the host -- Leno, I think -- was asking him about it. RDA said he'd been cast as a cop, and had to cut his hair very short, and he was doing it in stages -- Leno razzed him, and RDA complained that he'd had long hair for fifteen years and it was too much of a change to do all at once! (It was more like ten years since Emerald Point, but we know how bad his memory is . . . )
I think he had pretty much his real colour for Firehouse as well as Pandora's Clock.
He started to show a little grey quite early -- you can see glints in the later MacGyver seasons -- and when he was cast in Stargate, they tried to dye his hair to conceal the grey, so he wouldn't look "too old". I personally think the first season dyed hair looks awful, and I'm really glad they let it go back to natural after that.
And I just about died laughing at Gatecon at the comment "You used to be blonde! So did I . . . "
http://lolmac.livejournal.com/142284.html
/end ridiculously exhaustive detailed fangirl comment . . .
no subject
Date: 2011-07-10 08:31 pm (UTC)One can never have too much detail where RDA is concerned, don't you think? (smile)
I've now been carrying on a discussion among my SG1 RDA fan friends via email and we have had a good time debating, reading your comment and looking over the Blond LOL you linked. One fan friend has "researched" and found various pictures on the internet which she's sent to us all for comparison purposes. A good way to spend a Sunday afternoon!
Melissa M.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-10 11:05 pm (UTC)Well, we can always throw in Eyes of a Stranger -- for which he had the long shaggy blond hair, but had grown his beard, which of course came in dark. I really wish he'd had his natural hair for that one. But I also wish he'd had a script with real lines instead of the horror that is that movie.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-11 10:43 pm (UTC)Blond is one thing, blond with very dark roots, not so good! And of course the very dark facial hair, just in case the viewer hadn't figured out that bleached blond was not his natural color!
My friends and I are on our second day of this topic, we keep coming up with more pics as examples of our various points. He's easy on the eyes, regardless of the hair!
Melissa M.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-12 01:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-15 04:44 pm (UTC)cause and effect
Date: 2011-07-15 06:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-07-11 10:44 pm (UTC)Melissa M.
no subject
Date: 2011-07-09 09:51 pm (UTC)