The Space Devil Doesn’t Wear Prada

Friends, allow me to speak freely, if you will.  I think we have come to know each other quite well in these past few weeks.  There is a trust of sorts.  Do you feel it?  Good.  It’s because of this immediate bond, that I choose to admit something to all of you.  Something that has to do with my dark past.   Ok, here goes:  I didn’t stop playing Barbies until a little later in life.  I played way, way longer than I should have.  Years longer.  I think my mom finally pried my two favorites (Beach Roller Blader and Astronaut Barbie) from my adolescent hands at the embarrassing age of 14.  Sad?  Yes.  Did it have any adverse effects on the person I am today?  Well…yes.  It has left me with an unbridled need to wear roller blades by day and evening gowns at night.  Also, I have to tackle my daily obsession with space suits.

I like to play Space Dress Up.  It’s true.  Any and all non earth-related costumes have a power over me like no other thing.  No article of space clothing is safe.  I see it, and I picture what it would look like on me.  My imagination goes crazy summoning up endless stories of the adventures I could have if only I was wearing said costume.  So, it is no surprise that I am like a kid in a candy warehouse here at Propworx.  I get to see all these things on a daily basis…flight suits, NCP uniforms, even green BDUs…all used on Galactica.  Pinch me.

But hey, I have NOT written this to say “nah, nah, nah, nah, naaaah” (that is meant to be read in a mocking/singsongy way).  I am writing this to inspire you to start your OWN “candy warehouse”.  Your OWN closet full of space treasures.  Play Barbies with yourself! Bid on some of our costumes so they can be yours to try on anytime you want!!!  Here are some of the classic BSG outfits that we will have available in the next week of auctions.  Feast your eyes on these oldies but, oh so goodies…

Battlestar Galactica Male Duty Blues, Size XL

Standard Duty Blue uniform worn by Colonial officers.  The jacket (approximately size 44) has gray piping, captain rank insignia, standard pilot wings and Galactica patch on left shoulder.  The pants are X-Large as well (approximately size 48).  This uniform was worn by background performers during the run of the show.  This could be a very regal costume for you, if you are a broad, strapping man that looks good in uniform.

Battlestar Galactica Women’s Hooded Sweat Suit

A dark gray Battlestar Galactica sweat suit.  The top is a gray zip-up hoodie with front pockets and patch on left breast.  The bottoms are drawstring pants with a patch above the left leg, near the hip.  There is no size information available, but seems to be approximately a large.  With this outfit, you can look just like Kara Thrace in her memorial wall photo.

Flight Deck Crew Yellow Coveralls, Size 42L

This is a yellow jumpsuit (size 42L) with white reflective stripes running down the sides and a Galactica patch on the left arm.  It includes an attached black rubber tool vest and yellow Ringers gloves.  This costume was used for motion capture purposes by production.

2 Green BDUs (M/L and XL)

We are offering TWO chances to win Green BDUs this week!  Two complete green battle dress uniforms with jackets featuring Galactica patch, pants, and rank pins.  These are screen-used costumes worn by either a background extra or by a guest star.

2 Battlestar Galactica BDU Tank Top Sets (M and LG)

2 BDU tank tops and undershirts, one set is size medium and the other, size large.  The tank tops were made by the wardrobe department especially for Battlestar Galactica.  They are screen-used and were worn by either a background extra or by a guest star.

The clock continues to tick.  The next week of auctions rapidly approaches…

Happy bidding, buddies!

The Hard Six

Season after season we have watched our “Six” grow from a very tall, beautiful, earnest Cylon into a very tall, beautiful…uh, well we watched her remain the same and we love her for it. We count on her predictability. We know her so well. Almost to the point where we could go shopping for her–if ever asked to do such a job. And if we did, we would definitively head straight for the skimpy, tight, backless, red dress section and start grabbing. Then we would obviously make our way to the halter tops. And finally, if time permits, a quick stop in the pointy boots area. That should about do it.

I cannot tell you how many days I have said to myself, “Can’t I just for ONCE see ‘Six’ in something a little different? Sleazier? With chains? Perhaps with longer hair?! Or darker even? I know, why not feather it?! And while we’re changing the hair, let’s change her man! Let’s give her someone else to sleep with. Enough of this Baltar business!” Now, I know I am not alone in thinking these things. You too? Knew it.

Well, someone must’ve heard us when creating “The Plan”. The solution came in the form of “Tough SIx”. (Who the folks around here refer to as “Hard Six”. Because of our affinity for Craps…and double entendre.) She is still our Tricia Helfer, with the same knockout face and body. The difference is this time, we don’t have to see her in bed with the suave and handsome Baltar. We get to see her in a torrid love affair with, um, a more distinguished partner. A wiser lover. Enjoying the company of a seasoned gentleman. Oh alright, she is having an affair with Cavil and it is borderline disturbing. But different and exciting nonetheless. And her hair is indeed, darker, longer and more feathered, just like we wanted. The woman even wears a leather bra and chains, what a difference!

Last week, we had the first of Tough Six’s outfits up in our auction. The outfit consisted of a sleeveless black button-down vest, leather black bra with silver studded cups, burgundy jeans with black acid wash, a leather choker-style collar with silver chains and stiletto-heeled ankle boots with straps. The item had 13 bidders, and ended up going for $1,055.50. I know the rest of you with your eye on that auction were greatly disappointed to miss out on owning it. I myself was eyeing that chain choker with envy and am sad to see it go. Well, because seeing you disappointed is the last thing I would ever want, I thought I would give you a preview of the two, that’s right TWO “Tough Six” outfits we have coming up in the next round of auctions. So you will still have your chance to get a piece of this unique side of “Six”.

The first is a black sheer mesh and lace strapless negligee with matching sheer lace panties. As if this skimpy ensemble wasn’t exciting enough already, included as an accessory is a black lace choker with three silver chains. There is no size information available, but judging from the looks of it, I would call it “teeny tiny”.

The second outfit is a shirt and leather jacket ensemble. A long-sleeved brick red sheer cotton shirt by Hugo Boss with button-down front. Size 36. The jacket is by Kenneth Cole Reaction with four front flap-style pockets. It is a size medium.

Keep watching the countdown clock.  Your day to own these items is rapidly approaching.

Happy bidding!

Ooo Shiny.

While we are so close to the end, we do still have a few tricks up our sleeves.  This week the boys put up some jewelry I think you will all enjoy. Have you ever noticed what your favourite six wears with her dresses? Ever thought, damn! That’s really cute, I would love to have a pair of earrings like that!  Well here is your chance! There are several pieces of jewelry up for auction this week, including earings, bracelets, and necklaces.  Here are a few photo’s to salavate over.

So first we have Six’s gold dangle earrings.  These were noted to be backups and its unknown if they were ever worn by Tricia Helfer.

A necklace for Six. This necklace was also noted as a backup and it is unknown if it was ever worn.  The necklace features normal wear and a bit of tarnishing.

Chain-mail bracelet for Six. You guessed it, its a backup, and unknown if it was ever worn by  Tricia Helfer.

Hope you guys enjoy the jewelry, some of these items are really cool, and if they do well there may be some in the final auction. It’s up to you guys!  Erin

The Gods Are in the Details

One of the cool things about working at Propworx is you can see how much thought, craft, and TLC went into the making of Battlestar Galactica. And the attention to detail is amazing.

Awhile back we auctioned a pair of prop tickets for Eversun Luxury Liners. In the small print was the disclaimer, “Passengers will not be allowed to board unless they are inebriated.” (Or words to that effect.) Those props peeps sure are “wacky funsters.”

When we pull costumes for an eBay auction, we visually match them with images from the costume continuity binders or with scenes from the actual episodes. Oftentimes we examine scripts to see how the costumes were used on that show.

And those shooting scripts can be revelatory.

Last week I was looking at the script for “Black Market” to double-check something. And a dialogue exchange Mark Verheiden wrote for that episode leapt off the page at me:

Dualla: I heard what you said, after they rescued you. That you didn’t want to come back…
Lee: I was sick, delirious… whatever I was feeling, I never meant to dump any of it on you.
Dualla: Actually, I’m glad I heard it. For the longest time I thought I was the only one.

Whoa.

Can you say “Foreshadowing”? Although that exchange was trimmed from the aired scene, the writers clearly had foreknowledge of Dualla’s tragic fate two seasons prior to “Sometimes a Great Notion.”

Today while researching Kara Thrace’s paint-splattered shirt from “Maelstrom” (which goes up for auction soon) I read this action line written by Bradley Thompson and David Weddle:

TOOTHPASTE SQUEEZED ONTO A BRUSH. Kara brings the brush to her mouth and tries to scrub away the tactile memory of Leoben’s kiss.

Wow. In two sentences, the writers give you a glimpse inside Kara’s fragile state of mind, which is one of three maelstroms referenced by the episode’s title.

Pretty frakkin’ kewl.
Thomas

The Best Cast in the Biz

When Ronald D. Moore reimagined Battlestar Galactica, he realized one way to distance it from the typical trappings of space opera was to hire top-notch actors. He envisioned casting Oscar-caliber actors like Edward James Olmos (1988 best actor nominee for Stand and Deliver) and Mary McDonnell (1990 supporting actress nominee for Dances with Wolves). Surprisingly, both actors saw past the science fiction title and realized therein lay defining roles of their careers.

But having seasoned veterans ground the cast was not enough. The rest of the BSG ensemble needed the “chops” to stand toe-to-toe with Olmos, McDonnell, and veteran character actor Michael Hogan. The fact BSG actors continue to be in demand shows that Moore and fellow executive producer David Eick assembled what Entertainment Weekly calls “the strongest ensemble cast of the past decade.”

To wit:
• Katee Sackhoff will be on the Fox hit 24 this fall
• Jamie Bamber plays Detective Sergeant Matt Devlin on Law and Order: UK (side-by-side with Doctor Who’s Freema Agyeman—Yowza!)
• James Callis plays the titular role in the upcoming Sci Fi Channel original Merlin and the Book of Beasts
• Tricia Helfer has guest starred on Burn Notice and Chuck, as well as the forthcoming Fox series The Human Target
• Grace Park co-stars in TNT’s series The Cleaner
• Aaron Douglas plays the lead in the new police drama The Bridge
• Tahmoh Penikett is part of Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse

And the list goes on…

I’ve had the privilege of meeting most of the above actors and happily report they are some of the nicest I’ve encountered in my 16 years of working in “the business.” As the Propworx eBay auctions draw to a close in the next few weeks, now is the time to pick up that special memento used by your favorite BSG cast member. Who knows, if you go to Comic-Con or Dragon*Con you may be able to get him or her to sign it for you.

Thomas

Cylons and Their Wonderful Clothes

When the producers of Battlestar Galactica decided to show the inside of a Cylon basestar during Season Three, some pundits thought demystifying the enemy was a mistake. Yet despite the hybrids, naked Eights, and liquid-filled control consoles, the one question I wanted answered was “Where do the Cylons get their clothes? Perhaps there were tailors hidden on the basestar’s lower decks. Hmm…

I’ve been trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to convince my Propworx colleagues to make a Project Runway: Cylon Basestar Edition parody film for Dragon*Con this year. It could be a cross of American Idol, Zoolander, and Caprica’s Top Model. Imagine the possibilities: John Cavil as a judge (“Honey, that was great, but do it again—this time with no clothes on”); a knock-down, drag-out catfight on the catwalk between Athena and Boomer (“Karl is my man!”); or Aaron Doral (“Girl in three words—Fab-u-lous!”).

Whether it’s bright colors, earth tones, leather, or a variety of fabrics and textures Costume Designer Glenne Campbell and her department made sure the Cylons were the best dressed nemeses this side of Ionian Nebula. And it’s our pleasure here at Propworx to offer you some of the best costumes from the show.

Thomas

We are all going to be fired for this… Auction II Costume Blog

Our wall mounted CIC phones started ringing off the hook early this morning. Alec Peters, CEO of Propworx, called down with an order for us to write a blog about the COOLEST costumes up for the Second Auction next week. We swear we can hear the faint clinking of Ambrosia bottles and the sloshing of water from the Hybrid tank as he says his goodbyes and hangs up. So off to the costume vaults we go… to find the absolute COOLEST costumes ready for the Second Auction May 8^th-10^th.

Under armed escort with black bags over our heads to safeguard the location, Heidi, Erin and I made our way into the Battlestar Galactica costume vault. All we can tell you about this location is that it is roughly a mile underground and has a vague resemblance to where the Ark of the Covenant was stashed in “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. In short… this place is Frakkin HUGE!!!

So there we were, hermetically sealed in our plastic jumpsuits and given free range of the costume vault… Oh WHERE to start? Flight suits of course!!!

Number FIVE on our list of awesomeness was Anders Flight suit. This is the flight suit worn by Samuel “Longshot” Anders from the “He That Believeth In Me” episode and in the first half of Season Four. Watching Erin and Heidi lovingly sniff the costume for a hint of “Anders musk” I couldn’t help but think that poor ole Sam ended things naked in a tub flying the entire fleet into the Sun. Poor guy.

Quickly I moved on to something I could sink my teeth into… Namely number FOUR on our list: Caprica Six’s outfit from the miniseries. Yeah, you heard me right; you all know the one. Black sheer blouse and skirt with geometric patterns; with matching black patent leather bra and panties. Awe yeah. I’ll give the Six’s one thing. They sure know how to dress.

Trying not to fanboy too hard but failing miserably, I turn my head and see another of Six’s costumes: The “Iconic” Red Dress. Hubba Frakkin Hubba. Yeah. Had it not been for the armed guards and tight security, I might have done some rather inappropriate things to that dress. This dress made number THREE on my list. It would have made more… but a strange smell and the girls chattering about something in the corner got my attention. So reluctantly, off I went.

I had heard of “stump butter” before but couldn’t fathom of what it might smell like. Until now! The pungent odor of what can only be described as a dirty foot mixed with smelly armpits assaulted my senses like a nuke hitting Caprica City. There, held high by Erin for all to see, was number TWO on the list: Gaeta’s Duty Blue uniform with missing pant leg. Gaeta was not a favorite character of mine, but seeing this uniform made me feel sorry for the guy. We quickly stuffed the one legged suit back into the vault and headed on down the corridor in search of our next treasure.

Eureka! Now, if you think stump butter is bad… char-grilled Starbuck is WAY worse! Number ONE on our list of Frakkin awesome costumes is Dead Starbucks Charred flight suit. Seeing this made me chuckle at the irony that Starbuck burned her own body in a funeral pyre and her husband Sam Anders torched himself and the entire fleet in the Sun. (By the way, I lovingly refer to him now as Sizzled Anders.) Everything on this costume is burned, the tank top, undershirt, patches, emblems, gloves and shoes. All of it is toasty with a slight hint of burned hair. MMmm.

Other cool costume we noticed behind two feet of bullet proof glass were:

· Baltars Religious leader outfit. (Or his “pimp robe” as we like to call it.)

· Leoben’s Ragnar Anchorage outfit. (His taste in clothing is so bad it’s awesome.)

· Hera’s Opera house dress from “Crossroads”. (Wow, Cylons grow FAST!)

· Tyrol’s orange coverall’s with welding vest. (It’s a one of a kind piece of kick-ass costuming!)

· Banzai’s Vintage Flight Suit. (A: its vintage. 2: it’s a flight suit. III: it was worn by a dude named “BANZAI”.)

These were all pretty darn fantastic costumes. Runner-up’s to this list that need to be honorably mentioned:

· Ellen’s Final Five robe. (Throughout the series this is the only woman who has worn less clothing than all of the Six models combined. So having her covered collar to cuff is impressive! Thank you to Heidi for picking up on that gem.)

· Pregnant Six’s outfit from “Deadlock”. (Anything Six wears is hot. Even a stuffed foam pregnant belly piece.)

· Tigh’s Blue Boxers. (Seeing Saul Tigh in these blue boxers trying to set his sash on fire in Season Two’s episode “Valley of Darkness” is just priceless if not unforgettable. I was told to let everyone know… there was no sniffing of these boxers by any member of our staff. And we are sticking to that… really. So say we all!)

For some unknown reason (possibly involving the aforementioned “Blue Boxers”) we were all quickly ushered out the door by the armed guards. I swear it was a possible Cylon invasion threat. The guards say otherwise. So I am writing this from the brig deep in the Battlestar Galactica costume vault. I hear Romo Lampkin will be in to see me soon to help me with my case… but I am not holding my breath.

All this happened before on January 17^th and 18^th of 2009… and it will happen again May 8^th-10^th 2009. Join us for the “LAST OF THE BEST”, the final auction at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena California. Or if your FTL drive is down and can’t be there in person, be sure to register online to bid at www.auctionnetwork.com.

I’ll see you around the fleet.

Damian

Galactica Patches

As those following our eBay auctions are now aware, there are three different versions of Galactica patches used during the course of the series. As with all the battlestar patches in the series, these were all 3.5. The first version is a lighter patch made during the Miniseries, when the show’s backdoor pilot was shot in standard definition film. When Battlestar Galactica went to series, the costume department created better patches made out of a better material with a golden color, thus version two. The third version of the patch was created roughly around and after 2005, the patches were made with a newer, darker brown material as the previous material became unavailable. This third and final style of patch also includes a smaller 2.5″ patch that was used exclusively on the gray sweatpants seen in the series.

Below are photographs of the three patches available, which are presently listed on our eBay auction site.

 

Vintage Officer’s Uniform Costume Sketches

Up on eBay this week are two concepts for the Vintage officers uniform, as briefly seen in the flashback scenes from the DVD movie “Razor.” As you can see, there are two styles online, as designed by Costume Designer Glenne Campbell and done by artist Terry Pitts. These are one-of-a-kind watercolor sketches, the first being inspired by the look of the officers from the 1978 Battlestar Galactica television series, and the second more in style with a US Air Force uniform.

Costume Design Sketches

My first introduction to the world of costume design sketches was in 2007 at the Christie’s Entertainment Memorabilia Auction where Christie’s auctioned off the famous Little Black Dress that Audrey Hepburn wore in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”.  It went for around $ 1 million.  What was equally impressive was that the concept design sketch for that dress brought $ 100,000. 

Fortunately, we were able to acquire all of Glenne Campbell’s costume design sketches for Battlestar Galactica for this auction.  There are some wonderful pieces, including costumes for Starbuck, Baltar, his acolytes and the New Caprica Police.  There is even a sketch used for the Final Five Cylon robes as seen in Season Three’s “Rapture”.  (Of course, there are no hints to who the Final Cylon is!  Some of these sketches, notably Baltar’s and the ones for young Helena and Lucy Cain, even have fabric swatches attached.  These are all original watercolors and will look amazing framed on someone’s wall.

I think there will be some bargain’s here, especially the Baltar’s Acolyte ones.  They aren’t major characters and so won’t draw the big bidders, but still, they are great pieces with tremendous eye appeal.  The Starbuck piece and the Baltar piece will draw the highest bids of this group because they are main characters.  When you buy a piece like this, it needs to resonate with you, and costume sketches are so cool because they combine the art of costume design, with painting.

Now you may wonder,  “where are the costume sketches for the main costumes and uniforms we see?”  Unfortunately, those were done by the costume designer for the mini-series, who did not stay on, and so we weren’t able to get her sketches.  So you better get one of these as there aren’t many more!

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