Apollo played by Richard Hatch was my favorite character from TOS. I am sure the acting ability of Richard Hatch was no small part of that.
Frankly I was surprised by your original post I referenced. I do not know Richard Hatch personally. I had NO opinion or knowledge of him as a person until I started reading articles and interviews by or about him during the last few months.
After reading the interviews and articles on him I saw in my opinion a man angry at the current situation, something I believe can be said for a large percentage of all the Battlestar Galactica fan base. I also read of a man who is not happy with the Desanto continuation primarily because of its minimization of the TOS characters. I read of a successful author who focuses his efforts on his most successful series. I read of a man who goes to convention after scifi convention and is an organizing force in some. This person loves/needs the adoration of fans.
Your quote was like a bolt of lightning hitting me on him. Now it all made sense:
Richard Hatch was a reluctant Apollo. He really was not impressed with the Galactica theme or it appears scifi in general. He thought he was too good to play the role or the genre. He was offered a higher salary than he expected so he took the role anyway. He was already a star and woman loved him thanks to his soap opera roles and The Streets of San Fransisco. He was hounded by people telling him how great he was. Battlestar Galactica did better than his wildest dreams. He became a superstar. The fan adorment of him went to the stratosphere. He couldn't go to a restaurant without being bothered. He really wished to get his normal life back. Normal meant -- people do what I want, I get what I want, and I can still roam around at least halfway free.
Then suddenly Battlestar Galactica ended after just one season. At first he was probably happy. At first he was probably too good for the next roles he was offered. As a little time passed suddenly he wasn't offered any roles. He was a former star known to be abrasive. He started to live life like everyone else and realized...he didn't like it. He wanted to be "Apollo" again. So he devoted himself to writing some Battlestar books to get the concept and his name back in the public eye. He missed the fan adoration once it dissappeared so he started going to scifi conventions and became an organizer in things Galactica. Of course all these appearances helped to sell more of his books. To some extent he was able to recapture a little of what he lost.
He still hoped to return as Apollo to television. He even mortgaged his home to pay for the trailer in the hope of coming back. Finally someone was willing to make Battlestar again but they did not want him. That was like a kick in the gut. Richard Hatch sees his star's shine slowly disappearing. I am sure the quote on his site that used to say that he is not Richard Hatch from Survivor is killing him.
I hope this is not the man Richard Hatch is but it is the man I see in the articles. It is for this very reason I am very happy he appears to be letting go...finally...of Battlestar Galactica. The best thing he could do is make his War of Magellan. I hope it will make him into a successful producer of film. If it does he will finally be able to refocus his life in a direction that is positive for him. His continued reach for Battlestar will only leave him frustrated. I want nothing but the best for everyone I know. I think if he had a successful one episode appearance on the new series with a character that can't come back Richard Hatch may excise these issues from his life and help him to move on.
This is just my opinion so I don't want to argue it. I am sure everyone has their own. I know this is rough so I don't plan to respond to any arguments on this subject although I will be happy to read them. I was just surprised to read the original quote and it seemed to finally clear my thoughts on the man.
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