Michael Roberds, best known for his role of Uncle Fester in the Canadian television series The New Addams Family, passed away Sunday evening. For those who knew him, it was too soon. He was 52.
The actor-writer’s death was confirmed by Debbie Mahood, Talent Manager at Lucas Talent Inc. “It is with incredible sadness that I announce the passing [of] my client and friend, Michael Roberds. He loved to entertain his neighbours by reading them jokes at parties. Michael was a gentle soul and will be missed by all he touched.”
Born in Langley, British Columbia, Roberds started his acting career at the young age of 5. He played Big Bird in a school production of “Christmas on Sesame Street.”
His continued work on stage would bring him to White Rock where he involved himself with amateur theatre and joined the comedy troupe Almost Midnight.
Michael Roberds can sometimes found in the background of many a Vancouver production. When on the spotlight, fans will remember him in the season four Supernatural episode, “Yellow Fever,” where he played Mark Hutchens, a reptile lover.
By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
Going from an actor from a well-received series (The New Addams Family) to being an all-around media personality in Vancouver, British Columbia, Michael Roberds certainly is not resting. He appears on television as a movie critic for Global TV and he is sometimes found in the background of many a Vancouver production. When on the spotlight, fans will remember him in the season four Supernatural episode, “Yellow Fever,” where he played Mark Hutchens, a reptile lover. He also has a notable role in The Further Adventures in Babysitting, a made for TV movie due in 2016. When considering that being an extra keeps him occupied more often than any other job, there’s a certain pleasure to know that he was requested by a casting director to appear in the X-Files miniseries that’s also broadcasting next year.
Although Roberds has not gotten a new role in today’s pop culture scene to guarantee him regular appearances at media conventions, he’s still looking. He still enjoys working on the side-lines and there was a time in his life where he also helped a talent agency geared specifically for people just wanting to be an extra. “But ever since The CW came along with Smallville, the attitude became we don’t want anybody over the age of 30 and they have to be good-looking. I had an elderly couple and they were available 100% of the time. They were never a problem but I was lucky if I could get them work once every couple of months.” revealed Roberds.
Glenn Taranto loves the cinema from the Golden Age of Hollywood and the stars that emerged from it.
(On Examining the appeal of the Addams Family Franchise)
by Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
Glenn Taranto loves the cinema from the Golden Age of Hollywood and the stars that emerged from it. During that time, many genres like German Expressionism emerged, and from that, film noir. The influences date as far back as the silent films, but it was the comedic greats that this actor/writer revealed an affinity for. He grew up watching a lot of them on television and film with his brother, and it’s no small wonder that the passion has influenced him in kooky ways that Charles Addams, the creator of the Addams Family comic approves of. Taranto is very familiar with the source material and it helped him prepare for the role of Gomez Addams when production for the New Addams Family began. This program ran on multiple networks (YTV in Canada and Fox Family in the United States) from 1998-1999.
These days, Taranto spends his time in Los Angeles, the entertainment hub of the world. The roles he often plays can be attributed to the fact that “it’s a family business.” To know the quirks needed to play these parts effectively only came naturally for him and he made use of this experience when he crafted his first feature-film debut as a screenwriter with the movie, Stolen.
“I say write what’s in your heart and don’t let your imagination be stifled. Never say ‘That can’t be done’ or ‘I can’t do that’. Just get it all out,” advised Taranto.
From The New Addams Family, Gomez (played by Glenn Taranto) and Uncle Fester (Michael Roberds) are coming over to Victoria, BC for Island Fantasy Convention (IFCon) this Halloween weekend! Both cannot be any more thrilled. The actors are just as excited for what’s to come because Roberds expects a lot of laughs as they share some of their behind the scenes stories. “The cast of our show [The New Addams Family] is very lucky in that we quickly became good friends and have all stayed in touch over the years,” said Roberds, the actor behind the mask.
The same rule applies for the original Addameses (Lisa Loring and Felix Silla). Who knows, maybe some strange shenanigans will happen outside of the convention. “When we were filming the New Addams Family, Ellie and Mike kidnapped me for my 40th birthday,” Taranto recalled.
“I have to give Ellie Harvey full credit on that,” said Roberds. “She came up with this idea of saying well we’ll go to Victoria. We told a bunch of the cast and crew what’s up. We took him out for a seafood lunch down in Tsawwassen cause he didn’t know the area. It worked pretty well, we got him all the way to the island before he realized what’s going on. That was a great weekend and we all had fun.”
Roberds even considered moving to this garden city. The only thing that really kept him from doing it is the fact that most of the acting gigs took place in Vancouver. Nowadays, that’s a different story but the issue is being able to commute to where the auditions and locations are. He has a friend living on Bowen Island and it was a pain for him to come over and go back; it was really costly. More details will be coming about his work as a Vancouver-based regular when his interview publishes in a few days.
Both this actor and Taranto have plenty of stories to tell when fans of their series visits this garden city too. There’s plenty of creepy and kooky sites to see in the days leading up to All Hallow’s Eve, and they are going to be the spotlight for this show that is trying to emphasize a Halloween theme. For those people coming over more than a weekend stay, there’s more than a few Victorian styled architecture to get inspired by too when touring the sites after the firework filled day. In the next two days there will be full interviews with the two about their work that looks into and beyond the Addams Family world.
By Otaku no Culture
