Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, September 21, 1993 TAG: 9309210027
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Ian Spelling
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The series isn't nearly as dark as "Trek" fans were led to believe during the breathless buildup to its debut last January, he says.
And Meaney should know. He is something of a "Trek" expert, having made the jump from playing Transporter Chief Miles O'Brien on "Next Generation" to playing Chief Operations Officer O'Brien on "DS9."
"A lot of stories ran with the notion `DS9' was darker, grittier and almost seedy. They ran in the wrong direction," Meaney says in his thick Irish accent during a phone conversation from his trailer on the Paramount lot.
The big difference between "DS9" and the other Trek series, Meaney says, is that there is no Enterprise.
"DS9" is set on an inhospitable Cardassian space station that is alien to its Starfleet residents. The crew must coexist with non-Starfleet denizens who call DS9 home and with visitors who stop over temporarily.
"That's obviously not the environment on the Enterprise, where everything's almost perfect, everyone is Starfleet," the actor says.
"Our setting is a screwed-up environment. That was the intention of our producers. It wasn't meant to be considered seedy.
"All they tried to do was put the `Trek' philosophy into an environment that was more adversarial inside and outside. I think they accomplished that."
Born and reared in Dublin, but based in America since 1982, Meaney honed his acting skills on the theater stages and film and television sets of Ireland, England and America.
The prolific 40-year-old actor counts among his most recent credits the pilot for the TV series "Doctor Quinn: Medicine Woman" and the films "The Commitments" (1991), "Last of the Mohicans" (1992) and "Under Siege" (1992). He also appears in the recently released family drama "Into the West."
During a break from "DS9" last season, Meaney shot "The Snapper," reprising his "Commitments" role as the Elvis-loving father. The film is scheduled to open nationwide in November.
" `Snapper' isn't really a `Commitments' sequel," Meaney says.
"It doesn't deal with the band or the character that managed them. It deals with my character, the dad, and the eldest daughter, who wasn't in `Commitments.' "
In August, Meaney and other cast members returned to the "DS9" set. He is now looking forward to the three-part second-season opener, which features guest stars Louise Fletcher, Frank Langella and Steven Weber (from "Wings").
The trilogy begins the week of Sept. 27 with an episode called "The Homecoming."
"The episodes deal with Bajor and a threatened Cardassian return, which causes internal disruption on Bajor and puts Kira [Nana Visitor] in great danger," Meaney says. "Without giving away the entire story, that's basically its arc.
"We're shooting our fourth episode now, which deals with Dax [Terry Farrell]. Another Trill tries to steal her symbiont."
The episode after that will focus on Cardassians, Meaney says.
"I haven't seen the script yet, but when the Cardies are around I'm kept pretty busy."
Meaney, who lives in Los Angeles with his wife, actress Bairbre Dowling, and their 8-year-old daughter Brenda, says future episodes will feature his character's wife Keiko (Rosalind Chao) and daughter Molly (Hana Hatae).
There will also be many opportunities for O'Brien to deepen his relationships with fellow crew members and to battle DS9's complicated Cardassian computer system.
"We had a great time last season and everybody looked forward to getting back here so we could do it again," Meaney says. "So far, it's proving to be a great experience."
\ CON CALENDAR Oct. 1-3
Rising Star 2 at the Civic Center in Salem, Va. (Oct. 1-2 only; Call 389-9400.)
Creation at the Ramada Hotel in Manhattan, featuring Patrick Stewart. (October 2-3 only; 818-409-0960)
Sprucecon '93 at the Spruceland School in Prince George, British Columbia. (Oct. 2 only; 604-562-1826)
Creation at the Marc Plaza Hotel in Milwaukee, featuring Marina Sirtis. (Oct. 3 only; 818-409-0960)
\ TREK ALERT
If you have Trek news or trivia to share - or if you have questions relating to "Star Trek" - write to Ian Spelling, care of the Features Department, Roanoke Times & World-News, P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010-2491. Be sure to enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope if you would like a reply.
by CNB