COVER STORY:  Tom Kempton Played by Alex McArthur
    Although he plays the lead and appears in just about every scene, Alex was one of the last actors to be cast in the movie. He had originally auditioned for the role two months earlier, but heard nothing. Then he received a call on a Friday, had a meeting the following Monday and was on a plane to Indiana that afternoon. He started shooting the next morning.
     This was one of the toughest roles of Alex’s career, both physically and emotionally. The snowmobile chase scenes were “a walk in the woods” compared to some of his other scenes, says McArthur, who grew up riding snowmobiles.  As if getting duck-taped to a wheelchair and slapped around by a couple of crazy women isn’t enough, he also gets his finger chopped off , attacked by a teenage homicidal maniac and dragged into a shower where the water is turned on at full force directly in his face.  Needless to say, Alex found that he was almost living through this dark and obsessive story and it was emotionally draining for him.
     He was attracted to the script because of its originality and was able to identify with his character’s obsessive nature.
     This was not Alex’s first time working with the director.  John Hancock had helmed an episode of Hill Street Blues, in which Alex played a college student, some 17 years earlier.
     Among Alex McArthur’s movie credits are Conspiracy Theory, which was directed by Richard Donner, Kiss the Girls for Paramount, and the lead in William Friedkin’s Rampage. Other film credits are Route 666, Runnin’ Home, Scene of the Crime, Perfect Alibi, Race for Glory and Desert Hearts.
     He was a series regular in the television shows The Road Home for CBS and The Fifth Corner for NBC. TV guest appearances include Chicago Hope, Charmed, Dead Man’s Gun, Outer Limits and Touched by an Angel. He has also starred or guest starred in some 15 movies of the week or mini-series.

Sage Allen Steps in to Take on Roll of Ann

     Sage Allen has been involved in numerous facets of the entertainment community, as playwright, screenwriter, author, actor, director, band singer, nightclub vocalist and songwriter.
     She was born and grew up in the Texas Panhandle attended the University of Texas, as a drama/music major, then went to New York City, where she finished her education at Columbia University; sang at endless Backers’ Auditions for The Fantasticks written by her Texas friends, Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt; studied opera with Maestro Ignaz Zitomirsky and acting with Wynn Handman.
     She became Wynn Handman’s assistant director for his off-Broadway production, The Power of Darkness, and continued her association with him when he created and became Artistic Director of the prestigious American Place Theatre.
     It was Handman who first encouraged her to write, but it was Anna and Lee Strasberg who supported her writing by producing two of her plays. Mobile Home was the premier production in the Marilyn Monroe Theatre in LA, and a screenplay that was recently optioned by director Lee Grant.  Her satire, Bigtime Boogie, directed by master video artist Shirley Clarke, was the Strasbergs’ first production in Stage/Lee Strasberg, for which Sage received a LAWEE Award for outstanding achievement in playwriting. Her recent L.A. production of Cut Flowers, produced by the Victory Theatre, won Sage the Dramalogue Playwriting Award, and will be produced this year off-Broadway by Ernie Martin and starring Anne Wedgeworth.
     As a member of ASCAP, Sage has written several ‘hit songs’ including You Can’t Lie to a Liar and Kidnap America. She appeared as vocalist with the Lester Lanin Society Orchestra and has performed as featured artist in nightclubs, concerts, symphonies and opera companies across the country. She was also an original member of Phil Foster’s comedy/improv group, which performed regularly at the Improv in New York City.
     Sage’s acting career is represented in numerous feature films, including her portrayal of Billy Crystal’s mom in Mr. Saturday Night, a performance that spans 60 years. Other film credits include: Armageddon with Bruce Willis, 187 with Samuel Jackson, Conspiracy Theory with Mel Gibson, Deception with Liam Neeson and Frankie Starlight with Matt Dillon. She did a recurring role on Chicago Hope; was a guest star last season on the opening episode of ER; as well as The Profiler; and the FOX series X-Files.
     Sage is a Lifetime Member of the Actors Studio, served on the Members’ Committee, and on the Board of Governors for the Writers/Directors Unit.
 

Rebecca Harrell as Hilary Kempton 

     With this being her third film shot there, Indiana has become a second home for Rebecca. When she was eight she starred in John’s Christmas Classic Prancer. Ten years later he cast her in A Piece of Eden. Now, at 21, she has a supporting role in Suspended Animation.
     When John Hancock and Dorothy Tristan cast her in Prancer she was living with her mother in Vermont and traveling to New York for auditions. Her mother had been in show business herself when she was a youngster. Rebecca found life as a child actress tough. “It’s really hard on the psyche because children need to find themselves and discover who they are. In show business you’re not allowed to do that. Instead you have to be an image that people want you to be.”
      Although she currently pursues acting in Los Angeles, Rebecca gave up her career for a while, going to school in New York and in Vermont.
     She was attracted to her role as Hilary because she felt this character represented the goodness in people. “Even though there is all this torture and murder (in the movie) the message at the end of the day is that goodness prevails.”
     Rebecca didn’t expect to get the part because she thought she was too young. Obviously that wasn’t a problem for John Hancock.


Laura Esterman as Vanessa Boulette

    Laura is well known to New York theatre goers after winning the 1991-92 Obie Award for her riveting performance in Marvin’s Room.
     Living as she does in New York she is frequently cast in East Coast based television series such as Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, Third Watch, Law and Order and Remington Steele.
     Her hit movies have included The Confession, Addams Family Values, The Doors, Awakenings and Ironweed.
     Laura was urged to read for the role of Vanessa by an old friend, Dorothy Tristan, whom she had first met when they had performed in The Doll’s House in Baltimore together. They have remained friends ever since.
     She found making the movie “quite scary. The violence is frightening, much more than I expected. I wasn’t able to detach myself. It was very dark.”
     She sees her character as someone who has been deeply wounded and who’s taking revenge for all her suffering.  "She’s vengeful, angry and bitter.”

Daniel Riordan as Jack Starr

     Daniel Riordan is no newcomer to show business with more than 40 films, television shows and stage productions to his credits. He has appeared in such notable motion pictures as The Waiting Game, Jingle All the Way and Tim Burton’s Ed Wood. Other films in which he has been featured are The Pirate Island of Jean Lafitte, The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space, Pentathlon, Women in Prison, My Blue Heaven, B.R.A.T. Patrol (directed by Chris Carter), Electric Boogaloo and Chris Columbus’s I Think I’m Gonna Like It Here.
     He has been seen in such popular television series as Diagnosis Murder, Weird Science, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Renegade, Silk Stalkings, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Dark Justice and  Star Trek.
     Riordan has performed in everything from Shakespeare to the latest modern plays in theatres from New York to San Francisco.
     The actor says that his character is “a fun loving guy I can identify with.”
     Learning to ride a snowmobile and make it look like he knew what he was doing was a challenge for Daniel, but an aspect of his role that he thoroughly enjoyed.

Fred Meyers Plays Sandor

    Fred Meyers, almost an army brat, was born in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1983. Three months later, his father retired from the Army and moved the family to Scottsdale, Arizona. Fred’s childhood centered on swimming lessons with Grandpa, frequent family gatherings, weekend cookouts and expeditions to the Phoenix Zoo. 
     Fred showed an early preference for movies over kids’ cartoons. His favorites were Ghostbusters and all the Bruce Lee martial art films. Even his faithful companion, Cato Louis, a Chinese pug was named for Bruce Lee’s Cato and Rick Moranis’ Louis. With Cato Louis close behind, Fred mastered the swing set, explored Montessori, and learned to play soccer, baseball and began the study of taekwondo. 
     By age thirteen, Fred had earned his 2nd Degree Black Belt and was an accomplished taekwondo instructor. Noted for his ability to inspire kids to give their best effort, his classes were disciplined and fun. He also taught taekwondo to children in the Head Start Program. Competing regionally and nationally in forms and free sparring, Fred led his division’s Top Four before turning his focus to acting. 
     Fred’s talent, skill and quirky good looks landed a recurring role on Even Stevens. Disney’s top rated children’s show. He has developed his character of "Tom Gribalski" into a complex, humorous character with a serious side. Fred enjoys the challenge of auditioning and call backs, considering that his regular day job. 
     Although Fred attended public schools in Phoenix, he completed his high school credits with Alternative Schools of California, an independent study program located in Burbank. He recently resumed teaching taekwondo at a North Hollywood studio. Fred’s philosophy focuses on developing self-control, physical fitness, self-confidence, respect for the rights and feelings of others, and accepting responsibility for the consequences of one’s own actions. Fred enjoys acting classes, computer gaming, working out with weights, taking dates to the movies and checking out the vintage muscle cars at Bob’s Big Boy on Friday nights. 
     Booking the role of Sandor in Suspended Animation gave Fred a rare opportunity to explore the dark, deranged mind of a teenage serial killer and do his own stunts in some realistic fight scenes.  Fred appreciated the creative twists in Dorothy's script and was encouraged by John to build, improvise and take his character over the edge.  This creative freedom made playing this role an experience Fred will never forget.  Fred’s acting credits include a lead role in Disney’s The Fanatic and many other television guest starring roles, as well as numerous commercials and theatre productions.

Maria Cina tackles role of Clara

     Maria Cina’s role of Clara Hansen is a complex character; a woman raising an abusive teenage son who learns that her own mother is a homicidal maniac. She must struggle through all that life throws at her and still try to retain her sense of decency.
     “I can certainly identify with doing whatever it takes to follow my dreams and overcoming the various obstacles,” she says. It was a tough physical challenge for her too. She gets shot at close range and is tied up and beaten. “I counted about 17 bruises. People weren’t actually hitting me. I think I did most of the damage myself.”
     She went through “an extremely dark journey” with Fred Meyers, who plays her murderous son. “We came out the other side both incredibly concerned about one another.”
     Maria is a busy actress these days, having filmed The Amati Girls, Blue Shark Hash, The Gentleman Bandit and Dog Story in the past year. The last mentioned film has been shown at three festivals and she has been nominated as best actress.
     Other movie credits include Venice Beach, in which she played the lead, The Independent, Unsung Heroes, Vegas Vacation, The Mask, Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Kiss and Tell.
     She has guest or co-starred in numerous television shows including Beverly Hills 90210, Bay Watch, 3rd Rock from the Sun and Seinfeld.
     Maria also has extensive stage experience in Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas and London.
     She received her training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, with the Stella Adler Conservatory in L.A. and at New York’s Studio Arena Theatre.
     She speaks fluent French and is skilled at all types of dancing. As a singer she has appeared with such greats as Prince, Reba MacEntire, Sheena Easton, Carol Channing, Rita Morena, Ray Charles, Tina Turner and Kool and the Gang.

J.E. Freeman as Phillip Boulette

    J.E. Freeman was recommended for this role of the mad sisters’ brother by the film’s lead, Alex McArthur, an old friend whom he had first met when they had acted in a television show together some 15 years ago.
     Playing a convict, Freeman's scenes were all shot inside a real prison.  the toughest part?  Getting the cast and crew through security every time they needed to come in or out.  Also, Freeman had to go without smoking on the set, as it was forbidden on the premises..
     Freeman grew up in Brooklyn and moved to San Francisco where he worked steadily in television and motion pictures from 1974 to 1985. He moved on to Los Angeles.
     He has appeared in some 20 movies including The Man Who Knew Too Much, Alien: Resurrection, Dream With the Fishes, Patriot Games, Miller’s Crossing directed by the Coen brothers,  David Lynch’s Wild at Heart, Randa Haines’ The Doctor, Iron Eagle 3 from John Glen, Ruthless People, directed by the Zucker brothers, Michael Ritchie’s The Couch Trip and There Goes My Baby from directors Floyd Mutrix and Jim Abrahams.
     Freeman has appeared in many of the top television series of the past 15 years, including Nash Bridges, Hill Street Blues, Remington Steele, Highway to Heaven, Maguyver and Hunter. He has also had roles in numerous television movies.


Cliff Modjeska

     While working as a deliveryman for a printing company, Jeff spotted a dinner theatre in Valparaiso, IN that was holding auditions for the show "Shenandoah".  He went and auditioned for the show and got a part, but the show had been changed to "The Wizard of OZ" and his part was one of the munchkins in the "Lollipop Guild".  That was in 1988 and Jeff has been acting ever since.
     Jeffrey Brian Puckett was born on November 11, 1965 in Winamac, Indiana.  He is a 1984 graduate of Knox High School.  He lived in Knox, IN with his parents and two brothers.  On December 14, 1985 he married Verna Green.  He has four children, Zachary, Elizabeth, Clinton, and Chad.
     Jeff never had an acting class.  His training came from local theatres and many books on acting.  Respect for Acting and A Challenge for the Actor by Uta Hagen and True and False by David Mamet are his favorites.
     After ten years of acting in community theatre doing chorus, supporting and lead roles, Jeff had the opportunity to audition for a movie that John Hancock would be filming in his local area.  After several auditions, he got the part of "Greg" in A Piece of Eden.  While shooting that film, he met Don Varda, a filmmaker that had written a script and wanted Jeff to audition for his movie Best for Last.  He got the part of an abusive husband, "Ray Tanner".  In January 2001, Jeff played the part of "Cliff" in John Hancock and Dorothy Tristan's thriller, Suspended Animation.