CELEBRITY ENCOUNTER.
My mind is on Lost. My heart is with Lost. My keyboard can only type about Lost. Tonight is a night which I have long dreaded because it will inevitably result in a broken heart for me as I forever say goodbye to some of my favorite friends. After 6 seasons of religiously living, breathing, and watching Lost, yes, I want answers, but, no, not at the cost of losing Jack, Sawyer, Freckles, and Hurley; oh my sweet Hurley. Desmond — what will I do without you in this lifetime, brotha? And, Ben, oh silly Ben, no one will ever again deceive me and kill at will like you can, Ben.
Tonight, I will surely weep and dwell in my sorrow, a sorrow which only a true Lost fan can understand and appreciate. But at least my pain will mercifully now be softened due to the intervention of the cosmos yet once again. In true serendipitous Celeb Magnet fashion, the stars sent me an angel last night from Australia; an angel in the name of Nick Tate. You’ve seen Nick in Hook, Cry Freedom, Murder She Wrote, JAG,and The X Files. But as I looked closely at his sweet familiar face, and listened intently to his smooth Australian accent as he spoke with my friend Emerson, I recognized Nick from episode 1.3 of Lost, better known as Tabula Rasa which first aired October 6, 2004.
Hello Nick, mate–nice to see you again. On Lost, Nick played Ray Mullen, a farmer in Australia for whom Kate (played by Evangeline Lilly) worked prior to the crash of Oceanic Flight 815. As you recall, Ray found a fugitive Kate sleeping in his sheep pen one morning, and gave her a job doing chores around his farm for nearly three months. That is, until Ray spotted Kate’s mugshot at the post office and decided to turn her in to US Marshal Edward Mars for a $23,000 reward. During the confrontation with Mars, Kate caused Ray’s truck to overturn but ended up saving him by pulling him out from the burning wreckage. The delay allowed Mars to capture her. Here is a clip containing the scenes.
Interesting bit of trivia: Ray Mullen was the first character to appear on an episode of Lost who wasn’t aboard Oceanic 815. As all die-hard Lost fans know, Lost was Evangeline Lilly’s first speaking role ever. Tonight, Nick relayed the story of the first time he met Evangeline. It took place while they were both sitting in their respective makeup chairs and facing each other. Nick introduced himself to this “amazingly beautiful” lady who seemed very nervous. Her scenes with Nick would be Evangeline’s first scenes with a non-cast member. This was as big as it gets for a young, new actress. She asked if Nick would go over their lines while they were both in their make up chairs, and Nick agreed. Nick, a seasoned actor, says Evangeline rehearsed the lines to perfection. Nick told her she was really good, and Evangeline asked, “do you really think so?” “Oh, yes, I really think so.” Nick was obviously spot on with his assessment. Nick says he still keeps in touch with Evangeline and sees her from time to time when he is in the States; he calls her “unforgettable”. Well, Nick, I think you are unforgettable too…