Interview: William Katt

The Greatest American Hero's William Katt has become a comic book publisher. Catastrophic Comics is his new project, and, though a fledgling publisher, has the potential to be a contender. For Katt, it's obviously a labor of love, and we had the chance to pick his brain about his past, present and future plans…

William Katt: Hello? It's Bill Katt!

BK: Hi, Mr. Katt, this is [BamKapow] and let me tell you, this is an honor. I'm gonna go a little fanboy on you, but I grew up on The Greatest American Hero…

WK: Oh, well thank you, that's good to hear.

BK: Well, let's jump right into it…with The Greatest American Hero being as cool as it was, do you still put the cape on sometimes? Like when you go to sleep, or, during sex?

WK: (laughs) No. They didn't let me keep it. There was a security check…and there were only like 5 of them…though it was pre-eBay, they must've known there would be some kind of value attached. I think they did keep them, to see if it would fit the girl, when they were going to do a second show…Trust me, it looked a lot better on her.

BK: I bet…I mean, no offense, but, you know…

WK: No, really, it looked better on her.

BK: So…after watching an episode recently, I noticed the outfit you wore looked like a "onesie". How'd you put that thing on? What did you do if you had to use the bathroom?

WK: It was difficult. I kept all the young pretty assistants around to help me out… (laughs)

BK: Do you keep up on current superhero shows?

WK: Oh, there are a few things I keep up on. I got to see a preview of Heroes when it first came out, and I was blown away…

BK: Who would win in a fight? You or Hiro from Heroes?

WK: Oh, me. I fumbled my way to success. (laughs)

BK: In your opinion, who was the actual last American Hero?

WK: I think the real deal guy, to me, both fictionally and in real life had to be Christopher Reeves. He's indelibly etched in the world because he ended up being such a great spokesperson for overcoming the human condition, both as a fictional character and as a real person…he was terrific…

BK: What was the worst injury you ever sustained on the show?

WK: Actually, never got hurt on the show…and I did some cool things. The coolest thing was, my stuntman…they called him Dennis Danger…had gotten sick on the set, and we'd had a helicopter, and I got to ride around on the front strut of this helicopter…

BK: Man, that is cool. OK, so I've got this idea for a comic, wanna hear it? OK, so it's sort of based on me, but not really. So there's this guy, and he kills this other guy in a game of tag. No one ever found the dead guy because he's buried in the first guy's back yard. How's that sound for a comic? Do you think he'd get caught…and if so, how long would he be in jail? I see great potential in this…

WK: (long pause) This is a trick question, right? …I've got lots of bodies buried in my backyard…

BK: OK, onto serious stuff. Why Catastrophic Comics?

WK: We were gonna play on my last name, with a "k", but we decided not to…that we weren't going to be that tongue in cheek…that we'd try to create something that could stand on its own feet, so to speak. We're leaning toward a substance [in our books] that might be a little darker than you might expect with something playing on my last name.

BK: I've read the first 3 issues of the first book, Sparks, and was impressed. When I finished, I was like, that's it? I want more…

WK: Thank you, thank you…

BK: What other books do you have out?

WK: Mythology Wars, and we've got another title due out before the end of the year, but I'm not sure what it is yet. Also, we're talking with Platinum Comics, who owns the rights to Greatest American Hero, we're trying to work something out.

 

BK: How open is Catastrophic to new talent…creators, writers, or artists?

WK: We're very open to everything, not ruling anything out. There's a lot of talented people out there. I had the opportunity recently to sit on a celebrity director's panel, where there was a series of writers trying to get work read and produced, and out of the maybe 20 scripts that I read, there was one I really liked, and now the young lady's getting it produced. I'm not producing it (laughs), but I got her in touch with the right people. One of the ways I like to give back is to mentor.

BK: Well, this has been an honor and a pleasure…Thank you for your time.

WK: No problem, my pleasure!

Let me just say for the record that Mr. Katt was a really, REALLY nice guy, genuinely happy to discuss his work and love for what he's done and does…and I'm not just saying that because he promised me $20 to make him look good.