by R.C. Samo
Editor-in-Chief
When Star Trek fans think of Marina Sirtis, images of a sultry, olive complected goddess in the form of Deanna Troi instantly come to mind with a shoulder shrug and giggle. However, when speaking with Sirtis, she is anything but passive or meek. The petite actress has a larger than live personality and an intellect to match, Athena herself.
“We have the largest fan-base in show business. I have met grandchildren of the original series. People watched TNG (The Next Generation) for seven years and paid their hard earned money to see our films and for that I truly appreciate our fans,” said Sirtis while sitting under a tree in front of the the Los Angeles Convention Center during Pop/Con LA.
Born to Athenian parents in London’s east end, Sirtis had to hide being in the drama club from her mother, who equated acting to prostitution because of the loose morals associated with performing.
“I had to pretend I was in detention in order to attend theatre class. I was such a bad kid though, that she believed it,” said Sirtis.
Her father, John, was a tailor in London having won two gold medals for his craftsmanship, while brother Steve, who Sirtis refers to as the, “true Greek son,” moved to their ancestral homeland to play professional soccer for Kalitha.
In Greek custom, the first born daughter is named after the father’s mother, while the second daughter is named after the mother’s mother, out of respect for both lineages…same practice is done for the sons in naming them after their grandfathers. In Sirtis’ case, she was not named after her paternal grandmother, Orthodoxia (translation: Correct Doctrine), but rather Marina was named for her maternal grandmother and a prominent saint in the Eastern Orthodox Churches.
Similar, to her patron’s namesake, St. Marina, who is known to have bashed in the head of a demon with a hammer, Sirtis’ strong will has sometimes been a hindrance to her career.
“A young girl had asked if my personality had caused problems for me in my career, and yes, it has,” said Sirtis, who has no problem sharing her views about politics, religion or any other taboo topic.
Just prior to sitting with FanboyNation, Sirtis and her husband, Michael Lamper had just celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary. The irony being that Lamper’s father-in-law from a previous marriage thought that Sirtis was the most beautiful woman in the world, and here, his former son-in-law had now married his fantasy girl.
Sirtis is a strict vegetarian and animal rights activist. She has three dogs, two of which are rescues, consisting of a miniature Pinscher, a Pomeranian and a mutt that is part Jack Russell.
A self-described “Luddite,” Sirtis is not a fan of technology or social media, but enjoys interacting with her fans personally. One fan asked about her big hair in the television series to which she laughingly said, “The great part of waring a wig with a 5 a.m call is that your hair dresser can you hair without you being there.”
Sirtis is a working actress, a consummate professional and delightful to her fans. She will be appearing at the Star Trek Convention August 9 to 12 at the Rio in Las Vegas, NV and the Emedia Star event in Anaheim, CA August 18, 2012.
Visit Marina Sirtis’ official website at http://www.marinasirtis.tv/ for more information.
For ticket information for the Las Vegas Star Trek Convention visit Creation Entertainments’ website: http://www.creationent.com/cal/st_lasvegas.html
and for the Emedia Star one day event in Anaheim, CA visit http://emediastar.com/