Addendum: The Curious Thing That the God Did In the Night -
A TREATISE INTO THE NATURE OF THE EFFECTS OF MAGICA CHAOSIUM UPON THE INTEGRATION OF TEMPORAL BI-LOCATORY MECHANISMS WITH DIMENSIONAL PARAPHYSICAL PHENOMENAE AND ANOMALOUS CHRONOLOGICAL DIVERGENCES.
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To the Attention of:
Sir Edmund Wilfred Dacre, Lord Fitzwilliam, Ninth Baron Greystock
Her Majesty's Liaison to the Council of Watchers of Great Britain
Greystoke Castle Estate Limited, Greystoke Castle
Greystoke, Penrith, Cumbria; CA13 0TG
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Dear Sir Edmund,
You will no doubt be pleased to know that I have at last completed my inquiries and investigations into the odd matter that you previously brought to my attention during the summer of last year.
Or possibly, if not pleased, then at least satisfied that this matter has been examined most thoroughly and carefully, and may now be laid fully to rest.
As you may no doubt recall, in mid July of nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, there came to attention of the Coven at Devon and the redoubtable Dame Harkness indications of, at first, a massive evocation of chaos majicks in the Southern California area. This fluctuation was then followed by indications of a second equally massive temporal flux centred upon the same region. You will doubtless be aware that, as the location in question coincides with the locale of one of the current inactive Hellmouths, once it was reported, these occurrences caused no small amount of stir in certain circles, notably amongst the hierarchy of the Watcher's Council of Great Britain.
Upon subsequent investigations, it was determined that the burst of chaos majicks had no discernible source in that area. Also it was determined that while it only now registered upon various mystical senses and means of detection, the disturbance in the space-time continuum and its subsequent effects had actually occurred nearly a century ago. One of the chaos related events appeared to not actually have occurred at all. More, however, on that later.
All this, as I'm certain you recall, resulted in a great deal of expressed curiosity, and no small amount of gnashing of teeth both figurative and actual. It also resulted in rather a frenzy of investigations, both mystical and mundane.
Said investigations proved to be fruitless in nature, of course, or else you and I wouldst not be having this correspondence.
As a consequence, the current Head of the High Council, Quentin Travers, hastened to make contact with me. My services were subsequently prevailed upon for the purposes of conducting an in depth investigation into these anomalous occurrences. A full accounting of the nature of my inquiries and investigations, and the results thereof, can be read in my unabridged report, the text of which accompanies this cover letter. However, in deference to the nature of other demands upon your time, and as agreed upon, I shall summarize my efforts here in this missive.
Now, given the nature of the majicks involved, my first order of business as well as the efforts of other investigators, centered upon known practitioners of Chaos Majick. Most notably, upon one Ethan Rayne: who is both sufficiently skilled and powerful to have created an effect of a size sufficient to leave the observed signature and residue, and sufficiently warped in nature to consider such an activity to be an entertaining pastime.
However, while several of my colleagues in the employ of the High Council differ with me on this, it soon became apparent to me that while Rayne has no doubt been guilty of similar effects in the past, he was not and is not responsible for this occurrence. Indeed, the more mundane inquiries conducted by my investigatory team indicate that on this occasion, the fellow was on another continent entirely, and invested in activities that would almost certainly preclude his ability and his inclination to travel to North America for the purposes of creating such effects.
Further, while it is widely known that Rayne is an experienced dissembler, there were elements in his expression and reactions upon being confronted upon this matter by myself and Dame Harness' representative that simply cannot be feigned. These elements, along with his willingness to be questioned under a Shroud of Veritas lead me to believe that his surprise and curiosity over the revelation of the nature of the event were most genuine. I have spoken with him myself, at length, on the matter, and it is my considered professional opinion that he was entirely sincere in his disavowals, and equally sincere in his own curiosity being piqued by the event.
(Note that I did not apprise Rayne of mine and Dame Harkness' analysis and conclusion that the mystical signature involved bore a significant resemblance to those of his own castings. In light of my conclusions regarding his non-involvement, I did not wish to further sharpen the man's interest in the event and cause him to become more deeply involved, nor to potentially act upon an impulse to experiment in those areas himself, thereby exacerbating an already vexing situation. I am quite certain that you can see my reasoning in this.)
It is my considered recommendation, therefore, that no further inquiries nor action be taken with or against Ethan Rayne at this point, on this matter. Given the enmity and approbation that currently exists between them, I am certain that Derek Rayne would not be appreciative of either Crown nor Council harassment of his wayward nephew, and the Council's relations with the Legacy are already strained enough without adding further friction to the mix.
That is where matters sat, briefly, until it was brought to the attentions of myself and the Coven at Devon, as well as that of Dame Harkness, of the curious nature of the bequest of the late Doctor Reginald Giles. It would seem that, unbeknownst to any in the High Council until very recently, that Doctor Giles had entrusted to the Senior Archivist of his time a singular package, with very strict deliver instructions.
To wit: it was to be delivered precisely upon a certain date, far in the future of the date that he placed it in safe storage, to none other than the descendants of one Cordelia Persephone Chase-Harris, and one Alexander LaVelle Harris-Chase.
Given your position and your family's association with the Council, you no doubt recall that there was a rather nasty bit of business in 1901, with the then High Council and then Council Chairman over that affair with the Slayer Bianca Gunn. Your grandfather, Lord William Dacre was the Liaison to the Council at that time, was he not? I myself had been in Quor-toth observing the Decian Accession Rites, rather than present here in this reality. However, upon my return, I gathered that there was a great deal of upheaval in the hierarchy of the then Watcher's Council. It is my understanding, as I recall, that a rather large number of Praesidium Watchers found themselves quite suddenly elevated to the more lofty ranks of the High Council. Cruciamentum related business, was it not? A more than merely barbaric ritual, that – one that I was not in the least bit sorry to see abolished in 1904 by nearly unanimous vote of the High Council, upon recommendation of Her Then Majesty's Liasion to the Council.
Needless to say, while it was too late to intercept the package and the accompanying missives for examination – the Archives are quite punctilious about fulfilling the precise letter of their instructions – a team was dispatched immediately to Sunnydale, California, to conduct discreet investigations. As well, a representative of the High Council was sent to accompany me in speaking with the Council's man in Cleveland on the Hellmouth: one Rupert Giles who had the misfortune to be the one entrusted with delivering said documents to their intended recipients.
Unfortunately, our inquiries with Rupert Giles proved to be fruitless: he was just as clueless as to the reasons why he had been selected by his Grand Uncle for this task as myself, or any in the High Council and the Archivist Staff still remain.
As noted, while it was too late to intercept the package, our Inquiry Team in Southern California was able to retrieve the wrappings and envelopes from the rubbish of the Chase Estates. I must admit to some small amount of amusement at the mental image of a High Watcher of the Council and a full Special Operations Team sitting upon their fundaments whilst sifting through old coffee grounds, meal remnants, and other assorted debris seeking out particular bits of rubbish to bring back to England for our examinations. Quite hilarious, actually – my only regret is that Quentin Travers couldn't arrange for that detail to fall upon the hands of that pillock Wyndam-Pryce.
Nonetheless, once the selected debris was safely in our possession in the workshops within Castle Drogo, we began to analyse it for mystical signatures, having been assured that the team had been discreet enough to not be seen nor to raise the suspicions or catch the attentions of any at the Chase Manor. Cautious examinations, of course, however in hindsight, perhaps not cautious enough.
As an aside, I do hope most sincerely that dear Agatha recovers fully from her abrupt interactions with the far wall of the Sanctum Sanctorum. I did warn her that an oblique approach might be better advised than a direct mystical examination, for the record. Ah well...
In any case, once the smoke cleared away from the scene of that, ah, indiscretion, we were able to glean at least some information from the remains of our evidence. Upon detailed – and oblique – mystical examination, the mystery deepened, rather than becoming less opaque. It would seem that in addition to the expected residue of chaos majicks and temporal energies, the missives also bore the mark of the personal imprimatur of a greater deity. To wit: one Janus.
Yes, that one.
Upon deciding that, after observing the results of Dame Harkness' indiscretion, that making direct inquiry of Janus himself might be ill advised, I then determined to gather my personal team and conduct a slightly more discreet inquiry at the source. It had by this point become quite clear to me that we were dealing with a temporal and dimensional divergence rather than a simple temporal anomaly. One of the results of our mystical inquiries revealed the rather startling information that the mystical disruptions to the space-time continuum seem to have originated nearly simultaneously in both mid-late July of 1898, and in mid-late July of 1998. These disruptions seem to have been repeated in similar form, with similar signatures, a few weeks after the first incidence.
I shan't bore you with the details of our full explorations in this endeavour, as I am well aware that you are a very busy man, and your time is limited. For details, I direct you to my full report and treatise, which you may, as you wish, digest and absorb the implications fully at your leisure. Also find appended to that document four appendices that you may find fascinating. I do know that I did, having read and examined all of them quite closely and repeatedly.
Suffice it to say that our inquiries eventually enabled myself and my team to narrow down the locus of the chronological disruptions to a particular pair of now intersecting world lines and temporal progressions, that diverted once again shortly after the near simultaneous events and their repetition. Having diverted, apparently a new and third world line and temporal continuum was created and left in place to diverge yet further from the logical progression of both former lines. Having done so, we inserted ourselves into what we deemed to be the appropriate spot in this divergent world line for the purposes of making discreet inquiries and investigations.
Following which, I found myself having quite the interesting conversation with the Doctor Reginald Giles of that world line, who proceeded – once he was satisfied as to my bona fides – to relate to me a most curious and fascinating tale. This tale, as you no doubt have surmised by now, concerns the events surrounding the return of one Cordelia Persephone Chase and one Alexander LaVelle Harris to the vicinity of Sunnydale, California during mid July, 1898.
To summarize in brief:
At one point in 1898 A.D., there existed a history where there was no Alexander LaVelle Harris born to one Andrew Harris in 1876, and no Cordelia Persephone Chase born as the illegitimate offspring of the Chase family in 1877. In that world line's history, unbeknownst to both the Council, and to civil authorities (such as they were), the township of Sunnydale fell under the sway and dominion of a dark sorcerer known as Richard Wilkins the First, who proceeded to subjugate the community after awakening the nascent Hellmouth in that vicinity.
At one point in a slightly different time-line, there existed a world where one Alexander LaVelle Harris (born to one Andrew Harris and his wife in 1876), and one Cordelia Persephone Chase (born as the illegitimate offspring of Thomas Chase in 1877) experienced a somewhat delayed return to Sunnydale, California in the summer of 1898 following a lengthy absence and a long sojourn in Australia. In that world line, upon their return, they discovered that Sunnydale was firmly ensconced in the grasp of a Mayor Richard Wilkins following an altercation that resulted in the Sunnydale City Marshall and his offices to cease to exist. Upon discovering something of Wilkins' nature, and that they had no, or very few, remaining friends and relatives there, both elected to move on shortly thereafter – whereupon they faded into the mists of history.
In yet another, young Mr. Harris and Miss Chase made somewhat better connections with various transportations, and arrived in Sunnydale in the early morning of July 19, 1898. History in that world line undertook a significantly different course. As did, I was interested to note, the history of the Watcher's Council of Great Britain at some point a few years after the events following that arrival.
According to the account of Reginald Giles, a copy of which I have also appended to this treatise, somewhere between July 17, 1998 and July, 1898, a Chaos Mage named Ethan Rayne performed a singular service for one Richard Wilkins the Third in Sunnydale, California. He enchanted a piece of video storage medium and caused it to fall into the hands of a pair of teenagers that then Mayor Wilkins was finding to be troublesome and wished to have removed from his affairs.
Unfortunately for Wilkins, in the process of this enchantment, Rayne made the dubious and ill advised choice of calling upon Janus, greater Roman god of Doorways and Paths, to power his sorcery. The mind recoils in horror when imagining what might have occurred had he not called upon the God of Gates and Paths, but upon an actual chaos deity instead.
According to Reginald Giles, as relayed to him by his two young acquaintances, this was the second massive chaos working that Rayne had performed via the auspices of Janus. The first occurred some months before during Samhain, hence the two separate and unexplainable traces of chaos magic tinged with deity auspice that were detected and have been previously alluded to in this missive.
One can only presume that, given his nature as defined by Roman myths, Janus was not amused by Rayne's and Wilkins' involving him in their activities. Short of actually asking the deity – a course of action that I deemed ill advised at best – it is the only reasonably accurate surmise that presents itself to me which fits all of the observable facts of the matter.
By Reginald Giles account, one Ethan Rayne, chaos sorceror, performed a ritual enchantment on October the Thirty-first, Samhain, in a world line that apparently no longer exists, at least not in the form that it once did. This enchantment caused numerous individuals to be possessed by the personalities and/or spirits of whatever Halloween personae they dressed up as on that particular evening. No doubt, a good time was had by all, as our Colonial friends might say – even though I fear that we ourselves will never actually know for certain what precisely occurred during that evening. On the second occasion, in that time line, Rayne performed an enchantment designed to transport Alexander LaVelle Harris and one Cordelia Desiree Chase – both born in that time line in the year 1980 A.D. - into the world portrayed by the cinematic production that they had seated themselves to view for the evening.
From that point and that event, as the story goes, history was made.
Or unmade, as the case might be.
Apparently, somehow – one can only speculate that it was through the machinations and auspices of Janus - the two adolescents from 1998 were transported into a cinematic version of their past and merged with their counterparts that were native to that time line and that cinematic world line. (See the addendum detailing the "World As Myth" theorem for further details on the relative inexactness of the terms "fictional" and "real" when applied to dimensional paraphysical constructs.) From that event stems the tripartite world line and time-line events that I have mentioned within the pages of this missive, and the attached reports.
In brief, the plans and machinations of a certain Richard Wilkins, Interim Mayor of Sunnydale, California in 1898, began to degrade rather precipitously, one might say. Wilkins himself began to degrade rather precipitously shortly afterwards, albeit that "decompose" might be a rather more apt turn of phrase, if you will allow me the use of a bit of gallows humour here.
It should go without saying that this would be the explanation as to why there is not an active Hellmouth in the south of the Republic of California at this time. At least not in this world line as it currently stands. (Please see the addendum to the attached full report for the summation of the events leading to that circumstance. Or, if you would prefer, read the text of the appended novel: "Guns Along the Rio Blanco." It is a rather fictionalised account of the events in question, but it does indeed capture the gist and the spirit of the matter.)
I made use of all possible means at my disposal to persuade Reginald Giles to allow me to personally meet with and speak at length in person with Alexander LaVelle Harris-Chase and Cordelia Persephone Chase-Harris, as the instigators and active participants in this course of events. I was, sadly, rebuffed in my efforts to do so. Doctor Giles seemed to be determined not to have anyone from the Council intrude upon the nuptials and subsequent honeymoon of his two young acquaintances. I was unable to even determine the locale to which the pair had retired after their marriage ceremony – the citizens of that small township proved to be remarkably close mouthed upon anything having to do with the two young Deputy Marshalls.
Indeed, it was only by convincing the Doctor Giles of that time period that I was a Special Operative of the Watchers Council that I was able to persuade him to speak to me at the length he did regarding all of these events. It was odd to discover that Reginald Giles was possessed of a rather unshakeable conviction that Mr. Harris-Chase was also a Council Special Operative in good standing. He seemed to find the spectacle of one Special Operative attempting to surreptitiously check up upon another Operative to be quite amusing.
It is my hope that you shall forgive me for not attempting to dissuade Reginald Giles regarding his assumptions on this matter. Then again, for all that I am aware, Alexander LaVelle Harris-Chase may well have been a Council Special Operative, at least in that world line. He certain seems to have acted in that capacity in regards to the curious affair of Richard Wilkins, at any rate.
Finally, I saw no worthwhile purpose to be served by questioning the Alexander LaVelle Harris and Cordelia Desiree Chase currently native to 1998 – 1999, in the Sunnydale of this world line. While I am most curious as to the contents of the missives and packages that were forwarded to them from their past selves via the Council's Archives, I see no legitimate way of ascertaining that information without opening a line of return questioning that I am certain that the Council, and the Crown, would rather not have pursued. It is also possible, and even probable, that the letters themselves will have been destroyed by this point; to prevent the release of knowledge of a world line where Richard Wilkins (according to Reginald Giles) succeeded in creating a demon and vampire Shangri-La, as it were, for the monsters to feed upon the human populace with virtual impunity.
It is therefore my most sincere recommendation that neither further action nor inquiry should be undertaken upon this matter, by either the British Crown or Her Servants, or by Her Majesty's Hellguard Brigade. I shall, of course, be making this recommendation as well in the very strongest possible terms to my colleagues within the Council of Watchers.
It is my opinion that no possible good, and quite possibly a great deal of ill, can come of meddling in the affairs of deity, especially one such as Janus. Nor, in my exceedingly humble opinion, can any possible benefit come of interference in the affairs and concerns of Alexander LaVelle Harris-Chase and Cordelia Persephone Chase-Harris and their adherents, or their descendants.
To paraphrase and misquote an old saying which has now passed into the vulgar argot: Do not meddle in the business of gods, nor in those of gunfighters, for thou art crunchy and taste exceedingly good with ketchup.
It is an established fact that the two main world lines and temporal progressions intersected, merged briefly, and then diverged again long enough ago that all of the repercussions from the merger and split have long since died down and stabilized by this point in time. The events and signatures that were detected on July 18, 1997, were merely the echoes of the previous events which occurred in the summer of 1898.
To be honest, the only person of any note who might have reason for legitimate complaint over the resolution of certain events in the summer of 1898 would be a certain Austrian Unteroffizier who met with an unfortunate, and fortunately fatal, traffic mishap on 12 September 1927. Once you have made your way through the third of the volumes I have appended to this report, you will no doubt come to the conclusion, as have I, that the young corporal was no great loss to this world or any other.
At the very least, having read through and digested the accounts in that volume, you will no doubt come to the realization that the current leaders of the Prussian Imperium are much easier to get along with than any number of the potential alternatives might have been. Likewise, I feel certain that you'll come to the conclusion that a world absent one Richard Wilkins the First, Second, and Third can only be a significant improvement over any world that contains those individuals.
And yes, to answer your immediate question without forcing you to have to wade through the appended reports: we, or you and yours rather, are currently living within the present of the offspring of the briefly merged world lines.
Please accept my professional opinion that any attempts to retroactively intervene in these events and attempt to restore the temporal and dimensional status quo, as it were, would be extremely ill advised to say the very least. I do most sincerely hope that your recommendations to Her Majesty will reflect that learned judgement.
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Yours Sincerely,
Sir Edgar Barlowe
Watcher Emeritus and Special Operative to the Council of Watchers of Great Britain
September 22, 1999 A.D.
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P.S: You will find four volumes accompanying this cover letter and the appended reports and treatises. I strongly urge that you make all possible effort to free up enough time to read and peruse them. You will not find the effort to be wasted, I assure you.
I. A History of Sunnydale and Santa Barbara Counties, circa 1773 to 1923 by Aaron Hiram Levinson (1929)
II. My life with Heroes; 1998-1947: a Fictional Autobiography of Cordelia Chase-Harrisby Chanson L. Chase-Harris
III. A History of the World, Part VI, vol. VII, Schuster Press (1973)
IV. Guns Along the Rio Blanco by Donald S. Hamilton, Pocket Books (1969)
P.P.S: Please note that volumes II, and IV originate in your current world and time line. Volume I originates in the first of the branching alternates that intersected briefly. Volume III is from the second branching alternity. I believe that you'll find them both illuminating and, quite frankly, qextremely disturbing as well.
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A Fictional Biography of Rachel Westin-Chase -
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60 Years of Rachel Westin:
Rachel Westin (aka Rachel Westin-Chase, born Rafaela Bonita Trejada September 5, 1940) is an American
Actress, B-Movie star, and International Sex Symbol. Once known as the "Queen of the Castaway Movies", she has starred in 65 films – 50 of them made between 1958 and 1979 – and more than 30 television appearances since her debut in 1960. Westin first came to attention as a rising new starlet on the Centurion Film studios lineup in the mid 1960's to late 1970's. She is of Bolivian, French, Portuguese, and Welsh descent.
Early Life:
Westin was born Rafaela Bonita Trejada in New York City, N.Y., in 1941, the elder sister to her brother Jaime and her younger sister Regina. She is the daughter of Josephina Adamson (née Hallenby; 1909–2000), of Welsh-Portuguese ancestry, and Armando Carlos Trejada Aguilar (1911–1976), of French-Bolivian descent. Aguilar, an Aerospace Engineer, emigrated from La Paz, Bolivia in 1928; her American mother was the daughter of architect Richard Hallenby and his wife, composer Josephina Adamson.
As a girl, she grew up wanting to be a performer and entertainer. She studied ballet and classical dance from the age of six to sixteen, giving up dance once it became clear she didn't have the body of a professional dancer. In 1955 at the age of fifteen, she won the title of first runner up to Junior Miss California. In 1957, she faked her birth certificate and began trying for a career in Hollywood.
Professional Career:
She changed her last name to that of her first husband, actor and director James Westin, in 1957, and her first name to Rachel for professional purposes. In early 1958, she separated from Westin in a bitter divorce during the filming of her second major role: Helena in the ill fated 'Last Voyage of Sinbad'. After the breakup, she moved with her twin children, Joel and Regina, to Cinncinati where she worked as a part time model for Sanger Harris, and as a late night Disk Jockey for WKRP radio station.
Intending to move to New York to try out on Broadway, in early 1959 she moved back to Los Angeles instead. There she found a place to settle while working as a cocktail waitress and hostess, and began making the rounds of the various film studios. She was quickly cast in bit parts in two films, and in guest roles in the television series 'Bewitching', 'Operation Petticoats', and 'Dodge City'. She also won a brief role on 'Hollywood Showcase' as billboard girl and presenter of acts. She became one of many girls who auditioned for the role of Mary Ann on 'Gilligan's Island' during that time frame.
Westin's first featured role was in the beach movie 'The Wildest Summer', and then she landed a starring role in 'Born Yesterday', which became a minor hit and launched her successful career as an actress. 'Born Yesterday' was followed by a co-starring female lead role in 'Attack of the Rocket People' in late 1959.
Rachel Westin's striking beauty and sex kitten appeal led to a series of other offers. She achieved media and industry attention with her discovery by William Randolph Chase on the set of 1960's pirate extravaganza 'Red Beard' and her breaking her contract to migrate from 21st Century Films to Chase's new studio purchase, Centurion Films.
She achieved national attention in 1961 with her casting in the lead female role in Centurion's successful 1960 film, 'The Long Sleep' alongside George Lazenby, and her marriage to industrialist and rising film mogul William Randolph Chase. She took on Chase's last name after the marriage and became Rachel Westin-Chase from then on, continuing to use "Rachel Westin" as her stage name.
While by no means a flop, 'The Long Sleep' was not a major critical success. It did, however, do well financially, and led to a 12 movie contract with Centurion. 'The Long Sleep' was followed by the low budget 'Day of the Comet' which crashed and burned financially. However, Westin's performance was praised as "the only bright spot in an otherwise dismal experience". 'Comet' led to 'Kala of the Apes' and the reasonably well received 'The Quatermaas Papers'.
'Kala', while not a failure, was notable mostly in that it led to the two much better received Jock Mahoney Tarzan movies, which paved the way for the later blockbuster success of '50,000 Years B.C.'. The 1962 'Tarzan and the Hidden Valley' and 1963's 'Tarzan and the Lion God' also introduced Westin to Mahoney, whom she would later become romantically linked with in the tabloids and press (and unreliably rumoured have become her her third and final husband.)
1963 placed her with an upcoming young Burt Reynolds for the first time in 'Barbarossa', another hopeful pirate extravaganza. While Westin would go on to costar with Reynolds in five other moderately successful films, 'Barbarossa' tanked at the box office and would become Westin's last pirate film. A she put it in a later interview:
"I have nothing at all against genre films, even the lower budget or so called 'B-grade' ones. There are tons of actresses who try to pick and choose, and fall by the wayside. I would much rather work than not work. However, three failures is three strikes to me: I'm obviously not meant to star in a successful pirate movie. And, if you can't be successful with it, why bother?"
1964 gave her a pair of relatively high profile roles costarring alongside Elvis Presley in 'Roundabout' and 'Viva Los Lobos' (her first Western), and a part alongside Robert Mitchum in the fairly successful hard-bitten World War II drama 'The Judas Goat'.
'Day of the Comet', the ill fated 'Starship Galileo', and 'The Quatermaas Papers' did much the same thing for Westin in the Science Fiction genre as 'Kala of the Apes', the two Tarzan movies, and '50,000 Years' did for her in the Fantasy and Action Adventure realm. She would later go on to star in a leading role in the Sci-fi film 'The Incredible Voyage' which became a hit and began her launch to stardom.
Westin next received a starring role in the modestly successful adaptation of Lovecraft's 'Colour Out of Space' in '62.
'Voyage' was followed over the years by the Swords Trilogy: an adaptation of Leigh Bracket's Eric John Stark "Swords and Rockets" novels, 'The Girl of Bronze' with Ron Ely, 1973's 'Dune Roller', 'The Copernicus Effect', and 1984's 'Descent to 10,000 Fathoms' – as well as a popular recurring role in the late 70's and early eighties sci-fi television series: 'Galaxy Quest'. Her twelve episode appearances became a cult favorite with fans of the wildly popular but short lived series. So much so that fan requests led to her becoming a series cast regular in the seven year run of the late 1990's to 2000's revival, alongside series costar Charisma Carpenter.
It was the 1966 '50,000 Years B.C.', however, that cemented Rachel Westin as a box office draw and a star. Made as part of a studio deal with Britain's Hamner Films, Westin headlined in the competitor to Raquel Welch's 'One Million Years B.C.', striking an iconic chord in a daring even for the sixties tiny leather bikini. As one reviewer stated, "While an obvious mockubuster to Welch's 'One Million', Westin's luscious curves, sensual impact, and sex appeal made her Welch's competitor for the top spot in the fantasies of millions of young movie goers. Her obvious talent in carrying a role with fewer than six speaking lines didn't hurt, either... " The publicity stills for the film became a set of hot selling posters, and, along with the iconic, hipshot, sixgun-and-naked-under-a-serape poster from '71's 'Ballad of Josie Welles', made her one of the top sex symbols of the sixties and seventies.
'50,000 Years' was followed in relatively quick succession by a trio of Tarzan movies with Mike Henry, and two 1968 Westerns, including 'Cabalero' with James Stewart and Dean Martin, which led to a costarring role in 1969's 'Rio Blanco' alongside Martin, John Wayne, and Steve McQueen (The sequel to Howard Hawk's 'Rio Bravo.') The late nineteen sixties also gave her the dismal 'Wolf Girl of the Sierra Madre', the decent but commercially unsuccessful 'Deep Blue Goodbye' alongside Frank Sinatra, and the cult classic 'Jirel of Joirey'.
All in all, between 1964 and 1987 Westin would star in twelve Westerns, some of them wildly successful, from 'Viva Los Lobos!' to the 1986 'Guns of San Saba'. While not as well known for being a Western actress as she was a Sword and Sorcery or sci-fi sex symbol, Westin starred in almost as many as she did of any other drama, along with some of the biggest Western stars of the day.
1971 marked not only the end of her marriage to William Randolph Chase II, but the reprisal and reaffirmation of her iconic sex symbol status with the release of 'Ballad of Josie Welles' and 'Shanna the She-devil.' 'Shanna' did for the leopard skin bikini what '50,000 Years' did for tiny scraps of leather and 'Jirel of Joirey' did for chain-mail. The final two films of the Leigh Brackett Stark trilogy proved that at thirty-three, Westin was picking up where any number of nubile twenty year olds began – and still going strong. '75 and thirty-five saw her highlighted as People's "Sexiest Woman in the World" and #1 in Maxis Magazine's "100 hottest women of the Seventies", with both Maxis' cover and racy ten page center spread and interview.
(She would be considered later for a reprisal of her role in 'Shanna the She-devil' in 1978's 'Shanna: Queen of the Leopard Men', however the producer felt that the then 38 year old actress was too old for the role. Bad for Shanna, good for Westin – 'Queen' was released into the wilds to become one of the biggest box office flops of 1978.)
Westin's reign as co-queen of the sex symbols began to slow in the late late seventies, along with her film career. While she never ceased to work in movies from 1979 to the present day, she never again achieved the near blockbuster success of 1973 and '74's two Musketeer films: 'The Fourth Musketeer' and its sequel, 'The Five Musketeers'. (The less said about 1977's 'Tidal Wave!' the better: a classic 70's disaster film in more ways than one.)
Her current project is a role in an adaptation of John D. MacDonald's 'The Lonely Silver Rain', due for release in 2003, and her final season of 'Galaxy Quest'. As her 1990 bikini poster release and Playboy spread at the age of 50 attest, she still hasn't lost the sex appeal even into her early sixties.
While not as numerous or as varied as her film roles, Westin has frequently starred on television as well, especially through the 80's to the present day. In addition to her 60's cult classic role and her current one in 'Galaxy Quest', she has appeared in roles from her early appearance in a guest spot on 'Dodge City' to her reappearance the in the made for television 'Dodge City: The Last One to Fall'. Her other roles have included a recurring spot in the eighties cult classic police drama 'Night Heat', guest star roles in 'Magnum P.I.' and 'The Rockford Files', on Joss Whedon's 'Firefly', on 'Enchanted', 'CSI: Los Angeles', and 'Crime Scene'. Plus, she's been in numerous variety shows and appearances on 'Saturday Night Live', as well as spots on 'The Muppet Show.'
Personal Life:
So far, Rachel Westin has been married twice:
James Westin – actor and director (1957 – 1858); divorced 1959
William Randolph Chase II – business mogul, land owner and developer, and studio owner (1961 – 1971); divorced 1972
Rumored to have been secretly married to Jock Mahoney – actor and co-star in several films, including two Tarzan movies (1974 – December 14, 1989 at age 70); deceased. (These rumors have never been proven and no documents have ever been located to substantiate such a union.)
James Westin's marriage to the then seventeen year old Rachel Trejada, and its bitter implosion, made for a 9-day scandal in Hollywood and the media. The explosive divorce, scandal, and brief notoriety flared up again, briefly, during Rachel Westin's return to film in 1960's 'The Long Sleep', but proved not to be a detriment to her continuing career and success. Nor did her industry notoriety in breaking her contract with 21st Century Films. Her marriage to studio owner William Chase no doubt helped somewhat.
Her separation from, and subsequent divorce from William Randolph Chase was equally bitter and equally notorious for its virulence. As Westin put it during her appearance on the Carson Show:
"He cheated on me. No one cheats on me. I'm Rachel Westin – it simply isn't done. I do not cheat, nor will I tolerate it in a spouse or lover."
Hollywood's rumor mill has it that Westin's affair with Mahoney began on the set of 1971's 'Shanna the She-Devil', following her bitter estrangement from husband William R. Chase. Both Westin and Mahoney denied this to Mahoney's dying day. In Westin's own words:
"Of course we didn't. I divorced William for cheating, why would I turn about and repay him in kind? That would make me no better. We began dating and sleeping together after the divorce in '72, of course."
There were equivalent rumours of an affair between her and Tarzan co-star Mike Henry. The rumours were fueled and further inflamed once it became known that co-star Henry reconsidered his decision not to do any further Tarzan films solely because of Westin's casting in 'Tarzan and the Castaways'.
Westin is the mother of fraternal twin children: Joel and Regina Westin, age 43. Joel Westin is a successful director and script writer, and Regina has followed her mother's footsteps as a moderately successful B-movie actress and sex symbol. Regina followed her mother's January 1980 example and appeared on the cover of Playboy in the October 1996 issue, as well as in a nude pictorial in that issue.
She has four grand children, plus three adopted grand children from her marriage with Chase.
Westin currently remains unmarried, but is rumored to have a long running affair with frequent co-star James Garner. Westin has denied any truth to the rumor, as has Garner.
"As I told Johnny: I don't cheat, and the supposed affair would have begun during my liaison with and marriage to Jock. James and I are friends. Really – I don't and haven't slept with nearly as many men as the gossip rags would have it. I simply wouldn't have time to act, or do much of anything else, if I did."
Westin also maintained a long time friendship with actor Randolph Scott before his death.
"I like men. Real men, especially. Whether as lovers or simply friends, I like men – there's nothing else quite like them in the world."
Westin currently resides in her own suites occupying a full floor of the Dakota in New York City, where she has lived since 1977. She owns two Borzoi, a Papillion, and a pair of silver-gray Tiffany cats.
She is a licensed pilot, and has competed successfully in combat pistol shooting on a regular basis. She is a graduate of Jeff Cooper's Gunsite in Arizona, and Massad Ayoob's Lethal Force Institute, and owns a fairly large collection of fine and custom handguns and rifles.
"I have been simply fascinated by handguns as far back as 'Los Lobos' with Elvis, and later exposure in other films, but I fell in love with them during the shooting of 'Rio Blanco' – a love probably acquired from Steve. They are, quite simply, such elegant and deadly things, as simple and beautiful as diamonds, and as cold. I learned to shoot and fast draw from Bill (Jordan) for 'Bandida!' and began to collect. And never looked back. Swords are elegant and lovely as well, but there's just something about a handgun."
Westin is a supporter of Gun Owners of America and the Second Amendment Foundation.
Business Career:
Early on, under the advice of then husband William Chase, Westin began to invest a substantial amount of her movie earnings, and has continued the practice to the present day. She is currently estimated to have amassed a considerable personal fortune.
Westin began a successful second career as a fashion designer and marketer in mid nineteen eighties, with her own line of evening wear and club wear, as well as a line of cosmetics. She also chairs and supports a Borzoi rescue foundation, and is chairwoman of The Westin Foundation, an organization dedicated to the recreation and preservation of rare and/or extinct dog and cat breeds.
She also chairs and supports "Cats in Action", a big cat rescue, rehabilitation, and relocation organization, and has done numerous commercials for it.
"It is not well known, but America has possibly the largest population of tigers in captivity in the world. And many of them are not well treated."
Westin is also a professional Borzoi breeder with her own kennels. She also owns Westin Ranch in Northern California, where she raises and shows blooded Andalusian and Auxois horses.
Filmography:
Last Voyage of Sinbad – 1958 (as Rafela Westin)
The Wild Summer – 1959
Born Yesterday – 1959
Attack of the Rocket People – 1959
Red Beard – 1960
The Long Sleep – 1960 with George Lazenby
Day of the Comet – 1961
Kala of the Apes – 1961
The Quatermaas Papers – 1962
Colour out of Space – 1962
Tarzan and the Hidden Valley – 1962 with Jock Mahoney
Barbarosa – 1963 with Burt Reynolds
Tarzan and the Lion God – 1963 with Jock Mahoney
Roundabout – 1964 with Elvis Presley
Viva Los Lobos! – 1964 with Elvis Presley
The Judas Goat – 1965 with Robert Mitchum
Starship Galileo – 1965
Death of a Citizen – 1965 with Jock Mahoney
The Incredible Voyage – 1966
50,000 Years B.C. – 1966
Tarzan and the Castaways – 1966 with Mike Henry
Wolf Girl of the Sierra Madre – 1966
The Deep Blue Goodbye – 1967 with Frank Sinatra
Jirel of Joirey – 1967
Tarzan and the Lost Empire – 1967 with Mike Henry
Bandida! – 1968 with Burt Reynolds
Bandalera – 1968 with James Stewart and Dean Martin
Tarzan at the Earth's Core – 1968 with Mike Henry
Rio Blanco – 1969 with John Wayne, Dean Martin, and Steve McQueen
1000 Rifles – 1969 with Jim Brown and Burt Reynolds
The Lost Christmas – 1969
Swords of Mars – 1970 (Film I of the Eric John Stark Trilogy)
The Girl of Bronze – 1970 with Ron Ely (As Patricia Savage)
Shanna the She Devil – 1971 with Jock Mahoney
Ballad of Josie Welles – 1971 with James Garner
Warlord of Mars – 1972 (Film II of the Eric John Stark Trilogy)
Bay City Bombshell – 1972
Who Goes There? - 1972 (Semi-successful attempt to remake "The Thing")
Swords of Venus – 1973 (Film III of the Eric John Stark Trilogy)
Dune Roller – 1973
The Fourth Musketeer – 1973
The Five Musketeers – 1974
Stryker – 1974 with Burt Reynolds
Gannon's Vendetta – 1975
Gone in 60 Seconds – 1976 with Burt Reynolds
Stunt Man's Holiday – 1976 with Don Rickles and Branscombe Richmond as Max Besh
The Mask of Zorra – 1977
Tidal Wave! – 1977 (70's disaster "blockbuster" flop)
The Copernicus Effect – 1978
Tomorrow Never Dies – 1979 with James Garner
Crimson Dawn – 1982 with Charles Bronson
Higgen and Boggs – 1984 with Robert Culp and Bill Cosby
Descent to 10,000 Fathoms – 1984
Guns for San Saba – 1986 with Burt Reynolds
Quigley on Safari – 1987 with Tom Selleck and Laura San Giacomo
The Lion Game – 1988
Frank T's Plan – 1990
Night of the Lupine – 1994
Vampirella – 1997 (as Katherine Van Helsing)
I'll Do Anything for Love – 1998
Shadows on the Moon – 1999
Legacy – 2001
Dyed by Her Own Hand – 2001 (aka "The Suicide Blonde")
Sins of the Father – 2002
The Lonely Silver Rain – 2003 *
* In Production (Release set for Summer 2004)
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This Concludes the DVD Extras for "Rio Blanco on the Mouth of Hell"
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