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Interview by Jeff Hayes
Katherine Kamhi has been acting since she was a child. In the early 80's, she was a series regular on the ABC television Soap Opera ALL MY CHILDREN and later went on to become a series regular on the CBS soap opera: THE GUIDING LIGHT. She has starred in After School Specials and guest starred on many TV series, including NYPD BLUE. She has also played many lead roles in theater productions in both NY and Los Angeles. Chances are you've seen her in atleast one of the above mentioned productions... But it was a revolutionary little horror flick made in 1982 that would bring her 'cult' infamy! And as we all know, that little movie was SLEEPAWAY CAMP. Kathy played "MEG," queen of the counselors and got the chance to play a real "bitch" of a character! From her ARMY-SERGEANT audition to her skin ripping demise, Kathy takes us back to SLEEPAWAY CAMP and into her current productions in this exclusive SLEEPAWAYCAMPMOVIES.COM interview...
| JH: | |
How did you get involved with SLEEPAWAY CAMP? |
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| KK: | |
I got an audition through my Agent. I remember Robert asked me to do an improv where I was supposed to be a very mean army sergeant! Shortly thereafter I got the part. |
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| JH: | |
What was it like for you on the set? |
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K20: KATHY KAMHI - 20 YEARS LATER | |
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| KK: | |
Well I never did a horror film before, so it was intriguing to see fake heads and stuff. Also, I was so used to working with adults all the time so it was cool to work with people that were my own age. |
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| JH: | |
Tell us an interesting memory you have from on the set of SLEEPAWAY CAMP. |
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| KK: | |
Hmmm, well I dated Tom Van Dell ("Mike") for a little bit when doing SLEEPAWAY... he was so funny, I thought he was gonna be the next Robin Williams! |
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| JH: | |
How did you feel about the whole MEG and MEL romance aspect of the story? |
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| KK: | |
It was very strange! I never thought an audience would buy it... But I think Meg had other motives besides love or lust. It was all about Power... to have more power... that is what her character was all about. |
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| JH: | |
How did you feel about throwing Felissa in the lake? |
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| KK: | |
It was hard... I didn't like doing it, the poor thing! She is one of the sweetest things in the world... so pretty and talented... it was hard and I didn't want to hurt her. |
Felissa goes for a
little swim. |
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Director Robert Hiltzik goes over the "Lake Throwing" scene with Kathy and Felissa. |
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| JH: | |
What is your favorite scene in the movie? |
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| KK: | |
The shower scene... that was so cool... |
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| JH: | |
Tell us about what it was like filming the death of Meg? |
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| KK: | |
Well I couldn't show my Grandmother or anybody... it's spooky... it was filmed in the middle of night and I had to imagine having a knife getting stabbed down my back... .so I had to imagine the most intense pain there is! When I fell from out of the shower, I fell forward onto 2 mattresses. I had a fever when they did the stab-down-the-back so when I got to lay on the floor for a few hours that worked out good! (laughs) |
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| JH: | |
What was it like working with ED FRENCH on the stab effect? |
| KK: | |
Ed was great... the scar was so realistic! I remember he had like heads and stuff in his freezer (laughs). I remember him putting white paint on my face to make Meg look dead. |
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| JH: | |
What was your reaction to the film when you saw it for the first time? |
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| KK: | |
I Immediately critiqued my performance! (laughs) But it was really cool... I never expected the following would become what it has... The movie was fun and different... The following year I got a role in SILENT MADNESS because of it... It was weird because that movie was shot in 3D but it wasn't released in 3D!! |
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| JH: | |
How do you feel about the movie now, almost 20 years later!? |
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| KK: | | I Still have the poster! My 6-year-old daughter saw it hanging in the garage and freaked out! The whole knife and bloody sneaker really upset her so I had to take it down. I Haven't seen it in a long time. |
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| JH: | |
How does it make you feel to know that over the past 2 decades, SLEEPAWAY CAMP has grown an amazing cult following?? |
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| KK: | |
It's fantastic... no film deserves it more... it's an honor to have been a part of it!! |
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