(narrator) Whenever there's a call to action SG-1 turns to one man.
- SG-1 1, sir. - Open the iris.
Open the iris.
(narrator) General Hammond of the US Air Force.
Permission to lead search and rescue?
(narrator) Each mission falls under his command...
..and he must make the tough decisions.
- Send the bomb through on schedule. - You can't!
Oh, l can't?
- There are innocent people there. - There are innocent people here!
l have my orders too, Colonel.
l obey mine.
Take Colonel O'Neill to the holding room.
Let's give him time to think, while l decide what to do with him.
This guy is a real opportunity for me because when we start out in the pilot...
..he's hard-nosed and straight-ahead.
But what l'm trying to do is bring a few levels to him...
..that show some understanding and that make him a little more likeable.
That still he's a character that has to live up to his role,...
..which is, in real life, a general is a general is a general.
l would rather not order you to do this,...
..so l would like all of those willing to attempt the rescue of SG-1...
..to take one step...
Very well. SG Units Three, Five, Six and Eleven,...
..bring them home.
- Good luck, Colonel. - Yes, sir!
All right, let's go! Move out!
(narrator) Thanks to appearances on ''Twin Peaks'' and ''The X-Files'',...
..Don S Davis has become a respected character actor in the industry.
Being cast in ''Stargate SG-1'' offered him a unique chance to return to his roots.
They were filming MacGyver here.
And on MacGyver they had Richard Dean Anderson's boss...
..played by an actor named Dana Elcar.
And l looked quite a bit like him and l used to be a little heavier.
l wound up becoming his photo double...
..and then occasionally doing stunt work for him.
And they then gave me my first guest-star role.
So my whole career grew out of MacGyver.
And now l'm playing Richard Dean Anderson's boss on Stargate.
And action!
- All of the SG teams are on base. - Where's the iris?
Someone used the remote. Hands up, people!
Hey, what are you guys doin' leavin' without me?
- Who are you? - What the heck's goin' on here?
Cut and print! Very good.
This is very much a character-driven show.
lt's not so much about being in spaceships and intergalactic wars.
lt's more about people dealing with people,...
..and dealing with them very much in the way that...
..people from different backgrounds here have to learn to deal with one another.
And l think that that makes these scripts interesting...
..in a way apart from the run-of-the-mill science fiction fare.
You have distinguished yourselves by heroism involving voluntary risk of life.
Against impossible odds,...
..with only the help of your team members Teal'c and Dr Daniel Jackson,...
..you destroyed both Goa'uld spacecraft that were poised to attack this world.
Your exemplary courage and heroism reflect great credit...
..upon yourself and the United States Air Force.
Congratulations, Captain.
(narrator) ln ''Hathor'', Don got a chance to show his character's vulnerable side,...
..thanks to a beautiful woman with mystical powers.
- What do you say, General? - l say we make the lady comfortable...
..and welcome her.
Well, sir, with respect,...
..it seems this woman has all you guys under some sort of spell or something.
l would be honoured to give you a tour of our facility.
(Don Davis) We're in a society that worships the antihero.
And l like the fact that there can be a general in the military...
..who has a human side.
He may have strengths and weaknesses, but he is that.
He is, in my eyes,...
..a humanistic and yet heroic figure.
l liked the opportunity to play that.
(narrator) Does Davis believe in the possibility of other worlds beyond ours?
Certainly. l grew up in the Ozark Mountains!
So we're strong in our beliefs that there is more in the world than we see today.
We don't even worry about calling it paranormal. lt's just there.
You know that if you're in the forest alone at night, you're not really alone.
(narrator) Portraying an officer in the armed forces wasn't a stretch for Davis.
He's had plenty of experience to draw on.
l was a captain in the US Army during the '60s in real life,...
..so l realise the general doesn't normally jump in a Jeep and go to the front,...
..even though, if you watched Patton, you might think that happened.
Usually the commander in chief is back directing the action from the rear.
lf l was up front and someone captured me,...
..then that would probably be it.
l would like to go to other worlds,...
..but l'm not sure that it would be true to what might happen.
(narrator) A rare opportunity to venture outside the base came true...
..when the general led a daring rescue in the episode ''lnto the Fire''.
Fire.
Yeehaaaaaaa!
We all fear of what we don't know.
And yet what we don't know is what's driven all of us through all of...
..the best of us, to advance.
lt's what brings us the best in life - this going forward to what's a bit dangerous.
Nice rescue! Good job!