June 21, 2021 by Daily Planet

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Volume 8, Issue 17

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June 21, 2021

JUNETEENTH NOW A FEDERAL HOLIDAY By Logan Kent Daily Planet Reporter

On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden raised his pen to a historically important bill known as “Juneteenth Independence Day,” making this the rst new national federal holiday since 1983, when Martin Luther King Jr. Day was signed into law by former President Ronald Reagan. With pride, President Biden signed the legislation into law, marking June 19 an of cial federal holiday. This historic holiday grants every federal employee a day off to commemorate the day when the last enslaved African Americans got word that the Civil War had ended. Thursday afternoon, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris announced the signing of the Juneteenth National Independence Day act. Telling the many listening that he was “grateful to the members of Congress here today. In particular, the congressional black caucus. Who did so much to make this day possible.” Biden signed the legislation into law he visually emphasized its importance by singing the letters of his name individually, a presidential tradition that was halted by the former president in 2016. The legislation passed the Senate unanimously on Tuesday, June 15, 2021, then passed through the House a day later with an overwhelming vote of 415-14, on June 16, 2021.

• Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina • Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama • Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana • Rep. Chip Roy of Texas • Rep. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie criticized the naming of the bill. “I fully support creating a day to celebrate the abolition of slavery, a dark portion of our nation’s history,” Rep. Massie said. “However, naming this day ‘National Independence Day’ will create confusion and push Americans to pick one of those two days as

their independence day based on their racial identity.” The Kentucky representative continued “Why can’t we name this Emancipation Day, and come together as Americans, and celebrate that day together as Americans: black and white, all colors, all races, all ethnicities, and then come together on Independence Day, which celebrates the creation of our country throwing off an oppressive government.” Michigan Representative Brenda Lawrence counterargued Massie’s viewpoint, saying “I want to say to my white colleagues on the other side: Getting

your independence from being enslaved in a country is different from a country getting independence to rule themselves.” After the legislation passed the Senate, Texas Sen. John Cornyn tweeted, “Happy that my bill to recognize Juneteenth as a national holiday just passed the Senate. It has been a state holiday in Texas for more than 40 years. Now more than ever, we need to learn from our history and continue to form a more perfect union.” Once it passed the House, Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee tweeted, “I was proud to preside

over the historic debate to make Juneteenth a [National] Federal Holiday.” Texas was one of the rst states to declare Juneteenth a holiday. The legislation was passed in June 1979, declaring Juneteenth a national holiday. Following Texas’s decision, every state but South Dakota came to make Juneteenth but only a handful of states observed it as a paid holiday. Juneteenth stands as the second National Federal Holiday that recognizes the history and culture of African Americans and America’s history of slavery.

Speci cally, Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in America. It is also known as Emancipation Day, Jubilee Day. The name for the holiday originates from when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger in Galveston, Texas, issued General order no. 3, which announced that in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation, “all slaves are free” A few months later, 13th amendment was rati ed, abolishing slavery. The Juneteenth Independence Day bill goes into effect immediately, making Friday the rst federal Juneteenth holiday in American History.

The 14 votes against the bill within the House were made by GOP members of congress: • Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona • Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama • Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia • Rep. Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee • Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona • Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas • Rep. Doug LaMalfa of California • Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky • Rep. Tom McClintock of California

Image via New York Post/Twitter

A band-aid on a bullet wound Sasha Calle’s Supergirl Arizona’s moderate progress with local wildfires flies high with new reveal By George Headley Daily Planet Reporter

By Brendan Rooney Daily Planet Editor

Director Andy Muschietti has previously shared a close-up of a bloody Batsuit, a new design and graphic logo for the Scarlet Speedster’s Suit, and now June. 18 2021 on Instagram, the director has of cially revealed the rst glimpse at Sasha Calle’s Supergirl costume, for which she will don in “The Flash” (2022). The design looks quite similar to the one Henry Cavill was decked out with during his tenure as the Man of Steel in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). The last time Cavill suited up as Kal-El was during “Zack Synder’s Justice League,” and he was shown in a black and chrome variation of the classic suit. Of course there are few differences compared to her comic counterpart. For example, a tint and layer of red forms out at the top and continues near the shoulders, possibly blending and shading into the fabric and design of her cape. Of course this is just a close-up shot of the logo, hereas the dark royal blue begins to form with the gold ‘S’ takes center stage in the Kryp-

Black Adam to wrap principal photography in July

Photo courtesy of Director Andy Muschietti and WB tonian glyph, same as Henry Cavill’s previous suits. I feel all the questions lingering at this point will be answered when an of cial costume reveal will be published. Needless to say, Andy Muschietti has been quite generous with suit teases, and I hope they continue to proceed because it gives the lm a sense of mystery and intrigue. It does beg the question of what will be the next domino to fall or big reveal from this project. “The Flash” will not only feature Ben Af eck as Batman, but will see the return of Michael

Supreme Court upholds Affordable Care Act

Keaton as the Dark Knight for the rst time since 1992’s “Batman Returns.” The lm will also star Sasha Calle as Supergirl, Kiersey Clemons as Iris West, Maribel Verdú as Nora Allen (Barry’s mother in the DCEU), and Ron Livingston, who will be replacing Billy Crudup as Barry’s father in the DCEU due to scheduling conicts. The Daily Planet is working diligently on deciphering the glyphs shown on Supergirl’s personal insignia. Expect an article very soon! “The Flash” races to theaters Nov. 4 2022

Robert Pattinson and Colin Farrell shoot final Batman scenes

Arizona is facing ve different wild res amidst a long-term drought. Arizona Governor Doug Ducey proposes a wild re fund, but is it enough for the desiccated summer ahead? In the midst of ve separate wild res that have set 300,000 acres ablaze, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey proposed a $100 million fund to support and assist wild re prevention. 75 percent of this fund will be used to ght res, impede oods — which usually occur in the aftermath of a re — and assist any citizen displaced by structural damage.

The other 25 percent will reduce vegetation that could spread the res. “State Legislative Leaders and I have agreed to invest $100 million to combat and prevent wildres, equip re ghters and communities with the resources they need, and prepare for after-effects such as ooding and mudslides,” Deucy wrote in a tweet. “This special session will ensure our state is ready to combat this season’s wild res and address potentially deadly after-effects. The Legislature will convene tomorrow and is expected to vote on the proposal later this week.” After touring two large res burning in south-central Arizona, Ducey sought to bring awareness

to the troubling climate that the Arizonan people have endured. Ducey later tweeted, “We can get this done — and we can do it in an urgent, bipartisan manner. Thank you to Legislative leadership for coming together to develop an investment package that will help so many Arizonans.“ House Speaker Rusty Bowers voiced his opinion on the situation on Jun. 13, 2021, where he talked about how re ghters have used up their funding for the past, present and coming years. He estimated that they will need $10 million to $20 million for re suppression and $50 million for the recovery of the state grounds in the aftermath of a See Wild res on page 3

Headlines Superman travels to Japan in new manga –––––––––– That’s right, Superman is taking a break from ghting evil and will be traveling to restaurants throughout Japan, trying out some dishes while critiquing them in the manga “Superman vs. Meshi.” The news of the manga was announced on Comic Book Resources Page 2

NYC Mayoral Candidates take on different approaches to police reform ––––––––––

Kayla Wallace talks ‘When Calls The Heart’ ————— Page 4

This Daily Planet op-ed argues that progressive mayoral candidates' positions on Public Safety is the correct way to handle crime in New York City. It is true that crime is on the rise in New York City during both the height of the pandemic and in its aftermath. Page 3

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NUMEROUS INDUCTEES ADDED TO STORIED HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME P3

Dailies

Superman travels to Japan in new upcoming manga By Brian of Earth-16 Daily Planet Reporter

Add being a foodie to the list of the many abilities Superman can do, along with being a superhero, a farmer, a family man and a journalist. That’s right, Superman is taking a break from ghting evil and will be traveling to restaurants throughout Japan, trying out some dishes while critiquing them in the manga “Superman vs. Meshi.” The news of the manga was announced on Comic Book Resources.

The manga is going to be published by Kodansha, which is best known for the manga “Attack on Titan.” Satoshi Miyakawa, the creator behind the 2018 sci- anime “Uchuu Senkan Tiramisu,” will be the writer for the manga while Kai Kitago will be the artist. Miyakawa is no stranger to the DC Comics Universe since he authored the manga “One Operation Joker” which centers around the Joker having to raise a baby Batman who has been de-aged by some chemicals after a battle with the Dark Knight.

Meshi is a Japanese word for meal but it can also mean cooked rice or food. “Superman vs. Meshi” is set to be published in Kodansha’s magazine on June 22. However, DC Comics nor Kodansha have yet to announce when the English translation will be published. If you are a fan of Superman, and/or love Japanese cuisine, this is de nitely the manga to read. What Japanese dishes would you like for the Man of Steel to try when he arrives in the Land of the Rising Sun?

Trump supporters organized and attended January 6 US Capitol insurrection By Lois Lane Daily Planet Reporter

Trump supporters organized and attended the January 6 US Capitol insurrection, according to The New York Times, Recode and NBC. Many of the hundreds of people who have been arrested for participating in the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol building were long-time supporters of former president Donald Trump, according to fact-checkers and reporters. Some of the people who participated in the attacks were named as “unindicted co-conspirators” in Capi-

tol riot indictments and according to legal experts, undercover agents cannot be named as unindicted co-conspirators. On Tuesday, Tucker Carlson commented on the fact that some of the people who participated in the attacks are being named as “unindicted co-conspirators” in indictments. Legal experts say the term “unindicted co-conspirator” is common and the law forbids the government from naming undercover of cers or informants as such in legal proceedings. The insurrectionist mob that showed up at the president’s behest and stormed the U.S. Capitol was overwhelmingly made up of long-

time Trump supporters, including Republican Party of cials, GOP political donors, far-right militants, white supremacists, members of the military and adherents of the QAnon myth that the government is secretly controlled by a cabal of Satanworshiping pedophile cannibals. At least 15 of the defendants appear to have links to the Proud Boys, a far-right gang. The group was recently declared a terrorist group in Canada. Their values have been widely described as racist, misogynist, anti-immigrant and hateful against other minority groups, reported NPR.

The Dailies

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Superman and the world’s greatest heroes

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June 21, 2021

NYC Mayoral Candidates take on different approaches to police reform By Jahlil Rush Daily Planet Editor

Photo by Tupungato

Superhero icons and Star Wars actors among honorees for Hollywood Walk of Fame’s Class of 2022 By Jimmy Kent Daily Planet Reporter

in “Aquaman”) is being honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as well as Willem Dafoe (Aquaman), Michael B. Jordan (Killmonger in “Black Panther”), Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie in “Thor” franchise), Regina King (Angela Abar in the HBO “Watchmen” series), Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi in “Star Wars” franchise), Ming-Na Wen (Fennec Shand in “The Mandalorian” series), Greg Berlanti (producer of CWverse shows), and other gures in the entertainment industry. Jason Momoa announced on Instagram about nding out that he will be in the Hollywood Walk of Fame and expressed his surprise of being recognized in the same class as such names as Francis Ford Coppola, Selma Hayak, and Ewan McGregor. He shared his gratitude while having his hair styled in the video message. The full list of the Class of 2022 Honorees for the Hollywood Walk of Fame are below.

The ever-growing sidewalk of stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is receiving nearly 40 more honorees for the Class of 2022. The entertainers to be honored on the Hollywood Boulevard of dreams include gures from the industries of lm, televising, recording, radio, live theater or live performance, and sports entertainment. Among the nominations, Carrie Fisher is one of the two posthumous honorees. Her star monument will immortalize her legacy and celebrate her place in lm history with the role of Princess Leia in the Star Wars universe. The late actress’s costar, Mark Hamill, celebrated her memory on Twitter saying: "Her star will blaze from here to eternity." Fisher passed away on December 27, 2016, and the rule is a ve-year wait for the Hollywood Walk of Fame when awarding posthumously. The honorees for the Hollywood Walk of Fame are chosen by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s Walk of Fame selection panel which includes past honorees. There are over 2,500 stars on the 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California. The self- nancing Hollywood Historic Trust maintains the popular tourist destination, which attracts an estimated 10 million annual visitors. An average of 200 nominations are submitted to the selection committee every year. Among the honorees, Jason Momoa (Arthur Curry/Aquaman

For the lm category: • Francis Ford Coppola • Macaulay Culkin • Willem Dafoe • Salma Hayek • James Hong • Helen Hunt • Michael B. Jordan • Regina King • Ray Liotta • Ewan McGregor • Adam McKay • Jason Momoa • Tessa Thompson • Carrie Fisher (posthumous) For the television category: • Byron Allen • Greg Berlanti • Ricky Gervais

• Peter Krause • Bob Odenkirk • Holly Robinson-Peete • Norman Reedus • Tracee Ellis Ross • Jean Smart • Ming-Na Wen • Kenan Thompson For the recording category: • Black Eyed Peas • George Clinton • Ashanti Douglas • DJ Khaled • Avril Lavigne • Los Huracanes del Norte • Martha Reeves • Ermias “Nipsey Hussle” Asghedom (posthumous) From the radio category: • Richard Blade From the live theater/live performance category: • Patti LuPone • Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr. • Angelica Vale From sports entertainment category: • Michael Strahan The induction ceremonies for the entertainers to receive their star has yet to be announced. The honorees have two years to schedule the ceremony before the nomination expires. As of 2020, a $50,000 fee is collected for each honoree to cover the installation and maintenance of the star on the Walk of Fame. The fee is usually paid by the nominating organization on behalf of the entertainer, which may be a fan club or other sponsor involved with the prospective honoree.

Myanmar village burns as military coup continues By Lois Lane Daily Planet Reporter

On Tuesday, a village in central Myanmar burned bright enough to be seen on NASA satellites. On Wednesday, all that remained of Kin Ma were a few lone houses and traumatized residents speaking out about what they witnessed. The once vast village of 240 homes was reduced to around 30 standing homes and the rest rubble and ash around them. The amount of casualties remains unnamed at this time. The state television has declared the tragedy the work of “terrorists”, but locals who gave their accounts to news outlets say otherwise. According to multiple people there, the military is to hold accountable for the destruction of Kin Ma. Reportedly the incident started with an altercation between Myanmar military forces and a local militia group who opposes the current military coup that has been going on since February 1. The U.K. ambassador for Myanmar, Dan Chugg spoke out against the attack in a post on Facebook. He claimed that this attack showed the military “has no regard for the people of Myanmar.” Myanmar has been under a declared state of emergency since the military took over in February. The state of emergency is set to last a full year. This move came after an accusation of voter fraud in the last general election, which saw Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy (NLD) put into power. The election commission that oversaw the event said that there was no evidence to support the claim of any widespread fraud and declared the election “largely free and fair”. It has been announced by the military that another general election will be

held once the state of emergency is over. Ms Suu Kyi has been taken and held at an unknown location since the beginning of the coup, along with other members of the NLD. Currently holding the top position of power is Military Commander-In-Chief Min Aung Hlaing. The residents of Myanmar have reacted to this with widespread protests across the state, holding some of the largest mass demonstrations there since 2007. This has only concluded with curfews and limits to gatherings

rather than any open forms of discussion. The military has responded to protests with nonlethal crowd control methods such as rubber bullets and water cannons, but that hasn’t stopped the loss of life. As of today there are about 800 reported deaths and around 5,000 people reported detained. Internationally the military takeover has been criticized, and South East Asian countries are working to nd a diplomatic effort to put an end to the crisis in Myanmar.

erce blaze. “I know rsthand how devastating the wild res are this year,” Bowers said in a statement as reported by the Associated Press. “Families have been displaced, nonpro ts are working hard to support those in need, and re ghters are working day and night to contain res.” “We need to make sure they have the nancial resources to get through this wild re season and prepare for the future,” he claimed. Arizona faced one of its worst re seasons in 2020, with almost 3,000 wild res burning less than 1,000,000 acres of state and tribal land — almost 88 percent of the res were human-caused. The 2,520 wild res of last year led to the existence of S.4431: The Emergency Wild re and Public Safety Act of 2020 — which was approved by congress on Aug. 4, 2020. The Public Safety Act addresses wild re preparedness and response. As stated in the bill, it excludes certain forest management activities from environmental review requirements, provides grants, loans and loan guarantees to support biomass conversion facilities and allows the export of unprocessed timber of dead and dying trees from federal land in California. While Arizona must enact this bill, it was not speci ed to appeal to any state besides California — which faced a record-breaking season last year of 9,639 wild res burning 4,397,809 acres.

NYC Mayoral Candidate Dianne Morales at the Barclays Center following the Derek Chauvin Verdict. Photo by Jahlil Rush

Mayoral Candidate Maya Wiley at a rally in Brooklyn following the Verdict of Derek Chauvin. Photo by Jahlil Rush

Left: Eric Adams (center) speaking at a press conference on the steps of City Hall, 2008. Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Right: Andrew Yang speaking with the media at the 2019 Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa. Photo by Gage Skidmore New York Police Department Captain then he understands where the NYPD need to be reformed. But some of his public safety proposals is far from perfect. For starters, he against the idea of removing Cops from schools in an effort to end the school to prison pipeline. He does not want to end the NYPD’s homelessness outreach even though the police has a history of police brutality towards our homeless population and criminalizing homeless people for drug addiction, turnstile hopping and sleeping on the subway. Adams uses his own origin story of how he was the victim of police brutality to advocate for more police in some of New York City’s diverse neighborhood. Adams run for mayor is proving to be a dangerous one. He trickAdams’ run for mayor is proving to be a dangerous one. He tricks liberal voters by speaking to their fantasies of wanting to create a more diverse police force in an effort to curb racism and the violence that follows. Unfortunately, Andrew Yang is not a best alternative when it comes to tackling police reform. Yang is against decreasing the NYPD’s budget. Instead, he is

calling for the NYPD to be reorganized. He wants to increase funding for mental health responses. Yang deserves credit when he states that the NYPD does not have the skills to properly handle cases involving mental health. Cases like the death of Walter Wallace Jr, a young Black man who dealt with mental health complications that was shot by the police, should never happen again. No parent, like Walter’s father, should have to ask “Why didn’t they use a taser?” Police Of cers do not have the proper tools to handle mental cases and their options are the guns strapped to their uniforms. They have tasers but when in the moment of action, cops seem to forget about it. New York has gone through quite a year including back to back summer protests for racial justice, a global health crisis, and a presidential election full of empty promises. The idea of a “moderate democrat,” like Kathryn Garcia or Eric Adams, taking of ce only proves that New York will only remain as a traditional democrat stronghold instead of a progressive one.

This year, Arizona’s seven wild res have not come close to the towering tally of its past year, but it still proves a threat to the Arizonan people.

stroyed more than 23,000 acres, and they’re growing ever more slightly each day. The Cornville re, which rst ignited on Sunday, has thankfully been put under control after burning up to 10,000 acres, according to Inciweb . “Fire ghters have done good work the last couple of days on suppression efforts around the community,” Incident Commander Trainee Charles Ebert says. The Pinnacle re caused evacuations on Thursday in southeastern Arizona towns, authorities say. It has consumed 17,453 acres and was rst spotted on June 10. Containment is now at 15 percent, according to the latest incident command report. Parts of the Coconino National Forest are closed due to Flagstaff’s Slate wild re. It covers up to 10,600 acres in the national forest. While all ve res were quickly detained, many Arizonans have expressed their frustration with how the local government has handled such blazes, naming the legislature they passed earlier this week a “Band-Aid on a Bullet Wound.”

—————

The wild res of 2021 The Telegraph Fire The Telegraph re is the sixthlargest re in the history of Arizona. On Jun. 16’s morning report, statistics show that the re burned 148,299 acres at only 68 percent containment. Due to its devastating combustion, the Gila County Sheriff’s of ce issued a “Go” evacuation order on both sides of Route 77, Dripping Springs, Wind Spirit, Hagen Ranch, Slash S Ranch, El Capitan and Government Springs Ranch. ————— The Mescal Fire The Mescal re has luckily alleviated after igniting on June 1st at the Globe. It has burned 72,250 acres and is at 88 percent containment. Earlier this week, the re merged with none other than the Telegraph, which was 72 percent contained at the time, reports say. The Telegraph is currently headed south after meeting with extreme weather conditions. ————— The other three

Even though hope can be seen upon the horizon, people’s skies are clouded by smoke, judgment and denial in their own government. These res not only prove a threat to communities in the state, but they also prove a threat to the local government’s reputation with its people.

The lesser-known Cornville, Slate and Pinnacle res are all still active and spreading across the state. These three res de-

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It is true that crime is on the rise in New York City during both the height of the pandemic and in its aftermath. Public safety is a top priority for the 2021 New York City Mayoral Candidates but only the progressive candidates are presenting solutions that can help lower the city’s increasing crime wave. The 2021 NYC Mayoral Race has brought out candidates that have presented bold new ideas that some have criticized as ideals that lean too far left of the democratic party. The progressive candidates, though they have acquired their left leaning base, are having a hard time capturing the hearts of all New Yorkers. However, It is shocking that the poll numbers do not match the donation numbers. Yang is the highest in donations to his campaign, capturing the hearts of voters who live in large Othodox, Jewish and Asian communities like Borough Park, Brooklyn and Flushing, Queens, the New York Times reports. Dianne Morales’ donation numbers are behind Yang’s with Hispanic neighborhoods, including Hunts Point in the Bronx, Bushwick, Brooklyn and Ridgewood, Queens all rallying behind her. According to a poll from PIX11/Emerson College, it is the moderates that seem to be gaining momentum in the race. Kathryn Garcia, who once held the position of New York City Sanitation Commissioner in 2014, is leading in the polls followed by her moderate rivals, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and Andrew Yang. Morales has recently been dealing with a campaign scandal involving her own workers, so any chance she has at securing the nomination may have just imploded. But people should not ignore her proposed policies on public safety. Morales and Maya Wiley are two candidates that understand and highlight the issues behind New York City’s downfall, that has occurred long before COVID, while also presenting solutions. It is true that Morales has called for ideas such as defunding the New York Police Department but it is important to look behind her idea in terms of what she would do with the funding. She wants to use $3 billion of the NYPD’s annual budget to combat mental health, a sickness that plagues black and brown communities on an everyday basis. Morales’ progressive rival wants to invest in communities by divesting $1 billion of the NYPD budget and shifting the money towards communities that need it. Maya Wiley is calling for $1 billion of the NYPD’s budget to fund alternatives to policing. Wiley wants to ensure that the money is being placed in the right areas. Wiley is calling for a full audit of the NYPD’s budget in an effort to determine how funding is being distributed. Eric Adams is tone deaf to the current times when the topic of policing is brought up. He is running off the idea that more cops are the answer to solving the city’s current crime problem. He running on the premise that because he used to be a former

Wild res Continued from page 1

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June 21, 2021

Kayla Wallace talks ‘When Calls The Heart’ By Jimmy Reno Daily Planet Columnist

Kayla Wallace was born to perform and entertain. She grew up dancing and that remained her focus when she was younger, but she would soon discover her love for acting. “I started to really love musical theater. I loved sort of telling a story through my dancing,” she said “I kept on with that and started some singing on the side. My high school then did a lm and TV workshop. It was done by two actors who came from Vancouver to my high school and I was just so intrigued on the difference from theater acting to lm acting. It’s much more detail oriented. That was what started it! I was just so interested! I had that as my focus from then on out!” She discovered she loved acting in theater for different reasons than her love for lm and TV. “I really loved being onstage as a kid,” Wallace explained “Just the excitement of being backstage and then running out onto the stage to do your thing and sometimes getting a reaction from the audience. So from the adrenaline of the theater, that was really fun. With lm and TV though, you have to recreate real life. The camera is right in your face so if you push it or you’re overdoing anything, the camera sees it. I found that to be dif cult for me because I grew up on the stage where everything is super big and showy. I love the idea of recreating human life and looking at how everyday people talk to each other and learning how to do that within a script and making it a real thing that’s sort of happening for the rst time, which is a scene.” In 2019, Kayla joined the season 6 cast of Hallmark’s hit series, “When Calls The Heart.” The show was co-created by Brian Bird and Michael Landon Jr. and is based upon Janette Oke’s books of the same name from her “Canadian West Series”. Cast as the feisty and independent “Fiona Miller”, Kayla’s character arrives in the early 1900’s town raising eyebrows with her shoes and helping connect the west through telephone service and teaching the town how to operate the newly installed switchboard. “Coming into season 6, I was kind of nervous because a show that’s been around for that long, you’re sort of jumping into a family where everyone knows each other and I didn’t watch the show before I auditioned for it, so then I had to binge watch it to sort of gure out who everybody was,” she said. “I was a little nervous but then everybody was so welcoming, all of our cast are such lovely people, we are so lucky. Same with the crew as well. Coming onto an established show like that, it was like the best way it could have gone because everybody was just so nice. I remember Erin [Krakow] was just so lovely and any question I had she was open ears. You

Photo courtesy of Kayla Wallace

Photo courtesy of Crown Media, LLC come across all kinds of people in this industry and she is just so lovely.” The role has also brought the added challenge of being a period piece. Not only was she having to learn about her character and her coworkers, she was also having to learn how all of that t into a very different time period. On Jan. 28, 1916, Manitoba became the rst province in Canada to extend the franchise to women voters. With “When Calls The Heart” being set in 1910, this period piece was before women could legally vote which makes Kayla’s strong, independent woman character even more special. “As far as period pieces, this is my rst one, so when I was in wardrobe trying on all these long skirts, well not as long as everyone else, because ‘Fiona’ shows her ankles as we all know,” Wallace stated. “It was really cool to try on the wardrobe and as soon as I hopped on set for the rst time, it was so cool. Our set is so well done that you feel like you have stepped back in time because it’s a little town. You can walk into the buildings and the props that are all around you, it really brings you back. Well, not that I have ever spent time in 1918, but our designers and wardrobe do such a great job so that really helped.” Kayla’s character, Fiona Miller, isn’t just smart and independent, she pushes the boundaries in various ways. “You look at how people dress today and it’s sort of anything goes and everybody really celebrates originality today so I really love that,” Wallace said. “I like that ‘Fiona’ is pushing those boundaries. It may be considered risqué for that time period, but I really like that she’s pushing those boundaries and likes to have fun with her fashion sense

Photo courtesy of Crown Media, LLC

Photo courtesy of Crown Media, LLC and sort of makes a statement with her shoes.” Getting to portray such a strong woman during a period when it wouldn’t have been very acceptable to many, is something Kayla has relished doing. “That’s what I love about playing ‘Fiona’. She questions things and she’s not afraid to stand up for herself in a time when things weren’t exactly equal for a man and a woman,” she said. “It was sort of a man’s world and I like that she has that modern way of thinking just rooted in her. She feels things are fair that a man can do this, and this, and this while a woman has to t in a certain world. That’s one of the things that attracted me to ‘Fiona’s’ character the most at the beginning my audition scene was actually where Fiona is at the switchboard and she is giving a piece of information to Bill [Jack Wagner] and she brings him over and is giving him this information and he questions her, doubting that she speaks French and she stands up for herself and answers back in French. So that was my audition scene and I was like oh great! I love this part of her! I remember this particular audition scene because I kept mispronouncing the French words. I don’t actually speak French and I nd the language super hard for me to actually pronounce right so that was one thing funny about my audition.” Coming into the role, Kayla didn’t realize that it would be a series regular casting. “I thought maybe I’d be on for a couple of episodes and I didn’t know how it would go,” she explained. “I’ve been so lucky because we have three seasons with ‘Fiona’ down now and I’m excited for what is to come.’” Heading into season 9, fans have hopes for what they would

like to see for ‘Fiona’ and Kayla does as well. “We got to see a little bit of romance in season 8,” Wallace explained. “Fiona exploring that side of her. When she starts making closer relationships, well particularly one closer relationship with Hickam. She mentioned in one of the later episodes [season 8] that she had dealt with her past and went back home and ended for good what she had back in San Francisco. She was previously involved in a relationship and was engaged so the fact that she’s permanently closed the door to whatever romance was happening in San Francisco, I would like to see her explore that side of her in Hope Valley a little more. I think a lot could happen. So we’ll see. I have a feeling her and Hickam might see where things go.” The actors don’t always have advanced knowledge on where the plot will go for their character’s story arc and, unless the actor happens to also serve as a producer of a series, they don’t always have much input into those decisions either. Sometimes the actors are waiting for the scripts to reveal the story as it’s unfolding as well as the audience. “Sometimes at the beginning of a season, the showrunner will be like ‘this is kind of where I want to take your character,’” she said. “Sometimes things stick and sometimes things get changed. That’s how every script is. You’re never locked in until you lm the scene and even then with every show I’ve done, changes are always being made. We are really lucky that our showrunner, John Tinker, is awesome and always open to hearing our ideas. It’s really great that he has open ears to hear our ideas if we have them.”

With the character of ‘Fiona Miller, her fashion style is a big part of who she is and the series does allow some input from the actors. “In our costume ttings, Barbara [Gregusova], who is our costume designer, will pick certain things and she’s totally open if a shirt doesn’t really feel right. She and I will decide what we feel is best for Fiona and maybe we try on a certain skirt and will feel it isn’t her character and maybe we let it go and try on a different skirt,” Wallace said. “Barbara is so great at what she does, so mainly it’s her deciding the look but she will de nitely make sure we feel comfortable in everything. Same with our hair and makeup. Our team is also so lovely and they check in and make sure we are good. They do their best to make sure everybody is happy.” Given the fact ‘Fiona’ has arrived in Hope Valley and immediately turned heads with her fashion sense and impressed with how smart and driven she is, picking a favorite moment for the character in her three seasons would probably not be easy, but Kayla does have some scenes that stood out for her. “I love that she jumped in with the re and helped,” Wallace continued. “[Season 8 episode 3 “From The Ashes”] All the men pushed the dynamite into the oil re. When I read that script, I was just so excited. That was like the most you could have pushed the boundaries back then. The men were protecting the town and the women. ‘Fiona’ essentially risks her life to go in and help because she was like, what’s the difference between her and a man. That was such a fun scene to lm. To jump off that carriage that brought her in as well, it was just exciting.”

“When Calls The Heart” follows various character arcs and subplots. As a result, viewers don’t always get to see interaction between all the characters on a regular basis. Kayla has some other characters she would like to see Fiona interact with more in season 9. “I would really love to see her interact more with the kids in Hope Valley “I got that little scene with Allie [Jaeda Miller] where I’m helping her with her hair [season 8 episode 10], but I think it would be fun if she still has the barbershop next season if she gives some of the kids haircuts or teaches them how to style hair or something. I love working with kids. There’s something about acting with kids that keeps you on your toes. Sometimes you can receive unexpected things in a scene which is fun as an actor.” Many actors will tell you that they always put a part of themselves into every role. Kayla feels there are aspects of Fiona that are de nitely like her and other traits in her character that she admires “I can be sassy at times,” she elaborated. “I de nitely don’t have that con dence. She has a con dence about her in confrontation that sometimes I wish I had. If somebody is telling her a certain something, right away she will stand up for herself and tell whoever the way that it’s going to be or the way she wants it to be. There’s a bit of that in ‘Fiona’ I wish I had. I can get kind of shy in those situations but I can get sassy sometimes and I also love fashion. She and I share that. I’m also pretty driven when it comes to my work ethic which I think she’s got that.” Season 8 didn’t have the Christmas episode that fans look forward to each year. Kayla is hoping that tradition is revived for season 9. “I used to watch it with my family on Christmas day. Nobody in my family knew about the series before I joined it,” Kayla said. “I don’t think they had the channel on their TV packages. Since I joined, let me tell you, my Grandmother watches ‘When Calls The Heart’ every single day. That’s probably not an exaggeration. My Grandma loves the show and she loves when they play reruns. My Mom does too. She’s always up to date on what’s happening. Now that they know about it and especially with my Grandma, it’s such a blessing when I can’t be there in person, she can turn the TV on and watch me there.” In a world where people have struggled with the pandemic along with life’s pressures and ghting to survive and care for their families, “When Calls The Heart” offers a chance to escape to a simpler time. A chance to experience the touching and heartwarming moments the series is known for. Kayla Wallace’s character has found a fresh new start in a town named Hope Valley. Hope is something we can all use more of.

Photo courtesy of Crown Media, LLC

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June 21, 2021