I don’t remember how long ago Catherine Lough Haggquist’s agent first approached me about the possibility of an interview with this enchanting woman, but as is typically an issue with busy, creatives, scheduling can all too frequently be a bit of a nightmare. Thankfully, Catherine’s agent and I never neglected the likelihood of this chat, and earlier this year, both Catherine and I finally made the connection. To assume that this woman is a screen legend who knows the ins and outs of this business is an inevitable understatement, and since the new Aurora Teagarden film premieres in the U.S. tonight, I am quite pleased to finally share this superb and insightful chat with my readers.

Photo by Shannyn Higgins Photography

RH: Catherine, thank you so much for making the time to chat with me today. 

CLH: My pleasure, Ruth, and I want to thank you so much for your support of our movies and all the projects we work on. I have had the pleasure of reading a number of your reviews, and it really means a lot to have you champion us in such a bold way. Thank you so much for all of your efforts.

You’re welcome, Catherine. It’s truly my pleasure, and it’s great to finally connect with you. 

Same here, Ruth.

It’s honestly hard to know where to begin because your career spans so many years. I have had an opportunity to watch many of your works, and I truly enjoy them. So what do you think it was that got you interested in pursuing a career in acting?

I think I always had an interest in acting, but pursuing a career as a kid never seemed like a possibility. But the more I met people in the industry and got connected with them and was really supported and encouraged by them, it seemed like a great outlet for so many of the ways that I see the world. In terms of education being important, in terms of diversity, in terms of a number of those missions that I feel I’m here to do. So entertainment seemed increasingly like the way these stories and conversations were being led and championed. As I found my way in, I discovered it aligned with the way I wanted to be in service.

When did you first get involved with acting professionally?

I think I did my first commercial when I was sixteen. We’re north of thirty years on that now.

How did that particular opportunity come along for you to get involved with acting?

My brothers and I delivered newspapers, and we had a customer along the route who had been a hairdresser in Hollywood, and his daughter and I had become friends as teenagers. His family was always really kind to our family as we delivered newspapers and encountered them on a daily basis. I remember getting into conversations with my friend’s dad about Hollywood and his adventures working in the industry.

At one point, he said, “You know, you could pay for school with modeling. You should consider it.” I knew it would be a non-starter with my parents who definitely didn’t see the entertainment industry as a stable place and thought even less of the modeling industry. But this man felt strongly that this was an opportunity I had that would allow me to see elements of the world and have some adventures. He actually called my parents and arranged a meeting with them and said that he and his family would be prepared to sponsor me in modeling classes if I was interested in pursuing that as a way to make some money as a teenager and to get me exposed to some opportunities that I might have in the world. My parents were quite moved by that offer and held me accountable for my grades if I wanted to have this adventure. So we proceeded from there.

Photo by Michael Ford Photography

Through that, I started to encounter other people who had moved from modeling into commercials. And ironically, it was another person on our paper route who was a producer who asked me if I had ever done anything in the entertainment industry. She actually asked me that a few months later. And I said, “As a matter of fact, I’ve just done a modeling class.” She went back to her bosses, and I ended up doing a pizza commercial with one of my brothers. It was one of those serendipitous chains of events that you wouldn’t believe if you read it in a script. But having lived it, I’m very grateful that it all worked out that way.

So I got started as a teenager, and then I kept meeting people who showed up at opportune moments to give me the next piece of information I needed to start to build it all together. And that’s why I feel so strongly about the opportunities to teach and mentor at this point in my career because there were so many people who helped me along the way. I know there’s a saying that says that when the student is ready, the teacher will appear. And that has truly been my experience, and I feel an obligation to pay that forward.

Did you study acting or theater in school?

Yes, I did. We have a community college here called Langara College, and I took acting there. I also studied with private studios a number of times with different local instructors, but all of them were instrumental in giving me the next piece of information I needed. Like about getting an agent or how to move from commercials to speaking roles to how being a union member functions and what my obligations and responsibilities are there. It was a wonderful time to get into the industry, and as the industry has grown here, it’s incredible that it supports so many more artists with work opportunities. But I do get nostalgic for the days when you knew everybody and everybody knew you. And there was such a sense of community that new people were welcomed with. I think teaching is my way of trying not to lose that sense because it was so pivotal to my experience when I started.

I can see that. It seems like you got in when things were just beginning up in Vancouver.

Yes, my second experience after doing that pizza commercial was being Holly Robinson Peete’s stand-in on 21 Jumpstreet. And she was really kind. We reconnected on Twitter a year or so back. She was really awesome. And Peter DeLuise is a really prominent local director now, and he and I met on the set of 21 Jumpstreet on my first ever day on a TV set. I’ve worked with him as my director a number of times. I take a lot of comfort in the fact that the people who were there from day one are still here and we’re still working together. It’s still such a joy to collaborate with them.

I looked at my Twitter feed some time back, and there was a very kind gentleman who watched the last Aurora Teagarden film and commented on how Brenda Crichlow and I were in the same Hallmark movie and how that almost never happens. But it was awesome to be able to work with her on that last Aurora Teagarden film. I tweeted this gentleman back and said that it was great to work with her too, because if it hadn’t been for Brenda, I probably wouldn’t be an actor. Brenda and I went to high school together, and she literally walked me into her agency when I was just getting started and completely and directly mentored me. And now it’s ironic that so much of our careers now is…it’s one or the other getting the role, so we never end up on the same shows. But for her to be so kind and generous and bring in someone who couldn’t be more direct competition for her is just a testament to what the community was like back then and why it’s great to see so many of those same people working alongside each other today. Brenda is absolutely a stellar human being.

As I look back over your career, I am familiar with a lot of your works. I think you’ve done a lot of sci-fi.

Yes, I have.

Is there a sci-fi show that you are most known for or recognized for?

Continuum

I think I would say Continuum. I think I’m most known for that show just because my character recurred over the last three seasons of the show. I was sort of woven through a lot of the storylines that way. It’s always interesting to see what resonates with people. I did a TV movie where Dr. Who comes to San Francisco. We did that in 1996, and it’s amazing how that role, just because of the Dr. Who fandom universe, is one that resonates with people in a way that always surprises me. And The X-Files too. I did a couple episodes of that show early in my career, and they were small roles just as I was getting started, but there’s such a cult following for The X-Files it’s always interesting for that to be what people like.

ONCE UPON A TIME (ABC/SERGEI BACHLAKOV)

Sci-fi/Fantasy is such an interesting genre because the worlds they create really do extend to their fanbase. I was really fortunate in November of 2016 because I was invited to a fan convention in London for Once Upon A Time. I played the Fairy Godmother on that show. I met some wonderful young women primarily who were in attendance, and I got to spend some time hearing what that show meant to them.

There is one woman who stands out to me, and she and I have stayed friends. She’s from Holland, and she’s a doctor, and her specialty is working with children who have HIV. She was working on her thesis on how HIV affects their cognitive functions. We were at this meet and greet for Once Upon A Time and she was asking about me. I was more curious about why these people came here and why she came to London. She said that with her work being so charged and getting connected to these sick kids, the value of a world to escape into and stories and characters that meant so much to her was such a part of her self-care. And it really gave me a sense of appreciation to be able to create respite for people to have somewhere to go and just turn life off for a little while and enjoy stories and just be part of another place. Being part of giving a break to someone doing such important work reminded me that there are no small parts, and it’s all about telling a good story. And that can mean a lot to people and you have no idea what it can field them to go and do.

(ABC/SERGEI BACHLAKOV)
with JESSY SCHRAM

I agree. Sometimes those smaller roles stick with me longer than some of the leads. Don’t get me wrong–the leads are great. But sometimes there are those little stories and the person may have been there just a short time, and sometimes it can be really impactful. You never know. In the past few years, I have found that my daughter and I watch a much wider variety of shows than I ever used to.

Really? What shows are you watching now?

Well, Stranger Things and Riverdale are our top shows now.

Both are on my binge list to watch. I really am trying to work my way through all the Vancouver-shot ones. Earlier this year, I was working my way through Dirk Gently. Then hopefully Stranger Things and Riverdale. I have former students on Riverdale, so I want to see all their works.

Dirk Gently is on my list. And Travelers is too. I’ve been so impressed with what I’ve seen of Travelers. That’s another phenomenally-shot show. Ghost Wars is another on my list to watch.

Oh yes, Ghost Wars is done by the same people who did Continuum. And I worked with those same people again on Van Helsing. 

Van Helsing

Oh yes, Van Helsing is another I haven’t finished watching. What I’ve seen of that was amazing. It sounds like you and I have a similar problem. You have former students whose shows you’re trying to watch, and I have so many friends in the Vancouver film community, and I’m trying to watch all their things. 

{laughs} There is some truth to that.

What was your first Hallmark movie?

That can be difficult because early on, it was hard to distinguish which ones were Hallmark and which ones were Lifetime. But in this case, I know that A Family Thanksgiving was the first one I did. And then I did Call Me Mrs. Miracle. I remember that we filmed A Family Thanksgiving, which aired at Thanksgiving, and then we filmed Call Me Mrs. Miracle, and that aired that same year a bit later on. In this case, they followed the holiday chronology.

Hallmark has been very kind to me. And very consistent with the work. Even with Aurora Teagarden, the first one I did, my character was intended to just have the one story initially. I was a real estate agent who worked with Aida. We did that one in 2015, and it aired in 2016. Then in 2017, I got a phone call saying they wanted to bring me back. I thought I was still going to be a real estate agent, but they told me that I ran for office and became the mayor of the town. But it was the same character. So Terry Sternholz went from her real estate practice to running Lawrenceton. And now I’m a part of the Real Murders Club, which is awesome. Hallmark has been really kind, supportive and generous.

And Aurora Teagarden is one of their top mystery series. And you also got to be in Garage Sale Mystery last year.

Yes, I did, and that was a lot of fun as well. When you work on those shows, you know exactly why Lori {Loughlin} and Candace {Cameron Bure} have such long careers. In addition to being really kind, welcoming hosts to their worlds, they’re clear leaders and set a tone of professionalism and a sense of humor which is a really great balance. And that’s why everybody wants to work with them on everything possible. I think that’s one of the keys to sustainability in this industry.

While I had seen you in things and not realized who you were, the first time I noticed you was in Angels in the Snow. That movie is a family favorite of ours, and it’s become somewhat a holiday tradition for us to watch every year. While it’s Lifetime, it could have easily been a Hallmark movie.

Yes, it has that flavor. It seemed very on point with the Hallmark sensibilities as well.

I finally had the chance to talk with the girl from that film Jaeda Lily Miller, and she just amazes me. 

Angels in the Snow

She was a lot of fun on set. I was going through pictures I took from that shoot, and I have a whole string of just she and I goofing around, making faces. She was a live wire, that one. But so polite, so well-mannered. Her parents are doing it right because she handles the pressure of the volume of the work concerning her scenes with such professionalism. And then she’s immediately back to being a kid. She was just a pleasure to be around. In fact, all the kids on that show were, but she was the youngest. So we were just struck at how grounded her parents have raised her to be.

When I interviewed her, she told me about how she memorized the names of all the presidents, and her dad had her rattle the list off to me right then during the interview. After all these years, she still can do it!

She was very proud of that party trick. She figured she’d be able to work that one for a long time.

It was a really special film for our family, and it’s one my entire family loves to watch together. 

Oh, thank you, that means a lot to hear.

I know you’ve done a lot of films and shows, but that one is easily one of my personal favorites of yours. 

I think it’s one of my most favorite I’ve done as well. Apart from what a fun shoot it was and how much fun we all had together…my mother-in-law passed away February of 2016, and that film came out Christmas of 2015, which was her last Christmas with us. I actually got to watch it with her. In fact, my first time seeing it was with her while she was in hospice. So it stands out to me as one of my last memories with her. So that’s a very special project for me as well because it’s associated with that time.

Oh, now that gives me something else to think about when I sit there and watch the film. We usually end up in tears at the end. I don’t always cry super easily, but films like this are so touching, and the ending is such a special treat. So thank you for sharing, Catherine. {pause} My whole family also enjoys The Good Doctor. It is one of the few shows that my family will watch together when we can. So when your character suddenly popped up, even though it was for a short time, it was nice to see you.

Thank you. It was fun to do. It was a treat to work with Freddy {Highmore}. He’s a very talented young man, and again one of those people who is a great host to the experience. Very welcoming.

I don’t know if they’ll bring your character back, but at least it’s been renewed for season two, so maybe they will.

My fingers are crossed that their dysfunction will increase and they’ll need me again! {laughs}

Well, you never know. If the show goes on long enough, they could invite you back at any time. I’m rooting for you to come back. 

Thank you very much. Well, I lived and walked out of the last scene, so let’s hope it happens.

Back to Garage Sale Mystery, last summer it was so wonderful to see you suddenly show up in that episode. I didn’t know that was going to happen, and I just did see that episode again recently. I loved that little story arc your character had.

behind-the-scenes
Aurora Teagarden

Oh, thank you. It was fun, and a nice changeup. So many of the roles of play are related to my job or work, like the mayor on Aurora Teagarden or like on The Good Doctor, how I’m one of the doctors. So it was nice to do Garage Sale Mystery where it was purely about my relationship with my husband. As was Angels In the Snow because I got to play a mom. I’m a boss usually, but it was nice to get that opportunity to have it be about family as opposed to work.

That’s a nice little nugget; I’m glad you brought it up. I hadn’t thought about that. Maybe that’s why I like those roles so much. I mean, you’re a fantastic actress. I don’t mind saying that. But it’s nice to get to see you in a role where maybe more people can relate to it. If people don’t have the same job as your character, it might be harder to make the correlation, but as a wife or a mother, so many people can relate to that character on a deep level. 

Thank you, Ruth.

Is there anything else upcoming that you can mention?

I’m in this next Aurora Teagarden called Reap What You Sew. And I’m in the next one after that which will air sometime later this year. So that’s the eighth and ninth one in the series.

That’s great! Thankfully, they haven’t killed you off yet. I hope they never will because that would be sad. 

Photo by Michael Ford Photography

I also have a couple episodes on the new CW show Life Sentence that’s airing now. So be sure to watch out for that. The initial order was thirteen episodes, so I hope everyone will be watching since I’m in a couple of episodes. It’s a really great story about a young woman who as a child, she and her family were told that she has terminal cancer. Then in her early twenties, she finds out that she is cured. So now she’s been preparing for her demise all of her childhood and adolescence, and now she and her family have to learn to live with all of the choices she and her family made when everybody thought she was dying. The main character, Stella, is played by Lucy Hale, and her character has lived the last eight years of her life preparing to die. Then she finds out she’s going to live. She struggles to make life choices. How do you make life choices when there isn’t a weight on your shoulders anymore? So it’s really an interesting family dynamic, and here’s hoping they get picked up to do more because it would be fun to join their team again as well.

I’m currently enjoying Life Sentence, so I’ll be watching for your character to appear. 

As far as any other works, I’ve hit the ground running with auditions, so keep watching for updates from me when other works are confirmed.

It sounds like you’re someone who really believes in giving back to the community. 

That is correct. I’ve been teaching for about fifteen years now, and I also do one-on-one mentorship through Women in Film. It’s supposed to be a six-month program, but I have issues letting go and I still follow them to make sure they’re doing okay. This is going to be my third year in a row doing that, which has been really rewarding. Teaching is great in that you’re able to disseminate quite a bit of knowledge across a student body, but the one-on-one mentorship that I’ve been doing through Women in Film has been really nice because it allows me to be more specific in my focus in terms of helping them achieve specific personal goals, which is a neat way to work as well. I enjoy doing both classroom and one-on-one work.

Photo by Shannyn Higgins Photography

Since you’ve been in the industry for a while, you’ve seen the changes that are occurring with women and also the diversity issues within the industry.

Oh, absolutely! When I started, I remember I was always reading for nurses. I remember someone…and this really upset me at the time and it was part of what motivated me to try and seek to change things. I was told by a rather unkind actor that if you’re a black a girl and you’re homely, you’ll play nurses. And if you’re sexy, you’ll play prostitutes. And I was like, “What?!” I was truly scandalized by that, and it was really clear that had to change. I find it especially gratifying when I show up to an audition and know that I’ll be reading against white women and Asian men and all sorts of different people because it’s all about who can be this character as opposed to who is allowed access to the perception of these characters. There’s been a huge change in the way the roles are cast just in my short career, and that’s definitely been a change from where I started. I feel like I’m in contention if I’m the right temperament for the role. I feel like I have a chance at it regardless of gender, ethnicity, or age.

Knockout

One time, I did a role for a movie that was originally called The Boxer and the Kid. I think it’s on IMDB as Knockout. It stars “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, who gave a master class in how to handle fans like I’ve never seen. I’ve been on set with a number of very well-known actors, but I’ve never seen the crew get as excited as they did to line up for pictures with “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. And he took pictures with all of them. It was a big scene. The story’s about a high school kid who gets mentored by a janitor played by “Stone Cold” Steve Austin in this kid’s pursuit of wanting to be a boxer. There is actually a scene we did in a high school auditorium, and they had all these teenagers show up because they won a Playstation or an Xbox or a Nintendo–one of those things. I just watched him on breaks in filming, and Steve would wander up into the stands and talk to the teenagers and take endless numbers of selfies with them. Then he’d come back down and do the scenes. Then he’d go back up. And I thought how that was a wonderful way to inspire your fans. Now the reason I brought this movie up is that originally the role that I played, Principal Lee, was written to be an older Asian man. There were all sorts of us reading for the role, and while the role is still Principal Lee, it was my version of Principal Lee as opposed to the script as written.

With AD Ross on set

I’m so glad things are changing for the better, Catherine. All of my life, I’ve been a champion of diversity. People look at me and are typically surprised I’m like that since I’m a white, middle-class woman. But diversity is something I feel very strongly about. And even Hallmark is becoming more diverse. 

I’m with you there. Hallmark is also very good about featuring strong female leads and even using them as directors and writers behind-the-camera. So it excites me too.

Thank you so much, Catherine, for chatting with me today. I am very excited to see Aurora Teagarden. And by the way, it was great to see you in The Sweetest Heart as well. I’m glad Hallmark has given you such consistently strong and wonderful roles.

I’m glad too, Ruth. I do love the Hallmark network, and I really hope the fans tune in to see this new Aurora Teagarden film. Thank you, Ruth, for all your support, and thank you to all my fans for their support. We couldn’t do this without all of you.

While a variety of positive and endearing words could be used to describe Catherine, if I had to summarize the outlook, persona, and career of this phenomenal woman, I would choose the word GRATITUDE. While the vast majority of the artists I have had the honor of interviewing are appreciative and humble, there is something distinctive about the way in which Catherine sets her abundant, grateful spirit into action. From the outset of our conversation, she was the one acknowledging me for my support. Moreover, she was careful to highlight those who have invested themselves in her life with such astounding selflessness. She doesn’t take any of her success for granted, and her valuation overflows into her teaching and mentorships. While she may have observed the seedier side of the business and she recognizes that not every part of the business is idyllic, she chooses to focus on the positive and the redeeming elements within the entertainment universe. In fact, the negativity she has witnessed has only sought to strengthen her impact and to motivate her to enact enduring change. She has chosen not to sit idly by and wait for eventual change. In her quiet, simple way, she continues to effect permanent change through her efforts in which she gives freely of herself in whatever way she is able. While some people prefer to discuss the issues of racism, sexism, and more that exist within the business, as we know, talk is cheap. The only way to ensure some kind of concrete change is through action, and the life and career of Catherine are living proof that action can and will ultimately change things. 

I invite all of my U.S. readers today (April 15th) to tune in at a special time to the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Network (check local listings for the correct time) and watch the premiere of Reap What You Sew: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, while keeping an eagle eye out for Catherine as the mayor. Additionally, I would welcome everyone to visit all of Catherine’s links below and consider following her on social media so that you never miss an update from her. This woman has had a lengthy and celebrated career, and I would venture to say that many of us have seen and enjoyed her work without even realizing it. I can hardly wait to see what roles continue to be sent her way, and I hope that all Hallmarkies will make it a personal mission to support this confident, exhilarating, encouraging woman every step of the way!

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