Although some fans might not know this, you were behind the cameras during the filming of the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre.  How would you compare the two in respect to shooting conditions, cast chemistry and overall intensity?

The original TCSM was shot on pretty much a shoestring, with all the problems associated with a low budget. We were shooting in 16 mm and we stupidly imagined that the camera we had rented was a good deal when, in fact, it was so out of focus that we had to reshoot the entire first week! After that, I had to send the film to the lab in Dallas every night without fail. They had given me tape and labels, but no boxes, so I had to go dumpster diving every night looking for the right size box! We were a small crew with everybody driving their own cars to the set. I came down from Colorado, where I had been living in the mountains, so the climate change was staggering. It was shot in the summer and it was so hot that I cut my hair fairly short, for me, so that I could just walk through the shower in the morning.

There was a fair amount of disorganization during the first part of the shoot, as everybody got used to each other's working style. I was new to Daniel Pearl (DP) and we had a little trouble at first, because he had been used to working with Michael McClary as his assistant, but Tobe made him use me. I think that was because Tobe was really, really worried that somebody would flash the film. Daniel and I eventually worked it out and that's when I came to call myself a "working assistant cameraman" because I felt that part of my job was to make the shot work. Here's one example: When we were shooting the scene where the hitchhiker cuts his arm, Bob Burns (RIP) had got this little bitty bulb that you make a little plastic frog hop with, and Tobe wanted more blood to come out 'cause it only held about a thimble full. Well, Bob got mad and went back to town and there we were out in the country on this road and everybody was waiting. So I went over and said "What the hell is the problem?" or something, and when they told me, I said "Gimme the goddamn thing" and went over to my camera bag and got out this big ear syringe that I used to blow off the lenses and the gate in the camera and I rigged it up just like Bob had, except now it held about a half a cup of blood and I went over to Tobe and said "How about this?" and proceeded to "cut" my arm with it. Well, Tobe was happy now, and so was everybody else, including me.

Since Bob had such a hard time finding skeletons, and cow heads and stuff, a lot of it had not been properly boiled so that there wouldn’t be such a smell. Instead, the smell was pretty horrible in the house once we started on those scenes. Tobe and Kim got on well, in fact, every once in a while I would see them off talking about something and I would hear Kim's distinctive laugh.

As for intensity, I remember the first time we killed somebody it was the character played by William Vail. I, for one, didn't see any kind of rehearsal of it and the camera crew was down the hall shooting as William went through the door where Leatherface jumped out with the hammer and whacked him. I think we expected the hammer blow and all, but then he started kicking his feet and Leatherface whacked him again, dragged him through the door and slammed it. When Tobe called "Cut!" we all just ran out the door screaming and hollering ourselves! Then we knew we were shooting something entirely different than we had ever seen before.

On Chainsaw II, of course, we were shooting in 35 mm, we had a much larger crew, and they were great, both Dick Kooris' camera crew and Tom Savini's special effects crew. Tom and his guys did nearly a full body cast of me, so that they could have something on which to build what they called the "appliances". Tobe and Kit worked well together, including writing dialogue on the set.

It was also a return for Tobe and me to some of the same material in which we forged our working relationship and our long friendship, so to be directed and listened to as an equal was intensely satisfying. One of the first scenes that we did with L.G. was in the radio station and Tobe asked me "What do you feel like doing here?" and I said, "You know, this may sound crazy, but I feel like spittin'." Tobe looked at me and said, "Oh, I like that!" So that's how that got started.

Did your role as an assistant cameraman for the original film have anything to do with you auditioning for or being cast as a major character in the sequel?

Well, Tobe and I were very old friends and he had brought me out to LA to work on "Poltergeist" and that went pretty well, but I had no idea he was considering doing a sequel to until he and Kit Carson called me up and just said "Hey man, we're gonna skin you alive!"

Have you kept in touch with Tobe Hooper over the years?

Unfortunately, we haven't kept in touch as much as I would like, because Tobe is just this warm and wonderful guy and one of my very oldest friends. We shared some amazing times together, and I wouldn't have had the same life without having known him.

In the first draft of the script, L.G. only had a few lines and was far from the captivating character we saw in the cinematic version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2.  I honestly can't imagine what the film would've been like without him or his unique Texan charm, but were those changes to the script made before or after you accepted the role?

You know, I don't think I ever saw a version of the script that had L.G. as such a minor character as you mention. There were ongoing changes in the script, as there often are on features, but the only thing I can think of is that there was an extraordinary level of good taste on the part of Tobe and Kit in recognizing the opportunity of using me to the fullest. As I look at the film now, I am amazed that they wrote all those great lines for me. I still get an absolutely amazing reaction from fans at shows when I recite some of those lines like "I built you a little fry house!"

Pray tell, do you have any construction tips for building a little fry house that you'd be willing to share with all of the hopeless romantics out there?

Well, you have got to have a strong foundation! My secret: toothpicks for strength and ketchup for sealer! I believe it is possible for anyone to build a great little fry house if they follow these tips!

Do you have any fond memories in regards to your experiences with either film that you'd like to share with us?

I definitely have the fond memories of working with a director like Tobe. I had worked on so many other films with him, and watched him talk to the actors about what they were doing and wanted to do, that it was just the greatest pleasure to have that same courtesy offered to me.

Were there any experiences that you wish you could forget?

I wish I could forget that damn casting director who resented the fact that the part of L.G. was written for me, and insisted on auditioning me for the part. She really gave me a hard time. And then she just tried to bury me in the credits!

What was your favorite scene in the cinematic version of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2?

I guess in would have to be the scene where L.G. sits up disoriented with his face gone and looks around to figure out where in the hell he is, finds all that mucous in his throat and just has to have a real good spit. The largest decision, of course, was whether ol' L.G. was going to be naked or whether Leatherface was going to preserve L.G.'s modesty by leaving him in his UT Longhorn boxer shorts. Luckily for me, Leatherface (and Tobe) opted for the second choice!

What was your impression of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 the first time you saw it on the big screen?

I flew out to L.A. with my daughter for the screening and was pretty much knocked out! I thought the movie was just filled with mayhem and I thought it was hilarious! There were all kinds of people there, and I was so amazed that when I was standing in the lobby of Cannon's theatre after the movie, these two people came up to me and said how much they liked what I did. When they left, I said "I wonder who that was!" and my daughter said "Jeez, Dad! That was Weird Al Yankovic and Laraine Newman!"

Is there anything you'd like to say to all of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 fans out there?

It has been the biggest pleasure to meet so many people. They have been so kind, and so complimentary to me that I am just blown away at the reception I get when I go to some conventions. I hope to have a website up soon so that I can communicate regularly with the people who have been so kind and receptive to me.

Do you have any projects, appearances or anything else in the works that you'd like your fans to know about?

One of my latest movies, called "When Zachary Beaver Came to Town" has just been released on DVD and one of my first movies (from 1978), "The Whole Shootin' Match", has just been restored in high-def and may finally get a release on DVD. It is premiering at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin on March 14. I am going to The Carnivale of Horror in Tampa in May and I'm going back to Cinema Wasteland in October. A few more are in the works, but they are not confirmed yet. I am working on a one-man show, and there's some guys working on a documentary about me, believe it or not!