Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

With History's new "Vikings" series freshly launched, Jessalyn Gilsig says she'd love to go back to her medieval Norsewoman garb again and do a season 2. That's because, she says, her Viking queen character "would rise again, and that would be a fantastic story opportunity to play."

Certainly the series, which stars Travis Fimmel as the legendary Viking leader Ragnar Lothbrok, depicts the murderous raiders of the North in all their bloody ingloriousness as a male-dominated society. However, to the surprise of many, "shield maidens" — women in battle — are not a conceit for the drama, but a standard part of Viking lore. Gilsig notes, "The role of women in Viking society showed, in that there is evidence that they participated in battle and were trained in sword fighting, that they could rule, that they had rights, that they could literally divorce their husbands."

The actress, who rose to fame with "Boston Public," "Nip/Tuck" and "Glee," notes that yes, the Viking women are "really fascinating, but I think women have always been interesting. It's just that the telling of telling of history is different — it's only been comparatively recently that we've shown an interest in them."

Playing Siggy, wife of Gabriel Byrne's Viking chieftain character in the nine-hour, $40-million production, Gilsig got used to wearing clothing "with not a lot of structure, a little bit primitive ... I wish everyone could see these clothes close up, the handwork, the detail," she adds. "I've never seen anything like it in my life. Without exception, every article of clothing had a reason."

Shooting took place mostly in Ireland, generally in authentically dirty and cold environments. Gilsig acknowledges that it took a while to "get the grime off" once production wrapped.

Mud 'N' Blood: Speaking of rough conditions and battle-heavy fare, handsome actor Chad Michael Collins reports it'll be an April or May production start in Colombia for the sequel to his hit "Sniper: Reloaded" with Billy Zane. "Billy is directing this one," he adds. "We'll be out in the South American jungles, going after bad guys."

Collins has just seen the DVD/BluRay video release of the latest in his popular "Company of Heroes" franchise for Sony. The WWII movie also stars Tom Sizemore, Vinnie Jones, Jurgen Prochnow and Neal McDonough. "There are plans for at least another two, and I'm really excited about it. It's a great thing to have as an actor," he notes.

That's in spite of the grueling demands of the productions. "It was a very physical shoot. It really gave you a sense of what these soldiers did for months and years at a time before the day of waterproof stuff and Gortex — stuff that keeps you warm and protected. We were up in the mountains for the first eight days in two and a half feet of snow. It was below freezing every single day, and the boots weren't waterproof. It's basically like you were wearing cotton towels, and once they got wet in that first hour, you were basically stuck with it for the next 14. Luckily, there was no gangrene, no hypothermia, though a couple of us came close," he says with a smile. "We made it out alive."

Asked whether he was concerned about working with Tom Sizemore, given the other actor's troubled past of arrests, rehabs, etc., Collins told us he made a point of keeping an open mind and found Sizemore to be "just great. It was me and Tom — we worked together every day. I love learning things from these veteran actors."

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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