Interview: Hal "Dr. Kleiner" Robins

Hi Hal, it's a pleasure to be able to interview you on behalf of all the Half-Life fans worldwide!

HLFallout.net: What is your story of the run up to the original 1998 Half-Life, how did you land this incredible role of becoming Dr. Kleiner?

Hal: It should be remembered that there was no Dr. Kleiner per se in the original version of HL—there were unnamed "scientists" who could be addressed and give responses, and of course provide needed information.

The role of Dr. Kleiner grew out of the plenum of these responses. The writer, Marc Laidlaw, also may have been influenced by having seen my performance as a mad scientist in a (very) obscure movie, Kamillions (1989).

HLFallout.net: When you did the recording for Half-Life, did you have any idea it would be such a huge success? Have you ever had anyone recognise your voice in public?

Hal: Inevitably, that has happened—and I've been asked on those occasions to repeat lines from the game. As for predicting its success, I'll just say that this success was not a surprise to me. I still frequently encounter the players, who readily demonstrate their enthusiasm.

HLFallout.net: Did you do any other voice acting roles other than Dr. Kleiner in the Half-Life series? If so, who were they and did you enjoy doing them?

Hal: In the first version, of course, I voiced multiple characters. But later, and I believe the game credits reflect this although I temporarily don't seem to be able to lay hands on my own copy, I provided a few military voices—some of the Hazardous Environment Combat Unit (HECU) Marines-- which can be heard during HL Opposing Force.

HLFallout.net: When you record the voice over do you do it alone in a booth or are you together with the other actors?

Hal: I do it in the studio on my own, taking direction from Marc and others. I've recorded lines on the Microsoft campus (for the original), in a San Francisco studio linked to Valve, and even at least once on KPFA 94.1 FM in Berkeley, where I've been on a show (called Puzzling Evidence) for 26 years.

HLFallout.net: Did you plan on using your original voice for Dr. Kleiner or were you intending on altering it in any way to suit the character?

Hal:I'd like to think I do alter it. My own voice and speech are close to the character's, though, which frees me from having to devote part of my concentration to doing an assumed accent…

HLFallout.net: What were your favourite scenes in Half-Life and Half-Life 2?

Hal:The original catastrophe, the opening of the Rift in the first game, is one. The player must precipitate it to start the action rolling. Of course, I maintain a soft spot (in my head?) for all scenes in following iterations with Lamarr, beloved domesticated headcrab.

HLFallout.net: So, what does Gordon Freeman sound like?

Gary Cooper.

Hal: Dry, I'd say. Dry and laconic. A man of few words—the strong, silent type. Think Gary Cooper. But Dr. Kleiner, to be just, has never had the opportunity, in the world of the game, to socialize with Gordon in "relaxed" everyday surroundings.

It should be remembered that before the action depicted in the first game, at MIT Dr. Kleiner was one of Gordon Freeman's professors, and even initially recommended him to Black Mesa's AM (Anomalous Materials) team. In that earlier academic setting, however, Kleiner knew the wunderkind Freeman chiefly through his brilliant post-graduate work, not as a drinking buddy.

HLFallout.net: What are your hobbies and interests? Do you play video games frequently?

Hal: Not too frequently, I fear, though I hope some day to remedy this. I have my hands full most of the time as I work on elaborate drawings and paintings—I'd recommend my own books The Meaning of Lost and Mismatched Socks and Dinosaur Alphabet, both from North Atlantic Books, to those interested in my style of illustration—also, of course, the Church of the SubGenius cycle of books, particularly Revelation X: The BobApocryphon. Since I was never smart enough to develop a less complex style which could be turned over easily, I spend too many hours making and staring at the little lines on the page to have enough left over for the downtime I'd need to gain proficiency at the games. Consequently, when I do play, I get slaughtered. Drawing comic books, too, absorbs an enormous amount of time, when I'm doing that. You can get one apocalyptic graphic novelette, Alien Apocalypse 2006 (2001), which I did with comics legend "Spain" Rodriguez, also from North Atlantic.

Incidentally, in HL2, if you're interested, there's a copy of Lost Socks that can be seen lying on a shelf in Eli Vance's lab. It's a pity it can't be picked up and read—but of course, there's no time, since Gordon, too, naturally has his hands full.

In addition, I'm in the performing arts, among other things singing in the band the Odeon Cocaine All-Stars, doing shows and benefits in San Francisco and New York and, when it's running, my own weekly night club show, Ask Dr. Hal!

HLFallout.net: Could you tell us more about Ask Dr. Hal? It looks like a great experience!

Hal: Well, Ask Dr. Hal! was started in the Black Rock Desert of northern Nevada years ago, at the Burning Man Arts festival, by musician, showman and quondam political candidate Chicken John Rinaldi. The format, stripped of all flash and filigree, is that the audience asks me questions on any subject—the sky, and beyond, is the limit—which I must answer. Of course, I also recite from memory various long poems –I think there's still a You Tube video up somewhere of me performing Milton's Paradise Lost, which happened a few years back when our opening act failed to show.

Be sure to check out the Ask Dr. Hal website!

We hope Ask Dr. Hal! is a great experience for those who attend, although there have been instances where my answers were found disturbing by a few people. You can't win 'em all. And the show is more than that. Media genius KrOB heavily contributes with his projected "Eyenoise," and we're taking the audience through a syllabus on the American animated cartoon. Our Science specialist, NASA liaison and astronomer Dr. Pete Goldie, always delivers his weekly presentation as part of the show. Computer expert David Capurro pulls illustrations from the Internet to illustrate what I'm talking about—usually quite obscene. David also does yo-yo tricks—but enough about that show. Come see us when we're in session!

HLFallout.net: Do you plan on doing more voice acting for other games or films in the future?

Hal: I'm ready, willing and able, an A.F.T.R.A. member. I have worked in a number of extremely marginal and peculiar films. I've auditioned for other games and even been paid, but the work wasn't used.

HLFallout.net: What advice would you give to anyone seeking to do voice acting work on video games?

Hal: Put together a "demo reel," of course, which these days would be a CD. It's a good idea to develop a specialty. This said, in my experience the voice most in demand tends to be the "normal," Joe Average type—this, which you'll find turns out to be incredibly difficult to pull off, since it does not really exist, is what producers tend to be looking for and will in the long run be the most profitable.

After all, most people with little prompting can come up with some kind of "funny" voice—but that's not in demand to sell soap, or real estate, or what have you.

HLFallout.net: Are you looking forward to working on the next Half-Life title?

Hal: Naturally—it's always a supremely enjoyable and satisfying experience as a voice actor.

HLFallout.net: Is there anything you can tell us about your work on Episode 3, have you done any work on it at this point?

Hal: I'm afraid that here we are entering a realm which is highly classified. If I told you, as the saying goes, I'd have to kill you. Not that I would, you understand, but… Let's wait on that one.

HLFallout.net: Thank-you Hal, it's been excellent! All the best for the future.