lurkers-guide/ftp/GEnie/jms94-08-01

This file contains messages posted by J. Michael Straczynski on GEnie
from Aug 1  - Aug 15th.  Postings are copyright 1994 by J. Michael Straczynski
with compilation copyright by GEnie.


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Topic 1         Mon Oct 26, 1992
SF-MARSHALL [Dave ]          at 18:50 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 - The Series  (Non-Spoiler)

Welcome to the Babylon 5 category and main topic for the new series. Here is
the place for all general information on the series. Topic 2 is the location
for SPOILERS. And please, NO STORY IDEAS are to be posted either.
406 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 148       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:39 EDT

                         **** Announcement ****

     Since this information has now been released to the press, and will
already begin showing up on the news wires by the time I write this, I can now
make the following announcement.

     The new Commanding Officer for Babylon 5 will be Captain John Sheridan,
former commanding officer of the Agamemmnon, a deep space Earthforce military
cruiser, where he was stationed for the last two years.  During the
Earth/Minbari war, he scored arguably the only real victory in that war, the
destruction of the Minbar War Cruiser Black Star, and several accompanying
vessels, through slightly unconventional means.   He has been appointed to B5
over the strongly-voiced objections of the Minbari Government, which still
holds a considerable grudge over the Black Star incident.  But the President
feels strongly that the Minbari have had too much influence in B5, and that
this has to be reined in.

     Captain John Sheridan will be portrayed by the highly-regarded actor
Bruce Boxleitner, who starred in "Scarecrow and Mrs. King," such miniseries as
"East of Eden," "Till We Meet Again," "From the Dead of Night," "The Gambler
V," and has appeared in such feature films as "The Babe."  Bruce is also a
long-time SF fan, both in media and print.  He is excited about joining the
Babylon 5 team, and we're equally excited to have him.  Bruce begins filming
with our first episode, "Points of Departure," starting August 10th.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 194       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:39 EDT

     (sigh...internet gateway always goes down when I want to hear some
reactiosn to stuff....)

     (Er, reactions.)

     Re: Ivanova lines...how about Susanalia?

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 205       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:01 EDT

     Lynn: of course we're going to tie it together.  Right in the first
episode.  The story is still tracking.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 245       Sat Aug 06, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:27 EDT

     Well, while here in San Diego for ComicCon (logging in via laptop) I was
surprised to receive an Inkpot Award at the SDCC banquet for the body (and
presumably the soul) of my work to date on various shows including B5.

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 284       Tue Aug 09, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:38 EDT

     Well, the "Danger Zone" tape that I played was courtesy of  J.Hudgens
(Fenn), so you may want to ask him about it.

                                                         jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 290       Wed Aug 10, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:01 EDT

     Well, tomorrow, at 8 a.m., filming for Season Two of BABYLON 5 begins in
earnest (minus one establisher the Monday preceding, and a shot we got a
couple months ago).  Today I saw a camera test of Bruce in his Captain's
uniform, standing in the Bazaar (a new set).  Looks great.  He has rather
reddish hair, which contrasts well with the blue (okay, teal) uniform.  The
uniform was still being sewed, and had the tailor's marks, and loose threads,
and was still being modified (we're making some small tailoring changes to
make the uniforms fit better and read better on camera, and to start
introducing some almost subliminal changes in the way you perceive the Earth
Alliance)...but it looked great, he was very much at his ease, and this was
the first frame of film shot for year two.

     The stories are shaping up to be very exciting; things are going to move
a LOT faster this season, now that we've established our universe in fair
detail.  It lets us concentrate on our characters.  Some fun titles for
you..."The Customer is Always Right," "The Very Long Night of Susan Ivanova,"
"Unnatural Selection," "A Race Through Dark Places," and others.

     It's often hard to get excited about stuff, because you're in the middle
of it all, racing from one thing to another...but I think I'm now getting a
little excited, as the reality finally sinks in.  Until the day you start
rolling film, it's all theoretical.  Now it becomes real.

     So tomorrow commences "Points of Departure."

     The ride begins again.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 296       Wed Aug 10, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 14:31 EDT

     Second year narration will be Sheridan.  Third year probably either
Ivanova or Delenn.  Fourth year G'Kar.  Fifth year...possibly no one.

                                                          jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 326       Thu Aug 11, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 23:49 EDT

     I don't know what's in the TBA slot.  It was initially put in on the off-
chance that we could convince PTEN to show "Chrysalis" early.  As for
videotapes...probably later in the Fall.

                                                          jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 337       Fri Aug 12, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 15:26 EDT

     The internet stuff is, btw, somewhat exaggerated; a bunch of people in
the same market (Cincinnati) noticed the change, and in some cases didn't get
the information right.  (They said it was being dropped, when in fact it was
being time-shifted to Saturday afternoons and Sunday late (very) evenings.)
This is nothing anywhere near serious enough to warrant anybody writing
anyone.

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 342       Fri Aug 12, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 21:52 EDT

     Well, actually, I'm not entirely sure that that's true, that's all.
"The Quality of Mercy" is a smaller, character-based story, not a big blow-
out; in fact, it has virtually NO CGI, and no arc stuff.  It's a nice, fairly
enclosed little story.

     The problem that one encounters, given the specific kind of series we're
doing here, is that the major stories have to have every single little detail
dead right, and they're filled with zillions of little clues that only I know.
To usher a freelancer through that process would require VAST amounts more
hand-holding than on the personal stories.  And as a result, the freelancers
*prefer* to do those stories (from wha  they've told me) because they have a
LOT more latitude to pursue the story where they might like to take it; if
they do a major arc story/blowout, the parameters are MUCH more strict.

     One other aspect to all this is that big EFX stories can be hideously
expensive, unless you know exactly how to write it to avoid that.  You can
write it one way, and it stays in budget; you can write it anther way and
literally be tens of thousands of dollars over budget.  Because I work very
closely with the production people, I can turn out a first draft that is
generally spot-on, money-wise; with a freelancer, who doesn't know the
parameters, you have to *massively* overhaul the first drafts of a big story
to bring it down to something you can produce.  (Even Larry has this problem;
"Deathwalker" in particular was originally 'way beyond what we could do, and
had to be made producible.)

     Anyway, those are the reasons you generally tend to see my name on the
Blowout episodes.  But in many ways, I prefer the smaller ones, and this
coming season I'll be doing more of those.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 358       Sat Aug 13, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:38 EDT

     Re: narration...yes, the plan is to change it each year, partly because
it needn't convey the same information every year, partly because it should be
somewhat from each person's individual point of view.

                                                           jms
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Topic 2         Wed Nov 20, 1991
STARR [Arne]                 at 19:41 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 -- The Series!! >>SPOILERS<<

Babylon 5 offically became a series on May 28 '93. There will be 22 hour eps
for season one (in addition to the pilot). Airs Wednesdays at 8PM in most
places starting Jan. 26 '94.  This is the SPOILER topic where anything goes.

370 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 235       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:57 EDT

     Mr. T -- force field technology is nowhere within Earth's grasp in 2258.
(In fact, I don't know for sure that ANY of our races have that particular
tech at the level you're describing.)

     Also, the second you put that up, if there were such things, then you
know the station could never be in danger...and suddenly you'd have to start
finding ways to *disable* the system, have it break down, to have any real
jeapordy.

     Besides, the jump gate is only used to save energy; any ship big enough
to pose a real threat to B5 could make its own jump point...and you can't
build a force field everywhere.

     At any given day, someone on the LA freeway can turn around and see
somebody with a gun pull up alongside.  Life is dangerous.  B5 reflects that.
The more implausible safeguards you come up with because you want a nice,
safe, riskless society, the more elaborate nonsense you have to go through to
circumvent those safeguards to have any dramatics.

                                                              jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 241       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:29 EDT

     By the standards of general society, yes, TV writers are hideously
overpaid.  By the standards of the revenue generated by what these same TV
shows make for the studios...they are vastly *under*paid.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 246       Wed Aug 03, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:48 EDT

     ANYONE who says that "it is easy to write an impressive speech" has never
had to write one.  And I'm sorry, but people *do* speak in blocks from time to
time and it's PART of a dialogue.  There are no monologues of the kind you
describe, Jim, which consists of one person talking alone in a room.  They are
always part of a dialogue, they ARE dialogue, period.  You seem to think that
dialogue is one sentence from A, one sentence from B, another from A.
Sometimes it is.  Sometimes it ain't.

     Londo was not alone in the room delivering a monologue about the Narns;
he was responding to a point raised by Delenn and explaining the situation.
Sometimes that takes more than one sentence.  As far as I can remember, I
don't think I've ever had a conversation in my entire life where nobody ever
said more than three sentences at one time.  You sometimes have to break in,
"Let me get in a word in edgewise here."

     That is PART of dialogue.  You may not like it.  That's your business.
 But if you say it's not dialogue, I'm sorry, but you're simply, flatly and
irredeemably wrong.

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 249       Wed Aug 03, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:53 EDT

     They haven't built 5 Babylon stations.  The first three were
sabotaged/damaged during the *very* early stages of construction; they never
got very far with them, so the cost was minimal.  Only #4 was completed, very
expensive.  When that vanished, they decided to scrimp and (with Minbari
additional funding) built a half-assed B5; there will never be a B6.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 270       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:56 EDT

     Yes, in 7 days, we see B4.

     (Do I live to please, or what?)

     Had two Susan russianisms in the two-parter, they slipped past; I
generally keep them more distinct.  I don't think there are any more for the
rest of the season.

     RE: similarity in initials...well, a creator has to take some liberties
in character identification....

     RE: casting Boxleitner and differences in how the character fits in...he
fits tighter into the events of year two than Sinclair would have, in terms of
being on B5, due to the desire to increase some of the tension on-station.
The questin of who you can really trust starts to take on weight next season.
Also, Sinclair's place of relocation will allow us to bring in some new
elements that you'll start spotting about mid-season (we'll see who notices
them first; they'll be in the background to start, then move forward).  And,
again, we can broaden out the storyline.

     A *lot* of people were considered for this role...because you have to
look at all of the possibilities, and from there find the one person most
suited to your show.  Some of the other people who were on the list were
Anthony Andrews, James Earl Jones, Roger Reece, A. Martinez...but the one name
that really kept coming to the top of the list, who both Doug and I wanted the
most, was Bruce.  He has all the right attributes for the character, and Doug
has worked with him before, knowing him to be a nifty guy...good with people,
a hard worker, a team player, dedicated to his craft and his show...good,
decent, honorable people are sometimes hard to find, but Bruce has all of
those qualities and more.  We spent a couple of hours the other day just
hanging out in the B5 offices, talking SF (he'd just finished reading Harry
Turtledove's newest Civil War book, and had started on another...he's a big
fan of 50s SF as well as such films as Blade Runner, vastly preferring the
director's cut) and fighter aircraft (he's a buff and collector of aircraft
memorabilia, and has flown just about every kind of plane)...had a great time.

     He really complements the show because, like those of us who man the
other areas, he really is a stone SF fan.  (His kids in particular REALLY
wanted him to do the show.)  He's watched B5 and likes it a lot.

     I think you're gonna like him a *lot*.

                                                                   jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 276       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:04 EDT

     My thought was always that big ships have interceptors to take out
incoming fire, and other kinds of weaponry to deflect or knock asice (aside)
other incoming fire.  The key is to overload the defense system so that some
things get through (and the enemy ship did take some pretty heavy hits at
various points).

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 308       Tue Aug 09, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:44 EDT

     Ben: thanks.  For what it's worth...I tend to write *very* tightly; I
don't like to leave things hanging, and I don't like threads that don't get
resolved.  Chekhov wrote, "If there is a gun on the wall in act one, scene
one, then you *must* use the gun by act three, scene three."  You don't put in
things you don't intend to use.  So the future stuff will all be dealt with.
When all is said and done...all will have been said and done.

                                                                   jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 320       Wed Aug 10, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 14:32 EDT

     Is this the *real* TV Guide or a local publication?

                                                         jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 329       Thu Aug 11, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:48 EDT

     Jim: no, I'm sorry, but you're simply wrong on this.  As of the teaser in
"Voice," they knew that a world previously thought dead and uninhabited was in
fact sending out an *extremely* powerful beacon; that alone confirms the
existence of some new alien tech, probably very advanced.  As soon as that
beacon was detected, and a report filed (which was almost immediate), the
Hyperion got its orders.  Remember, Earth is obsessed with getting its hands
on new technology.  The Hyperion continued to monitor reports as it proceeded
to B5.  The Captain's line tracks.

     Please don't describe things as "improbable" or "plot contrivances"
because you haven't thought them through.  You do this frequently.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 352       Sat Aug 13, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:40 EDT

     Sheridan, the universe willing, will be there throughout the rest of the
B5 story.

                                                                jms
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Topic 3         Tue Nov 03, 1992
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:09 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 - Computer SFX Tech-Talk 

Some of the new computer EFX used in BABYLON 5 will be revolutionary, a new
approach never seen before on this scale.  It's all new tech, and this topic
will try and address the new technologies involved.
384 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 358       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:58 EDT

     She doesn't mention it in any of the following episodes; stress brings it
out of her.

                                                            jms
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Topic 4         Tue Nov 03, 1992
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:12 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 - Cast & Characters      

For discussion of the actors who will be bringing BABYLON 5 to life with their
performances...for information before, and discussion after the airing of "The
Gathering" pilot.
331 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 298       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:10 EDT

     "Gary Cooper was a bad actor.  He WAS wooden."

     Say *what*?

     Has the taste of the american public been so diminished by over the top
hysterics and overemoting and "method" that a performer as restrained and
intelligent and *talented* as Gary Cooper is now considered BAD?

     Go out and rent HIGH NOON and *watch* it...then tell me he's anything
less than one of the finest actors this country has ever produced.

     Jesus...just because an actor isn't ripping his shirt of and yelling
"STELLLLLLLLAAAAAA" at the top of his lungs, somehow he's "bad."

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 328       Mon Aug 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:59 EDT

     Shawn Cassidy can write?

                                                                jms
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Topic 5         Tue Nov 03, 1992
T.ORTH [Mr. Rico]            (Forwarded)
Sub: Grid Epsilon Irregulars - News & Info.

This topic is for information about Babylon 5 fan groups, newsletters,
fanzines, get-togethers, B-5 at conventions, and other general fun.
292 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 235       Sat Aug 06, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:21 EDT

                              ...ahem.

                            (Extra-Large)

                                                            jms
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 244       Mon Aug 08, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 15:43 EDT

                             ...ahem....

                                                              jms
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Topic 12        Wed Nov 18, 1992
B.WIST [Brad]                at 18:12 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 Sightings                

Post here when you've spotted Babylon 5, whether it be on Television,
Magazine, or somewhere else.  Let us know where we can find it/see it, too.
350 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 12
Message 343       Sun Aug 07, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:05 EDT

     Many journalists are, frankly, idiots and crude; they look for ways to be
cruel.  (I'm talking mainly entertainment journalists, not the real kind.)  In
talking to some who've called for interviews, they go to "so, why'd you kick
him off?" or "when did he get shoved out?" and it's so damned
infuriating...they have to find some way to make this News With An Edge, give
it some controversy, some heat, when none exists.  I hate it a lot.

                                                           jms
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Topic 14        Thu Dec 31, 1992
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:59 EST
Sub: Lurkers/Introductions: Please Sign In

A place for newcomers to come in, say hello, whether you want to jump into the
conversation or not, just to let us know you're here.
482 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 14
Message 471       Fri Aug 12, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:29 EDT

     And don't forget PIDATS...People of Infinite Discretion and Taste.

                                                      jms
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Topic 16        Fri Jan 15, 1993
T.ORTH [Mr. Rico]            at 01:02 EST
Sub: "No kids or cute robots, ever!"    

This is a topic for discussion of the unofficial slogan of Babylon 5.
180 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 16
Message 172       Sat Aug 13, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:44 EDT

     Yes, and they're damned tasty.

                                                                  jms
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Topic 17        Tue Jan 19, 1993
C.STOBBE [Colin]             at 21:02 EST
Sub: Babylon 5 - Merchandising          

A place to discuss all the neat Babylon 5 merchandising coming out (hopefully)
soon
443 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 17
Message 420       Sat Aug 06, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:24 EDT

     Michelle Sucillon at Warner Bros. licensing, in Burbank.

                                                              jms
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Topic 23        Fri Feb 12, 1993
V.VAIDY1 [Vijay]             at 23:00 EST
Sub: "OtherWorks" by JMS                

Before there was "B5" and when "JMS" was just another Plain Joe, there was
OtherSyde
 [A discussion of the other works of J. Michael Straczynski]
203 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 23
Message 203       Sun Aug 14, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 17:41 EDT

     Ah, yes...that was actually kind of a cool episode, though some cuts in
the version now on USA kind of remove some of the more personal aspects of the
show.  (Cindy probably knows more specifically what was cut.)

                                                             jms
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Topic 30        Mon Jul 04, 1994
D.KAUFFMAN5 [CyberDad]       at 13:14 EDT
Sub: Nods, In-Jokes, and References     

Post any nods, in-jokes, or references you have seen here.  For example,
Babylon 5 refers to the Babylon of ancient Earth; the location of B5 is at
Grid Epsilon 470/18/22, the location of the original B5 topic on GEnie.
115 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 30
Message 108       Mon Aug 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:39 EDT

     As it happens, the script for that scene said, basically, that Garibaldi
gives out a YELL that goes on and on as he fires for all h he's worth.  Ye
Author takes no responsibility for any words that crept in there.

                                                               jms
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Topic 31        Sat Jul 09, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:23 EDT
Sub: Really Stupid Questions from JMS   

Every so often, I need Information.  (You won't get it!)  Technical stuff,
research or reference stuff...and given the brain trust here, I figured this
could be a useful resource from time to time.  With appreciation.
119 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 100       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:36 EDT

     (The following to be read in the voice of Humphrey Bogart)

     Now listen up, I need a name, see...I gotta lean on somebody and I gotta
lean hard.  Don't weasel out on me now when I need you, this is for all the
marbles.  A name, got it?  Somebody who works for Dell Computers, somebody I
can lean on, somebody who knows somebody who knows Somebody, maybe a
president, maybe a VP, doesn't matter....

     Oh, and if you hear some noise from the back room...don't look back.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 105       Wed Aug 03, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:51 EDT

     (waiting, let's see if they can resolve this.)

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 112       Sat Aug 06, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:26 EDT

     A second 1-gig drive was installed, but never hooked up,and I was told by
Dell it couldn't be hooked up to deliver more than 500 megs (even though I'd
paid $999 for the one gig), and wouldhave to be shipped back and exchanged,
after I'd configured the damn thing.  Well, while I've been away, I'm told
that Dell has actually fixed the thing; I'll know for sure Monday when I check
it out again.

                                                            jms
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Topic 22        Sun Apr 17, 1994
STARR [Arne]                 at 23:54 EDT
Sub: #120 - "A Voice In The Wilderness" - 1

by JMS.  Directed by Janet Greek.
152 message(s) total.
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Category 19,  Topic 22
Message 104       Mon Aug 01, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:21 EDT

     Dave...he didn't turn the set off...it was broken up by static, if you'll
go back and look, because a much stronger transmission was coming in.

     Namely, the one that appeared in his room.  If you'll note, it goes away,
THEN, puzzled, Sinclair goes to the screen to see why it's gone.

     It is, as you say, "very annoying" to be accused of a "standard TV
cliche" that in fact only happened in the viewer's memory.

                                                                  jms
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Category 19,  Topic 22
Message 117       Tue Aug 02, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:50 EDT

     There is a middle ground here.

     The people who like to speculate do so in print because they want to see
(and be seen) if they were right or wrong; else why write it?

     You can write to a topic without ever having read it.  So why not
speculate on voice 2 *in* voice two, then after you've seen the episode, do a
REA 23 1-whatever the last number is?  This way, you don't see any spoilers
that you don't want to see, and other folks don't have to worry about it?
This is fast becoming one of those discussions over who has what *rights* when
in fact it should be about politeness.

                                                            jms
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Category 19,  Topic 22
Message 140       Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:30 EDT

    J.Ward...no, you don't have to read a topic to post there.  You can post
in, say, part 2, then wait until after you've seen the episode, and THEN read
all the messages there.

                                                                  jms
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Topic 23        Sun Apr 17, 1994
STARR [Arne]                 at 23:56 EDT
Sub: #121 - "A Voice In The Wilderness" - 2

by JMS.  Directed by Janet Greek.
107 message(s) total.
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Category 19,  Topic 23
Message 25        Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:35 EDT

     RE: predictable...it was never meant to be much of a mystery; this
particular episode isn't a who-dunit, or who's-gonna-do-it-to-whom.  Some I
write with that in mind, some are those in which you *know* something is going
to happen to someone, and you have a fair idea what, but the "how" is
something you don't know.  It's the ride getting there.

                                                     jms
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Category 19,  Topic 23
Message 29        Thu Aug 04, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:21 EDT

     Draal will not get involved in such things.  The fate of B5 must be
played out without interference.  They can ask, but he will not reply.

     Most pre-War EA warships operated sans gravity, though some of the later,
larger ones used counterweight-spinning to create a tiny bit of gravity (a la
2010), but when going into battle, that is disabled to give the ship maximum
maneuverability.

     (Can't decide if it's wonderful or sad that we've worked this stuff out
to this amount of detail....you'll probably see one or more of the latter
kinds of ships next season.)

                                                                  jms
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Category 19,  Topic 23
Message 42        Fri Aug 05, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:52 EDT

     The captain of the Hyperion specifically states that he was already IN
hyperspace, en route to another system, when he was ordered to stop here.  His
ship was already in the area.  Also, there is a fair amount of time between
the actions on the planet initially, and the arrival of the Hyperion...enough
to know there's some kind of tech there, based on the initial attacks.  The
Hyperion continued to monitor reports as they came in.

                                                       jms
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Topic 24        Sun Apr 17, 1994
STARR [Arne]                 at 23:58 EDT
Sub: #118 - "Babylon Squared"           

by JMS.   Directed by Jim Johnston.
122 message(s) total.
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 15        Mon Aug 08, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:08 EDT

     A thought to bear in mind re: the whole Sinclair thing...I announced on
the various forums several *months* ago about the change in his role, moving
off the chessboard.  If we really were never going to see Sinclair again, one
particular shot would have been deleted from the episode; it would not have
caused us any problem since we were still messing with it anyway, and we've
certainly left things unexplained in other episodes, like "Mind War."  We
could've left the One unexplained.  We chose not to.   You can read into that
what you will.

                                                                   jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 40        Thu Aug 11, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:37 EDT

     Cindy: on the one hand, one of the true ingredients of tragedy (or just
plain drama in some cases) is that you know something that hte (the)
characters *don't* know, and if you like the characters, and you know
something just awful may happen to them, but you don't know exactly how or
when, it adds interest, I think.

     On the other hand, 1) I've never stated that that was where Garibaldi
does (or doesn't) check out, and 2) go watch "Signs" again; there's a shuttle
seen leaving B5 instants before it explodes.  Who's on it?  We'll have to wait
and see.  Certainly, though, this would be one good prospect for a good death.
But my point is you *don't* know...so the uncertainty remains.

                                                                   jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 84        Sat Aug 13, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 20:31 EDT

     I don't think one should assume anything about the fate of *any* of our
characters...it's WAY early to do that, and I wouldn't tip too much at this
juncture anyway.

                                                                  jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 88        Sun Aug 14, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:54 EDT

     Alas, if I revealed the first two ages, it would reveal the third by
inference....

     Paulman: you are righter than you know.

                                                                jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 95        Sun Aug 14, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 17:34 EDT

     He was looking out a port as the shuttles raced away from B4.

     Mike: it'll all hang together in the end.  If I'd wanted, if that scene
with the One revealed would've been a problem, I could've easily cut it LONG
before delivering it to PTEN, and left it a "mystery yet to be explained."  No
problem.  But I didn't.  It all still tracks.

     Peter: I agree about the exposure the show is(n't) getting.  It's just
very hard to make people understand what we're trying to do here.

                                                                     jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 110       Mon Aug 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 15:28 EDT

     An interesting (one hopes) sidelight to the episode....

     This is, after all, two stories overlapping...the present story, and the
future story.  When, eventually, that future story is shown, it has to be
absolutely consistent with the events in B-squared.  So what was required,
really, was to block out two scripts...this one, and the one yet to be
written, so that the events dovetail in the right sequence.  (The best analogy
would be the last two "Back to the Future" films.)  It was kind of a bear, but
an interesting thought experiment.

                                                                jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 113       Mon Aug 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:58 EDT

     It's very much a personal philosophy.  This theme -- sacrifice of oneself
for another -- is one that appears again and again and again in my work.  I
think that we have lost something important in the "me first" philosophy that
has become entrenched in American society.

                                                                jms
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Category 19,  Topic 24
Message 122       Tue Aug 16, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:53 EDT

     Actually, I never said that the Minbari all go through changes from male
to female or vice versa; that became a bit of accepted story because people
kept repeating it, going from speculation to being "sure" I said it.  Didn't.

                                                                jms
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