lurkers-guide/ftp/GEnie/jms94-09-15

This file contains messages posted by J. Michael Straczynski on GEnie from
Sep 15- Sep 30th, 1994.  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.
26 new messages.
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 781       Fri Sep 16, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:08 EDT

     Don't know how much impact will come from the rerun schedule; you'll know
when I do.

     And vice-versa.

     Well, I've now seen 3 completed (sans some CGI and other stuff) episodes.
The first one is very good.  I think "Revelations" is even better (#2), mainly
in that it feels to me a lot like "Chrysalis," lots of *whams* all over the
place.  But curiously, my favorite so far I think is #3, "The Geometry of
Shadows," and I think it'll become a favorite with viewers as well.  It's just
an *awful* lot of fun.  It's very funny in places.  And here's something that
may surprise you: a number of folks didn't much like Vir in year one.  I think
you're going to like Vir a LOT in year two.  We're building up his spine, to
stand up to Londo, and doing a lot more with him.  Also, Vir is in the
unenviable position of being the one who sees where Londo is going, and
despite his attempts to stop things, can't...like someone seeing a car
accident in slow motion.

     Anyway, I was watching the producers' cut of "Geometry" tonight and just
*howling*.  It's the kind of show I love most, that's funny one moment, then
scary and ominous the next.  I love that contrast, and it's very hard to pull
off without seeming forced.  This one came out just right.

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 491       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:33 EDT

     We wrap generally by 7:30 p.m.  Thus far we haven't gone overtime yet.
Out of 154 shooting days last year, we went overtime precisely 8 times.  We
sometimes wrap as early as 6 p.m.  We generally hit the standard 12 hour day,
or less.

                                                                  jms
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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 495       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:41 EDT


     Generally speaking, everyone is on the set by 7:45 a.m., including crew.
Cast arrives anywhere from one hour to two hours earlier, depending on whether
or not the actor needs to go into prosthetics.  (We try to schedule actors in
prosthetics later in the day if possible, to give them more time, but it isn't
always workable.)  The camera operator is there from 7:45 until we wrap for
the day.  But there are always down times during the day, times when the
operator isn't needed on set.  Same for other crew members.  Some days when
we're light on aliens, none of the folks from Optic Nerve need to be there at
all.  When we've got a full Council and League of Nonaligned Worlds, and
they're going all day, then they're there non-stop.  It really varies a lot.
(And we shoot Monday through Friday, with weekends off, and some religious
holidays.)

     As stated, we're pretty good about getting people out by 7:30 or earlier.
This past week we wrapped anywhere from 6-7 p.m. most days.  (We found
ourselves in an odd situation for a few weeks last year when some of the
directors got into a kind of competition to see who could wrap the
earliest...and it began crawling toward 5:30, 5:00, 4:30...when was when we
pulled the plug on it.)

     I'd say that the lion's share of the credit for how well the whole
operation runs has to go to our crew, which is amazing.  I've worked on a lot
of shows over the last ten years, and I've never seen one as fast, as skilled,
and as able to adapt to circumstances.  Every single one of our guest stars
and visiting directors has commented on them.  The heart of the crew on-set is
John Flinn, our Director of Cinematography, who keeps the whole thing running
smoothly.  You don't have to lean on them to hurry; they *move*, and they're
proud of their efficiency, and they're good at what they do.  We try to
maintain a good, creative, open attitude on-set.

     Because I'm usually frantic with meetings, or writing, or on the phone,
or in the editing bays, I only actually get the chance to walk the stage maybe
3 times a day *at most*; sometimes just once, sometimes not at all, which is
ironic given that my door is literally 25 feet from stage C.  When I do go on-
set, where many producers make a big deal out of it on other shows, I try to
keep a low profile...I slip in as quietly as I can, watch for a bit, then slip
back to my office, trying not to get in anybody's way or be a distraction.
(And the *EXECUTIVE PRODUCER* walking onto a set can be quite a distraction.)
Sometimes I'll walk out there when I know we're not shooting, just doing
lighting setups, just to watch them work, and the skill with which they
approach the task.

     One of the ways we try to keep things smooth (and the reason why I *can*
only be on set a few times a day) is that the script is worked and tweaked to
the point where by the time it hits the stage, it's DONE.  It requires no
further tweaking, except for the occasional, rare line change for performance.
If pages are flying in while you're shooting, and nobody knows what's coming
next...you're in trouble.  So by the time we start shooting, my part is more
or less over.  Script's written, I've met with the director to make sure the
tone and approach is in sync between us, we've had zillions of meetings...at
that point, you leave the people who know what they're doing on-set alone to
do what they do best.

                                                                   jms

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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 499       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 22:56 EDT

     As a rule, no.  In some rare cases, if we're hooking a story to something
close in the actor's background, we'll talk to them a bit, but the cast never
sees a script until it's hit Final Draft stage, at which point very little is
changed.  Sometimes on set an actor may want a line phrased differently for
performance, but that too is fairly rare.

     Actors are not writers, and writers are not actors.  (In general.)
There is a gross misunderstanding of the role of the actor in determining what
happens in a script.

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 524       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:16 EDT

     We've designed much of our medical equipment around suggestions made by
our medical science consultants, who generally feel that we'll be using more
light-oriented healing technology and non-invasive procedures.  And we used
the 3D imaging process for the interior of a body cavity in "Believers."  A
few weeks ago we got sent a clipping from some medical newspaper overseas
showing a new kind of medbed that looks a lot like the one we use in medlab,
with the monitoring cage overhead.

     We *do* consult in this and other areas.  Sometimes what's projected may
not be what someone else would project, but please don't take that to mean we
haven't checked.  We have.

     Tom: in general, the schedule is comparable to the best situations I've
found before, if not better, on network shows.  The bulk of that due, again,
to the fleet-footedness of our crew.

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 528       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:19 EDT

     Tonight, at 8:30 p.m. Pacific time, noted author and screenwriter Robert
Bloch passed away from cancer.  He was a kind and generous and good man, and
one of the brightest lights of his field.

                                                            jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 541       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:19 EDT

     One of the banes of television, in my humble estimation, is the Focus
Group.  I hate 'em.  Hate 'em, hate 'em, hate 'em.  (Did I mention I hate
'em?)  But all the studios insist on them, and each new season every show gets
tested and re-tested the following season.  My personal estimation is that in
terms of accuracy they rank somewhere just below the reading of chicken
entrails.

     This past week, the first two episodes of B5's second season were shown
to 40+ people here in LA, a group made up of those who had seen the show but
tuned out, those who'd watched it a few times, and those who were regular
viewers.  I was very anxious about the whole thing, partly because the
episodes are still in *very* early stages...producer's cuts, transferred from
the Avid editing machines, no music, no sound EFX, many unfinished CGI
effects...but there you are.  I was also concerned because they would be
seeing these *without* seeing "Chrysalis" (though they would be able to infer
certain things from seeing the repercussions), and I didn't know how or if any
of them would be thrown by not having seen that.

     Well, though I put no more stock in focus groups now than I did before,
I'm pleased to state that the screening went over like gangbusters.  People
got *very* caught up in it, they liked Bruce a LOT (even the regular viewers,
without exception, felt that way)...they had virtually no negative comments at
*all*.  We got the highest ratings we've ever had.  Specific things they
commented on were that the show *looked* much better in terms of sets and
costumes and lighting, theyh liked the characters a lot more, they got into
the story bigtime...it really worked for them on every level.

     The good part about this is that a solid focus group report tends to
encourage networks and studios to push harder to do advertising and promotion.
And that has definitely happened here.

     Once we've finished the episodes, added all the sound and music and CGI,
we should be pretty solid.

     (Oh, and just last night watched the director's cut of D.C. Fontana's
script, "A Distant Star."  Looks *very* good.)

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 580       Thu Sep 29, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:42 EDT

     It's my understanding that B5's second season will start in the UK in
December/January.

     Bruce will be on the Mike and Maddy (Mike and Matty?) show this Friday
morning; a couple hours later, for those in LA, he'll also be on Good Day LA.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 587       Thu Sep 29, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:31 EDT

     Here's something to consider.  I pass this along for whatever use it may
be down the road a piece.

     Apparently, the contract for B5 and the stations expires at the end of
the year, with a few exceptions.  What this means is that, for all intents and
purposes, the decision on whether or not to pick up the show will be made
based on the November sweeps.

     We've done well this year; they're expecting us to do even better next
year.  To be precise, they'd like us to be a bona fide hit.  What's the reason
for this?  The syndication market is going through MAJOR  changes.  Networks
and fledgling networks are grabbing up stations by the handful, making lots of
elaborate promises, bringing highly-rated network shows in many cases in as
inducement.  Robocop is, apparently, already either dead or near-death.  Other
series will be falling in the next few weeks.

     When running new episodes, we're come in around a 5.3 rating, which puts
us at about #17 in the ratings overall, and #4 in dramatic series.   Our
demographics, btw, are nothing less than *amazing*.  But because we're making
the show better, and doing more, and with the shape of the market for
syndicated TV changing, more is expected.  What we hear is that the stations
would like us to bring in a rating between 6.0 and 7.0, which would put us at
about #10 in the overall rankings, #3 in dramatic series overall.  If we can
do that, we're golden.  If not...I don't know.

     Point being, if there's any last-minute conversions anybody wants to do,
now's the time to do it.  November will be very important to the whole fate of
Babylon 5.

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 593       Thu Sep 29, 1994
P.DAVID2                     at 17:30 EDT

Actually, Joe, what you're really saying is...if anyone out there knows anyone
who is a Nielsen family...GET 'EM TO WATCH THE SHOW!!!!

PAD
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 594       Thu Sep 29, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 17:37 EDT

      Ladies and gentlemen...the world famous Peter David, whose script
 for B5 goes into production in a few weeks....

                                              ^^^
                                               |

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 1
Message 612       Fri Sep 30, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:01 EDT

     Let me be absolutely clear: if B5 should fall in the syndicated market,
the WB network will *not* pick it up.  Neither could we take it to any other
network for a period of 2 years (by contract), which is the same as preventing
it altogether since you'd lose your cast and crew in that amount of time.

                                                                 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.

17 new messages.
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 363       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:30 EDT

     Re: two contradictory spoilers...what, you think this sort of thing
happens by accident?  Simple: just use the old "blind men describing an
elephant" trick.  Gets 'em every time.

     Dave: I think that covers the really essential episodes from 1.  The
essentials so far for season two are "Points of Departure," "Revelations," a
goodly portion of "The Geometry of Shadows," snippets of other episodes, with
the next big bang being "The Coming of Shadows," which like "Signs and
Portents" carries the overall season title, and is another blow-out.

                                                                   jms
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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 367       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:53 EDT

     Telepathic scans of suspects in a criminal case are *absolutely NOT
admissible* in court.  They are prohibited from it.  Because it puts FAR too
much power in the hands of telepaths, power that the judicial system would
never, ever in a million years part with.  It destroys the idea of due
process.  You have to be sure that the telepath isn't lying, which means you
bring in a second telepath to verify the first, and a third to verify the
second.  Further, a person may feel responsible for someone's death ("I said,
`I hate you, I hope you did,' and then she did, it's my fault!"), without
being so.

     The recent introduction of telepaths into the military is a very
controversial decision, and is being fought vigorously.  It was put in on the
theory that in wartime, soldiers do not have quite the same rights as
civilians.  This is being contested hotly back in the Earth senate, and I
wouldn't be surprised to see it overturned.

                                                                   jms
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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 369       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:47 EDT

     Can I dive in here for just a second to say that this is one of those
accepted cliches that has nothing whatsoever to do with reality?  It's like
the other one, "All these cartoons are violent," but when you ask the person
to show which ones, they can't back it up.

     The *norm* in television is to NOT script religious people as loonies.
I'm sorry, I know that's generally what one's told, but that's simply not the
case.  Religious people have gotten FAR better treatment in general than
atheists, that's for certain.  FATHER MURPHY, THE FATHER DOWLING MYSTERIES,
HELLTOWN, HIGHWAY TO HEAVEN...there have been *many* series headlined by
religious people, or in which religious people appear in a favorable light.
(DR. QUINN in particular comes to mind.)

     It seems like if you show *one* religious nut, suddenly it's taken as a
statement that ALL are like this.  No, it's not, that's just that one person.
And religion has gotten PLENTY of good air on TV.  Some groups just don't
think it's enough yet, want to feel persecuted, exaggerate the situation,
publicize inaccuracies and misinformation, and generally won't be happy until
such figures are everywhere.

                                                                  jms
  
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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 384       Tue Sep 20, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:44 EDT

     Re: religious people not necessarily *acting* religious, or doing a
religious thing in the course of a show...hey, I was on Murder, She Wrote for
two years...don't recall one episode where we showed Jessica Fletcher typing
for any period of time.

     ST's treatment I would put in a separate category, because there does
seem to be some element of an agenda there (or, stated less pejoratively, a
different point-of-view on the subject).  Mainstream TV has, I think, done
very well in this area, all things considered.

                                                                   jms

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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 387       Tue Sep 20, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:40 EDT

     Speaking as a writer, I *am* defined in many ways by my keyboard; it is
in my lap nearly every hour of the day when I'm not eating or sleeping.

                                                                jms
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SFRT II RoundTable
Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 391       Tue Sep 20, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 16:15 EDT

     Yes, Ivanova is already second in command; she gets promoted to Commander
rank in episode 3.  They got it wrong.  Also...lemme see if I've got this
straight...we put 50 ships in an episode, introduce new Earthforce ships,
carriers, you name it...TVG doesn't blink...DS9 puts ONE new ship in their
show and they get a two-page spread?

     Linda: thanks.  "Stupid fan remarks" are always welcome, just as one hope
stupid producer remarks are sometimes welcome.....

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 413       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:27 EDT

     Keffler should be Keffer.

     Kevin Cremins will be directing "A Spider in the Web."

     Mario DiLeo is directing "The Long Dark."


     Jim Johnston will be directing "A Race Through Dark Places."

     "Pestilence, Famine and Death" has been retitled "Soul Mates."

     Jessica Walters also appears in "Spider," with Barbeau and Beck.

     "The Coming of Shadows" will receive a new director, either Janet Greek
or Jim Johnston.

     "Unnatural Selection" is being retitled; current working title is "All
Our Songs, Forgotten," though that may change; being written by D.C. Fontana.

                                                           jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 422       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 18:59 EDT

     I've tentatively spiked "The Customer is Always Right" (a non-arc story)
because ST did something on a similar topic, and I think I've got something
better for that slot anyway.

     I love "The Coming of Shadows."  It's one of those episodes that just
knocks the breath out of you.  You know those moments when you're in the
passenger seat of a car, and the person driving is doing something crazy, and
your foot automatically keeps searching for a brake pedal that isn't there
because you know something awful's going to happen?  That's the feeling you
get all through that script.  This episode, like "Sky," "Signs," "Chrysalis"
and "Revelations" again changes the direction and ratchets everything one
notch tighter.  It's also a very visual script, and I like that, since I
sometimes do rely too much on dialogue from time to time, and it's good to go
in a different direction.

     Kosh has just two words in this episode...and, again, they'll send a
chill right down the spine.

     Ah loves it....

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 441       Thu Sep 29, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:32 EDT

     You'll note, btw, how the "new planetary leader" (meaning a leader of the
Grey Council) dovetails with "Babylon Squared."  As I promised, we're trying
for real continuity here....

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 2
Message 448       Fri Sep 30, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:05 EDT

     The comic should be out in late November/early December.

                                                                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]
226 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 23
Message 206       Fri Sep 16, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:02 EDT

     EEK!

                                                        jms
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Topic 25        Fri Mar 12, 1993
S.SHELLENBAR [>> SHANE <<]   at 08:47 EST
Sub: J. Michael Straczynski Speaks in Public

This is the place to find out where and when JMS will be appearing next.  JMS
has honed his skills as a public speaker and is taking his act on the road.
412 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 25
Message 309       Thu Sep 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:24 EDT

     I have to have the next essay in by end of this month, so it should be
shortly thereafter.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 25
Message 319       Wed Sep 21, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:28 EDT

     Thanks; some of the writing for the column on the personal side was very
difficult...glad to hear it was useful.  Re: OK cons...nothing at this time
scheduled.  I try to keep it down to a minimum, usually maybe 5-6 in a year,
not much more than that.  I just don't think I have that much of interest to
say to folks....

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 25
Message 325       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:23 EDT

     I had heard that, yes...and discouraged our cast from signing any
exclusive deal with ANYbody, for any reason.

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 25
Message 337       Tue Sep 27, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:37 EDT

     Hard to confirm much of anything, since I was only just notified of the
presentation late this evening; nobody had said boo to me about it prior to
this.  So my info is as good as yours at this point, so thus far, yes, it'll
be Sunday (hadn't even *heard* about anything Saturday).

                                                                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.
281 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 30
Message 193       Thu Sep 15, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:34 EDT

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven

Eleventy-one, eleventy-two, eleventy-three, eleventy-four, eleventy-five,
eleventy-six, eleventy-seven, eleventy-eight, eleventy-nine, eleventy-ten,
twelfy

Twelfty-one, twelfty-two, twelfy-three, twelfty-four, twelfty-five, twelfty-
six, twelfty-seven, twelfty-eight, twelfty-nine, twelfty-ten.

     And so on.

     Who here still has a problem with this?

                                                                   jms
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Category 18,  Topic 30
Message 206       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:35 EDT

     I hate to mention this, but ALL language consists of made-up words.

                                                                 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.
168 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 135       Fri Sep 23, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:12 EDT

     In an active-matrix notebook computer screen, what's the difference
between TFT and STN?

                                                                      jms
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 144       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:38 EDT

     So in other words...TFT is, like, better than STN...okaydoke.

                   jm(who likes to boil it down to terms he understands)s
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Category 18,  Topic 31
Message 147       Mon Sep 26, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:42 EDT

     How does the Dell notebook TFT (Latitude) compaare with the Stager?

                                                            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.


                                                             jms

319 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 152       Fri Sep 16, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:59 EDT

     Of course, let's remember the extensive use of CGI in Jurassic Park.

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 160       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:37 EDT

     Insofar as I know, the objects are all entered into the computer in their
correct size ratios.  Sometimes perception can be tricked  depending on the
position of the camera, the proximity of the interim object, and the
background.  I'll check on this, but insofar as I know this is SOP.

                                                              jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 165       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:50 EDT

     That is, unfortunately, the problem with "filming" in space; it's ALL in
focus because of the lack of atmosphere, which provides a slight haze that
cues us to distance.  (Which was why they put the Hubble in space, after all.)
If you look at footage from the Apollo missions, or the joint Soyuz missions,
when one ship moves to dock with the other, it's very disturbing visually
because from a distance, to close up, the other ship is crystal clear.  It's
also very difficult to judge size when there's nothing of absolute size beside
it.  If B5 were floating next to a football field, you'd know instantly how
big the thing was.  We're trying to find ways to work around this....

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 175       Tue Sep 20, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:45 EDT

     Showman...the end of "Survivors," where Kemmer enters her ship...in
reality there is only a ladder there.  The ship, the walls, the door she
enters, all that is CGI/virtual set.

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 199       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:00 EDT

     My info comes from some folks at Amblin', and yes, the same folks do the
SeaQuest EFX.

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 202       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:05 EDT

     I know Foundation is working on some other projects, so there is time for
that, they just assign different animators to different projects.  I think ST
would never come to Foundation.

     Lately the CGI work has been fairly intensive because of some very
effects-intensive shows, specifically parts of "Geometry" and "A Distant
Star."

     A number of people have asked if we'll ever see the inside of hyperspace,
or the POV of a starfury pilot as he drops...and the answer  to both is yes.
Ron's first pass at hyperspace was, I thought, a bit too
Spielberg/Disney/pretty pictures.  I really felt strongly that hyperspace
should be a *scary* looking place, a dangerous place.  And Ron came back with
some really nifty stuff, a vaguely dream-like/nightmarish quality to it.

                                                                   jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 206       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:31 EDT

     Yes, you do see a jump point forming from within hyperspace.

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 3
Message 210       Tue Sep 27, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:26 EDT

     Not a problem of any kind.

                                                                 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.
543 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 172       Fri Sep 16, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:01 EDT

     Centauri were available to be slapped under a microscope if they WISHED
to be slapped under a microscope.  To them, we were the ones they chose to
study, and wouldn't be so undignified to submit to our examination.  They're
rather haughty sometimes.  It was a long time before we were able to get some
decent material to examine.

                                                               jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 177       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:32 EDT

     Other actors: Michael Beck, Anna Marie Johnson, Adrienne Barbeau.

                                                           jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 182       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:41 EDT

     Kiwi: "heh" yourself...it's Ladira, not Akira.

     I don't much like japanese animation, don't watch it.

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 193       Sun Sep 18, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 22:58 EDT

     Definitely human, though raised on Mars.

                                                        jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 194       Tue Sep 20, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:41 EDT

     Did I mention that Robert Foxworth is also in our first episode?

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 200       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:31 EDT

     Hawk: exactly.

     I think that if somebody is bad or good from day one, there's no real
interest in what happens to them on one level.  But take someone who you kinda
liked, and thought was fun....and slowly they begin to slide into something
dark and terrible...you *feel* for them, you worry about them, you're watching
it like a car accident in slow motion.  And then there's the one you thought
was rotten to the core...and now that character seems to be moving toward
something noble, but tragic...again, you get caught up in it.

     Life, and good storytelling, is about *change*.  Or as Mr. Dylan said,
"Any man not busy being born is busy dying."

                                                                jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 208       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 04:06 EDT

     Y'know what it'll take?  It'll take one well-known, nationally recognized
reviewer to come up to the plate and say that this is something *different*.

                                                             jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 210       Sun Sep 25, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:32 EDT

     Would love to hear any more detailed reports from folks who were
there....

                                                                    jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 214       Mon Sep 26, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 00:42 EDT

     Meatloaf *again*?!

                                                           jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 216       Mon Sep 26, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:31 EDT

     Tape hell...laserdisk.  (Also a big Meatloaf fan.)

     First time I ever saw "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" it was in college,
with a young woman who dragged me to it.  As we stood in line, a cool but not
terribly cold night, I noted that she was wearing a rather large overcoat.
She explained that it was the kind she tended to wear to TRHPS
screenings...she showed me how she'd cut the ends off of the pockets, allowing
her hands to come through to the inner part of the coat.  I inquired about why
this was done.  "So I can diddle myself while I watch the movie," she said.

     I have absolutely no recollection of the rest of the evening.

                                                        jms
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Category 18,  Topic 4
Message 225       Fri Sep 30, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 15:38 EDT

     Let me repeat again what I said before: we've *already shot* a sequence
with Michael to be used later in season two.

                                                                 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.
422 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 110       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:33 EDT

     Yeah, it really is a cool book.  It's a very personal way of doing a bio,
and at the same time providing a good look at America from 1927 through
1994...through wars, and blacklisting, and social changes.  The fake letters
sent to the DGA documentary committee alone are worth the price of
admission....

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 117       Wed Sep 21, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:30 EDT

     The command would be REA ALL NEW AUT=LOUDMOUTH.HOTAIR

                                                            jms
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 122       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:27 EDT

     And add Jessica Walters.

     (Y'know, this is starting to shape up as a pretty good list of guest
stars...Jessica Walters, Dwight Schultz, Robert Foxworth, Adrienne Barbeau,
Russ Tamblyn, Michael Ansara, Walter Koenig, others...and that's just in the
first 7 episodes or so.)

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 5
Message 130       Sat Sep 24, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:05 EDT

     Trying to decide which makes a better Kosh....

     *             or               ?

                                                           jms
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 ************
Topic 11        Sat Nov 14, 1992
J.SHEEN1 [Leviathan]         at 18:09 EST
Sub: B5 Adrift!                       

 BABYLON 5 Topic Drift
 If you feel like talking about it, but it doesn't fit anywhere else... If its
only connection to B-5 is that you thought of it in this CAT...
 This is where to come and get it out.
344 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 11
Message 151       Fri Sep 30, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 01:14 EDT

     "You have forgotten something."  Kosh

     "Nothing's the same anymore."  Sinclair

     "If the primates we descended from had known that politicians would
someday come out of the gene pool, they would've stayed in the trees and
written evolution off as a bad idea.  Hell, I always thought the opposable
thumb was over-rated."    Captain John Sheridan

     "The universe works through the complex interaction of three things:
energy, matter, and enlightned self-interest."   G'Kar

     "I work for Ambassador Mollari.  After a while, nothing bothers you."
Vir Cotto

                                                              jms

     (Numbers 3 and 5 are from season two)
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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.
217 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 12
Message 101       Wed Sep 21, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:26 EDT

     Should be an article on Michael O'Hare coming out in this month's Starlog
(out now in some places) that should put to rest a lot of the rumors.

                                                            jms
 ************
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
556 message(s) total.
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Category 18,  Topic 17
Message 193       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:39 EDT

     Did you get hardcopy copies of my notes, or did they just read 'em to you
over the phone?  (Wasn't much, really, mainly just a few line  changes, some
background stuff, and how the Psi Corps does and doesn't work.)

                                                                 jms
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Category 18,  Topic 17
Message 212       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:21 EDT

     BTW, a company named All-U, which does t-shirts and other stuff, has
signed on to do some B5 shirts as well...and I gotta tell you, these are
really very cool.   Nicely done, well designed...a lot of thought went into
them.  And what's really amazing is that they've come up with some process
that lets them put down photographic-level images, and lots o white (and color-
on-white) WITHOUT bulking up the colors so that you can feel them stubbing out
from the shirt.  The designs feel like any other part of the shirt.  *Very*
nice (in fact, I'm wearing one as I type, a multicolor shot of the station,
the nebula, the logo, and "The Last, Best Hope...Babylon 5").  Really nifty.

                                                                  jms
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Category 18,  Topic 17
Message 217       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 16:47 EDT

     I know the guys from All-U are over on Prodigy, looking for some quotes
for shirts (or AOL, I can never keep them separate), so someone from there
probably has more info.  But they should be generally  available soon.  The
one I nabbed was the prototype.

     To try and keep the novels canon, I'm going to *try* and work in a brief
reference to the event on B5 that takes place in "Voices," made after the
fact, just a throwaway.

                                                              jms
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Category 18,  Topic 17
Message 228       Mon Sep 26, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 02:54 EDT

     Aside from mentioning in the first novel that everyone in the show dies
in the end, what could remotely be considered a spoiler?

                                                                   jms

 ************
Topic 16        Sun Apr 17, 1994
STARR [Arne]                 at 23:42 EDT
Sub: #116 - "Signs And Portents"      

by JMS. Directed by Janet Greek.  Co-starring Gerrit Graham.
291 message(s) total.
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Category 19,  Topic 16
Message 223       Sat Sep 17, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 19:47 EDT

     No, no funky pyramid stuff.  The mural that dominates the casino traces
human history/technology.  It goes from the beginnings of civilization in
Egypt, the "cradle" of civilization in that region (left hand corner) and as
it moves left-to-right shows horse-drawn carriages then villages then cities
then megacities, planes, jets, starships, and finally ends with B5 up in the
right-hand top corner.

                                                                 jms
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Category 19,  Topic 16
Message 247       Thu Sep 22, 1994
STRACZYNSKI [Joe]            at 03:33 EDT

     Ron chose a blue nebula because you can't do bluescreen effects with a
blue nebula background without showing hideous matte lines; he knew it was
something a Certain Other Show couldn't do.  "Look, ma, no matte lines!"


                                                                   jms