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The following is the transcript of the online chat with Babylon 5 star, "Jeff
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Conaway," held on October 8th, 1996 on America Online.
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B5 Online: Hi Jeff!
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B5 Online: Tonight we are pleased to welcome Babylon 5 star Jeff Conaway to
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our online conference. Warner Bros. Online presents CYBER-TALK (tm)! Be sure
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and stay tuned! We are giving away some GREAT B5 merchandise including
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posters, an autographed Jeff Conaway picture, and more! Details will be given
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out during the conference, will YOU be a
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lucky winner? :D
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B5 Online: First of all, I would like to welcome Jeff to our online area and
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CYBERTALK! Welcome, Jeff!
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Jeff at B5: Hi Everybody! Glad to join you on the Internet! Nothing like
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being cyberized! And Surfed!
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B5 Online: Our first question is from I VORLON....
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Question: Mr Conaway, Glad to have you here tonight! How did you get
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involved in acting?
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Jeff at B5: I wanted to be an astronaut at first, my grandfather was like a
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deep sea demolition diver in the first world war, and my uncle works at NASA.
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I was a smart little kid, so they wanted to put me in space and at 7 years
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old I had to wear glasses. I was reading a book about spacefaring and after I
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had to get glasses, that was that. At age nine I though acting was a thing I
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could try and mother said forget about it. So I kept bugging her! So I did an
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audition for All the Way Home... with Lillian Gish.. a lot of great actors!
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I got the part on my tenth birthday! They said "You’re in!" That’s how it
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began... show ran for a year and I’m still running!
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B5 Online: Here's a question from MarkB1529...
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Question: Has the notorious on set B5 humour ever targeted you Jeff and how?
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Jeff at B5: No.. no practical jokes on me! But I hear the gag reels .. I’m
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on them all over the place - I guess I do funny things and I don’t realize
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it. The other day.. in fact.. there was a stuntman. We were all in
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riot gear and stuff, and I kept losing my PPG.. it ended up on the floor!
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This guy next to me kept stealing it and laying it on the floor! I got back
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at him though. When he was on his back and I was on my knees I... Well, I
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passed gas on his face.
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B5 Online: Uh.. just stay over there, Jeff.
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Question: hey Jeff tell us about taxi, why did it go off the air
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Jeff at B5: Nobody really knows why. It won best show for the year and we
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were canceled - it makes no sense. Often TV makes no sense. It's still such a
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popular show - one of the Star Trek's of comedy... one of those shows that
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was killed too fast.
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B5 Online: Here’s a good question from AnessaE...
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Question: Greetings! I've seen that you've been a guest at a few scifi cons.
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Do you like them, and are you going to speak at any of them in the near
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future?
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Jeff at B5: Yeah! I have a real good time at them! At first I had no idea
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what to expect. You know.. "here's a microphone - go entertain!" I found
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that the questions were very interesting and I had fun answering them - tried
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to put a little comedy into it. It's nice to be out there meeting the fans
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and seeing how high their interest is and how much more they know about the
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show than I do. I’m going to be in Springfield, MA in November... and then in
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England, and Scotland next summer. And then back over in Virginia in March
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... around there.
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B5 Online: From CajunDanc, a regular in our Eclipse Cafe at Keyword: Babylon
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5...
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Question: Mr. Conaway, how did you come to audition for the role of Zack
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Allen? And why were you interested in Babylon 5?
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Jeff at B5: Ill answer the 2nd part first. Two years ago, Id had the flu and
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I was at home channel surfing. I saw this spacey looking show. I think
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Garibaldi was on screen and I stopped and I started watching.. and I thought
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"This is cool!" So what happened is I started watching the show every week,
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and
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just about in October of 94, the casting office called up and asked if I
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could come in for the role, I think I had about 3 lines in the first episode
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I did. But I thought the show was great! I actually turned down another role
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the same day to do those 3 lines. John Copeland asked if I would like to
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come back and do more
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episodes and I said "You Bet!" And then I recurred for the season, and then
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signed a regular
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contract for the third and fourth.
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B5 Online: From GREER701A....
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Question: Have you done any work on Broadway? Which do you prefer Broadway
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or Television?
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Jeff at B5: Yeah! I did four Broadway shows.. "All The Way Home", "Everybody
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Out, The Castle is Sinking," "Grease" and "The News." Well, you know they are
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two different mediums. Theatre - the audience is there... there's no take
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two. There’s a concentration and focus you have to keep. That’s the problem
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with it - there’s no take two! In theatre you have to focus your whole day,
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existence, around two hours at night. You have to make sure you get enough
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sleep, eat right, etc. So you're kinda a prisoner. Whereas in television
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and film - you're there all day! So you have to relax and gear up for
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performance focus. The older I get, the more I enjoy working in television
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and film.
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B5 Online: From FTLTSeren....
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Question: What character that you have played is your personal favorite?
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Jeff at B5: That’s a tough question to answer, because you basically fall in
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some kind of love with every character you play. I really enjoy playing Zack
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and going through the building of a character - he's finally coming into his
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own and growing on the show. I really loved my Grease character.. Bobby was
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fun. There was a TV movie called "Making of a Male Model" which was really
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challenging. But very fulfilling and satisfying.
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B5 Online: Here’s a good question...
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Question: Jeff also do you ever talk with Tony Danza...
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Jeff at B5: Yeah! I talk to Tony often. We've stayed pretty close over the
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years. You Whose the Boss" Fans - I did one of those... he calls me up and
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says "You gotta do me a favoh.. I cant get and good guest stahs." So I said
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Id do anything for him.. so I did the show. We hung around a lot when we did
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Taxi.. we lived around the corner from each other.. we hung out.. and it's
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carried on through the years. He's a great guy! I love him! And not in the
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biblical sense.
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Question: Is your role in B5 going to be expanded any?
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Jeff at B5: THANK GOD YES!!!! When John Copeland asked me if I wanted to do
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more shows... and I said yeah... he told me to be patient. But I didn't think
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it was going to take them three years! (Only kidding Joe, if you're
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listening!)
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B5 Online: From IluvB5...
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Question: Hello Jeff. How are you enjoying filming the fourth season? Is
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your character going in the direction you hoped? Jennifer
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Jeff at B5: Hi I Luv B5! I love B5 too! Remarked a little bit earlier the
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character is expanding and
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growing - we're getting to see a little bit more of Zack - I cant tell you
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storyline, but I can tell you that the direction for Zack is going the way I
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would like it too. We're learning a little more about who he is.
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B5 Online: From Draughir...
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Question: Do you find it difficult to work in an environment where most of
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the special effects are computer generated?
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Jeff at B5: They are? Well, you know - it's the action that you're doing. As
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an actor you have to supply your imagination. What is a little disconcerting
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is when you shoot your PPG and nothing happens. er.. happens. I want to hear
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a bang! I was pulling the trigger the other day and adding my own sound
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effects. I told all the guys I won't make the sounds when we actually shoot.
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B5 Online: From MMazz9259..
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Question: Hey Jeff, Hope you're having a good one. What's the B5 set
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like(atmosphere and such)?
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Jeff at B5: It's friendly and good natured. People are very supportive of
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each other we kind of take care of each other throughout the day - we care of
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each other. After all, we're all on the same team. (Even if I’m not on the
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new poster)
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B5 Online: From Kiki3733...
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Question: Hate to ask, but how old are you. You look better than ever!!!
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Jeff at B5: I'm 46. thanks Kiki!
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B5 Online: From Kgeibel...
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Question: What types of jobs did you have to hold during any tough time?
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Jeff at B5: Thank God I've always been an actor! It's a good thing because I
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can't DO anything else My agent kept telling me to turn down work and be a
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waiter... I told him "You're Fired!"
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B5 Online: From GRShaw...
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Question: What is your favorite B5 episode?
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Jeff at B5: Well, it would have to be one that I’m in... as opposed to the
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poster..... I guess the one where I turn the Nightwatch in was my favorite so
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far. It was dramatic and heroic. One of the things I like about Zack is his
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sense of humor - and then later he's blowing people away! I used to not like
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Narns.. now I do. The Centauri though.. I’m starting to get a little mad at.
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Let me shoot a good Centauri any day. Call me Zack "LAPD" Allan.
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B5 Online: The episode in question would be "Point of No Return."
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B5 Online: From AaronlnMe...
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Question: Do you feel your show ranks among one of the best sci-fi shows
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ever?
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Jeff at B5: Definitely! I loved the first Star Trek and I first watch it
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sometimes at night. I check out the other shows here and there. But I just
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think that Joe's vision and imagination and creativity is quite amazing. I
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think he takes the storylines and characters to a place of drama and
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comedy... a place the other shows don't go. Plus.. he's writing all of the
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shows and that's quite a feat. I feel like I've been lucky and blessed to
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work with these guys and working with the producers and Joe, the crew and the
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cast, I feel there's a lot of brilliance going on. And I’m just happy to be
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a part of it and be part of that vision.
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B5 Online: We'll get a couple more great questions before we have to go!
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B5 Online: From HLI...
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Question: Jeff did you ever think of a taxi reunion
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Jeff at B5: Everyone's thought of it - but I don't think it will ever happen.
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Everybody has expressed that they would like to do it. There seems to be a
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problem at the top someplace with one of the creators. I think it would be
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fun to go back and see where Bobby is at these days. of course, he would
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probably have to get a job. Maybe even on Babylon 5!
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Jeff at B5: BTW.. I'll be on Mr. & Mrs. Smith this coming Friday on CBS! Be
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there
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or be square.
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B5 Online: From DSneelix...
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Question: What do YOU want? (Morden asks this)
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Jeff at B5: To be on the poster.
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B5 Online: And our final question comes from Andicouri...
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Question: You've directed before, any interest in directing any eps of B5?
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Jeff at B5: Yeah, Id love to some day! You never know what could happen!
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Stephen Furst is directing episode 408 this year.
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B5 Online: From LaraKJBA...
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OnlineHost: what is the most difficult thing about this role? BTW, loved
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you in grease!!!
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Jeff at B5: I think the most difficult thing is.. playing a guy who probably
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in the past had made more of himself in his career. Through some knocks and
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bad breaks... he ended up alone and kind of confused. And so he signed onto
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Babylon 5. It's like starting over again and doing it right this time. And
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whatever the beast or demons inside of him - he's gotten rid of those. You
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noticed after he turned over Nightwatch... you didn’t see him for a few weeks
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- he was pretty shaken by his lack of judgment. When he came out of his
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cocoon, he was a stronger individual. He starts to find himself this season.
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With some of the things I put personally in it, it helps add to the drama and
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the conflict inside Zack. in fact we touch on it a little bit in an upcoming
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episode. He's a hero waiting to happen in a way. He's an anti-hero waiting to
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grow up and be a full -fledged hero. But he's not getting any younger - and
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neither am I! Thanks for stopping by and sharing your questions and your love
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of the show with me. Keep watching! And if you want to write... just write to
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the B5 address. And I'll write back! If you could send a SASE.. it would be
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very helpful! If you want pictures, send a manila SASE and Ill send a
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picture, a note and stuff. Because after all, you are the reason I’m here.
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B5 Online: And with that we would like to thank Jeff for coming tonight! To
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write to Jeff, send your letters to: Jeff Conaway C/O Babylon 5, 4000 Warner
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Blvd, Burbank, CA 91505. Thanks for coming to CYBER-TALK (TM) We'll see you
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in the Eclipse Cafe - Keyword: Babylon 5!
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OnlineHost: Copyright 1996 America Online, Inc.
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