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453 lines
18 KiB
453 lines
18 KiB
These are messages from J. Michael Straczynski on CompuServe, collected by
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Michele Worley (michele_l_worley@yahoo.com).
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---
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BABYLON 5: <EYES> FINALLY SAW IT #846124
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 4:06:25 AM
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"MORE!"
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Just 3 more weeks.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS SPOILER #843485
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DATE: MON OCT 3, 1994 7:15:07 PM
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That explanation is in the very next episode. Complete and
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in full. Never said otherwise. I've always made it clear that
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this will be resolved in the first episode of year two.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS SPOILERS #843491
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RESPONSE-TO: AndyL
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DATE: MON OCT 3, 1994 7:21:02 PM
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Except, of course, that where everyone goes is important to
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the rest of the story, and that the purpose of the episode is to
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introduce massive change into the story overall; when Sinclair says
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"Nothing's the same anymore," he's deadly serious, and so are we.
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The changes won't just be transitory or for a season-end hook; these
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are permanent and substantial changes in the arc.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS SPOILERS #843847
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 12:17:14 AM
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Thanks. I've watched that episode, between rough cuts and
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producers cuts and mixing and all the rest, something like a
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dozen times...and it still gets to me. Glad you feel the same.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS OF COURSE #844818
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 11:53:14 PM
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Correct; Garibaldi's aide has *always* been a plant. I seeded him
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in from the beginning, specifically for that purpose. It was the aide
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who got Sinclair out of his quarters in "Sky," was the liaison who got
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Benson on line (also in security, you'll remember), and helped dispose
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of the body. If you watch his reaction in "Sky," he's the one who brings
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info to Garibaldi looking to clear Benson; and when Garibaldi sees through
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it, you can see his aide move off looking very worried.
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Originally, it was Laurel Takashima who would have betrayed those
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around her, as this character did. When Laurel was transferred, I had
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a choice: keep that arc for her replacement (Ivanova), or give this part
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of it to someone else. Now, knowing how the folks here on the nets and
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elsewhere think, and knowing that they knew about the Laurel-possible-traitor
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thread, I figured that everyone would assume that Ivanova would get that
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part. (And, sure enough, a lot of people did.) This became a wonderrfully
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convenient blind behind which to build the *real* plant.
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And thus far, *nobody's* seen it coming. He was right there in clear
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view, we used him many times (also in "By Any Means Necessary," for
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instance), and nobody ever paid him the slightest attention.
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It is, in a way, the classic magician's trick of misdirection: you
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try to get everyone to look at your hand so they won't look at the huge
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elephant being wheeled up onto the stage in plain sight.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS SPOILERS #845725
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DATE: WED OCT 5, 1994 9:41:25
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"If the Shadows are active on Earth, we need to ask why
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Psi-Corps haven't picked them up."
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Yep.
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jms
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 3:08:01 PM #846563
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In the pilot, Lyta specifically states that once she's inside
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Kosh's mind, it's all subjective; and as such, she'll be "seeing"
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her own body, not his. Hence the hand.
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jms
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DATE: FRI OCT 7, 1994 3:59:08 AM #847356
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Yeah, we used the photo of LBJ being sworn in as the model
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when we shot that scene; interestingly enough, the day we shot
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that scene was the anniversary of the day LBJ took office after
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JFK was killed. The atmosphere on set was *very* strange that day....
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jms
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BABYLON 5: I NEED SOME EPISODES! #846003
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 12:57:26
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"My other two (Babylon 5) tapes mysteriously disappeared."
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Have you checked the Babylon 4 tape archive?
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jms
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BABYLON 5: B5 QUESTIONS FOR JMS #847021
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RESPONSE-TO: SIMON GRIERSON
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 9:50:02 PM
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The underground high-tech will be seen again, and will have a role
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to play.
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Delenn is acting slightly outside the majority opinion of the Grey
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Council in her actions.
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What's going on with Delenn is not supernatural.
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There's something going on between the Minbari and the Vorlons, but
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that won't be clear for a bit longer yet.
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Jason Ironheart won't be returning anytime soon. Not at all, really,
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in any sense we understand. I don't like omnipotent beings running around
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in the storyline; makes some things too easy, and other things too hard.
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No, Delenn does not become Zathras.
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And no, I'm *definitely* not taking any kinds of ideas for stories,
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for movies or for episodes, at this time. The point of B5 is that it's
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a self contained novel, which is already written out. I've got more
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stories in the B5 universe running around in my head than I could *ever*
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use in all the episodes, books, comics and so on. In putting together
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all of the background information, the future story arc, the character
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histories, I find myself in kind of a Tolkien-ish situation, where I have
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far more material than I could ever use. Also, receiving any kind of
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story ideas here on the nets endangers my presence here for legal reasons.
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Finally...as a note, your message contains spoilers, and should be
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noted with brackets to keep from ruining the fun for others.
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Other than that...thanks, and I'm pleased you enjoy the show.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: CHRYSALIS SPOILERS #843848
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 12:17:16 AM
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Main thing is, I'd suggest watching "Sky" just before
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watching "Chrysalis."
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jms
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BABYLON 5: HARLAN ELLISON #837328
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DATE: WED SEP 28, 1994
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Thanks, and I agree with you 100% about Harlan.
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He's quite a guy.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: GARIBALDI & CO #838193
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DATE: WED SEP 28, 1994
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Correct, I think that Michael and Bruce are either
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the same age, or Bruce is a smidge older.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: B5 2ND SEASON #848114
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DATE: FRI OCT 7, 1994 9:53:10 PM
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Yes, the season one ender is "Chrysalis;" season two starts the
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following week; and we do see Bruce in the first episode of year two.
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jms
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-----
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 7:43:25 PM #844492
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I think the UK will be running season two starting in December.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: YEAR TWO GUEST STARS #839197
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DATE: THURS SEP 29, 1994 7:51:07
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Just a note to apprise everbody on some of the guest stars on
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year two of BABYLON 5. We've been doing some pretty nifty stuff.
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In just the first seven episodes of B5 we've already used the
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following guest stars:
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Fobert Foxworth. Michael Ansara. Dwight Schultz. Anna Marie
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Johnson. Adrienne Barbeau. Michael Beck. Jessica Walters. James
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Shigeta. Walter Koenig. Russ Tamblyn.
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Not a bad start, I think....
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jms
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DATE: FRI SEP 30, 1994 12:22:28 AM #839599
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Still definitely interested in getting McGoohan one of these days.
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jms
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DATE: SAT OCT 1, 1994 4:10:01 AM
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I don't have any personal contact with McGoohan to answer your
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questions; just one more admirer of his work.
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jms
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DATE: SAT OCT 1, 1994 1:00:12 AM #840685
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Oh, we have some very interesting plans for Mr. Bester....
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jms
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BABYLON 5: BOXLEITNER #840687
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DATE: SAT OCT 1, 1994 1:00:16 AM #840687
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The way in which Sheridan comes into the storyline is *absolutely*
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consistent with everything that has come before, and everything that
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follows.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: ATTENTION UK B5 FANS! #839011
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DATE: THURS SEP 29, 1994 5:19:17
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I'm piggy-backing this message onto Brett's for the UK viewers
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out there.
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"Chrysalis" airs in just a few days in the UK...Monday evening.
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I would have much preferred that it air more closely to the US
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broadcast, or simultaneously, but PTEN chose otherwise.
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Of all the episodes I wrote for season one, this is probably the
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best of them. This one works on every single level, including the
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acting, the directing, the lighting...all of it. It's as close to a
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perfect episode that we've done.
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As you'll discover in a few days, at least half of the show's
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success is in the surprises, and the planned shocks along the way.
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You'll know what I'm talking about instantly, when you see it. As
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stated before, we tip over every table we've got.
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Specific reactions and spoilers posted here will hit people
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literally WEEKS before it airs. The effect, I think, would be to
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dilute the impact of the story profoundly. So I would like to take
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this opportunity to ask our UK friends for a personal favor.
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Obviously, discussing the episode on local UK systems is terrific,
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no problem. If it's possible, it'd be wonderful if you could be more
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general or vague in comments here. If you have specific questions
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related to the story, I'll be happy to respond to anything posted
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privately here. I know and appreciate that this would be an
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inconvenience, and there's nothing that obliges anyone to go along
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with this. I ask it only as a personal favor.
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jms
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DATE: SAT OCT 1, 1994 1:00:14 AM #840686
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It's not so much with the hole in Sinclair's mind (though that's
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touched upon in a major way)...you could say it's to do with EVERYTHING
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on the show.
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jms
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PROS AND PUBLISHING: WANTED - WRITERS #839612
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DATE: FRI SEP 30, 1994 12:32:25 AM
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Of course, depending on how you choose to define "net revenue,"
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and it can be defined so as to make it look as though there ARE no
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net revenues, regardless of what may actually come in...it's possible
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that the writers and artists could receive *zero* money. (I work in
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Hollywood, and I've seen how bookkeeping can make a huge profit into
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a net loss.)
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There's no real way of knowing what "net profits" are until and
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unless one audits your books.
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It is standard, professional behavior to offer a set fee, X-cents
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per word, or a flat fee. If you are not doing this, then I can only
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conclude that something's profoundly wrong about this whole deal.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: NO STORY IDEAS PLEASE #843490
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DATE: MON OCT 3, 1994 7:21:01 PM
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Fox doesn't produce B5; it's Warners/PTEN, so Fox can't "can" the show.
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As for fan fiction...I try to discourage it where possible, primarily
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if it's in a place where I can see it, to defuse any legal problems such as
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the one that killed one of Marion Zimmer Bradley's books. There are going
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to be some B5 novels from Dell, but we're working with the writers of those
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books to make sure they're *not* just unrelated throwaways, but are part of
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B5 continuity, and thus nominally canon.
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jms
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 3:03:01 PM #844240
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Incorrect; now that she has been legally burned by it, MZB *is*
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openly discouraging fans from "playing in her fiction," as you put it.
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jms
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 12:17:17 AM #843849
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A fan wrote an extended piece of fan fiction set in Zimmer's
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universe, which ended up being very close to what Marion was working
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on. The publisher, aware of both, spiked Marion's novel for fear of
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being sued. A year or two of work down the drain.
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jms
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 12:51:10 #845997
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"I'd be more than happy to sign a waiver as long as she would do
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the same."
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Why should MZB *have* to sign any kind of waiver? It's her universe.
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jms
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======
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John Brobston: It makes sense for MZB to sign a waiver relinquishing rights
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to the fan's work.
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======
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DATE: FRI OCT 7, 1994 3:55:17 AM #847350
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I don't think you're seeing my point; my question was why MZB would
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have to sign a waiver, not the other person. Getting a waiver or
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disclaimer from the fan is, of course, fine. But for MZB to sign a waiver
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means that she is giving up rights to her own creation...why should she
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have to do that?
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jms
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DATE: SAT OCT 8, 1994 1:38:29 AM #848386
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Your suggestion is fine except that it has nothing to do with
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the publishing business.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: NO STORY IDEAS PLEASE #843851
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 12:17:21 AM
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I know I'm on for some kind of national symposium thingie (could
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I possibly sound any stupider?) in February; that's all I can recall
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offhand. I'll be sure to post more info the closer we get to it.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: B5 MERCHANDISE #844241
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 3:03:02 PM
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The CD Rom was planned for January, but there have been a lot of
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recent shakeups at Compton's, so that may get pushed back. I'd expect
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LD's sometime in the spring.
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jms
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=========
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QUESTION #844432: Will the LDs be single or multiple episodes?
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=========
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 7:43:26 PM #844493
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Haven't heard for sure, but I'd imagine that they'd be two to a disk,
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one on each side.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: COMIC BOOK #843850
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 12:17:19 AM
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I think it'll be out the first week of December.
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jms
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STAR TREK: DS9 2ND PART WAS AWFUL! #846002
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 12:57:25
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Hey, give 'em a break...after all, there's no holodeck on DS9
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to use for creating false stories...had to do *something*...couldn't
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have any of this stuff actually *happen*, now could they?
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jms
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STAR TREK: TREK IS DYING? #844239
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 3:03:00 PM
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The last season one episode, the quasi-cliffhanger "Chrysalis"
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airs around October 24th, with the first episode of year two following
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the week thereafter.
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jms
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 3:37:06 AM #843967
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Thanks. One thing that I think commends B5 to people is the sense --
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which as Henry Kissinger said, "has the added benefit of being true" --
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that the show is made by folks who *genuinely like SF*. The majority of
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people who work on B5 are fans...you walk down the halls and you see
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evidence of this all over the place (particularly in the art department).
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So it's really a case of people making a show they'd like to watch
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themselves. It means respecting the audience because they/we *are* the
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audience.
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jms
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DATE: TUES OCT 4, 1994 1:49:19 AM #843925
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Hey...there's always section 13 if you want to look around a little....
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jms
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DATE: FRI OCT 7, 1994 12:16:00 AM #847197
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"I like B5, but it's NO Star Trek."
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Thank you. Weren't meant to be.
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That's not a dig, simply a statement of fact and intent.
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From some of the research done on the show, a *lot* of ST fans
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tuned in to B5 expecting something kinda like ST...and when they saw
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it wasn't it, figured it was a bad version of ST, rather than seeing
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it simply as something utterly different.
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One could say, of NYPD Blue, "It's NO Cagney and Lacey." Well,
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no, it's not. That's rather beside the point.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: B5 AND COMMERCIALS #848387
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DATE: SAT OCT 8, 1994 1:38:30 AM
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All b5 episodes consist of a teaser, four acts, and a tag.
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I believe that ST is 5 acts and a teaser. Our acts tend to be of
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uneven length; we just write whatever feels appropriate. Sometimes
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an act can be 7 minutes, or 13 minutes, whatever is best for the story.
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Overall we have the same number of commercials as ST or any other
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syndicated series.
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jms
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============
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QUESTION #845650: In S&P, wasn't Sinclair ordering the self-destruct &
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evacuation?
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============
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BABYLON 5: SINCLAIR'S FUTURE MISTAKE #845726
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DATE: WED OCT 5, 1994 9:41:02
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The voice you hear in B2 is not Sinclair.
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Also...1) check the name spelling, and 2) unless you append my
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CIS ID-number, I won't see this unless I do a full scan of topics.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: GARIBALDI'S MOTORCYCLE #846994
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DATE: THURS OCT 6, 1994 9:35:16 PM
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I believe the bike in question was a Ninja. And Jerry Doyle
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is something of an enthusiast, which is part of what led us to that.
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jms
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BABYLON 5: EXECUTION SQUAD #845716
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DATE: WED OCT 5, 1994 9:31:11
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As noted in "The Quality of Mercy," there are still executions,
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usually spacing, for treason and mutiny, so that mainly only affects
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military.
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jms
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