JMS CIS Digest: 28-Jan-96 06:11:30 through 29-Jan-96 12:55:01 (12 msgs)
b5jms-owner at cs.columbia.edu
b5jms-owner at cs.columbia.edu
Wed Jan 31 06:58:03 EST 1996
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From: jhardin at wolfenet.com (John Hardin)
Lines: 339
RFC 1153 Digest of messages from
J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
28-Jan-96 06:11:30 through 29-Jan-96 12:55:01 (12 messages)
WARNING: This digest may contain information about episodes
you haven't seen yet. Proceed with caution.
Subjects in digest:
Atlnta Scheduling Change
<Voices of Authority>
Time Change in Atlanta
Organizing B5 Details
Administrivia:
Contact me (John Hardin) at <jhardin at wolfenet.com> with comments
and requests. I am willing to do limited retrieval of files from
the B5 archives on CIS and posting of messages to the CIS B5 forum.
I reserve the right to delete story ideas from messages I am asked
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obSpoiler-space...
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Date: 28-Jan-96 06:11:30
From: Randall A. Schanze <74724.762 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #Atlnta Scheduling Change
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.439787 at compuserve.com>
Joe-
I know you like to keep up with this stuff, so I though I'd bring
it to your attention. In their ongoing efforts to bury B5 deeper
and deeper in their programing schedual, the Atlanta TV Station
that runs your show is moving it to 1am on Saturday nights.
Last year it was on at 8pm on Sundays, now it's on at 11pm on
Saturdays, and, inexplicably, now it's goint to 1am on saturdays.
Just thought you should know.
Admiral Randy
------------------------------
Date: 28-Jan-96 14:23:33
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Randall A. Schanze <74724.762 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Atlnta Scheduling Change
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.439993 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.439787 at compuserve.com>
Ah, well....
jms
------------------------------
Date: 28-Jan-96 07:23:09
From: David Cerreta <72630.3433 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #<Voices of Authority>
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.439796 at compuserve.com>
Joe,
Now I understand why it took so long to put VOA on the tube.
That is probably the most special effect laden show I've seen in
years! It was nice to see that they were put to excellent use.
Definitely an arc-intensive show, despite hedging on your part.
As you state early on, wars are won and lost in their preparation
and that is what this show was all about. I thought that Ivanova
was put to wonderful use and glad to see you using her more.
In re: Nightwatch. I'm just a little confused. Is Nightwatch
part of the cabal that includes EarthGov, PsiCorps and the
Shadows. That is what I've always assumed, but my wife wonders if
they might not actually be a cross purposes to the others? In any
case, I can see where the hammer is about to come down. You
really get a sense that things are beginning to get out of control
as we head to the "Point of No Return"
Humor: I don't think I've ever laughed more at B5 than in this
ep.
Highlights: Marcus Cole's comment about the French. Sheridan
looking a Mussante's bare chest and saying he didn't realize it
was THAT cold in his quarters and, of course, Ivanova, who got to
say the single best line I've heard on TV this year "Looks like
you get to go where EVERY man has gone before."
ROFL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Complaints: I think if there was one point where I thought there
was a little over acting, it had to be at the Nightwatch meeting.
Mussante's character was almost played as charicature. That final
pose before cutaway reminded me of all those classic shots of
Mussolini, strutting about, shoving his chin out. If that was
intended, then it worked, at least in that regard. I understand
her role, being sure of what's right and wrong, the need for it
to come across as overbearing, but in this case, just the way she
carried herself or looked a Sheridan, those easily got the idea
across. Her words were almost superfluous.
Overall: Wonderful episode. You really used the entire cast,
didn't you? I think the only ones missing were the Centauri and
Lennier. I think the time you spent on Garibaldi and G'Kar were
well spent. That is a wonderful dynamic that you're evolving.
Garibaldi is strangely enough becoming a cypher. He appears to be
a good soldier, but something else is lurking down there lately.
We'll see.
Glad to see you're back from reruns. This really will be a
watershed season for the show. It's weird thinking we're halfway
through the 'novel'. It reminds me of all my favorite books. I'm
usually saying to myself, "It's been great, I'm only halfway and
it's still getting interesting!" You don't want it to end.
Next week's teaser looked great. It's Bester-time!
Best, Dave
------------------------------
Date: 28-Jan-96 14:23:34
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: David Cerreta <72630.3433 at compuserve.com>
Subject: <Voices of Authority>
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.439994 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.439796 at compuserve.com>
Thanks...we keep working to make the show better each season.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 28-Jan-96 19:35:55
From: Les P. George <76162.1250 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #Time Change in Atlanta
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440209 at compuserve.com>
jms,
The local Atlanta station, WATL channel 36, is changing
the time of Babylon 5 yet again, effective next week. Since last
August, The show had been on at 11:00 p.m. on Saturday, which was
bad enough. Now they are moving it two hours later to 1:00 a.m.
Saturday night (or Sunday morning depending on your perspective).
This is a "Death Valley" time slot. A friend has been able to get
through to tv programming at the station. He was told that
Babylon 5 is their lowest rated show, and that there is a small
but vocal group which likes it. They suggested that anyone who
can not stay up that late to just tape the show! If that is their
attitude, I do not think mobilizing a call in or write in campaign
to the station would do any good. It may tick them off enought to
yank it off the air. Does PTEN have any type of contractual say
so with individual stations as to when to air the episodes? Please
advise of any suggestions you may have. Sorry to have to relay
unpleasant news.
Les
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 00:27:20
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Les P. George <76162.1250 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Time Change in Atlanta
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440286 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.440209 at compuserve.com>
Yes, I've heard this; we've always had trouble with that station
in terms of air schedules and availability of slots. There's nothing
anyone can do about it at this end; only local pressure can make an
impact. (And some of the worst offenders do the "low rated" argument
to cover the fact that they just have too many prior commitments to
other networks like UPN and/or FOX or WBN...or that they just don't
like the show for one reason or another. Some shows have actually been
bought by stations and *shelved* because they didn't want to air it,
but at the same time didn't want anyone else in the market to air it
either. (This happened to us on Twilight Zone on several occasions.)
jms
------------------------------
Date: 28-Jan-96 20:32:24
From: Rebecca Eschliman <76072.2345 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #Organizing B5 Details
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440231 at compuserve.com>
An out-of-left-field question just occurred to me about the
process of writing B5 episodes:
- Given that B5 was planned from the start as a 5-year project,
including a number of different civilizations and intricate plots,
- Given that along the line some changes have been made from the
original details,
How do you keep it all straight as you're writing new episodes?
Do you have some sort of an external memory-jog like an erasable
marker board (with different colored markers) or an industrial
suppy of Post-it notes? Or are all the details of the B5 universe
maintained on strictly internal storage?
Just curious, and I'm sure other members of the forum appreciate
inisights into the way you go about the creation and maintenance
of B5.
- rje -
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 00:27:22
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Rebecca Eschliman <76072.2345 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Organizing B5 Details
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440287 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.440231 at compuserve.com>
As I make the changes, in large measure I just keep it all in my
head, though a few things get written down and put on post-it notes
around my home office monitor. It's like a number-cruncher program;
you make one change, hit return, and it incorporates all the
permutations of that change down the line. That's kind of what I do in
my head. I change one item, let the ramifications ripple through it
all, and now it's all there. By doing this every time I make a slight
modification, it lets me see what impact it may have down the line, so
I can avoid making any changes that seriously conflict with the larger
storyline. It's a headache -- figuratively and literally -- but the
effort of doing so keeps me on track.
After that, it's mainly a process of remembering what happened; I
treat this as the history of the Babylon station. This is what
"happened" in the universe I created in my head.
Problem is, this occupies all the available RAM my brain seems to
contain. I have zip memory for anything else that I can consider even
remotely expendable, like appointments, remembering to pick up dry
cleaning, bringing a magazine to a friend's house who'd requested a
copy of something, on and on. If it ain't involved with B5, it just
slides outta my brain.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 05:00:43
From: Gerald Himmelein <100417.3703 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #440287-#Organizing B5 Details
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440320 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.440287 at compuserve.com>
> Problem is, this occupies all the available RAM my brain seems to
> contain.
Bad news for John Ostrander, then? Or will you make some room in
your brain to fit that project in?
- Kind regards,
Gerald Himmelein
[Are you sure your windows are closed?]
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 12:54:58
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Gerald Himmelein <100417.3703 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Organizing B5 Details
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440435 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.440320 at compuserve.com>
No, I wouldn't be doing the Grimjack project until *after* I'd
finished this season's scripts in late February.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 09:38:04
From: Gerard Keating (Ireland) <71154.3423 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: #439994-#<Voices of Authority>
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440365 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.439994 at compuserve.com>
Joe,
Will Marcus's "French" comment be change for the French Language
Version???
Gerard
------------------------------
Date: 29-Jan-96 12:55:01
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Gerard Keating (Ireland) <71154.3423 at compuserve.com>
Subject: <Voices of Authority>
Message-ID: <forum.sfmediaone.440436 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.sfmediaone.440365 at compuserve.com>
No idea....
jms
------------------------------
End of JMS CIS Digest 28-Jan-96 06:11:30 through 29-Jan-96 12:55:01
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