[B5JMS] ATTN JMS: What was your attraction to doing the Walker

[b5jms-admin at cs.columbia.edu]

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From: dan_dassow at my-deja.com (Dan Dassow)
Date: 9 Sep 2001 17:25:52 -0700
Lines: 43

Pål Are Nordal <drakh at spamcop.net> wrote in message news:<3B966570.8CE09AEC at spamcop.net>...
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> Mike Hennebry wrote:
> > 
> > In article <3B937ED5.DB0ACCF9 at spamcop.net>,
> > =?iso-8859-1?Q?P=E5l?= Are Nordal  <drakh at spamcop.net> wrote:
> > :
> > :Not on my tape of "A Shadow in the Night". And believe me, I've looked.
> > 
> > Did he have a writer credit?
> 
> Yes, but no producer credit.
> 
> > My recollection is that he was a writer also.
> 
> That's kinda why I have it on tape ;)

On 19 July 1996 (two days after Joe's 42nd birthday) I did a Library
of Congress (LOCIS: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS INFORMATION SYSTEM) search.
One of the hits was

A shadow in the night / by J. Michael Straczynski. 51 p. 
SEST: Walker, Texas Ranger ; episode no. 1003. 
NOTE: Television script. 
CLNA: acCannon Television, Inc. (employer for hire) 
DCRE: 1993 
DREG: 20Apr93 
MISC: C.O. corres. 
ECIF: 3/D 

Joe is indeed credited for the script, but his name may not have
appeared in the credits for that episode. Chuck Norris and Joe had
creative differences on the direction of the show. In other words,
Chuck Norris simply wanted a mindless action show; Joe chose not to
write for the mindless.
 
See the following for more details on this and other JMS credits in
LOCIS:
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&safe=off&rnum=1&selm=m0uhOFY-000cVfC%40deepthot.cary.nc.us


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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com (Jms at B5)
Date: 10 Sep 2001 05:10:40 GMT
Lines: 30

>Joe is indeed credited for the script, but his name may not have
>appeared in the credits for that episode. Chuck Norris and Joe had
>creative differences on the direction of the show. In other words,
>Chuck Norris simply wanted a mindless action show; Joe chose not to
>write for the mindless.

Not quite true on a couple of levels.  First, I did get credited as writer on
that episode.

Second, flattering as the assumption above may be, it ain't correct...when you
sign on to a show featuring a martial arts guy, you kinda know what you're
getting into.

The primary reason I left (besides B5 coming up fast and furious, which I'd set
aside a bit to help David do this) was that I wasn't being paid.  Cannon is a
kinda... interesting...place to work, and though there was money going into the
production, not a lot of it was filtering down in contracted-for salaries. 
Finally I just said "screw this, I'm outta here."  David stayed longer, but in
the end I think he only got about half the money he was due.

 jms

(jmsatb5 at aol.com)
(all message content (c) 2001 by synthetic worlds, ltd., 
permission to reprint specifically denied to SFX Magazine 
and don't send me story ideas)