[B5JMS] ATTN JMS: The Starlost?

[b5jms at mail.fsl.cs.sunysb.edu]

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From: Jeff Vavasour <jeffv at shaw.ca>
Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2005 14:12:29 +0000 (UTC)
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The topic of The Starlost just came up in another list I frequent.  It was a 
creation of Harlan Ellison in the 70s, envisioning a five-year story arc about 
the last survivors of a dead Earth, fleeing aboard a doomed ark in space.  It 
was a great premise, especially given the main characters' backgrounds.  It 
exuded such possibilities even through its failed 16-episode execution. 
(Incidentally, the execution was flawed to the point that the writing credit 
goes to Cordwainer Bird.)  I've read Phoenix Without Ashes, I've read 
Ellison's essays about it, and I've read The Starcrossed, all in the vain hope 
of finding out more about where it might've gone.  I've often wished to see 
The Starlost done right, and to see it through to its end.  A movie would be 
too short to do it justice, but a TV series or miniseries might.  Sadly, it 
sounds like Harlan Ellison has washed his hands of it, perhaps because he'd 
never trust the story could ever be told properly.  Yet, I suspect he'd trust 
JMS.

So, to JMS, ever spoken about The Starlost?  Ever thought about a 
collaboration of that sort?  I know it would also take a cable or network 
channel's interest to make it a reality, but if there were interest, might 
both you and Harlan be persuaded to get together on such a thing?

- Jeff




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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2005 22:42:51 +0000 (UTC)
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Jeff Vavasour wrote:

>
> So, to JMS, ever spoken about The Starlost?  Ever thought about a
> collaboration of that sort?  I know it would also take a cable or network
> channel's interest to make it a reality, but if there were interest, might
> both you and Harlan be persuaded to get together on such a thing?
>
> - Jeff

We've spoken about the Starlost a few -- very few -- times.  One
doesn't lightly sprinkle salt in a wound of that magnitude.  Beyond
that, we've sometimes talked about doing something together one of
these days (aside from B5 where he was our creative consultant for five
years), but so far we haven't hit on the right thing.

jms