[B5JMS] B5: TLT - Official Warner Bros. Press release

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

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From: "Joseph DeMartino" <jdemarti at bellsouth.net>
Date: 13 Nov 2006 08:42:34 -0800
Lines: 98

No more than the expected number of cringe-inducing mistakes.  <g>
This went out to the DVD industry press today.  Not the dollar figure
given is almost certainly for U.S. domestic sales only, at most for
U.S. & Canadian sales.

13 NOVEMBER 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WARNER HOME VIDEO TO RELEASE
BRAND NEW "BABYLON 5"
MADE FOR VIDEO IN 2007

BABLYON 5: THE LOST TALES TO BEGIN PRODUCTION NOVEMBER 13, 2006


BURBANK, CA, November 13, 2006 - Warner Home Video (WHV) and Warner
Bros. Television (WBTV) have announced the start of production of
"Babylon 5: The Lost Tales," a made-for-video movie that will be
targeted towards the Babylon 5 loyal audience and science-fiction fans
in general .  The announcement was jointly made by Jeff Brown, Senior
Vice President and General Manager, Non-theatrical Franchise, Warner
Home Video and Gregg Maday, Senior Vice President, Movies and
Miniseries, WBTV

WHV will be the home entertainment distributor for this made-for-DVD
release which will include two new Babylon 5 stories collectively
entitled "Voices of the Dark" in one film plus exclusive behind the
scenes content. The stories will be written and directed by executive
producer and original "Babylon 5" creator J. Michael Straczynski.
Executive producer Doug Netter also returns in that role. Actors from
the original series that have signed on to participate in the project
include Bruce Boxleitner ("President John Sheridan"), Tracy Scoggins
("Captain Elizabeth Lochley") and Peter Woodward ("Galen").

Babylon 5 is a top selling franchise on DVD to date with over $44
million in consumer sales. Launched in February 1993, the award winning
series was a top rated show on television with more than 13.7 million
viewers in its debut season. After its original planned five-year run -
introducing the concept of a five year arc before other TV series began
to use multi-season arcs -- the show went on to enjoy 9 successful
years in syndication and Cable on the Sci-Fi Channel and TNT.  It also
spurred the creation of five feature length movies based on the series
including The Gathering, In the Beginning, Thirdspace, River of Souls
and A Call to Arms, as well as the limited series Crusade. Babylon 5
has received numerous awards including two Emmys, two consecutive Hugo
Awards, the Ray Bradbury Award for Dramatic Screenwriting from the
Science Fiction Writers of America, five English Media 'Cult TV,
Awards, the E Pluribus Unum Award from the American Cinema Foundation,
the Sci-Fi Universe Reader Choice Award for Best TV Series and was the
winner of the TV Guide Poll for Best Sci-Fi Show.

"We are very excited to be releasing this new made-for-video release
filled with original content for 'Babylon 5' one of the most successful
science fiction series of all time," said Jeff Brown. "This popular TV
show which has been off the air for a few years continues to have a
strong loyal fan base that is hungry for more content.  This is the
first time we're utilizing one of our popular TV franchises as a
made-for-video title, and we have a strong commitment to the growth of
this sector

"It's great to be reunited with Joe and Doug once again," commented
Maday.  "I have always been very proud to be associated with their
wonderful work on Babylon 5 and I'm confident the 'Lost Tales'
will add to the legacy of this very special franchise

On an immense space station built by the Earth Alliance in the 2250s,
the crew of Babylon 5 are charged with maintaining the peace among the
various alien races by providing a sanctuary where grievances and
negotiations can be worked out among duly appointed ambassadors. Aside
from its diplomatic function, Babylon 5 also serves as a military post
for Earth and a port of call for travelers, traders, businessmen,
criminals, and Rangers.  The story of The Lost Tales picks up several
years after the events of its original story, and follows several of
its major characters in new adventures set against the backdrop of the
Babylon 5 universe.

About Warner Home Video

With operations in 90 international territories Warner Home Video, a
Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, commands the largest distribution
infrastructure in the global video marketplace.  Warner Home Video's
film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and
vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner
Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Home Video and New Line
Home Entertainment.

About Warner Bros. Television

Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) is one of the entertainment industry's
most respected providers of original content, producing award-winning
drama and comedy series, made-for-television movies and miniseries for
both network and cable television.  Having produced 28 series for the
2006-2007 season, WBTV is the industry's number one supplier of
primetime television programming, with multiple shows on each of the
five broadcast networks, as well as numerous cable networks.




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From: "alex_t" <atereshchenko at googlemail.com>
Date: 14 Nov 2006 03:47:13 -0800
Lines: 7


> with over $44 million in consumer sales

Did they forget a zero here? ($440 million)
I thought it was closer to $500 million?



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From: "Joseph DeMartino" <jdemarti at bellsouth.net>
Date: 14 Nov 2006 08:38:49 -0800
Lines: 23

alex_t wrote:
> > with over $44 million in consumer sales
>
> Did they forget a zero here? ($440 million)
> I thought it was closer to $500 million?

Hard to tell where whoever wrote that press release got that figure.
This is the company that put the original credits for "The Gathering"
on every home video release in the U.S., including the ones that
featured the 1998 re-edit, and hung a Minbari cruiser upside down on
one of the discs or the packaging somehwere, after all.  In press
releases, as in lapidary inscriptions, one is not upon one's oath.  <g>
 That could be just the U.S. sales figure for just the five seasons,
while  JMS's "half a billion" may include worldwide sales for "Crusade"
and the movie set.  Hell, the $44 million could easily be the average
North American sales *per set*, which would get you to $220 and be
consistent with a world-wide gross of around $500 million.

Regards, 

Joe



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From: jmsatb5 at aol.com
Date: 14 Nov 2006 18:25:36 -0800
Lines: 11


Joseph DeMartino wrote:
> Hard to tell where whoever wrote that press release got that figure.

It's an oopsie...they went off the last recorded year's sales figures,
not the cumulative.

jms*
*directing his little brain out up in BC