JMS CompuServe messages collected by The Green Meddler . Subj: Hey! New episodes! Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 01, 1995 12:41:26 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#226576 I imagine they're <> getting masters sent directly to them. jms Subj: Sounds in space Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, May 31, 1995 9:22:12 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#226352 In talking to a number of scientists and physicists about sound in space, they came back with the realization that the area isn't as black and white as first thought. (Did you know that when the Pioneer probe broke the speed of sound in space, it registered a shock wave across its bow, a sonic boom that was monitored by JPL? I didn't.) As for making the starfield rotate...because of the size of the window in C&C, the starfield outside is about 60 feet by 30 feet. You cannot rotate something that size. If you put a smaller field nearer the window, it's visible for what it is. We've gone over this, believe me. jms Subj: Was that the Sandman? Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 02, 1995 1:44:04 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227583 No, just an alien breathing device. jms Subj: Anaheim con Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 02, 1995 1:44:02 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227582 I thought the Splitting Image folks did a *very* good job; some of the makeups were a little "flat," in terms of the usual texturing we do to make it look like actual skin, but that's a very small quibble. The makeups and costumes were extremely good, and I was quite impressed. (Stupidly, I didn't recognize the last as Deathwalker initially, only because it's been so long, and it was entirely my fault.) jms Subj: UK B5: Break in series Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 01, 1995 6:17:14 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227195 Don't lets be hasty here...they don't have the tapes yet because they haven't been sent yet, but should go out in a day or two. There were some additional EFX needed for "Divided Loyalties," which we're finishing this week, and is the first of the last batch. "Twilight" is done and "Confessions"<< I think he meand "Comes The Inquisitor">> will be done mid-next week, with the final EFX coming in on "Fall of Night" by the end or so of next week. So I wouldn't write it off just yet. jms Subj: B5 in UK? Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 02, 1995 1:48:01 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227586 Oops...I wuz wrong. On the off-chance that I might commit an error (I know, impossible, but there you are), I called around, and the Channel 4 people are out here on business. Some digging ended up getting the straight skinny on this: yes, there is going to be a break of a few weeks because the Tour de France is going to be going on then, and anything else is going to get completely and totally lost and overwhelmed in the ratings. So they're holding back for just a bit. jms Subj: Local station: "renewed" Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 01, 1995 6:03:09 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227156 It's nothing to do with quality. WB Network is a different division of WB, and it's extremely competitive with PTEN. We're talking here massive, honking corporate politics. They wouldn't do it. Further, WBN has *fewer clearances* in terms of TV stations than PTEN, and we'd end up losing many folks who don't have WBN network stations in their areas. jms Subj: Sounds in space Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 01, 1995 6:03:07 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227154 A canvas painting of a starfield won't work, because the light inside C&C is so bright that a painting wouldn't register through the window (it's like trying to look at the stars through the window of a brightly lit room). We have a star curtain with *fiber- optic lights* that create the stars. You try and rotate something with 500-600 delicate fiber-optic lights, and it's going to be constantly breaking. Also, 30 by 50 is fine *horizontally*; the second you try and rotate that, you suddenly have something 50 feet HIGH, and the ceiling isn't big enough to accommodate that. (It's wider than it is high currently because most of the angles we shoot in are left/right, not up/down.) If you shorten it for the ceiling, it won't be wide enough. Similarly, a projection onto a screen outside wouldn't show through the glass, either. It would also require a length for proper rear-projection that would eliminate space badly needed for our sets. Believe me, we've been over this and over this...there have been hundreds of suggestions...none of them work. Except for when we blue- screen in a starfield, there's nothing else to be done. jms Subj: New Big Bang Newletter Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 02, 1995 1:44:01 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#227581 I think that if people paid extra for VIP tickets to get workshops, and those workshops are now free, certainly should be credited for that. And for anything else that's not delivered. Re: your question about cast fees...I spoke with Walter Koenig today,who was supposed to receive the lion's share of his fee within no less than 30 days of the convention (by contract), and still hasn't received it. jms Subj: Conventions (the making Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 3:38:24 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#228858 Assuming we're renewed (we hope to finally hear next week), there are plans afoot to unveil an official in-house fan club operation here at B5, which would handle some convention liaison stuff for other conventions, and would eventually lead to a proper B5 convention which we would put together using the very same folks who make the show. Since there's the benefit of PR, we wouldn't so much be looking to make a profit as just breaking even and, most important, having a good time...so the sense of it would be closer to a fan-run convention in tone. But be assured, that's at *least* a year down the road. Maybe more. jms Subj: UK B5: Break in series Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 3:24:25 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#228853 Yeah, I get confused sometimes. Here's why: At any given point, while we're doing the show, I'm working on thefollowing episodes *SIMULTANEOUSLY*: I'm writing show #1 I'm getting the director a copy of script #2 We're prepping script #3 for principal photography We're shooting script #4 The director is editing episode #5 John Copeland and I are doing the producer's cut of episode #6 We're doing the music/sound EFX spotting of episode #7 Visual EFX/composite shots are coming in on episode #8 We're doing the final audio mix of episode #9 We're delivering episode #10 to Warner Bros. for closed captioning. In the course of any given day, I run from one of these to the other,to the other, to the other. After a while, EVERYTHING blurs. jms Subj: Just Say NO! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 3:14:18 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#228851 No Wesley Crusher types. Ever. It's always a dumb idea. jms Subj: B5 Merchandise Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 3:14:17 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#228850 Actually, that mug is available now from Creation Entertainment; I saw bunches of 'em at the Anaheim Convention they did. jms Subj: Books by JMS? Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 3:14:16 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#228849 I'm almost finished with the revisions on the writing book; it's been hell because it's a total rewrite from stem to stern, and I'm adding about 200 pages of new material on top of correcting all the info that is now out of date. It's a big honking piece of work on top of doing the show, but it's almost done. jms Subj: Years? Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 9:08:20 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#229647 They would of course be speaking in Minbari terms. jms Subj: UK B5: Break in series Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 9:08:22 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#229648 It ain't easy. You basically have to keep all the scenes and all the stories sort of "uploaded" into your head at all times, and just jump from one to the other. It's kinda like balancing 10 spinning plates on sticks. jms Subj: Books by JMS? Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 03, 1995 9:08:19 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#229646 My two novels and my anthology are currently out of print; have also had short stories in Amazing, Pulphouse, Shadows 6 and the like. The book I'm trying to finish is the update to my scriptwriting book from Writer's Digest. jms Subj: New Big Bang Newletter Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 04, 1995 7:15:22 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#230752 I quote your message <> *verbatim*, word for word: "I spoke with one of the CMC Organizers today (Harold) and he said the reason Walter Koenig hadn't received his check was that he changed his address and didn't notify CMC of the change. They FedEx'd his check to him and got it back as undeliverable because the address was no longer valid. Since FedEx doesn't get address forwarding information like the Post Office does, they could only return it to CMC. CMC now has received Walter's new address and the check has gone out (he may even have it now)." The only problem with your message is that it isn't true. Walter has never changed his address. What happened (I just verified this on the phone with Walter about, oh, 3 minutes ago) was that the deadline for his check passed. He called CMC. They said it had gone out. It didn't arrive. He called again. They said there was some kind of mistake, and they'd send it again. Again, no check. Finally, Walter insisted that if the check did not arrive by Wednesday, he would have to withdraw from the convention, and to send the check directly to his home. Now, finally, under threat, the check arrived. To say that he changed his address is completely untrue. To say he didn't notify CMC of a change that didn't happen is a shameless and transparent fabrication. From reports I've heard, CMC has a habit of playing "the check's in the mail" with people. Lying doesn't help. jms Subj: UK B5: Break in series Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 04, 1995 7:15:18 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#230751 It varies. Internet alone takes up to 3 hours a day, because of the nature of my newsreader, and the sheer volume of messages to wade through (I think you get 200-400 per day just there alone). CIS is a little faster, thanks to a) Tapcis and b) a smaller volume of messages. Ditto for GEnie. Basically, if you added it all up, it would come out to about 2-3 8 hour work days per week. I don't actually find the time, I *make* the time, usually trying to slog through it all between midnight and 4 a.m. on weekdays, afternoons on the weekends, and the like. jms Subj: B5 Trading Cards Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 04, 1995 7:15:16 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#230749 The cards should be out from Fleer sometime around September. jms Subj: Talia Leaving B5? Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 04, 1995 7:15:15 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#230748 Just for purposes of clarity, what I said in my note was in response to a message alledging that Warners had influenced us to drop the Talia character, at which point I noted that this had never, ever happened, and that they were, if anything, only vaguely aware of the character in any event. There have never been any discussions of ANY kind about Talia with Warners. jms Subj: Talia Leaving B5? Section: Babylon 5 To: Colin Knowles, 72152,201 Monday, June 05, 1995 2:25:05 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#231037 "...you don't have anything up your sleeve, by any chance?" Constantly. If I didn't, it wouldn't be Babylon 5. jms Subj: B5 Merchandise Section: Babylon 5 To: Pamela A. Beem, 74461,1030 Monday, June 05, 1995 10:02:24 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#232100 EA = Earth Alliance, the government. EF = Earthforce, the main line of defense for the Earth Alliance. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 07, 1995 10:40:27 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234230 That's probably one of the best analyses I've seen on the progress and history of the show(s). As Dupa says, you may want to consider posting this over on ST, though I'd maybe re-emphasize that this *isn't* a flame (it obviously isn't that in context, but it never hurts to reinforce it for those who just skim). Certainly it should lead to some interesting discussions, as long as it doesn't turn into a "yeah, well MY show is better and yours SUCKS" fest, at which point it's better left to die of its own weight. Certainly Paramount has gone out of its way to make life for us difficult. Getting Stephen Furst bounced off the Arsenio show back when it was still around because they didn't want to promote B5; making sure that Entertainment Tonight mentions it as rarely as possible; naming their new PI show "Babylon," presumably to confuse the marketplace even further (suffice to say we encouraged them to rename it, and that's been done); word that has come to us from stations that program mangers were told that if they wanted Voyager they had to drop B5...there are more examples. But that's what Paramount does. But we're like Rasputin. Shoot us, poison, stab us, drown us, hang us...we just keep going. jms Subj: Final four episodes Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 07, 1995 10:18:16 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234217 Not really. Because even though we still haven't gotten final word yet, you can't wait until that comes to start writing scripts. You have to get some in the pipeline ahead of time, or you're screwed when it comes time to shoot. We like to have 6 or so scripts on hand the day we start rolling film. So even though I haven't known what the final disposition is, I've had to keep writing, which is sometimes hard because you don't know what the deal is yet. But at least I get to make my own hours a bit more. jms Subj: From JMS: B5 Renewed Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 2:16:00 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#235292 To confirm word already leaking out via John Copeland on AOL...yes, we received word that BABYLON 5 has been renewed for its third season. I got the call this evening, and have spent the time in-between doing Producer Stuff, and taking care of a small bug that hit last night, and has thus taken a bit of the edge off the news. Nonetheless...we've been renewed. Shooting on year three will begin around July 31st. This season will put us past the halfway mark on the series total. Expect Big Things and some major changes not just in characters, but the structure of the B5 universe itself. And now...to work. With thanks to all of our friends on the nets who have stood beside us through the last two years. jms Subj: Books by JMS? Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 2:26:17 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#235295 The next novel wouldn't be out until after I finished the B5 story. jms Subj: The Gathering - Cast Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 08, 1995 6:15:02 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234871 While I'll let the other question slide for the moment, yes, I'd like to see either Sakai or Takashima again. Some of what I'd considered for Takashima I recently transplanted into more fertile ground (he said vaguely and mysteriously), but yes, I'd love to do it sometime. jms Subj: The Gathering - Cast Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 2:26:18 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#235296 Some of this, re: Lyta, will be answered this season. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 08, 1995 6:15:00 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234870 You have to step back and look at this from Paramount's perspective. For 27 years, they've had a lock on space-based SF. A monopoly. They could point to all the other space-SF series which went by the boards quickly, and say, "See, we've lasted, so we MUST be better." If even ONE other show in this genre not only lasts, but *succeeds*, then ST isn't the Only One anymore; it's just one of two, or three, or more shows set in this genre. It isn't unique (fiscally) anymore, and thus they are afraid they'll lose some of its marketability, the franchise will weaken. If you wanted something from our future, in space, then for 27 years you had only one place to go: Trek. They're *terrified* of losing or softening their franchise. They're aware that support for DS9 is, in general, fairly soft; Voyager is still getting its sea legs, and they don't want anyone else coming up alongside and blindsiding them. For our part, we have never responded in kind. When we formed the B5 softball team, playing other shows, we happily told the folks at ST that we'd love to play them sometime. Thus far, no response. Can't imagine why. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 08, 1995 6:15:04 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234872 Re: imitation is a form of flattery...Fred Allen, I believe, came up with a great line, "Imitation is the sincerest form of television." jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 08, 1995 6:15:06 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#234873 RE: SF and ST and the like...actually, there is some differentiation there to be found. From the reports, and demographics, and research that has passed over my desk (most of which I try to ignore), it seems as though there's a distinction: about 60% of avid ST viewers are also SF fans, however nominally, in that they watch other SF shows (mostly) or read SF novels/stories (fewer still). About 40% or so don't read or watch other SF; they're *specifically* ST fans. Which is why one should always be careful making the automatic assumption that if one likes ST, then one is an SF fan, and thus should give B5 a chance. There is not always a corrolation. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 2:37:11 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#235301 Here's the funny thing...every, oh, six-nine months or so, I get phone interviews from major magazines asking, "So, to what do you attribute this sudden boom in science fiction?" Each time, I tell them the same thing: "There AIN'T no boom, nor is there anything to attribute it to. You've got 35 network dramas on; that's business as usual. You've got 5 SF shows, that's a *boom*? Further, most of the shows fall by the wayside fairly quickly, and in a few months you'll be doing articles about "Why won't SF work on TV?" and calling me on that one." Not one magazine or newspaper has ever printed that part of the interview. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 12:56:00 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236207 The similarities have receded as both shows have gone off in different directions. What was given to Paramount: the B5 bible, artwork, 20+ sample stories, the pilot screenplay and other material. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 12:50:07 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236203 "Paramount HAS increased the avenue of approach for more SF/fantasy by CREATING the market with TNG." The only thing wrong with this statement is that it isn't true. ST creates a market for more ST, nothing else. As one who has had to speak with just about every network and studio major domo on this subject, the overwhelming concensus has always been, "The market isn't big enough to sustain more than one SF series, and that's Star Trek." From time to time, grudgingly, one or the other tries it, but almost always half-heartedly. I heard that line scores of times in the process of trying to sell B5, which is one major reason why it took 5 years to sell it. If what you say were true, then there should have been dozens of SF space series by now. But there aren't. There's only us, and we had to work hard to overcome the ST-Is-The-Only-Marketable-SF problem, combined with Paramount's little games (making sure we're relatively invisible to Entertainment Tonight, getting Stephen Furst kicked off a guest-shot on the old Arsenio show to avoid promoting B5, and other little tricks I could go into). None of which is to say that ST is bad, or that the people who make ST are bad, this is Paramount stuff. But we had to fight hard to overcome the stumbling blocks put in our way that are part and parcel of ST, so you will forgive it if the hairs on my neck stand up when someone CREDITS the development of shows like B5 to ST. It is absolutely, positively not true. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 2:53:13 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236266 Yes, it is difficult selling anything new to television. But you do not usually hear, "We've got one hospital show on the air now, that means you can't sell any others because the market's full." Yet that has been the case with ST for years. What will cause *more* SF shows to come is, well, more SF shows that succeed. Up until now, ST has been viewed (using the industry term) as a "non-repeating phenomenon." And if you step back and look at it from a network POV, they're quite correct. Very, VERY few science fiction series have ever made it past the second or third year. But you can point to many mainstream shows that have gone five, eight, twelve, even fifteen years (in the case of such an abombination as "Hee, Haw"). "Murder, She Wrote," which I was a part of for two years, has been on the air...what? Eleven years? Twelve? Not one SF show has ever done that. As soon as you have more than one SF show that lasts more than, say, three or four years, then you might see more. We are one of the very, VERY few to make it to its third season. And, consequently, some network and studio types are thinking maybe it can be done, maybe you CAN have more than one around at the same time. But they're still edgy, and they still use the line that there's only room for ST all too often. I'm not making this up, Don. Even once we got the series pickup, we were told by a WB exec, "I'm not holding out any hope for this. It has never been shown that there's any market for SF other than Star Trek." (That person has subsequently come around.) And as an SF fan myself...the more good SF on television, the more I like it. The Morgan/Wong pair from X-Files are doing their new Space series, and I wish it all the best. The more the merrier; competition helps the field. I just wish the folks at Paramount understood that, and took a healthy competition as something good, not something to be attacked or destroyed in order to preserve a franchise. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 12:55:27 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236206 "Do you think that if, say, Warner Bros was in the same position, it wouldn't be trying to crush Trek and make sure Bab 5 was the only SF show on TV?" That would require organization on the part of WB; hence, doubtful. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 12:50:09 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236204 What I've said, repeatedly, is that I don't believe for a second that either of the creators behind DS9 would deliberately borrow *anything* from anybody. What I *don't* know is the extent to which the development people at Paramount, who did have the B5 material, may have influenced that development without them necessarily knowing the origin of the notes. But frankly...it's old news. There were striking similiarities between the DS9 pilot and ours; however, since then their show has gone on into very different areas, and the similarity has diminished further and further until there's almost no remaining comparison. So for me, that aspect is really not a major factor anymore. We move on. jms Subj: B5 Baseball Team Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 8:50:10 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236017 We lose as often as we win at softball, but invariably we get a much larger turnout of B5 people to cheer on our team (anywhere from 40-60, as opposed to, oh, usually 20), and we have a much better time, I suspect. Interestingly, when came time to create our B5 softball jerseys, we gave them all the same number: 5. So you've got an announcer saying, "At shortstop, number 5...first base, number 5...second base, number 5...." There were some initial complaints, but on checking the rule books, there's nothing that says the numbers have to be different. So the 5s stayed. We had a previous shipment all with #4, but it vanished mysteriously. jms Subj: Plan NOW ! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 8:50:07 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236015 If every dedicated B5 viewer got 10 people who haven't watched/don't watch the show, and got them to just watch the episodes in October and November, it'd probably have a salutory effect on our ratings, and given what's in those eps, we'd have them thereafter. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 11:00:03 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236144 Night Gallery was vastly under-rated and under-appreciated. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 11:00:05 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236145 Yeah, "attempted boom" in the sense that studios try to figure out what audiences want, and drag out focus groups, and research, and plug in the "formula" (put in a kid for the young crowd, maybe a pet as well, make it "campy" since the networks can't take SF seriously, put in a young hunk and a babe). Never works. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 8:50:08 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236016 Yeah, we've noticed that; there are a lot of parallels between the early history of ST and our show, all of the things you noted, plus some hostility from Lost in Space fans who thought ST was poaching on their terrain, on and on. Kinda funny.... jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 11:00:01 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236142 On the flip side, virtually *all* of the B5 fans are also SF fans as well. That's because, ratings-wise, we're still hitting mainly the hard core SF audience. Where ST gets its ratings is from the mainstream, non-SF fan community. Should B5 begin to mainstream out, then that would change. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 09, 1995 11:00:02 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236143 That may well be true for audiences at a young age, who turn onto a show like ST or something else, and seek it out, but for the majority of people, apparently it ain't the case. Most of those who seek out a book in the genre after watching ST to some extent...tend to buy ST novels. jms Subj: Babylon 5 Theme Music Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:22 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236754 Yes, we'll change the theme again. The theme and narration changes with the theme and part of the storyline we're entering. Some don't like the year two theme as much as the 1st because it doesn't summon up the same feelings; it shouldn't. It's a different chapter in the story. I've already spoken with Chris Franke about my ideas for the music for year three, and I think it'll be pretty kick-ass. jms Subj: Books by JMS? Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:14 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236750 It'd have to wait until the series itself is finished; it'd take me about a year of dedicated work to write the next novel, and I can't do that while I'm making this show. jms Subj: Third season finale Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:07 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236746 I kinda have to follow the structure of the story as I've put it together; I can't start restructuring it around airdates, which may get changed. jms Subj: B5 Baseball Team Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:03 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236743 Depends on who's available; some cast play, some don't, some play sometimes. At various points, Jerry, Bruce, Richard, Caitlin and others have taken part. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:02 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236742 We're *slowly* growing to include the mainstream audience. Mainstream viewers go to ST first because, well, it's ST and a known commodity. They don't routinely check out other SF shows. Slowly, though, we're starting to draw in that audience. I'm getting more letters lately than ever before saying, "I've never watched much SF before, but now I've started watching B5.' That will likely continue. The biggest obstacle in the beginning was the negative reviews that came from reviewers who expected us to do ST, and we didn't, and thus they perceived us as somehow doing ST "wrong." So now it's all word of mouth. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:16 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236751 I've been to a total of two focus groups for B5. I didn't want to go. Didn't want there to BE a focus group. I think they're the tools of the devil. They generally find these people at the nearest shopping mall; they're people to whom the $50 to come and do this is important; it's either this, or sell blood, I sometimes think. We're talking here Focus Groups of the Living Dead. At one of these...the last I was invited to...one of the guys on the other side of the two-way mirror said he didn't like B5 because it wasn't the way science fiction was supposed to be, it was lots of character stuff, and he didn't like that. "So what would you consider good science fiction?" he was asked by the facilitator. "Power Rangers," he said. I nearly went through the glass at him. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:17 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236752 No, nobody knew that stuff but me. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:20 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236753 The problem is the medium. If an artist wants to do art in the form of paintings, he needs canvas, paint and a subject. If an artist wants to do art in the form of television, he requires, oh, about $22 million, give or take. In the case of ST, closer to $39 million, figuring $1.5 million per show, which is actually on the low side. That's per season. When you've got THAT much money riding on it, plus in the case of ST, literally *billions* of dollars in revenue from merchandising...well, you begin to understand why things happen the way they do sometimes. We're *trying* to set a better example. Many producers putting new SF shows together have come to us, and we've given them tours of our stage and facilities, explained how we do what we do, and many of them are now using the "Babylon 5 Model" in putting their shows together for the networks and studios. As far as I'm concerned, the more the merrier. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236749 Paramount does not actually *have* a creative side; neither do most studios. They are business operations that make deals with creative people who create programs and movies under their unbrella. Studios are made up of presidents and vice presidents and directors in charge of media affairs, business affairs, legal affairs, publicity and promotion, marketing, on and on. The creative people at ST aren't a problem, any more than we are a problem to them. When either show does a particularly nifty looking show, for instance, our EFX people call theirs, or theirs call us, to say so. I have nothing but undying respect and admiration for Jeri Taylor and many others over at ST. Whenever there's a problem it can usually be tracked down to one of the Suits. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:09 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236747 "Before Star Trek, there had NEVER been any attempt to bring serious science fiction to weekly television." Well...not exactly true. THE TWILIGHT ZONE did much to bring serious SF to American television, as did many episodes of THE OUTER LIMITS. LOST IN SPACE ended UP as campy, but in the beginning, in the black and white episodes, there was actually some pretty decent stuff. Ditto for THE TIME TUNNEL, the Quantum Leap of its time. Just for purposes of clarity. Which is not to devalue ST, nor should it be construed as such. My sense is that the original ST was kind of like the Beatles; both were very much products of their time, both created something of a watershed for the form in which they worked, both are unique in their respective histories. Every so often, some new group is held up as the new Beatles; and every so often, some SF show is held up as the new ST. Both fail to see the point, or put the source in its proper context. The job is not to be the "next" ANYthing; it's to be its own creation. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:14:10 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236748 Yeah, people are still talking about it . Only reason I chimed in here was because my prior statements on this were being slightly mischaracterized in your note (unintentionally) and figured I needed to clear them up. jms Subj: Reporter Bias/Democracy Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:43:30 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236771 "Bill Clinton's involvement in the Whitewater scandal." Except, frankly, I've now been waiting THREE YEARS to get one, just ONE definitive statement of what the scandal IS. And what, if anything, they did. Nobody seems able to find anything, yet they keep dredging this term up over and over and over. Watergate was exposed in gory detail within one year of Woodward and Bernstein really digging in. I've finally had to conclude it's just smoke. jms Subj: Plan NOW ! Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 2:37:20 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237039 Not insofar as I know, no. If the fans in the area want the show, they have to bug the station to show it, or give the rights to another station in the area. This happens frequently, btw, to other shows. In some cases, a station might acquire a show not because they want to show it, but because they don't want the OTHER station to have it, and since syndication is almost all on a barter situation, they don't have to pay much to get the show, so they lose nothing. (This happened to us on the syndicated Twilight Zone, in some cases.) jms Subj: B5 Baseball Team Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 2:43:03 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237041 Actually, the baseballs *were* CGI. Amazes me that they made such a big deal out of it in "Forrest Gump." We just did it and threw it away. jms Subj: B5 Baseball Team Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 11:39:13 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236974 Kosh does color commentary on the game. "Beauty...in the dirt." jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 7:43:28 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236770 Then again, you've got Thomas Jefferson who said, "Given the choice between a government and no free press, and a free press without a government, I would choose the latter." The job of the reporter is to get out the facts that an informed electorate (emphasis on the word informed) needs in order to determine who to vote for, what bills to support, what changes to implement. This is often inconvenient for politicians, who'd much prefer that they did what they did in the shadows. Consequently, they paint this picture of the media as a ravening beast, the "liberal press," when in fact virtuallly every major newspaper, TV station and radio station in the country is owned by Big Business, which is invariably conservative in nature. Politicians and those citizens who fall for the okeydoke speak of the "media bias," but the media is made up of may disparate people, from different backgrounds, political beliefs, income levels and educational backgrounds as, well, the country itself. There's no such thing as a collective "media bias," there are no secret cell meetings where the new agenda is established every year. It doesn't exist except in the minds of politicians who wish to create this image in order to discredit the messenger when the news is inconvenient for them. And the reality is that the American press today is *tame* considering what it has been like in the past. There was absolutely NO pretense about journalism, newspapers wore their allegiances like banners. Editorials and cartoons were vicious beyond description. Without reporters, there would be only one source of information: the government story. Period. Where I come from, that's not only unAmerican, it's downright Soviet. They may be unpleasant at times, they may be rude, they may sometimes fall into the unfortunate realm of the cult of personality, but the system is self-correcting; such individuals fall from grace pretty fast in journalistic circles... they may even be impertinent. But the simple truth is, sometimes the only way to get pertinent information is to ask impertinent questions. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 11:39:14 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236975 At 66 episodes, we will have enough to syndicate, yes, though just barely. About 100 episodes is preferred. It makes our position both stronger and more vulnerable: stronger in that we're now a player; more vulnerable in that, at some point, if somebody gets fed up with us, they can drop the show and recoup their investment in syndication, which they couldn't until year three. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 11:39:16 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236976 Of course they always point that out. They also conveniently forget that the majority of those 20 shows are sitcoms, entertainment newsmags, game shows and the like. I got the latest ratings summary, and as I recall we were the number 4 dramatic series for the week in question, and the number 6 rated dramatic series for the year. That ain't bad. jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Saturday, June 10, 1995 11:39:11 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#236973 The bug is just a touch of the flu that seems to be making the rounds. As for making a media "dynasty"...don't want to. Assuming the B5 story runs its full five years, and assuming we don't do the possible follow-up story, my plan is to retire from TV and return to writing novels and plays. jms Subj: Centauri Actress Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 12:19:27 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237904 Nope. Different actresses, as noted in the credits. jms Subj: RoB5: Reporter Bias/Demo Section: The Promenade To: Monday, June 12, 1995 12:15:23 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237901 Haven't heard them, but I don't listen to a lot of radio these days. jms Subj: B5 Economics Section: Babylon 5 To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 6:52:17 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237638 Thanks. Yeah, the idea of getting out of this part of the Biz and back into novels or plays is very appealing. The pace would be FAR less difficult, you write at your own pace, there aren't 250 people standing behind you waiting for pages. I've been writing, first part-time, then full time, since I was in high school. Full-time since about 1979. 3,000 pages a year. Writing twelve hours a day, every day, except my birthday, my spousal overunit's birthday, christmas a nd new year's. By the time B5 is finished, I think I could well use a slightly slower pace...maybe sit by a nice, quiet little stream for a while, feed the ducks.... jms Subj: B5 Economics Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 12:15:24 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237902 Actually (and this is far more information that anyone could conceivably want), since it's come up...yes, definitely more than a few books. The total stands at 12 produced plays, 2 published novels, 1 published anthology, a number of published short stories, a dozen or so produced radio dramas, something over 120 produced episodes of television (I'm afraid I've lost count, could be 130 or so by now), and over 500 published articles for places like THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, PENTHOUSE, VIDEO REVIEW, LOS ANGELES HERALD EXAMINER, WRITER'S DIGEST, TIME INC. and others. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Monday, June 12, 1995 1:10:25 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237943 Though your sentiment is good, and your heart is in the right place, I don't think a treaty will do it, simply because there are always new people coming and going, and going and coming ("and always too soon", Blazing Saddles). Also, I'm not sure it's appropriate to ask everyone to admit to something that has not yet been demonstrated, whatever my own personal feelings about it might be. Who would sign it? Who would implement it? Would Japanese car sales be factored into the equation? And, fundamentally, as stated, it's old news. At this point, what matters is not how the series got ON the air, but what they're doing now that they're ON the air. The marketplace of free ideas is the only fair and accurate judge of such things. I think what has you upset, and sometimes upsets me, is when one does have the occasional member of the ST fan community roll in and yell about B5 being a ripoff of DS9...when B5 dates back to 1987, which can be verified in any number of places, including published interviews and books. So naturally it causes one to wish to hit back in equal measure. And while I will correct a mis-statement when someone quotes me inaccurately on this subject, I'm not really sure that's the way to go. If I had to turn to the Star Trek community, and express a concern, it would be only this. Gene Roddenberry advanced the idea of IDIC. Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. It is another word for open-mindedness. Because Babylon 5 is on the air, it does not constitute a threat in any way to Star Trek. One is no more disloyal to ST by checking out B5 than one is disloyal to the original Trek by watching a show using the same name but in no way created by the creator of Trek (Voyager). We are not Trek. We have no obligation to be Trek. Nor, really, do I think anyone would want us to be Trek, because then we *are* irrelevant and redundent. We are another view of the future. It's not the same as the Star Trek future, but another possibility... which of course gets us into philosophical areas, and some of the objections some ST fans have toward B5 are, indeed, philosophical; this is how they want the world to be 250 years from now. Fair enough, and I don't have a problem in the world with that. I have no problem with ANYone who gives B5 a fair shake, and then decides it's not for them; anyone who actually *embraces* the idea of IDIC and practices it; anyone who gives B5 the kind of fair chance that ST fans wish would've been given to the original show back in the 60s. Yet all too often, when someone comes into the B5 section on a kamikaze run, after they've dropped the bombs, you discover that, in fact, they've never seen the series, never seen more than some promos, or two minutes of a show; the same people who will, by their own statements, stick with a new Star Trek series, even though they hate aspects of it, for whole *seasons* until they figure out how to get it right. There is NO reason for animosity between ST fans and B5 fans, for the simple reason that, every day, we gain more fans who began as ST fans, and in many cases CONTINUE to enjoy that show. Any hostility is as fundamentally silly as fans of Hill Street Blues declaring open warfare against anyone who likes NYPD Blue because they both have the word Blue in the title, and HSB was there first. All that anyone wants, I guess, is that the show be given a fair chance. The lack of that chance was what helped drive the original Star Trek off the air after two years initially, and finally after the third. I can't see any reasonable ST fan, knowing that history, and decrying it, then doing it to another. Interestingly enough...I saw Roddenberry once, at a presentation he gave in either Glendale or Pasadena, around 1983 or so. He screened "The Cage," and spoke afterward. The one thing he emphasized, over and over, was this: Follow your dream. STAR TREK was Gene Roddenberry's dream. His vision. He labored long years to bring it to fruition. He galvanized the media fan community (sometimes to the exasperation of Lost in Space fans). BABYLON 5 springs from the same roots. Since 1987, it has been my dream, my vision, to see this story produced. It's not done by committee, it's not done by suits or execs. It's done by me, and the breathtakingly talented people who work for me. It is as pure and personal a dream for me as Star Trek was for Roddenberry. Mutual regard in that respect, at least, while not blinding either side to the genuine flaws or achievements of either show, would seem to be the way to go. IDIC. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 9:38:24 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237784 Nope. Still wrong. Lost in Space preceded Star Trek, and until it went campy, was exclusively SF (as much SF as ST was at times, which tended to vary wildly), with the same characters in the same setting every week. Just for purposes of historical accuracy. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 9:38:25 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237785 Two corrections: there *is* a planet nearby Babylon 5, Epsilon 3, to which they've traveled before, and will again. Also, while B5 does not have a wormhole, it does have a jumpgate beside it. Both nominally function in a similar capacity, allowing long-range travel. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: Sunday, June 11, 1995 9:38:28 PM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#237786 "without the benefit of the depth of the established Star Trek universe it's not as good..." The Star Trek universe is the end result of 30 years of history. Do you think it's fair to compare something that's got 30 years of history against a show that's got only two, and use age as the primary criterion of quality? If so, then NO show will ever be as good (by your lights), and never gives any other show the opportunity. To use that same logic, then with only two seasons under its belt in the 1960s, ST could never be any good because at that time it didn't have the "depth" that it acquired (or, more correctly, was attached to it) over the following 28 years. I'd also point out that when Star Trek first hit the airwaves back then, many media SF fans and critics panned it as nothing more than a cheap attempt at grabbing some of Lost in Space's audience (the show was very successful at the time). They said that LiS had depth, there was a family, they had strong relations, it was about hanging together... whereas Star Trek, they said, was just a mindless shoot-em-up about salt monsters (they generally gave the show a cursory glance). Star Trek fans at the time felt this was *very* unfair, that their show was being dismissed by fans of another show without giving it a decent opportunity, and certainly they wouldn't do this to another show if the situation were reversed. But times change, I guess. Or do they...? And speaking of "depth of the established Star Trek universe," some questions: who is currently the President of Starfleet? What's happening back home right now? Have ethnic fashions survived the ages on Earth? How much do you *really* know about what's in the "established Star Trek universe" except what happens on the ship/station? jms Subj: Comic boks cancelled??? Section: Babylon 5 To: Tuesday, June 13, 1995 1:13:13 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#239116 DC is, we think, acting precipitiously. Current discussions seem to be moving toward extending the book another six issues to allow time to find its audience. More as this is locked down. Problem is, DC is cutting back titles left, right and center, leaving mainly the superhero stuff. And the comic biz right now is in a major tailspin overall. jms Subj: B5 in Houston Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 10:08:23 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#238919 Re: hints about next season.... Well, how about a major change in the very structure of the B5 universe? How major? Imagine if, one day, the Enterprise crew discovered that their ship had actually been constructed by the Romulans, and that they were morally obligated to go off and serve the Romulan empire...and that didn't change at the end of the episode, it *stayed* that way for the rest of the season. That scenario bears *no* resemblance to what I have planned for year three, so there's no point in riffing off it and looking for clues. But that is emblematic of the Major Event waiting about halfway through the third season. How's that for a start? jms Subj: What --Persecuted??!! Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 10:08:16 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#238916 The others just sort of mumbled. One other person in the focus group started going on about how he doesn't like women characters who aren't *women,* which by his lights meant he felt there should be more passive, motherly figures, that somebody like Ivanova shouldn't be running a station, didn't like her at all.... Then there was a THUMP in the room that startled everyone on both sides of the glass. Without even realizing I'd done it, I'd picked up the nearest pencil and thrown it at the glass. Odd that I haven't been invited back since.... jms Subj: JMS's books Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 10:08:13 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#238915 Good heavens, that's an awfully long way to go.... Hope you like the book. jms Subj: Babylon 5 Theme Music Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 10:08:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#238914 I kinda thought it'd be a good idea from the start, though in theory over time the narratiions should get shorter, more to the point. jms Subj: B5 vs. ST Section: Star Trek To: 74027,264Tuesday, June 13, 1995 1:22:02 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#239119 While I won't presume to speak for DS9, no, in my view, B5 is not "simply a futuristic version of Gunsmoke." The mission in Gunsmoke was simple: protect the town from those nasty outlaws. The marshall wasn't off trying to forge peace treaties between soldiers and native americans, the story wasn't constantly being affected by political events in Washington; the town was isolated, out of context. B5 is in part *about* context. The premise in "Gunsmoke" is presented in the first episode, and you never really go anywhere from there, it is what it is. Not the case with B5. There are few clearly defined good guys and bad guys. Londo started out comic relief; he's become a tragic figure... G'Kar started out as the bad guy, has ended up as a heroic, possibly doomed figure...in "Gunsmoke," Miss Kitty wasn't revealed halfway through to be a carpetbagger, but we have no such boundaries. jms Subj: B5 Economics Section: Babylon 5 To: Monday, June 12, 1995 10:08:21 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#238918 I think that figure counts *most* of B5...I think. I dunno; the only way I can keep track anymore is go back through all the records and see how many were written for each show, and add 'em up, and I'm always forgetting something, somewhere. jms Subj: B5 Economics Section: Babylon 5 To: Tuesday, June 13, 1995 1:13:11 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#239115 I've only seen one episode of The Tick, and loved it. Favorite scene: a Bad Guy has a friend, which is really a sock puppet over his hand, which he operates with minimal skill. At one point, when the Tick doesn't appear, the sock puppet says, "He's off sulking like Achilles in his tent." (blank stares from all the other bad guys) "Achilles." (blank stares) "Homer. The Illiad. The Odyssesy." (blank stares) "READ A BOOK!!!!" jms Subj: Babylon 5 Theme Music Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 2:50:17 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#240267 Yes, the B5 soundtrack is on sale in the UK. jms Subj: Initials Section: Babylon 5 To: Tuesday, June 13, 1995 1:22:03 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#239120 >> Is it just a coincidence that Jeff Sinclair, John Sheridan and Joe Straczynski all have the same initials? << Probably not. jms Subj: <>-Spoiler Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 2:50:18 AM ~From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#240268 >>Talia Winters is either getting killed off or thrown in jail back on earth. She is the one who tried to kill Kosh at very beginning of show. In real life, the actress who plays her and the actor that plays Garabaldi are engaged!!! The shadows attack the Narn home world and do major damage. Vir is getting killed off.I wonder if their sources are reliable. We will see..............<< I'd say overall that's the most breathtakingly jumbled batch of half-rumors and quarter-truths I've seen. You can disregard, oh, 98% of it. jms Subj: Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 11:31:27 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#241229 No, it's not a Manchurian Candidate reference. There really is such a thing as psycho-linguistics. jms Subj: Why B5 on TV? Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 11:15:17 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#241212 Any time I come up with a story, I try to look around to determine where it would work best. This one *felt* like it belonged to TV. More than that, though...I went into this looking to create a saga for TV. It wasn't so much coming up with the story, and realizing it was a TV saga, as it was, "Nobody's ever done a multi-year science fiction saga for television. As a thought-experiment, can I come up with something that would work in this medium?" This led me to the structure that became Babylon 5. jms Subj: B5's Military Metaphor Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 11:15:15 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#241211 As I responded in private mail, I'm drawing upon a number of military influences in the show; some from WW I, in the Great War and how WW I sort of slid into WW II; some tactical and strategic elements of WW II military; and some of the political elements that went into the Vietnam and Korean conflicts. Actual tactics and battles will vary; there's a major battle setpiece in a later episode that uses more contemporary and futuristic elements such as long-distance (thousands of kilometers) tactics, interceptors and the like. Also as I noted in email...I just learned today from someone high up in military PR in Washington that Babylon 5 is very popular with many branches of the military. They call it a "force multiplier" (morale booster) for naval and air force and ground troops (apparently the show gets shipped out to bases and to carrier/battleship groups). It's also very popular with many folks in the Pentagon and the Secret Service. (In one case, the Secret Service apparently did an analysis of one of our episodes as an exercise in character analysis of military persons under high-stress situations.) The Flying Tigers have also been very supportive of the show, even allowing us to use their symbol in the series. jms Subj: Babylon 5 Theme Music Section: Babylon 5 To: Wednesday, June 14, 1995 11:15:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#241210 Everything's fine. But PTEN dropped *all* the ending voiceovers on their shows, including B5. jms Subj: Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 15, 1995 10:33:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#242363 I was at SDSU, getting my bachelor's in psychology, the first time I heard of psycholinguistics. Much of the department considered it basically rubber-science, but they were all hard-core behavior modification/Skinner types in any event. jms Subj: Babylon 5 Theme Music Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 15, 1995 10:33:11 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#242362 Actually, there's 35-40 minutes of music in the pilot; it wasn't wall-to-wall music. I'm not opposed to it, but at this time, nobody's licensed it. We can't do anything until somebody licenses it from a record company. jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 15, 1995 10:25:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#242354 Vorlons/Shadows at the top of the force, Minbari after, Centauri, with Humans and Narns not that far apart. Er...what was the suggestion again...? jms Subj: Claudia/Takishima Section: Babylon 5 To: Thursday, June 15, 1995 10:25:11 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#242353 I don't offhand know Claudia's age (I forget this stuff 5 minutes after I'm told), and wouldn't invade her privacy by saying anyway. Would rather hold back on anything to say about Laurel for now. jms Subj: Delayed Episodes Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 16, 1995 6:39:18 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243048 Of the four remaining episodes, 1 was delivered about a week and a halfor two weeks ago (which would air second in the batch). The episode thatwould air first was delivered yesterday. The episode that airs third willbe delivered today or Monday. The final episode will be delivered in in about 7-10 days. So to recap: episode 1 - delivered episode 2 - delivered episode 3 - Monday episode 4 - 7-10 days And that's all of it. jms Subj: Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 16, 1995 6:39:21 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243050 Actually, I think the main reason there isn't much fanfiction is that I've specifically asked for there not to be any until after we've finished our run. And as is generally true of the SF fan community, if you ask nice and respectfully, you will generally be accommodated. jms Subj: Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 16, 1995 11:46:10 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243270 Sounds like it. jms Subj: Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 16, 1995 6:39:17 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243047 I never much went in for Skinner. When I went into the psychology department initially, everything was Carl Rogers, non-directive therapy, and RET. Then somewhere along the line Skinner took over, and by the time I transferred to SDSU, it was all over for everything else. Here's how bad it was: I took a seminar in "Theories of Psychology." All that was taught that semester was Skinner. Toward the end of the term I asked why. "Well, there are many theories of psychology," I was told by the instructor (who was also the department chairman), but it seemed better to teach you the *right* one." jms Subj: Claudia/Takishima Section: Babylon 5 To: Friday, June 16, 1995 6:39:19 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243049 Was on AOL a few days ago, fairly quiet. jms Subj: Fighting Shadows Section: Babylon 5 To: JOHN M. KAHANE, Sunday, June 18, 1995 12:17:10 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244031 You're assuming that the relationship you saw between Delenn and Sinclair was a romantic one. It was a close one, on her part in particular, but not based on romance. We'll explain what that means in year three. jms Subj: Fighting Shadows Section: Babylon 5 To: Burhaan Ahmad, Sunday, June 18, 1995 12:26:27 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244035 "It's a rebirth ceremony, all right, which sometimes doubles as a marriage ceremony." Amazing how everyone went for the secondary meaning and omitted the most obvious meaning in presaging the rebirth Delenn went through in "Chrysalis." jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: Barbara Pfieffer, Sunday, June 18, 1995 12:22:01 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244034 Haven't made up my mind yet on what to bring to ComicCon. jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius, Saturday, June 17, 1995 6:07:23 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243775 Which is all fine, except...who said that Earth was going to end up fighting the Shadows? jms Subj: From JMS: B5 Renewed Section: Babylon 5 To: Mike, Saturday, June 17, 1995 6:07:22 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243774 Thanks, Mike. You (and the whole graphics department there) have always been a class act. jms Subj: Claudia/Takishima Section: Babylon 5 To: Jeannette Fornadel, Saturday, June 17, 1995 6:07:21 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243773 Sinclair was in his late thirties or thereabouts. jms Subj: B5 vs Simpsons Section: Babylon 5 To: Jon A Bell, Saturday, June 17, 1995 6:07:20 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#243772 The Simpsons is *amazingly* well written. I love the show. jms Subj: Ducks Section: Babylon 5 To: SysOp Dupa T. Parrot, Sunday, June 18, 1995 12:22:31 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244033 I think it's a puzzle, but until I can check the tape, I can't be 100% sure. jms Subj: B5 VIDEOS (UK) Section: Babylon 5 To: John Denley, Sunday, June 18, 1995 11:01:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244951 "...because they realized that (the videos) are only in stereo..." Nope. The master tapes are in full Dolby surround. jms Subj: B5 Ratings Section: Babylon 5 To: William H. DiPaola, Sunday, June 18, 1995 6:29:22 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244733 Bear in mind that that "top ten" includes mainly game shows, talk shows and the like; only two of them, DS9 and Baywatch, are dramatic series. In ratings you generally isolate the dramatic series from the rest, and in that ranking we range between the #4 and #6 dramatic series in syndication. The main problem is lack of public awareness. Most people don't know we exist. Those who hear the name assume we're a Trek show. Roughly 55% of those who hear about the show and sample it once, stay with it thereafter. The usual figure is closer to 30%. It's just a matter of getting that word out. Mostly it's word of mouth. At some point, we'll hit critical mass in the ratings; I just don't know when that'll happen. jms Subj: B5 Ratings Section: Babylon 5 To: William H. DiPaola Monday, June 19, 1995 2:28:06 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#245008 Yeah, well, that goes for both of us. jms Subj: B5's Military Metaphor Section: Babylon 5 To: Anne L. Warner, Sunday, June 18, 1995 6:29:19 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244731 It would get rather redundent and boring after a while if the same war continued for three seasons, would it not? jms Subj: TD: Star Trek Section: Babylon 5 To: Larry Rosenblum, Sunday, June 18, 1995 6:14:13 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244724 B5 need not bring in huge ratings for some at Paramount to view us as a threat; in point of fact they've treated us that way from day one. The ratings overall and support for DS9 are very soft. They can't afford to lose anyone. But they're aware that many DS9 fans have tuned out to begin watching B5 because, well, things *happen* in this show. jms Subj: TD: Star Trek Section: Babylon 5 To: Jeannette Fornadel, Sunday, June 18, 1995 11:06:06 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244956 No, he pushed back marrying Sakai when he was reassigned. And yes, the proposal was mine. If my name is on the script, every word of it was written by me. jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: SysOp Dupa T. Parrot, Sunday, June 18, 1995 11:06:07 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244957 Last I heard, I'd been scheduled for two big presenations, that Saturday and Sunday. There will be one separate presentation for Michael, possibly two, and a panel or two with both of us, plus a panel with me, Michael and Peter David. jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius, Sunday, June 18, 1995 11:01:11 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244950 "We crave ACTION." And you shall have it. In abundance. jms Subj: Fighting Shadows Section: Babylon 5 To: Jerry D Bookter, Sunday, June 18, 1995 6:29:17 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244730 How will it be handled? With discretion and dignity and grace of course. Problem is, this isn't the sort of thing that collapses easily into a few-line message. It'll have to come out organically, during the show. jms Subj: Fighting Shadows Section: Babylon 5 To: Anne L. Warner, Sunday, June 18, 1995 6:29:20 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#244732 They didn't cancel the tapes, as much as, we discovered, never had the plans in the first place. We are, frankly, astonished. jms Subj: ITSOZ - Questions Section: Babylon 5 To: Colin Knowles, Tuesday, June 20, 1995 2:45:03 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#246115 The forces you describe are not sufficient to take out the shadows, even at this stage. It's going to take a much larger force, which is what Delenn et al are trying to gather. jms Subj: Fighting Shadows Section: Babylon 5 To: Jeannette Fornadel, Monday, June 19, 1995 10:11:03 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#245956 I think you've confused several things. We're talking about the events in "Parliament of Dreams" in which a ritual she goes through with a bunch of other Minbari is referred to as a) a rebirth ceremony, which sometimes doubles as a b) marriage ceremony. It was a rebirth ceremony in this case, presaging "Chrysalis." jms Subj: Narn Genus? Section: Babylon 5 To: Bob Perse, Monday, June 19, 1995 10:11:01 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#245955 I've worked out a rough chronology for the Narn evolution, but nothing nearly concrete enough to want to put out here. Once I've had the chance to think about it a bit more.... jms Subj: B5 Military Section: Babylon 5 To: Michael Beemer, Monday, June 19, 1995 10:11:00 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#245954 <>> "We crave ACTION." > > And you shall have it. In abundance. Always giving the audience what it wants, eh, Mr. Dark? > The moral lesson in the quote being...be careful what you ask for. jms Subj: Whither Na'Toth? Section: Babylon 5 To: Spencer Collyer [UK] Monday, June 19, 1995 10:11:31 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#245953 That's what's negotiated, but an actor may often be used in fewer eps, as was the case with Na'Toth. jms Subj: Cancel Voyager? Section: Star Trek To: James Ortis, Wednesday, June 21, 1995 3:28:09 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#247131 Correction: the first seasons of TNG were not done cheaply; the budgets set aside were greater than for any other previous syndicated series, and were equal to or greater than most network shows. jms Subj: ITSOZ - Questions Section: Babylon 5 To: Colin Knowles, Tuesday, June 20, 1995 10:41:20 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#246960 That will be part of the next season, yes. jms Subj: B5 Laser import Section: Babylon 5 To: Anthony Ho, Thursday, June 22, 1995 12:54:20 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#248135 Argh, unfortunately the disk is in storage, and I don't have the number at hand. You may want to try the Lasercraze laserdisk sales service here on CIS; they may have it. I've heard something very interesting about the UK airing for the final four eps (year three beyond has been renewed there). I hope to have something very positive to say shortly. jms Subj: B5 - UK Return! Section: Babylon 5 To: Malcolm Pemberton, Friday, June 23, 1995 1:28:29 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#249248 That's good to hear. Last I'd heard was the possibility that Ch4 might air all four remaining year two eps *the same night* on July 25th, in kind of a B5 marathon. Good in one sense, though if you miss that night, you miss it all. Here, spreading it out as usual, is probably better. jms Subj: B5 Laser import Section: Babylon 5 To: Brian A. Thomas, Thursday, June 22, 1995 3:20:26 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#248610 < >> (year three beyond has been renewed there) << Year three beyond? Do you mean year three _and_ beyond?!> No, just year three; awkward syntax on my part. jms Subj: Effect of story idea Section: Babylon 5 To: Christopher R. Turn, Thursday, June 22, 1995 3:20:25 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#248609 It was always intended as a B-story, mainly a character story about the person who was affected, and how that would affect our main charactes when they found out about it (it's someone they would have known for a bit). jms Subj: B5 World Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius,Friday, June 23, 1995 9:41:15 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#250113 Remember that the Io mission was just a cover, a red herring, for the actual mission. So there really *was* no need. As for B5 background, there are some lurker's guides out there that have more info than anyone could ever want. jms Subj: B5 Laser import Section: Babylon 5 To: Jeannette Fornadel, Friday, June 23, 1995 9:41:13 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#250111 Yes. jms Subj: Drazi Question Section: Babylon 5 To: Jason Wong, Sunday, June 25, 1995 3:25:03 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251122 Actually, Drazi are asexual, carrying the attributes of both, with their basic appearance reading to us like males. jms Subj: Top Five List Section: Babylon 5 To: Paul Maskens Sunday, June 25, 1995 1:14:25 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251080 It's really sad, but...see, on the one hand, I like filet mignon, and occasionally lobster, and all the other hoity-toity foods you're supposed to like and eat when you're a TeeVee producer, but see...I hate even to admit this in public, but... I actually kinda *like* McDonald's burgers. I don't know why, but there it is. I usually end up ducking into one when I'm by myself, because the explanations...well, you see my problem. jms Subj: B5 World Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius, Saturday, June 24, 1995 5:08:10 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#250730 You can order direct from Sonic Images, via information here on the B5 library. Pegasus Publishing also does some CD ordering. jms Subj: From jms re: Harlan CD Section: Babylon 5 To: All Sunday, June 25, 1995 9:10:31 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251813 For those interested, Harlan Ellison has a new recording out via the Harlan Ellison Record Collection, cost $16.50 & $2 postage/handling for the general public, $15 & $2 for members of HERC (the Harlan Ellison Record Collection, which for a paltry $8 per year you get a newsletter, updates on what's available, access to his books and prior recordings). The new CD is his performance/reading of "Paladin of the Lost Hour," which many of you may remember from its adaptation into an episode of "The Twilight Zone." It's a *terrific* reading, very dynamic, and if you've never heard Harlan read one of his stories, you're missing a lot. (One prior recording was nominated for a Grammy.) Checks or money orders can be sent to: The Harlan Ellison Record Collection, P. O. Box 55548, Sherman Oaks, CA 91413. jms Subj: G'Quan's sex Section: Babylon 5 To: Daniel M. Upton, Sunday, June 25, 1995 9:10:28 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251812 G'Quon was a male. jms Subj: Top Five List Section: Babylon 5 To: Dinie Kloosterboer, Monday, June 26, 1995 1:46:11 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251972 We've had fast food on B5, including pizzas. jms Subj: Spirituality and Delenn Section: Babylon 5 To: Anne L. Warner, Sunday, June 25, 1995 11:10:27 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#251811 Not bad.... jms Subj: Babylon 5: Hard SF & B5 Section: Babylon 5 To: Aurora, Monday, June 26, 1995 10:46:05 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#253077 Then please explain to me why it was that, when the Pioneer space probe passed the speed of sound while in space, the monitoring station at JPL registered a shock wave -- a sonic boom -- across its bow? Also, fuel of any kind that exerts propulsion, spewing forth substance to push it forward, puts forth a medium behind it capable of carrying sound. When some satellites have been launched from the shuttle, the crew have heard or felt the engine thrust. Further, a ship carries atmosphere within it. If that ship explodes, the sound will be audible within the curtain of the expanding atmospheric bubble created by the rupturing of the hull. The idea of *no* sound at all in space is one of the great shibboleths of SF. But in talking to many leading space scientists, including some at the High Altitude Observatory, and none other than Freeman Dyson, who currently occupies Einstein's chair...ain't necessarily true. jms Subj: From jms re: Harlan CD Section: Babylon 5 To: Michael Beemer, Monday, June 26, 1995 10:38:12 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#253059 Insofar as I know, no, none of the TZ2 or 3 tapes are being sold. jms Subj: From jms re: Harlan CD Section: Babylon 5 To: Trent K. Johnson, Monday, June 26, 1995 10:38:09 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#253057 Actually, yes, Harlan does sing, and sing quite well; there's a bit of it on one of his LPs. jms Subj: Kosh & Delenn Section: Babylon 5 To: Barbara Pfieffer, Monday, June 26, 1995 10:38:10 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#253058 Probably. jms Subj: From jms re: Harlan CD Section: Babylon 5 To: Ed Schlotman, Tuesday, June 27, 1995 9:47:05 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#254084 In the fullness of time.... jms Subj: B5 Games Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius, Tuesday, June 27, 1995 9:47:06 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#254085 No computer games available at present. jms Subj: Trying to Find JMS Section: Babylon 5 To: Anne L. Warner, Tuesday, June 27, 1995 9:52:06 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#254087 The pilot movie showed the poison being analyzed; the line on the monitor read "Analyzing crystalline structure." jms Subj: Chicago ComiCon Question Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles S. Tritt, Tuesday, June 27, 1995 9:52:07 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#254088 Last I heard, I'll be doing presentations both Saturday and Sunday. If this stays true, your best bet is to come to the one on Sunday if you can only do one or the other. If possible, try to verify this with someone as far as the two presentations are concerned. jms Subj: JMS ComicCon Schedule Section: Babylon 5 To: All Wednesday, June 28, 1995 1:24:18 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#254239 For those in the vicinity, I'll be putting in an appearance this weekend at the Chicago ComicCon, Rosemont Convention Center, Rosemont IL. Here's the schedule: FRIDAY 3:00 A jms appearance with bloopers and other clips. 4:00 Michael O'Hare leads an acting seminar. SATURDAY 11:00 a.m. Q&A with Michael O'Hare 1:30-3:00 A special jms presentation. *Be there* 4:00 A jms writing for TV seminar. 8 or 9ish p.m. A casual B5 reception with jms, Michael O'Hare and Peter David. SUNDAY 1-2 p.m. B5 panel with jms, Michael O'Hare and Peter David. jms Subj: From jms re: Harlan CD Section: Babylon 5 To: Trent K. Johnson, Wednesday, June 28, 1995 11:54:30 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#255204 Dream Corridor is a great comic, I recommend it heartily. jms Subj: Stims & Dr. Franklin Section: Babylon 5 To: Marlyn Bumpus, Wednesday, June 28, 1995 11:54:31 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#255205 We'll see.... jms Subj: B5 Games Section: Babylon 5 To: Charles Agius, Wednesday, June 28, 1995 11:54:01 PM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#255206 There will be a screen saver from Sound Source later this year. jms Subj: Big Bang Convention Section: Babylon 5 To: SysOp Dupa T. Parrot, Thursday, June 29, 1995 12:38:14 AM From: J. Michael Straczynski, 71016,1644#255230 I heard today that, as well as a previous check to one of the cast members attending having bounced, a *second* check to one of the major actors has bounced. These guys are amazing.... jms