ATTN JMS: Showtime and sydication...

[UnltdLife]

This is probably too soon to ask... but here goes anyway.

I think all of Showtime's Sci-Friday offerings have been syndicated one-year
after initial airing, season by season. (Stargate, Outer Limits, and Total
Recall 2070)

Is that standard for Showtime? And... obvious next question... is that what
will happen with the new show?

Thanks.

Jason
aka reverendvader

[Jms at B5]

>I think all of Showtime's Sci-Friday offerings have been syndicated one-year
>after initial airing, season by season. (Stargate, Outer Limits, and Total
>Recall 2070)
>
>Is that standard for Showtime? And... obvious next question... is that what
>will happen with the new show?

Nothing's been set yet as far as I know, again it's way early for that kind of
conversation. I do know that we'll probably end up shooting 2 versions, one
for cable one for syndie for language and stuff.

jms

(jms...@aol.com)
(all message content (c) 2000 by
synthetic worlds, ltd., permission
to reprint specifically denied to
SFX Magazine)

[Reid Morris]

"DeadMan's Gun" never was syndicated. Unfortunately I don't think that
show made it past it's 2nd season. While it wasn't the usual Sci-Fi fare I
thought the show was pretty cool. I hope someone will eventually pick that
show up. Never did like Total Recall 2070, which to me was more Blade
Runner with the Total Recall name tacked onto it.

Reidm

UnltdLife <unlt...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20001002162508...@ng-cg1.aol.com...

> This is probably too soon to ask... but here goes anyway.
>

> I think all of Showtime's Sci-Friday offerings have been syndicated
one-year
> after initial airing, season by season. (Stargate, Outer Limits, and
Total
> Recall 2070)
>

> snip

[Dan Wallach]

jms writes:
> Nothing's been set yet as far as I know, again it's way early for
> that kind of conversation. I do know that we'll probably end up
> shooting 2 versions, one for cable one for syndie for language and
> stuff.

This brings up an interesting question. At one point during the B5 run, you
posted that you'd suddenly realized you had no network censors between you and
your audience and could therefore get funky with us.

Aside from language issues (e.g., the seven dirty words you can't say on
television), are there significant differences about what you can do, whether
in terms of the classic bugaboos (violence, nudity, sexuality) or harder topics
to quantify (religion, morality, no doubt other stuff as well)?

Meanwhile, if you film two versions, you immediately create debates on which
version is the "canonical" version. Would you be blanking out the naughty bits
or reshooting scenes to be less naughty?

Thanks,

Dan

P.S. With all these new non-B5 projects, will this newsgroup still be the
place to find and chat with JMS, or do we need to create
rec.arts.sf.jms.moderated?

[Jms at B5]

>Aside from language issues (e.g., the seven dirty words you can't say on
>television), are there significant differences about what you can do, whether
>in terms of the classic bugaboos (violence, nudity, sexuality) or harder
>topics
>to quantify (religion, morality, no doubt other stuff as well)?

It's *all* on the table. If you do a show that could just as easily be on
ABC...why put it on Showtime? I want to take this to the wall.

[J. Potts]

In article <39DB7F84...@cs.rice.edu>,

Dan Wallach <dwal...@cs.rice.edu> wrote:
>P.S. With all these new non-B5 projects, will this newsgroup still be the
>place to find and chat with JMS, or do we need to create
>rec.arts.sf.jms.moderated?

Actually, the charter for this newsgroup reads:

CHARTER: rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated

rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon-5.moderated is to be a moderated newsgroup
dedicated to the following topics:

* The plots and characters of Babylon 5 episodes.
* Musings and speculations about where the show is going.
* Other topics of interest to the fans in the newsgroup.

Notice the last line, "Other topics of interest to the fans in the
newsgroup. Ergo, anything you want to talk about with JMS or anyone
else is "on topic".

--
JRP
"How many slime-trailing, sleepless, slimy, slobbering things do you know
that will *run and hide* from your Eveready?"
--Maureen Birnbaum, Barbarian Swordsperson

[Michael J. Hennebry]

In article <20001002162508...@ng-cg1.aol.com>,

UnltdLife <unlt...@aol.com> wrote:
>I think all of Showtime's Sci-Friday offerings have been syndicated one-year
>after initial airing, season by season. (Stargate, Outer Limits, and Total
>Recall 2070)
>

>Is that standard for Showtime? And... obvious next question... is that what
>will happen with the new show?

My recollection is that Stargate SG-1 is now in a multi-year contract
and that it was a major show of faith by Showtime.

--
Mike henn...@plains.NoDak.edu
Iluvatar is the better part of Valar.