Article about fan devotion
Miriam Ferziger
Twin Peaks may not want to read it, as it does not exactly paint a glowing
picture of them, but it is an interesting article anyway on the history of
"save the show" campaigns.
Even if you don't want to read the article, the addresses to write all four
networks are listed at the end.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Miriam Ferziger | DISCLAIMER:
hf....@forsythe.stanford.edu | If any of the above fails to make sense, it
| is because I was born with a silver foot in
| my mouth and have a mind like a steel sieve.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
<0C>
'Twin Peaks,' Quantum Leap' fans are undeniably devoted
by Bob Wisehart
McClatchy News Service
(The Sun, Friday, April 5, 1991)
Some people save whales. Others save string. Then, there's that hardy
band of eccentrics who save TV shows. You've heard about them. You know
they're out there somewhere. Actually, they're out there EVERYWHERE [their
caps].
They're not dangerous, though they can be very noisy moving through the
underbrush of popular culture, kind of like plant-eating dinosaurs.
I'm talking about the brave, the few, the nuts--those series supporters
whose fanaticism is out of proportion to the modest number of people who
watch the show.
It is that ragtag gang of video guerrillas who took credit for saving "Star
Trek" back in the '60s.
A generation after they rescued "Star Trek"--if only temporarily--they
persuaded CBS to keep "Cagney & Lacey" on the air, and went on to give the
same combative fealty to "China Beach."
The "Beauty and the Beast" crowd was a lovely bunch of coconuts, too. If
the show itself had bee as creative as what came out of its fans'
newsletter and nationwide computer hookup, old furball would still be on
the air.
Today, only two series generate that kind of zealotry. One is "Quantum
Leap." The other is--you guessed it--"Twin Peaks."
"Twin Peaks" fanatics are high-tech, militant and they verge on lunacy.
Imagine tens of thousands of Captain Queegs--steel balls in one hand,
foreheads sprinkled with sweat and a nervous tic or two--and you get the
picture.
When ABC took "Twin Peaks" off the air six weeks ago, these people did
everything but burn the building down.
A call-in movement shut down ABC Entertainment President Robert Iger's fax
machine. Reportedly, one weekend Iger came into his office to find 163
"save 'Twin Peaks'" messages clogging his phone mail.
The "official" save-the-show organizations include C.O.O.P. (Citizens
Opposed to the Offing of Peaks), STP (Save Twin Peaks), TPPS (Twin Peaks
Preservation Society), and P.E.A.K. (People Emphatically Against
Kancellation).
And don't forget the ever-popular death threats. Charming.
The frenzied fan mail brought coffee, homemade pie, doughnuts, fireplace
logs like the one carried by the Log Lady, a plastic hand, and golf balls
like those that murderer Leland Palmer putted in his living room.
"Twin Peaks," of course, returned to the air last week. Its daffy fans
should not take the credit, though they will anyway.
"Quantum Leap" is a different case, mostly because NBC's whimsical series
about a time-traveling test pilot attracts a different and gentler viewer.
According to NBC, on Feb. 25 some 300 of these "Leapers"--some prefer to
be called "Leapheads," Lord knows why--from a dozen different states paid
their way to Los Angels for a special "Quantum Leap" screening at Universal
Studios.
They didn't scream or issue death threats. Al they were was there. It
wasn't fanaticism, it was devotion. There's a difference.
If you have the urge to join the movement on behalf of a favorite show,
now's the time and here are the addresses:
Robert Iger, president, ABC Entertainment, 2040 Avenue of the Stars, Los
Angles, CA 90067
Jeff Sagansky, president, CBS Entertainment, 7800 Beverly Blvd., Los
Angeles, CA 90036
Peter Chernin, president, Fox Entertainment Group, Box 900, Beverly Hills,
CA 90213
Warren Littlefield, president, NBC Entertainment, 3000 West Alameda,
Burbank, CA 91523
Mary E. Allison
> In the eye of the beholder. I'm a devoted fan of both shows. I have
> every episode of TP on tape and watch them regularly. I've also been
> taping QL for the past year. However, I'm more dedicated to TP
> because it sparks more thought and discussion. Its something similar
> to the difference between entertainment and art.
AHHH -- but Scott Bakula without his shirt on is entertainment AND art
together.
(sorry -- what do you expect when I've gone without for two weeks :) )
--
=================== WEDNESDAY IS QUANTUM LEAP DAY =====================
Square Dancers do it in groups of 8. | What matter wounds to the
in all positions - at 132 beats per minute | body of a knight errant
Mary Allison (ma...@uicslsah.csl.uiuc.edu) | for each time he falls he
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | shall rise again and
(currently owned by two cats) | WOE to the wicked
====================== IS IT WEDNESDAY YET?? ==========================
Peter D. Wilson
> Below is an article that a friend from the LA area sent me. Devotees of
> Twin Peaks may not want to read it, as it does not exactly paint a glowing
> picture of them, but it is an interesting article anyway on the history of
> "save the show" campaigns.
>[start of article:]
> Some people save whales. Others save string. Then, there's that hardy
> band of eccentrics who save TV shows.
I save whales, too.
> They're not dangerous, though they can be very noisy moving through the
> underbrush of popular culture, kind of like plant-eating dinosaurs.
From the rest of the article I get the impression that this guy does
think we're dangerous.
> "Twin Peaks" fanatics are high-tech, militant and they verge on lunacy.
I accept high-tech and on the verge of lunacy, but militant?
> When ABC took "Twin Peaks" off the air six weeks ago, these people did
> everything but burn the building down.
>
> A call-in movement shut down ABC Entertainment President Robert Iger's fax
> machine. Reportedly, one weekend Iger came into his office to find 163
> "save 'Twin Peaks'" messages clogging his phone mail.
163!?! Boy, that proves we are a dangerous force. This was clearly
a terrorist attempt at overthrowing the powers that be.
> The "official" save-the-show organizations include C.O.O.P. (Citizens
> Opposed to the Offing of Peaks), STP (Save Twin Peaks), TPPS (Twin Peaks
> Preservation Society), and P.E.A.K. (People Emphatically Against
> Kancellation).
And I thought COOP was the only one.
> And don't forget the ever-popular death threats. Charming.
Please define popular. There were over 300,000 letters received
by ABC. How many contained death threats? 4? 5? In a group this
large there are sure to be some kooks.
> "Twin Peaks," of course, returned to the air last week. Its daffy fans
> should not take the credit, though they will anyway.
True. I think ABC said it was planning to air the last 6 episodes
latter in the season when TP was put on hiatus.
> "Quantum Leap" is a different case, mostly because NBC's whimsical series
> about a time-traveling test pilot attracts a different and gentler viewer.
A kinder, gentler viewer. QL consistently has great writing and
acting, but rarely takes any big risks. It's a feel good show.
TP, on the other hand, has been doing things that have never been
done before.
> According to NBC, on Feb. 25 some 300 of these "Leapers"--some prefer to
> be called "Leapheads," Lord knows why--from a dozen different states paid
> their way to Los Angels for a special "Quantum Leap" screening at Universal
> Studios.
Now if only Lynch would do this. When TP returned to the air in March
I and 300 others from the Iowa City area paid their way into a party
to watch that nights episode and meet Harry "Deputy Andy" Goaz. I
think similar things happened at several other cities.
> They didn't scream or issue death threats. Al they were was there. It
> wasn't fanaticism, it was devotion. There's a difference.
In the eye of the beholder. I'm a devoted fan of both shows. I have
every episode of TP on tape and watch them regularly. I've also been
taping QL for the past year. However, I'm more dedicated to TP
because it sparks more thought and discussion. Its something similar
to the difference between entertainment and art.
Peter.
wil...@iowasp.physics.uiowa.edu
*********************************************************************
* "A person is a person | "The life I lead would even *
* no matter how small." | make a dead man yawn" *
* - Horton | - Klaatu *
*********************************************************************
Charles Kelley
Lifetime cable channel is close to a deal to carry reruns of CHINA BEACH,
formally on ABC. (Side note...saw a really nasty cable ad a few days ago
slamming ABC, CBS, and NBC saying cable is where all the original programming
is and cable has better programming; I wonder why, since this is the case,
Lifetime, USA, the Family Channel, Nickelodeon, etc all devote some many
hours to those "wretched network programs"; just an observation)
Japan's NHK plans to launch a global news channel called GNN (Global
News Network) by year's end; partnership between NHK, European and US
broadcasters to go up against CNN
Tracy Ullman is suing Fox over THE SIMPSONS TV show. Her contract says
that she is entitled to a %age of the profits of characters created and
featured on her show (now shown in reruns on Lifetime). Since THE
SIMPSONS are a spin-off of her show, she wants some of the profits.
She says she is also entitled to a part of the profits from merchandise
(which for THE SIMPSONS could be a mighty big sum of money).
--- Chip
Sally Smith
(most of article deleted)
>According to NBC, on Feb. 25 some 300 of these "Leapers"--some prefer to
>be called "Leapheads," Lord knows why--from a dozen different states paid
Totally untrue. Nobody PREFERS to be called "Leaphead". I wish we could
stamp this bletcherous word out. "Leapers" is the Politically Correct (tm)
term, the one chosen by the fans themselves, the one the people making
the show use to refer to the fans, and the one that the people making
the show use to refer to THEMSELVES.
>They didn't scream or issue death threats. Al they were was there. It
>wasn't fanaticism, it was devotion. There's a difference.
Hey, I like this guy. He understands!
Good publicity, what a neat concept.
Isn't it 10:00 YET?!
Sally
--
Sally Smith (415)790-0608 | ...!uunet!olivea!tymix!tardis!sally
sa...@tardis.tymnet.com | I'm unemployed--these opinions *must* be mine!
Deborah Brown
>In article <1991May1.1...@morrow.stanford.edu> HF....@forsythe.stanford.edu (Miriam Ferziger) writes:
>(most of article deleted)
>>According to NBC, on Feb. 25 some 300 of these "Leapers"--some prefer to
>>be called "Leapheads," Lord knows why--from a dozen different states paid
>Totally untrue. Nobody PREFERS to be called "Leaphead". I wish we could
>stamp this bletcherous word out. "Leapers" is the Politically Correct (tm)
>term, the one chosen by the fans themselves, the one the people making
>the show use to refer to the fans, and the one that the people making
>the show use to refer to THEMSELVES.
This is correct. "Leaphead" is an epithet foisted upon us by some dweeb
at NBC who knows not of what he speaks. Leaphead is one word that tends
to bring out fits of bad temper in THIS usenetter.
>Isn't it 10:00 YET?!
1 hour, 50 minutes... Oh, that's me. You still have another 2 hours and
50 minutes yet don't you (right Mary? <giggle> ).
**************** QUANTUM LEAPING, THE ONLY WAY TO TRAVEL!! *******************
Quote: "I'm glad I'm a hologram and don't have to smell you. You must really
reek!" Al, QUANTUM LEAP
Disclamer: "Disclaim THIS, pal!" (my employer thinks I'm working)
Debbie Brown: Internet: d...@cci.com | GEnie: D.BROWN89
UUCP: uunet!ccicpg!cci632!deb| Prodigy: NCNX32A
********** It's 1997: do you know where your quantum physicist is? ************