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...in continuous publication since October 1994!
Newsletter & mailing list maintained by: Nicole Pellegrini
Email address to unsubscribe from newsletter:
*** [email protected] ***
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DATE: December 21, 1997
ISSUE: 5
VOLUME: 4
Current newsletter + mailing list subscribership: 84
Current newsletter-only subscribership: 361
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Holiday madness ensures here in Philadelphia, but there's just time enough to get out one more issue of OTJ before the New Year!
CONTENTS:
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NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Important mailing list administrative update!/Holiday info
New Cannell Show in the works
FEATURES:
"The A-Team" review by Cynthia Broadwater (from Daredevils, 1984)
WEB WATCH
VCR WATCH
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NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:
IMPORTANT MAILING LIST ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATE!/HOLIDAY INFO: As those of you on the mailing list already know, we have switched to a new, fully automated mailing list server on the stargame network. This change allows for members to subscribe and unsubscribe easily and quickly--eliminating the difficulties often encountered especially around the holidays our on previous umich server! I hope to be able to offer a "digest-list" option in the near future as well, though I am waiting for approval from stargame on this subject currently.
If you are only on the newsletter list currently and would like to add yourself to the reflector list, please follow these instructions *precisely* (because you will be emailing a computer program, *not me*, and it only understands specific command instructions!
1. Send email to [email protected] with ONLY following in your message body:
subscribe onthejazz
Please TURN OFF any .sig function when emailing this if possible, because that can confuse the server!
2. Follow the simple confirmation procedure by responding to the authorization request EXACTLY AS IT SAYS TO DO and EXACTLY to the address it instructs you to respond to. Unless you respond to the confirmation email, you will not be added to the list.
Full information on posting and unsubscribing are then automatically emailed to you.
The [email protected] address and server still exists, in case any problems are encountered, but it has been temporarily disabled to ensure that people post only to the new address.
SOCKII REMINDS EVERYONE...I will be on vacation from December 24th through January 7th, and most likely without any access to my email for that time period. Since the new list has been functioning fine so far, I expect no difficulties, however, please note that if any DO take place, I will be unable to do anything about them until I return!
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NEW CANNELL SHOW IN THE WORKS: The following article appeared in the entertainment news this past week:
Cannell Giving TV Another 'Chance'
(Thursday December 18 8:04 AM EST)
By Cynthia Littleton
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Television producer Stephen J. Cannell, who has kept a low profile in TV over the past year, is understood to be developing a new drama series called "Jordan Chance."
The project, which is still in the early stages, is described as a adventure series about a crusader who helps people solve unusual problems. Cannell is working on it with Tribune Entertainment, but it's unclear if they have signed a formal deal for the show.
Cannell's most recent TV series, the syndicated drama "Two," was yanked earlier this year after one season. His last network primetime entry was the critically acclaimed but low-rated "Profit," which had a short run on Fox in April and May 1996.
Lately, Cannell has been a hot property in the publishing world, penning the best-selling novels The Plan (1995), Final Victim (1996) and this year's King Con.
Reuters/Variety
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FEATURE ARTICLE:
Here is a "review" of the A-Team from the magazine Daredevils in 1984 (I do not know the exact issue #). Thanks to Gill Dunn who sent me the copy which I have transcribed here.
"The A-Team" by Cynthia Broadwater
It's Tuesday evening and you've settled down in front of the TV after a hard day at work--you're going to watch your favorite show, The A-Team. You are tired of having the critics knock your show. There is a place for pure escapist television and this is it.
I have been watching the show for several weeks now for the purpose of writing this article. I have talked to friends who are fans of the show for their point of view. I am ready to admit that the show has its pluses.
The A-Team is a crack commando unit who was sent to prison in 1972 for a crime they didn't commit. They escaped to the Los Angeles underground. Still wanted by the government, they survive by hiring out as mercenaries.
The leader, Hannibal Smith, usually has a cigar dangling out of his mouth. When the cigar is gone his mouth creases into a smirk. Hannibal is capable of coming up with the wildest schemes to get the job done. Seldom is he fazed by anything that happens. He always thinks one step ahead of the enemy and when things go wrong he takes the attitude that he can turn the situation around...and he does.
The Face is the picture-perfect, handsome hero. He normally is dressed to the limit and enjoys fine cars and fine women. He carries fake IDs for any occasion. Very glib, he can often talk himself out of a situation. Behind that smooth exterior there exists a top fighting man, if he can't talk his way out, he can definitely fight his way out. Often he is the patsy in Hannibal's far out schemes.
B.A.Baracus has become the most popular of the A-Team members with the public. So popular that the actor, Mr. T, now has a Saturday morning cartoon show. B.A. seldom has lines extending beyond five words. He is the muscle man of the group and few people would willingly take on this giant of a man. B.A. is not as stupid as his restricted dialogue would indicate. He has no problem understanding the tricky schemes of Hannibal's and is capable of fighting using both brute strength and trained, specialized techniques. He can show great tenderness, especially towards children. His Achilles heel is a fear of flying, which was the running joke of the first season.
Howling Mad Murdock is perhaps the most interesting of the A-Team members. It is difficult to know if he is really totally insane of a genius beyond our understanding. One week he thinks he's a dog, another week he is convinced that a cockroach is the reincarnated Herman Melville and constantly carries on a conversation with the bug. Mad? Sounds it, and yet he can read and speak Chinese fluently; having a headache one day, a really bad one, he recovered to find that he could understand Chinese. Perhaps proof positive that those whom the gods bless they first make mad. He is a topnotch pilot and the bane of BA's existence.
Making occasional appearances is Amy Allen, a reporter, and the only member of the A-Team not wanted by the government. Late rumors have indicated that Miss Allen will be replaced later this season with another character having more T & A to recommend her. Amy's contribution is research and going in when feminine charm will provide sufficient distraction.
The A-Team goes around and takes on the bad guys of the world--the small town sheriff who had the illegal liquor and gambling markets cornered and kills anyone who gets in his way; the smugglers of illegal aliens who treat the people as so much cattle to be auctioned off at market; the mysterious Tong who terrorize the merchants of Chinatown. This is what makes the A-Team so popular with the viewers, the same thing that makes the Dirty Harry films of Clint Eastwood and "Death Wish" of Charles Bronson popular. Vicariously we get even with all the bad guys in t he world.
We know the A-Team is going to win, the fun is watching how they outmaneuver the villains and some of the stunts are wild indeed. Out of pieces of steel on a construction site they create bullet proof tanks. They surround jeeps filled with soldiers come to arrest them simply by taking them by surprise. Under arrest, Hannibal calls downstairs posing as the policeman who bagged them and asks for an extra uniform. An unsuspecting cop delivers it and the whole A-Team march out of police headquarters led by Hannibal.
They are able to help people because Hannibal sincerely believes there is nothing he and his men can't do, and so far he's been right. The police are usually helpless, ignorant or corrupt. The army is just plain stupid, they're still after the four men as criminals when all their actions prove they really are on the side of Truth, Justice and the American Way.
As the crime rate goes up and more of us experience the helplessness of being a victim, shows like The A-Team will become more and more popular. Personally I have been robbed three times and the police have admitted that even with serial numbers and all, there is next to no chance of getting my things back, or the criminals caught. But if I called the A-Team in, my neighborhood victimized by a gang of thieves, Hannibal would come through and I'd be watching my color television in no time. Wish fulfillment, there is nothing wrong with that.
However, (you've been waiting for this, haven't you), there is one problem with the A-Team that makes my blood turn cold. Amid the rapid machine gun fire, the grenades and bombs, nobody gets hurt. I puzzled over this when I first put my finger on the cause of my unease. Did I really want to see a body slammed up against the wall by the force of machine gun fire, blood oozing out of the many wounds? Am I really that bloodthirsty?
I have always been told--and I believe it--you don't pull a gun unless you plan to use it. Guns are not toys. I'm not sure of the reasoning behind the lack of fatalities or injuries on the show but I suspect it has something to do with the fear of violence and its affect on young people. The A-Team coming on at 8:00 pm Eastern time is aired when a lot of children can watch it. To me this makes the lack of consequences of firing a gun even more inexcusable.
I am not in favor of gun control to the point where only criminals can get a firearm, but I do think that people who have guns have a responsibility and one of the biggest responsibilities is to understand the use and results of pulling the trigger, and letting their children learn the same. The A-Team shows people that you can fire automatic weapons with high power and hurt no one while succeeding in catching the bad guys and putting them behind bars. You shoot guns and no one gets damaged in any way. Is that really what we really want impressionable minds to believe?
I never really have believed that television violence has such a detrimental effect on children. Those of us that grew up in the Fifties and early Sixties were subject to some of the most violent programming around. How many times did we see Tom skinned, sliced in two, flattened or simply crumbled into little pieces? How about the Coyote falling off of high cliffs, then crushed even further with the giant rocks landing on top of him? Saturday afternoon westerns gave us lots of gun fights and shoot 'em ups...and people were wounded and people died. Yes, our youth was filled with violence and when we entered our teen-age years we were one of the most peace-conscious groups of youth ever known by this country. We had learned that violence has consequences.
Some may argue that as the good guys, the A-Team cannot possibly kill as that puts them beyond the law. But they already are beyond the law, they are wanted by the US Government. To mercenaries or men trained in special services, death would not be unknown. Jon Sable, a comic book mercenary, is a hero but he doesn't hesitate to kill when he has to. Napoleon and Illya, protectors of the free world, killed when they had to. Kirk and Spock, the future hope of peace and cooperation, also killed as necessary, Good guys can kill.
And good guys can be hurt. Starsky and Hutch were damaged several times in the line of duty. In one Mission: Impossible Cinnamon was caught and subjected to brainwashing that left her wrapped close in on herself. On Magnum PI one of the supporting regulars was killed. It can happen. (OK Murdock was temporarily blinded once, but compared to the violence of the show that is nothing).
I do not object to showing the violence on television. It can be exciting, get the blood pounding, fulfill wishes. What I do object to is the lack of consequences for choosing the path of violence. All the results are good with no counter-balance.
The characters are fun to watch. They are sufficiently one-sided that you can start chuckling over their reaction long before it happens because you know what they're going to say. Can you out-think Hannibal? It's fun to try. Keeping pace with Murdock's strange twists and turns can be intriguing. The sheer animal violence of BA is exciting. All these are on the plus side.
On the negative side is the lack of consequences for the violent action and a certain sameness in the plot line. Last year they dropped things out of helicopters and knocked out BA to get him in the air. This year they're making armor out of bits and pieces of metal and running down their enemy. But compared to boring plot lines or poorly delineated characters, these are not insurmountable problems, just something the producers and writers should look into.
And if I'm robbed again, I just may call on the A-Team.
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WEB WATCH: A few updates to mention:
First, many stories have just been added to the Lori Beatty fan-fiction archive, which can be found at archive.html. Thanks to all our transcribers who have helped make this archive possible. Hopefully in the coming year, I will be able to add out-of-print fiction from other authors to this on-line archive.
Also updated recently is Mobil's A-Team Web Page at http://members.aol.com/mobiltat/index.html. Stop by to check out the new features.
If you'd like to have your new/updated web site mentioned in the newsletter, please email us with the URL and a brief description.
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VCR WATCH -- A-Team listings up through the New Year--remember, all times are Eastern Standard
MELINDA CULEA:
Brotherly Love
Weeknights - 6:30 PM - DISN
PROGRAM: Comedy (30 Minutes)
Down, Out & Dangerous
Thursday, January 1, 1998 - 3:00 PM - USA
MOVIE: Suspense (120 Minutes)
(1995) An escaped killer convict upheaves the lives of a San Diego businessman and his pregnant wife. {CC,Stereo}. Richard Thomas, Bruce Davison, Cynthia Ettinger, Steve Hytner, Christine Cavanaugh, Melinda Culea. Directed by Noel Nosseck.
GEORGE PEPPARD:
Operation Crossbow
Saturday, December 27, 1997 - 9:00 AM - TCM
Thursday, January 1, 1998 - 8:00 PM - TCM
MOVIE: War (120 Minutes)
(1965) A British commando and his team drop into Germany and pose as scientists to pinpoint a Nazi rocket base. Sophia Loren, George Peppard, Trevor Howard, John Mills, Richard Johnson, Tom Courtenay. Directed by Michael Anderson. Rated "NR". Violence.
12/23/97, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
12/23/97, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek (A Million the Hard Way) - Banacek heads to Las Vegas to investigate the theft of $1 million from a casino.
12/30/97, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
12/30/97, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek (To Steal a King) - A coin collection is stolen prior to an auction, and its owner stands to lose millions. Guest stars: Pernell Roberts, Brenda Vaccaro.
1/6/98, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
1/6/98, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek ($10,000 a Page) - After a tycoon's (David Wayne) priceless book vanishes, Banacek moves in to crack the case.
1/13/98, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
1/13/98, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek (The Greatest Collection of Them All) - Banacek investigates the theft of a multimillion-dollar collection of French Impressionist paintings.
1/20/98, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
1/20/98, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek (The 2 Million Clams of Cap'n Jack) - A food company's stock certificates are stolen just as the corporation is about to assume control of a restaurant chain. Guest star: Andrew Duggan.
1/27/98, 9:30 (A&E - GEN)
1/27/98, 15:30 (A&E - GEN)
Banacek (No Stone Unturned) - An insurance company hands Banacek an attractive incentive to find a stolen $3 million statue: 10 percent of the statue's value if it is recovered in two days.
MR. T
Rocky III
Thursday, January 1, 1998 - 3:50 PM - TNT
MOVIE: Action (130 Minutes)
(1982) Old foe Apollo Creed trains ex-boxing champ Rocky Balboa for a rematch with brutish Clubber Lang. Sylvester Stallone, Mr. T, Talia Shire, Carl Weathers, Burt Young, Burgess Meredith. Directed by Sylvester Stallone.
ROBERT VAUGHN
Superman III
Sunday, December 21, 1997 - 2:30 PM - WGNN
MOVIE: Science Fiction (150 Minutes)
(1983) Ersatz kryptonite laced with tobacco tar splits Superman in two: good Clark Kent and bad Man of Steel. Christopher Reeve, Richard Pryor, Robert Vaughn, Jackie Cooper, Margot Kidder, Annette O'Toole. Directed by Richard Lester.
A-TEAM
12/22/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (When You Comin' Back, Range Ryder?) - The team helps smash a mustang-rustling operation on an Arizona Indian reservation.
12/23/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (When You Comin' Back, Range Ryder?) - The A-Team continues to harass the rustlers while evading capture by Col. Decker and his minions.
12/24/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Recipe for Heavy Bread) - The A-Team tries to save the life of a man who helped them escape from a Vietnam prisoner-of-war camp.
12/25/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Uncle Buckle-Up) - The star (Arte Johnson) of a children's TV program is threatened when he plans to denounce a toy company's product.
12/26/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The Only Church in Town) - The team protects a South American orphanage from a group of wild fugitives.
12/27/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Bad Time on the Border) - A lost Mexican girl leads B.A. to a smuggling ring responsible for illegally transporting aliens across the border.
12/29/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team () - no description available
12/30/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team () - no desciption available
12/31/97, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team () - no description available
1/2/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Water, Water Everywhere) - A greedy developer threatens to drive four people off their land.
1/3/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Steel) - A dangerous mob figure takes steps to prevent the demolition of an old warehouse.
1/5/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The White Ballot) - Face becomes a candidate for sheriff to expose a small-town law officer's shady dealings.
1/6/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The Maltese Cow) - A powerful Chinese group ruins a restaurateur's business when he refuses to pay protection money.
1/7/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (In Plane Sight) - The team sets out to clear the name of an alleged cocaine smuggler.
1/8/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The Battle of Bel Air) - An undercover reporter discovers some devilish goings-on at a security firm.
1/9/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Say It With Bullets) - A woman hires the team to investigate the murder of her brother, who was part of a munitions theft operation.
1/10/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Pure-Dee Poison) - The team helps a minister break up a moonshine operation.
1/12/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (It's a Desert Out There) - An outlaw desert group robs a busload of elderly people.
1/13/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Harder Than It Looks) - A wealthy man hires the A-Team to free his kidnapped daughter.
1/14/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Deadly Maneuvers) - Terrorists capture Murdock, Face and B.A.
1/15/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Semi-Friendly Persuasion) - Members of a peaceful group ask the A-Team for help after ruffians harass them.
1/16/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Curtain Call) - While helping a wounded Murdock, the A-Team members are pursued by Lt. Decker and his men.
1/17/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Bullets and Bikinis) - The team flies to Miami to wage war against gangsters threatening to take over a resort hotel owned by two sisters.
1/19/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Bend in the River) - A river pirate captures a man as he travels into uncharted Amazon River territory.
1/20/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Bend in the River) - The A-Team hopes to rescue a traveler who has been captured by a river pirate.
1/21/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Fire) - The team tries to protect a fire chief from harassment.
1/22/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Timber!) - The team attempts to stop a crooked union boss from forcing a family-run logging operation out of business.
1/23/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Double Heat) - The team goes up against two different crime syndicates to rescue the kidnapped daughter of a key government witness.
1/24/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Trouble on Wheels) - B.A., Hannibal and cohorts infiltrate a car factory to capture a gang of ruthless auto-parts thieves.
1/26/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The Island) - Hannibal, B.A. and cohorts raid a dope smuggler's den in the South Pacific and free a former Vietnam War buddy.
1/27/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Showdown!) - Three men posing as the A-Team terrorize a Wild West show.
1/28/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Sheriffs of Rivertown) - The A-Team is enlisted to restore law and order in a South American town.
1/29/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (The Bells of St. Mary's) - Hannibal and Face protect an all-female rock group being cheated by a record company.
1/30/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Hot Styles) - The team sets out to prevent a new line of fashion designs from being stolen. Guest star: Markie Post.
1/31/98, 17:00 (FX - GEN)
A-Team (Breakout!) - Hannibal devises an elaborate escape plan after B.A. and Murdock are mistaken for accomplices in a robbery and sentenced to work on a chain gang.
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WRAP-UP: That's all for this time--so I'd like to wish all of you a Happy New Year and hope you all enjoy whatever holidays you and your family and friends celebrate at this time of the year!
nicole ()
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"The main motive for going beyond the rim...there's a
heck of a big Taco Bell out there...." jms
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Proud member of the Narn Bat Squad <Whack!> and the C.o.M. | | |
