Sinclair's backstory

[OmahaStar]

I'm having a momentary brain fart, and can't remember ...

Did they ever go into Sinclair's backstory while he was around? Specifically, the name(s) of any siblings? Any information on his parents, and where he grew up?

[Joseph DeMartino]

Sinclair definitely has a brother. Everytime he and Sakai meet he asks about her aunt, she asks about his brother. Sinclair refers to being "with the Jesuits" for three years, but JMS has made it clear that he was educated by the religious order, rather than belonging to it. He also mentions living with a priest, Father Something-or-other and his wife. (JMS posited that the Catholic church had accepted both married clergy and female priests by the 2200s.) It seems he was either sent to a boarding school where he lived with the faculty or that he was orphaned and sent their to be educated and raised until he was old enough to enter the Earthforce Academy - his high school years, basically. But there isn't a lot of other detail given about his past until he joins Earthforce. I don't even recall anything about his childhood or early life in To Dream in the City of Sorrows.

Regards,

Joe

[Working Class Hero]

I remember that he was born on Mars, but lived both there and on Earth throughout his life. Don't ask me what episode that came from, though.

[Joseph DeMartino]

This is from "The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5" and may be copied or paraphrased from the series bible or PTEN promotional materials:

The commander of Babylon 5 and representative of the Earth Alliance. A survivor of the climactic Battle of the Line at the end of the Earth-Minbari War, Sinclair sometimes yearns for his days as a hotshot fighter pilot, and partially for that reason, he's given to taking unnecessary personal risks. He's uncomfortable in his position and in fact isn't entirely sure why he was given command of such a major post and made a high-level diplomat; his stiff demeanor is perhaps due to a fear that he isn't up to the job he's been given. Sinclair was born on Mars Colony and is 39 years old.

And:

Name: Jeffrey David Sinclair
Rank: Commander
Age: 39
Birthdate: May 3rd, 2218, 9:15 a.m. Earth Standard Time
Birthplace: Mars Colony

Service record:
2237 Enlisted in Earth Force Defense
2240 Promoted to fighter pilot
2240-1 Promoted to squad leader
2248 Fights in the Battle of the Line (and survives!)
2256 Becomes Commander of Babylon 5
2257 "The Gathering"
2258 Season One: "Midnight on the Firing Line"

[SLerman]

Just to add another minor fact, Sinclair's father was also an Earthforce pilot. I would also guess that his family was originally from England, since he mentions his family having fighter pilots since the Battle of Britain.

[Joseph DeMartino]

Just to add another minor fact, Sinclair's father was also an Earthforce pilot. I would also guess that his family was originally from England, since he mentions his family having fighter pilots since the Battle of Britain.

Yes, Sinclair's father fought in the Dilgar War, and Sinclair himself says that the "Sinclairs have been fighter pilots going back to the Battle of Britain."

That wouldn't necessarily mean that Sinclair's forebearers were living in Great Britain in 1940, though*. Volunteers from many countries flew for the RAF either before their countries entered the war or after they had been knocked out of it, much as American volunteers flew for the French in the famous Lafayette Escadrille before America entered WWI (or the American Volunteer Group - the "Flying Tigers" - flew for China in their war against the Japanese before Pearl Harbor.) Canadians, Free French, Poles and Americans all flew for the RAF, along with many others:

Great Britain - 2,341
Australia - 32
Barbados - 1
Belgium - 28
Canada - 112
Czechoslovakia - 88
France - 13
Ireland - 10 Jamaica - 1
Newfoundland - 1
New Zealand - 127
Poland - 145
Rhodesia - 3
South Africa - 25
United States - 9

(Source Battle of Britain Monument Website)

But it does seem that JMS's intent was that the Sinclairs were in Great Britain in 1940 after all. In answer to a question about the decorations in Sinclair's office, he said the following:

As I recall, the photo and article is about Sinclair's ancestor, who fought in the Battle of Britain. And the framed piece is indeed a Sinclair Aircraft logo.

There were only two men, both British, named Sinclair who fought in the Battle of Britain, one of whom had the first initial "J" - I can't find an on-line reference that gives his full name. I'm guessing that someone associated with the show found a newspaper article and a photo featuring one of the real Sinclairs and reproduced them for use as set decoration in Sinclair's office. A very nice touch that probably nobody at home ever saw or knew about.


* Although the surname Sinclair, derived from "St. Clare" or "St. Clair", seems to be of Scottish or English origin, so ultimately the Sinclairs probably started out somewhere in Great Britain.

[prometheous]

It does'nt sound Celtic, Pictish or Norse. Most likely Norman and thus more likely associated with England. Although king Malcolm of Scotland allowed some Norman Lords to settle in Scotland after the Norman conquest of England in order to make sure no invasion of Scotland would take place. Speaking as a Scotsman I've met a few Scottish Sinclairs but no English ones yet...

...sorry, off topic

[Garibaldi's Hair]

[phazedout]

um GH have you been reading the discworld stamps forum on me? Why the piccie of the speccy? didn't know they were sold in the states. You can downlaod emulators and stuff you know.
Phaze
on the "ah, I just got the joke, GH, get your coat" ID

[Joseph DeMartino]

It doesn't sound Celtic, Pictish or Norse.

Being a "worn down" version of a saint's name it wouldn't sound like any of the traditional, pre-Christian names in any culture in which it arose, which is one reason it is hard to trace. Most such "saint" names that became family names are ones that became associated with some ancestor because he came from the parish of a church named for a saint, or adopted the saint as his personal patron. Most saint names used in the British Isles would have come from foreign born missionary saints* or from home-grown saints who adopted biblical names when they were baptized, so very few would have been identifiably Celtic, Pictihs or Norse.

Regards,

Joe

* Sometimes from their titles or nicknames rather than their personal names. St. Patrick is so-called because he claimed to be a member of the Roman Patriciate, the "Fathers" or Rome who constituted its first aristocracy. (The Western Empire's long, slow, collapse was still going on in Patrick's time, and the memory of Rome hadn't yet faded in Britain. "Patricus" simply meant "Patrician", and may have been applied to him ironically when was captured by raiders and made a slave in Ireland.)

[Circular Reason]

oh - i used to have one of those...

I would have liked to have seen Foundation Imaging try B5's graphics on that one!

Oh the speed!
Oh the rubber keys!
Oh the 48K memory!

[moreorless]

I'd say they made the correct choice in not using Sir Clive as Sinclairs backstory, although it would have been nice to see him riding around the station in one of these...

[Briosafreak]

I still have one of those!

[Garibaldi's Hair]

... GH, get your coat

Hey, I've pulled ...

[prometheous]

Being a "worn down" version of a saint's name it wouldn't sound like any of the traditional, pre-Christian names in any culture in which it arose, which is one reason it is hard to trace. Most such "saint" names that became family names are ones that became associated with some ancestor because he came from the parish of a church named for a saint, or adopted the saint as his personal patron. Most saint names used in the British Isles would have come from foreign born missionary saints* or from home-grown saints who adopted biblical names when they were baptized, so very few would have been identifiably Celtic, Pictihs or Norse.

Regards,

Joe

* Sometimes from their titles or nicknames rather than their personal names. St. Patrick is so-called because he claimed to be a member of the Roman Patriciate, the "Fathers" or Rome who constituted its first aristocracy. (The Western Empire's long, slow, collapse was still going on in Patrick's time, and the memory of Rome hadn't yet faded in Britain. "Patricus" simply meant "Patrician", and may have been applied to him ironically when was captured by raiders and made a slave in Ireland.)

It's definatly Norman. The name originates from the Brest region of France. Sinclairs were definatly part of the Norman invasion of england.