A late word from JMS

[colonyearth]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jms at B5"
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
Sent: Monday, June 14, 2004 8:26 AM
Subject: various from jms


> My apologies for the prolonged absence, but the loss of Richard Biggs kind of
> took the wind out of our sails and it's taken a while for me to feel up to
> saying anything about B5. This has also had the effect of slowing up anything
> to do with B5:TMoS (which as some of you have guessed or inferred does indeed
> stand for The Memory of Shadows), because in the writing we/I never imagined he
> wouldn't be here to be a part of it. More on that another time.
>
> The funeral itself was a very moving ceremony. It was a point of some pride
> that, although Richard had worked on a variety of shows, and all of them were
> present to varying degrees, the largest contingent was from Babylon 5. The B5
> family gathered in full strength, because whatever internecine hassles may have
> come up between anybody, there wasn't one person on that show who didn't think
> Richard was just a nifty, nifty guy.
>
> There were many crew members present, from art department to camera and office
> staff...DP John Flinn, directors Tony Dow and Jesus Trevino, and literally all
> the major or minor cast members with the exception of Jeff Conaway (who was out
> of town and couldn't make it), Peter Jurasik (who was attending another funeral
> on the other side of the country) and Joshua Cox (ditto...it was a bad week for
> a lot of people).
>
> So from the cast we had: Bruce, Jerry, Mira (and Goran), Andreas, Claudia,
> Walter, Bill, Pat, Marjorie, Tracy, Stephen, Jason, Caitlin, and others I may
> have missed or forgotten. From the writing/producing side it was me, Kathryn,
> Larry DiTillio, Doug, John Copeland, Kevin Cremin, Skip Beaudine, others.
>
> Out of respect for the privacy of the family, I won't go into details of the
> ceremony itself. Suffice to say that he was dearly loved by all, and his
> family is held in that same affection by everyone who was there.
>
> I was going to go into more stuff here in general, but I don't seem to have it
> in me at the moment. More later, then.
>
>
> jms
>
>
> (all message content (c) 2004 by synthetic worlds, ltd.,
> permission to reprint specifically denied to SFX Magazine
> and don't send me story ideas)

[colonyearth]

It seems JMS has been hit hard by the loss of Rick Biggs (granted we all have, but I think seems to have shaken JMS more than we might have expected).


The information that the title is "The Memory of Shadows" is something, but it seems that our dear Dr. Franklin was at least somewhat an important part of the story. This is as I had both expected and feared. I do not in any way envy JMS what he now has to do in writing his friend out of a story he was excited to bring him into. My thoughts are with JMS now...as a writer, I can only imagine what he's feeling and the struggle that is before him.

CE

[Dr Maturin]

What really sucks -- and I don't know if anyone's pointed this out this last month -- is how his "father" died just a few months before him. It would be kind of cool if Stephen had a child (obviously he can't be written out, as he shows up in Sleeping In Light) as a way of honoring the character.

[CRONAN]

Have a feeling the rating in this thread is going to skyrocket. I'll bet 1000 views in 4 days.

[Ben-Thayer Dunnthaedt]

I wonder how JMS will handle things. In the past he's done both options, he replaced the actor (Draal, Louis Turenne replaced by John Shuck) and he replaced the character (Ivonova with Lochley).

Not to offend anyone (or more, not to understate or disrepect ANY of Rick Bigg's work), but since his tragic passing falls into the "extreme circumstances" category, I myself wouldn't have a problem with a different actor portraying Dr. Franklin. Phil Morris comes to mind, he could pull the character off quite nicely.

Still, it's really (what word am I looking for?) distracting......watching RB's scenes now. I find myself losing track of the episode as my thoughts turn to the reality of the situation.

[colonyearth]

Originally posted by Ben-Thayer Dunnthaedt
I wonder how JMS will handle things. In the past he's done both options, he replaced the actor (Draal, Louis Turenne replaced by John Shuck) and he replaced the character (Ivonova with Lochley).

Not to offend anyone (or more, not to understate or disrepect ANY of Rick Bigg's work), but since his tragic passing falls into the "extreme circumstances" category, I myself wouldn't have a problem with a different actor portraying Dr. Franklin. Phil Morris comes to mind, he could pull the character off quite nicely.

Still, it's really (what word am I looking for?) distracting......watching RB's scenes now. I find myself losing track of the episode as my thoughts turn to the reality of the situation.

Here are some views from over B5tv.com way on this subject of replacing the actor -- suffice it to say, the consensus is "really bad idea."

Colonyearth wrote:

I do not think anyone would be happy if TPTB did that, including JMS and the cast...it would be like a slap in the face to Rick. No, he will find a way to write around him...somehow. Probably as KoshN suggested, by bringing in another character we're familiar with to fill the space, but not the role.

KoshN wrote:
Recasting would seem to be in poor taste, given how long Biggs was in the role. It'd be better to just not show Franklin, and preferrably not even mention him very much. That would leave the illusion that he was still with us, in the B5 universe.

And as for ideas other than replacement:

GaribaldisHair wrote:
The only circumstances in which I could have seen Franklin (or any of the more prominent characters) being recast would have been if the story had the character as an integral role and Richard Biggs had refused to do it.

It worked with Draal following Louis Turenne's stroke because having put Draal into the machine it had to be Draal who revealed it to Sheridan. And it was basically a bit part.

I can't imagine anyone involved with the production feeling comfortable with having a new guy in the same role following Richard's tragic death.

and my latest thoughts on it were:

Colonyearth wrote:
Could another possible character to fill the place of Franklen be the original B5 doctor? It would give B5 some continuity...especially since it was that character that Franklin replaced as head of Xenobiological Research...so that would mean he's not tied down to any one place and would be a known, dear friend of Franklin's.

Just a thought.

Londos6 wrote:
I think that would really depend on where TMoS fits in the established timeline of the B5 universe.

I am in agreement that Dr. Franklin can't be recast. How awful that would be. I hope JMS writes around him with Dr. Chambers or Dr. Hobbs or someone else. He (Franklin) should still be mentioned in the movie, and there should be a dedication in memory of Richard Biggs. No one else should attempt to fill the role.

and finally:

darth_librarian wrote:
Nice idea CE, Dr Benjeman Kyle would be a good character to bring back, and it would make for a nice circle. Does anyone remember what happened to the original character? JMS is a master of creating new characters to fill the place of another, and he always manages to create a worhwhile new character in their own right. Dr Franklin was in fact, a very good example of this.

Sorry for all the quotations, but I felt some good ideas had passed over there and wanted to share them here.

What you do think folks?

CE

[circularREASON]

Great Post from 'The Great Maker'.

THE MEMORY OF SHADOWS....

Anything to do with the Shadows and their legacy is fine with me.


The fans are with you Joe..........

[colonyearth]

Before anyone jumps me here as well for the thoughts about Dr. Kyle...allow me explain:

Ok! Ok! It was only a passing thought!

I personally still think JMS could find a neat way of working him in if he wanted to, and I'm sure the actor might be willing to return (it is a feature film after all).

But like I said, it was just a random thought that occurred to me for a moment. When I have such thoughts, I like to give them creedance and allow them to play out in my mind, sometimes for fun, sometimes to see if they are a real possibility and could be made to occur in a fascinating and unique manner and remain true to story and continuity.

Just a mental exercise. I also doubt that Dr. Kyle would be brought back in...but it's fun to wonder the if's and how's of the matter.

My guess is that Dr. Chambers would be a good candidate if a Dr. role is needed in any large way.

CE

[Dr Maturin]

Well, if we can't have Stephen (obviously), then I think I'd rather look at Sarah Chambers for two hours than Benjamin Kyle.

[Stunaep]

I'd rather have (and by that I mean, really, really, really rather) Sarah Chambers instead of Kyle. No disrespect to anyone, but Johnny Sekka was probably the single most dissappointing actor in the pilot.

But it's nice to see so many of B5's cast got together for Rick's funeral. Shows really well, how much the cast became a family. (something you surely couldn't say for the X-Files, for example)

And The Memory of Shadows.... cute

[Ben-Thayer Dunnthaedt]

Colony-

It's a tough issue. In this case, I must respectfully (and please note I said respectfully ) disagree. Don't misunderstand, I do agree with everyone that RB's passing was tragic. And I would NEVER wish anything negative in relation to RB, his family, or his legacy of work in any way whatsoever.

We recently lost a co-worker suddenly who had worked here more than 30 years. This passing was tragic, tremendously so. It hit everyone I work with hard, and I do mean HARD. However, the upper echelon eventually called an all-employee meeting to say a few things. Above all, it was stated that she and her contributions to our organization were beyond parallel. She could not be replaced. She would be forever honored in our organization. A building will be named for her. Yet we were reminded (in a very respectful manner) that for those of us left behind, we must move forward.....if for no other reason than because it was what she would have WANTED.

So PLEASE, I hope everyone understands that I'm not just trying to sustain an argument in any way. I also hope that I haven't sounded disrespectful, because goodness knows I honestly do NOT mean to be. And one thing we can all agree one: we LOVE the series!

Can I pose one hypothetical question without sounding quarrelsome? Kosh B'Gosh, can I apologize MORE? Sorry, just a lame attempt at being a little less confrontational. Anyway, no speculation, just a hypothetical question. What happens *IF* (and note the operative word IF) JMS decides that the character of Franklin cannot be removed from the new story, and he recasts the role? I guess what I really mean to say is, I will respect whatever decision JMS feels is necessary under the circumstances. And (even though I'm not one to make predictions) I would venture to say that the new project will be dedicated to the memory of RB.

[frulad]

Does anyone have any more information on this-

Peter Jurasik (who was attending another funeral on the other side of the country)

I live approximately 20 minutes from where Peter's parents are in Pennsylvania and got to know them as frequent shoppers at the KMart I used to work at. Funny story about meeting his dad for the first time, I will have to share with you folks. When I met Peter at a convention a few years ago I mentioned to him how I had met his folks and he laughed, saying, "Yup. That's my dad!" I would hate to think that one of his parents has passed. They were always nice to me when I encountered them at work.

[grumbler]

Well, so far my predictions seem to be coming true (the fact that it is a theatrical release, the name, and the fact that it featured original cast vice something in another time), so I wonder how many of the others will pan out:
1. That the "memory" referred to is leftover shadowtech (i.e. that the "real" Crusade plotline is a factor);
2. That the technomages (or at least Galen) are intensely involved in this, for the reasons explained in the TM trilogy.
3. That the TeepWar will figure in here (possibly as a result of the PsiCorps being at least partially behind the exploitation of the leftover shadowtech, and then TeepWar being the first round of the battle to stop them).

I hope CE's prediction of a trilogy is true, because what I could see the main plotline of such a trilogy involving is ....


***** spoiler alert for the TM trilogy! ****************


(highlight to see)
The attempt by rogue elements of Earthforce (or the PsiCorps) to create new technomages!


*****************************

Now, wouldn't THAT be cool!

[colonyearth]

Originally posted by grumbler
Well, so far my predictions seem to be coming true (the fact that it is a theatrical release, the name, and the fact that it featured original cast vice something in another time), so I wonder how many of the others will pan out:
1. That the "memory" referred to is leftover shadowtech (i.e. that the "real" Crusade plotline is a factor);
2. That the technomages (or at least Galen) are intensely involved in this, for the reasons explained in the TM trilogy.
3. That the TeepWar will figure in here (possibly as a result of the PsiCorps being at least partially behind the exploitation of the leftover shadowtech, and then TeepWar being the first round of the battle to stop them).

I hope CE's prediction of a trilogy is true, because what I could see the main plotline of such a trilogy involving is ....


***** spoiler alert for the TM trilogy! ****************


(highlight to see)
The attempt by rogue elements of Earthforce (or the PsiCorps) to create new technomages!


*****************************

Now, wouldn't THAT be cool!

I'm right with ya, grumbler! We're pretty much on the same page. My predictions are also coming true.

And BTD, no one would take your thoughts as rude...so don't worry. Just a fact, though, that RB will not be replaced. JMS is a master at writing around characters....this will be what he does.

And no one doubts for one second that the film will dedicated to Rick.

CE

[Ranger1]

Come on people....cheer up!! The Memory of Shadows!!!!! whoowhoooo

Even little news are good from no news at all.