The Helpers' Network Gazette - Online
a newsletter for friends of "Beauty and the Beast"
__________________________________________________
March--June: Spring, 1996
This is the news roundup from Nan Dibble and Helpers' Network.
Call the Helpers' Network Hotline at 513-961-3317.
Ron Perlman
According to a mid-March issue of the trade paper, The Hollywood
Reporter, Ron Perlman is globe-trotting again. He has fourth
billing in a movie version of Prince Valiant, not animated, live
action, that started filming in Germany and Wales the end of
April. Fourth billing suggests a good-sized supporting role.
About which, an anecdote:
Nan recently heard about a Welsh couple whom we'll call Dick
and Jane Jones, since Nan's not sure of their names. Anyway, the
Joneses learned that the place Ron was filming on Prince Valiant
was only about 35 miles from where they lived. They decided to
visit and did so, three times in a week, and left messages, but
failed to either see or talk to Ron. Jane wanted very much to see
him; she'd flown to New York to see him in Bus Stop, and that's
REALLY a fan. They even, through Gwen Lord (head of Helpers'
Network UK and president of Roy Dotrice's fan club), enlisted the
help of Roy, who also left messages without result until Jane
chanced to be out of the house. On returning, she found that Ron
Perlman had phoned, having been filming in Germany, the movie's
other location, when they'd tried to contact him before. He and
Dick had chatted for about twenty minutes. Frustrated and
disappointed, Jane demanded, "Well, what did he say? What did you
talk about?" Her husband replied something to the effect of, "Oh,
nothing much, but he seems a very nice sort of fellow." Jane did
not quite divorce Dick over this. Even though this little tale
reached Nan on about three bounces, and probably has changed a
bit on each bounce, she still thinks it worth repeating as
evidence of the difference between how men and women react and
behave, Murphy's law, and what real true-blue fans will go
through to hear THAT VOICE.
And concerning THAT VOICE:
Nan had noted early in the year that Ron Perlman contributes
his voice to a CD-ROM computer game called Chronomaster, doing
the villain, Korda. That game was reviewed in the April issue of
COMPUTER GAMING WORLD. The reviewer, whose pen name is "The Voice
of God," particularly commented on Ron's "delicious voice." The
review commended other aspects of the game including the vocal
contributions of Brent Spiner (formerly Data on STNG) and Lolita
Davidovitch, then went on to add, "but the honey-throated Ron
Perlman, late of TV's B&B, whose quiet calm and gravely
inflections as Korda will make any listener, male or female, want
to roll over and purr."
RP Miscellany
Ron recently finished a run as the alcoholic professor in
Bus Stop in New York.
Ron's movie THE LAST SUPPER opened first in limited release
and then wider release, primarily in art houses, across the
country. The movie got two thumbs up from Siskal and Ebert, and
Roger Ebert singled out for praise Ron Perlman's "crisp acting."
It's a political satire loosely based on ARSENIC AND OLD LATE in
which a bunch of like-minded people invite the political
opposition over for dinner and poison them, one at a time. Ron
plays a Rush Limbaugh kind of character and dominates the final
third or so of the movie.
The movie Ron did last year, THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU, is
now scheduled for release August 23, and the strange French
fantasy film he starred in, CITY OF LOST CHILDREN, released in
art theaters early this year, is to be available on video in
July.
There are reports that R. L. Stine's (best known for the
YA-horror series "Goosebumps") first adult gothic horror novel,
SUPERSTITIOUS, is to be made into a movie directed by Giuliermo
Del Toro (director of Ron's vampire flick, CRONOS, now showing up
on cable). Despite Ron's narration of the top-selling audiobook
version of that novel, it seems (sigh) unlikely he'll be offered
a role in the movie version.
Advertised for the fall on the USA cable network, a cartoon
show called MORTAL KOMBAT: DEFENDERS OF THE REALM whose principal
voices are to be provided by Ron Perlman, Dorian Harewood, Luke
Perry (90210), Olivia D'Abo (The Wonder Years), and Cree Summer
(A Different World and Gargoyles). It will air on Saturdays. This
would appear to be a continuing commitment by Ron, inasmuch as
he's doing the voice for one of the major characters, rather than
the occasional and one-shot vocal appearances he's done up until
now in various series.
Biography--Quasimodo
In June, Ron Perlman was among many writers, actors, and
directors who appeared in a segment of the A&E series BIOGRAPHY
profiling Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Notre Dame...which is, of
course, another rendition of the Beauty and the Beast story
inasmuch as bestial, deformed Quasimodo loves dancer Esmiralda
with a hopeless, protective passion. Concerning this character,
Ron commented, "It's a powerful, powerful thing he's being asked
to overcome--the pain of being Quasimodo...and the pain of
constantly having every aspect of his life informed by his
outcast state. This is the way he lived every minute of every day
of every week of every month of every year. It's very, very heart
wrenching and moving and affecting." Later in the show, Ron
added, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame is, without doubt, one of the
seminal moments of my decision to become an actor. When I saw
Charles Laughton in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, it was
earth-shattering. It was the most moving version of Beauty and
the Beast. And I was always attracted to that because, having
grown up not being the best-looking kid on the block, you know,
you just say, "Well, why can't one be judged for what's in here?"
(He then touched his chest, over his heart.)
Ron's commentary was evidently taped this spring, while he
was doing BUS STOP in New York, because his hair is cut
straight-short and is entirely white (it's normally dark blond
and curly), as it was for that role. He was identified by
BIOGRAPHY as "Ron Perlman, Actor, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST." So it
would seem it was in that guise the show's producers sought him
out, rather than for all the assorted makeup roles he's done,
which also would have made his opinion on the various filmings of
Hunchback worth listening to. They wanted to hear from The Beast.
____________________________
LINDA HAMILTON
Linda Hamilton has changed agents. She's now with UTA, 9560
Wilshire Blvd., Suite 500, Beverly Hills CA 90212.
The April issue of CINESCAPE had a 3-page article about
Linda and her upcoming conspiracy thriller THE SHADOW CONSPIRACY,
with a number of photos.
The Hartford Courant reported that Linda would star in ON
THE LINE, produced by David Gerber. Linda was to play a police
detective fighting to hold her own in an all-male police
department. However, that was not to be. ON THE LINE was to begin
shooting in early June--the same time as a theatrical film Linda
really, really wanted to be in: DANTE'S PEAK, a volcano action
thriller co-starring Pierce Brosnan, with a 100 million dollar
budget. Apparently Linda's agent succeeded in getting her out of
her ON THE LINE commitment because she's now filming on DANTE'S
PEAK in Idaho.
Another movie Linda is to appear in, SUB DOWN, involving a
downed submarine, is to start filming in July.
____________________________
ROY DOTRICE
A Washington Post TV column states that Roy has a new series for
this fall. It's called MR. & MRS. SMITH, starring Scott Backula
(formerly of Quantum Leap), in which Roy dispatches a husband and
wife spy team on their missions. It's slated to air on CBS on
Fridays at 9 pm.
____________________________
LANCE HENRIKSEN
Veteran character actor Lance Henriksen (Snow, in the episode of
that name) is to star in a new series, MILLENNIUM, on FOX. The
series is produced by X-FILES creator Chris Carter and will air
in the X-Files' old slot at 9 p.m. Fridays on Fox (X-FILES moves
to Sundays in the fall). There was an article about the new
series in the June 22 TV Guide, which mentioned that Henriksen
rarely does television but was intrigued into accepting the part
by persistent Chris Carter. One therefore wonders if his
appearance on B&B came about in something like the same way.
Certainly the character of Snow was memorable, in an
action-filled episode.
____________________________
EDWARD LAWRENCE ALBERT
Edward is slated to appear in SPACE MARINES and he's directing
and appearing in a remake of the SF classic, FORBIDDEN PLANET.
His supervising of the post-production editing of that latter
movie may prevent him from attending A Kingdom by the Sea.
____________________________
REPUBLIC UPDATE
In late June, Robyn Tsuboi, the marketing manager for B&B at
Republic, was kind enough to return Nan's calls--a most unusual
courtesy. The news Robyn gave Nan wasn't awful, but it wasn't
good, either, and far less than Nan had hoped for. The B&B
miniseries Republic president Robert Sigman and Ron Koslow
jointly announced at last summer's convention is still on hold:
"being researched" is the phrase used. Further, there's no
specific date when it will be reconsidered. However, Robyn
assured Nan that Mr. Sigman is still very interested in the
project, so the idea of some kind of movie hasn't vanished,
either. For at least the rest of this year, and possibly next
year, for all we know, the movie is more or less back where it
was: an idea in the back of the minds of Ron Koslow and Mr.
Sigman.
A little background
Only Republic can make a picture. They own the rights. Ron
Koslow has only the first right of refusal, meaning that if
Republic decides to do a movie, they have to give Koslow first
crack at writing the script. If for whatever reason he couldn't
or didn't want to, then they could go to anybody they chose to
write the script. The first move has to be Republic's. Second,
the fandom, by itself, isn't enough to make any movie viable. At
full strength, the viewership for B&B was estimated at 13
million. The people involved in fandom were less than half that,
but lets call it 7 million at its best. If only the fandom
watched any theatrical or TV movie, it wouldn't make back its
costs. We're a core audience, but only that. Republic has to know
they can attract at least double or triple that number of viewers
through re-syndicating the movie afterward: that is, lining up
other stations and perhaps networks in other countries willing to
sign up and pay for the privilege of airing it, further down the
line. Without the assurance of such later sales, the movie won't
even be begun. That's partly what "researching" means: trying to
line up additional buyers. The fact that no movie has been made
at this point strongly suggests that Republic hasn't been able to
line up enough aftermarkets to be sure of recouping the movie's
costs, much less making a profit. Until this and possibly other
problems are resolved, there will be no movie.
Why we're important...but not THAT important
It's not that we don't love the series enough. It's not that
Republic doesn't know we're here, and that we want more B&B with
a most sincere and dedicated passion. It's just that the fandom,
all by ourselves, aren't enough to make a movie successful.
That's a fact, and we're better off facing the thing as it is,
not as we wish it were.
To be blunt, with the exception of the mass-market B&B
videos, every licensee and retailer who's produced something and
sold it primarily or exclusively to the fandom--whether we're
talking "graphic novels," licensed paperbacks, models, calendars,
whatever--has either hastily abandoned the effort or gone broke
or bankrupt for their pains. We're not enough of a commercial
market to keep a product afloat, unless the retailer can reach
the wider market beyond the fandom. That, too, is a fact, and
those who've been in the fandom awhile and seen it all happen,
again and again and again, know it it's true.
It's important that we're still here, and Republic knows we
are--without that, there'd be no chance of a movie at all. All
the letters and postcards aren't wasted. We need to remind them
from time to time that this fanatic core still exists, and
therefore the more casual likers of the show are still out there
too, in even greater numbers. But let's not make the mistake of
assuming the fandom is all that counts in terms of getting a
movie made, because that just isn't so.
Further videos
Robyn confirmed Nan's guess that, since 6 videos have already
been released this year, there probably won't be any more until
next year. The scheduling of further videos will be decided in
the fall, and she'll check back with Robyn then. Finally, there
are no new licensees either aboard or in prospect, so there'll be
no new B&B licensed merchandise, except what's already been
produced, for the foreseeable future. That includes books.
____________________________
LEE HAS A CD
Lee Holdridge, composer of the B&B theme, has put out his own CD.
It includes a suite of his music for the Beastmaster movies and
(here's the good part) a 20 minute suite of his music from the
B&B pilot. If you want to add to your fund of B&B music (it's
much in demand for weddings and Winterfests), the code of the
recording is LHCD-01 and it's orderable through any large record
store. It has no title other than the catalog code.
Holdridge did the music for the recent Hallmark Hall of Fame
TV movie, Harvest of Fire, about the Amish.
____________________________
RON KOSLOW
The Sharon Stone movie that Ron Koslow co-scripted, THE LAST
DANCE, premiered recently to no great enthusiasm. NEWSWEEK's
reviewer hated it but Siskal and Ebert looked more favorably on
this prison/capital punishment flick.
____________________________
LOOKING BACK AT B&B
The July STARLOG is their 2,000th issue and in celebration,
they give a look back over issues of the past. There are a number
of B&B-related things, though you'll have to look for them. There
are highlights from an article on QUEST FOR FIRE, with a picture
of Ron Perlman in makeup, and interviews with Jay Acovone (Joe
Maxwell), Ron Perlman and Ron Koslow about B&B. That issue also
features a fullscale article on THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU--an
interview with director John Frankenheimer. There will probably
be other articles focusing on the movie and the cast in more
detail as the release date (August) approaches, so keep an eye
out for them.
____________________________
CONVENTION--A KINGDOM BY THE SEA
Registration is $85 to A Kingdom by the Sea, PO Box 770135,
Orlando FL 32877-0135. The convention is July 12-14 at the Omni
Waterside in Norfolk VA. Last-minute walk-ins are also welcome.
Among the guests will be David Greenlee, Jay Acovone, and
Caitlin O'Heany. A number of paintings by Austrian fan artist
Rosemarie Hauer will be featured (for sale!) in the art show; one
of Armin Shimerman's costumes as Pascal will be part of the
auction. Many other special events are planned, including a
"create your own T-shirt" contest, the resulting shirts to be
signed by the stars present.
____________________________
THE FANDOM
Many of you will know Jan Durr, an artist whose cover for
HUNTRESS 2 won a prize at last years convention and whose fine
artwork has graced many, many zines. Last week Jan's mom died
after a long illness and simple old age, after a year of Jan
looking after her in Jan's home. Many of you, like Nan and like
Jan, have undertaken the care of an aging parent. The demands of
this loving commitment are awesome and limitless. So while many
of you will want to write to express your condolences, you may
also want to convey to Jan that you understand her triumph in
having stayed the whole course and seen it through all the way.
To care for someone to whom death isn't a matter of IF but a
matter of WHEN takes a special kind of endurance, a special kind
of love that's very B&B and therefore deserves celebrating as
well as mourning. If you'd like to drop Jan a note, send to Jan
Durr, 54 1st Avenue, East Orange NJ 07017.
____________________________
Fan and publisher Bjo Trimble would like to hear from anybody
who's had experience with a disease called lupus. She could use
some hand-holding and moral support about now perhaps some of you
would to pass the word along and see if a ad-hoc support group
forms around the request. Write Bjo Trimble, 2059 Fir Springs
Drive, Kingwood TX 22339-1701.
____________________________
Donna Hill, in CA, would like to get tapes of the six (?)
episodes of the series Kindred: the Embraced. If you have them
and are willing to make copies, either contact Donna
(909-984-6404) or Nan, who would briefly borrow the tapes, make
copies for Donna, and then return them.
NOTICES & FACTOIDS
NEXT YEAR--IN MINNESOTA!
It may seem early to start beating the drum for the 1997
convention, but it's the tenth anniversary of the show's premiere
and the first convention in the Midwest, that many, many people
will be able to attend who couldn't afford to get to those on the
coasts. Midwest resident Nan's already already looking forward to
it, and it's going to be a very special convention indeed. Well,
the organizing con committee says that if you want to register
early, to give them some seed money to cover operating expenses
(printing and sending out fliers, phone charges to call actors'
agents, etc.), you can get a $10 break. Instead of $85, your
registration will be only $75 if it's postmarked by July 20th.
Send your cut-rate $75 registration for the 1997 convention in
Minneapolis by or before July 20 to: Barbara A. Breuer, 4806
Aldrich Avenue North, Minneapolis MN 55430
FATHER'S FANFARE
Sally Newman, "the Quilt Lady," has another project called
"Father's Fanfare." Those who are interested get a list of names
of people in the fandom who are going through some hard times and
could use some sympathetic, supportive pen-pals and ongoing moral
support. If you'd like to become a part of this long-running,
fan-to-fan outreach, send business-sized SASE to Sally Newman,
10714 Anita Drive, Mason Neck VA 22079-3523. Or if you'd like to
get on the list, to get some industrial-strength hand-holding
yourself, write that same address, briefly explain your
circumstances, and pretty soon, watch that mail roll in!
____________________________
There's a new B&B internet news group. The distinction from
the existing online B&B material is that on the internet,
everybody who's online at all will be able to get it if they want
to. You can find it at alt.tv.Beauty+Beast.
____________________________
Nan must contradict the published report from Gwen Lord (of
Helpers' Network UK) that the B&B GUIDEBOOK has been published
and can be ordered through Helpers' Network US. Though announced
by former licensee Cinemaker, the B&B GUIDEBOOK was never
published and is not available.
____________________________
Nan now has a regular B&B column in SCI-FI SPOTLITE
(formerly SPACE-TIME CONTINUUM). If you'd like to subscribe to
SCI-FI SPOTLITE, a handsome magazine running around 50 pages per
issue, published every two months, covering all major science
fiction and fantasy interests, it's $15 for a year, $25 for two
years, $35 for three years and $50 for five years (it pays to
plan ahead) to SCI-FI SPOTLITE, P.O Box 13131, Reading PA
19612-3131 or, online, trekk order@aol.com.
New Zines:
For more information or foreign rates, send SASE to the
publisher.
From editor Gloria Handley comes FLAME AND SHADOW X: TEN FOR
THE TENTH HOUR, a Classic anthology zine, 115 pages, PG-13. F&S X
is $18 US payable to Gloria Handley. Send to Flame and Shadow
Press, 4195 Rolling Hills, Bettendorf IA 52722.
Pat Jackson's PAST IS PROLOGUE is 318 pages, color cover, 5
by 8, trade paperback size, perfect bound. The first 149 pages,
"The Sublime Myth," examine and analyze various elements of the
series; the final half of the book is a novel, "Past Is
Prologue," continuing the series beyond the point it ended, with
Catherine still alive. The rating is PG. The price is $25.95 +
$2.38 for postage, or $28.33 all told. Send to Pat Jackson, 611
Main St., La Marque TX 77568.
Please send zine information and review copies of new zines
to Helpers' Network, 379 Amazon Ave., Cincinnati OH 45220-1148.
Zines will be briefly profiled on the hotline for four successive
weeks, featured in the Gazette, and reviewed in the Q-fer.
NOTICE:
Although the Helpers' Network Gazette will continue to be carried
online, this issue is the last in hard-copy that will be mailed
out, except to those who join or renew membership in Helpers'
Network for 1996-97. The Gazette will become a quarterly, one a
season, and have much the same format as it does now, except that
Nan will try to include additional reprinted articles and
pictures, whenever they're available. Features and cartoons will
be solicited from fan writers & artists.
Membership in Helpers' Network is open between now and
October, so that Nan won't have memberships that stretch into the
next century. Membership costs $25 and entitles you to four
quarterly issues of the Gazette, the full Helpers' Network
Quality Fanzine Review (Q-fer) when it's published in October,
and a handsome certificate. Nan hopes all lovers of Beauty and
the Beast will decide to keep her company and give their support
for another year of this wonderful craziness.
Some sample costs of running Helpers' Network:
3 answering machines: $225
4 VCRs $2,000
cleaning VCRs, per year $240
each Gazette, printing and mailing: $100
rough yearly long-distance bills (on Helpers' Network
business): $800-1,000
extra phone line, per year: $260
Nan doesn't expect to be reimbursed for this, though her
finances aren't the best...she's entirely a volunteer. But it's
still is nice to get some help with it all.
She'll do her best to see that you feel you've gotten value
for your money, in the Gazette and the Q-fer.
Membership is available on the same terms in the US and
abroad.
Send to Helpers' Network, 379 Amazon Ave., Cincinnati OH
45220-1148.
SIGHTINGS
Roy Dotrice (Father) in an episode of Babylon 5.
Linda Hamilton (Catherine Chandler) in Separate Lives, now out on
video and airing on cable.
Ren Woods (Edie) in an episode of High Incident.
Jay Acovone (Joe Maxwell) in an episode of the racy series, The
Red Shoe Diaries. The episode was titled "The Forbidden Zone."
Also in two episodes of NYPD Blue.
Tony Jay (Paracelsus) does the voice of the villain, Frollo, in
the new Disney animated version of The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Bill Marcus (DA John Moreno) in an episode of NYPD Blue.
Richard Herd (the administrator in "A Children's Story") in an
episode of Seinfeld.
Richard Roundtree (Cleon Manning) in an episode of Fresh Prince.
James Avery (Winslow) was interviewed on the talk show Jim J and
Ann on Fox. The show he's been a regular on, Fresh Prince, is
reportedly ending this season. Also in an NBC TV movie, Without
Warning: Terror in the Towers.
Robert Cornthwaite, the elderly chap who played small roles in
several B&B episodes and later was on Picket Fences, in an
episode of Chicago Hope.
Ken Kimmons, (Gabriel's doctor) now a regular on Coach, was among
the guests on a talk show called Jim J. and Ann.
Gus Trikonis (director) directed an episode of Sentinel.
P. K. Simonds (writer) jumped from canceled Earth2 (by way of
Party of 5) to become one of the producers of the FOX vampire
series, Kindred, the Embraced, and scripted at least one episode
for that series. Kindred didn't last long, either: could there be
a connection?
Stan Ivar (the unscrupulous antiquities dealer from "Fever") in
an episode of Malibu Shores.
Brian Bloom (the eyebrow killer from "The Hollow Men") in an
episode of Touched by an Angel.
Ernie Lively (Brigit's bodyguard in "Masques") in an episode of
Renegade.
Tony Longo (Howie in "No Way Down") and Robert Pastorelli (Vic
Ramos in "Everything Is Everything") appear in the new Arnold
Schwarzenegger movie, Eraser.
Del Roy Lindo (2nd Isaac Stubbs, "Terrible Savior," "No Way
Down") in Clockers and a May HBO TV movie, The Soul of the Game.
Frank Luz (ghost Kristopher Gentian in "When the Bluebird Sings")
was in an episode of Swift Justice.
Jane Atkinson (the mother in "Trial") in a play called The
Striker in New York City.
Isabella Hoffman (Erica Salvin in "Temptation") in an NBC TV
movie, Twisted Desire.
Lance Henriksen (Snow) in The Nature of the Beast.
Ellen Geer (Mary) has a substantial part in a John Travolta
movie, Phenomenon.
Jeffrey Combs (Python in "No Way Down") in an episode of DS9, as
a courteous alien and again as a Ferengi tax collector plaguing
Quark (Armin Shimerman), also in DS9.
___________________________
CLASSIFIED
Available while supplies last:
The Cinemaker novels: BEYOND WORDS, BEYOND SILENCE by Nan Dibble
(based on "the Trilogy") and LOST YESTERDAYS, IMPOSSIBLE
TOMORROWS by Kim Prosser and Lisa Swope (based on "The Outsiders"
and "When the Bluebird Sings"). Each is paperback, handsomely
illustrated (Barbara Gipson; Kevin Barnes color cover), and is
$11.50 (including postage).
Also available: the Republic-approved but never-published
BRIGHT SPIRIT DESCENDING by Nan Dibble. Zine-bound, over 250,000
words (would have been a big book if professionally published),
Kevin Barnes cover (b&w) and Gipson interior art. It's based on
"The Alchemist" and "To Reign in Hell;" approximately half is
original material recounting the very beginnings of the tunnel
community and Vincent's early childhood...as Paracelsus' son.
It's $5 to those with previous Cinemaker orders, $15.00 otherwise
(including postage). All above prices are good worldwide but must
be in US currency.
Send to Helpers' Network, 379 Amazon Avenue, Cincinnati OH
45220-1148.
End