XENA MEDIA REVIEW #23 (07/28/97) Part 3 of 3 =================== CUT HERE ================= [354] 06-27-96 to 07-01-96 NOTES: Repeat of "The Prodigal" brought in a 4.7 rating. HTLJ was rated 5.0, and ST:DS9 was at 4.3. XWP ranked 2nd in action hours. "The Prodigal" earned a 4.8 in it's first showing. [354a] 06-27-96 DAILY VARIETY. Page 3. 454 words. "First national ratings cloud 'Rosie' picture" By Jenny Hontz. COMMENTARY: The Prodigal, 2nd release EXCERPT: ...Nielsen numbers for the week ending June 16.... ...MCA TV's action hours bumped Par's "Star Trek: Deep Space 9" out of the top spot for the first time in nine weeks. "Hercules" scored a 5, up 2%. "Xena" finished second with a 4.7, down 6%. "Star Trek" fell 20% to 4.3... [354b] 07-01-96 VARIETY. Page 25. 184 words. "Nielsen Syndication Ratings" COMMENTARY: The Prodigal, 2nd release REPRINT: For week ended June 16, 1996 Stations/ Rank Program % coverage AA% GAA% 1 Wheel of Fortune 226/99 10.1 -- 2 Jeopardy! 215/97 8.5 -- 3 Home Improvement 227/98 7.1 7.6 4 Oprah Winfrey Show 228/98 6.9 6.9 5 Seinfeld 222/98 6.4 -- 6 WCW Wrestling 180/93 6.0 9.9 7 Entertainment Tonight 180/95 5.2 5.2 8 Journeys of Hercules 222/97 5.0 5.3 9 Simpsons 192/96 4.8 5.0 10 Xena 198/96 4.7 5.0 11 Inside Edition 161/89 4.6 4.6 12 Wheel of Fortune--Wknd. 158/80 4.5 -- 13 Imagination II 169/96 4.3 4.4 13 Star Trek: DSN 233/98 4.3 4.6 15 Live w/Regis & Kathie Lee 233/99 4.2 -- 15 Montel Williams 163/91 4.2 4.3 15 World Wrestling Fed. 153/90 4.2 5.0 18 Fresh Prince of Bel-Air 156/88 4.1 4.5 18 Jenny Jones 202/94 4.1 4.2 20 Married W/Children 178/91 4.0 4.5 AA average refers to nonduplicated viewing for multiple airings of the same show. GAA average encompasses duplicated viewing. GAA average does not apply when there is only one run of a show. [355] 06-28-96 XENA MEDIA REVIEW. No. 13. Edited by and annotations by Kym Masera Taborn. COMMENTARY: A world press review of coverage on XWP, Renee O'Connor, or Lucy Lawless. Covered 01/18/96 through 02/08/96. Lucy Lawless interview (Weiner); NATPE convention; Gregory Meidel interview; and more. [356] 06-28-96 DAILY VARIETY. Page 3. 196 words. "Kraus ankles MCA post" By Jenny Hontz. COMMENTARY: More problems for MCA. Less than a month after the departure of key-man Shelly Schwab, now Jim Kraus, the executive VP-director of sales and marketing at MCA TV is leaving too. MCA is in the midst of a massive re-structuring, no doubt impelled by MCA's dismal batting record. HTLJ and XWP is mentioned in passing as the only two current successes of MCA TV. [KT] EXCERPT: Less than a month after the retirement of MCA TV president Shelly Schwab, No. 2 syndication sales man Jim Kraus also is leaving the company. Kraus, the executive VP-director of sales and marketing at MCA TV, joined the company in 1982 as Northeast division sales manager. He rose to his current post in 1990, overseeing the syndie division's sales and marketing efforts for firstrun, off-network, feature film and basic cable. Massive restructuring MCA's TV group has undergone a massive restructuring since the company was purchased last year by the Seagram Co. About 90 employees were laid off earlier this month (Daily Variety, June 7). Greg Meidel, MCA TV Group chairman, and Jim McNamara, president of worldwide TV distribution, have yet to hire a new head of syndication sales, and it does not appear an announcement is imminent. While MCA is having success with its two action hours, "Hercules" and "Xena," the studio has struggled in recent years to launch other successful firstrun shows. Aside from the domestic syndie sales jobs, MCA TV also has yet to fill the international sales post vacated by Colin Davis, former president of MCA Television Intl. [357] 06-28-96 THE PHOENIX GAZETTE. Page B14. 235 words. "With Whom In History Would You Like To Chat?" by James Hill, Mark Genrich, John Kolbe, Richard de Uriarte, Kim Crockett and Maureen West. COMMENTARY: Some yahoo decided to ask a bunch of PHOENIX GAZETTE staffers that perennial party question "Who would you dig hanging out with if, like, you could hang with someone from any time period?" That, and, "Where's the bathroom?" are THE two great party questions. Anyway, the responses are typical cerebral fare...Madison, Lincoln, Ghandi, Jefferson, Franklin, Xena etc. etc. Hey, just watch enough XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS and you'll run into ALL those geezers sooner or later!!!! REPRINT: I'm not sure I'd want to chat with anyone, being as how it would be a one-sided conversation, but I do find inspiration from reading biographies and memoirs of historical figures. And if Mrs. Clinton wants to chat with Mrs. Roosevelt, well, she sure picked a pretty good role model. Alexander the Great, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Ambrose Bierce, Robert Burns, Mary Magdalene, Plato, Benito Juarez and Xena, warrior princess. Richard de Uriarte, Editorial writer, 271-8912 Eleanor Roosevelt and Mahatma Gandhi. I'd like to know if Hillary told them where her billing records have been for the last two years. The mothers of Albert Einstein, Martin Luther King Jr. And Abraham Lincoln. Kimberly Crockett, Editorial writer, 271-8461 James Madison, to see what he thinks of how we've screwed up his political invention. And Mark Twain, because great stories and fine cigars are always good for the soul. John Kolbe, Political columnist, 271-8143 I'd ask Amelia Earhart, "What really happened?" Or, "Are you living in Sun City?" And to Emily Dickinson, "If you lived today, in times that encourage women to get out of their own gardens more, what would you choose to write about?" [358] 06-29-96 THE ETHNIC NEWSWATCH NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS. Page 26. 1679 words. Media Watch: "Females need to empower themselves now" By Abiola Sinclair. COMMENTARY: So Xena looks like a tramp and acts like one, hmmmm? This heavy article starts out with a description of rape and goes on from there to say that our culture is permeated with images of violence against women. Xena is mentioned as an empowering example that contradicts this onslaught. REPRINT A female neighbor of mine insisted upon telling me this story about her best friend being raped, to the point that I suspected her of trying to be a wise ass, or spooky, or just plain gruesome. She said the young woman was walking up the hill on Broadway and 124th Street when a man, a Black man, stuck a gun into her side. She told him her money was in her side pocket but he said he was not after the money. She knew she was going to die. She began to cry. The man strong-armed her up the hill; people saw her and the gun and cast their eyes away. She even met the eyes of several people; they saw and they knew and they did nothing. The woman was walked all the way from 124th and Broadway to Riverside Park and was badly raped. She required stitches and the gun was used to invade her. The entire thing annoyed me. I didn't want to hear it. First of all, if the man is going to kill, he could just as well kill her right there on 124th Street as in the park. Death is not the worst thing that can happen. I wouldn't have gone anywhere. If he was going to shoot he'd have to shoot right there. But then I began to think. This man is a professional predator. And predators know who to pick. They know who will fight, who will scream, who might have a gun of their own, and who will be walked into a dark park to be brutally raped. This young woman was in therapy for three years, my neighbor told me. She shaved her head, started taking drugs, and blames herself for being raped. I felt sad for her. I told my neighbor, who is Amerasian, that therapy for three years is too long. The therapist is ripping her off too. She's got to forget it as best she can. But my neighbor told me her friend had trouble with relationships. When men made a move she freaked. A lot of women are walking around damaged in one way or another. When men wonder what in the hell is wrong with this woman, often there's a secret. Be it incest, rape, sexual abuse, being made to feel ugly, something. There's a lot of talk about the Black man being under attack, and so he is. But women are under attack also. As this society turns more predatory, more Darwinian, you have monsters who roam around looking for scraps, something to steal, or to rob someone, or rape. And of all crimes rape is the least excusable. There is no need, no justification for it and the punishments do not nearly fit the crime. The apartment that John J. Royster shared with his friend was filled with pornographic material. But not the ordinary sex and girlie magazines most men have stashed somewhere. These were hard-core violence/sex videos. The kind that show men hurting women. Royster has that in common with other sex attackers also. Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy both maintained they were spurned on by this type of pornography. Much of this material has crept out into the mainstream, sometimes with some humor. The film "True Lies" for example. But the bulk of modern drama has taken the damsel in distress and turned it evil. All we see on TV and in films is some woman screaming, running for her life, being raped, murdered, beaten, in stages of undress, tied up, gagged, clothes torn. It's so common we see it and don't see it. But it sinks in. Consider "Silk Stalkings," a stylish thriller cop show with a penchant for porn. Perhaps that is also why people often do nothing when confronted with situations like a woman being abducted. They think they're watching TV, they respond by recoiling, followed by an urge for popcorn. What is more subtle is the portrayal of women overall. Especially young women. The micro mini has been force fed to young women. We fought against it, and we lost. Every single young woman on TV who is supposed to be desirable has her butt out and acts like a bitch. The only TV show where women are empowered is "Xena: Warrior Princess" and a few other off-beat shows. She's partially clad too. Interestingly enough, being an empowered woman on TV means being bad. Being a tramp. Looking like one and acting like one. Guess whose idea this is. Yeah, the same guy who designs women's shoes! Women are also encouraged to be smaller than they need to be. So they can be beaten easier. The current greyhound look in models is similar to binding women's feet. There was even a shameful and stupid article in Newsweek a few weeks ago, "The Biology of Beauty," about standards of beauty. Natural selection, chins, and body fat. Some Nordic model with the query under her head, "Would you want your child to carry this woman's genes?" I have a better question, Are White men that shallow, or is Newsweek run by teenage boys? The woman could be an axe murderer! She looks mean as a snake! It's a total imposition in the name of fashion and is designed to constrain. It may not be fair to blame the media for all of this. After all, these types of impositions have been placed on women for thousands of years. The fact that a judge (Blackman) could release a man who beat a women and threw her down a fight of stairs after she had an order of protection against him, only to have him come back and finally kill her; and another judge (Walpner) could write letters to women who wanted to get away from him, telling her he would harm her daughter. Or a judge in Florida who is even now trying to return a daughter to a mother who allowed her boyfriend to rape both her daughters and kill one of them. (The boyfriend is on death row where he belongs. But where would the judge be?) His actions as well as those of his many of his colleagues bespeaks of a legitimized hostility toward women that denies them their civil rights. What the media can be blamed for is highlighting Black crimes while minimizing white crimes and indeed crimes of other peoples. There is no way to convince the average white person that most crimes and the most heinous crimes are not committed by Blacks. The media has been relentless in this regard and the formula etched in stone. Black pathology, sex, violence, degradation. Only I've been collecting a steady file of white crimes that would make your socks roll up and down. If they get a day's play, that's the whole of it. The exception is when a said group is set up to be vilified for whatever reason. Currently, Africa is being set up for vilification. So horror stories are coming out of there to the point that Blacks who were hoping to resettle in Africa have now changed their minds. The fact that abuse of women is far worse in parts of Asia and the Middle East, including child prostitution, kidnapping and extortion, is of little comfort. So the cycle is complete. But while women's empowerment may be tied up in politics, it is not necessarily tied to it. It may be vital at some point to separate women's empowerment from male political considerations lest they take a perpetual back seat. What we have come to believe as political liberation is often little more than male noblesse oblige. The fact is that in this day and age a woman cannot go to a municipal park and enjoy God's beautiful day. Hear the birds, feed the squirrels, watch the ducks, sit quietly and think or pray. This should be pondered, and acted upon, perhaps by women themselves. How terrible a tyranny, imprisoned in your own gender. Consider the poor woman in Queens who took her baby for stroll in the carriage and ending up being raped at knifepoint in front of her child. Women continue to take this crap. He should be a marked man. His prayer should be that he's not made to suffer too long. A friend and myself were talking about a road tour of the United States. We wanted to see the Grand Canyon, travel Route 66. We've postponed it for safety's sake. We'd be stupid to travel unarmed. But if we were pulled over and a gun was found, we would be in deep trouble. Now we're asked to go about with plain nothing while rapists and murderers run amok, armed to the teeth. I used to go down by the river at 96th Street alone and fly my kite. The whole point was the solitude. Me, my kite, and the sky. I don't go anymore. The underpass is too isolated and men have taken up residence there. The city has disenfranchised them and in turn they have disenfranchised me. They say the only real freedom is the one you take. If someone gives you your freedom they can take it back. Perhaps women themselves should form militias; if anyone has a right, we do. Women are never more severely punished as when they move to protect themselves. We can't protect you and you are forbidden to protect yourselves. Some male judge somewhere always throws the book at such women. There's always some reason why she didn't have to shoot the bastard, whoever he is. Justifiable homicide Justifiable homicide should be a more valid defense. "I was running in the park, Judge, your Honor, when these four guys began to chase me. I ran until I got tired and figured I couldn't run anymore, and they weren't going to stop chasing me, so I turned and fired my AK47, killing all of them. Sorry? Well, yes and no. Better them than me." Case dismissed. Not! They'd probably say she was hysterical and suffered from PMS. Of course this is when politics kicks in. If the chasers were Black, it would be alright. If they were white, it would not be alright. Or, sometimes, if they were Black it would not be alright, because the establishment doesn't want it said it was alright. Right? There was a true case about a woman who was put in jail because she wasn't going to bend over for a legal rape. Some arrogant pervert had raped her small son. He was a white man. He was let off because of a legal technicality, even though he admitted to the crime, by some judge who was probably a pervert himself. So she got herself a rifle and went after the man who raped her little boy. She shot him too. And the same judge threw the book at her. They made a TV movie out of her story. Chaos, pandemonium? Maybe. Any worse than what's going on right now, in Bosnia, Thailand, Liberia, Queens, Central Park. [359] 06-29-96 NEW ZEALAND HERALD. Saturday. Weekend Magazine. Page 11. 575 words. "Extra: Read All about it. The Darkly Beautiful Woman Thwacks His Plastic Shield. But Gary Morley Smiles - He's Being Paid for It" By Gary Morley. COMMENTARY: An article about the experiences of a couple of extras on the shoot for the 2nd season Goliath episode of XWP (Giant Killer). Lighthearted in nature, the article did reveal what it was like to be on the set of XWP and the everyday problems involved in producing such an action-adventure hour long show. Fifteen extras were used for an army of 150 and it took two weeks to shoot. The writer wrote "I grab tenaciously at my 15 nanoseconds of fame [which took three days of his life] as, on camera, Xena thwacks my plastic shield and huskily tells me to 'smarten up!'" [KT] Contributor: Linda Gaunt REPRINT: It all started on a very dark winter's morning. We gather at Market Place in downtown Auckland, thick coats emphasizing our burliness, the early hour dampening our desire for social intercourse. We shuffle into the rental van and begin our clandestine journey into the darkest depths of Henderson. Plunging down a metal driveway, we surface in a sea of artificial light. We are herded into a wardrobe where the much-put-upon assistants kit us out. Then we are rubbed down with mysterious brown liquids for that authentic Babylonian look. It is then a long wait before we are needed on set so there is time to get some food and mingle with my new-found comrades. Mark was between jobs, having been a frame-fitter for just two weeks. Alex worked for a law firm but took time off especially to "get paid for running around and shouting." Along with James, a computer technician, there was a personal fitness trainer, a nightclub bouncer and various sports players. Introductions over, we are finally directed down a muddy track to the set which is, surprisingly, a muddy field upon which the bad guys (the Dragons) are supposedly changing out ranks, and with some success. This is the power of television. What looks to us to be a budget set littered with feeble props, choking smoke and extras fighting as if their lives didn't depend on it is later rendered into an exciting on-screen battleground. There is much trickery involved. Goliath is turned into a giant by standing on a raised table; the 'non-giants" are 20m away in the background. Goliath's head steams because he had a smoke machine under his helmet, much to our amusement. The crunching of cornflakes accompanies his gigantic stride. Filming is tortuously slow. It often takes more than an hour to shoot 10 seconds of film; two weeks to make one hour-long episode. With 15 men representing an army of 150, the battle scenes require us to be in at least one-and-a-half places at once. We get a close-up view of Lucy Lawless, the Kiwi who's now a huge pin-up in America thanks to her bodice-busting role as Xena. Darkly beautiful, she has the ranks standing to attention for on-screen inspection. I grab tenaciously at my 15 nanoseconds of fame as, on camera, Xena thwacks my plastic shield and huskily tells me to "smarten up!" A talented actress cast in a cheesy role, Lawless holds her own in the physical fight scenes. But did they really have kick-boxing in 500 BC? The director, whose all-in-black rock-star dress code is only slightly offset by a nifty pair of gumboots, knows everyone's parts and acts them out with endless gusto. The sets are even more of an eye-opener. From a distance, the castles are impressively Gothic. Up close, you have to be careful where you stand because polystyrene, no matter how dazzling the paintwork, is to solidity what television is to reality. These are three days of valuable experience; as an extra you get to run about, you get to sit around and you get to bump into famous people. And what's more, you get paid for it. GRAPHICS: Lucy Lawless from Hercules and the Amazon Women. Caption: Xena, the Babylonian beauty, in full battle cry); Lucy Lawless from Warrior Princess. Caption: Lawless dispensing her own form of order. [360] 06-30-96 THE SUNDAY STAR-TIMES (Auckland). Page 13. 644 words. "CoverStory cast is uncovered" by Linda Herrick COMMENTARY: If I gave any commentary at all, it'd be longer than this excerpt. [MBE] YOUNG HERCULES is a spin-off of the Herca /Xenaverse of Renaissance Pictures. It was filmed finally in the winter of 96-97. We know Kevin Smith and Michael Hurst are in it. Hurst is probably NOT playing Iolaus because of age insurmountable differences but Smith may appear as Ares. The movie is still as yet unreleased the date of this XMR (July 1997!). This portends either that the show is going to be real good because they are taking their time with it, OR it is going to be soooo bad that they are taking their time fixing it. Also the buzz is that this is a two hour pilot for a pitched live-action half-hour young adult/child show geared towards Saturdays mornings. This, along with AMAZON HIGH, represent the only authorized spin-offs of HERCULES after XENA. [KT] EXCERPT: ... FIRST Hercules, then Xena. Now watch for the " prequel ", Young Hercules, a two-hour telemovie by Pacific Renaissance Pictures, which is in the early stages of casting the production. Prepubescents who are "built" should apply.... [361] 06-30-96 THE SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE. Page 1. 1162 words. "A Woman Warrior Against Crime". By Patricia Holt. COMMENTARY: In a book review of "Cause of Death" by Patricia Cornwell , reviewer Patricia Holt compared the character Kay Scarpetta as a "modern-day Xena the Warrior Queen." [KT] EXCERPT: "We have to smile at the way Cornwell has quietly but steadfastly made Kay Scarpetta into a modern-day Xena the Warrior Queen. Kay is licensed to practice medicine in Virginia, Maryland and Florida; a criminal investigative analyst for the FBI; a credentialed advanced and rescue diver; an expert in radioactive materials; a forensics specialist; an authority on guns and weapons; and, much to the chagrin of the furious police captain who insists she needs a waiver drafted by an attorney just to step on the pier, a lawyer who works on holidays." ============= THE BACK PAGE ============= XENA MEDIA REVIEW STAFF: Serving Xena fandom since March 1996! Kym Masera Taborn (KT), editor-in-chief ktaborn @ lightspeed.net Diane Silver (DS), editor (even issues) dswriter @ idir.net Maria Erb (MBE), editor (odd issues) maria @ erb.mv.com Barbara Johnson, circulation xenatwo @ aol.com Lydia M. Woods, assistant to the editor-in-chief woodsl @ erol.com Thomas Simpson, mascot thomas @ xenafan.com ERRATA: XMR #22 anotation for XMR323 should have read: [323] 06-07-96 through 06-10-96 NOTE: Ratings for CALLISTO (#22), 1st release (05/13/96). Illustrating how much viewership lessens in the summer, this weeks numbers show XWP ranking 10th while taking the 3rd place, with 5.1 even though it is a first run episode. STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE ranked 6th with a 6.0 share and took 1st place for action hours. HTLJ ranked 8th with a 5.4 and took 2nd. XWP did a three way tie for 10th with "Inside Edition" and "The Simpsons". Looking into the future, CALLISTO was re-released on 09/09/96, where it ranked 14th with a 4.3 taking 3rd place; and on 03/03/97, where it ranked 10th with a 5.8 taking 2nd place. [KT] BACK ISSUES: Back issues of XMR are available at the XMR Archive on the XMR web page: http:// xenafan.com / xmr THIS WEEK IN XENA NEWS: TWXN is the advance sheet for XMR. Since XMR offers in-depth analysis of media coverage, the issues are distanced in order to gain perspective and insight into how the media report affected the future or was affected by its peers. TWXN is a commentary-lite review of excerpts to be used in future XMRs as they are processed for the XMR database. TWXN is not available for subscription, however it is posted Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on the XenaVerse, Hercules-Xena, and Chakram Mailing Lists (thank you Lucia!), the MCA NetForum, the Xenite Message Center, and alt.tv.xena. REPRINT POLICY: Permission to use, copy and distribute Xena Media Review (XMR), or parts thereof, by electronic means for any non-profit purpose is hereby granted, provided that both the above copyright notice and this permission notice appear in all copies of the newsletter itself, and that proper credit is given for any excerpts. Any other format or purpose for distribution requires permission of the author. Reproducing XMR or parts thereof by any means implies full agreement to the above non-profit-use clause. SOLICITATIONS FOR FUTURE NEWSLETTERS: Send cites, references, articles, annotations, and/or submissions to ktaborn@lightspeed.net. XMR is a non-profit fan publication. The editors retain editorial control and reprint privileges over the submitted materials and reserve the right to use the material in whatever way they deem appropriate. Submitted materials will not be returned to the sender. DISCLAIMER: XMR (Xena Media Review) is a free non- profit informational release. XMR in no way intends to challenge, disregard or profit from any of the original copyright holders of the material excerpted, reprinted, or referred to (including but not limited to MCA, Universal, Renaissance Pictures, and any other rightful and legal copyright holder). This newsletter is an academic and educational pursuit to archive, annotate, and study the media response to Xena: Warrior Princess (a television production from MCA/Universal/ Renaissance) and the actresses Lucy Lawless and Renee O'Connor, especially in the light of popular culture and the influence of mass media. XMR exercises its right to quote, excerpt or reprint as allowed under the law in order to review and discuss the media reports cited and annotated herein. XMR is distributed free of charge. Banner graphic by Colleen Stephan. This is a Homicidal Insomniacs Publication. Copyright 1997 by Kym Masera Taborn. =================== CUT HERE ================= XENA MEDIA REVIEW #23 (07/28/97) Part 3 of 3 Finis!