     _____               ______                               ._
     `\`/>`\            /`/` /`__________,.'>___      _____   )~\
       /<`\ `\        /`/` /``\ \./------> /|\./\     |\./|  / | \
      /< `\`\ `\    /`/` /`   | | |----\ /  | |\ \    | | |././^\ \
 |\__{o}\--`\`\ `\/`/` /`-----| | |-----`------\`\`\--| | |----^ \ \----.
[\\\\\\\{*}==`>      <`=======| | ==============`\`\`\| | |=====\ \ \==-->
 |/~~{o}/-- /`/  /\ \ `\------| | |---------------`\`\\ | |------\ \ \--'
      \<  /`/` /`  `\`\ `\    | | |_____,.'>| | |   `\`\| | /'    \ \ \
       \< /` /`      `\`\ `\  ,/ /^\------> / |/^\|   \ | |/       \/^\\.
      /`/\>/`           `\`\ `\`~~~~~~~~~~~\ / ~~~~~   )^\,\,      '~~~~~
     `~~~~~`             '~~~~~`            `          ~~~~~~

==========================
XENA: THE MEDIA REVIEW #26
==========================
An Obessive But Benign Publication
http://xenafan.com/xmr
P.O. Box 81181, Bakersfield, CA 93308

Xena Media Review (XMR) is a periodic annotated world
press review of reports regarding the internationally
syndicated television show XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS (1995
- ) and the castmembers, Lucy Lawless and Renee
O'Connor.  For a free e-mail subscription send
"subscribe XMR" to ktaborn@lightspeed.net. Copyright,
legal, and editorial notices are found at the end of
this newsletter.

Issue No. 26
Release date: 09/05/97
1221 subscribers
Covering 08/01/96 - 08/15/96
Annotations 411 to 436


FROM THE EDITOR: XenaStaff, Fans and Fairness
"Up Close and Personal: Two Views of Lucy Lawless'
 August, 1997, Visit to Jay Leno"
"A Fairy Story"
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
ANNOTATIONS
   [411] 08-01-96. "A Star Trek Appreciation" 
   [412] 08-01-96. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. Rat. PROMETHEUS
   [413] 08-01-97 to 08-29-97. Production charts 8/96.
   [414] 08-01-96. COLLECTING FIGURES. 
   [415] 08-01-96. PREVIEWS. HTLJ comic Issue #5.
   [416] 08-02-97 to 08-12-97. PR for British debut     
   [417] 08-02-96. PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. cul. ref
   [418] 08-02-96. DAILY VARIETY. 
   [419] 08-04-96 to 08-18-96. Renee O'Connor Q&A
   [420] 08-05-96. HOOVES AND HARLOTS (#10) 3rd rel
   [421] 08-06-96. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 
   [422] 08-08-96 through 08-12-96. Rat. CoW, 3rd rel.
   [423] 08-08-96. WAIKATO TIMES. Calvin Tuteao
   [424] 08-09-96. ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY. Picture
   [425] 08-10-96 to 09-04-96. O'Connor ice cream party
   [426] 08-11-96. THE SAN RAMON VALLEY NEWS. 
   [427] 08-12-96. ORLANDO SENTINEL. 
   [428] 08-11-96. NEW YORK TIMES. 
   [429] 08-11-96. DENVER POST. 
   [430] 08-11-96. CALGARY HERALD. 
   [431] 08-12-96. ELECTRONIC MEDIA. 
   [432] 08-12-96. TIES THAT BIND (#20), 2nd rel 
   [433] 08-14-96. Q101 Chicago. Radio interview.
   [434] 08-14-96. WGN. TV interview.
   [435] 08-15-96 to 08-16-96. Rat. TITANS (#07), 3rd 
   [436] 08-15-96. DAILY VARIETY. 
THE BACK PAGE
   Errata
   Xena Media Review Staff
   Back Issues
   This Week in Xena News
   Reprint Policy
   Solicitations for Future Newsletters
   Disclaimer


===============
FROM THE EDITOR
===============

XenaStaff, Fans and Fairness
----------------------------

You and I, Steve Sears, Robert Field, Sharon Delaney
and even Lucy Lawless, Renee O'Connor and Rob Tapert
are all pioneers in the wild and wide-open electronic
frontier known as the Internet.

For the first time in the history of mass media
culture, the people who make a TV show and run it's
merchandising and conventions are in constant, daily
communication with fans. In the click of a mouse
button, for example, you can talk directly to such
active internetties as Steve Sears, supervising
producer and writer; Robert Field, editor; and Sharon
Delaney of Creation, who runs the Official Xena Fan
Club, manages the Xena Conventions and sells Xena
merchandise. Executive Producer Rob Tapert, Lucy
Lawless and Renee O'Connor may be less obvious visitors
to the Internet, but we do know they go online.

If we were dependent on off-line communication, only a
few fans would ever walk through the doors of
Renaissance Pictures and talk to XenaStaff. Without the
distance and safety the Internet allows, we wouldn't
know about Mr. Sear's bizarre sense of humor. We
wouldn't know about Mr. Field's panic at the thought
that a modern fork might accidentally have been left on
the ground in THE GREATER GOOD (#21). We wouldn't know
that Ms. Delaney, deep in her heart, is a true fan of
XWP.

Without the Internet, XenaStaff wouldn't know how many
fans like subtext. They wouldn't know that many hate
Ulysses or dislike Joxer. They wouldn't hear the
complaints about GIANT KILLER (#27), THE TITANS (#7)
and other episodes. XenaStaff wouldn't know how a
rumored story line, like Gabrielle's alleged rape,
would upset and anger fans.

All of this instant, world-wide communication is
marvelous. Sometimes online Xenadom feels to me like a
delightful toy that will never get boring. On other
days, though, it just feels like one, big tangled mess
of misunderstandings, miscommunication and incredibly
hurt feelings. And, I'm not even talking about the
flame wars between fans. I'm talking about the venom
that some fans sometimes direct at XenaStaff. This most
often occurs when someone posts what may or may not be
accurate information about an upcoming episode.

D*mn, it gets nasty sometimes. Reading some of the
comments, you'd think XenaStaff were the most vile form
of life on the planet. And, you'd be convinced that XWP
is going to be transformed into a series about Leather
Barbie and her witless, boy-crazy sidekick. Funny,
though, that transformation hasn't happened yet. No
matter how many times a leaked plot line or a rumor has
led to the declaration that the XWP is dead, it has
survived. Xena remains Xena. Gabrielle remains
Gabrielle.

Of course, this doesn't mean that XenaStaff hasn't made
mistakes, sometimes big ones. Personally, I think Joxer
is one mistake that will haunt the show and may someday
drive viewers away. At times, Gabrielle has been
portrayed so inconsistently that I'm surprised no one
has yet written a WHOOSH article entitled, "The 100
Faces of Gabrielle." This also doesn't mean that there
is no possibility the show might not someday be turned
into Baywatch BC.

As fans, what do we owe XenaStaff? Frankly, the only
thing that makes sense to me is a kind of
Wait-And-See-But-Warn-Them Approach. In other words,
I've learned that not every rumor is true, and that I
can't judge an episode until it is broadcast. An idea,
like Gabrielle's marriage, may sound horrible to me,
yet I may feel differently when I see the episode. In
the case of Gabrielle's marriage in RETURN OF CALLISTO
(#29), the rumors left me feeling a bit panicked as a
subtext fan, yet I felt much better after seeing Xena's
pained face at the wedding. The treatment of Xena's son
in ORPHAN OF WAR (#25) was also far different than many
fans feared.

At the same time, I don't believe it is fair to
XenaStaff or ourselves to remain silent when we hear
something disturbing about upcoming episodes. What I
feel I owe XenaStaff is to be both fair and honest. If
enough fans do this, then XenaStaff might be able to
make a mid-course correction, if needed. But this kind
of  speech is a delicate balancing act. When I tell
XenaStaff that an idea sounds terrible, I have to do it
firmly at the same time that I have to say that I can't
judge an episode until I've seen it and that my
information may be wrong. Of course, there is one added
bonus for fans who wait to see an episode before
getting angry about it. Such an approach lowers your
blood pressure and decreases your antacid bill.

And what about XenaStaff? How should they approach fans
online? First, I think they have to realize how
important it is for them to respond to rumors quickly,
honestly and accurately. They say they try to do that,
and I take them at their word. However, their recent
responses to the rumors of an alleged rape of Gabrielle
seemed confusing at times. In particular, it was hard
to tell if one staffer's response was more official or
more right than another's. Mr. Sear's article in the
August, 1997, WHOOSH resolved many issues, at least for
me. (See "Tyldus Interviews Himself") However, it would
have made a huge difference if that kind of statement
had come sooner.

XenaStaff also have to remember that internetties are
an incredibly important part of their fan base. We are
not only a world-wide network, but we are in nearly
instant communication with each other. Because of this,
we can organize and take action quickly. We may not
represent every XWP fan in the world, but we have an
incredible impact on the publicity for the show.
Everything we do has an effect from organizing
Xenafests, to lobbying for talk show appearances by the
stars, to what we put on our web sites and the many
times we are interviewed by reporters. Reporters visit
our web sites and even make inquiries on our mailing
lists. The Internet fans are now mentioned in
practically every article about XWP. If we internetties
ever did rebel, the news media would report that fact
very quickly. Even if the rebellion were based on a
misunderstanding, even if it was based on a false
rumor, it would still hurt the show.

We are all stumbling around in a brave new world here
on the Internet. There are no cops to protect us, not
even a referee to blow the whistle and call a foul.
Perhaps it's time we all sat down for a moment and
thought about what we're doing.

Diane Silver, The Long Winded
dswriter@idir.net
Lawrence, Kansas
Aug. 25, 1997


=====================
UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL:
TWO VIEWS OF LUCY LAWLESS' AUGUST, 1997, 
VISIT TO JAY  LENO
=====================

The View From WordWarrior
-------------------------

I managed to get to Bat Morda's house around 2:30 p.m.
or so and we rolled out to head for NBC. MommaBat works
at NBC and was nice enough to give us her parking spot
on the lot (MommaBat really came through for us big
time in a lot of ways for this experience). We walked
over to her office, and hung out with her for a bit.
Our party consisted of Batsky, Mrs. Bat and me.

Later, we went over to the commissary for sodas. We had
seen the huge line of Xenites out front and later
learned they'd gotten there somewhere around 7 a.m.,
but we tried not to dwell on that as we watched the
Rosie O'Donnell Show in the commissary and sipped
sodas.

When we left, we had a couple minutes before we needed
to get back and hung out in the parking lot. Lyle
Lovett was there, signing an autograph and we figured
it wouldn't be long before ... what's this?  Another
limo pulling up? Who's that leggy dark-haired woman in
the white tank top?  Why yes, it's Lucy! So, we watched
as she made her way backstage, stopped by a couple of
frantic fans who had also managed, like us, to get
behind the gates. She looked gorgeous as usual.

We made our way back to MommaBat's office, and then
followed her as she led us backstage at the Tonight
Show. A page led us to the green room, which had lots
of munchies and drinks and was rather crowded with
people waiting to be seated. We were taken to the stage
by our page and were seated opposite the Leno desk in
the first row of the upper seats. Below us we spotted
many a Xenite, and Batsky started shouting names.

Lani was there, as was Chris, Toy, Lilac, Vada and
Verda, and a host of others. After we played "Name That
Xenite" for a while, Jay came out and did some warm up,
getting his picture taken with folks from the audience.
He went off to get dressed and the warm-up guy took
over, handing out cups and T-shirts while we waited for
the show to start. 

Rodney Dangerfield was the first guest, but he didn't
stick around.  We knew Lucy was second and the theatre
was vibrating with excitement, cuz it was packed with
Xenites.  When she came out there was an audible gasp.
The dress, in person, was amazing. She looked stunning.
You can see for yourself how the interview went. We
were all hoping he wouldn't show the Star Spangled
Banner tape. We'd seen it on a monitor backstage and
didn't like the fact that this was going to be
discussed. But, Lucy was her usual good sport about it
all.

She is a big fan of Lyle Lovett and was very excited he
was going to be there.  Several times, when the camera
wasn't on her, during Jay's mention of Lovett, she was
bouncing around as excited to see him as we were to see
her. When he played, Jay took her to the edge of the
stage so she could watch, and her attention was rapt as
she listened to him sing, then he introduced her to
Lovett, and they cut to commercial.

She was so excited, she was beaming. At one point,
during the commercial break, she was sitting on the
second couch and Lyle was talking to Jay, so neither
man was paying attention to her. She looked out into
the audience, where we were all waving, and she pointed
to Lyle mouthing: "Look at me! I'm sitting next to Lyle
Lovett!" She indicated the small space between them. It
was so cute.

She really did look like she was having a great time,
and I know we were having a blast just watching her. 
When the show ended, she did a couple promos with Jay,
sitting on the desk, doing some of her little character
voices, etc, then off she went.

We all filed over to the Acapulco restaurant, which put
us in a large room. (Can't have Xenites mixed in with
real people, y'know.) Although it took a while to get
everyone served, we had a great time.  I asked that we
go around the room and introduce ourselves, mainly
because I always hear later that so and so was there
but I never knew. There were about 40 people there, so
it was quite a group.

I got home around 9:30 and have to say it was a great
time.  Hope you enjoyed the Tonight Show cuz we sure
did!


The View From Athena aka Rita Reckless aka Rita Schnepp
-------------------------------------------------------

Jay Leno WAS totally smitten by Lucy, and *WE* were
totally smitten by her as well!!!!!!

Leno told her how beautiful her dress was and stood
back as she posed. During the interview, she said how
much she loved Lyle Lovett and genuinely got excited.
Leno took her by the hand and walked her over to the
edge of the stage to watch Lovett perform. They were so
cute standing together side by side.  She had low shoes
on for once, but was almost as tall as he was. The back
of her dress was to die for.

During the break, she was looking around the audience
and waving to each of her fans. She recognized some. 
At one point when Lyle was sitting next to her, Lucy
turned to the entire audience and mouthed: "I'm sitting
next to Lyle Lovett!!!!"  She was like a kid. She was
like *us*, so we didn't feel so bad about being in our
Warrior Princess Haze. (At the same time, she was
strikingly beautiful and VERY professional!!!)

After the show was over, Lucy did some teasers for the
Tonight Show with Jay. She sat on the desk and did a
Meg impression, leaning against Jay as he told people
to stay tuned for the Tonight Show.  In another teaser,
Lucy sat on the desk doing her nails like a 'gangsters'
moll', all sexy and seductive,7F pretending to chew
gum. Jay said, "Come here, sweetie. I can give you a
few tips on advancing your career." And, she said,
"What d'ya mean???? I bust my *ss for my show ... and
your's too!!!!!!!" The two of them together were
hilarious.

Leno really treated Lucy with great respect. The anthem
incident was handled with humor, and she just faced it
with grace. It really isn't a big deal anymore. She's
got a terrific sense of humor. It was all really sweet
and entertaining. Everyone seemed to have fun.


=============
A FAIRY STORY
=============
By Bret Rudnick

Once upon a time, there was a little pie company named
Renascence Pies. It was a fine little company, owned
and staffed by some very fine pie-makers. These 
craftspersons had a variety of experience making pies
for other pie companies in the past, but life and
circumstance led to them all working merrily in their
little factory at Renascence Pies.

One day, the pie factory came up with an unusual pie
that they quickly discovered was enjoyed by many
people. It was a successful little pie, and in its
construction and after a little while experimenting
with the recipe, the Renascence Pie folk produced a
second pie which was, in part, based on the successful
first pie, but with quite a different flavour.

"I quite like this new pie," a number of people were
heard to say. "It's darker than the first pie, has more
substance to it, and quite a lot more of one particular
ingredient and quite a lot less of another."

It took a little while for this second pie to catch on. 
This new pie was always popular with a particular
segment of society, but soon many others decided they
preferred the new pie as well. After a time, the second
pie consistently outsold the first, even though by
pie-selling standards, they were both profitable.

Merchandise related to the second pie soon outstripped
sales of merchandise for the first pie by a wide
margin. There were ten times as many websites developed
that were dedicated to the admiration of the second pie
than there were for the first pie. Events that promoted
or lauded the second pie sold out, while seats for the
first pie were readily available. This is not to say
the first pie was "bad", but the second pie was
enjoying quite a renaissance of its own.

But all was not strawberries and cream in pie-land.    For
you see, although the good people at Renascence Pies
crafted their own pies, another group of people, the
Ubiquitous/Maladroit Clueless Alliance, actually
distributed and *sold* the pies. As the market for the
second pie grew and grew, it knocked the Alliance for
six.

"Harumph," the Alliance people grumbled in between
mouthfuls of their many pies, "We never thought this 
second Renascence pie would amount to anything! Who
knew!"

Obviously the Alliance people, who initially backed the
thought of the second pie with the full expectation it
would fail and thereby assist in pie write-off schemes,
did not take into account the very talented and capable
chefs at Renascence Pies.

But the numbers didn't lie. The second pie was a hot
item, and the Alliance decided it liked the money that
sales of the second pie generated. They wanted to make
sure those numbers didn't fall off.

The pressure was on at the Renascence Pie factory. Now
what? Will the Alliance attempt to alter the recipe in
order to "fix" things? Will too many cooks indeed spoil
the pie? Will we start to get too much of the "other"
ingredient, all too prevalent in the first Renascence
pie? Will the cooks become preoccupied with what makes
a "good" pie and diddle with the recipe beyond all
recognition? Will we see inferior ingredients
substituted? Will new pies being designed be nearly as
"good" as the old pies?

In order to get the answers, stay tuned, kids. This
story is still unfolding. We will have to trust that
our cooks will make subtle and intriguing changes
rather than drastic ones. After all, we all know what
happened with "New Coke" and "Pepsi Clear".



=====================
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
=====================

Date: Mon, 18 Aug 1997
Subject: Re: XENA MEDIA REVIEW #24 (08/11/97) 

Hiya Kym:

I noticed Tendre's Tablet was mentioned in the
abbreviated list of Xena fanfic sites [listed in XMR
#24). I host the Tablet for my favorite bard and just
wanted to say that interested readers will be able to
admire her keen wit once again as soon as she's out of
the hospital and back on her feet. Until the happy day
when she makes good her escape from the followers of
Hippocrates, the site remains intentionally blacked
out.

Max
crazymax@rio.com



===========
ANNOTATIONS
===========

[411] 08-01-96
   "A Star Trek Appreciation" By L.A. Graf [Julia
Ecklar and Karen Cercone]. THE FINAL FURY. Star Trek
Voyager. Invasion 4. Pocket Books. August 1996. Page
299. 139 words. By Dafydd Ab Hugh.
   COMMENTARY: Mention of XWP appeared in Star Trek
Pocket Books first multipart novel spanning the four
Trek manifestations. The reference was found not in the
novels, but in one of the essays contained in the final
Invasion installment. In a fanciful dialogue between
Kira and Bashir discussing their realization that they
have found themselves in a Star Trek novel, Kira
expressed her disgust in being in a novel: "We're
supposed to be back in Deep Space Nine, protecting
Federation space from the Dominion, and the
Cardassians, and the Klingons."  Bashir then added:
"Not to mention Xena: Warrior Princess." 
   This is a rather tongue-in-cheek reference to the up
and coming competition that XWP was beginning to give
STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE. Little did any one know
that XWP would be soon beating the proverbial pants off
of everyone less than a year later. [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   ...Dax nodded, stepping into the plain white border
to scan one cleanly justified margin. As the results
scrolled across her tricorder's little screen, she
glanced up at the others with a smile. "It's all right,
Benjamin--we're in a STAR TREK novel."
   "Am I on the cover?"  Bashir asked eagerly.  Dax
flicked the question mark at him with a sigh.
   "Well, what are we doing here?" Kira wanted to know.
She stooped to catch the question mark as it tumbled
past, turning it over in her hands in the hopes of
finding something useful about it. 'We're supposed to
be back in Deep Space Nine, protecting Federation space
from the Dominion, and the Cardassians, and the
Klingons.'
   "Not to mention Xena: Warrior Princess." Bashir
ducked to avoid a rain of displaced apostrophes and
commas from farther up the page...


[412] 08-01-96
   THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 161 words. "Hercules'
Outruns Rivals"
   COMMENTARY:  Ratings for Prometheus (#8), 3rd
release, 07/08/96, 3rd action hour with 5.0 share. [1st
release, 09/11/95, #20, 3rd place action hour, 4.4
rating; 2nd release, 12/04/96, 5.4 rating). [KT] 
   EXCERPT:
   "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" continued to flex
muscle in the syndication rankings for MCA TV as it
maintained its top place among action hours for the
third consecutive week, July 15-21, according to
Nielsen Media Research.  "Hercules" posted a 5.7
rating, up from a 5.6.  Paramount's "Star Trek: Deep
Space Nine" was up from a 4.5 to a 5.1, second among
the action hours. "Xena: Warrior Princess," stable mate
of "Hercules," was third in the genre with a 5.0, up
from a 4.9.



[413] 08-01-97 to 08-29-97
   NOTE: Production charts for 08/96.


[413a] 08-01-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. Page 12. 6138 words.
"Production Chart Key"
   COMMENTARY: Production chart for LA area: HTLJ and
XWP.
   EXCERPT:
   Abbreviation: SUPR EXP-Supervising executive
producer(s); EXP-Executive producer(s);
COEXP-Co-executive producer(s); SUPR PROD-Supervising
producer(s); PROD-Producer(s) COPROD-Co-producer(s);
DIR-Director(s); CASTING-Casting director. Affiliated
production companies indicated when applicable in
parentheses after show title. Anthology titles follow
show title. Unless a specific director is noted, show
uses various directors. Gray screen indicates new entry
this week. The TV Production Chart includes only
programs that cast actors in the L.A. area....
   ...MCA TELEVISION
   (818) 777-1242
   HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS (synd) (in assn
w/Renaissance Pictures) EXP, Robert Tapert, Sam Raimi;
COEXP, John Schulian; SUPR PROD, Robert Bielak; PROD,
Eric Gruendemann; COPROD, David Eick; CASTING, Beth
Hymson-Ayer.
   XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS (synd) (in assn w/Renaissance
Pictures) EXP, Robert Tapert, Sam Raimi; COEXP, R.J.
Stewart; SUPR PROD, Steven Sears; PROD, Eric
Gruendemann; COPROD, Liz Friedman; CASTING, Beth
Hymson-Ayer.


[413b] 08-08-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. 6048 words. "TV and Cable
Production Chart."
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR413a.


[413c] 08-15-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. 6249 words. "TV and Cable
Production Chart"
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR413a.

[413d] 08-29-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday.
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR413a.


[414]  08-01-96
     COLLECTING FIGURES. No. 20. August. Page --. 111
words. "The Year's Hottest Female Figures"
   Contributed and reviewed by Reader Stephanie TNT
(slr@p.tribnet.com)
   COMMENTARY: The top female toy figures were Xena,
Wonder Woman, Lt. Uhura, Shi, Angela from Spawn, Statue
of Liberty Barbie, She Hulk, Florence Griffith-Joyner,
Princess Leia, and Kara from Dragonheart.
   The picture was of the 10-inch (I know this from the
curved sword), but  it seemed as though the writer
meant the 5-incher, since the 10-incher only just came
out (and likely wasn't out before his deadline). 
   Xena was No. 4 on the Action Figure Hot List, with
the note: "These have all but disappeared.")
   The price list in the back of the mag, which had
prices on everything from Barbies to James Bond to
Laverne and Shirley action  figures, put the 5-inch
Xena at $20+. The 10-incher was not listed. The L&S 
set, meanwhile, goes for $110, while Lenny and Squiggy
are $135. Whew.
   The magazine had three different covers each month.
Xena and the other 10 top female figures were on the
comic version. The general circulation version had
Barbies on the cover,7F highlighting an article on men
collecting Barbie.  There was also a sports version
with a close-up of a Mike Tyson figurine.
   In the article, there was a graphic of the 10-inch
Xena action figure, as well as Wonder Woman. 
   EXCERPT:
   ...Xena makes my list because the figure is so
well-done. The minute you see the figure, there is no
doubt who it is (something that can't  be said,
unfortunately, about many on the market today).
Inspired by the TV  series of the same name, this
figure has almost a cult following and is, at this
time, nowhere to be found.
   The current market has the figure hovering at about
$15 -$20, and judging  from the number of inquiries I
get every week, demand still seems to be very  high. If
other spin-offs occur and interest remains high in the
original  series, this figure will continue to be a
solid bet....


[415] 08-01-96
   PREVIEWS. HTLJ comic Issue #5.
   COMMENTARY: In the premiere ordering magazines for
the comic book market, the Hercules Topps Comic book is
promoted. [KT]
   Contributed by paks@ccnet.com
   REPRINT:
   Concluding the epic Xena: Warrior Princess trilogy! 
The is the battle you never expected to see - Hercules
vs. Hercules - Xena battling Xena.  How is it possible? 
Anything is possible when you cross the vengeful gods
of Olympus!  Learn the origin of Hercules' most
dangerous enemy - Periclymenus.
    A story so incredible that you'll swear it was made
up by Salmoneus himself!
    It's non-stop action with plenty of thrills and
surprises. Plus the usual cast of characters (and we do
mean characters) as Gabrielle, Iolaus, and Atalanta
jump into the fray!


[416]  08-02-97 to 08-12-97
   NOTE: Press release for XWP's debut on British
channel Sky Two in September 1996. Head of Programmes,
David Elstein, was quoted as saying "They are great
fun, tongue-in-cheek adventure action series [XWP with
HTLJ] which I think the kid-dult audience will really
enjoy." [KT]


[416a] 08-02-96
   PRESS ASSOCIATION NEWSFILE. Friday. 421 words.
"Buckle Your Swash, Here Comes Xena." By Jackie Burdon.
   COMMENTARY: Press release for XWP in Britain's
satellite channel, Sky Two. [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   Swashbuckling Xena, Warrior Princess will spearhead
a clutch of programmes fresh to British TV to be
launched on new entertainment channel Sky Two next
month.  Xena, played by feisty New Zealander Lucy
Lawless, is a tough superheroine for the 1990s who
tackles evil villains with unmatched martial arts
skills, fearsome medieval weaponry and skimpy clothing. 
A big hit in the United States, it is the sister
programme to Hercules, already showing on Sky One.
"They are great fun, tongue-in-cheek adventure action
series which I think the kid-dult audience will really
enjoy," Sky TV head of programmes David Elstein said
today.  Mainstream channels would be falling over
themselves to sign them up, as they had done with The X
Files and Murder One, two other Sky hits, he said....
   ...Mr. Elstein said Sky 2 was a bonus for families
and women viewers, who were not all as enthusiastic
about Sky's sports channels as men.  "As we build on
our appeal to the family and female audiences, it is
important to us to strengthen our entertainment
channels," he said.  "We are very conscious of the fact
that although sports are probably the most important
part of what we are offering, entertainment is the most
popular part. "As Sky broadens its audience base, it
must also broaden its appeal and that means
entertainment for both a female and male audience." He
admitted Sky 2's programmes were almost all from
America or Australia.  "Sky 1 is now between 35% and
40% British-produced, and I fully expect Sky 2 to get
there over the same time frame of three or four
years."...


[416b] 08-12-96
   BROADCASTING & CABLE. Sec: No. 34, Vol. 126; Page
70. 136 words.  "BSkyB bulks up; will launch 11 new
channels on analog package.
   COMMENTARY: XWP is mentioned as as part of the line
up of new channels being launched in Britain.[DS]
   REPRINT:
   News Corp.-backed UK pay-TV operator BSkyB will
launch 11 new channels on its analog package on Aug.
16. The services include a second entertainment
channel, Sky 2, beginning Sept. 1, which will feature
shows such as MCA's Xena: Warrior Princess, Melrose
Place and Late Night with David Letterman....


[417] 08-02-96
   PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. Friday. Sports. Page BB-2.
617 words. "City Firm Captions the Action" By Chuck
Finder
   COMMENTARY: XWP made a rare Sports page appearance
in Pittsburgh.  In an article about VITAC, the company
which did close-captioning for the Olympics, Mr. Finder
mentioned that VITAC also captioned XWP. He also added
tongue-in-cheek that "Believe me, Xena would rule
Olympic fencing." [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   ...Nine Pittsburghers participate nightly in the
Olympics. They keep pace with Michael Johnson. They go
to the mat with Kurt Angle.
   And all from a basement bunker along the Boulevard
of the Allies, Downtown.
   They are the close-captioning crew for VITAC, the
10-year-old company that brings NBC's every prime-time
Olympic word to U.S. viewers....
   ...Two other companies share the weekend and
overnight broadcasts of the Summer Games.
   "I don't know if anyone could have done (the full
171 1/2 -hour Olympic coverage)," said Tracey Taylor
Perles, VITAC's director of corporate development. "We
could have tried, but it would have been tough. We have
so much other work to do." Such as CNN Headline News,
CBS's morning shows, four soap operas and 13 syndicated
series - ranging from "Wheel of Fortune" to our
favorite, "Xena: Warrior Princess." (Believe me, Xena
would rule Olympic fencing.)...


[418]  08-02-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Friday. Page 1. 433 words. "CTTD's
'Walker' hits 80% clearance rate" By Jenny Hontz
   COMMENTARY: In an article about Columbia TriStar
Television Distribution having sold off-net rights to
Chuck Norris' action hour "Walker, Texas Ranger" to 175
stations, covering 80% of the country, Ms. Hontz noted
that CTTD hadn't closed a deal in No. 1 market New
York. Ms. Hontz then cited a NY station manager who
"said the weekend hour drama and action field is very
crowded right now with "Hercules: The Legendary
Journeys" and "Xena: Warrior Princess,  "Star Trek:
Deep Space Nine," newcomers "Sinbad" and "Tarzan, the
Epic Adventures," and with off-net "NYPD Blue,""The
X-Files" and "ER."" [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   ...Thurston said CTTD has gotten offers for "Walker"
in New York, and that CTTD is ultimately getting better
deals by resisting sales to large stationsgroups.
   One New York station general manager, however, said
the weekend hour drama and action field is very crowded
right now with "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" and
"Xena: Warrior Princess, " "Star Trek: Deep Space
Nine," newcomers "Sinbad" and "Tarzan, the Epic
Adventures," and with off-net "NYPD Blue,""The X-Files"
and "ER."...


[419]  08-04-96 to 08-18-96
   NOTE: Finally, Renee O'Connor  gets some attention!
In a heavily syndicated Q&A for newspaper TV magazines,
a Texan (of course) asked for information about Ms.
O'Connor. The two paragraph answer covered familiar
ground: she was a native of Katy, Texas; studied acting
in high school; her work in a Hercules movies led to
her casting as Gabrielle; and she considered LA her
home. The last paragraph gave quite a resume of Ms.
O'Connor's past roles.
   The question was asked by on-line fandom's very own
Archie Burruss (archieb@dadd.ti.com). Battle on,
Archie! [KT]


[419a] 08-04-96
    THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS. Sunday. TV Magazine. Page
3. 558 words. "Q: A: Your Questions"
   COMMENTARY: Q&A concerning Ms. O'Connor
   EXCERPT:
   ...Q. I believe Renee O'Connor of Xena: Warrior
Princess is doing an outstanding job.  I know she is
from Texas.  What else can you tell me about her? --
A.B., Dallas, Texas
   A. Ms. O'Connor is a native of Katy, Texas, who
studied acting at Houston's Alley Theater and High
School for the Performing and Visual Arts.  Her role as
Gabrielle, Xena's faithful sidekick, on the syndicated
action series, was preceded by her work in Hercules and
the Last Kingdom, with Kevin Sorbo.  The producers
liked her work and cast her in Darkman II and then in
the Xena series.
   Besides her action roles, she's done the Teen Angel
series on Disney, a Rockford Files movie, Danielle
Steel's Changes, an episode of NYPD Blue and co-starred
with Elijah Wood in Walt Disney's The Adventures of
Huck Finn.  When not on location in New Zealand, the
former Texan now calls L.A. home...


[419b] 08-05-96
   ST. PETERSBURG TIMES. Monday. Television. Page 7d.
166 words.
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR419a.


[419c] 08-07-96
   ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Wednesday. Everyday
Magazine. Page 6E. 78 words. "TV Q & A" By Norma
Cavazos
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR419a.


[419d] 08-11-96
   THE RECORD. Sunday. Television. Page 017. 580 Words.
"TV Q&A" By Norma Cavazos
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR419a.


[419e] 08-18-96
   TULSA WORLD. Sunday. TV World. Page TC2. 602 words.
"Television Q&A" By Norma Cavazos
   COMMENTARY: Same content as XMR419a.


[420] 08-05-96
   HOOVES AND HARLOTS. Episode no. 10. Third release.
Guest stars: Danielle Cormack, David Aston, Alison
Bruce, and Mark Ferguson. Written by Steven L. Sears.
Directed by Jace Alexander.
   COMMENTARY: See XMR083.5 for synopsis.


[421] 08-06-96
   THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 511 words. "Aussie Court
Orders Quota Benefit to Kiwis." By Blake Murdoch.
   COMMENTARY: XWP was mentioned in a report about an
Australian court decision declaring that New Zealand
television productions can be considered local in
Australia. The article quoted Simon Lake, the executive
director of the Australian Writers' Guild, commenting
upon "the absurdity of foreign productions shot in New
Zealand, such as 'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys' and
'Xena: Warrior Princess,' being able to qualify as
Australian content." [KT]
   This article also provides some interesting
information about relations between the two neighboring
countries and the economics and politics of TV
production. However, if you have no interest in those
subjects, you should skip it.[DS]
   REPRINT:
   The New Zealand production industry won a
long-running battle last week for its programming
output to count toward Australia's local content
quotas.
  The victory potentially unlocks higher license fees
for New Zealand fare in Australia, and makes
co-production and co-financing deals between the two
countries more feasible.
  However, Australia's production industry is warning
that the decision handed down Friday in federal court
will increase competition among local producers for
network financing and acquisitions.
  Through its industry promotions group, Project Blue
Sky, New Zealand has been arguing that the Australian
Broadcasting Authority should not be permitted to
exclude New Zealand programming from being classified
as local content in Australia. Project Blue Sky cites
an existing trade accord under which both countries
agree to treat service providers from the other "no
less favorably" than their own. In its ruling, the
federal court instructed the ABA to revise its
Australian Content Standards. Further, it mandated both
sides to work out a timetable for formulating a revised
standard. The ABA has 21 days in which to appeal the
decision.
  Assuming New Zealand programming is classified as
local fare for Australian commercial networks, that
means significantly higher license fees compared with
what's paid for "imported" programming.
  "The New Zealand argument . . . is nothing but a
backdoor method to access this price," complained Simon
Lake, executive director of the Australian Writers'
Guild, who described the ruling as a "disaster" for the
Australian production industry. "It has nothing
whatsoever to do with access to the wider Australian
market."
    Lake added that the decision also undermined the
"cultural objectives" of Australia's content quotas,
and could even lead to "the absurdity of foreign
productions shot in New Zealand, such as 'Hercules: The
Legendary Journeys' and 'Xena: Warrior Princess,' being
able to qualify as Australian content." The two action
hour dramas are distributed by Hollywood's MCA TV
International.
    Noting that Australia's production industry is
about five times larger than New Zealand's, Project
Blue Sky executive director Jo Tyndall countered that
New Zealand doesn't pose a threat to Australia's
production industry.
  "(This) decision simply allows New Zealand programs
to compete on a level playing field," Tyndall said.
"There is no expectation that Australian networks will
be required to purchase our programs. We will have to
prove to them that our series can rate with Australian
audiences as well as (Australia's) rate in our
country."
   Tyndall also said that the decision will encourage
production houses in both countries "to work together
in a very flexible way to develop, finance and produce
programs which are tailored to a larger Australasian
market (and) . . . to further exploit potential world
sales."
  Phil Wakefield in New Zealand contributed to this
report.


[422] 08-08-96 through 08-12-96
   NOTE: Ratings for Chariots of War (#02), third
release, 07-15-96, 2nd action hour, 4.1 share. [1st
release, 10/30/95, #16, tied for 3rd action hour, 5.4
share; 2nd release, #17, 3rd action hour, 5.6 share].
The Olympics took a bit out of most syndicated shows.
ST:DS9 fell to 3.9, it's lowest ever rating.


[422a] 08-08-96
   THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 215 words. "Ratings Tumble
During Games. By Steve Brennan
   COMMENTARY: Chariots of War (#02), third release.
   EXCERPT:
   There was no gold for syndicators during the first
week of the Atlanta Olympics. While it was fully
anticipated that the Games would play havoc with the
ratings, the stark reality of the numbers was still not
an easy pill to swallow.   Worst hit for the week of
June 22-28 were the heavyweight access shows, according
to Nielsen Media Research....
   ...The weekly action hours also suffered. MCA TV's
"Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" maintained its place
for the fourth week as the leading action hour with a
4.4, but this was down 23% from the previous week's
5.7. Stablemate "Xena: Warrior Princess" was down 18%
to a 4.1 from a 5.0....


[422b] 08-08-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. Page 6. 248 words.
"Syndies: Gold-medal Meltdown." By Jenny Hontz
   COMMENTARY: Chariots of War (#02), third release.
   EXCERPT:
   NBC's coverage of the Olympic Games dealt most
syndicated series a severe blow the week ending July
28. Shows that were not preempted and did not appear on
NBC affiliates were crushed by the competition...   
...MCA TV's action hours beat Par's "Star Trek: Deep
Space Nine," despite double-digit declines for the
week. "Hercules" fell 23% to a 4.4, "Xena" dropped 18%
to a 4.1, and "Star Trek" plummeted 24% to a 3.9, its
lowest rating in memory.


[422c] 08-12-96
   VARIETY. Page 23. 248 words. "Gold-medal meltdown
for syndie programs" By Jenny Hontz
   COMMENTARY: Chariots of War (#02), third release.
   EXCERPT:
   NBC's coverage of the Olympic Games dealt most
syndicated series a severe blow the week ending July
28. Shows that were not preempted and did not appear on
NBC affiliates were crushed by the competition...
   ...MCA TV's action hours beat Par's "Star Trek: Deep
Space Nine," despite double-digit declines for the
week. "Hercules" fell 23% to a 4.4, "Xena" dropped 18%
to a 4.1, and "Star Trek" plummeted 24% to a 3.9, its
lowest rating in memory.


[423] 08-08-96
   WAIKATO TIMES. Page 1. 318 words. "City actor
stamped with immortality" By Calvin Tuteao
   COMMENTARY: Interview with Calvin Tuteao, who has
acted on XWP. He played Dagon in GIANT KILLER. [KT]
   REPRINT:
   Calvin Tuteao shrugs his shoulders and smiles when
asked how he feels having his face immortalized on a
postage stamp.
   "It freaks me out. I get a bit of a hard time from
my family and that."
   Mr. Tuteao, 30, Hamilton construction worker and
actor, played gang leader Taka in the 1994 hit movie
Once Were Warriors.  A haunting image of his heavily
tattooed face was chosen by New Zealand Post for one of
four stamps released yesterday to mark the centenary of
New Zealand cinema. Its $ 1.80 value means thousands of
the stamps will travel airmail to Europe.
   Once Were Warriors was only Mr. Tuteao's second
experience of acting outside school.
   As a Melville High School student in 1983, he was
persuaded by friends to audition for the school's
production of Tomorrow Will Be a Lovely Day because
"they wanted more Maori actors". He got the part. In
1986 he played the part again at Riverlea Theatre.  In
1993, the chance to audition for Once Were Warriors
came up.
  "I think I've always wanted to do something like that
-- be in the movies or on stage."
   Since Once Were Warriors, Mr. Tuteao has had a
number of acting jobs in television and theatre,
including parts in Hercules -- the Legendary Journeys
and Xena -- Warrior Princess.
   "I enjoy it, it's been good fun. And all the sets
I've been on, they've looked after me well."
   But his career as a construction worker has been his
main income earner. "I've been trying to get out of
construction for years but I keep having to go back --
it pays the bills."
    The other three stamps depict New Zealand's first
feature film Hinemoa, released in 1914 (40c), 1952's
Broken Barrier (80c) and Goodbye Pork Pie from 1981 ($
1.50). The stamps are sold with an attached
scratch-and-win panel.
   GRAPHIC: FOREVER A WARRIOR: Once Were Warriors actor
Calvin Tuteao now has his face depicted on a stamp.


[424] 08-09-96
   ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY. Sec: Television. Page 48. 987
words. "A guide to notable programs". By Bruce Fretts;
Ken Tucker; Mark Harris, Kristen Baldwin.
     COMMENTARY: A lengthy article on new TV shows
ignores XWP and Hercules, but does include photos of
the two stars. [DS]
     EXCERPT:
     GRAPHIC: COLOR PHOTO, [Lucy Lawless and Kevin
Sorbo as TV characters Hercules and Xena].


[425] 08-10-96 to 09-04-96
   NOTE: Renee O'Connor particpated in a local
promation for the show during her hiatus in Texas. 


[425a] 08-10-96
   AUSTIN-AMERICAN STATESMAN. Saturday. Sports. Page
--. 213 words. "Want to Meet Gabrielle, Star of Xena
Warrior Princess?"
   Contributed by HJ Hewitt (HJJH@utxvms.cc.utexas.edu)
   COMMENTARY: A contest was sponsored by the Austin
American- Statesman educational services department and
the producers of XWP whereby 24 boys and girls would
win an invitation to an ice cream party hosted by Renee
O'Connor who would talk to the kids about the show. A
follow-up article after the ice cream party appeared in
the Austin-American on 09/05/96 (XMR---).  The article
gave details as to the contest, enticing the winning
entrants with "you will not only get an ice cream
treat, but Gabrielle (Renee) will personally autograph
a photo for you.  You'll also get to spend an hour
hearing about how the show is made.  She may even tell
you some Xena stories you haven't seen on TV."  [KT]
   REPRINT:
   We can arrange it if you are one of two dozen
contest winners. The Austin American-Statesman
educational services department and the popular
television show are co-sponsoring an ice cream party
for Renee O'Connor, who stars as Gabrielle on the XENA
television show. Xena: Warrior Princess was the highest
rated new syndicated show last season and has been
picked up for at least two more years.  Gabrielle is a
spirited young woman who idolizes Xena and recklessly
follows her search of a more exciting life.  If you are
one of 12 boys (age 16 and below) or 12 girls (age 16
and below) who win, you will not only get an ice cream
treat, but Gabrielle (Renee) will personally autograph
a photo for you. You'll also get to spend an hour
hearing about how the show is made.  She may even tell
you some Xena stories you haven't seen on TV.
   If you want to win this great contest, you have to
do two things. First, look in our newspaper's TV
listing and find out all the times when Xena: Warrior
Princess appears on local television, then write 100
words or less explaining "From Xena: Warrior Princess,
I know women can be heroes because...". Deadline for
you entry is August 21, 1996.


[425b]  09-04-96
   AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN. Page --. --- words.
"Scholar & Scribe. Student Contest Winners Meet
Gabrielle"
   Contributed by hjjh@xmail.utexas.net (HJ Hewitt)
   COMMENTARY 
   They really did have an apostrophe after
Renee O'Connor's name instead of an accent over the
first "e".
   The "flying disk" mentioned in the article was just
a frisbee with "Xena" printed in the center. You'd
think MCA could have at least had a design printed
around the edge to suggest a chakram!  Of the winners
listed in the article, at least 2/3rds had obviously
girls' names, and 60% were between 5 and 8 years old,
so it was easy to wrestle a couple of the frisbees and
a water bottle away from them.  (Well, all right-- so I
really just latched onto some left-overs after the kids
had left.)  Actually, the kids were *amazingly*
well-behaved-- either Xena fans are just different,
even from an early age, or their mommas were
effectively reminding them "Xena says, 'Be nice!'".
   It was about time that RO did her first official
autograph session!
   I had a blast with the other Chakramites I got to
meet at the ice-cream party, but *who* the internetter
from Houston was, is a mystery.  There were no
Houstonians among people who sent greetings for me to
print out and pass on to Renee,
and there are none in The TeXenite Registry.  It seems
odd indeed, but so far as I have any evidence, X:WP
doesn't even HAVE any Internet fans in Houston! -- at
the time of the ice-cream party, at least. [commentary
by HJ Hewitt who was presented at the ice cream party] 
   EXCERPT:
   Renee' O'Connor thrilled several dozen readers of
Scholar & Scribe and their families recently when she
hosted an ice cream sundae social for them. 
   Renee', who plays Gabrielle on the very popular TV
series "Xena: Warrior Princess," signed autographs for
everyone who came.  The contest winners also received
their choice of a Xena flying disk or a Xena water
bottle.
   The afternoon was not only special for the winners,
it was a history-making occasion.  It was the first
time the 25-year-old actress has held a public
autograph session.
   The event was so rare that adult fans of the Xena
television series learned of the occasion through the
Internet and drove in from Dallas, Houston, San Antonio
and Corpus Christi.


[426] 08-11-96
   THE SAN RAMON VALLEY NEWS. TIME OUT Section. Page --
. 512 words. "The Big Picture".  by Doug Kim.
   Contributed by Tyche@worldnet.att.net
   COMMENTARY: Doug Kim's tongue-in-cheek article
succeeds in simultaneously skewering the movie "Chain
Reaction" and promoting XWP as a goofy show. This is
the Big-Dumb-Warrior view of Xena. [DS]
   EXCERPT:
   ....Of course, I also have another suggestion for
rescuing "Chain Reaction":  Instead of having him jump
into a garbage truck [he had mentioned this earlier],
make him do the Macarena. Then, after completely
mystifying the police force...No, here's the actual
suggestion: Cut out all the Keanu Reeves scenes and
insert clips from "Xena: Warrior Princess."
   I've just seen this show for the first time, and it
kicks the pants off any dorky Keanu Reeves thriller,
boy. I don't know if you've seen it, but Xena is a
wandering, totally buff warrior with a broadsword
strapped to her back.  She gleefully slices open bad
guys, does some really implausible back-flips and
generally makes all the men look like complete idiots.
   It also features priceless dialogue like, "You talk
big for a centaur, don't you?"
   In fact, I'm so enamored of this show, I've decided
to ask Xena to join us on the Big Picture today.
   BP: Welcome to the Big Picture, Xena.
   X:  Who are you, anyway?  Where's your buckskin?
   BP:  Um, a fan.  And I really prefer to wear cotton. 
So have you seen that new Keanu Reeves movie?
   X:  Unfortunately.  Not enough explosions.
   BP:  My point exactly.  Any other suggestions for
fixing the film?
   X:  Well, that woman who plays his physicist
girlfriend is a complete wimp.  She should strap a big
broadsword to her back,and gleefully slice open a few
bad guys.  A few implausible flips would be good, too.
   BP:  Did you see Kerri Strug do the Macarena?
   X:   She looked confused.
   BP:  What about those rhythmic gymnasts?  Do you
think that they'd make good warrior princesses?  And do
you think they could do the Macarena?
   X:  They're a little too skinny for warrior
princesses. Maybe after a couple of pig flanks, they'd
be OK.  But I'd say anybody who can stand up and spin
with one foot next to her ear has warrior princess
potential.  I don't know about the Macarena. Warrior
princesses prefer the Lambada.
   BP:  What about John Tesh?  Was he starting to get
on your nerves, too?
   X:  If I saw him, I'd slice him open like a
grapefruit.
   BP:  You seen to be in great shape.  What's your
training regimen look like?  Is there any special
equipment you use?
   X:  I tried the Ab Flexer, but it's hard to do with
a broadsword strapped to your back.  Gleefully slicing
open bad guys is actually a pretty good workout.
   BP:  Did anyone ever tell you look like Linda
Ronstadt on steroids?
   X:  No, and if anybody did, I'd slice him open like
a grapefruit. These questions are getting kind of
irritating.  Is there any reason I shouldn't slice YOU
open...
   BP:  Uh, thanks for joining us today, Xena!  Call me
sometime, we'll do lunch...
   GRAPHIC: GLEEFUL:  Broadsword wielding Xena is more
than a match for any rhythmic gymnast. [The picture is
of Xena in Hooves and Harlots.  She is about to fight
Melosa and there is an Amazon in the background,
cheering Melosa on.]


[427] 08-12-96
   THE ORLANDO SENTINEL. Monday. Page 3. 691 words. "3
Hotels Top Seniors Discount List" By Leslie Doolittle.
   COMMENTARY: In a section about Universal Studios
preliminary plans to open another state-of-the-art
attraction in 1998, Ms. Doolittle reported that
Universal Studios will soon debut "Hercules and Xena
characters who will impersonate actors on the Fox TV
show Hercules: The Legendary Journeys." It was assumed
that Universal was doing this to beat Disney to the
punch in Disney's promotion of it's Hercules animated
movie. [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   In addition, the park soon will beat Disney to the
Hercules punch, debuting Hercules and Xena characters
who will impersonate actors on the Fox TV show
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Disney's major
animated summer film release slated for next year is
Hercules.


[428] 08-11-96
   THE NEW YORK TIMES. Sunday. Section 6. Page 19. 133
words. "A Question For: Lucy Lawless"
   COMMENTARY: Answering a question regarding Ms.
Lawless' comments about feminism in the Ms Magazine
article (XMR #24), Ms. Lawless was quoted as stating
that the "Ms. thing riled me." She continued with
comments about how women in New Zealand just do not put
up with discrimination. [KT] 
   Also see, XMR #24, for a detailed analysis of the
Ms. article and Ms. Lawless' reaction to it. [DS]
   REPRINT:
   Lucy Lawless, a New Zealander, stars in "Xena:
Warrior Princess," the top-rated new syndicated
television show in the United States.
   Q: Xena is Hercules-tough, and she battles with men
in the age of Greek mythological heroes. The new cover
of Ms. says that American women have a serious case of
"Xena-mania." Do you like being a feminist icon?
   A: That Ms. thing riled me. I was just so shocked to
be asked if I consider myself a feminist. Where I come
from, women are just bloody strong, you know? I've met
many women from other cultures in the last year and I'm
aghast at how unnecessarily repressed they seem. Here
in New Zealand, women say, "I want this and I'm going
to work and get it." Nobody refuses me anything because
I'm a woman. Nobody gives me lip because I'm a woman.
   GRAPHIC: Lucy Lawless


[429] 08-11-96
   THE DENVER POST. Sunday. Page F-10. 298 words.
"Shows can be found on Web" By Joanne Ostrow
   COMMENTARY: XWP was mentioned as having it's own
website in an article highlighting the Ultimate TV List
website (www.tvnet.com/UTVL/utvl.html). [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   The cult hits "Star Trek," "Dr. Who," "The X-Files"
and "Mystery Science Theater 3000" have the biggest
presence in cyberspace, but more obscure shows make
noise there, too. Even "Xena: Warrior Princess" has her
own Web site.
   Insomniacs can find raging commentary on soap operas
and late-night shows, foreign productions, the fall '96
schedule and too much more, with contributions from
around the world.
   For starters, a site called the Ultimate TV List
(www.tvnet. com/UTVL/utvl.html) offers links to
information on more than 890 shows. This week's "net
site of the week" was Stooge TV, with capsule reviews
of the various Web pages devoted to the Three Stooges.
   The "Ultimate List" is less comprehensive than it
sounds. The search came up empty when I requested the
TV series title "Our Miss Brooks."
   Among the most offbeat sites: "The Bureau of Federal
Investigation X-Files Division" (http://
www.neosoft.com/sbanks/ xfiles/xfiles.html), which
offers video clips of episodes and a chance for
aspiring writers to contribute stories; and "The
'Melrose Place' Boff Guide" (http:www.athenstown.com.
spelling/melrose/boff.html), which charts who's slept
with whom on the Fox series.
   In terms of creativity, the Sci-Fi Channel's
"Dominion" site (www.scifi.com) is impressive ("Spend
every waking moment on the Dominion," a mesmerizing
graphics display commands.) And Discovery's online
offerings are educational besides being fun. 
   But most often sites launched by individual fans
outdo anything from official networks. Only rarely have
legal tangles resulted, as when someone launched a site
called "Spellingland." It was shut down and forced off
the Web by Aaron Spelling's Spelling Entertainment
Group, which claimed illegal use of its logos and
trademarks.


[430] 08-11-96
   CALGARY HERALD. Entertainment Sec:. Page B11. 799
words. "Preview with her lethal Frisbee, she's
invincible Xena". By William Grimes
    COMMENTARY: Yet another of a long line of stories
that do nothing more than introduce the reader to XWP.
Nothing much is new here except, perhaps, for a comment
from Ms. Lawless about how she feels like she is
following the lead of Diana Rigg, Mrs. Peel from the
Sixties hit THE AVENGERS. [DS]
    REPRINT:
    Try to imagine a time before history began, in a
faraway land shrouded in mist and cloaked in green,
where gods and mythic heroes walk the earth and mingle
with mortal men. Try a little harder, and picture those
mighty figures wearing the leftover costumes from a
Hollywood B epic and speaking dialogue that begins in
classical Greece and winds up in the San Fernando
Valley.
    Try extra hard, and summon up the vision of a
statuesque, leather-clad brunette with major-league
cleavage and a lethal steel Frisbee, roaming the
countryside righting wrongs.
    This recipe for superior cheese is the formula
behind Xena: Warrior Princess, the most successful new
syndicated series now on the air.
    Spun off from the even more successful and equally
improbable Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Xena,
which made its debut in September 1995, is carried by
205 stations, reaching 97 per cent of the viewing
audience. Most weeks, it actually vanquishes the
awesome Baywatch, making it No. 3 among the so-called
action-hour series,  as opposed to game shows and talk
shows, trailing only Hercules and Star Trek: Deep Space
9.
    Like Hercules, Xena delivers a campy blend of
adventure, martial arts  and loony dialogue, along with
a wholesome, New Age message that promotes peace,
co-operation and understanding among all peoples be
they centaurs, Amazons  or classical heroes.
    The air of unreality is helped along by the lush,
rugged, very moist  setting of New Zealand, where both
series are filmed, and where indigenous actors deliver
their lines in an American accent.
    Virtually anything goes. Its OK that Xena, played
by Lucy Lawless,  wields a chakram, a razor-sharp disk
that dates to 16th-century Persia, liberates
downtrodden peasants who seem to exist in the Middle
Ages and encounters Amazons, centaurs and Greek gods.
    Its OK for her chatty blond sidekick, Gabrielle
(Renee OConnor), to tell Xena, hanging by her chained
wrists from the ceiling of a dungeon, "I can understand
why you might be feeling a little negative right now."
    Its also OK for Xena, in a Trojan War episode, to
tell a bad guy, "What I can't figure out is why a
scum-sucking opportunist like you  would want Helen
back with Menelaus."
    Lines like that, delivered with a sneer and a flash
of her piercing blue eyes, have made Lawless, 28, a
cult figure. Her web site on the Internet attracts
heavy traffic, some of it, she suspects, from
55-year-old lawyers  who want to be spanked, and most
definitely from loyal lesbian fans who just  know that
Xena and Gabrielle have a special relationship.
    Some fans have followed Lawless since her first
appearance as the  ruthless head of a girl gang in one
of the television Hercules movies that preceded the
series.
    "I was sort of a Bolshie lieutenant to the
Amazons," says Lawless, who dyed her blond hair black
for the role and waved goodbye to her job as the host
of a travel show.
    "I brutalized Hercules a bit and then we raped and
pillaged a village down the road."
    In her next appearance, she was, as she describes
it, a centaur's moll. 
    When Hercules was developed into a series, Lawless
popped up in three episodes as Xena. Initially
conceived as a villainess, she left a wide swath of
destruction in her path.
    The intent was to kill her off. But when stations
began asking for a companion series to Hercules, her
life was spared. Xena underwent a conversion and
renounced her evil ways, although not her fighting
skills.
    The later time slot for Xena opened up darker,
sexier possibilities. The producers also endowed their
heroine with more streamlined fighting potential. Xena
can send her chakram spinning with stunning accuracy,
sometimes executing a three-carom shot. Her swordplay
knows no peer among mortals, although she was once
fought to a standstill by Ares, the god of war, who
lusts after her.
    In hand-to-hand combat, she is the equal of a dozen
men, and she can,  with a twisting motion of her thumb
and index finger, block the flow of blood  through the
carotid artery, giving her victim 60 seconds to
co-operate or die.
    She uses anything that comes to hand, Lawless says.
In one episode she snaps a towel.
    In real life, Lawless says, she is no kung-fu
master: "On the set, when I throw that chakram,
everybody runs for cover."
    Xena needs many weapons but few words and only two
basic expressions, a contemptuous sneer for the men
foolish enough to challenge her and a hard, resolute
stare.
    Lawless says she thinks of herself as following the
lead of Emma Peel in the classic 1960s TV series The
Avengers. Played by Diana Rigg, Emma  combined
tongue-in-cheek humor with a killer black-leather look. 
    All this martial arts and free-for-all action is
really sort of misleading, Lawless says. "I'm more the
'Sense and Sensibility' type." 
    GRAPHIC: Color Photo: Xena in hand-to-hand combat
is equal to a dozen men


[431] 08-12-96
   ELECTRONIC MEDIA. Page 24. 987 words. "Affordable
Effects Make More Action Hours Feasible" By Greg
Spring.
   COMMENTARY: This article explored why a special
effect from two years ago cost $50,000, whereas the
same affect only costs $5,000 to produce now.
   XWP was mentioned as a show which was taking
advantage of the low cost of special effects.
   Mr. Spring interviewed the executive producer of
Viper (Danny Bilson), the special effects specialist
for Sinbad (Neil Williamson), the executive producer of
Psi-Factor (James Nadler), and the executive producer
of HTLJ & XWP (Rob Tapert).
   Mr. Spring reported that Mr. Tapert's visual special
effects team had located a program capable of rendering
creatures with fur. Therefore, expect furry monsters in
Hercules future.  Tapert was quoted as stating, "Now
it's all different...Things that cost us $25,000 before
now cost us $1,500."
   In conclusion, Mr. Spring again quoted Mr. Tapert:
"We keep challenging the effects guys to come up with
better and better effects...Can you teach a computer to
paint? Absolutely, and it will spit out 1,000 paintings
a day. But it will lack a certain artistry...All the
computers in the world are only as good as the people
operating them." [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   The galloping advance of special effects technology
is largely responsible for a new crop of syndicated
shows loaded with wham-bam effects debuting this fall.
   For instance, two years ago a computer-generated
scene morphing the auto in "Viper" from a standard
sports car into its invincible alter ego cost $50,000
to produce.
   Today, that same shot is being produced for about
$5,000. If it weren't for the cost savings afforded by
computer advances, said Executive Producer Danny
Bilson, "Viper" might not have made the jump from CBS
(where it premiered in 1994 but was canceled) to its
first-run syndication debut this fall.  Paramount's
"Viper" is not alone.
   Other syndicated shows that are effects-heavy
include Eyemark Entertainment's "Psi Factor: Chronicles
of the Paranormal," All American's "Sinbad" and MGM's
"Poltergeist: The Legacy." They join MGM's "The Outer
Limits" and MCA's "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys"
and "Xena: Warrior Princess" in what has become a new
wave of action hours flush with computer-generated
imagery.
   Syndication has always been a cost-sensitive
business, with production budgets generally running
well behind network shows. "Viper," for instance, has a
production budget of about $1.3 million an episode-high
for a syndicated show, yet pared down some 30 percent
from its network run.
   For "Sinbad," Neil Williamson, founding partner of
Canadian effects house Calibre, has nine computer
workstations working around the clock. Without recent
advances that lowered costs while speeding up the
animation process, he said, most syndicated shows
relying on special effects would not be on the air
today.  "The most dramatic example would be morphing
effects," he said. "Something four years ago could be
$20,000, and now they are $2,000.
   "You didn't have the time needed to do these things
even two years ago. That's what makes these shows
possible."
   Toward more realistic UFOs
   Advances in technology have also given those on the
creative side more leeway in story development, vital
in a business where audience expectations are rising
nearly as fast as computer technology. After all,
producers note, the same people who watch action hours
on TV also watch $100 million feature films.     "We
have to be as realistic portraying UFOs as everybody
else," said James Nadler, executive producer of "Psi
Factor." 
   Mr. Nadler recently completed computer work on an
episode that involved a creeping darkness that seeped
out of a house and swallowed up any trace of light it
encountered.
   "Five years ago, a television series wouldn't even
attempt to tell that story," he said. "The basic cost
(of creating effects) has dropped, but at the same
time, audience expectation has risen, so you always end
up trying to do more."
    Fur and feathers flying
   "Hercules" Executive Producer Rob Tapert has also
seen his creative options advance each new season. Most
recently, Mr. Tapert said, his visual effects team
found a  computer program capable of rendering
creatures with fur. Thus, Hercules will face furry
monsters in the future.
   When Hercules first encountered skeleton warriors,
each bone had to be animated frame by frame. Now a
program exists that can animate all the bones together
in sequence. The next challenge, Mr. Tapert said, is to
find a good software program for rendering feathers.
   "Now it's all different," he said. "Things that cost
us $25,000 before now cost us $1,500."
   But computer-created effects are not just for
morphing and monsters. They are also creeping into even
the most mundane of shots, whether it's to add palm
trees where there are none or erase air conditioning
units from a building.
   "Say our car crashes through a building and into a
river," Mr. Bilson said. "Well, in real life, the
building is nowhere near the river. So we put the two
together with the computer." 
   The human element
   And just as important as the computer tools, Mr.
Tapert said, are the people who run them.
   "We keep challenging the effects guys to come up
with better and better effects," he said. "Can you
teach a computer to paint? Absolutely, and it will spit
out 1,000 paintings a day. But it will lack a certain
artistry.
   "All the computers in the world are only as good as
the people operating them."
    GRAPHIC: "Viper" and its team: Joe Nipote (from
left), Jeff Kaake, Heather Medway and Dawn Stern.;
Advancing technology  has allowed "Hercules," starring
Kevin Sorbo, to add more special effects each season. 


[432] 08-12-96
   TIES THAT BIND. Episode no. 20. Second release.
Guest stars: Tom Atkins (Atreus) and Kevin Smith
(Ares). Cast: Stephen Lovatt (Kirilus), Sonia Gray
(Rhea), Lutz Halbhubner (Tarkis), Jonathon Whittaker
(Andrus), Nancy Broadbent (Areliesa), Heidi Anderson
(Slave Girl), John Manning (Ranch Hand #1), Mark Perry
(Warrior #1), Tony Williams (Warrior #2), James Marcum
(Warrior #3), and Robin Kora (Village Elder). Written
by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster. Directed by Charles
Siebert.
   COMMENTARY: See XMR260 for synopsis and commentary.


[433] 08-14-96
   Q101 Chicago. Radio interview.
   Transcribed by LoisP@gnn.com
   COMMENTARY: An interview with morning-show hosts,
Wendy and Bill. (They are referred to as "W" and "B" in
the transcript.) LoisP@gnn.com not only did the
transcription, but she also participated in the
interview via telephone. Most of the time on air was
spent in bantering back and forth with the hosts, who
asked some incredibly inane questions. Ms. Lawless once
again told the story of how she got the part of Xena.
One thing does stand out in this interview. It marks
the only time to date that Ms. Lawless has talked about
her work in the short lesbian film, "Peach." [DS]
   TRANSCRIPTION:
   Wendy: She's in the studio; I don't feel worthy
enough actually. Do you?
   Bill: No!  Neither of us should be in here with you. 
(Lucy laughs)
   W: We've never had a warrior princess in the studio
before. This is our very first and we welcome you,
Xena!
  Lawless: Well, well thank you.
  W: Should we call you by your real name, or should we
keep with the Xena thing?
  Lawless: H-R-H (chuckles), H-R-H.
  B: Her Royal Highness?  Is that what that is?
  Lawless: Yes.
  W: First, we have to start by asking you - Bill
brought up a centaur?
  B: Yea, before you were Xena, you had another
character and you were married to a centaur, am I
right?
  Lawless: Well, we weren't married, we were living in
sin. (laughter)
  W: What IS a centaur?
  Lawless: A centaur is half horse-half man, and a
minotaur has a head of a bull and he lives in a maze.
(laughter)
  B: Would that be, if you were to marry, a mixed
marriage, because you're not half horse at all?!
  Lawless: Bi-special or bi-species.
  W: Is that where they got the saying, "hung like a
horse?" (laughter)
  Lawless: She did have a child; it kind of begs the
question (laughter)
  W & B: That's pretty wild -
  W: I wanted to bring up something and you don't have
to talk about it if you don't want. You know these
crazy tabloids that are going around, the Star, the
Examiner, the Globe, those crazy things.
  Lawless: What crazy tabloids?
  W: You know those tabloids. You can even read that if
you want. Evidentially, you were in some kind of movie
where you and another woman were engaged in a lip lock
kind of thing.
  Lawless: Oh no, the whole point of the thing is that
they never even get there. I was playing a lesbian tow
truck driver in a short film
  W: A lesbian what?
  Lawless: Tow truck driver
  W: A lesbian tow truck driver?
  B: The old Ernest Hemingway story, we've all read it. 
  Lawless: (many voices talking at once) -- yeah, ye
old Ernest Hemingway
  W: Ye Old Man and the G Spot.
  B: That was a classic.
  Lawless: I never got to kiss the girl. It's ....
  W: Did they blow this all out of proportion?
  Lawless: Of course, they do. They've got to have
something to yack about.
  W: What was the name of that movie?
  Lawless: It was called "Peach" and it was in the Gay
and Lesbian Film Festival in New York a few years ago.
I ...
  W: How long ago was that?
  Lawless: I went along to it and I took my husband
(laughing). It was like a big mistake. I was really
somebody until I said, 'this is Garth,' my
then-husband, (laughing) and then I was this persona
non grata, but it was a good part and a....
  W: That's fine. They make it so trashy. You know what
I mean. It was an acting job and you did a good job in
it. Huh? Were you proud of your performance in it?
  Lawless: Ahh, well to tell the truth (laughing), it's
one of those ones on your way up, you know, and you
look back and go, oh God, I didn't know anything then,
but you give it your best shot.
  W: Exactly and now look at her, she's Xena. Now Xena:
Warrior Princess is in the studio here today.  Lucy
Lawless is going to be at Planet Hollywood today
donating some memorabilia from the show right?
  Lawless: Right.
  W: Is this your first visit to Chicago?
  Lawless: It is.
  W: You're from New Zealand, right?
  Lawless: That's right.
  W: Now, Xena's filmed in New Zealand?
  Lawless: Yea, that's where we get those fabulous
locations just out of the city.
  B: Do they do that so they can cut the budget and not
pay for a hotel room for you?
  Lawless: (laughs) Yea, I've often complained!  Like,
I don't get a car, or allowance, or anything like that. 
No, it's perfect.  To do a show  where it's in your
home town - I have a kid and it's not too disruptive.
  W: That's true, cause you're right at home.  Xena,
this is the highest rated show in syndicated action
adventure series in the country, did you ever think
that could happen?
  Lawless: Yea, that and Herc.
  W: Oh, excuse me, HERCULES.  She calls him Herc -
they're old friends! (laughter)
  Lawless: Yea, yea we are old friends.
  W: Now you started on the Hercules show.  Were you
the Xena character on Hercules' show when you started
out?
  Lawless: Well, that job just kind of fell into my lap
when somebody else pulled out.
  W: Really?
  Lawless: They got sick, and the guys at Renaissance
who produce the show said, "Let's just get Lucy.  We
know she's down there andwe  think she can do the job." 
And the studio said, "WHAT? Are you Crazy?  We just
used her in the centaur episode!" (laughter) They 
said, "GO AWAY!  Here are a list of five other
actresses from L.A. that we want you to cast."  They
all turned it down!
  W: They DID?
  Lawless: Yes, because Hercules was an unknown series
and who wanted to  go to the END of the earth during
pilot season?
  W: Stupid move on their part for turning it down!
  Lawless: I thank 'em! (Lucy laughs)
  B: Here's a Herc trivia question for you Lucy -  Who
was up for the  part of Hercules before they got Kevin
Sorbo?
  Lawless: Dole Flandrin. [Can't understand tape. This
might be Dolph Lundgren.)
  B: No, me! (laughter)
  W: Yea, RIGHT!
  Lawless: Oh, that's right!  When you turned it down,
they got Dole Flandrin, then
  B: Right, THEN to Kevin Sorbo!
  W: How come I didn't hear about that?
  B: We kept it low.
  W: Right, VERY LOW!
  B: It's been a big secret around here. (laughter)
  W: Okay, New Zealand, hmm - I'm thinking, I know one
thing native to New Zealand.  A kiwi, right?
  Lawless: Right.
  B: Yea, does that impress you that we know stuff like
that? (Lucy laughs)
  W: She DOESN'T care! (laughter)
  Lawless: Letterman asked me about a kiwi.  I went on
his show and he asked me about a kiwi and the internet
kids were just, Oh, I mean men and women, I'm sorry,
were just incensed that he would ask me a  bunch of
trivia questions!  And they said, DON'T EVER talk
trivia again!
  B: Oh really?  I'm sorry.  Ohhhh
  W: Well, speaking of the internet, we have a phone
call for you already.
  Lawless: Already?
  W: Hey Lois?  We have Lucy Lawless in the studio.
  Lois: Oh MY GOD!  Hi LUCY!
  Lucy: HI LOIIISSS! (chuckle)
  Lois: I have to say thanks to Q 101 for having me on
the radio. Lucy, Xena IS the COOLEST show!  You have
tons of fans ALL across the country and we spend hours
of our time on the internet talking  about the show and
you ACTUALLY wrote us TWO letters and on behalf of all
the Xena: Warrior Princess fans, I thank you for that!
Say hi to Renee for me.
  Lawless: I WILL!
  Lois: I saw you on WGN this morning and I am going to
Planet Hollywood this afternoon.  Can you pleeeease
sign my Ms. magazine. You were on the cover in July.
  Lawless: I was on the cover?  Was I really?
  Lois: YEA, you DON'T remember?
  W: It's the COURAGE that got you on the cover.
  Lawless: Yea, it's the courage that makes me a real
standout. Ummmm
  W: Ms. Magazine?
  Lawless: Was it the cover of the WHOLE magazine or
just the television section?  It doesn't matter; nobody
cares, Lois. I would love to sign it for you.  If I see
you there, I will sign it.
  Lois: Thanks.  What's your favorite part of the show,
the action or the chemistry between you and Renee?
  Lawless: Well, I am first and foremost ummm - acting
has always been  the most important thing to me.  To
find myself in an action show is a GREAT surprise!
(laughs)  So, I have to say that the acting is the big
payoff and Renee is just the greatest friend I could
ever have on stage!
  W: And you do all of your own stunts and everything?
  Lawless: Well, no; I have stuntwomen, I have
WONDERFUL stuntwomen, because I'd be dead if I did all
of those things! (laughs) 
  B: Does Jackie Chan do your stunts?  Did I read that
somewhere? (laughs)
  Lawless: Naw, I do HIS! (laughter)
  B: OH, right, THAT'S what I heard! (laughter)
  W: Hey Lois!  Thanks for calling.
  Lawless:  Thanks Lois.
  W: We have Veronica on the line, Veronica?
  R: Hi
  W: Xena's in here
  R: Oh, Hi Lucy
  LL: Hi Veronica
  R: Hi. Oh my gawd, I cant believe that Im talking to
you  
  All: laugh
  W: We thought all men would call
  B: I swear we thought it would be all guys, really
  R: It's so funny, I was just talking to Lois a
half-hour ago
  LL: Oh really?
  R: yes.
  W: Lois who just called?
  LL: Its a very small world.
  B: No they're just our only two listeners.
  R: Were going to meet so we can see you today
  LL: Oh, that will be lovely
  R: Oh, this is so great, um, I just want to tell you 
that you are wonderful and...
  W: And you like the show and you're a fan, right? 
  R: yes, and I'm one of those hard-core-nutballs who
sit around during, and take ten-minute breaks at work
and talk on the internet.
  LL: Well that's great cuz I love making the show
  W: And people like you keep the show on. I mean the
fans are pretty much why it's there.
  R: Yeah, yeah. I cant wait till Sundays and Saturdays
when it comes on and I've got everything taped.
  LL: Well we've already got the first 6 episodes of
the next season and uh, if you like the first one, I
think you're really gonna like the next one because
we've all improved so much.
  B: And Xena gets an office job, right in the next
season shes like a clerical worker [explanation: they
we joking before LL came in that they had booked Gina
the interns sectretary sister thus Gina the Warrior
Princess]
  All: Laughter
  LL: She can't sit down for two seconds
  W: Veronica thanks for calling
  R: alright thanks.
  LL: See you later, Veronica
  [They discuss the schedule on WGN. Lucy states that
she just discovered ice hockey {at PH she said she's a
RedWings fan} and thinks its a sexy game and she loves
it cuz its like Tetris.
  Then some guy named Pete calls in and insists on
calling Lucy Xena, has only watched the show for TEN
MINUTES!! Loves her outfit and asks what would happen
if there was a fight between her and oh might Isis (?).
Lucy asks who the h*ll is Oh Mighty Isis? 
   Stanley who is very nervous asks why the show was
moved from Friday to Sunday to Saturdays. Lucy is very
nice to him. They go on about the show for a few
minutes. She said that it is nifty and neat to be a
dollie. Bill does a yiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyi! They end by
playing the theme music and playing a scene from IS
THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE (#24). 


[434] 08-14-96
   WGN. TV interview.
   [Haven't located tape or transcript yet]


[435] 08-15-96 to 08-16-96
   NOTE: Ratings for The Titans (#07), 3rd release,
07/22/96. Ranked as the 2nd action hour with a 4.0
rating. [HTLJ took 1st place for the fifth straight
week with a 4.5 and ST:DS9 took 3rd with a 3.9.]. Mr.
Brennan conjectured the low ratings were because of the
Olympics. [KT]


[435a] 08-15-96
   THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 221 words. "Olympics stifle
ratings again" By Steve Brennan
   COMMENTARY: The Titans (#07), third release.
   EXCERPT:
   The ratings fallout from the Atlanta Olympics
continued to drive numbers down for the week of July
29-Aug. 4, though not with the ferocity of the first
week of the Games, according to Nielsen Media
Research....
   ...MCA TV's action hour "Hercules: The Legendary
Journeys" was the No. 1 action weekly for the fifth
straight week with a 4.5, up from a 4.4. Stablemate
"Xena: Warrior Princess" posted a 4.0 while Paramount's
"Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" was third in the genre
with a 3.9.


[435b] 08-15-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. Page 6. 359 words. "'Oprah'
jumps 'Jeopardy' in syndie race" By Jenny Hontz
   COMMENTARY: The Titans (#07), third release.
   EXCERPT:
   For the first time ever, King World's early fringe
talkshow "Oprah" edged out King World's access show
"Jeopardy!" to finish in second place among all
syndicated shows the week ending Aug. 4, which was
heavily disrupted by Olympics coverage...
   ...In weekly action, MCA TV's "Hercules" led the
pack for the fifth week in a row, gaining 2% to 4.5.
MCA's "Xena" was second at 4, despite losing 2% for the
week. Par's "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" hit an
all-time low for the second week, coming in third at
3.9.

[435c]  08-16-96
   THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. 221 words. "Olympics stifle
ratings again" By Steve Brennan
   COMMENTARY:  For some unknown reason, The Hollywood
reporter reprinted Mr. Brennan article from 08-15-96
verbatim. (XMR435a.)


[436] 08-15-96
   DAILY VARIETY. Thursday. Page 9. 225 words. "New
World's 'Two' Gets N.Y. Upgrade" By Jenny Hontz.
   COMMENTARY: In an article about New World's new
action hour "Two" being sold to WPIX in New York, Ms.
Hontz mentioned that WPIX "also airs MCA TV's action
hours 'Hercules' and 'Xena'". [KT]
   EXCERPT:
   ...New World's upcoming weekly action hour from
writer-producer Stephen J. Cannell, "Two," has been
upgraded in New York before its Sept. 14 premiere.
   New World had previously sold "Two" to WPIX New
York, which also airs MCA TV's action hours "Hercules"
and "Xena" and only had room to air the new series at
midnight or 1 a.m...



=============
THE BACK PAGE
=============


ERATTA:
   XMR #24, annotation 408, in the COMMENTARY section
under "VIOLENCE AND MORE VIOLENCE", the date should be
07/29/96 not 07/29/97.


XENA MEDIA REVIEW STAFF: 
Living to serve Xena fandom since March 1996!
   Kym Masera Taborn (KT), editor-in-chief
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THIS WEEK IN XENA NEWS: TWXN is the advance sheet for
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Renaissance) and the actresses Lucy Lawless and Renee
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