XENA MEDIA REVIEW (XMR) #22 (07-14-97) Part 5 of 5 ================ CUT HERE ========================== [328] 06-10-96 THE PRODIGAL. Episode no. 18. Second release. Guest stars: Tim Thomerson (Meleager) and Willa O'Neill (Lila). Written by Chris Mannheim. Directed by John T. Kretchmer. COMMENTARY: See XMR187.5 for synopsis and commentary. [329] 06-12-96 INSIDE MEDIA. Vol. 8. No. 12. Page 5. 569 words. "Baywatch frights. Production changes at television program Baywatch Nights" by Ed Martin COMMENTARY: A postscript on the sad story of BAYWATCH NIGHTS, which was a freshman with XWP, but didn't make the grade. David Hasselhoff, the producer, had enough power to keep it on and to demand retooling. Not taking on XWP directly with a fantasy bent, the show planned to become more X-FILES-ish and KOLCHAK-ish. Very bizarre, if you ask me. [KT] EXCERPT: Now in production for its second season, All American Television's "Baywatch Nights" is undergoing major creative changes, described as a "radical" by AAT executives. "It will be a completely different show," says one. "It won't look anything like 'Baywatch' or 'Baywatch Nights.'"... ...But as the series grappled with how to define itself, it also straggled to find a substantial audience. And it was eclipsed in most press coverage by the instant success of MCA Television's "Xena: Warrior Princess," a hugely popular spin-off to its "The Legendary Journeys of Hercules," and the alia and demographic strength of MGM Domestic Television Distribution's "The Outer Limits." According to season-to-date (through mid-May) numbers in the Nielsen... [330] 06-14-96 XENA MEDIA REVIEW. No. 11. Edited by and annotations by Kym Masera Taborn. COMMENTARY: A world press review of coverage on XWP, Renee O'Connor, or Lucy Lawless. Covered 12/14/95 through 12/24/95. XWP supercedes HTLJ in ratings; Kevin Sorbo article; various year end reviews; and more. [KT] [331] 06-14-96 through 06-17-96 NOTE: Ratings for FISTFUL OF DINARS (#14), 2nd release (05/20/96). Repeat of FISTFUL OF DINARS. The first release of FISTFUL was 01/29/96, where it earned a 5.7 share and 14th rating while placing 3rd in action hours. This time around, XWP earned a 4.4 share and 18th rating, while placing 3rd again. STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE earned a 5.7, and HTLJ earned a 5.0. A note to the future: this episode was repeated a second time on 01/06/97 and earned a 5.0 share and a 16th rating while placing 3rd one more time. [331a] 06-14-96 DAILY VARIETY. Page 22. 395 words. "Mags, Sitcoms up in Syndie Ratings" By Jenny Hontz COMMENTARY: FISTFUL OF DINARS (#14), 2nd release EXCERPT: Entertainment magazines and off-net sitcoms perked up the first full post-sweeps week ending June 2, according to Nielsen. But syndie action hours and tabmags swam in the gutter... ...Action sacked Action hours suffered, partly because of competition and pre-emption's from French and U.S. Open tennis coverage, as well as basketball playoffs. The leading action hour, Par's "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," dropped 5% to 5.7, 20% off last year. All American Television's "Baywatch" hit a new season low for the second straight week, 3.3, off 3% from last week and a dramatic 43% loss from last year. MCA TV's "Hercules" and "Xena," which were in re-runs, respectively fell 7% to a 5 and 14% to a 4.4. MCA's "Beastmaster" feature scored big with a 5.3, though.... [331b] 06-17-96 VARIETY. Page 27. 398 words. "Syndie Sitcoms Rate a Smile; Action off" By Jenny Hontz. COMMENTARY: Substantially the same as XMR331a. [331c] 06-17-96 VARIETY. Page 27. 198 words. "NIELSEN SYNDICATION RATINGS" COMMENTARY: Incorrectly identifies week. It is really for the week ending 06/02/96. FISTFUL OF DINARS (#14), 2nd release. REPRINT: For week ended May 26, 1996 Stations/ Rank Program % coverage AA% GAA% 1 Wheel of Fortune 224/98 10.6 -- 2 Jeopardy! 212/97 8.7 -- 3 Century 16 202/98 8.2 8.6 4 Home Improvement 226/97 7.5 7.9 5 Natl. Geographic on Assignment 187/96 7.2 7.7 6 Oprah Winfrey Show 222/97 6.8 6.8 7 Seinfeld 220/97 6.4 -- 8 Entertainment Tonight 176/94 5.8 5.9 9 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 234/98 5.7 5.8 10 WCW Wrestling 172/93 5.5 9.1 11 Action Pack Feature 209/96 5.3 5.6 11 Simpsons 192/96 5.3 5.5 13 Imagination III 161/96 5.2 5.5 14 World Wrestling Fed. 150/90 5.1 6.1 15 Journeys of Hercules 229/97 5.0 5.2 15 Inside Edition 158/91 5.0 5.1 17 Wheel of Fortune - Wknd. 178/75 4.9 -- 18 Live w/Regis & Kathie Lee 234/99 4.4 -- 18 Xena 204/96 4.4 4.5 20 Home Improvement - Wknd. 217/94 4.3 -- 20 Jenny Jones 209/96 4.3 4.5 20 Roseanne 170/91 4.3 4.6 AA average refers to non-duplicated 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. [332] 06-14-96 MOGUL website (mogul@tols.co.nz). Telecom NZ Ltd. "Xena: Warrior Princess" COMMENTARY: Extended promo for the 06/19/96 New Zealand premiere of XWP which was exhibited on the Mogul website for Telecom NZ. Surprisingly enough, the narrative was the most detailed media release to date about Xena's past and expected future. The promoter called Xena "a breath of fresh air when it comes to super heroes." [KT] REPRINT: Premieres TV3, Wednesday, June 19 at 8.30pm Ancient Greece, Auckland, New Zealand, sometime after the Trojan War. There are still many battles to be fought in this savage land and Hercules needs all the help he can get. Xena emerges as his female equivalent - tough, strong-willed, courageous and well built. The perfect match. But it wasn't always so. The Xena of today only came about through a complete metamorphosis. Her early life was spent as a peasant girl in a village where she lived happily until one fateful event changed her life. Her village was raided and her brother was killed. The ensuing trauma proved to have a profound effect on Xena, one that would take her to the extremes of good and evil. Driven by an overwhelming desire for revenge and an insatiable hunger for power, Xena became a ruthless conqueror. But despite this dark side to her nature, she gradually began to move towards good. The final step was taken upon meeting Hercules, that most benevolent of heroes. She tried to kill him first, of course, due to the threat he presented, but once she got to know him, her life was yet again transformed. Her need to destroy disappeared, her inner balance was restored and she joined Hercules in his quest for truth and justice. Whether it's this kind of archetypal interplay that has made Xena a success, or simply that it's a rollicking adventure series makes little difference. Xena has thrilled viewers in the US and is set to do the same in New Zealand. Fiery, intelligent and a dab hand with the chakram (the lethal disc-like weapon she throws at her enemies), she's a breath of fresh air when it comes to super heroes. Xena is played by Lucy Lawless, originally from Mt Albert, Auckland. After appearing in three episodes of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Lawless received such a strong viewer feedback that she was approached about making a spin-off series. Almost six feet tall, Lawless literally fits the role well. This outward impression of strength is combined with a natural inclination towards physical challenges. Although she had ridden horses a great deal many aspects of the show, such as martial arts and swordplay, were new to Lawless. Xena: Warrior Princess is produced by the same team as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert (who were also responsible for the cult hit film The Evil Dead). Xena premieres on TV3 on Wednesday, June 19 at 8.30pm. [333] 06-14-96 THE OTTAWA CITIZEN. Friday. Page C7. 538 Words. "Global Aims to Grab a Good Share of Early-evening Viewers" By Tony Atherton COMMENTARY: In an article about Canada's Global TV, it mentioned that they will run SINBAD with HTLJ and XWP as a three hour Saturday block.SINBAD eventually turned out to be the most successful of the action newcomers of the 1996-97 TV syndicated season. [--KT] EXCERPT: ...Global also has Atlantis's new The Adventures of Sinbad, a special-effects-laden swashbuckler in the style of successful syndicated fantasies, The Legendary Adventures of Hercules and Xena: Warrior Princess. Global will package Sinbad with Hercules and Xena in a three-hour Saturday afternoon block... [334] 06-14-96 THE ORLANDO SENTINEL. Page X3. 718 words. "Put On Your Bandanna, Gunther. We're Going Over To The Other Side" by DNA Smith COMMENTARY: A quick mention in a website newspaper column. Author calls XWP a "cool show", and highlights wihch website? None other than the historic Logomancy site. EXCERPT: I have always loved that genre of TV known as Fantastic Television anything that involves science fiction, fantasy or horror. When I was a kid, I remember sneaking downstairs to the living room after everyone had gone to bed and watching reruns of The Twilight Zone or The Invaders or The Prisoner or Night Gallery until my eyes were bloodshot. Thankfully, plenty of cool shows are on today that still venture into the realm of the fantastic and most of them have Web sites. I purposely left out sites involving Star Trek and The X-Files because there are A BILLION of them on the Web (many of them breathtaking), and I figured that Trekkers and X-Philes already know where to find their faves. Instead, Ill focus on a few cool shows that aren't as popular as Trek or XF, which might have gotten lost in the bustle of the Information Superhighway.... ...Xena: Warrior Princess http://plaza.interport.net/ logomanc/xena.html... ...GRAPHIC: PHOTO: Xena has a great fan page on the Web.... [335] 06-15-96 MCA Xena Website http://www.mca.com/xena. "Meet Joseph LoDuca: Composer for Hercules and Xena" COMMENTARY: This interview has two firsts. It was the first interview with composer Joseph LoDuca and it was the first official confirmation that Lucy Lawless wrote and sang the song "Burial" first heard in THE PATH NOT TAKEN. In the interview, LoDuca also notes that Tapert and Raimi are committed to making XWP a quality show. LoDuca said, "I am given the resources of an entire symphony orchestra. That's uncommon for a composer in any field." [DS] The vast majority (can you say 90% or better) of the questions were questions sent to Mr. LoDuca via a XenaStaff member from Heparin (Karen Allman) and Gerilyn Bosse, but were never acknowledged as such on the website. [KT] REPRINT: A Conversation with Joseph LoDuca Composer Hercules: The Legendary Journeys Xena: Warrior Princess Joseph LoDuca answers your questions from the Hercules and Xena NetForums and provides you with some inside information on how he creates the music for your favorite shows. Q: How long have you been working with Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi? A: I was introduced to Rob and Sam in 1980. They were editing their very first feature film, "Evil Dead" and they were looking for someone who could make frightening music. I was fresh out of school as a composition student and as a performer on guitar. I put together a demo tape for them and they were intrigued. It was my very first film score. It was also the first time they had commissioned a composer, so together we've learned how to make film music. Since then I've scored "Evil Dead II" and "Army of Darkness," as well as the pilot to "Mantis" for them. Our collaboration is a very long and fruitful one. From what I understand, it's going to continue for the next two seasons on "Hercules" and "Xena." Q: Many of the NetForum users really enjoy your work. What do you feel are the most satisfying and interesting things about your work? A: The first is that I am given the resources of an entire symphony orchestra. That's uncommon for a composer in any field. For me it's very gratifying; to drive yourself nuts for three weeks with little sleep and then hear the results. The whirring up your turbine engines played back in your face is probably the most exciting thing that a composer could want. Also, I think that our fans should be aware that it's an indication of the value that Sam and Rob like to bring to their shows. The second is to be able to work with people who'll stand behind your wild and crazy ideas. Rob and Sam have been supportive of my unusual and unconventional ways of producing music. They themselves are very musical in an intuitive way, and come up with great suggestions. Q: Some of our NetForum questions come from aspiring film composers. What advice would you give to them? A: For those aspiring film composers out there, I have to admit it was the furthest thing from my mind when I started out. Unwittingly, I had developed a number of skills and interests that enabled me to become a good musical dramatist. I was first a literature student at the University of Michigan and I've always been a musician. A musician who loves all kinds of music. I played in a rock band throughout my teens. I moved to New York City to play jazz for two or three years. I was completely taken in by the classical guitar for a number of years; then music from various cultures from around the world. These divergent and unprejudiced influences have given me a very broad range of experiences to draw upon when I write music for "Xena," "Hercules" and "American Gothic." Q: Could you describe the process for scoring a television show--how long on average does it take for you to score a show like "Xena"? A: The simple answer is: you have as long as you are given. When we are in the throes of production, there is a new show every week. I always hear about special episodes coming down the pike that may require source music for someone singing or dancing. Sometimes we're preparing tracks well ahead of time, sometimes not. Basically you have enough time to go with your first impulse and stick to it. There is usually little time for changes so you have to be well prepared. The music is sometimes written for orchestras, sometimes for synthesizers and sometimes for ethnic musicians. The logistics -- things like travel, working over long-distance phone line all have to be worked out. I have a great assistant who lines up these sessions. It's quite a mad dash to the finish for anyone who works in television. A "Xena" or "Hercules" episode lasts about 44 minutes in length and will usually have somewhere in the neighborhood of 34 or 35 minutes of music that we're responsible for every week. I have to credit my music editors and my support staff for helping me put it all together. Q: When you score shows like "Xena," what kind of prep work do you usually do? A: There is just enough time to get your first inspiration and run with the ball. I have had to score long action sequences with computer-generated monsters that I have never seen. There was an episode this season where Gabrielle was playing a flute. I had to put notes into her fingers and into her breath where none existed. There have been scenes where we have had to make dancers dance to music that we didn't have access to. What hopefully happens is that I put a unique stamp on each episode. Xena's character is full of possibilities. I've been developing Gabby's musical personality. Since she's a bard from Greece her music has a Greek flavor. Q: Where did your inspiration come for the music for "Xena"? A: Xena, as many of the fans will remember, was introduced as the Warrior Princess in a trilogy at the end of the first season of "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys." I credit a lot of the initial suggestions to our producer Rob Tapert. He came up with the idea of Bulgarian singing. I had written a powerful women's chant in an eastern European style on "Hercules and the Amazon Women" that he liked very much. This show was originally temped with "Conan" music. I thought that that was just too masculine. Hong Kong action fighting scored with over-the-top singing was very appealing to us. In Xena's theme, I heard a way to marry primitive drumming, eastern European rhythms, and a Bulgarian women's chorus. When I dove deeper into the musical culture of Bulgaria I found a shepherd's flute, called a "kaval" that I use in love scenes. Overblown the "kaval" produces a very chilling effect for Xena's chakram toss and her paralysis trick. I've used a bagpipe called a "gaida," which has a war-like sound combined with drumming and water castanets. We used instruments from all over the world to create a piece for Darfus, Xena's lieutenant in the Warrior Princess trilogy. We played conches, shofars, Chinese cymbals and digeeridoos; when combined with an orchestra the result is scary and unique. I've tried to keep Xena's music distinctly different from Hercules. The tone of Xena tends to be more exotic, tends to be darker because of her past and her stone-faced posture. The dramatic situations are more complicated, more adult. There's a lot less major key writing in "Xena" than there is in "Hercules." Q: What aspects of Xena as a character are you trying to underscore when you use the "gaida," the "kaval," various choral themes, or is it a particular mood you are trying to create? A: Any and all of the above, I guess, would be the answer to that question. Warlike, chilling sounds help to create an atmosphere of ancient culture, even though the dialogue is contemporary. As we are in a fantasy world, I try to enhance the drama with emotional authenticity and immediacy. And while TV economics, as they exist today, demand that quite a bit of the music is synthesized, we always go out of our way for the human cry. It adds mystery and intrigue to Xena's world. Q: Stories are circulating on the NetForum about whether Lucy Lawless actually sang the dirge for Marcus' funeral in "The Path Not Taken", could you give us the inside scoop? A: That's an interesting story. Lucy gave a cassette of her singing a melody she made up to our producer, Rob Tapert. To the best of my knowledge, the lyrics are Hassidic. It was a song that worked well in the episode "The Path Not Taken." Xena sings over the processional for Marcus, her lover. It turned out that the best performance that we had was on a 3rd-generation poor quality cassette. Yet there was something that was very moving about Lucy's performance--she's a very talented singer as well as a great actress. I wrote the setting for the song. It will appear on a Xena Soundtrack CD to be released on Varese Sarabande Recordings later this summer. Q: Where did your inspiration for the music for "Hercules" come from? A: From the outset Rob and Sam were interested in trying to do something different with Hercules. Originally we thought I would created an exotic and Arabic score. When the first film footage from New Zealand came back, I felt that this was not going to be the best approach. I saw lush landscapes and colorful costuming that almost looked medieval. It was broader and more fantastic than anything as specific as Arab music could describe and there was nothing exotic about the "new" Hercules in this show. He's a tall, blond hero with a good heart. Hercules' theme came to me in about an hour as I was leaving for Los Angeles to present some ideas. Our hero was good and true. His theme reflects these qualities. We would instead surround him with the hummus, as I call it, the ethnic spicing appears around him as required; the score of "Festival of Dionysus" for example. It's a hybrid of Brazilian escola de samba with an Arabic melody. There is another aspect of the music in Hercules that distinguishes it from "Xena." There is a lot of cutting up in the script and on the set. There's a lot of physical comedy. Musically we haven't shied away from that. We have actually gone over the top and commented on it. We have a Typhon, the clumsy giant, kissing Echidna, the mother of all monsters, so I write the "Honeymooners" over a big, sappy, romantic screen kiss. Aphrodite is windsurfing so I write with surfin' "oud" (Arabic lute) music along with some broad nods to the beach comedies of the 60's. The music is as good-natured as the show. We get in on the fun and I hope it's fun for the listeners. Q: In what ways are you using technology to produce musical "Hercules" and "Xena"? A: The most current technology pervades every aspect of music making. I compose and synchronize to picture using my PC. I E-mail files to my copyists, print out music using notation software. Music is kept in the digital domain most of the time; most cues are sent to the dub stage via ISDN lines. While the setting of the shows is BC the music is made in ways that look to the millennium. ============= 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 (ME), editor (odd issues) maria@erb.mv.com Barb, circulation xenatwo@aol.com Lydia M. Woods, assistant to the editor-in-chief woodsl@erol.com Thomas Simpson, mascot thomas@xenafan.com 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 indepth 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 (XMR) #22 (07-14-97) Part 5 of 5