THE ZOCALO TODAY – November 19, 2005

SPECIAL EVENT TONIGHT

Tomorrow night, Saturday, Nov. 19th, Stephen Austin (that loveable
Pak'Ma'Ra Ambassadaor from Babylon 5) will be the Master of
Cermonies for a Celebrity Charity Basketball Game between
celebrities from film and television vs. members of the Burbank
Police Dept. Proceeds going to Hurricane Katrina Victim's Relief.

Here's a partial list of the celebrities who are planning to attend:
KATY SAGAL - "MARRIED WITH CHILDREN", "FUTURAMA", "8 SIMPLE RULES"
BRUCE DAVISON - "X-MEN", "8MM2"
LORI SINGER - "FLASHDANCE"
KYLE BRANDT - "DAYS OF OUR LIVES"
PERCY DAGGS - "VERONICA MARS"
STEVE EASTIN
BOBBY EDNER - "SPYKIDS 3D"
ASHLEY EDNER - "LISTEN UP", "SUMMERLAND"
ARLEN ESCARPETA - "AMERICAN DREAMS"
MANNY GUEVARA - KISS FM'S "MANNY ON THE STREETS"
WHIT HERTFORD
RJAY SMITH
JESS WALTON - "YOUNG & RESTLESS"

There will be entertainment and a great raffle. Should be a fun
night for friends and families. Game starts at 7p. Doors open at
6:15p. Admission is $8.00. If you bring an unwrapped toy it's only
$5.00 . The toys will be shipped to Mississippi and New Orleans for
the kids whose families lost their homes, for Christmas/Hanukka.

Location: John Burroughs High School
1920 W Clark Avenue
Burbank, California 91506

PAT TALLMAN'S PENNY LANE - BE A SANTA

Mrs. Santa -- otherwise known as Pat Tallman -- is busy with her
favorite project -- Christmas at Penny Lane. With the many natural
disasters this year in the U.S., money is tight all over. However,
it is Pat's desire to make sure that each child at Penny Lane has a
memorable Christmas. Here is Pat's note asking for help:

Dear Santas!
It's that time again. What a year! The kids are excited and all of
the elves around here have started to pull it together. We are doing
a simplified version this year. We know many folks gave to the
Hurricane Victims funds ( Good Job!) and we know our funds will be
challenged. (We learned from 9/11. )

What we are going to do is give the kids exactly what they want or
need ... a gift card to all the malls around their area. That way
they can take care of their heart's desire. We will prepare
beautiful and fun holiday bags filled with a stuffed animal, books,
candy ... you know, the stuff that makes the holidays so fabulous!
The kids are writing holiday cards to the families who have suffered
from the hurricanes. Who better to understand how devastating
loosing your home and even loved ones than children who have been
victimized by violence their whole lives?

They understand that we may not have as much to distribute this
year. I'll divide up the money that does come in amongst the 104
kids. It will be a wonderful thing!

Please visit the What We Need page, that stuff still applies. Write
a card from you to a child. It means so much. The kids will still
have gifts to open. In addition, each house and caseload will have a
party thrown just for them, and I'll purchase a movie of their
choice for the houses to keep. We'll also help decorate, and we'll
be finding each house something special as a group gift.

So you see we still have our work cut out for us! And we cannot do
it without you! Please e-mail us and send in your donations asap. We
are so grateful to have generous angels in our world like you.
I look forward to hearing from you,
Pat

If you can help, be sure to go to Be A Santa page over at The
Galactic Gateway <http://www.thegalacticgateway.com/pl/>.

UPDATE ON BABYLON 5 SCRIPTS

From the B5 moderated group this morning comes:
One sidelight...we just put the next volume to bed, and it's 465
pages in length, 11 pages longer than volume 1. Three could
potentially hit 470 to 475 pages. (No change in price, however.)
I have got to learn to write fewer words.

BABYLON 5 SCRIPTS
http://www.babylon5scripts.com is up and running and open for
business. Volume One of The Babylon 5 Scripts of J. Michael
Straczynski is now available for purchase, 454 pages in length
containing candid, behind-the-scenes photos, and a 13,000 word/53
page introduction and commentary on the episodes contained in this
volume.

In this volume, you will find the scripts for "Midnight on the
Firing Line," "The Parliament of Dreams," "Infection," "Soul Hunter"
and "Mind War," as well as an alternate draft of "The Gathering"
never previously released. The introduction includes information and
stories never before told about the creation, production and writing
of Babylon 5.

For more posts from JMS on the scripts, go to Babylon 5 Scripts Page
here at The Zocalo Today at
http://www.isnnews.net/zocalo/b5scripts.com.

DISCUSSION TOPIC
We had fun participating in a poll over at Sci-Fi -- selecting the
best sci-fi TV show. It was a great race between Firefly/Serenity,
Babylon 5 and Farscape. Poll results can be found at
http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire2005/index.php?category=13. What other
TV shows were missing from the listing? Which shows do you feel
should have been added to the list -- and why?

Send in your opinions to share with your fellow readers to
sgbruckner@... and I'll post it on the Discussion Page. If
you have other issues you'd like to talk about, send them along.

IN SCIENCE FICTION TODAY:

24
When FOX's "24" returns for it's fifth season, there will be a host
of new faces. British actor Julian Sands ("Timecode," "A Room with a
View") will play the villain in the coming season, Peter Weller
("Robocop") and three-time Emmy nominee JoBeth Williams will be
included -- on the side of good -- we think. The show is scheduled
to premiere over four hours on two nights, Jan. 15 and 16, with a
crisis looming after "national security is brutally breached." But
Jack Bauer (series star Kiefer Sutherland) is nowhere near the
Counter Terrorism Unit, as he's presumed dead to all but a few
people within CTU. Instead, he's taken up a new life with a woman
(Connie Britton, "Spin City") and her teenage son (Brady Corbet).
Weller, who stars in NBC's remake of "The Poseidon Adventure," will
play Christopher Henderson, the federal agent who recruited Jack to
CTU more than a decade ago. Williams, recently seen in "Fever Pitch"
and TNT's "14 Hours," will play Henderson's wife, Miriam. Sands'
character, Vladamir Bierko, is a billionaire and, as FOX bluntly
states, a "bad guy." He appeared in the A&E film "Napoleon" in 2002
and recently guest-starred on "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."
Weller, Williams and Sands bring to five the number of new cast
members on "24" this season. Jean Smart ("Frasier," "Munich") will
play the first lady, and Sean Astin ("The Lord of the Rings") has
joined the CTU team.

WHITE NOISE 2 - THE LIGHT
The Hollywood Reporter has announced a sequel to WHITE NOISE - which
starred Michael Keaton and netted $91.2 million in receipts. WHITE
NOISE 2: THE LIGHT is in the works over at Gold Circle Films. Rogue
Pictures will distribute the film. The Matt Venne-penned sequel will
centre on a man whose family is murdered, but he's bought back from
the brink of death – but with a gift/curse. He can now identify
those among the live who are about to die. He tries to save people
from their fate, but soon realizes there's a price to pay for
interfering with the natural order of life and death. Michael Keaton
will not star in the sequel, but Keegan Connor Tracy, one of the co-
stars of the original film, recently said that she'd love to be a
part of the sequel. "I know it's coming but that's all I know. I
sure hope they look to dear Mirabelle again!"

SCI-FI FRIDAY RETURNS - JANUARY 6

Original episodes of STARGATE SG-1, STARGATE ATLANTIS and BATTLESTAR
GALACTICA will return to the Sci Fi Channel in early January.

On January 6, STARGATE SG-1 returns with part 2 of "The Fourth
Horseman" at 8:00pm.
At 9 p.m., STARGATE ATLANTIS will have "The Hive".
And 10 p.m., BATTLESTAR GALACTICA -- will air "Resurrection Ship,
Part 1".

SCOTT ROSENBERG AND PLATINUM PRODUCTIONS
Over the past year, we have posted information about Scott Rosenberg
and Platinum Productions partnering with Valhalla Motion Pictures to
bring MAGDELENA to the big screen -- and other projects, Scott took
time out of his busy schedule to answer a couple of questions and
I've posted them for you at
http://www.isnnews.net/zocalo/scott.shtml. Be sure to drop over and
read what he has coming down the pike! Hint: there is a little
something for JMS followers as well.

JMS
Speaking of J. Michael Straczynski, he dropped a few posts over at
the B5 moderated newsgroups I thought you'd be interested in
reading. It talks about his Babylon 5 scripts project. Don't miss
reading it at JMS Speaks at http://www.isnnews.net/zocalo/jms.shtml.

LETTERS TO SCI-FI:
It has been a very long time since BABYLON 5 has been on the air. I
think it is time to write SCIFI and remind them that fans still want
to see this quality show. Here are addresses to use:

Bonnie Hammer, President
USA Network and Sci-Fi Channel
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY. 10020-1513

Mr. Thomas Vitale
Senior VP of Acquisitions, Scheduling & Program-Planning
Sci-Fi Channel
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY. 10020-1513

Now might be a good time to remind them that in their recent poll,
Babylon 5 came in SECOND! If it were on the air, it might have
taken the #1 spot from FIREFLY!

TOP SCIENCE FICTION NEWS STORIES:
To catch up on the latest news from this week -- and last month, go
to News Page. You'll find the everything from our front page -- but
over a longer period of time.

NEW DVDS AHEAD:

BABYLON 5: LEGEND OF THE RANGERS

Looks like the LEGEND OF THE RANGERS DVD will be released on March
14, 2006. Go to http://tvshowsondvd.com/newsitem.cfm?NewsID=4523 for
more information.

FANTASTIC 4 DVD
Best Buy will have an EXCLUSIVE Collector's Set for Fantastic 4 when
it comes to DVD on 12/6!!! Packaged in a round metal tin with a
display stand, the set comes with collectible round trading cards, a
CD-Rom that includes the first 23 issues, plus the annual issue of
Ultimate Fantastic 4, a reprint of Ultimate F4 #12 along with the
widescreen DVD! Sounds pretty cool.
There are a bunch of other DVDs either coming out – or currently
available that would make wonderful holiday gifts for those science
fiction lovers you know. Be sure to check them out at the website –
www.isnnews.net.

Speaking of holiday gifts, here's a suggestion:

THE ART OF RAY HARRYHAUSEN HC
by Ray Harryhausen & Tony Dalton; with a Foreword by Peter Jackson
Mighty Joe Young. Jason and the Argonauts. The Valley of Gwangi.
Clash of the Titans. The visual creations spawned by these classic
feature films and seared into out collective conscience were the
work of one man - Ray Bradbury, the father of special effects and
master of stop-motion animation! Through concise essays and lavish
illustrations, The Art of Ray Harryhausen serves as a visual
celebration of his art and artistry, offering an in-depth look into
each of Harryhausen's many specialties, including aliens,
prehistoric creatures, mythological monsters, and more! (356/0-8230-
8400-0)
HC, 9.5x11.5, 240pgs, PC..........$50.00
NEW SCI-FI PUBLICATIONS

STARGATE YEARBOOK
Don't miss the incredible 100-page Stargate Yearbook as it's packed
with interviews from every member of the cast of Stargate SG-1 and
Stargate: Atlantis. Plus, explore Christopher Judge's Stargate SG-1
comic, some incredible cross-sections, and look back at the year in
Stargate!
Magazine, 68pgs, FC..........$9.99

CULT TIMES #123: DOCTOR WHO: The excitement builds towards The
Christmas Invasion! This issue takes a look at what's in store for
Rose's first adventure with the new Doctor, David Tennant! LOST -
Terry O'Quinn (Locke) and Maggie Grace (Shannon) chat about the
mysteries being revealed in Season Two and what caused both of them
to move to Hawaii. THRESHOLD - Executive producers Brannon Braga and
David S Goyer reveal the extensive plan for their stylish new Sci-Fi
drama, in which aliens attempt to invade Earth in a new and cunning
way… BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - With the arrival of the second season in
January, discover why Alessandro Juliani's character, Lt Gaeta, has
starting bucking authority this year.

STARBURST #331: KING KONG - Andy Serkis, best known for his
portrayal of Gollum in the Lord of the Rings films, who is now aping
the movements of the mighty Kong. Serkis contends that the work is
the same whether he's a bug-eyed pen-and-pixel monster or merely a
man. HARRY POTTER - Dark times are ahead for Harry Potter when star
Daniel Radcliffe dons the wizard's robes for the fourth time, but
for the actor the future couldn't be brighter. AEON FLUX - As the
girl power heroics come to the big screen, producer David Gale and
director Karyn Kusama talk about the movie.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

November 18-20, 2005
OFFICIAL FARSCAPE CONVENTION
City: Burbank, California
Place: Burbank Airport Hilton and Towers, 2500 Hollywood Way
Guests: Ben Browder, Virginia Hey, Lani Tupu, Gigi Edgley, Wayne
Pygram, Raelee Hill, Anthony Simcoe, Jonathan Hardy, Fran Buller,
Rebecca Riggs, David Franklin, Guy Gross
For more information, go to
http://www.creationent.com/cal/farscape.htm

December 2-4, 2005
GERMAN CITY CON
Location: Chicago, Illinois
Guests: to be announced
For more information, go to: http://www.germancitycon.de/

December 3-4, 2005
PITTSBURGH TOY SHOW
Location: Pittsburgh Expomart - Monroeville
City: Monroeville, Pennsylvania
Guests: to be announced
For more information, go to http://www.pittsburghtoyshow.com

December 3-4, 2005
LIGHTSPEED FINE ARTS 2005 Charity Benefit
Benefiting American Cancer Society & other charities
Place: Lake Forest, CA
B5 Guests: Walter Koenig, Julie Caitlin Brown, Stephen Austin (doing
comedy)
Others Guests include: Don S. Davis, Garrett Wang, Robert Picardo,
Nichelle Nichols, Richard Herd & Herbert Jefferson Jr.
More information at:
www.lightspeedfineart.com/CelebrityCharityBenefitReservation.html

That's it for now. Be sure to drop over to the website to see
what's new in the world of science fiction.
Take care and have a terrific weekend.
Sandy

Sandra Bruckner
Editor/Publisher
ISN News: The Zocalo Today
http://www.isnnews.net