A Meeting of Minds: The Results of Our 1994 Lionheart Survey

Fan Survey
Title:	A Meeting of Minds: The Results of Our 1994 Lionheart Survey
Surveyor:	Beth Blighton
Date(s):	distributed in December 1993, results printed in February 1994
Medium:	print
Fandom(s):	Beauty and the Beast (TV)
External Links:
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A Meeting of Minds: The Results of Our 1994 Lionheart Survey was a 1993 Beauty and the Beast (TV) survey created by Beth Blighton called The Lionheart Questionnaire.

Its purpose was to gauge the interest and to know more about fans, specifically those who subscribed to Lionheart.

The survey itself was included (though not bound with) "Lionheart" #8, and the results were excerpted and commented upon by Blighton in "Lionheart" #9.

Introduction to the Results

Though not all our subscribers were able to return their surveys, we did receive at least 40 (we expect to continue getting them for a while), and all but a handful gave us permission to share their thoughts with our readership at large.

The results have been helpful and very eye-opening (and sometimes very contradictory, as you will see). All of the surveys had extremely kind things to say and were very generous in their encouragement. Many were only partially filled out, and some fans chose multiple answers, so our results are hardly going to seem scientific, but I think they will be interesting, and will give our members some idea of who we all share this space with.

We received very little critical feedback, but we would like to address any complaints or suggestions as we go along. Some were just differing points of view: one person's cup of tea is another's cup of motor oil, as you will see by some of the comments. But any true complaints we will attempt to either address or remedy.

But first, some of the general knowledge we've been able to glean about our membership. Please remember that not all surveys, nor all questions, were completely filled in . . .

All those who sent in surveys re-subscribed. 9 respondents had joined only in 1993, while 29 had been with us from the beginning. Of these, there were none that considered themselves Third Season Only fans; 2 were Classic Only fans, 5 were Tolerant/Leaning Toward Third Season, 9 were Tolerant/Leaning Toward Classic, and 21 considered themselves fans of All Three Seasons. For those of us hoping to see this fandom grow closer together, these were encouraging numbers, indeed.

While many of you asked us to bring you even more art, we're sorry to tell you that art is: (a) the most difficult thing to get (I'm twisting Barb Gipson's arm even as we speak), and (b) the most expensive thing to print. All art and photos in Lionheart are PMT screened to bring you the best possible results. This process is quite expensive, but we absolutely refuse to skimp on this step and thus lower the quality you've come to expect. Good art deserves to be presented with as much care as possible. We hope you understand and will forgive us if we must limit the number of full sized pieces of art we are able to print.

When asked whether you found our policy of not accepting mail that is purposely cruel or negative toward any aspect of Beauty and the Beast to be a positive or negative practice, a majority of 34 fans agreed with the policy. Three fans felt this to be an unnecessary or negative policy, but only one fan said that it had kept them from writing in. Our editorial staff must conclude from these figures that this is one of the things that drew our readers to Lionheart in the first place. We believe that fans were searching for a place where they could simply like what they like, and not feel they have to go into battle over highly subjective issues.

It was never our intention to stifle anyone's opinions, or create an atmosphere in our zine that always "plays it safe" and thus is boring. But we do feel that focusing on the positive over the negative is a much more constructive thing. It would be easy to spend the year vehemently disagreeing with one another and poking bayonet sized holes in each other's theories. (Believe me, our readership is a lot more diverse than you might expect.) But aren't we learning more about one another by being able to bring those very diversities to a place that has a safe and civilized common ground where we can all share?

As I said before, everyone seems to be looking for something different between these pages. Our diversity seems to be our greatest strength. If in-depth discussion isn't your thing, then there's always s a touch of ribald humor. If you don't like taking a lighthearted jab at the foibles of B&B, then there's usually a serious article or interview to tum to. Trying to keep up with Ron Perlman or maybe have a giggle concerning our "mane man," we've got something for you. Interested in finding ways to amuse yourself with other like minded entertainments while we wait for our beast to return? We'll try to steer you toward something we think you might like. Just want some new photos or artwork or stories? We'll try our best.

The bottom line is this: I started Lionheart because my needs as a fan were not being met And I was hoping that there might be other fans out there just like me, who felt just as disenfranchised by everything that was going on So I based Lionheart on my tastes, on what I'd like to read and see and think about. No one was bothering to do interviews any more, not even Starlog, and I missed them. I've found that they're a lot of work and time and phone calls, but they're damned well worth it. I wanted to see full sized art, and have discussions and good times, just like the old days. I wanted to prove, if only we could find a way to talk to each other again without screaming, that we could come together and enjoy one another's company again and do something positive for a change!

And I hope we've managed to do all those things for you. I'm not saying we're going to drastically change the way we do things around here. In fact, things are probably going to seem pretty much the same. But we've taken your thoughts into consideration, and we're going to try to add a new twist here and there. It certainly has been an eye opener, and we feel we know you all even better now. We feel it's only appropriate to let our readers have the last word. So, the following are a few of the reasons you have allowed Lionheart to be a part of your Beauty and the Beast world again this year. We think only you could say it best And thank you, thank you for your kind words.

Some Questions on the Survey

• Which parts of the newsletter are your favorite?
• Which issues of the newsletter were your favorite?
• Has Lionheart ever been insulting to your way of thinking about B&B?
• What are Lionheart's weak points and is there anything you'd like us to discontinue?

Excerpts from Fan Comments

Humor, warmth, (heat?). We finally get the intimacy the series denied us.

Lionheart has always presented a very positive view of B&B, highlighting Vincent, who is the most important of B&B (in my opinion).

I think that we all need some humor injected into B&B because some people take this oh-so-seriously.

Not insulting - but I had to put a cover over the Issue #7 cover. It seemed slightly pornographic.

Lionheart, I feel, has always had a friendly, tolerant format and has never been discourteous to anyone.

No, not at all insulting, but just a little hesitant. Still a fine publication even with the lack of 3rd season, Diana/Vincent material.

Not insulting, no, but some people seem to analyze it to death, forgetting the simple beauty of it.

No, it's a very positive publication, which is a relief. It's great that Lionheart is positive. I have grown very weary of so many fans doing nothing but dragging the show down. If the program was so bad, then why were we all apart of it? Of course, there are things each of us would have liked to have done differently, but I believe many things were beyond anyone's control. This is all very :frustrating, but the best thing we can do now as a fandom is be positive and pull together to try and get things to continue. Otherwise, we will be left with nothing.

I enjoy hearing everyone's opinions and enjoy their points of view. I have learned a lot.

No. I'm interested in all viewpoints (except nastiness, which doesn't appear here).

I don't get some of the poetry. I don't care for it, the poems that don't rhyme or make sense.

The editors seem concerned they will offend Koslow - if he reads Lionheart, say so and let us be in on it.

We do not send Lionheart to Mr. Koslow. We were able to give Mr. Koslow our first two issues at Tunnelcon II, but we don't know whether he looked at them or not. We try not to offend anyone, but we are not making any specific effort to avoid annoying Mr. K. The one person that I would personally not wish to offend is Ron Perlman, and goodness knows we haven't exactly handled him with kid gloves. But we hope that the ribbing we give him on occasion is taken in the spirit it was intended- as a tickle to the funny bone, not a slap upside the face. For the record, the only "celebrities" who have received complimentary copies of Lionheart are those we have interviewed. And while we've always tried to deal fairly and honestly with our interviewees- not taking any unnecessary cheap shots at their expense- we haven't purposely tried to show any particular deference to anybody beyond simple politeness. )

Lionheart gives almost no information about fandom, and I would really love to see a classified section, as I no longer have contact with other B&B fans or receive other newsletters. I would like to see what new zines and stuff are out there.

We have also had requests for zine reviews and correspondent lists, complete zine lists and more news. The reason Lionheart does not include these things in a standardized way is because: (a) There are many more sources out in fandom doing an admirable job of bringing the fans these exact things, so to provide them as well would be to overlap other publications and basically be redundant, (b) We don't wish to add any more to our page count or take pages away from the many things we do to try to be different from all the other publications out there, (c) We have no desire to be accused of purposely "leaving somebody out" or "promoting someone unduly" for "political" reasons. I have seen enough nastiness revolving around things said or not said in a zine review to make my stomach twitch at the very notion. And I would, no doubt, always manage to leave somebody out of any fan "factoid" list I might try to make. But since these things were mentioned, we will (for this one issue only) include a partial list of some of the hotlines, newsletters, services, etc., that can provide you with these things. And may we be forgiven if we've forgotten anybody.

The editor is a little hesitant to offer 3rd/4th season discussion/fiction.

Yes, you seem to have a point We may have erred on the side of caution when dealing with third season. When we were just starting out, perhaps we were trying too hard to be careful with some fans' sensibilities to the disadvantage of other fans' interests. But after two years of publishing, we seem to have proven that we really can "all just get along." To that end, we are more than open to any 3rd/4th season discussions you might want to open. We will also try to include Diana and third season themes in some of the art (and possible fiction). We look forward to everyone sharing what they found special about Beauty and the Beast.")

I know I'm not in touch with fandom like I used to be, and my participation has been almost non-existent the past year or so, but it does feel like there is a downsizing in fandom. I know there are people out there still every bit as enthusiastic as they were 5-6 years ago, and thank God there are still people out there keeping the dream alive, but I know how much interest has deteriorated and I know I'm not the only one. I hope-and really don't think I'll ever abandon fandom altogether-as long as it still exists anyway, but don't think my participation will ever be what it used to be.

I do feel there is a downsizing of fandom. I am a big reader of fanzines. It is getting harder and harder to find quality zines to read. Fewer people came to last year's convention in Austin than in past years. This is very frustrating for someone like me who wants to remain enthusiastic about B&B. I believe there are many fans out there who would return with enthusiasm if a movie were made. At this point, they simply can't maintain interest. A perfect example of this is my fan club. We no longer meet as a B&B group, but as a science club in general. Most of the group members who used to buy B&B merchandise no longer do so. This doesn't mean they aren't still interested. They want to see all the material that those of us who still do buy B&B stuff order. My fear is that with fewer and fewer people actively writing or buying, the signal to the movie producers will be that there is no longer interest. The interest is there, but fandom seems to need a shot in the arm to get excited again.