The Mirror Pool
| Zine | |
|---|---|
| Title: | The Mirror Pool |
| Publisher: | Carousels & Caverns Community, Los Angeles, CA |
| Editor(s): | Ben Bock |
| Type: | newsletter |
| Date(s): | Spring 1995-? |
| Frequency: | |
| Fandom: | Beauty and the Beast |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Mirror Pool was a quarterly newsletter of the Carousels & Caverns Community, the fan club that organized the 1995 and 2000 A Distant Shore conventions.
The Cost
The first three issues were free. Issues #1-8 were $1.
From an ad in Of Love and Hope v.3:
This quarterly newsletter is always chock full of news, information, poetry, etc. and at $5 a year, its a real steal! Back issues are only $1. Make your checks payable to Rose Badgett and send to [address]. You won't be disappointed!
Autumn 1995
An excerpt from the newsletter was published in Of Love and Hope v.3:
Condensed from the Autumn, 1995 Mirror Pool: A Distant Shore followup - The Carousels and Caverns members would like tothank each and every one of you for attending their Beauty and the Beast convention in Los Angeles this past July. $9300 was given to the convention's designated charity, Laguna Shanti, with proceeds coming from the charity and art auctions.
You may order their convention video by sending a check to [address removed]. Two tapes will be produced for $30 each or $55 for both. The first tape is of the convention itself and the second tape features the play "Great Expectations" and the Monday add-on tour of BATB location sites.
Issue 3 (Winter 1994)
It contains 6 pages.
There is information about cons, about zines, things to buy, the show in the news, what the celebrities are up to, and a short, motivational essay called "Reflections" by D'vora Pariente. This issue also includes a long report of a 1994 class lead by three showrunners which included much information and revelations about the show. This article was reprinted in Lionherat #10.
WELCOME to issue #3 of our new publication. We look forward to hearing from you with feedback or with news of your local club's activities, or art work, or with early ideas for the sixth annual Beauty and the Beast national convention that we will be putting on in Los Angeles in 1995. Also, we are interested in news from your local clubs and in your real-life tales of altruism or romance that reflect the spirit of Beauty and the Beast.
A description of MANY comments to fans at a discussion in a class taught by showrunners Howard Gordon, Steve Kurzfeld, and Don Davis, including fan's suspicions confirmed about Catherine's brutal death:
The Production Staff Speaks An adult education center called the Learning Tree, in Chatsworth, CA, invited Ron Koslow to conduct a class called "Beauty and the Beast Revisited." Ron was unavailable, but producer Howard Gordon, executive producer Steve Kurzfeld, and musical genius Don Davis accepted the invitation and on the evening of February 18 led a 3-hour discussion with about 25 fans and students.According to Steve, the credit for creating the series really belongs with Kim LeMasters, and Mr. LeMasters deserves some of the praise and thanks that has been showered on others. It was Kim who was at the helm at CBS and directed that a modern-day beauty-and-the- beast myth be developed. Steve was the head of development at the time and was anxious to lure Ron Koslow back to television work, so the project ended up in Koslow's lap. Ron wrote the pilot in three weeks. The series was therefore clearly Kim's "baby" during his tenure there, so it was virtually unavoidable that Jeff Sagansky would kill the show almost as soon as he took over from Lemasters in late 1989, in order to signal that he would be charting his own course.
Kim LeMasters is now president of Stephen J. Cannell Productions on LaBrea Ave. in Hollywood; Steve suggests fans write him there to say thank you!
[...]
The unrelenting grind [of creating the show] was, as a matter of fact, very relevant to the subject of Linda Hamilton's departure, which they discussed at some length. Linda's background was movies, where typically one page of screenplay gets filmed per day, not 6 or 7 pages as is the case for TV. Linda is well known in the industry as a perfectionist who arrives on the set knowing all her lines, so the B&B grind put her in the unfamiliar position of working long 6-day weeks and using the 7th day to learn her lines for the next 6 days. It just wasn't like that in the movies. But she was a trouper and did it and was wonderful to everyone on the set. But when she got pregnant, that schedule became too much for her to bear. So her decision to depart was understandable. Howard and Steve acknowledged, however, that at that time, feelings were running high because the rest of the cast and crew were so directly affected by Linda's decision. There was some anger and it to some degree manifested itself in the decisions that were made as to how to write her out of the series. From listening to Howard and Steve, it seemed clear from their praise of Linda as an actress and as a person that in retrospect they have some regrets about how they reacted at the time to Linda's decision.
- [Note: This explanation is consistent with what was written in the book Above & Below: A Guide to Beauty and the Beast, in which Howard's partner Alex Gansa stated, "All of us were so angry at Linda at the time, and have since come to understand that... we should have said, 'Go out and enjoy your life.' Who are we to try and hold her back, but, at the time, we were upset. We knew that it probably signaled the death of the show. It was the death knell, and I think ultimately that's the reason we treated Catherine so miserably in the first two hour show. We just did not treat the character with much love or affection at all. I also think we were tired."]
Winterfest Party at Mike's house:
23 revelers, several in tunnel togs, came to our annual Winterfest celebration on January 22. The gathering was held at Mike Maloney's house. The outside of Mike's house, and the trees and bushes out front, were intricately woven with small white lights that, in the dark, gave approaching visitors a sense of magic. They were points of light that shone in an oh-so-inviting way, like distant candles. Highlights of the evening included a beautiful candlelight ceremony, a viewing of "Dead of Winter," and a big pot of stew.
from issue #3, front page and beginning of the discussion description
from issue #3, more of the discussion description
from issue #3, more of the discussion description
Issue 7 (Winter 1995)
It contains 6 pages.
There is information about A Distant Shore, a transcript of some comments by Jo Anderson (portrayed Diana Bennett) about her experiences on the show, and its effect on fans. This issue includes a highly romantic vignette by D'vora Pariente, as well as a con report by Robin Schindler for the 1994 Tunnelcon.
About the upcoming con, A Distant Shore:
Convention organizers Mike Malone, Erick Jonasson, D'vora Pariente, and Rose Badgett report that 22 cast and crew members from the show have so far given their verbal agreement to attend the convention, subject to availability. Quite a number of other stars have not yet responded to the formal invitations, which were sent out in December.
There will be a costume ball at the convention, and on Sunday night the “main event” —the banquet — will bring us all together once again.
The dealers room is three fourths sold out already, so there will be plenty of merchandise. Bring lots of spending money!
[...]
This convention is not just about guest stars and bus tours but also about rekindling the spirit of B&B for all of you who yearn to experience once again the unexpected magic that flowed out of your television sets and into your hearts seven years ago. We who understand that magic have become a family.
"Promo Tapes Still Selling Like Hotcakes":
Due to heavy demand, a second batch of the Carousels & Caverns'
100-minute promotional videotape has been produced. Tapes are available for a $30 donation, plus $3 mailing for a total of $33 ($48 for European PAL format). The tape includes a music video, convention promo, poetry, and an hour of never-before-seen star interviews. This may be the only chance you’ll ever have to see Jay Acovone in a full beard! The cover of the videotape a color photo of Catherine and Vincent on the beach (taken by David Schwartz, not gleaned from the TV screen) is almost worth the price just by itself.)
A special guest, plus a hearty stew, at Winterfest 1995:
A surprise appearance by none other than David Greenlee highlighted the annual Winterfest celebration of the Carousels & Caverns Community. David stayed for many hours and regaled us with his tales. We were particularly gratified by his account of his recent encounter with John Franklin (“young Vincent”), whom David exhorted to attend this summer’s convention at all costs, even if it means missing an audition or two. Thanks, David!
The party was held on January 21 at Mike Malone's home, with a full house of 60 people (including some new faces always a good sign!) attending. Lovely little white lights adorned all the shrubbery in front of the house, greeting each approaching visitor on this chilly winter night. Some of the guests had come several hours early to help chop vegetables for the big kettle of delicious stew. (Putting on a party is hard work!)
After a group photo, the festivities commenced in near-darkness with each guest being issued a candle. Special ceremonial words were intoned (with David Greenlee as one of the readers), followed by lighting literally scores of candles. A brief meeting was also held, during which D’vora read a moving account from Inez Paskal about how Beauty and the Beast had inspired a retarded woman in her (New York) group to learn to read. After the sumptuous main course, there were plenty of sinful desserts to top it all off.
After that followed many more hours of camaraderie, viewing of “Dead of Winter” and other episodes, and watching movies far into the wee hours of the night.
"Hunting with Orion":
Using the Orion Computer at UCLA, one inquisitive Carousels & Caverns member undertook to track
down historical and literary references to the tunnel world.
An excerpt from an interview with David Schwartz in Starlog (March 1995):
Never at a loss for words, David’s remarks include this recollection about “Though Lovers Be Lost”: “Everyone made it through that final episode with tears in their eyes. That night on the set, the last close-up, the three of us, Ron looking at Linda, looking at me, and Linda looking at we realized Ron, looking at me this wasn’t just the final scene with Catherine and Vincent. It was the end of something that we had too.It was very emotional. It’s not something I would ever want to go through again on a project, to see something end like this. It was amazing to feel that way over a job. But the truth of it was that it had nothing to do with what we do. It was about who we all were.”
There are comments by David Schwartz about the auction of Vincent's outfit at the 1993 con, Great Expectations, for context, see The Great Expectations Charity Auction Costume Conflict:
A highlight of the 1993 convention in Texas was the $3400 bid at thecharity auction by the entire assemblage for a Vincent costume from the show. The fans then presented the costume to David Schwartz for him to present in turn to his friend, Ron Perlman.
Beth Blighton recently interviewed David Schwartz for an account of the presentation to Ron Perlman. David reported to Beth that the event took place in early 1994 on the occasion of a going-away party for David as he was moving from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. The party was at a restaurant, with many other friends present.
David related that Ron, upon being told how much money the costume raised, was “very flabbergasted and incredibly delighted that in the name of the work he did for Beauty and the Beast, such a charitable and giving experience could have come from it.”
David continued, “A lot of people were drinking wine and we were at this big table that my friends had set up. And when they saw [Ron holding the costume], they said, ‘What’s that?’ and ‘Is that...?’ and then they sort of understood what was going on... The commitment that fandom has, not only during the making of the show, but the subsequent 4 or 5 years after it...really sort of amazed a lot of people who weren’t really connected to the show.” “I know that Ron has it at home.
[He] has it in safekeeping, and I’m pretty sure it is hung in his closet. He has a very interesting closet of memorabilia.
David went on to say, “He was totally touched by the fact that money was raised to support such a unique and needed cause as Pediatric AIDS in Austin, for people who are certainly in greater need than he."
Issue 11 (Dec 1995)
As listed in Volume 3 Of Love and Hope:
- Ron Perlman was interviewed by Mike Jerrick on the America's Talkking cable network on December 18.
- A reprint of a very interesting article in the July 17, 1994 issue of the Los Angeles Times about Ellen Geer's actress mother, Herta Ware.