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ASK THE CHIEF
4/3/98

(Also available from Starland mirror site)

I have to blast through this column today. I've started working on the Star Wars novels and I have to hold to my schedule! First, some comments from previous columns . . .

Stephen Mendenhall: I agree with Robert J. Woolley's comments. I know at least one person who's given up on both Voy and DS9, but it's also because the local stations keep pre-empting both shows with sports or other stuff, and keep changing the schedules.

There are other reasons not to like Voy which he left out, and worth mentioning.

How many different kinds of energy beings are there in Trek? What's the difference between energy beings and disembodied souls? If energy beings exist why wouldn't souls exist?

What about "Power Play" in which Picard doesn't believe in disembodied human souls, but when it turns out they're disembodied alien souls he believes that! Or did I mention that already?

How does "Mortal Coil" fit in with that episode where Kim gets stranded on a planet where everybody thinks he's a visitor from the afterlife, and they send their bodies to someplace which turns out to be an asteroid, only at the end Kim says there's some energy stuff in the rings of an outer planet of the system, which suggests they really do have an afterlife...I hope you know which episode I mean.

I suppose when Q visited DS9 and Voy., everybody asked him these questions *after* the closing credits rolled, so that way the writers wouldn't have to deal with it. The writers could have Q give shocking answers, but in a way which suggests that maybe he's just kidding. He'd be just the sort to kid about that sort of thing. And if/since he's omnipotent, he and the other Q's might feel like inventing imaginative afterlives for various interesting people in the ST universe. And in Tapestry Q claims Picard is in an afterlife!

It seems likely the Organians disappeared because their application to join the Q continuum was finally approved. I wish they'd make some reference to things like that. The Talosians supposedly went extince, but wouldn't the Q show an interest in them?

Tom Elmore: David Bauder of the Associated Press reports that WB beat UPN for a 16th week. WB had a 3.3 rating and a 5 share vs. UPN's 2.3 rating and 4 share. A rating point equals one percent of all homes with a tv, or 980,000 homes. A share is the percentage of overall tvs in use. By comparison the number one network NBC had a 9.6 rating and a 16 share.

Scott McClenney: I zipped really quickly to the local UPN station and saw Jeri Ryan on Access Hollywood. They were showing the new house that she and her husband bought in Los Angeles(very nice,especially the yard). As they talked about Jeri they noted that she has recently signed a THREE YEAR CONTRACT to do Voyager. So if everything works out it looks as though our favorite Borg will be around for quite awhile longer.:) Jeri also said that she likes the way that they have been writing for 7 and hopes that they will keep up the development of her character in seasons to come. They also noted that Voyager is still quite popular(note:they must not log on to the Nitpickers Guild:)). In other words:Don't Trust Everything Fans Say On The Internet!!!!!!:) Any way she came across as being very gracious and kind hostess.

Phil: Then again, I'm not sure we can have that much faith in boot-licking programs like Access Hollywood either! ;-)

John Latchem: As to DS9 and the Unified Crew theory. Once again I point out that DS9 is ABOUT the struggle to attain the ideal. Yes Kira and Odo and Quark and Garak aren't Starfleet but after 6 years I don't think there is any doubt whose side they are on. Nog, a FERENGI, has joined Starfleet. Who'd have thought that would happen when the show began? I imagine when the series ends, we will see Kira and Odo in Starfleet uniforms, signifying the final unification, the goal the show has been working towards since the beginning.

Jonathan Carter: The Shadow War ended fairly early on in the fourth season of Babylon 5. Remember, Sheridan 'died' on Z'Ha'Dum in the third season cliffhanger. B5's schedule is very odd, though; season premieres always aired on the week after season endings. You can check out the official season divisions on the Lurker's Guide (www.midwinter.com/lurk). The fourth season did have a lot of plots scrunched together and it shows, but I don't know which plots were meant to be carried over into the last season.

Phil: My mistake! The Shadow War *WAS* in the midddle of the fourth season. I was in a rush last week. thatnks to everyone who wrote with the correct information!

David: i believe i just solved the O'Brian rank thing

He is the stations Master Chief Petty officer which in fact holds the third rank in the US navy.

Which means the way "it" rolls downhill (rank structure) of DS9 is as follows

Capt Sisko
|
Major Kira
|
Master Chief O'Brien
|
Commander Dax

What it means in everyday terms if starfleet follows US Navy tradition (according to Okuda they subed Commodore for Rear Admiral lower half (one star)) everyone from the CO and XO down would have to show O'Brian the courtesy of a superior even if they are comissioned officers. Added to the fact that he is the Chief Engineer which is the third slot anyway. Unlike the Enterprise where he was just a engineer with a fixation for transporter room 5

what i want to know is if startreck has warrant officers?

Michael Apple: If "Star Wars" proves to be too difficult to obtain rights for, in the use of the title of the Star Wars guide, I would suggest that you call it "The Nitpicker's Guide To The Jedi Saga." This combined with the illustrations you've considered would easily make it recognizable by Star Wars fans. Plus, I'm fairly certain that you can use Jedi without problems . There's actually a dance company in my town called "Jedi."

Christopher Pope: In the "Black Fleet Crisis" trilogy, one of Admiral Drayson's contacts is the journalist Cindel Towani. This is the name of the little girl in the Ewok movies. (She'd be in her late 20s or early 30s by the time of the novel.) I've written a Star Wars Concordance to catalog such crossovers, and this is the only one I've found between the Ewok TV specials and the Bantam novels.

From Someone Identified Only As Anomaly: FWIW, I always thought Star Wars fans were called "Warsies."

Phil: Sorry, the book *will not* be called the Nitpicker's Guide For Warsies! ;-) Mike Cheyne: Also, about that Star Wars Guide--good idea, but this might be a case of over-doing it. ALL the books and the comic stuff? Too much!!!

This is what I think is pretty good--

The Movies and the Special Edition Stuff
The Novels
*I'm not sure about the comics

And for bonuses:
The Star Wars Holiday Special
Those Lost City of the Jedi Books
The Ewoks Movies (natch)

If you really want some fun try watching the shows DROIDS and EWOKS.

Of course, we'll be expecting the Nitpicker's Guide to Indiana Jones soon, Chief Nitpicker. ;)

Jim Elek: I have some answers to your questions:

1) Star Wars X-Wing comics: Yes, these are separate stories and I believe they all take place before the first Rogue Squadron novel. I'll qualify that by saying that I only read the first 4 series, so I can't say for sure.

Matthew Patterson: In your last Ask the Chief column, someone had a bone to pick with my nit last week about the celebration music in "Return of the Jedi." Maybe I did get a little obsessive, and I agree with the point he raised. However , these are the same people who led us to believe that citizens of Imperial Center, the Emperor's capital city (the city covers the whole planet), actually managed to hold a victory celebration for the Rebellion when there was undoubtedly a MASSIVE Imp soldier presence on the planet. Not to mention that they apparently toppled a HUGE statue of the Emperor without hurting anyone in the GIGANTIC crowds below. And besides, i hated the new music anyway. The original Ewok "Celebrate the love" music gave me a feeling of triumph. The new music made me almost fall asleep. (Which, come to think of it, is probably why i didn't hear the Ewok drumming away.) They certainly could have changed the music, yes, but maybe to a more appropriate march style piece? Or maybe they could have-with all their fancy digital equipment-just cut the scene with the young Ewok percussionist with dreams of glory? They spent a gazillion bucks on the movie anyway.

John Latchem: The elements from the two Ewok TV movies appeared in at least two novels that I'm aware of. The Gorax, the giant creature from "The Ewok Adventure" was mentioned in "The Jedi Academy Trilogy," when Kyp Durron flies to Endor to visit Vader's grave. He scans the surface and detects a Gorax. Also, Cindel Towani, the little girl from both films, is mentioned in book 3 of the "Black Fleet Crisis." She is a young idealist who runs a galactic magazine. A Republic Admiral contacts her to leak some information in an attempt to further an operation. Also, in "The Illustrated Star Wars Universe" the female shape shifter Charal from "The Battle for Endor" is retroactively linked to the force using witches of Dathomir from "Courtship of Princess Leia."

On a related topic, what reference books are you using? I'd assume "The Guide to the Star Wars Universe: Second Edition" as well as "The Art of Star Wars" which you mentioned, and hopefully you'll find the Annotated Screenplays. I'd also recommend Kevin Anderson's "Illustrated Star Wars Universe" and the three "Essential Guides" to Characters, Ships, and Technology (a fourth book about places will be out later this year), as well as Shane Johnson's Technical Manuals. (Note from Phil: I've got everything except the Essential Guides! I'm also tempted to include the Illustrated Star Wars Universe book because it's almost a work of fiction as opposed to a reference book!)

Would there still be legal complications if you spelled "Star Wars" as "Starwars," only one word?

Or how about "Nitpicker's Guide to the Strategic Defense Initiative?"

Phil: Not sure on "Starwars"!

Terry Mitchell Hulett: In discussing what should be included in your Star Wars Guide John Burke states "...interested in books aimed at children.(True, "Star Wars" itself was sort of aimed at children, but there's still a difference)I for one read anything with the name Star Wars attached to it...except the children's books.(By the same token, I would hesitate to include the comics, except that they're referenced *so often* in the books.)

I must protest! John Burke appears to be linking "for children" with comics, and this is a bum rap that the comics medium in general is still struggling to overcome. Many comics are adult only, and even the majority are written, I would say, for no lower than late teens. Star Wars comics are not, I repeat not, stictly intended for or limited to children!

To John Burke: (assuming that you post this, Phil) You are *really missing out* if you have been skipping the Star Wars comics because you think comics are only for children. They are telling very good stories, richly illustrated (for the most part - some slip in quality a little, like everything else). Many compare comics most closely with movies because of the way they combine story and visuals. Would you not watch a movie because it "has pictures", and therefore *must* be for children?

Craig Sapp: Concerning your next guide's title, I would think that using the term "Unauthorized" and providing the appropriate copyright credits should take care of any legal problems. My title suggestion: "The Unauthorized Nitpicker's Guide To The Star Wars' Universe" -- You could always put "Unauthorized" in very small print. I think a variation on John Latchem's suggestion would be the best title without the words "Star Wars" -- "The Nitpicker's Guide To A Galaxy Far, Far Away". He should get the credit if this variation is used.

J. Timothy Thompson: My suggestion for the SW guide title is "The Nitpicker's Guide to the Star Wars Universe", thereby indicating that it is much broader in scope than just the three movies. I think the ones like "Nitpicker's Guide for Jedi Knights", etc., sound too contrived.

Brian: All over the interent there are psudeo-nitpicker's guide for Star Wars. Just surf and you'll have saved yourself SO MUCH time, the only thing you'll have to really work on are the sidebars and toteboards!

Phil: Except I would double check everything because some of it is inaccurate and I would have to rewrite everything because most of its poorly described!

Andy Bay: If you decide to Nit pick "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" The title would be: "The Nitpicker's Guide to The Hitchhiker's Guide."

As for Star Wars: The Nitpicker's Guide to the Skywalkers.

Adam Bernay: Some possibilities:

The Nitpicker's Guide for Star-Warriors
The Nitpicker's Guide for Light-Saber Enthusiasts
The Guide for Force-Full Nitpickers (this one's my favorite! ;-)
The Nitpicker's Guide to the Lucas Legends
The Nitpicker's Guide to...That Other Series (okay, this one is more a joke than an actual suggestion...)

Chuck Cochems: I don't think my Mission impossible nits ever got added. I had xplained that the disavowed list had to be there so they woud know if a disavowed person tried to return. They had to know who was disavowed and who wasn't. The bit about getting off teh disavowed list was of course baloney, even if it made good cinema. Tom cruise getting off could be explained, as he wasn't really a casualty.

On Phelps being the bad guy. Well, the motive was understandable. That's the one sort of pressure no one in such a position ever expects to handle. the growing reality that there may be no place for him, and that all his skils are USELESS. What do you do then? You find someone that appreciates your work. He never had to deal with that in the series. It was believable, even though it was rather "traitorous" to the fans... it was still a big sacrifice, though.

Phil: The file on M:I *is* frozen but if you're stuff came in before that, it's quite possible that I misfiled it and it didn't get it uploaded. With as much stuff as arrives at Nitpicker Central, sometimes, stuff does get lost. (It's rare but it doesn happen!)

Vince Hamilton: In the last column, Chris Marks talked about what he calls the "Three Pip Syndrom", in which characters that "don't have three full pips," or are not real "oddball" characters don't get much character developement. Two of his examples were Dr. Crusher & Troi. If I recall correctly, Crusher had three full pips thoughtout the whole series, and Troi became a full commander during the seventh season (I guess Troi still might count since for most of the time she only had two and a half.)

Amber Heinzel: Anyway, the best nit? Phil, Phil, Phil...tsk, tsk,tsk. Picard's sandwich is the shuttle is HANDS DOWN the funniest nit that I have ever seen. What episde was that? "Samaritan Snare," I think?

Of course, I don't really remember seeing a stormtrooper bang his head, it's been a long time since I watched the Star Wars movies. . .

Oh well, we're all entitled to an opinion, right?

Phil Right-o! It was "Samaritan Snare" but trust me, the stormtrooper banging his head is funnier!

Bob Canada: Nothing at all to do with Trek, but your nit about the "Homicide" character pooping up on the X-Files as well as being able to watch the show reminded me of a "Seinfeld/Mad About You" crossover a few years ago. On "Mad," we find out that Paul is subletting his old apartment to Kramer, implying both shows are in the same universe. Yet later on in a "Seinfeld" episode, Susan yells at George to come to bed so they can watch "Mad About You" together. Hmm...

Martin McMahon: [Concerning St. Elsewhere in the X-Files universe], Well this sure opens up a big can of worms. "St. Elsewhere" turned out to be nothing but the imagination of a young autistic boy; none of it ever happened...a character from the St. Eliguis hospital shows up on "Homicide", which crosses over with "Law and Order" annually...Carla from "Cheers" had one of her children at the St. Eligius...and so on.

Meaning: "St. Elsewhere", "Homicide", "Law and Order", "Cheers", "Frasier", "X-Files", "Millenium" (the Jose Chung episode) and "The Simpsons" all take place in that one boy's imagination.

And here I thought Pam's season-long dream on "Dallas" was a bit excessive! (The last seven or so years of "Knots Landing" was part of Pam's dream since they never unkilled Bobby on that show.)

Allan W. Fix: So, if X-Files and Homicide exist in the same universe re:Richard Belzer's character Detective Munch, and Homicide relates to St Elsewhere through Alfre Woodard's character, it can be inferred that The White Shadow TV show also exists in the X-Files universe. The White Shadow was an early 80's series about a high school basketball team, and I believe that a lot of the creative people working on that show went on to St. Elsewhere.

St. Elsewhere featured a recurring character Warren Coolidge, an orderly, as played by Byron Stewart. This is the same character that was in the White Shadow. (One memorable in-joke from St. Elsewhere -- Tim Van Patten guest starred in one episode. As he was getting into an elevator, Coolidge spots him and shouts "Hey Salami!" Van Patten replies "You got the wrong guy, pal!" Van Patten played the character called Salami in The White Shadow, but was playing someone else in the St. Elsewhere episode.)

So, we have X-Files -- Homicide -- St. Elsewhere -- White Shadow.

I think that's where this trail ends. However, if we just concentrate on the actors, it seems like everyone can eventually be linked to the X-Files through an appearance with another actor. Call it "Six Degrees of Nit-Pickin'!"

Stephen Mendenhall: Oh, and there's a Homicide nit I'd like to answer. Richard Belzer was on the X-files, meaning Homicide is in the same universe. But Homicide refers to X-files as being a fictional show. This isn't necessarily a nit.

In one universe, Munch, Scully and Mulder are real people; in another universe, Scully and Mulder are real, Munch is fictional; in another, Munch is real, Scully and Mulder are fictional; in another, they're all fictional.

Or maybe there's a Munch in a universe where Scully and Mulder are fictional, and he doesn't know they're fictional, he doesn't know about the TV show, and he fell through a spacewarp into a universe where Scully and Mulder are real, and...and...and...oh, well, you get the idea.

Brian Henley: Read your collumn. Not too too sure if I agree with it. Call me nieve, but I never thought us folks in the Players of YCP (York College Of PA) had a god complex. The rules are probably different for ameture actors anyway, I think. The number of people who know the actor in real life usually outnumber the "devoted fans" (which usually number around 0) that follow an amature actor's profesional work.

But ametures are still interested in giving an illusion, and telling their story and making their audience believe it. I believe that the use of "more colorful metaphores" backstage are the result of the fracturing of illusion of the stage. An illusion that is proper (IMHO) and should be maintained, as long as it's boundaries are clear. (end credits, curtian calls and the like)

Unfortuately, profesional actors are often celebrated, and are recognised by everyone, but not really known by their fans. There you might be right. It might be possible to get a god like complex.

Speaking of which ... I have bit part in York's play City Of Angels. If you're interested in exploring the topic further, I'd recomend this musical to you.

The Plot revolves around a writer trying to turn his detective novel into a screenplay. Half the show takes place in The Real World and the other half takes place in The Screenplay. We get a firsthand account of the controll a creator has over his universe, and how the Fictional charachter would feel about being under this creator's dictatorship! It's quirky, but clever I think.

We open on Wedsday! Whish us actors luck in producing our illusion!

Phil: ALl the best in all your endeavors. I *do* think there's a different between amateur and professional actors. Just as there is a difference in this discussion between community theater and Broadway. And there is a huge leap once you get to media like television and movies. The greater the separation between actor and audience, the more opportunity for "perfection" by using multiple takes, the greater the distribution, the more divine inflation comes into play!

Gareth Wilson: Re your comments on Gillian Anderson's grasp of oratory at award ceremonies, does *anyone* say anything intelligent at those things? "I'm the king of the world! Whoo, whoo, whoo!" "I'd like to thank my mother, my father, my little dog..."

From Someone Identified Only as SkipVest: To the question about the scene from The Sci-Fi Channel for SAAB: that is Colonel Mcqueen played by Actor James Morrison. Mr. McNeil would have been on Voyager when SAAB started

Joel Corbin: In regards to Gina Torgersen's note about the commercial she saw on a Jacksonville, Florida TV station. Maybe Jackson de Ville = Jacksonville, but just wasn't ennunciated correctly by the person doing the voice over.

From Someone Identified Only As Anomaly: - Whatever happened to Kirk's orbital skydiving scene from the the beginning of ST: Gen? Can anybody give me a synopsis of the scene? Was it ever restored on video?

Phil: Wasn't restore on video, Kirk comes screaming out of the sky. Lands with a small parachute. There's talk between Scotty, he and Chekov

Stephen Mendenhall: On other matters--I do remember a scene in the theatrical release version of ST Generations with Soran torturing La Forge. When Fox network showed the movie I only watched the first 20 minutes or so. There was something on PBS I wanted to watch instead.

ST:TMP--I rented the tape with extra scenes and one extra scene I remember is about half an hour into the movie, somebody's giving a tour of the interior and we see the gigantic, lavish, luxurious lounge, like a hotel lobby; I like it even better then Ten-Forward.

Phil: I do not have time to strip out the redundancies today so here's everthing that came in this week!

Amber Heinzel: In that list in the last "Ask the Chief" it wasn't "Suspicions" that had redundant vital organs bringing Worf back from the dead, it was "Ethics." I'm sure half of the guild has told you that.

John Latchem: The death list: Comments and additions

Dead man switches places with a temporal duplicate (DS9 Visionary) or a recently created double (VOY Deadlock)

Dead man restored to health by the companion (TOS Metamorphosis)

Evolving man has the power to give life (TNG Transfigurations)

Cloning and memory transfer (TNG Rightful Heir. Too bad nobody mentions this action as a possibility in "Tuvix." Oh wait that would be too easy. There's that technology running rampant problem that hampers the Trek writers too often nowadays)

History is altered to prevent death (DS9 Children of Time)

Okay, the Borg nanoprobe was actually first used to revive Kirk in William Shatner's "Star Trek: The Return." But this isn't canonical, so it's official debut is "Mortal Coil."

The power of Q to restore life was first seen in "Hide and Q." Wesley is killed and brought back to life. Riker refuses to restore a girl's life.

JC Fernandez: In response to Robert Woolley's list. Here's a couple more cases of characters brought back to life, and the ways in which they were resurrected:

Worf has a back-up for his synaptic functions. (ST:TNG "Ethics")

Microscopic biomechanical devices repair any physical damage of Kai Opaka's body (and the other inhabitants of the moon). (ST:DS9 "Battle Lines")

After dying in a fire, Picard's nephew appears in the Nexus. (ST: Generations)

He's not dead, Kirk was merely caught in the Nexus. (ST: Generations)

Data's centuries-old head is reattached to his body. (ST: "Time's Arrow, Part 2")

He's not really dead, Dr. Soong used an escape route to escape the wrath of the crystalline entity. (ST:TNG "Brothers")

She's not really dead, Dr. Soong merely transferred his wife's mind into an android's brain. (ST:TNG "Inheritance")

He's not really dead, Dr. Soong's friend merely transferred his mind into Data's android brain. (ST:TNG "The Schizoid Man")

It was just a simulation. (ST2:TWOK)

Tasha didn't die aboard the Enterprise C, she was captured by a Romulan commander who became infatuated with her. (ST:TNG "Redemption II")

She hasn't passed into oblivion, Data transferred Lal's memories into his own. (ST:TNG "The Offspring")

The transporter didn't kill her, the Romulans only made it look that way. (ST:TNG "Data's Day")

He's not really dead, just kidnapped and put on display. (ST:TNG "The Most Toys")

They're not dead, Ro, you idiot! The ship's internal sensors are down! (ST:TNG "Disaster")

An anaphasic being briefly inhapits the body of Beverly Crusher's grandmother. (ST:TNG "Sub Rosa")

Kahless is cloned. (ST:TNG "Rightful Heir")

An energy being pretends to be Marla Aster. (ST:TNG "The Bonding")

Kevin Uxbridge is an eternal being who uses his powers ro recreate his wife. (ST:TNG "The Survivors")

Brian Straight: Use the transporter (granted its never actual brought anyone back from the DEAD, but with everything else it can do, and has done, it would be no problem).

Put them in a temporal Nexus. (Generations)

Use the Holodeck. (there was a DS9 episode where the crew's physichal and brain patterns were stored in the computer, and became images in the holodeck, also there have been times when dead people were used as characters in the holodeck), but the DS9 is interesting because, as I understood it, the crew's brains were stored on the computer. So, theoreticly, you could save your brain on to an isolinear chip (or rod) place it in a computer connected to a holo emitter, and create a holographic body for yourself, and live forever! You could even change your appearnce as you wish (just create a new holographic body for yourself), and with mobile emitters, you could go anywhere!

Chris Marks: My additions to the list.

Q - Wesley Crusher in Q-Who

Other super-being of the week - Worf in Transfigurations

Redundant vital organs - Worf in Ethics

Death was only assumed - Data in The Most Toys, Picard and Riker in Gambit, Kirk in Generations, Kirk's friend in Court Martial, McCoy in Shore Leave, Chekov in Spectre Of The Gun (?), Lore in Brothers.The crew of the Bozeman should probably go here too - Cause and Effect.

Wormhole Aliens - Jennifer Sisko and the remainder of the Saratoga's crew, and Locutus in Emissary. (Well, even though it was just the Prophets taking their forms, they were dead at the time.), Curzon Dax in Jadzia's orb flashback, and Jennifer Sisko in Ben Sisko's, also in Emissary.

The Mirror Universe - Jennifer Sisko - Through The Looking Glass and Shattered Mirror.

The Holodeck - Jack Crusher in Family, Tasha Yar at the end of Skin Of Evil, and in Data's image crystal she left him.

Cloning - Weyoun (I havn't seen the episodes he re-appeared in yet, so I'm not sure). Kahless in Rightful Heir.

Alternate Realities - Harry Kim (and the baby) (Can't think of the episode title).

Strange Cerimonies - All the Dax hosts in Facets.

Heather B. Smith: In regards to the Empire Strikes Back script, two possibilities:

1. www.barnesandnoble.com
Under 'book search' type Empire Strikes Back and you get a whole list of books, and one of those listed is the following:
Empire Strikes Back Script
Pub. Price $19.95 B&N Price: $15.96 You Save: $3.99 (20%)
ISBN#: 1566933072
Publisher: B&N Dist/Supermart
Format: Paperback
Publication Date: February 1994
Available to ship in 2 - 3 Days

2. I have a copy of the script for 'The Wrath of Khan', published by O.S.P. Publishing Inc. in 1994, in cooperation with Premiere Magazine and Paramount Pictures. In the front cover, there is a list of other titles in their Movie Script Library (TM), including The Empire Strikes Back. They state that each edition contains background, official logo, exclusive movie stills, film credits, etc. of the film.

The address of O.S.P. Publishing is:
1001 Monterey Pass Road
Monterey Park, CA 91754

John Latchem: There are a number of published sources for this screenplay (For those that don't know the difference between a "script" and a "screenplay," a "screenplay" presents the story and dialogue, in general terms. The "script" alters the screenplay to describe camera angles and shots.) A few years ago Preimere Magazine came out with a whole series of scripts for such movies as "Gone with the Wind," The Indiana Jones Movies, the Star Trek Movies, and the Star Wars Movies, and others. The "Empire" script was offered as a single volume for about $15. It is a beautifully bound volume which features photos from the movies and cast filmographies. However it is basically identical, word for word, to the finished film, and offers no real insight or lost scenes. It is also available with the other two films in a boxed set. "Star Wars" does feature lost scenes but no insight. "Return of the Jedi" again is identical to the film and has no insight. Also these might be hard to find now. The best bet to find them is at a "Suncoast Motion Picture Shop" or a comics shop.

For my money, the book you want is "Star Wars: The Annotated Screenplays" by Laurent Bouzereau, published by Del Rey. It features all three screenplays (although not in screenplay format as the aforementioned volumes are), plus special edition additions, as well as notes tracing the development of the story from first to final draft, and noting the changes. For example, Luke's original name was "Annakin Starkiller" and in "Return of the Jedi" there were TWO Death Stars and they were being built around the Emperor's homeworld. As I said before, THIS is the one you want. It was published September 1997 so it should be easier to find and should be at your local bookstore, IF your publisher can't get you a copy, Phil.

Phil: Thanks to everyone else who sent information along as well!

Trevor: I, too, was upset that the ART OF "ESB" didn't have the script the way the art books for SW and ROTJ did. So, I bought Original Movie Script as published by Premiere magazine's Movie Script Library books in cooperation with Lucasfilm Ltd. The Premiere Movie Script Library series covered all three Star Wars films, at least some of the Trek films (2, 4, and 6 for sure) and REAL classic movies like Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, Wizard of Oz, etc.

Murray Leeder: Another example of wired technology in X-Files - the crime photos are emailed to Mulder in "Zero Sum".

On to the questions, Busy, busy, busy . . .

Mike Cheyne: Does anyone else seem to realize that Phil's answers in ASK THE CHIEF seem to be limited to "I don't know" to "Interesting"?

Phil: Interesting! (I have never felt the need to know everything!)

Chris Marks: Could someone please explain the following seemingly huge nit.

1000 stardates is considered roughly equal to one year, correct? However, the gap between Star Trek VI, and TNG is 30,000 stardates (ish), but the time gap is about seventy years. (Kirk uses star date 9999.something (I think), in the very last log entry at the end of TUC). It gets even worse with Trials and Tribble-ations, as the gap is more than one hundred years, with a gap of 48,000 stardates.

There does seem to be a solution though, if you say that 1 stardate is slightly less than one day (currently it works out to about eight hours).This clears up both the above problems, and Molly O'Brien's age in the first couple of seasons of DS9, and possibly Alexanders age as well. Then again, this does mean that Odo has been chasing Quark around the station for more than twenty years, and that Janeway's dogs puppies are probably grand-parents themselves by now.

Also, apart from the clock around the viewscreen in STVI, have there ever been any other time pieces seen or times mentioned (and not in the holodeck, or in time travel episodes)?

Phil: At some point in the gap between Classic and NextGen the star date system was evidently revised! I leav the rest to you fellow nitpickers. I am out of time this morning!

Tom Elmore: I have noticed on the opening theme for DS9 a sort of "tribal/primative" undertone in the music. I have a stereo tv, but I don't recall hearing it until either this season or last? Has anyone else noticed this? Just wondering.

Phil: I call this the "Disco" version or "Extended Dance Version" of the DS9 theme. It was created to give the opening more motion. I believe it premiered with the fourth season.

Rodney Hrvatin: I have just seen "Men In Black" for the first time and I was wondering whether the guy who plays Zed is General Martok from DS9? Their voices are very similar.

Phil: I was going to look this up but I'm out of time! Anybody?

Anon: I have a Voyager question. I'm just wondering how when 7 came ob board, they were able to research her family and stuff. I know, they have a historical database and a culture database, but when you have a technological culture that builds ships with consoles that explode at the slightest impact of a wayward dust particle, you can't tell that the computer database would still be intact after Voyager had so much damage (including the complete removal of the core at one pojnt, no?) So does the computer have some sort of back up or something? Is everything still there? Or is it some new kind of hard drive that used up all thier creativity so they couldn't build consoles that don't explode?

Phil: Starfleet ships *do* seem to be able to store huge amounts of information and with the way informtaion process technology is proceeding this seems reasonable. I question what this says about privacy issues and do we realy want the entire history of the human race carried around on every starship--especially with their Invader Friendly Operating Systems!

Mary Frances Folz Donahue: Doesn't a very young Mark Leonard (Sarek) play a character in Olivier's 1950's Hamlet. It really is an awful Hamlet, too, by the way, but I'm sure that was Mark Leonard either playing Hamlet's friend, or the son of the King's councilor who must fight Hamlet in a match at the end of the play.( Yes, I read the play only two years ago and have already forgotten all the names, except Ophelia, Claudius, R&G, and the H-man) The credits for the movie are crappy 50's handmade credits which I couldn't read when I first saw the movie. Does anyone know? Perhaps someone knows Mark Leonard's bio.

Phil: I was going to look this up as but I really have to go. The answer can be found at the Internet Movie Database: www.imdb.com

Clay: I know that you are a programmer by profession and a writer by heart......but while you are writing what do you do to make money since you don't get money the way I understand it till the book is written and sold?

Phil: That's why publishers give advance royalties...so writers can live while they are writing!

Mike Deeds: When do you usually upload the Ask the Chief column? I try to check it during my lunch hour (12 EST). This question is just for my own curiousity. When I check your site out during lunchtime, I usually find your new column.

Phil: I try to get it done in the morning but this may change! As long as I'm working on the adult Star Wars novels, my schedule is going to be really tight. So I may have to start doing the column on Thursday night or Saturday morning! We'll see.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

If you would like to submit a question or comment, send it to: chief@nitcentral.com with "Ask the Chief" or "Question" in the Subject line. (Remember the legalese: Everything you submit becomes mine and you grant me the right to use your name in any future publication by me.)

Copyright 1998 by Phil Farrand. All rights reserved.