July

ISSUE 9907

JULY 1999

This edition of the RFWP monthly Newsletter
continues our efforts in keeping the Ravenite FON Wolves and Possums in touch with each other. It will not only serve as your personal connection to exciting new developments on the RFWP site, but will also introduce to you your fellow Pack members in very special ways. We'd love to have you participate by offering comments, suggestions, refer a favorite site, share some personal news, or submit an article of your own, feel free to jump right in. just contact the webmaster !

wWords from Alpha
wThis Month at the RFWP
wWelcome New Members
wWho's Doin' What
wMember of the Month
wRaven Episode of the Month
wPhoto of the Month
wSite Review of the Month
wEditorial
wIndependence Day

Words from Alpha

I had a friend in grammar school who used to brag that she was named after a jinx who was supposed to have caused the Titanic to sink. I have never understood her pride in this fact, or her parents' decision to tell her such a thing about her name. But now I begin to understand how one must come to terms with feeling like a jinx. It began when I watched the San Jose Sharks beat the Pittsburg Penguins. I was sure the world was coming unravelled, beginning to think that I had somehow caused this to happen just by wanting it not to. I remembered that Titanic won for Best Picture, and I vowed to never watch the Oscars again. I was very happy with Strangeworld, and then it went away. I tried for years to get copies of Romper Stomper and Proof, but could not find them, they were out of print. The movies I wanted to watch on tv were mysteriously listed in my guide but never shown. And at Chronicles 99 I hear that The Raven is cancelled, and I come home to hear maybe not, and now maybe we'll get something else...

I have resolved that (to quote Hans Solo) "It's not my fault!" though I sometimes feel like a jinx. Instead, I recommend that those who feel similarly jinxed quickly find the silver lining. In the long run all that matters is that I did get to see Jagr play (though he ought to have shot the goalie), I did see some Strangeworld, Russell Crowe is a star now so I can get his movies again, no one says I ever have to watch the Oscars, and I have The Raven on tape. More than all of this, I am fortunate to have found this Pack, to know that you are all out there sharing in my sense of alienation from the inscrutable public tastes. I have this comforting knowledge that we are not alone, and that good things do come again, and what a superb honor it has been to meet you all. Whatever comes from here on out, we have our lifeboats secure.
~Respectfully, petshark, alpha leader RFWP

THIS MONTH AT THE RFWP
The Red Cross-Highlander Fans project to send aid to Kosovo is still in need of our support. We have raised close to two thousand dollars now, help put us over the hump! The Official Paul Johansson Fan Club benefit auction raised a nice 700 bucks as one donation, thank you to all for participating. They say the summer is a slow time for charity, let's try to buck that trend.

The RFWP Immie Awards went off with a mild clamor, and we were honored by a special cyber-guest, Paul Johansson, who stepped into character for a Nick Wolfish acceptance post on the Rysher Forum.

The campaign goes on to save the show, and any effort is worth the trouble, even if the Raven as we know it is gone. All the reasons we had for wanting to like this show before we saw it ought to apply to any potential project to come. Could we see Amanda and Nick again? stranger things have happened. Consider Sean Connery and "Highlander Revisited".

"Nope, no gophers in there..."

NoGophers.jpg (16602 bytes)

PHOTO OF
THE MONTH

courtesy of Harmonica's screen capture site. Check it out!

Notes from Scotland: (contributed by Jette) Scotland finally got some Summer this last fortnight. Warm sunny and dry.

Today (July 1st) was the official opening of the new Scottish parliament in Edinburgh. Bands played concerts in the sunshine in the parks and
people strolled the city streets where cars had been banned. THE t-shirt to wear was the "Declaration of Arbroath" (short extract - "So long as 100 of us remains alive we will never submit to the domination of England") and THE fabric to wear was tartan - of course! :-)

However since the day was NOT declared a Public Holiday it was mostly tourists at the events. The local Scots had to just knuckled down and work!

Jette Goldie
HISTORICON 2001 : Setting the Standards for the Next Millennium
http://home.freeuk.com/bosslady/historicon-1.html
http://www.onelist.com/subscribe/historicon

WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBERS!

WOLFE:    TallyHo
WOLFE:    Star Wolf
WOLFE:    RavenWolf
WOLFE:    RoseWolf
WOLFE:    CatlynJade
WOLFE:    Joanne
WOLFE:    Star Wolf
POSSUM: Mems
POSSUM:    Isabeau
POSSUM: Cyn

Wanted: losin'it just finishing collecting pictures of all immortals and has 158 so far. Still missing: HLTS=6, HLM2=3,HLM3=1,HLTR=1. Could use some help getting these. Can anyone help?

Wanted: petshark is seeking SP copies of some Raven eps. If you have some and are willing to copy, e-me.

WHO'S DOIN' WHAT

Brena Rosal reports that her daughter Darleen (whose drawings many of you have seen at the RFWP), will be turning 20 on July 6th. Her boyfriend from Spain will be flying down on the 15th to visit for 2 weeks. It will be the first time they see each other. I'm happy about it, her father is taking it rather well.. TallyHo is working on a site devoted to HLTR quotes. It is a work in progress as we can imagine, but already there is much to see! Take a look and have a read! beardog writes: "I am really excited. I have been battling for years trying to get doctors to listen and figure out what is going on. Finally have diagnoses and they look like enough that I will be able to retire on Long Tem Disability and not lose my paycheck or insurance and have the time to recover without the stress of an 8-5 job in a bureaucracy 5 days a week and being too exhausted on the weekend to do much but sleep. It appears that in addition to have two surgeries to repair ruptured disks, I still have one herniated that they don't want to touch but touches me often. And something called sacroilititis that cannot be cured and has to be lived with, with the help of lots of pain meds. But the most important thing is that the neurologist has finally diagnosed the worst thing, fungal (cryptococcal) meningitis. I am on heavy antifungal drugs with the doctor testing my liver every month to make sure they don't destroy it while trying to cure me. But, I am as happy as I could be. I have a wonderful angel of a husband that takes absolutely great care of me, and I love him with all my heart. JGalt has finally landed the job he was looking for, (this year) with an ad agency in SF. He has already had the thrill of hearing his work on the radio, seeing it on tv, and looks forward to watching it go by on a MUNI bus any day now. Ca-Roll and Dyed-Anne will be travelling to Denver later this month for a college friend's wedding celebration. Look out Denver! ranch rover has finally won over the tenants and partners of a building she has been asked to manage for her parents. With no prior experience managing commercial property, she has surprised herself by being ready, willing,and competent to go head to head with the corporate bullies and bugaboos. Not bad for an AARP member! Her family is very proud of her . C-Magie says goodbye to her 20s this month and with only a little fear and trepidation enters the ranks of responsible adults. petshark is wondering what the heck to do with herself. Aside from backing the ongoing Raven campaign led by Raven(o24), she finds herself thrown into a psychic place where she has neither good tv to watch nor manic web-work to do, and might have no more excuses for not working on that novel, the scripts, screenplay, etc that all wait patiently by the desk. Wait, one could go to the gym....

.MEMBER OF THE MONTH
Jack Magist

I just want to let everyone know that I'm still around. I lurk about because with summer my computer time has become so erratic that it is hard to keep up much less hold up any part of a discussion. I will be leaving for a week in New Orleans on July 5th and will be going to Florida to catch a three day, two night cruise to the Bahamas on the 23 of July. Consequently I will be very busy catching up at work in between and after the vacations. Also, we will be starting a big project to change out the PBX (telephone switch equipment) for the South Texas Region starting in August so it's busy, Busy, BUSY.

With summer here the Mulholland Dungeon Gamers Guild is meeting almost daily (at my house) and that takes up a lot of my time. As "Grand Master" even when I'm not gaming personally, I am required to settle a lot of rules disputes when the younger Game Masters/Dungeon Masters get confused or take liberties with the rules. We have really only two other Game Masters and they are both young and excitable. Also, I supervise them to see that they keep the game in prospective since most of them are Highschool age and Roll Playing games have a bad reputation. I watch for signs that any of the gamers are getting too wrapped up in the gaming, so far I haven't had any problems. I get a lot of opportunity to discuss philosophy with teenagers who are otherwise on the verge of becoming disaffected with society. Several parents have told me that their teen's attitudes have improved since starting to hang out at my house, which makes me feel very good about how things are handled in our group. I also have two teenage stepsons with whom the gaming has helped me to develop an understanding.

I am very excited about the ending of Season One of HL: the Raven. It is exactly what I wanted to see (except for the part about probably no season two). I have some ideas for fanfic that I might write if I have time on vacation, that's doubtful though. Maybe I will get the chance later on after school starts. I very much want to see others writing fanfics about Nick's post immie days to come and Amanda's trials and tribulations in trying to 'straighten him out'.

I will be looking forward to getting back into the flow of the RFWP forum when things slow down and I will drop in and lurk and say 'Hi' when I can. I wish everyone there a safe and happy summer.

JackMagist

MEMBER OF THE MONTH is selected randomly from the RFWP database and all comments and remarks are published here with their prior approval.

EDITORIAL
Television and the Internet Can Be Good for you, if you Make it So

I had been using the internet to research for work and fun, when I came across the Rysher Highlander Forum. Before I knew it, I was a regular visitor, chatting about plot lines I had missed bits of, characters and their histories, the morality of the tale. I was given quick summaries of everything from the 100 Years War to "gun control, from the Greeks to the present." I argued about viewer opinion of slippery female characters and what this shows us about women's views of ourselves. I read as people struggled to pin down the actual dates of the Bronze Age, I asked questions about corporate Hollywood, and about website construction, and I got answers. I had never been so overwhelmed by active discussion, across generations, across national boundaries, across class lines. I hadn't seen anything like it, not in college, and not in grad school .

Despite satisfying results in Europe and Asia, The Raven has struggled in the US market. Perhaps the shade of the MacLeod Clan, combined with some strange corporate conviction that viewers only want cops, hospitals, and morose teenagers in their drama diet, helped keep the show crammed into after-hour and weekend afternoon time slots from the start. Though a few shows have succeeded against this trend, they all seem to reside on the Sci Fi Channel, where they "belong." Was The Raven championing a hopeless cause when it broke from its own mold, and did not jump into another? If so, this speaks volumes about the stereotype of the American audience, and the people who are supposed to be entertaining us. Though fan letters have been written and are still being written on behalf of the immortal/Highlander saga, the US audience is treated as the least imaginative audience on the planet.

If science fiction and fantasy are growing in popularity, why should The Raven, with its uniquely intelligent sort of escapism, not succeed? Does the US audience really want to linger between Jerry Springer and NYPD Blue? Do we truly believe that television has the power we say it has? If we do, I suggest we rethink our viewing diet. It is all out of balance.

RAVEN EPISODE OF THE MONTH frame32.jpg (17482 bytes)

The Frame
The Frame introduces us to one of those non-K adversaries, another woman thief who takes pride and joy in her work as does Amanda. The tension between them is apart from The Game and very personal. They are fiercely competitive in their work, but seem to have some carefully worked our rules which they alone understand and follow. Nick is a spectator with a fine view of the contest: he is right between them. The flashback is one of the most memorable and colorful ones in the show's body of work, and the quick development of Jade is another masterful character sketch from the show's writers.

SITE OF THE MONTH

Movie Wavs.com

Got a favorite site you'd like to suggest for future newsletters??
Just contact the webmaster

Making Wavs: all you need to know and more!

This marvelous site will tell you how to make your own wav files, no matter what equipment you have. Info on software, tweeking your files, setting up your hardware, it's all there. Some slow-loading graphics on the main page, but the info is worth the wait!

http://moviewaves.com/makewavs.shtml

Wanna Join the Gang?? RFWP recruitment is on the rise for all fans of Highlander: The Raven! If you watch the show, you already have all the qualifications you need to become a bona fide RFWP Wolf or Possum. Membership details can be found at the RFWP site.

SSBheader.jpg (3428 bytes)

Here is a mini history lesson for the day.

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence? Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they? Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were armers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKean was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and
poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his grist mill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart. Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were not wild eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more.
Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

So, take a couple of minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and silently thank these patriots

All materials on this site are the exclusive property of the RFWP unless otherwise specified. Obtain permission for reproduction of original materials published on this site by emailing the webmaster.
.
prepared and published collectively by members of ravencorp©1999

RETURN TO TOP OF PAGE 0285