Newsgroups: alt.tv.mst3k
Subject: What I did on my summer vacation...
From: jenkins@local.host (Lisa Jenkins)
Date: 22 Jan 93 16:09:50 -0600
Reply-To: jenkins@mhd1.moorhead.msus.edu
Organization: Organization, City, State, etc.


Long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away) Debbie Brown asked us "How did 
you start watching MST3K?"

Sometime in October 1991, one of the members of the group of people I 
call the Moorhead State University Science Fiction and Fantasy club 
(MSU SF) asked us if we had ever heard of or seen _Mystery Science Theater 
3000_.  I had read a letter in _Starlog_ asking if they would ever have an 
article about that show.  (BTW, they haven't.)  That's about all I had 
heard.  Another member had remembered vaguely of seeing an episode when 
she lived in Monticello.

It was decided.  The next Thursday night movie would be MST3K.

We got to the meeting, Paul popped in the tape, and it was in the middle
of a "Commando Cody" episode.  "Gosh, this is boring," we said about the
movie.  Then a large, chisled head appeared on screen.  "Nice head," I
said.  "Nice head," someone not quite seen on screen said.

Huh?!

Then we noticed the little theater seats at the bottom and the three 
characters sitting there.  "What are they doing?  Why are they watching
this boring movie?" we asked.

Paul fast-forwarded the tape to the "host segment" (or what I'd come to 
know as the host segment) where we saw the characters goofing off.  Well,
this was much better and no where near as boring as the movie.  But, 
then, they went back again!  Why?!

So Paul fast-forwarded the tape to the next film, this time with the 
opening intact, and played the theme song for us.

"Cool!" we said.  "We want a copy of that song!"  And then we made him 
play it again.  And again.  And one more time before Mike ripped out the 
remaining hair in his head and told us to stop.

I asked Paul if I could borrow the tape.  He said sure.  Since I didn't 
have a VCR at the time, I took the tape over to the library and watched 
it there.  Three and a half episodes were on the tape, all from Labor Day 
Blowout! 1990, all from the first season of Comedy Channel.

"Neat," I said, seeing the address for the fan club which was based in
Minnesota.  "I should write to these guys and find out where they come
from."

Also on the tape was the Chiro-gyro from "The Corpse Vanishes."  It looked
so strangely familiar to me.  I didn't know why.  I thought, "I *SWEAR*
I've seen a comic do that once.  Maybe this guy stole it!"  (Yeah, Lisa,
Joel stole his props from himself!)

I never did write to the address, and except for the Halloween party where
I wore a red jumpsuit and brought my transformed guitar case as a "robot
friend," I thought no more of it.

Until March 1992.  One of the other members of MSU SF taped some kind of
Turkey Day 1991 marathon off Comedy Central.  Two tapes worth, to be
exact, almost the whole first 18 hours of the marathon!  (Except not
consistantly all of the episodes in the first 18 hours.  }B-( )  I asked
to borrow them over spring break (I have no life; you know that) and 
rented a VCR for the week.

I spent the *WHOLE* week watching and re-watching those tapes.  I had to; 
the audio was *TERRIBLE*!  I had to watch the show three times just to 
catch half the things which were being said.  I memorized the beginning 
credit sequence to "Cave Dwellers."  (Never quite got past that, though, 
until recently on Lifetime when I *COULD* hear everything.)

I said, "I've *GOT* to write these guys and find out how they started this!"
But I never did.

Then I went to MiniCon in Minneapolis, wearing my red jumpsuit.  A couple
of people came up to me and said, "Nice costume!"  There was another man in
his own red jumpsuit, swearing it was "authentic" (as in the old KTMA 
shows).  I found out a little about the original airings of the shows from 
some people who had actually seen them, and now I wanted to know more!

So I started looking in newspapers and magazines, looking for articles on
MST3K and the people who made the show.  I found articles--all sorts of
articles--on Joel Hodgson as a comic.  "Oh, he *IS* that comic who did
the Chiro-gyro!" I thought.  "And I don't even like prop comedy!"  (Don't
sue me!  I like Joel's stuff now!  Really!  Only for the artistic value,
though, I'm afraid.  I *STILL* don't like prop comedy.)

I finally sent a letter to the group and became a member of the fan club.

I had also been introduced to the Internet in March, about the same time
I saw the Turkey Day tapes, and then newsgroups sometime in May (that's
when we got a newsreader program at our site).  Then I visited the studio,
then I wrote more letters, then I went to the ALIVE! show, then Harry
met Sally, and then I went into vapor lock!  }B-D

So--what did you do for your summer vacation?


                                 Lisa Jenkins
                         1603 Thirteenth Street South
                        Moorhead, Minnesota 56560-3734
                                     *-*-*
                        jenkins@mhd1.moorhead.msus.edu
                                     *-*-*
  The usual .signature has been deleted because of copyright infringement....

Newsgroups: alt.tv.mst3k