HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: lksmith@truth.uucp (Smith)
Subject:  Chris
Organization: The MITRE Corp., Bedford, Ma.
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 11 Sep 1992 15:46:13 GMT


I am definitely on the "keep Chris" side.  He's essential!  While 
Joel's the outsider who provides a counterpoint of "normality" (by 
some definitions :-) ) to the ongoing delightful weirdness of the 
Cicelians, Chris is the Greek chorus who comments on the human 
condition as portrayed by life in Cicely.  Each week we see a group 
of examples of a particular theme -- relationships (mother/daughter,
male/female), rebirth, identity, community.  All the plotlines and 
details are variations on and elaborations of the current theme. 
With his literary quotations and philosophical ramblings, Chris 
draws together the disparate threads of the theme's expressions 
and weaves them into the whole fabric of the town's story -- complete 
with appropriate music.  My own background in music leads me to
compare the series as a whole to a song cycle, in which each song
may focus on a different subject, but the entire cycle has an
overarching theme that each song expresses.

This morning it occurred to me that Chris's character has a bit
in common with the autistic boy in St. Elsewhere.  (I saw _only_ 
the last episode of St. E., believe it or not, and despite knowing
next to nothing about the characters or storylines, I was totally 
blown away by that ending.)   The world of NX isn't entirely in
Chris's mind, by any means (as far as we know! and besides, I want
it to be "real" because I want to _live_ there :-) ), but it's his
viewpoint that is the voice of the show's creators for us as well
as for his KBear listeners.  Another variation on another theme.

This newsgroup is definitely timely...it's still rerun season and
alt.tv.NX is getting even more traffic than the Trek groups.  It's
great when TV does it right once in a while.

Linda
lksmith@truth.mitre.org
Organization: Freshman, MCS general, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Date: Fri, 11 Sep 1992 15:11:26 -0400 
From: Joel Walter Feldmeier <jf47+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Complaints

Listen,
I'm new to bboards, and being an avid fan of both Star Trek and Northern
Exposure I have greatly enjoyed reading the bboards on the two shows.
However, I  sometimes feel that people are whining or being
unreasonable. Specifically I am referring to posts that ask "why isn't
this being done," or "I'd like to see this happen." Come on folks, while
I know that calling TV an art form may be stretching it in some people's
eyes, your favorite sitcom is not a "choose your own adventure" book. 
People criticize painters and authors, but they usually leave them alone
to do their own thing, not sending in specific suggestions on what they
want to see next. So just a suggestion, watch the show and the parts you
like you like, and the parts you don't chalk up to either differences in
opinion or incompetence on the part of the producers.
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: ptrei@bistromath.mitre.org (Peter Trei)
Subject: Re: what was opera music in episode with thefts?
Organization: The MITRE Corporation
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 00:58:23 GMT

In article <18iv0bINNsh0@cs.utexas.edu> russw@cs.utexas.edu (Russ Williams) writes:
>It's been a long time since I saw the episode, but I believe it was
>the one with people's stuff getting stolen.  In the last quarter of
>it there was a scene at the radio station late at night with Chris
>playing some operatic music with a beautiful soprano... anyone
>remember this or know what the music was?

     They've done a lot of opera and showtunes, but the one I remember
is "Pretty Lady" from Stephen Sondheim's "Pacific Overtures". Not sure
if this is the one you mean.

						Peter Trei
						ptrei@mitre.org
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: puckett@lambda.msfc.nasa.gov (Jim Puckett)
Subject: Re: A weird theory
Organization: NASA/MSFC
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1992 13:38:09 GMT

afalcone@oak.math.ucla.edu (Anthony Falcone) writes:


>To all NE fans,

>This is a great idea for a Newsgroup...

yep. been looking for it!

A year ago October, my boss asked me if I watched this show. I explained
(rather self-righteously 8) that I never watched tv. He told me to go
home and watch it.

>Now, the weird theory: I think NE is the grandchild of "Green Acres".
>I can just hear the guffaws as you read this, but I am serious: Joel is
>the spiritual child of Eddy Albert's character, Oliver Douglas, and
>Cicely is the Hooterville of the Arctic Circle.  The premise is pretty
>similar (except that Douglas willingly moved to the country, while
>Joel is there, ostensibly, against his will): one man represents the
>rational, while all around him people do the strangest things, which
>he believes absurd.  However, in the end, more often than not there
>are reasons for the way people behave that make sense in the context
>of their lives.

...and this is _exactly_ what I told him the next day!

>Finally, I really liked last season's final episode (the historical
>flashback).  I didn't see "Fried Green Tomatoes", so I can't comment
>on any resemblences, but I felt it was a fitting way to end the

just saw 'Fried Green Tomatoes', and kept waiting for the two women
to become lovers. Understand they do, in the book..

>season.  In fact, the only episode that's ever disappointed me was the
>one where Maurice was going to fight the duel, and they all of a
>sudden stepped out of characters to talk about what kind of show they
>were doing.  This was just too "Moonlighting"-esque for me; it seemed

Never watched 'Moonlighting', so can't comment on that - but just saw
this episode last night, and _loved_ it! Tingle, tingle...8-)


Good morning, Cicely!
jim p.
-- 
Jim Puckett    NTI    puckett@freedom.msfc.nasa.gov     
Huntsville,AL (205)461-4922  
This life is a test. It is only a test. If it had been a real life, you 
would have been given instructions....
From: miner@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: Somebody DID look at the camera (?)
Date: 9 Sep 92 16:40:43 CDT
Organization: University of Kansas Academic Computing Services

Re: Steppin' Out of Character

Way, way back on this thread (so far my newsreader can't check it)
somebody said that in that scene getting ready for the duel where they
step out of character, *nobody looked at the camera*.  

I'm ninety-nine percent sure somebody *did* look briefly at the camera
(I think it was Maggie) -- anyone agree?  Or wants to check? 

I remember thinking: "Aha, the director didn't tell them exactly how
to play it..."
********************************** +.............................+
*- Ken <miner@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>* :All opinions expressed herein:
*There is no privileged position.* :are my own and are not to be :
*	-God, Derrida, others    * : attributed to my employer   :
********************************** +.............................+
From: bole@hmivax.humgen.upenn.edu (Greg Bole)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: Re: Reasons for fandom
Date: 10 Sep 92 17:56:07 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: HHMI/Human Genetics, Univ of Pa.

In article <1992Sep09.180717.6528@microsoft.com>, alexho@microsoft.com 
(Alex Howerton) writes:

> At first his new-age musings drove me nuts, because I was like that in 
> college; I've been there done that, and got the T-shirt.  But now I see 
> him as a mirror of my part of a psyche that is intellectually immature, but 
> still tries to impress people with what I think I know.  

Woooooooaaaahhhh!  Chris is intellectually immature, and is just trying to 
impress people with his musings?  I really have to say I think you've missed
this character by a long shot.  (But actually who am I to say?  Characters
can of course mean different things to different people)

I think Chris is right on the ball.  I think he learns and thinks for the act
itself.  He certainly wasn't reading and learning all that stuff in prison
to impress his fellow inmates!  (Why was he in prison anyway?)  He is a true
intellectual, he's not in the academic world where many people lose their 
reasons for learning.  (Ie. prestige and power struggles are far too common)

I think he would muse on the air even if no one listened.  (Of course Maurice
wouldn't be too happy)  And I think all of his words come striaght from his 
inner self, which he sees as on a constant voyage of exploring the inner psyche 
and learning more about the world around us...

And for those that said John Corbett seems to be just "playing himself",
I would agree and disagree.  John shares alot of the character's past (He
did grow up in Wheeling, and didn't finish college) but he has a hard time
understanding most of his lines.  And is not as nearly well read as Chris.
He once had to ask Barry Corbin how to pronounce Neitzche!

Greg Bole                               "Are you coming?  Yeah, well see the 
bole@hmivax.humgen.upenn.edu             train moves, not the platform."
                                       John Lovitz in _A Leauge of Their Own_
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: emcphers@mik.uky.edu (Frank McPherson)
Subject: Re: Best Relationships/Characters/Episodes
Organization: University Of Kentucky, Dept. of Math Sciences
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1992 23:29:52 GMT

In <1992Sep10.182806.20781@samba.oit.unc.edu> Ronald.Bollschweiler@bbs.oit.unc.edu (Ronald Bollschweiler) writes:

>(This would solve any contract disputes with Rob Morrow)  Maurice would need
>to purchase another Doctor and the show would go on.  Although I like Joel,
>I would not stop watching the show if he leaves.  He will be leaving
>after his time is up anyway.  Without Joel the show would probably not
>have been a hit.  But now that we have been introduced to the residents
>of Cicely AK, they can hold up the show on thier own.  
	I disagree that the residents of Cicely can hold up a show on 
their own.  While they are all interesting people, large amounts of depth
would go away if they were to lose the outside viewpoint of Joel.  If,
as you suggest, Maurice buys another doctor for that outside viewpoint, 
I'm afraid it would start to seem stale and already-done.  My favorite 
part of Northern Exposure is the differences between the perspectives of
the characters, and how all of their perspectives sort of meld to form
a bizarre reality.  Again, that just wouldn't be possible without the 
outsider perspective.  It could be argued that Joel is no longer truly 
an outsider, but he's definitely not yet a native.  The Larry Coe episode, 
for example.  Joel was all excited about finding Larry Coe, and everyone
else would have been just as happy if they'd never learned his identity.
New York attitude vs. Cicely, Alaska attitude.....



--
- Frank McPherson                emcphers@manu.cs.vt.edu
From: jen@savanna.Berkeley.EDU (Jennifer L. Corkill)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: Re: Maggie/Joel Question
Date: 15 Sep 1992 00:35:59 GMT
Organization: University of California at Berkeley
Distribution: usa
NNTP-Posting-Host: savanna.berkeley.edu

In article <1992Sep14.185444.3222@athena.mit.edu> rpearl@athena.mit.edu (Rachel A Pearl) writes:
>Okay, I can't stand it anymore either. I've been following the discussion
>concerning the question of whether or not the treatment of Maggie and Joel's
>trip to Juneau was flippantly portrayed and irresponsible to the subject of
>date rape etc... though I am very sensitive to this subject and  basically see
>sexual abuse every where I look in the media of the 90's for some reason this 
>show didn't effect me that way in the slightest.
>
>   (discussion deleted)
>
>All in all, I don't think anyone was asking for anything like sexual abuse, 
>date rape, or sex of any type against anyone's will. They just wanted to feel 
>wanted and didn't know how to ask for it outright. Such are the insecue mind 
>games people play on one another when self esteem levels reach the basement.
>
>Thanks for indulging me.
>
>RAP

I understand Maggie's desire to have Joel go more than halfway in Juneau
(i.e. waking her up more forcibly), but with no more encouragement than a
half-conscious invitation into Maggie's bedroom that night I think that
Joel was justified in stopping where he did.  Knowing how tired Maggie was
and that her invitation might've been due to her sleep-deprived stupour, he
did what any man with a less than out-of-control ego would do (o.k., so Joel
doesn't fit that category, but let's give him a little extra credit here).  

As for his behavior the morning after, I think that's already been discussed
to death.

BUT, you suggest that since people "just want to feel wanted and don't
know how to ask for it outright" that other people should read between the lines.
(I hope I haven't misread your post...)  I think that when the mind games
get to the level of things that can be considered date rape if the reader
is misreading clues, you have to do what Joel did and turn away until the
clues are more clear.  IMHO if the games consider that far, then it's time
to stop.


-- 

Jen Corkill			jen@savanna.berkeley.edu
U.C. Berkeley
pashosh.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il
 eitan
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: reasons for fandom
From: eitan@pashosh.wisdom.weizmann.ac.il (Shternbaum Eitan)
Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1992 07:44:51 GMT
Organization: Weizmann Institute of Science, Computation Center

one simple reason, I'm in love, (*sigh*) .
her name is Maragaret O'connel ... :-)

Eitan Shterenbaum

Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: sallylb@netcom.com (Sally Smith)
Subject: Re: Subplots, subplots...
Date: Tue, 08 Sep 92 23:40:28 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 

In article <1992Sep8.175452.42854@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> miner@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:

>Practically *every* series show now has a bunch of unrelated subplots.
>It seems like the writers want to make sure, if one of the threads
>doesn't grab you, one of the others will.  I kind of bugs me, that
>they can't write one whole plot anymore...

Well, in the case of NX, I think maybe that's the point. I mean, the last
time I checked, *LIFE* was a bunch of unrelated subplots. And NX usually
manages to tie them together, even if it's only by Chris' pondering on
the radio.

Just IMHO of course.
Sally
-- 
Sally Smith (510)790-0608  sallylb@netcom.com (I was sally@tardis.tymnet.com)
I'm unemployed--these opinions *must* be mine!
"Don't investigate this too closely." -- Don Bellisario, re: "Quantum Leap"
From: mwp@ms9.mis.semi.harris.com (Mark W. Poole)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: Re: Best Episode
Date: 8 Sep 92 18:21:42 GMT
Organization: Harris Semiconductor, Melbourne FL


I just gotta give my two cents.

My favorite has to be the one that uses juxtaposition (sp?)
with Maurice and Holling and the "Call of the Wild".  Simply
excellent.  Second place goes to the "piano catapault". I'm
ready to build one.

and on the other side of the coin....

The "Twin-Brother" thing with Chris just doesn't make it for
me...I hate it.  The only thing I've liked about any of those 
episodes was:   

	"Toy cows in Africa, Toy cows..."

My wife and I sang that song for days after seeing the episode.

Is it a real song?  Who did it?

Mark.
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: alix@indetech.com (Alexandria North)
Subject: Re: Best Episode
Keywords: life, flinging, cow, piano 
Organization: Independence Technologies, Inc. Fremont, CA
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1992 19:03:11 GMT

In article <Bu8vBu.Fqv@news.udel.edu> you write:
>Hey All,
>	My hands-down favorite is the one in which Chris, in a fit
>of existential weirdness familiar to us all (!?), flung a piano with
>a homemade catapult.  Originally he'd planned to fling a cow (poor
>cow), but was disheartened when he found out that Monty Python did
>it first (thank-you Ed :) ).  Two things about this episode stick
>in my mind:
>
 [Stuff deleted for space.]

>	The important message here is that _everyone_ has a need to
>express themselves in some way.  NX dared to show a scenario where
>someone was supported in there effort, rather than being derided for
>wanting to do something totally weird.  Cool.  Too bad it's TV and
>not real life.

I have no problem with someone doing something entirely weird, but 
the idea that he originally wanted to fling a living creature (resulting 
in death) for fun is disgusting, and because of that, I found this 
episode repulsing.

>	One more thing (all philosophy aside):  I *loved* watching
>that piano fly!  How often do you see something like that, even on
>cable?

I've stated my objections in another post, but I have to share that, 
while watching the piano fly, I couldn't help but picture a cow in 
the same place, and felt deeply sickened. If it had been an inanimate 
object planned from the beginning, I would have had no problem.

-- 
-----------------------------------------------------------
"Babies, babies, babies. Why did God make so many babies?
 But no, God didn't make them. Stupid people made them."
      -- Margaret Mitchell, Gone With The Wind
From: brennan@hal.com (Dave Brennan)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: NE theme sound file
Date: 09 Sep 92 03:49:53 GMT
Organization: HaL Computer Systems, Austin, TX
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: yosemite.hal.com

I've dropped off a copy of the NE theme I pulled off the net a while ago in
ftp.uu.net:/tmp/ne.au.  The file is in Sun audio format.

Enjoy!


--
Dave Brennan                                      HaL Computer Systems
brennan@hal.com                                         (512) 794-2855

Visit the Emacs Lisp Archive: archive.cis.ohio-state.edu:pub/gnu/emacs
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: dianem@boi.hp.com (Diane Mathews)
Subject: Season premier
Summary: when?
Organization: Hewlett-Packard
Distribution: usa
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 19:48:39 GMT

When is the season premier?
From: russw@cs.utexas.edu (Russ Williams)
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
Subject: Re: Where are the children??
Date: 10 Sep 1992 19:10:28 -0500
Organization: Great Northern Hotel
NNTP-Posting-Host: cs.utexas.edu

Sure I noticed long ago there aren't kids on NE, and I was perfectly
happy about it.  It's refreshing.

In any case, I think it safe to assume that the writers have no interest
in featuring kids, for whatever reason, and so it would be a mistake to
introduce children on the show just because some of the viewers want
them for completeness or whatever.  If kids ever appear, I hope it is
because the writers want them to, not because of pressure to be more
like other shows.

R
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: dslee@netcom.com (Donna S. Lee)
Subject: Re: Joel/Maggie question
Date: Wed, 09 Sep 92 17:56:21 GMT
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 

I can't imagine that I would have acted quite the way Maggie did
at discovering Joel and she didn't "do it," but at the same time
I don't think the issue of date rape is quite as pertinent here
as some have made it out to be. What was key to me is that Maggie
said at the time (right before she fell asleep) that she wanted
to have sex with Joel. That's enough for rape to be a non-issue
in my mind at least. She brought up the matter of her consent
after, during her confrontation with Joel, as well. She did say
she wanted to do it, and then accepted the responsibility for
having given assent by assuming they had had sex, and even
though she didn't remember the big event, not complaining.


-- 
 Donna S. Lee // EC Technology // dslee@netcom.com
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: walker@eplrx7.es.duPont.com (Scott Walker)
Subject: Re: "Cicely" and the Future
Organization: DuPont Central Research & Development
Date: Tue, 15 Sep 1992 14:02:32 GMT

In article <1992Sep15.124255.1793@eplrx7.es.duPont.com> walker@eplrx7.es.duPont.com (Scott Walker) writes:
>I'm sure no one has missed this, but don't you get the strong feeling after
>the last few well-done minutes of "Cicely", that Joel may not be so longing
>to leave the town anymore?  And something else which I would like to hear
>the net.opinion on...  
>    At the end, when Joel is sitting in the Brick hearing the sounds of 
>that far away year, his last thought is what Ned said, something like
>"One person can make a difference, but two people..., well two people can
>change the world".  Who are the two people?  I could understand if Ned
>had said that "One person could change the world"; it would be easy to see
>that person as being Joel.  But Ned specifies 2 people.  Is he speaking
>figuratively here?  Like he meant that any more than one can change the 
>world, meaning everyone in Cicely?  I couldn't help but think that there is
>more to that than it seems, and being the last image from this season makes
>it even more significant.
>     What a teriffic episode.  Was it by chance nominated for a costume Emmy?
>
>I, for one, would save the cat, since OJ and Socks would kill me if I said
>otherwise!  :-)
>
>******************************************************
>Scott C. Walker
>walkersc@esvax.dnet.dupont.com
>
Let me clarify myself by saying that I am looking at this in a "futuristic"
kind of way.  The two people Ned refers too are obviously Rosalyn and
Cicely, but the way they show it at the end, it looks like Joel is applying
this wisdom to Cicely and his own life.  Therefore, I wondered what it
would mean for the upcoming season.

Scott


Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: bricker@cs.washington.edu (Lauren Bricker)
Subject: Help: Song question
Summary: The Final Frontier
Organization: Computer Science & Engineering, U. of Washington, Seattle
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 92 20:01:10 GMT


I really would like to find out the name (and the singer) of the song at the
end of "The Final Frontier."  This is the episode where Jesse is found dead and
Holling goes off to find him in Widowmaker cave.  The song in question is
played at the end of the show when Holling is burying Jesse on a hilltop.

Thanks in advance
Lauren

-- 
Lauren Bricker                     |  Patience is a virtue, seersucker is a
bricker@cs.washington.edu          |  fabric.  -- Bazooka Joe fortune
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: junck@okra.fnal.gov (Kevin Junck)
Subject: Re: Death to Chris, Joel, whoever
Organization: Fermilab, Batavia, IL
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 1992 15:02:22 GMT

In article <10SEP199209454367@zeus.tamu.edu> wkl5819@zeus.tamu.edu (LEVERICH, WILLIAM KENT) writes:

>   If Rob Morrow doesn't get his contract situation straightened out, Joel may
>   become the sixth victim of the Curse of Maggie O'Connell. ...
>
>   Kent Leverich
>   WKL5819@ZEUS.TAMU.EDU

Unfortunately this is a very real possibility.  The Chicago Tribune
mentioned that there will be a new character this fall, a lawyer.
Clearly this is designed to put pressure on Morrow by making him
expendable.  Replacing Joel with a lawyer would be enough to make me
change channels.  I find it refreshing that a group of people can, for
the most part, live together without filing a lawsuit over everything.

--
Kevin L. Junck     a.k.a. Junck@okra.fnal.gov            708-840-8368
Fermi National Accelerator Lab                 Batavia, Illinois, USA
#include <std.disclaimer.h>                 ** HAIL TO THE VICTORS **
-- 
Kevin L. Junck     a.k.a. Junck@okra.fnal.gov            708-840-8368
Fermi National Accelerator Lab                 Batavia, Illinois, USA
#include <std.disclaimer.h>                 ** HAIL TO THE VICTORS **
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp
From: egl1@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu (Elizabeth G. Levy)
Subject: Re: It on during football
Reply-To: egl1@cunixf.cc.columbia.edu (Elizabeth G. Levy)
Organization: Columbia University
Date: Mon, 7 Sep 1992 15:47:52 GMT

In article <7SEP199210443692@rigel.tamu.edu> mpk9716@rigel.tamu.edu (Health Man) writes:
>	I love NE and so does my wife.  But monday night football is still on
>when it airs at 9:00 PM here in Texas.  She wants to watch NE while I like
>football (just a little better).  We record NE on the VCR but seldom get
>time to view it and the tape eventually get erased.  Put this show on
>another night so I can watch real TV and not those silly sit-coms.

Boo!!!  Hiss!!!!  Get out of this newsgroup!!
:-)



--
"I wish I could vote for you a hundred times"
"You can . . . just kidding."
			-- _Bob Roberts_
Newsgroups: alt.tv.northern-exp