Show 99: The One With The Arizonian

Hi

Welcome to our March show and, I’ll warn you now it’s another long one …

The reason why it’s so long is the delightful chat with Denise Gary from Kids Need to Read and Cindy, the organizer of 2013′s Browncoat Ball to talk about the official Nathan Fillion birthday fundraiser and what’s the latest with the Browncoat Ball and we discuss some finer points of English grammar to boot!  If you still have yet to show your support for both cause (Kids Need to Read) and event (the Browncoat Ball), you can visit the KNTR website, here, where you can follow the banner to show your support to The Captain and the Browncoat Ball website, here.

Wendy was also lucky enough to attend the performance of “Much Ado About Nothing” at the Jameson Dublin Film Festival earlier this month and she gives her verdict (psst: it’s a thumbs up!)

Hope you join us again in April – the one where we officially hit three figures …

As always, we hope you will enjoy the show and if you do, you can leave comments here or on our Facebook page or Twitter.

You can find our podcast on itunes, here is a direct link to our page.

If you use iTunes as your podcatcher, please leave us a review.

Of course you can also download the show directly from here!

Odile and Wendy

Show 98: The One Where We Chew The Cud (Again!)

Welcome to the February show!

After such a bumper January, Odile and I just decided to ease back and catch up on news from around the fandom and have a little rant …

So where to start?!  These notes are not likely to follow the show order (you have been warned):

The Browncoat Ball – for all their ticketing details, please go to their website, www.browncoatball.com

Mikey Mason tour details: www.mikeymason.com and you can download a track or two and watch videos.

Marian Call: www.mariancall.com and follow the link on the home page to purchase the “Something Fierce” live album.

For ALL information about Can’t Stop The Serenity including where the events are and how you can become involved, go to their website, www.cantstoptheserenity.com

Details of how to celebrate Nathan Fillion’s birthday next month by donating to Kids Need To Read, please go to their website, www.kidsneedtoread.org, and follow the banner links.  Go on, show the Captain some fan love, you know you want to …

I’d post website links for both the Jameson Dublin Film Festival and Glasgow Film Festival, but the screenings for “Much Ado About Nothing” are sold out – sorry!

You can hear Odile on the lastest episodes of  The Shonky Lab and Highway To Mars podcasts on iTunes OR their websites are www.shonkylab.co.uk and www.highwaytomars.com.  And you can also download the latest The Question Podcast asking “what is a real fan?” from iTunes or their website, www.thequestionpodcast.com

Join us for our March show in … um … March.

Wendy

As always, we hope you will enjoy the show and if you do, you can leave comments here or on our Facebook page or Twitter.

You can find our podcast on itunes, here is a direct link to our page.

If you use iTunes as your podcatcher, please leave us a review.

Of course you can also download the show directly from here!

Odile

“Double Zebra: Of Zen and Zombies” fundraising for Kids Need To Read

Odile and I wish you all a very Happy New 2013 and here’s hoping for lots of “Firefly” and “SERENITY” shiny goodness in the coming months!

To kick off, author Allison Bonde has kindly agreed to donate 50% of royalties for her new book, “Double Zebra: Of Zen and Zombies” in support of Kids Need To Read, please read her message below:

Greetings.

I am contacting aficionados of Nathan Fillion for their kind assistance.

 

I have co-ordinated with KNTR to donate 50% of the royalties from sales of the book “Double Zebra: Of Zen and Zombies”.  Kids Need To Read tweeted about this on their Twitter feed on December 5th and 6th, 2012, and again on December 12th.

 

  https://twitter.com/kidsneedtoread 

 

In the interest of raising as much money as possible for Mr. Fillion’s and Mr. Haarsma’s charity, I am asking for your generous help in promoting the book on your website.  Please join KNTR, the sites below, and me in our efforts.  

http://castletv.net/nathan-fillion-fundraiser/

http://castle-fans.org/category/double-zebra-of-zen-and-zombies/

http://nathan-fillion.blogspot.com/

 

The synopsis of the book is as follows:

 

“Handsomely rugged Ethan Florian is the talented star of movies and television who is in the heart of the Black Hills of South Dakota to shoot an Independent film. Problems curse the production, and the actor’s health and safety are repeatedly put in jeopardy. Circumstance teams him with local Paramedic Sofie Toft and together they endure humorous encounters with bikers, felons, and their own Zombie Apocalypse.”

 

More excerpts, and the first two chapters, may be read at the Amazon website below.  The book is available internationally.

 

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008L46RVI

 

A full half of all royalties for sales between 12/01/12 and 12/31/13 are being donated to Kids Need To Read, the charity founded and promoted by Nathan Fillion and PJ Haarsma.  Even in the book, “Ethan Florian” advocates reading as the best precursor to success in a casual conversations.  It is a cause dear to many of us.

 

There are a great many asides and references that avid fans of the Captain will understand, but not the general public.  The story stands alone, but has added depth to Browncoats.

 

The book is the first of a trilogy, and subsequent books will also donate 50% of royalties for 13 months.  I take my support of KNTR seriously.  Book 2, Serenity Falls, is due in the summer of 2013.

 

If you wish to include more trivia, I will tell you that the book was a way to fulfill a vow to my own 8 year old daughter, who passed away early Christmas morning of 2007.  Every person who reads this book is counted as a victory in keeping my word. While the comedic tale involving the main characters is obviously fiction, the flashbacks regarding the Paramedic’s child are based on reality.  

Thank you for your time and support of a worthy cause.  Wishing you a shiny day.

 

Sincerely,

Allison Bonde

author – Double Zebra: Of Zen and Zombies

http://www.doublezebraofzenandzombies.com/

 

You can purchase here on the amazon.co.uk website; I’ve just downloaded for my iPad and I’m looking forward to reading.  Thanks to Allison for such a wonderful gesture to a fabulous cause!

Wendy

Show 95: The One With the Musicians and the Ball

Hello from a cold and damp November Blighty!

Odile and I have a packed November show for you!

This month we both bring interviews: Wendy speaks with Cindy from the Arizona Browncoats about their successful bid for the 2013 Browncoat Ball; while Odile caught up with Marian Call and Scott Barken during Marian’s first European tour.

Also in the show, we add our voice to the search for a new CSTS Global Event Co-ordinator; please read the email below from Jen Cummings regarding this:

Hi there!

This year’s call for volunteers to head up and join the Can’t Stop the Serenity (CSTS) Global Team has resulted in only a few responses.  Which means that CSTS 2013 is at risk of not having a team to organise things from a global level.  As a past/present CSTS Organizer, we desperately need your help to make sure that CSTS can continue to be viable as a fan-run charity movement.

There are lots of ways you can help, but the most important is to help us to find volunteers to nominate for the role of Global Event Coordinator (GEC).  It’s a big job, there’s no denying.  But the person who takes on the job gets a lot of support, and is never left to struggle on their own. There are lots of people to go to for advice, guidance and help, and a lot of the hard work (based on lessons learned from our seven year history) has been done to lay down a good foundation.  The only downside is that the GEC can’t head up a local event (because the role is a lot of work, and we want to make sure sanity is retained!).

“If not you, then who?” We really need someone to step up and be willing to help lead CSTS in 2013.  To keep CSTS 2013 on track, we need to have the global team in place by early December.  So please think about it for yourself, talk to your team and to other Browncoats who have headed up events.  And let us know. 

I’m emailing this call for help to as many CSTS organizers, and past Global Team members as I can track down.  But some of the email addresses are old and out of date, so you if can help us spread the word to past and present CSTS organizers please do.

We have about 3 weeks max to find us a GEC and a full team complement.  All the details about the role of the GEC and other team positions are on the website under the “About” section.  Here’s the link: http://www.cantstoptheserenity.com/about/global-team/roles/. Details about how to apply for a role are here: http://www.cantstoptheserenity.com/2012/09/30/nominations-are-now-open-to-join-the-2013-global-team/

Jen Cummings

Global Steering Committee Chair
Can’t Stop the Serenity
www.cantstoptheserenity.com

Whedonverse Inspired Charity Events

As we say in the show, if you are interested in nominating yourself OR you know someone who would be PERFECT, then you only have until the end of November to contact CSTS.

Wendy talks about attending the Dallas Comic Con in October; Odile talks about seeing Marian’s brunch concert in Birmingham and if you are so inclined, Nathan Fillion has been nominated for a second consecutive year for a People’s Choice Award in the Best TV Dramatic Actor category and as we’re certain his last one would very much enjoy a companion, you can vote for him here in the TV category.

As always, we hope you will enjoy the show and if you do, you can leave comments here or on our Facebook page or Twitter.

You can find our podcast on itunes, here is a direct link to our page.

If you use iTunes as your podcatcher, please leave us a review.

Of course you can also download the show directly from here!

Wendy and Odile

Kids Need To Read – “Makes A Big Splash”

Because kids really do need to read …

A “thank you” from Kids Need To Read

To echo another universe, So Say We All:

Wendy

“Chuck” season 4 has a new UK home and the “Haarsma-thon”

The season 4 of “Chuck” starts in the UK on 14 October and moves to a new UK channel – Living.  As part of series 4, not only can we expect Linda Hamilton making an appearance as Chuck and Ellie’s mum, also Timothy Dalton is believed to be playing a character connected to Mama Bertowski.  But, of course, the best news for us Browncoats is that Summer Glau will be appearing in an episode.  Personally, I can’t wait.  I know that series 3 hasn’t been without it’s fan controversy, but I have really enjoyed it, but we could always do with more Morgan and Jeffster.

Our friends at Kids Need To Read have announced their inaugural “Haarsma-thon” in conjunction with GoDaddy.com for 6 November 2010.  What’s a “Haarsma-thon”?  Well, KNTR co-founder, P J Haarsma, will be hiking with fellow authors at the Usery Mountain Regional Park (3939 North Usery Pass Road, Mesa AZ 85207) on 6 November.  Full details (and how to sponsor PJ – seriously mate, rather you than me!) can be found here.  Also along for the day will be members of KNTR and authors Stephen Riley and Janette Rallison amongst others.  Sounds like a lot of fun, unfortunately – actually FORTUNATELY! – distance excludes our involvement or I know that Denise would have been trying to get us to attend as well!

This post wouldn’t be right without a mention of two entertainment greats that passed away this week: Tony Curtis and Stephen J Cannell.  I always enjoyed Curtis’s work and have quite a soft spot for “Trapeze” with Burt Lancaster and Gina Lollobridgida, “Spartacus”, “Some Like It Hot”, “Sweet Smell of Success” (again with Lancaster) and “The Persueders” with Roger Moore (I do think that IF any producer thought of resurrecting that show, Nathan Fillion would make quite a perfect Danny Wilde); if you have never read his autobiography, please do.  Those of us who were watching US shows of the 70′s couldn’t fail to miss a Stephen J Cannell production.  ”The Rockford Files” was a favourite of mine and how we just loved it when a plan came together in “The A-Team”; not all of his shows were screened in the UK, but even in the somewhat technology-challenged 80′s, but there were ways and means …

Sending A Wave send our condolences to the families of Eddie Fisher, Tony Curtis and Stephen J Cannell.

Wendy

Wow, er, yeah, been a while …

Yes – it has been a while, so moving on …

As many of you know, I was in the the US in November attending Creation Entertainment’s “Salute to Firefly and Serenity” event.  It was fabulous to catch up with our friends from the SoCal Browncoats, Austin Browncoats, QMx, KNTR and “Browncoats: Redemption”.  I can assure you that there was much conversation and merry-making.

The day I returned to the UK, it was the Starfury event, “Cylon Attack” at Heathrow (how handy!) which included Morena Baccarin, Jonathan Woodward and Sean Maher (returning to the UK after an absence of 3 years!) as guests.  Odile also attended “Cylon Attack”, she and I recorded our next two forthcoming shows there and I’m going to write about both conventions in a separate entry.

I know that this is late news, but the Producers Guild of America announced in late November that Joss Whedon is the latest recipient of their Vanguard Award.  This award recognizes achievements in new media and technology and will be presented at the Guild’s annual awards ceremony on 24 January 2010.  Joss is in more than excellent company with this award as past recipients include George Lucas, James Cameron and John Lasseter to name just three.

Also in November, we were contacted by a new listener, Michael Hudson, who told us about a new audio drama called “Miranda: A Survivor’s Story”.  Unfortunately, since coming back from the US, I’ve been so busy I haven’t had an opportunity to listen to it yet, but as I have been very overdue in sharing this, please go to their website here to listen.

Prior to the conventions, Martin Firrell exhibited his long-awaited “H E R O” which featured Nathan Fillion in early November.  For all who couldn’t travel to London to see it, Martin has posted two pieces on YouTube (here and here).  The work was exhibited at the Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks in central London and was made more poignant that particular week due to the deaths of British serviceman, one of whom was stationed at the barracks.

Lastly and I make no apologies for this being completely un-”Firefly/SERENITY” related – there is going to be a feature film of classic British SF TV series, “UFO”.  For those of you not in the know, “UFO” was the first live-action TV series from legendary producer, Gerry Anderson (“Thunderbirds”, “Joe 90″ and “Captain Scarlet” puppet shows).  I’m going to unfurl my flag – I am an unashamed “UFO” fan!  I love this show AND was the subject of my very first 2-page “what I did at the weekend” essay when I was 6, so as you can understand that I have a particular interest in this project.  The film is to be directed by Matthew Gratzner and written by Ryan Gaudet and Joseph Kanarek.  It has already been announced that Joshua Jackson has been cast as “Paul Foster” and recent news has Ali Larter in talks for “Virginia Lake” (you want strong female SF characters?  Start watching “UFO”!); no news on casting the lead character, “Ed Straker”.  As always, unfortunately when non-Brits deal with quintessential British TV, one can’t help but feel apprehensive, but it’s happening and we’ll judge when it’s ready.  If this interests you, there’s an interview with Matthew Gratzner here.

Wendy

Dragon*Con 2009 and news, NEws, NEWS

To paraphrase the late, great Douglas Adams, “Dragon*Con is big.  I mean really big.” In fact the only thing that is missing is a towel and I do think the organizers should consider putting “don’t panic” in large, friendly letters on their pocket guide.

I had such a fabulous time.  My thanks to the crew of The Signal who kindly allowed me to join them for their live show, Andy and the QMx team, PJ Haarsma, Denise Gary and assorted KNTR peeps, the tour-de-force that is Mike Dougherty and the cast and crew of “Browncoats: Redemption”, the Austin Browncoats and for all the Browncoats who wore a costume or t-shirt declaring that our show may be gone, but it isn’t forgotten.

The first piece of news that I want to mention is quite important.  Many of you have (I’m hoping) been wondering what has been happening with London artist, Martin Firrell’s “Hero” project featuring Nathan Fillion.  Well, quite a lot actually; while Nathan was in London appearing at Collectormania 15 in June, he also did some pick ups with Martin for the piece and there have been additions of authors and serving members of the Queen’s Guards.  The website has been rejuvenated and once more we are being encouraged to help shape the piece by adding to the blog.  Please, go and have a look.

I know that the following is “old” news buuuut, what the heck?  Summer Glau is moving into the “Dollhouse” for the forthcoming season along with Alexis Denisof. Former BSG alumn, Jamie Bamber is featured as a client in one of the early episodes.

Alan Tudyk’s “High Poon” short of “James Gunn’s PG Porn” series is still available on spike.com.  I, personally, have found this series to be very funny with “Helpful Bus” being particularly hilarious.

Gina Torres will be appearing on next season’s “Gossip Girl” as “Vanessa’s mother”.  Let me be completely honest, I have no idea of the significance as I never watch the show, but I do know it’s popular.

As part of the NYC tub-thumping for the near imminent second season of “Castle”, Nathan Fillion will be making an appearance at the NYC Apple Store in SoHo on 18 September where I’m sure many people will be learning about iPhone apps they never dreamed existed.  During the hiatus months, ABC commissioned an actual “Nikki Heat” novel which will also be published in the US shortly and if you are interested the first 3 chapters are available on their website as part of their “Castle” microsite.  I’m not a huge fan of the murder-mystery genre, but I did quite like what I read.  The last time I perused Amazon.co.uk, I’m fairly certain I saw that “Heat Wave” is to be published here in Blighty in January, so maybe that means we finally get to see the show officially at last?

Staying on the Fillion slant; Kids Need To Read have their 2010 calendars for sale on eBay.  Go, support – we all need a calendar.

Neatly segueing but still staying with fundraising: “Browncoats: Redemption”.  Mike and the crew had a panel as part of D*C’s Whedon Track  which was so well attended that about 50 people couldn’t get in.  The teaser trailer was screened twice to much enthusiasm from everyone present.

Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter – search for sending a wave.

“Chuck” 3D!

This week, the 3D episode of “Chuck” is aired in Blighty.  If you haven’t already got your free glasses from Virgin 1, they are also available attached to the current issue of TV and Satellite Weekly.  You’ve got all of Monday to get yours!  Don’t forget “Chuck” fans, monitoring glasses requests and magazine sales could be another way that Warner is measuring overseas audience numbers for the show; as Tesco are more than fond of telling us, “every little helps” …

As a Will Riker fan (yes, there really does have to be one …), I was more than

pleased with the news that Jonathan Frakes has directed an episode of the second series of “Dollhouse”.  Personally, I hope it isn’t just the one as I do think the episodes he directed on “Star Trek: TNG” were amongst the best of the entire series, I think it’s a given that “STAR TREK – FIRST CONTACT” is the best of the “TNG” films and arguably the second best of the entire 11 films to date.  I also didn’t think “THUNDERBIRDS” was that bad (best if you were under 10) once you closed your ears to the stupid voiceover at the beginning (Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner: Brits know all about Thunderbirds, most of us grew up watching it – we didn’t need a voice over).   Thanks to Shawna Trpcic for posting the photo of Mr Frakes with Miracle Laurie on her Twitter.

Lastly, KNTR has another eBay auction happening right now.  In March, Nathan Fillion made an appearance on “The Jimmy Kimmel Show” and was shown a fan made Captain Hammer figure.  The creator has now made 4 sets; but this is the only set being auctioned off to fans, is the only one with Penny and this Captain Hammer has been signed by Nathan.  The top bid currently stands at $610 and you have 1 day and about 8 hours before the close (at the time of typing this post), so if you want to have your chance at owning what really is a virtual one-off, please go here and good luck.