And Even Yet Another New Slideshow

[Gothick]

That's a really cool creature.  I don't recall having seen those stills before.

Best,

G.  (off to Florida and the Caribbean for a week--catch y'all later)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Speaking of Frid, is there any truth to the rumor that he was offered a cameo as the old guy that Vicki meets on the train?

Yes, that is true. But as I said at the time, even though Frid respectfully declined the offer, it was no surprise that he did so because he was still in his I-don't-really-want-anything-more-to-do-with-DS-period following the debacle with the MPI's 25th Anniversary tape.

Supposedly the part was also offered to John Karlen. But that may just be rumor - I don't honestly recall. Though we do know that Karlen visited the set. He even took a photo with Matt Czuchry. The photo can probably still be found on collinwood.net.

[Gerard]

I suspect only you-know-who knows why he may do what he does. And I also suspect that he doesn't feel the need to explain himself. And that's perfectly within his rights no matter how much some fans may wish he would do so. And fans who may not like it simply have to accept it because, unfortunately for those fans, that's just the way things are.

That being said though, much of what has happened with regard to forcing the take down of things from YouTube is well within DCP's rights. As has been discussed before in other topics, copyright law isn't all about making money. 

I understand and appreciate everything you said, MB.  You're a brilliant, wonderful person, looking at all angles. 

What I can't figure out is why anything is locked away in some vault?  Letting others see if, even if for free, like on youtube, is not only free for fans and for those who are introduced into fandom, but for the creators as well.  All that publicity and hopeful expansion and at no cost!  Yes, you-know-who-mixed-with-DCP is well within his (and theirs) rights under copyright law to scoure every website to take down anything that would allow people to see stuff for free while maybe, just maybe, there's two or three people out there who would pay for a DVD of it.  One buck is one buck for right now.  And that's how you-know-who-DCP thinks.  Right now.  This minute.  Never mind about bringing in hundreds, if not thousands, of prospective fans who will pay to buy a DVD, or even a ton of DVD's, in the future.  Why would anyone oppose free publicity unless they have something called ana...never mind.

But I must disagree with you, MB, on Warner's being the one who decided to keep the '04 DS pilot locked up in a vault.  Other rejected pilots, including the LIS one, are freely available on the internet, including youtube.  Only the DS one is kept under tight control (along with anything else that's DS).  From circumstantial evidence it would appear that someone else has caused that.  We know who it is.  He knows who it is.  It's you-know-who.  What other explanation can there be?  Yes, it's within his rights.  I'll support that.  But I won't support a, shall we say, "unintelligent" decision on his part to refuse to expand interest and fandom just so he can make sure that not one penny is lost "right now."  Despite all the good things he has done for DCP, maybe it's time for DCP to find someone else to promote its wares rather than this, um, you know, not so intelligent, shall we say, person.  He just grinds me.  We want DS to continue to thrive and expand.  Obviously, he's only thinking of the momentary.  He doesn't realize the momentary is here for a just a moment and then is gone.  There's no getting it back.

Release the '04 DS pilot to the internet for free and let more people find the glory of DS.  But, of course, what do I know?  I'm just a fan.

Gerard

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Well, I don't know about tight control, but the DS pilot isn't the only one that's never surfaced on YouTube. Dozen of pilots are produced every year, yet very, very few of them have ever seen the light of day there. Going by the sheer number of pilots that are produced, the fact that the LIS pilot did is one of the rare exceptions rather than the rule. 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Getting back to the slideshow, Vicki's brief one line encounter with the Old Man after her dream (he simply says to her that bad dreams can't hurt you) segues into the train disappearing into a tunnel and that's the end of the teaser.

The first scene of Act One is somewhat different in the script than it is in the actual pilot, which is why today's graphic for the slideshow indicates that today's quote from the script is part of a "cut, trimmed, or changed sequence."

In the script Vicki waits for her ride on the deserted train station platform.  She calls out, but no one is around. She checks her cell phone signal, but has none, and isn't surprised by that. She then exits the train station to find that all the shops in the vicinity are closed and the street is deserted - and in typical DS fashion, the sound of a wolf howling is soon heard. As she crosses the street, she suddenly hears footsteps close by. She asks if someone is there, but after turning she sees nothing - but someone laughs. After she runs to some pay phones across the street, she accidentally drops her coins - and when she stands after having gotten them, she is jolted to find Willie standing behind her. Before he can speak, she shoves him up against the phones. And that is when she delivers today's quoted line:

Page 05 - Victoria (to a young man): 'Who are you?'

The sequence in the actual pilot also plays with Vicki alone and spooked, but there is no wolf howl and no dialogue of her wondering if someone is actually there. The first real bit of dialogue in this scene in the pilot won't come up in the slideshow until Sunday, which I suppose helps you to figure out that tomorrow's quote in the slideshow also doesn't appear in the pilot (at least not at that point).    But more on that tomorrow...

[Cousin_Barnabas]

I love the description from the script.  That sounds like classic DS right there, much like the Barnabas "stalking" scenes in HoDS and the '91 series. 

[Uncle Roger]

From time to time, I've inquired about the availability of the pilot from dealers who specialize in "gray market" DVDs.  No one has it,  although many have said that it's quite sought after. One guy offered me a substantial finders fee if I could get him a copy.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

That sounds like classic DS right there, much like the Barnabas "stalking" scenes in HoDS and the '91 series.

There will be an actual stalking scene later in the pilot. One that plays out quite differently than the ones in hoDS and the '91 DS. Many fans who've seen it think it's one of the best sequences in the pilot. But it won't be coming up for quite a while yet...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

No one has it,  although many have said that it's quite sought after. One guy offered me a substantial finders fee if I could get him a copy.

We know just from the posts here on the forum that it's quite sought after.    Though short of hitting someone over the head while it's being transported back to that vault at WB, who knows if it will ever be leaked or made available to the public outright?! 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

As you've probably figured out from today's quote -

Page 05 - Willie: 'Willie Loomis.'

- Willie doesn't actually introduce himself at this point in the pilot because this line was cut. He actually introduces himself a bit later. However, when Willie does first come across Vicki in the pilot, he asks her if she's Miss Winters. Startled because she's already fairly spooked by the situation she finds herself in, Vicki pretty much assaults him - then she sort of delivers tomorrow's quote. But more on that tomorrow...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I didn't get the chance to post before the change that Vicki's scripted:

Page 05 - Victoria: 'Please tell me you're from the Collins Estate.'

becomes a more emphatic "Tell me you're from the Collins Estate" in the pilot.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Concerning today's quote -

Page 05 - Willie: 'That's “Collinwood.”'

 - in the pilot Willie says "It's 'Collinwood.'"

And as an aside, at this point in time in the pilot, Willie actually wears glasses - but there are no publicly available publicity stills available from the pilot of Matt Czuchry as Willie wearing glasses. So we just have to use our imaginations. 

And the reason why Willie won't be wearing glasses later in the pilot will eventually be made clear. (And it's not simply because The WB wanted, as one article describes him, a "soap stud," cast in the role.  ) The reason was actually written into the script before the pilot was even greenlit by The WB and casting began.

[DarkLady]

Thanks again, MB, for the frame grabs and the interesting little snippets!

[Gerard]

Great and Wise Mysterious Benefactor, could you consider doing the '04 pilot in not just dialogue, but going over the scenes as has been done with the OS, HoDS and NoDS so we can get more details?  This is the only way most of us fans will ever get to experience it.

Gerard
P.S.  And I won't kvetch about it not being available and you-know-who and all that stuff again.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

We'll definitely continue to provide details as different bits of dialogue unfold. But keep in mind, the slideshow is only in the second sequence in the pilot. Not all that much has happened so far - and it's going to take the entire year to get through the entire pilot. There will be plenty of time to go over things in more detail as the need arises.    Though also keep in mind that all the details we'll be sharing are purely from memory (except when it comes to describing things as they are in the script) because it's not like we have a copy of the actual pilot to refer to. 

One tidbit about today's quote -

Page 05 - Willie: 'Up here they give the really big spreads their own names.'

- is that Willie's next line doesn't make the cut for the slideshow, and it's probably worth mentioning that it's an opportunity for him to interject a bit of comic relief into the situation. His next line is:

Page 05 - Willie: 'You know, like Xanadu, Taj Mahal, I-HOP...'