2004	Alice Pleszecki	T				Alice Pleszecki (Lesiha Hailey) is a journalist for LA Magazine featured in “The L Word.” "Alice Pieszecki" a wisecracking journalist who speaks her mind, and claims she is "looking for the same things in a man as she is in a woman." Among her group of friends, she is the only self-proclaimed bisexual. Her mother Lenore is an actress, and apparently the only one in the family who accepts Alice's sexuality. Alice is estranged from her two siblings, who disapprove of homosexuality, as well as her father, whom she simply describes as "distant.”Alice is obsessed with The Chart, a recompilation of all the relationships and one-night stands which she knows of, and how this network of affairs is linked to her. Alice strongly believes everyone is sleeping with everyone else, and her chart is the most valuable evidence supporting her theory.Season 1: Alice is openly bisexual. Her lifestyle bothers her close friend Dana, who believes she is just masquerading her uncertainty about her sexuality. However, Alice claims she simply is looking for the same qualities in men as in women. According to the story, she discovered it during the college years, when she started a three-month affair with Tayo, the bass player of her band Butter. Alice then started to indistinctly date men and women. One of her dates was her now close friend Bette Porter, who since then has been in a seven-year committed relationship with Tina Kennard. After being introduced as single and in the search for a date (and missing a chance of seducing Jenny Schecter to her friend Marina Ferrer), Alice meets with her previous ex-girlfriend Gabby Deveaux while preparing an article on vaginal rejuvenation. She starts dating Gabby under the disapproval of her friends, as they already know Gabby's tendency to cheat on her and ignore her in public places. After Shane discovers Gabby with another girl at their frequented lounge-bar Milk, her friends bring up the discussion during a meeting and convince Alice to stop dating Gabby. Heartbroken Alice then meets "Lisa", a man who identifies himself as a lesbian. Lisa's liberal speech appeals to Alice's beliefs, and a short affair between them begins. The conflicts between Lisa's birth gender and his chosen identity then starts to disturb Alice, causing her to dump him for Andrew, who was a proclaimed straight man and whom Dana's parents had arranged to be the date of their daughter (it is to note that Dana had just come out to her parents as a lesbian). Alice and Andrew didn't last very long, but a delay in her period caused her certain anguish since she could not determine who could be the father of her suspected pregnancy. This suspicion is later discarded. Alice and her friends accompany Dana to receive a Human Rights Campaign award. After getting rid of her mother Lenore, Alice and the group go to the hotel where Dana meets Tonya. Alice claims to have received bad vibes from Tonya and distrusts Dana's ability to choose proper couples. The further announcement of Dana's engagement to Tonya makes Alice realize she loves her as more than a friend. She confronts Dana and reveals her feelings, but then withdraws to her home considering she has done something foolish. As she opens the door to her apartment, she finds her friend Tina lying on the couch. Tina asks Alice to let her stay in for a couple of days while she finds out a place to move to, since she has discovered Bette had been cheating on her with a carpenter named Candace.Season 2Unable to hide their feelings for each other, Alice and Dana arrange a meeting and discuss several rules of unattraction they are to follow, in order to prevent anything from happening between them. Her interest towards Dana induces Alice to corner Tonya upon every chance she has. Shane then notices what lies underneath Alice's attacks and proceeds to interrogate her.Although Tina has been living with Alice for a couple of months now, she hasn't noticed her pregnancy. Alice has taken Tina's side and advised her to visit a lawyer who may be able to guide her through the regain of her independence. Bette, on the other hand, has become an emotional wreck and confronts Alice after discovering she's had something to do about Tina's visit to an attorney. Meanwhile, the tension between Alice and Tonya rises. Tonya arranges her a blind date with a man -taking a chance on Alice's outspoken bisexuality- which leads to nothing. Her romance with Dana is finally consummated just before Dana's bachelorette party was held. Dana pretends to keep a secret relationship with Alice, while she figures out how to break up with Tonya. Alice is not interested in sneaking out with her, and forces Dana to end the engagement before continuing to see her. Once together, the status of their relationship is kept secret from everyone but Shane, but they arrange to reveal it at The Planet. While dating Dana, Alice receives a radio offer to do a cultural section on KCRW. After an incident involving the discovery of the relationship between her former girlfriend Gabby and Dana's former girlfriend Lara Perkins, Alice reveals the existence of her chart to the radio producer. The producers become interested in the story and The Chart becomes a weekly broadcast. The reappearance of Lara on the scene causes Alice to start feeling uneasy. She acknowledges Lara and Dana did not break up because they didn't love each other, but rather because of the pressure Lara placed on Dana to come out of the closet. Now that Dana is out and proud, the only thing that keeps them apart is their current relationships. Unfortunately for Alice, Lara and Gabby break up and Lara starts to look for her old girlfriend. They arrange a dinner, and a communication problem between Dana and Alice leads her to believe Lara has finally won her over. In a desperate move during Melvin Porter's funeral, Alice decides to go for the old 'moving-in' lesbian technique. Dana refuses the proposal, claiming she has recently come out of an engagement and she is not ready yet to begin a committed relationship.Season 3Six months have passed, and Dana is now back with Lara. Dana mentions to have ended her relationship with Alice because things between them were not working. Alice has developed an obsessive love addiction towards Dana, and the harsh breakup has caused her to become an antidepressants pill popper. Her obsession reaches very dramatic levels: she chases Dana around, has trouble in her work, and keeps a shrine that includes a stolen life-size cardboard image of her ex-girlfriend.Alice has recently befriended Tina's transitional girlfriend Helena Peabody. Helena believes in tarot and one of the readings misleads her to think Alice is to be her new lover. Luckily for Alice, Helena then proceeds to help her come out of the depression. During the process Helena meets Dylan Moreland, with whom she starts an affair.On the other hand, Alice eventually decides to start dating again. During a bisexual speed dating journey held at The Planet, Alice meets Uta Refson, a vampirologist who is part of the vampire goth subculture. She and Uta start seeing each other, and Alice eventually agrees to get rid of her shrine. But, after the discovery of Dana's breast cancer, Uta gives Alice a chance to deal with her emotions and asks her to call back once she is ready. The announcement of this illness at the peak of her career causes Dana to become bitter and verbally abusive towards Lara. After Dana kicks her out of the house, Lara leaves her girlfriend under the care of Alice and gets on a plane to Paris to take a needed break along with some culinary lessons. During this time, Dana's condition worsens,she develops pneumonia as a consequence of her chemotherapy causing immunosuppression. Alice keeps a five day bedside vigil next to her bed at the hospital, but after taking the advice of a nurse Alice goes outside for some fresh air and is distracted by a chance encounter with Tonya (Dana's ex). Ironically, during her absence Dana's condition rapidly deteriorates and she dies alone of septic shock resulting in heart failure and cardiac arrest. Alice returns just as the medical staff have ceased in their resuscitation attempts. During the funeral Alice steals part of Dana's ashes to arrange a proper ceremony. She and her friends travel to Dana's favorite waterfall and spread her ashes while remembering all the moments they spent with her. The loss of her friend leaves Alice once again desolate, and her pill addiction worsens to include Dana's cancer medication. Lara and Alice begin to see each other and Alice develops a masochist relationship with her (with which Lara disagrees). Dana's death has also induced Shane to propose marriage to her girlfriend Carmen, which she accepted at the waterfall. Alice is to be the best man of the wedding. Shane's change of plans later puts Alice on the awkward position of having to tell Carmen she is no longer getting married.At the end of the season, and after a brief talk with the lay commissioner, Alice decides to let herself feel again and to talk to Lara about her feelings towards her. This moment is later interrupted by Tina, who now has plans to start a family with her new boyfriend Henry.Season 4After returning to Los Angeles, Alice informs Helena of her online Chart and provides some explanation on how it works. It is Helena who discovers that there is a bigger hub than Shane in the Chart, which prompts Alice to start a quest to find out who this mysterious Papi was. Alice successfully meets her in episode 4.02: Livin' la Vida Loca, gets an interview, and eventually has a one night stand with her. Helena, who has moved in with Alice after being financially cut off by her mother, also sleeps with Papi. Further into the season, Bette introduces Alice to Phyllis Kroll, who happens to be her boss at the California University. Phyllis has just come out of the closet and perceived she had a connection with Alice. Bette tries to discourage Alice from seeing Phyllis, but she accepts to go out on a date and they develop a short affair during which Kroll develops strong feelings for Alice. But the affair is terminated when Alice is finally confronted with Phyllis' family, after meeting her husband Leonard at a fundraising party. Phyllis has a difficult time getting over the breakup, but Jodi and Bette help her in coping with the ended affair. At almost the same time, Papi introduces Alice to her best friend Tasha, who is likely suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder due to her service in the Iraq War. Alice becomes involved in a relationship with Tasha, shortly after breaking up with Phyllis in episode 4.06:Luck Be a Lady. Their relationship is complicated by their divergent views on the Iraq War and Tasha's fear of being outed in the Army.	112625
2001	Angela McKenzie: Special Interest	N		Benson, Christopher (Chris)		African-American Reporter Angela McKenzie of the Washington Examiner Metro staff chose a different path from her old friend Veronica Sutton who came to Washington to do good, but she did even better. Tall, smart, beautiful and Black, Veronica parlayed her brains, looks and college activism into a top-notch, million-dollar consulting firm that greased the wheels of Washington politics -- without regard to race, creed or political ideology. For Veronica, it was a long way from Chicago’s South Side, but when she is found dead in her posh town house, only a woman who knew the real Ronnie Sutton can find out how she died and why. McKenzie and Sutton’s lives are entwined again. Retracing Ronnie’s final weeks and days, Angela steps into a political maze of power, sex, secrets and special interests. When people connected to Angela’s investigation begin to die, she knows she’s close -- to a few astounding answers, to one more deadly question, and to a conspiracy that will rock Washington’s foundations -- and kill anyone in its way. Excerpt:Washington Examiner, Tuesday, February 23, 1999, 3:50 p.m.Angela stared at the pulsing cursor as if she was reading her own vital signs on the monitor. She was struggling to revive a withering thought, trying to breathe life into a story that was fading fast. She focused on the screen, tried to shut out the chaos of the late afternoon newsroom.The place was going crazy. Always like that around this time of day in the paper’s crowded Metro Section “the ghetto” where most Black reporters got their start at the Examiner. There were the frantic phone calls, reporters checking last-minute details on breaking stories. There was the rapid-fire clicking of computer keyboards in nearby cubicles. There was the cynical talk, the cutthroat joking, the staccato laughter that swirled all around. Back in the day, there also might have been a cloud of cigarette smoke hovering over Angela?s desk. But the Examiner Building had been declared a smoke-free workplace. Sign of the times. The burning cigarettes had been replaced by Starbucks, Evian and Coca-Cola. Fuel for a new age.Angela reached for the Coke can that sat on top of some file folders next to her Reporter’s Notebook and a half-eaten turkey sandwich. She took a sip, sighed. Nearly finished with the story, she couldn't go on for some reason. She had been through much tougher assignments. Pulled them off. No problem. Like that warehouse fire. She had gotten there ahead of the crowd and had beaten the competition by phoning in her story on the only phone available'the one inside the burning building. 'Hotshot reporter' was the name they had given her. Angela was like that, always ready to turn a problem into an opportunity. Her life was defined by what was next, the blank page waiting to be filled. A risk taker from jump, she never feared what was just over the edge. Every fiber of her sleek, five-foot-seven frame was primed for the challenge. But the pressure was murder. The pressure to get it right, and to get it right on time. The pressure to prove something to her editors, show the White boys they didn't have a monopoly on intelligence and talent. The pressure to break out of the Metro ghetto, make her mark as a star writer, and to do it all before she turned 35. She only had two more years to go.Then there was the pressure to prove something to herself, beat back the demons from Peoria. She had come to Washington'a destination market for journalists'looking for the big story. Looking to rewrite her own. She was carrying some heavy baggage. It seemed that the only thing standing in her way was what she thought she had put behind her. And now she was losing her focus, on deadline. A killer deadline. Angela sat there, staring at the monitor, then at her opened notebook, then back at her monitor where she could see her faint reflection over the words on the screen. Her smooth, caramel skin, and soft round face framed by her short curly black hair. Freshly cut. Her appearance, like her life, was in transition.The silver rings on her thumb and fingers flashed across the screen as she raised her hand to her chin. In the other hand, a pencil tapping, that intense nervous thing she always did at times like this. Drove her mother crazy. Could have been a Ritalin kid with all that energy. But her practical Midwest parents wouldn't hear of such a thing. Instead, her mother would just give her a whack on the leg. 'Be still,' she'd say. But Angela never could. Now, she was tapping and shifting in her chair, narrowing her large dark brown eyes, trying to coax herself through the mental block, resist the pull of Peoria. No one here could possibly know anything about that. Right' She was a tough, smart professional who had made one tiny, okay, one huge mistake. But she had to trust herself again, even if she could never trust a single source, or a White country club editor for that matter. She couldn't let what happened there pull her back. She had to stay focused. So Angela turned to her notebook again, thumbed the pages. Scenes of the day's event began to replay in her head as the chants of the demonstrators crowded out the other memories.They had come to Washington 30,000 strong. Tobacco workers, mostly from nearby Virginia and North Carolina, bused in, some believed, at the expense of the cigarette companies. They demonstrated on the Capitol grounds while a Senate Commerce Subcommittee held hearings. The workers were not going to sit still for any government efforts to restrict or regulate the use of cigarettes. For them, it was a matter of life and death. Their livelihood was on the line and they vowed to continue their protest outside until the lawmakers on the inside heard their angry voices, voices that now were reduced to so many scratches and scribbles in Angela's notebook.A voice. 'My daddy grew tobacco, and my daddy's daddy. Only thing we've ever known. Now they want to regulate us out of work.'Another voice. 'Yep, it's politics, pure and simple. If the tobacco companies had given more money to the Democrats, we wouldn't be having this problem.'Another. 'I'd rather see a kid smoking a cigarette than smoking a joint. Why don't they do better at regulating hard drugs''Quotes practically leapt from the notebook pages as Angela began writing again, punching the keys, hard and fast. She had found the segue to the rest of her story. She was back on track.Until the phone rang. So loud it made Angela jump, lose her line of thought. She fumbled through the press releases, file folders and half-eaten sandwich to answer it.'Examiner Metro, Angela McKenzie.' Her voice, crisp and melodic, smoothed over her annoyance at the interruption.'How long do I have to wait for you to return my calls'' It was Michael, again.'Come on Michael, you know what I'm dealing with here. Besides, I've got an early deadline, and'''So, what else is new''She sighed, slumped back in her chair. 'What is it, Michael'''What do you mean, 'What is it'' I mean, what's with this 'What is it shit all of a sudden'''Oh, come on.' Angela looked around her, down the aisle of a half-dozen cubicles, as if she thought the other reporters could really overhear the yelling on the other end of the line. 'Look, I have work to do, okay'''Course you do. Now that you got what you needed. Had plenty of time to talk when I was tipping you off about the'''Michael, please,' she hissed. 'I thought we had been through this already. You know I appreciate what you did.' She turned again to look down the aisle and saw Greg Carter, another Black Metro reporter, headed her way. He carried a telephone message slip in his hand, a smirk on his face.'Yeah, I can see how much you appreciate me risking my neck.' Michael was still trippin' on the other end. 'You know what'll happen to my Black ass if they find out I'm the one who leaked'''Wait, just hold on a second...' Angela looked up at Greg, who was now standing at her cubicle. She knew he would stay there'stubborn, rude or just plain nosy'waiting for her conversation to end. No matter how long it took. He had time, since he didn't seem to be doing much in the newsroom these days.'That's the problem.' Michael wasn't holding back. 'Ever since you've been here, what, six, seven months, all I do is wait.''Look, let me get back to you, okay'' Angela spoke into the phone, but was looking up at Greg.'When'' Michael pressed on.'Later.''What time, Angie'' How come he always said her name like he was talking to a child''About six-thirty, seven.' She looked at her watch. It was four o'clock. 'I should be home by seven,' she said, writing a Post-it reminder, sticking it on her computer. When did this start' Memory aids to call Michael' 'Seven o'clock, unless I stay later to work on my magazine piece.''All right.' Then his voice lowered a few notes. 'Maybe I can come over later.''Well...' Why was she hesitating' And why was Greg still looming over her' With the nerve to look impatient. 'Let's talk first,' Angela said.'Cool. Now, you made sure my name wasn't mentioned,' he said.'Right. No mention'''And nothing about the Department of Revenue, you know, to like connect me up to it'''No. It's going in as 'an administration source.' No quotes.' She turned back into her cubicle, away from Greg. 'So, you're sure about what you told me.''Absolutely.'She held a beat, then let it go. 'Okay. You're not identified, so don't worry.''All right. Look, let's make sure we get together, okay' I mean, I love you, Baby, and'''Okay, me, too. I'll call you later. Bye, bye.' Angela hung up so quickly she sent several folders flying.'Me, too'' Greg had a mocking tone. Nothing unusual about that. 'Yeah I can tell that was a business call. 'Yes, Miss McKenzie,'' he said, aping a White dignitary. ''I am definitely in favor of that proposal and, oh yes, by the way, of course, this is off the record, deep background, if you know what I mean, but, well, gosh, I love you Miss McKenzie.' 'Me, too, Senator.'''Greg, please,' Angela said, swiveling in her chair, shooting him a hard look. Michael was annoying enough with his anxiety, his clinging and his growing insecurity about their relationship. This was not the time for another man to hassle her. Besides, she was on deadline. 'Is that for me'' She pointed to the message slip.'You might say that.' Greg slapped the paper against the palm of his free hand. 'But, the real question is, why did I have to pick it up for you when it's been sitting out front at the message center since this morning' I mean, if you're not going to turn on your voice mail, at least you could check'''Oh, God, I've been so busy I completely forgot.''Lesson One,' Greg said, handing over the message. 'If you want to win friends and influence folk in this town, don't start out by keeping people like Veronica Sutton waiting all day for a call-back.''Ronnie'''Oh, it's Ronnie, is it' Didn't know you all were so tight.'Angela looked down at the slip in her hand. 'We were roommates in college.''No shit.' For once, it seemed, Greg was impressed. Or maybe just surprised. 'You and Veronica Sutton' Roomies'' 'Yeah.''The Veronica Sutton'''Mmm hmm.''The lobbyist' Young, gifted, Black and all that'''Right.' Angela looked up again at Greg. 'We were real close. Been trying to get together since I moved here. Something always seems to come up. Anyway, she was helping me, you know, on the phone, to hook up this story I'm working on.' She turned again to look down at the message.'Oh yeah' Well, maybe you could hook me up.''Hmm'' Angela was only half listening to Greg as she read the message. 'Please call ASAP.' The telephone number was written below and, at top, the time of the call, '9:30 a.m.' Angela had been covering the demonstration at that time.'I mean, like, I just might be able to pencil her into my busy social schedule,' Greg said. 'What was that'' The joke was lost on Angela, still distracted.'I mean, Veronica Sutton is a major-league fox,' he continued. 'We're talking drop-dead-and-come-back-to-life fine.'	113401
2007	Billboard Cop	NR		Lakes, Lynde		Reporter Jen Lyman writes for the Boston Globe and works with the Globe Photographer Dory Kincaid, who is also her best friend. Lyman can’t resist replying to a billboard advertisement for a wife because there has to be a story behind it. She comes face to face with Police Officer York Wylinski who is looking for exactly what Jen is not: an old-fashioned woman. When a killer copying the Boston Strangler starts knocking off her contacts, and then makes her the focus of his revenge, she is forced to accept protection from the man who rebuffed her for her profession and her deception. Will York, who makes every nerve in her body  hum and her heart flutter, be able to save Jen from the one who wants her dead?What if a homicide detective, who loathes reporters and values honesty, falls for an undercover reporter’s deception? And what if by the time he catches on, he’s already in love with her old-fashioned image -- and the gorgeous, conniving woman? He planned to run away from all of it, but then he finds out she’s involved in his copycat Boston Strangler case and may know something about the killer. Public Relations Officer Diego Zombolas, who almost everyone in the news business knew was really the mayor’s bodyguard. Excerpt:Out of the corner of her eye, Jen Lyman, reporter for the Boston Globe, caught sight of a billboard printed in huge, black letters. The bold words on the stark white background seemed to leap at her. Her heart raced, immediately sensing a story. WANTED: OLD FASHIONED WIFENO OTHERS NEED APPLYP.O. BOX 48613BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, 02104 She hit the brakes, shifted into reverse and sped backwards.Dory Kincaid, Globe photographer and Jen’s best friend, clung to the dashboard and shrieked, “Have you lost your mind?” When Jen had a clear view of the billboard through her front windshield, she jerked to a stop. “Maybe, but I smell a story.” She grabbed her digital recorder from her bag and read the ad into it.Dory chuckled. “Oh, wow. I see what you mean.” She pulled her always-loaded camera from her bag and snapped a few shots. “What kind of weirdo would put up such a hokey ad?” Jen flashed her most devious smile. “And what kind of woman would answer it? Especially with the ridiculous requirement that she has to be old fashioned.”“Obviously, your kind. I see the wheels already turning in your head.”Jen laughed. “Guilty as charged.”Dory shook her head. “The guy’s gotta be a loser. No name on the ad spells no guts.”“Or something to hide,” Jen said. “But I can’t blame him for being cautious. Imagine all the fruitcakes waiting to pounce on something like this. Besides, what normal, self-respecting man would want the world to know he’s so hard up for a wife that he has to take out a billboard ad?”“Normal? Ha!” Dory said. “He might even be our copycat Boston Strangler.”Jen tightened her grip on the steering wheel. “Wouldn’t that be something? What if the ad is a predator’s trick to get women to volunteer their addresses?” She fought excitement mingled with apprehension. “Tying the billboard ad to my strangler story would be the kind of complication that Pulitzer prizes are made of.”“Dream on. But be sure you can wake up when it’s over.”In spite of the August heat, Jen shivered; her own uneasiness was amplified by Dory’s half-kidding, half-serious warning. Jen shook off her misgivings and headed back into the Monday morning traffic. She glanced at her watch and pressed harder on the accelerator, zigzagging in and out of the lanes, speeding past rows of brownstones. In seconds, she came under the shadow of the sixty-two story Hancock Tower with its walls of glistening glass. “Ease up,” Dory squealed. “Wanna pick up a cop?”“We’re still blocks from the Government Center. I can’t be late.” Jen bit her lip. The mayor had only given her this personal interview because she’d convinced him she had questions he might not want other reporters to hear. Dory stashed her camera in her bag. “We’ll make it.” She grinned. “So how will you approach Mr. Billboard, sassy and straightforward, or down, dirty and devious?”“Have to find him first. The billboard company or post office won’t help. Thanks to the Right to Privacy Act, it’d take a court order to pry info from them.”Dory wrinkled her brow. “So what’ll you do?” “What else? Write a letter. Stake out his post office box. His zip code gave away the location.”“Ah, down, dirty and devious.” Dory squirmed with delight. “Let me help. The letter has to sound domestic and a bit docile. A tone you may have trouble faking.”“Hey. I can sling the Martha Stewart and apple pie phrases with the best of ‘em.”They neared the iron-fenced commons with its network of long, tree-lined promenades and gently rolling lawns. The glint of the gold-domed State House just ahead brought Jen’s thoughts back to more pressing things—her skirmish with the mayor.” * * * * Inside the mayor’s wood-paneled office, Jen shook hands with Mayor O’Brien and his hovering public relations officer, Diego Zombolas, who almost everyone in the news business knew was really the mayor’s bodyguard. Diego had been brought on board a year ago when a wildcat union strike leader pulled a gun on the mayor on the courthouse steps.After getting permission to take some pictures, Dory dug her camera out of her bag and checked the light meter. The mayor gestured to a leather chair. Jen sat down and waited for him to seat himself behind his desk which was on an elevated platform and left no doubt who held the power in this room.Diego stroked his Greek nose in a deliberate way. Was it a signal between the men? He remained standing and situated himself where he could keep an eye on her and Dory who now circled the room taking shots from different angles.Jen leaned forward. “Mayor, are you still being hassled by disgruntled union wildcatters? Or is there someone else threatening your life?”The mayor gave a smile that failed to reach his gray, guarded eyes. “No. All’s calm here at city hall.” Yeah, right, Jen thought. She decided to try a sidestep-topic to break through his shield. “You call Mr. Zombolas your public relations man?”The mayor’s smile remained in place. His eyes glinted with amusement. “That’s his job title. But Diego is a man of many talents.”“You don’t deny that bodyguard is one of them?” She kept her tone easy, non-combative.“I take care of the mayor,” Diego piped up. He slicked back his black hair with the smoothness of a man who believed he was good looking. “The capacity depends on the situation. But surely you didn’t come here to talk about my job description?” A warning undercurrent darkened his tone.Jen swallowed. “True, Mr. Zombolas. But if the mayor’s life is in danger because of the unions, or for any other reason, the public wants to know.”Diego bowed slightly. “Naturally,” he said, oozing charm. “We wouldn’t dream of keeping important information from the press.”“Good,” Jen said, forcing a smile. She wouldn’t be surprised to learn that the threats against the mayor were tied into her toxic-waste story. She placed a recorder on the desk in front of her, and leveled her gaze at the mayor. “Mayor O’Brien, everyone living here knows that a lot of Boston is built on landfill. Can you comment on the soil report that came out of the State Environmental Division last Tuesday, indicating a high toxin count in the fill used in the Old Town area?”The mayor cleared his throat. “That test is being run again. We suspect faulty instruments.”Diego walked behind the mayor and gripped the back of the official’s high-back chair. “Rest assured,” he said, “whether the problem is faulty instruments or spot soil contamination, it is being handled with public safety in mind.”Jen’s palms began to sweat. But she couldn’t let it go at that. “What about a certain trucker’s claim that he was paid off by someone at city hall to forget where he got the soil?” Diego touched the mayor’s shoulder, as if to silence him and said, “If you’re referring to Lorenzo Geoffrey Monroe, he was fired from Atlantic Trucking for being a drunk and a troublemaker.” The sun coming through the plate glass window, slipped behind a cloud, casting fierce shadows across Diego’s face, but it didn’t dim the flash of fury that fired in his eyes.Jen swallowed and met his menacing gaze head on. “Mr. Monroe has provided names, dates, and locations. He swears he got the contaminated soil from a service station site with a leaking tank.” She glanced down at her note pad. “A site located at the corner of Wildwine and Brae streets.” She raised her eyes and met the mayor’s steady gaze. “I checked. The land is owned by billionaire Finstead Alexander Coble, a campaign contributor of yours, I believe.” The mayor’s jaw tightened and his fierce, bushy eyebrows lowered, shading frigid eyes. “This service station assertion is new information to me.” He rose with fists balled, looking like he might come right over the desk at her. “I assure you I’ll follow up on it and get back to you. Whatever the situation, I can guarantee you that no wrong doing has been perpetrated by anyone from this office.”Her facts had hit their mark. One way or another someone was in big trouble. Diego’s searing look sent prickles to her neck and she wondered if she could be that someone. Dory signaled with a slight nod that she’d gotten enough pictures. Jen thanked the mayor for his time. She gave him her business card and shook his hand. “I knew if I brought this to your attention, you’d take action on it.” She squared her shoulders. “I’ll look forward to hearing from you, soon?” The rise in her voice made it crystal clear that she had no intention of letting this matter drop. “Of course. I appreciate that you came to me before printing anything.” He flicked some dust from the sleeve of his jacket, probably wishing he could get rid of her as easily.Seconds later as the reporters hurried down the concrete steps, Dory said, “How about that pompous ass? What an obvious fast shuffle.” Jen laughed. “And the way the Greek PR man tap-danced around issues, I’d bet a bottle of Ouzo that he can dance the Zebetako without music like a pro.”Dory frowned. “Wasn’t Gordon working on the toxic waste story when some lowlife murdered him?”Jen nodded. She took a deep breath, fighting a twinge of fear. It was immediately overridden by anger. “That’s another reason why I won’t stop until I get to the bottom of the toxic waste issue.” * * * * At The Boston Globe, Jen sat down at her computer and looked up at Dory. “Okay, Domestic Goddess, how do we start this letter to Mr. Billboard?”Dory pulled a chair up close. “He’s a man. Compliment his ego. Maybe something like: Your direct approach proves you’re a strong-minded man who knows what he wants and has the courage to go for it. As a home-loving woman, this greatly appeals to me.”Jen groaned. “You’re laying it on too thick.”“Trust me. He’ll eat this stuff up. A little editing and our letter will be a finalist.” “It doesn’t even have to place. He just has to pick up his mail so I can find out who he is.”They pared four pages of drivel down to two pages. Jen laughed. The words sounded so homey that Mr. Billboard would actually smell the bread baking in his little rose-covered cottage.When Jen got a call from Connie Allison, the City Refuse Director’s secretary, she gestured to Dory that it might take some time. Dory nodded and ducked out of the office.Jen put her ear back to the receiver. “Go ahead, Connie.”Connie lowered her voice and said, “The mayor’s assistant just called. He said the mayor wants everything we’ve got on the landfill soil reports.”Yes! Jen made a triumphant fist. She wanted action and she got it.“Gordon—” Connie’s voice choked and she paused as if fighting tears. Jen’s momentary elation died at the tender way Connie said the murdered reporter’s name. Connie and Gordon were to be married on December first, and now he was gone. Jen bit her lip, fighting her own tears. She missed Gordon’s witty, upbeat nature, missed competing with him for top assignments.The silence went on too long. She couldn’t give in to this. Connie needed her to be strong. “We’ll get the guy who did this.” Connie cleared her voice. “With all the secrecy, I think Gordon was right about the cover-up.” Her voice grew stronger. “We need his notes.”“I’ll keep looking.” Jen had already gone through Gordon’s desk and skimmed his computer files. Someone had deleted every file on the story. “What do you know about Diego Zombolas?”“The mayor’s pit bull? He eats people like us for breakfast. Don’t quote me, but the guy’s a sociopath capable of killing without any twinge of conscience.”Jen rubbed her aching head. Connie should know, she thought. Her sister, Danielle, worked for the mayor. “Are any of the union wildcat bunch still after the mayor?”“There’s been at least one more attempt against his life. But I think he’d keep Zombolas around no matter what. Like I said, the big Greek is a pit bull. And the mayor likes that about him.”Jen’s stomach knotted. If the mayor was a good guy, how could he admire someone like Diego? “Keep me informed of any new developments, and I’ll keep digging around on this end.”After Jen hung up, she checked her e-mail, and handled all the messages quickly—except the last one:It read: Drop the story, or you won’t live to write anything else.Outside, in the street below cars hummed. Someone honked. Overhead a helicopter’s rotors whirred. Inside vibrated with the usual white noise of busy news staff getting a paper out. But Jen only heard the sounds inside her head, the pulsing of cold fear. Her hand trembled on the mouse. She closed her eyes briefly. Don’t let this get to you. She stood and paced the length of the room. Did this idiot think she’d know which story he meant? She was working on a half dozen right now. Receiving the warning e-mail here at the office wouldn’t have worried her too much—reporters get stuff like this from time to time—if she hadn’t also received the same kind of threat at home last night. It read: Back off or you’ll strangle on your own words. She wasn’t given to panic, but last night, in the quiet emptiness of her thirteenth floor apartment, in her closely held private world, she came as close to it as she’d ever come. The threats should be reported, but for the police to take them seriously, she needed documentation. No one had listened to Gordon and look what happened to him. She printed out a copy and tucked it in the manila envelope with the message from last night.She ran her stories through her mind. Her most recent interview had been with the mayor. Was it from him? Maybe his pit bull? After all, Gordon was murdered while working on the same landfill story. But how would the mayor know she was investigating the toxic waste story before today? Easy, she thought, if he had a spy in the newsroom. It was no secret that she’d taken over Gordon’s files.Wait a minute...maybe... She rushed to her filing cabinet and pulled out her folder on the copycat Boston Strangler story. It wasn’t really a story yet; the police wouldn’t confirm anything. Still, she saw the patterns forming as her shadowy informant alerted her to every new strangling. She tapped the label. Was this the story she was being warned to drop? She collapsed in her chair, weak kneed and rubbed her arms. Dear God, I can’t do this with every story or I won’t be able to write anything. She opened the folder and tried to force herself to concentrate on her notes.“Hey, I’m back.” Dory wriggled her brows playfully as she entered Jen’s cubicle. “And look what I found.” She shoved a box of lacy, flowery stationery under Jen’s nose.“What’s this for?” As if she didn’t know.“For our letter to Mr. Billboard, of course. Use this paper to rewrite the letter in your most cursive, old fashioned handwriting. Sorta like old German script.”Jen laughed, finding it easier to push the unnerving messages to the back of her mind with Dory around. “How about just readable?”When she’d completed the rewrite, she signed the letter with the made-up name Jeanette Sumner.“Hold it,” Dory said. “Don’t seal it, yet. Give me your Wind Song.”“Oh, come on. This is ridiculous.”Dory held out her hand until Jen reached into her purse, withdrew the tube of spray perfume and complied. Dory sprayed the fragrance over some heart-shaped confetti and tossed the bits into the envelope with the letter. Dory inhaled the envelope. “Ah, a scent to tame the wild beast.”Jen laughed at the expression of mock rapture on Dory’s face then snatched the letter away. “I’m hand-delivering this to the South End post office, zip code 02104, before I lose my nerve.”	116362
2009	Charlotte McNally: Air Time	NR		Ryan, Hank Phillippi	#3 Charlotte McNally series. Harlequin Next	TV Reporter Charlotte “Charlie” McNally is a seasoned reporter working in the cutthroat world of TV journalism.When the savvy TV reporter enters the glamorous world of high fashion, she soon discovers that when the purses are fake -- the danger is real. And no one can be trusted. Now Charlotte can’t tell the real from the fake as she goes undercover to bring the couture counterfeiters to justice -- and in her struggle to answer an all-important, life-changing question from a certain handsome professor. The one thing Charlotte knows for sure is that the wrong choice could be the last decision she ever makes.An Excerpt From... Air Time by Hank Phillippi Ryan It's never a good thing when the flight attendant is crying. Franklin, strapped into the seat beside me, his seat back and tray table in the full upright position, headphones on and deep into Columbia Journalism Review, doesn't notice her tears. But I do.She's wearing a name tag that says Tracy, a navy blue pencil skirt, a bow-tied striped scarf, flat-heeled pumps and dripping mascara. We're sitting on the Baltimore airport tarmac, still attached to the jetway, a full fifteen minutes past our scheduled takeoff for Boston and home. And Tracy's crying.I nudge Franklin with my elbow and tilt my head toward her. "Franko, check it out."Only Franklin's eyes move as, with a sigh, he glances up from under his new wire-rimmed glasses. He looks like an owl. Then, without a word, he slowly closes his CJR and finally looks at me. I can see he's as unnerved as I am. His eyes question, and I have the only answer a television reporter can give."Get your cell," I whisper. "Turn it on.""But, Charlotte—" he begins.He's undoubtedly going to tell me some Federal Aviation Administration rule about not using cell phones in flight. Like any successful television producer, Franklin always knows all the rules. Like any successful television reporter, I'm more often about breaking them. If it could mean a good story."We're not in flight," I hiss. "We haven't budged on this runway. But one of us—you—is going to get video of whatever it is that's going on here. The other—me— is going to call the assignment desk back at Channel 3 and see if they know what the heck is happening at this airport."I look out my window. Nothing. I look back up at Tracy, who's now huddling with her colleagues in the galley a few rows in front of us. Their coiffed heads are bent close together and one has a comforting arm around another's shoulders. The faces I can see look concerned. One looks up and catches me staring. She swipes a tapestry curtain across the aisle, blocking my view.Part of me is, absurdly, relieved that our takeoff is delayed. I hate takeoffs. I hate landings. I hate flying. And if something terrible has happened, all I can say is, I'm not surprised.But I have to find out if there's a story here. Maybe Tracy just has some sort of a personal problem and I'm making breaking news out of a broken heart. I yank my bag from under the seat in front of me and slide out my own cell phone. Bending double so my phone is buried in my lap, I pretend to sneeze to cover the tim-tee-tum sound of it powering up, then sneeze again to make it more convincing. As I'm contemplating sneeze three, I hear my call to the assignment desk connect."It's me. Charlie," I whisper. I pause, closing my eyes in annoyance at the response. "Charlie McNally. The reporter? Is this an intern?" I pause again, picturing a newbie twentysomething in over her head. Me, twenty-two years ago. Twenty-three, maybe. I start again, calm.Taking the snark out of my voice. "It's Charlotte McNally, the investigative reporter? Give me Roger, please." I glance at the curtain to the galley. Still closed. "Right now."Franklin's up and in the aisle, holding his cell phone as if it's off as he pretends to take a casual stroll toward the galley curtains. I know he's got video rolling. I know his phone has a ten-minute photo capacity, and he's done this so many times he can click it off and on without looking. Talk about a hidden camera. Our fellow passengers will only see an attractive thirtysomething black guy in a preppy pink oxford shirt checking out the flight attendants. I see Franklin Brooks Parrish, my faithful producer, getting the shots we need. Whatever is happening—all caught on camera. Exclusive."Roger Zelinsky." The night assignment editor's Boston accent makes it Rah-jah. "What's up, C?""We're in Baltimore, on the way home from the National Journalism Convention," I say, still doubled over into my lap and whispering. Luckily Franklin and I had an empty seat between us. A hidden camera is one thing—a hidden forbidden conversation on a cell phone is another. "We're at the airport. In a plane. On the tarmac.""So?" Roger replies."Exactly," I say. "That's what I'm trying to find out." I give him the short-version scoop on the tears, the delay, the closed curtain. Franklin's now made it to the galley, his phone camera nonchalantly pointed at the spot where the curtain would open. But it hasn't opened. Maybe Tracy broke up with the pilot. Maybe they don't have enough packages of peanuts. Maybe someone decided to smoke in the bathroom.Then, even through the fuzzy phone connection, I hear all hell break loose at Channel 3. Strapped in and surrounded by passengers and pillows and carry-on bags, on Flight 632 there's only the muted sounds of passengers muttering, speculating. But about five hundred miles away, in a Boston television newsroom, bells are ringing and alarms are going off. I know it's the breaking news signal. The Associated Press is banging out a hot story. I bet it's centered right here. And any second, I'm gonna know the scoop in Baltimore."Runway collision. Two planes. A 737 and some commuter jet. Cessna. I'm reading from the wires, hang on." Roger's voice is now urgent. I can picture him, eyes narrowed, racing through the information coming through on his computer. Bulletins appear one or two sentences at a time and with every new addition more alert bells ping. "No casualty count yet. One plane taxiing toward takeoff, one on the ground.""The little plane," I begin. "How many—was it— which—""Don't know," Roger replies. Terse. The bell pings again and our connection breaks up a bit. "Fire engines," he says.I've got to get off this plane. I've got to get into the terminal. This story is big, it's breaking, and I'm ready to handle it."Call you asap," I whisper, interrupting. "I'm getting out of here." I snap my phone closed, tuck it into my bag, unclasp my seat belt and stand up. Franklin looks over, and I signal with widening eyes and a tilt of my head. Come back.Franklin glances at the still motionless curtain. He points his phone backward and returns to our seats. Camera rolling. Just in case.I grab his arm and yank him back into seat 18C."Listen," I hiss. "There's been a collision on the runway here. Fire, Roger says." I pause, hoping no one can hear me. "I've got to get off this plane and into the airport."Franklin wipes away imaginary creases from his still-perfect khakis. I know this means he's thinking. Calculating. Taking in the information."Listen, Charlotte. I know you're addicted to the news," he says, voice low. "But you've got to get to Boston. Our interview with the Prada P.I. is scheduled for tomorrow morning. She's meeting us at the airport. It's between flights for her. It's tomorrow or never. That's her schedule." Franklin apparently has a BlackBerry implanted in his brain."She's got the specs and some inside scoop on counterfeit bags," he says. "She's giving us documents from the purse designers. Without her, our ‘fabulous fakes' story may not be so fabulous."He glances toward the galley curtain, so I do, too. Nothing."Local reporters can cover the runway incursion," Franklin continues. "They're probably already on the air with whatever the story is. And you're the big-time investigative reporter, remember? You don't do breaking news like this anymore. You've got to stay on this plane and get back to Boston."I know I'm an aging Dalmatian. But when the fire bell rings, I can't stand to be out of the action. The secret to TV success is being at the right place at the right time. And recognizing it. I flip up the armrests between us, stand up again, and try to edge around Franklin and into the aisle. Luckily I have on flats, so I'll be able to run if I need to. And my black pants, white T-shirt and black leather jacket will look appropriately serious when I go on camera. I'm heading for significant airtime. And a big story."Piffle," I say. "I can cover this story, make Channel 3 look good, thrill Kevin by providing him with the news director's dream ‘local reporter on the scene to cover national news' segment, hop the next plane to Boston and arrive in plenty of time for the meeting. It's at eleven, after all. You worry too much, Franko. Now, move it."Franklin doesn't budge. "You don't worry enough, Charlotte. You're not going anywhere," he says. He points to seat 18A. "Sit."I don't. But I can't get out unless Franklin moves. I twist toward him, my back crammed against the seat in front of me, my head bowed under the too-short-for-my-five-foot-seven-self curving plastic ceiling of the 737."Your suitcase," he says. "It's checked. And you ain't goin' nowhere without it. After September eleven? Nobody checks a bag, then gets off the plane. Forget about it.""Nope," I say. I try my exit move again, but Franklin is still blocking me. "I got the lattes. You checked both bags, remember? They're both attached to your ticket. Far as this airline is concerned, I have no baggage. Which means you can pick them both up in Boston and I'll get mine from you later. There is certainly a morning flight. Which means I'm free to go. And I'm going."I see Franklin hesitate. I've won."Call Josh, okay?" I say, edging my way closer to the aisle. "Tell him…" I pause, one hand on the seat back, considering. It looks like yet another news story will keep me from my darling Josh Gelston. Maybe I should just stay on the plane. Go home. Let the locals cover the story. Have a life with the first man in twenty years who isn't interested in my celebrity. Or jealous of it. Who isn't intimidated by my job. Professor Josh Gelston is also the first man in twenty years who, I realize, makes me want to go home. Well, as soon as I can."Tell Josh what happened," I say. "Tell him I'll be back as soon as I can. Actually, he's at some school event tonight, so just leave a message. And ask him to call Amy to feed Botox. And I'll talk to him tomorrow." Josh will understand about the cat sitter. And my situation. I hope.Franklin smoothes the wrinkles again, then shrugs. And this time, he slides his knees to one side, allowing me to squirm my way out into the aisle. "They'll never let you off this plane," he predicts.The unfamiliar airport blurs into a collage of gate numbers, flashing lights and rolling suitcases as I snake my way past luggage-toting passengers, blue-uniformed flight crews, maintenance carts and posses of stern-faced TSA officers. I'm focused on finding gate C-47. My cell phone is clamped to my ear, the line open to Channel 3, but no one is on the other end yet. I'm waiting for more updates from Roger. So far all I know is I'm supposed to meet the Baltimore station's crew—a camera-person and a live satellite van—from our local network affiliate. We'll go live as soon as the uplink is set. And as soon as someone tells me what's happened.No one in the terminal is running, which seems strange. I don't see any emergency crews. That's strange, too. Maybe because it's all happening in a different terminal. They don't want to scare anyone.I wonder if anyone is hurt. I wonder what went wrong. I wonder if there's a fire. I think about survivors. I think about families. I've covered too many plane crashes over the past twenty years. And part of me knows that's why I'm so unhappy about flying. I try not to admit it, because an investigative reporter is supposed to be tough and fearless. When it comes to air travel, I pretend a lot."Yup, I'm here," I answer the staticky voice now crackling in my ear. The block-lettered signs for Terminal C are pointing me to the left. Following the arrows, I trot through the crowded corridor, listening to Roger tell me the latest. I stop, suddenly, realizing what he's saying. A Disney-clad family divides in half to get by, throwing annoyed looks as they swarm back together in front of me. I barely notice."So, you're telling me there's nothing?" I reply. "You're telling me—no big collision? No casualties? No fire?""Yep. Nope," Roger says. "Apparently one wing tip of a regional jet just touched a 737. On the ground. No passengers in the smaller plane. But the pilot panicked, Maydayed the tower, they sent the alarm, fire crews powered in. Every pilot on the tarmac picked up the radio traffic—guess that's how your flight attendant got wind of it. And the Associated Press, of course. It was a close call. But no biggie.""So…" My adrenaline is fading as I face reality. I plop into a leatherette seat along the wall, stare at my toes, and try to make journalism lemonade. "So, listen. Should we do a story about the close call? Should we do an investigation about crowded runways? Is there a pattern of collisions at the Baltimore airport?""Charlie, that's why we love you," Roger says with a chuckle. "Always looking for a good story. Does your brain ever turn off? Come home, kiddo. Thanks for being a team player."It's the best possible outcome, of course, I tell myself as I slowly click my phone closed and tuck it back into my bag. And it's certainly proof of how a reporter's perspective gets warped by the quest for airtime. How can anyone be sorry there's not a plane crash? I smile, acknowledging journalism's ugliest secret. A huge fire? A string of victims? A multimillion dollar scam? Bad news is big news. Only a reporter can feel disappointed when the news is good.But actually, there is good news that I'm happy about. Now I can go home. To Josh. My energy revs as I race to the nearest flight information screen and devour the numbers displayed on the televisions flickering above me. Arrivals. Departures. If I'm lucky, my plane is still hooked to that jetway, doors open. I can get back on board, into 18A, and get home for a late and luscious dinner with Josh. I imagine his welcoming arms swooping me off the floor in a swirling hug. Our "don't stay-away-this-long-ever-again" kisses. I imagine skipping dinner.I find what I'm looking for. Boston, Flight 632. I find what I'm not looking for. Status: Departed.	120634
1963	Daily Bugle: 	CB			First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #1 (1963). Source; Marvel	Newspaper. The Daily Bugle is in the Marvel University, located in New York. Current owner is J. Jonah Jameson. The newspaper was formerly owned by William Walter Goodman, Norman Osborn, Thomas Fireheart. Founded in 1897, the Daily Bugle was purchased a few decades after its inception by businessman William Walter Goodman, who prized selfless human achievement above all else and who lent his name to the building the newspaper called home. In 1939, when the android Human Torch and Namor the Sub-Mariner began alternately terrorizing and protecting the city, Bugle photographer Phil Sheldon immortalized many of their exploits. Following Captain America's debut in late 1940, Bugle reporter Jeff Mace became one of his earliest imitators as the costumed Patriot, although he was just as often active against evil as a correspondent alongside Mary Morgan and freelancer Jack Casey, while C. Thomas Sites and others chronicled the battlefield missions of the Howling Commandos. In later decades, the Bugle's destiny became inexorably linked with that of J. Jonah Jameson, known for uncovering secret details of the Invaders' wartime missions. Jameson, inspired by the past Bugle editor Walter "Old Man" Jameson (often mistakenly assumed to be Jonah's father) mimicking his signature flat-top and mustache. He rose through the Bugle's ranks as copy boy, reporter, editor and editor-in-chief, championing civil rights and opposition to organized crime. Some twenty years ago, having already emptied his inheritance to buy the Bugle corporation years before, he purchased the entire Goodman Building housing the newspaper to which he had dedicated his life.In recent years, Jameson's obsession with Spider-Man has shaped the Bugle's perspective on superheroes, centered on suspicion toward masked vigilantes and superhuman feats upstaging straightforward human heroism. The Bugle's offices have been the sites of Spider-Man's battles with Doctor Octopus, the Fly, the Scorpion, the Vulture (Adrian Toomes) and many others. The Bugle building has been twice destroyed during such battles, once by Graviton and once by the Green Goblin (Norman Osborn), but it has been rebuilt each time to remain as active as ever. Despite lukewarm attempts to cover superhuman activity more objectively in its short-lived Pulse feature, the Bugle formally supported the recent passage of the Superhuman Registration Act, but the exposure of longtime Bugle photographer Peter Parker as Spider-Man has undermined the paper’s credibility. Daily Bugle Staff:A Abner Abernathy (reporter), Marvel Team-Up #115 (1982) Tom Amos (reporter), Marvel Vision #21 (1997) B Nick Bandouveris (reporter, deceased), Uncanny X-Men #339 (1996) Lance Bannon (photographer, deceased), Amazing Spider-Man #208 (1980) Ron Barney (reporter), Marvel Vision #14 (1997) Joe Bazooka (reporter), Marvel Vision #10 (1997) Noel Beckford (reporter), Amazing Spider-Man/Devil Dinosaur '98 Annual (1998) Abe Benerstein (film critic), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #20 (2003) Mike Bering (reporter), Marvel Vision #14 (1997) William "Billy" Walters (former reporter), Spectacular Spider-Man #235 (1996) Miriam Birchwood (columnist), Marvel: Heroes and Legends (1996) Phil Bostwich (reporter), Marvel Vision #29 (1998) Betty Brant (administrative assistant, reporter), Amazing Spider-Man #4 (1962) Eleonore Brant (administrative assistant), Untold Tales of Spider-Man #12 (1996) Kenny Brown (reporter), Annex #1 (1994) Blaine Browne (reporter), Spectacular Spider-Man #120 (1986) Jill Brythe (reporter), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11 (2002) Marge Butler (receptionist) Spider-Man Unlimited#13 (1996) C Harrison Cahill (chairman of the board of directors), Amazing Spider-Man #198 (1979) Meredith Campbell (former intern), Green Goblin #7 (1996) Ken Clarke (reporter), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) George Clum (theater critic), Amazing Spider-Man #207 (1980) Jacob Conover (Rose) (columnist/reporter, fired), Daredevil #131 (1976) Cole Cooper (photographer), Web of Spider-Man #113 (1994) Kathryn "Kate" Cushing (city editor, fired), Web of Spider-Man #5 (1985) D Vickie Danner (Washington, DC, liaison), Spider-Man: The Arachnis Project #3 (1994) Dan Davis (reporter), Captain America '99 Annual (1999) Albert Dickinson (reporter), Deadline #1 (2002) Nick Dillman (reporter), Daredevil #71 (1970) Herman Donaldson (fact checker), Amazing Spider-Man #192 (1979) Kim Drunter (financial reporter) Amazing Spider-Man #349 (1991) Rich DuFour (reporter), Daredevil #242 (1987) Sam Dunne (national editor), Captain America '99 Annual (1999) Anthea Dupres (reporter), Clan Destine #7 (1995) E Edwin E. Edwards (photographer), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11 (2002) Ethan Edwards (Virtue/Tiller/Moral-Man) (former reporter), Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #13 (2005) Ken Ellis (reporter), Web of Spider-Man #118 (1994) Samuel Exmore (apprentice editor), Peter Parker: Spider-Man #11 (1999) F Tony Falcone (copy writer), Amazing Spider-Man #254 (1984) Katherine "Kat" Farrell (reporter), Deadline #1 (2002) Ian Fate (former reporter), Defenders #104 (1982) Debby Ferraro, Spider-Man #33 (1993) Nicholas Finch (reporter), Daredevil #230 (1986) Thomas Fireheart (Puma) (former owner), Amazing Spider-Man #256 (1984) Jack "Flash Gun" Casey (1940s reporter/photographer), Human Torch Comics #4 (1941) Frederick Foswell (Big Man) (reporter, deceased), Amazing Spider-Man #10 (1964) Phil Fox (reporter, deceased), Hero for Hire #4 (1972) Sid Franken (reporter), Captain America '99 Annual (1999) G Tim Gluohy (reporter), Marvel Vision #15 (1997) Simon J. Goodman (1940s editor-in-chief), Marvels #1 (1994) William Walter Goodman (former owner), Web of Spider-Man #52 (1989) Melvin Gooner (reporter), Spider-Man #8 (1991) Amber Grant (photographer), Omega the Unknown #1 (1976) Glory Grant (administrative assistant), Amazing Spider-Man 140 (1975) Derek Gratham (former intern), Green Goblin #7 (1996) Randy Green (Mystique) (reporter), Ms. Marvel #16 (1978) H Jeffrey Haight (photographer), Spider-Man/Doctor Octopus: Negative Exposure #1 (2003) Toni Harris (apprentice editor), Peter Parker: Spider-Man #1 (1999) Matt Hickville (reporter), Marvel Vision #21 (1997) Edward Holt (purchasing officer), Punisher War Journal #15 (1990) I Matt Idelson (reporter), Marvel Vision #8 (1996) Max Igoe (sports writer), Peter Parker: Spider-Man/Elektra '98 (1998) Isabel "Izzy" Bunsen (science editor), Spectacular Spider-Man #124 (1987) J Walter "Old Man" Jameson (former editor-in-chief), Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #110 (1973) Frank Janson (rewrite man), Daredevil #230 (1986) Hal Jerkins (typesetter), Amazing Spider-Man #178 (1978) Bud Johnson (page designer), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #20 (2003) J. Jonah Jameson (publisher), Amazing Spider-Man #1 (1963) Charles Jones (member of the board of directors), Amazing Spider-Man #198 (1979) Jessica Jones (reporter, consultant), Alias #1 (2001) K Dick Katrobousis (editor), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) Nick Katzenberg (photographer, deceased), Web of Spider-Man #50 (1989) Steve Keene (accountant), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) Terri Kidder (reporter, deceased), Pulse #2 (2004)  L Simon LaGrange (reporter, fired), Daredevil #242 (1987) Ned Leeds (Hobgoblin) (reporter, deceased), Amazing Spider-Man #18 (1964) Richard Lessman (reporter), Amazing Spider-Man #191 (1979) Yusef Lichtenstein (editor), Daredevil #230 (1986) Maggie Lorca (reporter), Spider-Man #29 (1992) Judy Lumley (society and fashion reporter), Peter Parker: Spider-Man #3 (1999) Eileen Lutomski (proofreader), Spider-Man's Tangled Web (2003) Laurie Lynton (columnist, deceased), Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #15 (2005) M Jeff Mace (Patriot/Captain America) (1940s reporter), Human Torch Comics #3 (1941) Ann MacIntosh (columnist, classifieds editor), Amazing Spider-Man Annual #18 (1984) Midge Marder (editor), X-Man #21 (1996) Ralfie Markarian (reporter), X-Man #26 (1997) Michael Marts (reporter), Marvel Vision #6 (1996) Maggie McCulloch (chief librarian), Marvel Team-Up #83 (1979) J.J. McTeer (reporter, deceased), Punisher: Year One #1 (1994) Joy Mercado (reporter), Moon Knight #33 (1983) Irene Merryweather (reporter, fired), Cable #48 (1997) Dawn Michaels (investigative reporter),Hulk #10 (1978) Harvey Michaelson (reporter) Amazing Spider-Man #196 (1979) Ksitigarbha "Miss Kay" Cohn (reporter), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11 (2002) Mary Morgan (Miss Patriot) (1940s reporter), Human Torch Comics #3 (1941) Daniel Morton (photographer), Daredevil #230 (1986) N Danny Nasimoff (night editor), Amazing Spider-Man #243 (1983) O Bill Oakley (reporter), Daredevil #242 (1987) Glorianna O'Breen (photographer, deceased), Daredevil #205 (1984) Norman Osborn (Green Goblin) (former owner), Amazing Spider-Man #14 (1963) P Peter Parker (Spider-Man) (former photographer), Amazing Fantasy #15 (1962) Jan Parsec (reporter), Marvel Vision #25 (1998) Jess Patton (reporter, deceased), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #1 (2001) Victor Paunchilito (reporter, columnist), Amazing Spider-Man #223 (1981) Victor Pei (assistant photo editor), Spider-Man #33 (1993) Suzie Pelkey (receptionist), Daredevil #242 (1987) Robert Pitney (typesetter), Omega the Unknown #5 (1976) Q Gus Qualen (photographer), Amazing Spider-Man #230 (1982) R David Rabinowitz (reporter), Amazing Spider-Man #187 (1978) Carl Reed (reporter), Spider-Man#13 (1991) Tony Reeves (reporter), Spider-Man Unlimited #3 (1994) Patrick Reynolds (reporter), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) Joe "Robbie" Robertson (editor-in-chief), Amazing Spider-Man #51 (1967) Fabio Rossi (advertising salesman), Web of Spider-Man #40 (1988) Armando Ruiz (janitor, deceased), Spectacular Spider-Man #137 (1988) Christine Ryan (reporter, resigned), Generation M #2 (2006) S Chuck Self (reporter, deceased), Phil Sheldon (photographer, retired), Marvels #1 (1994) Joe Sidesaddle (reporter), Marvel Vision #27 (1998) Gabriel Simms (security guard, deceased), Punisher War Journal #15 (1990) C. Thomas Sites (1940s reporter), Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos #110 (1973) Charley Snow (reporter), Marvel Team-Up #79 (1979) Jeff Stern (reporter), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) Paul Swanson (reporter, fired), Deadline #1 (2002) T Bill Tatters (reporter), Marvel Vision #23 (1998) Leila Taylor (reporter), Captain America #139 (1971) Wendy Thornton (sports writer), Amazing Spider-Man #252 (1984) Maury Toeitch (reporter), Marvel Vision #26 (1998) Reginald Toomey (security guard), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11 (2002) Dilbert Trilby (obituary writer), Spider-Man Unlimited #3 (1993) U Ben Urich (reporter), Daredevil #153 (1978) Phil Urich (Green Goblin) (former intern), Web of Spider-Man #125 (1995) V Charlie Verreos (reporter), Amazing Spider-Man #230 (1982) W Lynn Walsh (former intern), Green Goblin #1 (1995) Bill Webb (photographer), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) David Weiss (copy editor, deceased), Spider-Man Unlimited #3 (2004) Sarah Williams (photographer), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982) Spence Williams (intern), Spider-Man's Tangled Web #11 (2002) Richard Wormly (editor-in-chief's assistant), Amazing Spider-Man #19 (1964) X Bill Xanthis (rewrite man), Amazing Spider-Man #230 (1982) Y Angela Yin (photographer), Spectacular Spider-Man #215 (1994) Z Mickey Zimmer (photographer), UK Spider-Man Annual (1982)  	124698
2003	Devil Wears Prada, The	N		Weisberger, Lauren	Author once worked for Vogue editrix, Anna Wintour	Fashion Editor Miranda Priestly, the British-born Miriam Princhek who is editor-in-chief of Runway, a chic and influential fashion magazine published by the Elias-Clark company.  Andrea Sachs is an assistant to Priestly, a fashion editor "who had deliberately created a persona so offensive on every level that she literally scared people into staying skinny.” She is a recent Brown University graduate who works as a junior personal assistant. She is called Andy by her friends and family.Emily Charlton is her coworker, Miranda’s junior assistant now her senior assistant, responsible for more business-related matters such as reconciling expense statements. She and Andrea should be friends and sometimes are but have a mixed relationship as their differing responsibilities to their tyrannical superior create envy between them.Nigel, a very tall British gay man who in addition to serving as Runway’s creative director frequently appears on TV as a fashion consultant and is one of the few stars of the magazine Andrea knows prior to working there. He always speaks loudly with his words printed in ALL CAPS. He has an outrageous sense of style himself and is also the only person who Miranda allows to critique (sometimes brutally) her own personal wardrobe choices.James is another gay man at Runway who works at the beauty department who befriends Andrea. He sometimes jokes about “calling in fat” on days when he feels unattractive.Jeffy, who oversees Runway’s famous “Closet” stocked with all sorts of clothing putatively on loan from the designers for use in shoots, but rarely returned and often “borrowed” by the magazine’s staff. He is largely credited for transforming Andrea’s wardrobe so she can fit in with the fashionable hallways of the Runaway offices. The Clackers, the magazine’s many female editorial staffers, mainly comprised of Allison (former senior assistant now beauty editor), Lucia (fashion department), Jocelyn (editorial) and Stef (accessories). They are so-called (albeit dismissively) by Andrea for the sound made by the stiletto heels they wear as they walk up and down the marble floors of the Elias-Clark building. The novel begins with its main character, Andrea Sachs, stuck in midtown Manhattan traffic, trying to remember how to use a manual transmission. She has picked up the Porsche roadster that belongs to her boss, Runway magazine editor Miranda Priestly, from a shop and must return it to Miranda's apartment in time for Miranda's family to go out to the Hamptons for the weekend. While she is attempting to do this, Miranda calls on her cell phone and excoriates her for not doing her job properly. She also tells her to pick up her pet French bulldog from the veterinarian's office. Trying to comply, Andrea ruins some of the expensive designer clothing she is wearing. She wishes Miranda would die. But if that did happen, she reminds herself, she'd lose the pleasure of killing Miranda herself.In the next chapter we move back in time and learn how she got into this predicament. After graduating from Brown with a degree in English, she visited India with her boyfriend Alex Fineman and came down with amoebic dysentery. Recovered, she leaves her home in Avon, Connecticut for New York City. There she moves in with her longtime friend Lily, now doing graduate studies in Russian at Columbia, and looks for a job.A longtime reader of The New Yorker, she blankets the magazine publishing industry with her résumé, hoping to land enough experience somewhere and eventually get a job at the prestigious weekly. Still not over her dysentery, she gets a surprise interview at the Elias-Clark group. Afterwards she is hired as Miranda's junior assistant. While she knows little of her, she is told repeatedly that "a million girls would die for your job."That job is primarily doing personal errands for Miranda, who sometimes mistakenly and sometimes deliberately calls her Emily, after her predecessor who is now the senior assistant. Miranda is a classic "boss from hell" — she rarely gives enough information or time to comply with her demands, yet she routinely berates those who fail. She makes people go to great lengths to accommodate her only to change her mind after they have done so. She feels no compunction about ordering Andrea and others to do things such as getting Starbucks coffee or a steak lunch from Smith and Wollensky anew if they have become too cold for her in the meantime.People at the magazine are afraid of finding themselves alone in an elevator with her, or making critical remarks about her even to their close friends. Andrea dubs this attitude the Runway Paranoid Turnaround, as whenever one of her co-workers makes the slightest negative comment about Miranda, they immediately follow it up with a "turnaround" positive comment, due to their fear of their boss somehow finding out about their attitude and firing them.All the same, Andrea is told that if she manages to stick it out working for Miranda for a year, she can have her select pick of jobs within the magazine industry, so she valiantly struggles onward. Even in the present, the perks aren't bad — between Runway's notorious "closet" of designer clothes ostensibly "on loan" for photo shoots but rarely returned and often "borrowed" by the staff and the general obsequiousness she encounters as Miranda Priestly's personal assistant, she is able to acquire enough free designer clothing to fit in better with the rest of the fashionable Runway staff. Eventually, she develops an appreciation for it and stops incurring Miranda's displeasure. She gets a Bang and Olufsen phone for free when Miranda doesn't want it, and learns that Elias-Clark's policies regarding expense accounts are rather lax, to the benefit of herself and her friends.She also goes to parties with celebrities. At one of them she meets Christian Collinsworth, a Yale graduate who has been identified as the hot (in more ways than one), up-and-coming writer of their generation. They become attracted to each other, complicating her relationship with Alex.Her job, however, begins to affect her health; she starts to lose weight because she can't bring herself to eat. This is due to the fact that she knows that she, after years of being tall and fairly thin, is now the fat, lumpy dwarf. Eventually, she begins to rationalize her not eating by thinking that: "Missing one meal won't hurt, and anyway, $2000 pants don't look so hot on a fat girl." She realizes that she, in that thought, has begun to embody the Runway attitude.While working for Miranda, she receives a letter from a teenager, telling Miranda that she loves her magazine, spends all her money on trying to look like the models, but still hates herself because "my butt is huge" and "I'm too fat". The teenager is begging Miranda to send her a dress to wear to her prom, but ends by telling her that, even if she throws the letter in the trash can, she'll still love her. Andrea begins to doubt the true value of her job, as it is, primarily, encouraging the woman who makes teenagers all over America hate themselves as much as this one. However, she keeps going, thinking that it will all be worthwhile when she gets a job at The New Yorker.The 14-hour days she puts in almost routinely leave her little free time to spend with Alex and Lily, who is increasingly turning to alcohol and picking up dubious men in order to relieve the pressures of graduate school. Her relationship with her family also begins to suffer. Her parents complain she isn't making time to visit her older sister, who is expecting her first child. However, Andrea ignores all this, even to the point of staying at work when Lily is arrested for going 'bottomless' while on a date with her latest dubious conquest.Matters finally come to a head when Emily gets mononucleosis and Andrea must take her place accompanying Miranda to the fashion shows in Paris. She agrees, although this will mean canceling her and Alex's homecoming weekend trip, which has dire consequences on her relationship with Alex.In Paris, she has a surprise encounter with Christian. Later that night, Miranda finally lets down her guard a little bit and asks Andrea what she's learned, and where she'd like to work afterwards. She promises to place phone calls to people she knows at The New Yorker on Andrea's behalf once her year is up, and tells her she can actually do some small written pieces for Runway.But back at the hotel, she gets two urgent calls from Alex and her own parents asking her to call them. She does so and learns that Lily is comatose in the hospital after driving drunk and wrecking a car.Though Andrea is receiving much subtle pressure from her family and Alex to return home, she tells Miranda she will honor the commitment. Miranda is greatly pleased, and tells her that her future in magazine publishing is looking bright. At the Paris fashion show for Christian Dior, however, a livid Miranda phones her, demanding that Andrea replace her twin daughters' expired passports in time for them to catch their flight, in three hours time. After she hangs up, Andrea stares at her phone, trying to think how to accommodate Miranda's impossible demand. Then, Andrea finally realizes that her family and friends are more important than her job, and realizes that she is becoming more and more like Miranda. On the spot, Andrea flips out her cell phone and tells her family that she's coming home. Miranda disapproves, but Andrea tells Miranda publicly "Fuck you, Miranda. Fuck you." She is fired on the spot, but returns home to reconnect with her friends and family. Her romantic relationship with Alex is beyond repair, but they remain friends. Lily recovers and fares well in court for her DUI charge, receiving only community service.In the last chapter we learn that the fallout from her standup to Miranda made her a minor celebrity when the incident made 'Page Six'. Afraid she had been blacklisted for good from publishing, she remains in Connecticut for a while and works on short fiction. Seventeen buys one of her stories, and Andrea begins a friendly and professional relationship with one of the editors of the teen magazine, Loretta, who also happened to work for Runway prior to her tenure there. She returns to New York and gives herself a comfortable financial cushion by selling all the designer clothing she took to Paris with her to consignment shops. She saves a pair of Dolce and Gabbana denim jeans for herself, gave a quilted Prada purse to her mother, and a Diane von Fürstenberg wrap dress to the teenager who wrote to Miranda.At the novel's end, she is returning to the Elias-Clark building to discuss a writing position at another of the company's magazines. She arrives in the lobby to hear her friend, Eduardo the security guard, singing "American Pie", the goodbye song she never got to sing. She looks round, and realizes that it is, in fact, Miranda's new junior assistant, who is having to sing in order for Eduardo to buzz her through, while loaded with Miranda's coffee, shopping bags, newspapers, and her beaded clutch. She remembers that that used to be her. Eduardo winks, and buzzes her through like she was "someone who mattered."	129257
1997	Frontline: “I” Disease	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #36. 4-28-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #36. “I” Disease:When Kate (Trudy Hellier) resigns, her replacement Carla quickly starts learning the tricks of the trade from Emma: particularly that in current affairs, it isn't the story that's important, but the reporter. Before long, however, her efficiency and refusal to be trampled over by the credit-hungry reporters sees her offend Mike - who is dedicating all his time to writing his autobiography (Mike Moore, by Mike Moore), and is thus embarrassed on television and radio for not checking information that Carla prepared for him; Brooke - who attempts to claim the credit for the work that all the office staff do; and Marty - who sees the others' egotism, but not his own. Before long, it becomes clear that all of the reporters suffer from what Prowsie calls "'I' Disease", and they're the only important one in the room.Trudy Hellier's last episode.	136963
1994	Frontline: Add Sex and Stir	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #10. 7-11-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #10. Add Sex and Stir:Wen a woman is dropped from an unnamed Australian sport team, she thinks it is because she’s not a lesbian, Brooke takes the story, and attempts to transform it into a hit, but in the process ignites hatred from the sporting community. Meanwhile, Emma attempts to get Marty to take his holiday time. 	136964
1997	Frontline: Addicted to Fame	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #37. 5-5-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #37. Addicted to Fame:Mike decides that the publicity he receives is interfering with his life and he announces that he is not going to do any more publicity. Although Prowsie is at first worried about this, Trish assures him that publicity for stars is an addiction - and so they both wait to see how long Mike can go cold turkey. Geoff is told that he can run a Sunday night special about the weather, only Mike and Brooke - who doubt that it will be popular - turn down the chance to host the show. At the last minute, Marty accepts the job. When the show turns out to be a dazzling success, Mike grows jealous of Geoff's sudden publicity, and Brooke's refusal to be involved in the project suddenly becomes a desire to help out.	136965
1995	Frontline: All Work and No Fame	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #22. 9-18-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #22. All Work and No Fame:Mike’s concerns about his role with the show are amplified when Brooke is given a series of nature documentaries. To calm him down, Sam forces Marty to take Mike along on a stake-out.	136966
1994	Frontline: Art of Gentle Persuasion, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #8. 6-27-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #8. The Art of Gentle Persuasion:The team must manipulate Mike -- in one of his “serious journalism” phases -- to do a so-called expose on table top dancing. And when a crocodile victim’s husband won’t give a story to the press, Marty goes to extreme lengths to get one. 	136967
1997	Frontline: Art of the Interview, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #35. 4-21-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #35. The Art of the Interview:Steve Barrett (Jeremy Sims), an old friend of the office staff, gets promoted to executive producer of Sunday Forum, and seeks out Prowsie for advice on what to do. With the help of Emma and Marty, Prowsie explains the tips and tricks of interviews - using examples from Mike's career to illustrate them - which include fueling emotional fires instead of listening to logic, entertaining the audience, and making sure the presenter feels that he's remaining independent.This is the only episode of all three seasons where the journalists are not covering stories. It is also shorter than all other episodes, at only 19 minutes.	136968
1995	Frontline: Basic Instincts	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #18. 8-21-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #18. Basic InstinctsWhen Stu (Pip Mushin) captures a brutal beating on film, but doesn't attempt to help the man, Frontline becomes the centre of a debate about journalistic integrity. Mike, meanwhile, attempts to get a debate about euthanasia underway, and Brooke grows frustrated with developments in Emma's lovelife.	136969
1995	Frontline: Changing the Face of Current Affairs	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #23. 9-25-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #23. Changing the Face of Current AffairsWith ratings still down, the network hires Larry Hages (Harry Shearer), an American consultant who implements a series of changes in the way that Frontline runs.	136970
1994	Frontline: City of Fear	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #3. 5-23-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #3: City of FearThe Frontline team finds two stories about a murder and a kidnapping, with no likely connection and decides to merge the two together claiming that there is a serial killer. Elsewhere, Mike grows confused by his fan mail, and Brian skews the opinions of  “Media Watch” to ease Mike’s burden. 	136971
1997	Frontline: Code, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #38. 5-12-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #38. The Code:Eliott's unfunny songs displease Mike for what seems like a final time, to the point where he demands that Eliott be fired. Aware that Mike is now more important to the network than anyone else, Prowsie and Emma are forced to let him go. Although he privately hates almost everyone at the network, Mike staunchly defends "the code" whereby you never make fun of your colleague in the media. Meanwhile, Brooke is offended when a late-night sketch comedy show begin making fun of her, and she sets out to prove that she has a sense of humour. Although This Is Your Life have wanted Mike to appear on their show for years, Prowsie has attempted to derail the project since he is aware that when Mike's life is chronicled on television, it will prove incredibly boring. At last, however, he is forced to let the show profile Mike, and he sends Marty to attempt to find some interesting anecdotes from Mike's childhood... to no avail.	136972
1994	Frontline: Desert Angel, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #2. 5-16-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #2: The Desert Angel:When a beautiful young aid worker is found alive after a month missing in the desert, Brian (Bruno Lawrence) and the Frontline team get into a bidding war with Channel Nine for the interview. Elsewhere, Brooke's interview with Pat Cash has the team gossiping about their relationship.	136973
1997	Frontline: Dick on the Line	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #27. 2-24-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #27. Dick on the Line.Several years after season 2, Frontline has become the highest-rated current affairs show in the country, under the guidance of an experienced and smooth-operating Executive Producer (Alan Dale). The show, however, still targets the lowest common denominator, and continually airs manipulative pieces instead of hard-hitting journalism. When the executive producer retires, however, his replacement Graham "Prowsie" Prowse (Steve Bisley) proves to be a chauvinistic manipulator who doesn't care at all for Mike's desire to focus on important issues. As a result, Mike begins considering moving to the ABC.Steve Bisley joins the cast. In most episodes he is given top billing.From this episode onwards Jase (Torquil Neilson) now speaks. In the first two seasons, he never said a word.	136974
1995	Frontline: Divide the Community: Multiply the Ratings	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #21. 9-11-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #21. Divide the Community: Multiply the RatingsWhen the team get inside information on an attack at the Serbian Embassy, Frontline gets exclusive graphic film of the attack. As they avoid the police and the public, Sam and Marty attempt to incite racial violence through a series of live debates, while an oblivious Mike tries to find a way to ease the racial tension.	136975
1997	Frontline: Epitaph	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #39. 5-19-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #39. Epitaph:When an influential ABC journalist dies, Mike attends the funeral where he realises that he hasn't inspired anyone, and has never championed a cause without cheap concessions for sponsors and network cross-promotion. Determined to make his mark as a journalist, and to leave an epitaph that will be respected, Mike decides to tackle the problem of Aboriginal health by visiting a remote Aboriginal settlement in northern Queensland to do a week-long series of specials. His plans are complicated, however, by his own ego, his complete lack of awareness on the issues, and the fact that - back in the studio - Marty, Hugh and Prowsie are doing everything in their power to cater to the racist prejudices of the viewing audience. Stu and Trev suffer when they are forced to spend the week roughing it in the outback while Mike is flown from location to resort in his private plane. Back in the Frontline studio, Brooke gets engaged. While reluctant maid-of-honour Emma begins to suspect that Brooke doesn't have any real friends, Brooke herself finds it hard to navigate between the "necessary" publicity for her wedding, and her fiancé's demand for a private relationship.This was the longest episode of the series, with a running time of 30 minutes.	136976
1995	Frontline: Give ‘Em Enough Rope	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #26. 1-16-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #26. Give ‘em Enough Rope.Mike is stunned when he learns that Frontline has been used for cross-promotion of other properties owned by Lloyd Walsh, the Rupert Murdoch-esque owner of the network. When Walsh is suspected of breaking the cross-media ownership laws, he decides to appear on Frontline to save his reputation. But when Mike thinks (rightly) that the interview is really a puff piece and not hard-hitting journalism, he decides to set things right - with disastrous results for Frontline.This is Kevin J. Wilson's last episode. Although it is never mentioned what happened to Sam, it is likely he was fired for his role in the Walsh interview.This is also Genevieve Mooy's last episode. In the third season, the producers decided to go with a more down-to-earth publicist, who could conceivably be friends with the on-air talent.	136977
1995	Frontline: Great Pretenders, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #25. 10-9-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #25. The Great PretendersMarty and Sam bail out a neo-Nazi alleged murderer, but their attempts to pay him for his story run into trouble when they go up against the network’s legal adviser. And Mike is asked to appear on a celebrity game show special, causing the producers to worry about whether he’ll look stupid.	136978
1995	Frontline: Heroes and Villains	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #16. 8-7-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #16. Heroes and Villains:When a humble professor publishes a book of statistical analyses, the media (and Frontline) attempt to make it into a debate on racism, and Sam manipulates Mike into passionate feelings on the issue, while the Frontline staff ignore their own racial prejudices. Elsewhere, Brooke attempts to make a heart surgeon look like a hero.The main storyline is a direct parallel to a contemporary book The Bell Curve.	136979
1997	Frontline: Hole in the Heart, A (Two Parts)	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #31-#32. 3-24/31-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #31. A Hole in the Heart (Part One):When a young boy from Papua New Guinea is flown into Australia for open heart surgery, Frontline jumps on to the case. Although all the financing and work has been organised by the charity Rotary, Prowsie conspires to keep them out of the story, and give Frontline more credit. Mike refuses to get involved, leaving Marty in charge of the story but once the week-long coverage becomes popular, Mike demands to be involved, and Prowsie faces trouble keeping other media outlets from getting involved. Meanwhile, Emma and the other women begin speculating when Brooke begins acting strangely.Episode #32. A Hole in the Heart  (Part Two)As the day of Ashira's surgery nears, Marty and the team attempt to keep the story exclusive and find an entire week's storylines in what is turning out to be a relatively predictable event; and Prowsie struggles to smooth-talk his way out of not mentioning Rotary's involvement in the project. Mike's determination to be the star reporter of the story begins to wane when he is offered the chance to play golf with celebrity Ian Baker-Finch. And when Brooke informs Prowsie and Trish (Lynda Gibson) that she is pregnant, she struggles between the options of keeping her baby - which, as an unwed mother, will alienate Frontlines conservative viewership - or keeping her career.	136980
1997	Frontline: I Get the Big Names	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #34. 4-14-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #34. I Got the Big Names:Mike builds and relentlessly promotes his own profile as someone who interviews major celebrities, political figures, and other influential people from recent history. Even as he seeks an interview with Mel Gibson, Mike remains blissfully unaware that all of his interviews are actually advertisements. And when Jase is fired - for leaking audio of Brooke in the bathroom - his replacement Trev (Stephen Curry) instantly becomes a legend around the office.	136981
1994	Frontline: Invisible Man, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #9. 7-4-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #9. The Invisible Man:Brooke uses hidden camera footage to do a story on female shoplifters, causing a media outcry and debate about journalistic ethics. And when Mike is dubbed "the invisible man of current affairs", he begins a variety of publicity stunts to raise his profile.Mike's musical attempts are considered a clear dig at Stan Grant, who is an amateur musician.It was claimed in the media at the time that Grant hated the show, was convinced that Mike Moore was a caricature of him.	136982
1994	Frontline: Judge and Jury	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #12. 7-25-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #12. Judge and Jury:Brooke does a series on a priest accused of rape, and Brian decides that Frontline needs to play up the moral outrage. Meanwhile, Marty is left with the low-quality news subjects when he and his team wipe out an entire genus of butterly.	136983
1995	Frontline: Keeping Up Appearances	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #20. 9-4-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #20. Keeping Up AppearancesMike appears on the front cover of a new gay magazine, and Jan goes into damage control to make sure that Mike doesn't appear gay in public. Frontline suffers under budget cuts; and Brooke and Sam attempt to squeeze every drop of emotion, and money, from the story of a brutal attack on a prostitute.	136984
1995	Frontline: Let the Children Play	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #19. 8-28-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #19. Let the Children PlayFrontline sets up  a community service project, having Jon English build a playground for disadvantaged inner-city youth, manipulating the audience at every step. 	136986
1995	Frontline: Man of His Convictions, A	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #24. 10-2-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #24. A Man of His ConvictionsMike is accused of being a lightweight, so he sets out to have a strong opinion by joining an environmental protest.	136987
1997	Frontline: My Generation	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #28. 3-3-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #28. My Generation:Frontlines average viewer age is 64, and Mike begins to worry that the show is alienating teenagers by portraying them as vandals and drug-takers. While Emma and Mike attempt to open the show's demographics, Brooke and Prowsie continue to paint a picture of teenagers that will meet the expectations of their elderly viewers.	136988
1995	Frontline: Office Mole	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #17. 8-14-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #17. Office Mole:Mike starts tiring of his job, so Sam gives him an official-sounding but easy role as 'International Story Co-Ordinator'. A series of big stories are ruined when A Current Affair happens to do the same ones each night, leading Sam and Mike to pursue an office mole.	136989
1995	Frontline: One Big Family	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #14. 7-24-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #14. One Big Family:With the ratings down, Brian is fired from his job as executive producer. Although Emma is competent in the role, she soon begins to realise that as a young woman, she has no chance, particularly when Brian's sexist temporary replacement takes all the credit. Meanwhile, Jan (Genevieve Mooy) organises the network's new promo - One Big Family - but behind the scenes, Mike is offended by the size of his role and Brooke is refusing to shake hands with Geoff (Santo Cilauro).	136990
1997	Frontline: One Rule for One	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #30. 3-17-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #30. One Rule for One:Marty is suspended for a month after he fakes a story on Christopher Skase when he can't get real footage. Mike begins receiving threatening phone calls and being trailed by suspicious cars after he runs a story about a corrupt businessman. Believing that someone is out to get him, Mike hires a personal security guard to tail him everywhere. As the controversy surrounding Marty's light punishment grows, Mike finds everyone - including his security guard - questioning journalistic ethics.	136991
1994	Frontline: Playing the Ego Card	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #6. 6-13-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #6. Playing the Ego Card:In an attempt to gain credibility, Mike travels to Bougainville to do a week's worth of stories on a civil war. When the lacklustre nature of his story is discovered, however, Brian and Emma must attempt to spice it up. Meanwhile, the rest of the team enjoy his absence, while the network trial Brooke as anchor.	136992
1997	Frontline: Shadow We Cast, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #29. 3-10-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #29. The Shadow We Cast:After listening to Pauline Hanson's maiden speech, the Frontline crew join a media frenzy attacking her Nativist and Protectionist policies as racist until finally Hanson agrees to be interviewed. At the same time, however, Frontline runs a swathe of stories about various ethnical groups, which clearly divide racial lines and are designed to appeal to racist prejudices.Mike's interview with Pauline Hanson parodies a 1996 interview Hanson gave on 60 Minutes with Tracey Curro.For this episode only, Steve Bisley is second in the opening credits.Although this season is supposedly set several years after the previous seasons (set in 1994 and 1995 respectively), this episode is very clearly set in 1996, as evidenced by Pauline Hanson's maiden speech.	136994
1994	Frontline: She’s Got the Look	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #4. 5-30-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #4: She’s Got the Look:Brian hires Nicky Burke (Rachel Kennedy), an attractive female athlete, as a reporter -- which offends the women of Frontline, especially Emma (Alison Whyte). 	136995
1994	Frontline: Siege, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #5. 6-6-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #5: The Siege:A gripping hostage siege becomes fodder for the media. Brooke attempts to interview the gunman's mother; Marty and his camera team attempt to break the police barriers; and Brian manipulates both the network and the audience. But Mike scores the big success when he finds himself negotiating with the gunmen on television.This episode is a thinly veiled reference to a highly controversial real-life incident, in which Mike Willesee interviewed gunmen and hostages on-air.	136996
1997	Frontline: Simple Life, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episodes #33. 4-7-1997. Series on ABC. Third and Final Season. The show-within-the show becomes the most respected and well-rated current affairs program in Australia. But the politics and manipulations behind the scenes remain exactly the same. Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #33. The Simple Life:Mike's recent investments and large salary become public knowledge, threatening his image as a 'man of the people'. To get this back, Trish and Prowsie attempt to convince him to become a philanthropist, and shoot a promo advertising Mike as a common man. Meanwhile, the rest of the office - particularly Marty - attempt to make Mike's life hell, now that they know his worth. Brooke and Emma clash over a story on youth unemployment when it becomes an attack on three unemployed teenagers whom the Frontline audience are growing to hate, and tuning in more passionately each night to do so.Torquil Neilson's last episode.	136997
1994	Frontline: Smaller Fish to Fry	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #11. 7-18-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #11. Smaller Fish to Fry:After “Media Watch” criticizes “Frontlines,” Mike attempts to go for a big story that will take down some of the country’s top businessmen, but finds himself thwarted at every turn. 	136998
1994	Frontline: Souffle Rises, The	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #1. 5-9-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1955. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #1: The Souffle RisesFrontline presenter Mike Moore (Rob Sitch) wants to shed his image as the nice guy of current affairs, and tries to raise his status by interviewing people perceived to be soft targets, such as Dr. John Hewson, (not long after the infamous Birthday Cake Interview). Meanwhile, reporters Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) and Martin DiStasio (Tiriel Mora) attempt to deal with more important matters.	136999
1994	Frontline: This Night of Nights	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #13. 8-1-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #13. The Night of Nights:When a charity loses thousands of dollars, they ask the media to keep it quiet for the sake of their reputation. Brian and Marty, however, decide to go ahead with the story. Elsewhere, Mike and Brooke prepare for the Logie Awards, but Mike finds himself the only one without a date.This is Bruno Lawrence's last episode. He died before season 2 began filming. In the story it was explained at the start of season 2 that his character, Brian, had been fired off-screen.	137001
1994	Frontline: We Ain’t Got Dames	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #7. 6-20-1994. Series on ABC. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hesitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #6. We Ain’t Got Dames:With the show losing female viewers, Bran and Emma attempt to tailor the show to a stereotypical women’s market. Mike, meanwhile, attempts to get a serious story on migrant textile workers on the air, while also trying to have “Friday Night Funnyman” Elliot Rhodes fired, and film a new promo for the network. 	137002
1995	Frontline: Workin’ Class Man	T		Kennedy, Jane and Santo Cilauro, Rob Sitch and Tom Gleisner. 	Australia. Episode #15. 7-31-1995. Series on ABC. Second Season. Inspired by a 60 Minutes special “Has the media gone too far?” Some similarity to UK series, “Drop the Dead Donkey.”Series extremely popular, winning a Logie award for Most Outstanding Achievement in Comedy in 1995. It was rated #2 in the 25 all-time greatest Australian TV shows. 	Parody News. Australian comedy TV series that satirizes Australian TV current affairs programs and reporting. It ran for three series of 13 half-hour episodes in 1994, 1995 and 1997.The series follows the fortunes of a fictional current affairs show, Frontline. It competes directly with real Australian programs, Nine’s “A Current Affair” and Seven’s “Real Life” (changed its name to Today Tonight from 1995 onwards). The Frontline office parodies the machinations of the ruthless producers, the self-obsessed airhead host and the ambitious, cynical reporters. They will resort to any underhanded trick to get ratings and maintain their status. They use hidden cameras, foot-in-the-door, bullying interview techniques, checkbook journalism, attack journalism. They ingratiate themselves with the all-powerful network bosses, while the real work is in fact done by their long-suffering production staff.The station itself also runs other TV shows references by the Frontline staff: such as 6 o’clock news program, a 3-hour news review show called Sunday Forum, a sketch show (The Komedy Bunch), a game show (Jackpot), a teen soap opera (Sunshine Cove). Stories and actions of the characters are often thinly disguised parodies of recent real events and real people. Episodes such as “The Siege” were replays of controversial events that occurred a few months before as though Frontline had covered the story. Dim-witted, egotistical host is Mike Moore, a parody of current TV hosts and journalists. Combination of real-life, high-profile TV personalities such as Host Ray Martin of “A Current Affair,” Martin’s predecessor Mike Willesee, and Host Stan Grant of “Real Life.” Parallels can be seen between “Frontline” and ABC’s “Media Watch.” Much of the real life journalistic misconduct reported on “Media Watch” appear on Frontline in fictionalized form. ReportersMike Moore (Rob Sitch) anchors Frontline. He is a dim-witted narcissist poached by the network from the ABC, where he had been minor journalist from Perth. Many gags centre around how easily he is manipulated by his executive producer, the most typical case being when Mike refuses to present a story and then is convinced to run it by an appeal to his supposed fearlessness or journalistic integrity. In the first two series Mike's position is constantly under threat from senior reporter Brooke Vandenberg, who has a better press profile, but by the last series he has been cemented as one of the network's most valuable stars and considerably more effort is made to pander to his whims. While Mike is usually portrayed as simply dumb (for example, in A Man of His Convictions in series 2 he writes a letter to media commentator Stuart Littlemore full of basic spelling and grammatical errors) he occasionally surprises his colleagues with his sneakiness: in Give 'em Enough Rope (series 2) he traps the network owner into admitting to contravening the Broadcasting Act in a live interview, after first getting the owner to publicly commit to allowing him to ask difficult questions without threat to his job.Brooke Vandenberg (Jane Kennedy) is a reporter on Frontline. She is ambitious, amoral and publicity hungry. While there are constant rumours that she has affairs with male celebrities in order to build her profile, in some cases she simply creates the rumours herself; in The Desert Angel (series 1) she confesses to Pat Cash that she started a rumour about having an affair with him. Like most of the employees of Frontline, she has no ethical problems with any action the show takes to get a good story. In A Hole in the Heart (series 3) she discovers she is pregnant to a former boyfriend and is bribed into having an abortion by a new hosting offer.Martin (Marty) Di Stasio (Tiriel Mora) is a senior reporter on Frontline. He is Mike's major antagonist on the team, often baiting him about sensitive topics, such as the supposedly anti-Semitic golf club of which Mike is a member (A Hole in the Heart). He is the most experienced journalist on the team: a few references are made to him winning a Walkley Award. Like Brooke, he is uncritical of the show's journalistic tactics (although in the episode Judge and Jury, he has reservations about their persecution of a priest accused of rape, mainly because he is a lapsed Catholic); in fact he is usually the confidante of the executive producers, and the one they can trust to do what is needed to get a good story, or to persuade Mike to present a story. His position on Frontline is more tenuous than that of Mike or Brooke: in Dick on the Line (series 3) he tells Mike and Brooke that at his age he signs his yearly contract immediately and doesn't mess about negotiating.[edit]ProducersEmma Ward (Alison Whyte) is the Line Producer on Frontline. She questions the show's practices most frequently and acts as the viewers' conscience. In Heroes and Villains (series 2), she is the only member of the team to have read the supposedly racist book the show is attacking and objects to their incendiary treatment of its author. Early in series 2 and 3, the executive producers of the time approach Marty and ask him to explain Emma. Marty explains that while she has moral qualms like Mike does, she is more difficult to handle because she is intelligent. Despite often objecting, Emma is usually party to ethically questionable practices and occasionally finds them amusing. In A Hole In The Heart (part 2), to placate a director from charity organisation Rotary, she allows the executive producer to yell at her and pretend to fire her over one of the show's decisions, when in reality she is receiving a large pay rise in return for her part of the act.Kate Preston (Trudy Hellier) is the segment producer. While Kate is friendly with Emma, who has a more senior position, Kate has fewer ethical qualms about stories than Emma, and tends to be in the middle of conflicts between Emma and the executive producer.Brian (Thommo) Thompson (Bruno Lawrence) is the executive producer during series 1.Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson) is the executive producer during series 2, hired immediately after Brian is fired. Thommo and Sam's characters are similar; a hard-nosed EP who would not hestitate to air questionable stories to attract ratings.Graeme (Prowsey) Prowse (Steve Bisley) is the executive producer during series 3, hired after the producer who took Frontline to the top retires. Prowsey is much more aggressive and unpleasant than his two predecessors. He has a bad temper, is unpleasant to the staff and is unashamedly sexist: groping the female staff, dismissing bulimia as a "chick thing" and writing off Brooke's bad moods as PMS. He is however, like his predecessors, capable of being charming when needed to deceive Mike, placate Emma or feed Brooke's ego.[edit]Supporting staffDomenica Baroni (Anita Cerdic) is the office receptionist, and the only person in the office who truly admires Mike. Her increasingly bizarre hairstyles become a running gag, culminating in Give 'em Enough Rope, when she is completely bald and festooned with ribbons. Her reactions to the show usually reflect the target audience's responses. She is a reluctant and sometimes traitorous party to the office's determination to keep Mike away from production meetings. She is always very supportive of Mike and there are often hints that she actually has a crush on him.Shelley Cohen (Linda Ross) is the executive producer's secretary.Stuart (Stu) O'Hallaran (Pip Mushin) is the office's main cameraman and shoots most of Brooke's and Marty's stories. He, Marty, and Jase are all friends and frequently make fun of Mike.Jason (Jase) Cotter (Torquil Neilson) is the sound recorder who works with Stu. Jase is not actually heard speaking until series 3 despite appearing in most episodes in series 1 and 2. During the shows run it was revealed that he uses the drug ecstasy. He is fired in the episode "I get the big names" for audio taping Brooke Vandanberg while she urinates on the toilet.Hugh is the editor of videos, who is almost always seen smoking a cigarette and coughing wildly.Trev (Stephen Curry) appears as Jase's replacement as the sound recorder towards the end of the third series.[edit]Network employeesGeoffrey Salter (Santo Cilauro) is the network's weatherman and Mike's closest friend at work. Geoff usually appears in private conversations in his office with Mike, and is often the catalyst for Mike to question the reassurance he has been given by a producer that the story of the moment is being ethically pursued. He is the focus of a running gag where he will laugh hysterically along with Mike at any anecdote Mike tells him, before admitting that he doesn't get it.Ian Farmer is the Station Manager, the boss of the local studios. He appears only in season one. He and Brian Thompson are good friends, and frequently play golf together.Bob Caville is the Network's Managing Director, and definitively pulls the office into line.Jan Whelan (Genevieve Mooy) is the network's head of publicity in series 1 and 2. Jan refers to everyone as "poppet" and "darling" and has extravagantly camp mannerisms, but is in fact practical and efficient.Trish (Lynda Gibson) is the network's head of publicity in series 3.Elliot Rhodes (Boris Conley) is a comedian and musician, performing short musical sketches about current events at the end of Friday night episodes of Frontline. Mike detests his act but is required to laugh uproariously and compliment it on air every week. In 2 episodes, he was fired at Mike's request.[edit]Special guestsFrontline frequently featured celebrity cameos, unusually including major Australian politicians appearing as themselves, often but not always as interviewees. The most memorable appearance is that of Pauline Hanson in The Shadow We Cast (series 3), in which she turns her famous "please explain?" phrase on Mike. Noel Pearson appears as an interviewee later in the same episode. Other appearances include: John Hewson in The Soufflé Rises (series 1); Pat Cash in The Desert Angel; Cheryl Kernot in We Ain't Got Dames (series 1); Bert Newton; Amanda Keller and Anne Fulwood in This Night of Nights (series 1); Glenn Ridge in Add Sex and Stir and Office Mole (series 2); Molly Meldrum in Add Sex and Stir, George Negus in Add Sex and Stir and Dick on the Line (series 3) and Ian Baker-Finch in A Hole in the Heart. Harry Shearer appeared in the series 2 episode Changing the Face of Current Affairs where he played the character of Larry Hadges. Merv Hughes also starred in the series 2 episode Workin' Class Man.Other guest stars appeared in mock-ups of their own shows: Mike Moore appeared on fictitious episodes of Burke's Backyard with Don Burke, Rex Hunt's fishing show, and The AFL Footy Show with Sam Newman. Stuart Littlemore, who at the time was hosting the media commentary show Media Watch, appeared in several fictitious episodes as a critic of Frontline.Episode #15. Workin’ Class Man:When lower-income audiences start tuning out, Jan and Sam Murphy (Kevin J. Wilson), the new executive producer, attempt to change Mike's image: to make him a more down-to-earth guy. Elsewhere, Marty tries to stop Frontline from doing an exposé on a dodgy investment he's personally involved in.	137006
2005	How I Met Your Mother: Robin Scherbatsky	T				TV Reporter Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders).  Robin Charles Scherbatsky, Jr. (aka Robin Sparkles) was born to Robin Charles Scherbatsky, Sr., who was intent on having a son so Robin was raised as if she were a boy. This ended when she was fourteen and Robin Sr. caught her kissing a boy from her hockey team and realized he had a daughter after all.Robin then moved in with her mother; during that time she became a teen model and recorded a minor Canadian bubble gum pop hit called "Let's Go To The Mall" under the name "Robin Sparkles." After an accompanying music video and the ensuing year-long mall tour, she developed a serious aversion to shopping malls. Robin followed "Let's Go To the Mall" with the "artistic follow-up" "Sandcastles in the Sand." In this video, Robin as Robin Sparkles appears with Canadian star Alan Thicke as well as James Van Der Beek. As an adult, Robin is embarrassed by her teenage stardom, and though she admits resenting her father's methods of raising her, Robin still enjoys cigars, hockey, scotch, and guns.Robin was a news anchor for a New York cable news channel, Metro News 1, but now hosts her own morning talk show that airs at 4:00 in the morning. She lived in the Park Slope area of Brooklyn, as was stated in the Pilot episode and again in “Nothing Good Happens After 2 AM,” until her temporary unemployment (before the morning talk show) forced her to move in with her ex-boyfriend, and the show's main character, Ted. Like Smulders, she is originally from Vancouver, and has a younger teenage sister named Katie, who appears in First Time in New York. Although she was a reporter for "fluff news pieces" at the end of news segments at the time of first meeting Ted, over the series she has worked her way up to be lead news anchor at Metro News 1, before taking a prominent anchoring position in Japan, only to return to New York and, with help from Barney Stinson, hosting her own talk show.She has performed several embarrassing dares on television in exchange for money from Barney, including saying the word "nipple;" spanking herself; and honking her own breasts. In 'Mary the Paralegal', Robin won an award for her report on Pickles the singing dog, and attended the Local Area Media Awards show (LAMA's) with the group. She brought Sandy Rivers, a fellow reporter, as a date in order to make Ted jealous.Robin is the only main character on the show who smokes cigarettes sober (as Marshall has admitted to smoking while drinking and Lily smoked on her wedding day); however, none of the other characters, with the exception of Barney, who pointed it out, know this. Ted asks her about it in 'Moving Day', and Robin tells him no, but is then shown smoking in the hot tub in her apartment later in the episode. She has an in-depth knowledge of cigars and was shown enjoying one with Barney in 'Zip, Zip, Zip' at his cigar bar, with a glass of Johnnie Walker Blue Label, in Marshall's car in a flashback with Lily in the episode 'Arrivederci, Fiero', in a flashback very late at night before Marshall was scheduled to take the bar exam in episode 'Dowisetrepla', and with Barney in Ted's new car in 'The Chain of Screaming'.Robin is also an avid gun enthusiast, having a subscription to Guns & Ammo magazine and having taken Marshall to the shooting range in order to get over Lily. She has been known to use the word "Literally" far too often as pointed out by Ted in a season 3 episode. According to Ted, she cannot tell a lie without giggling, but she has been shown numerous times throughout the series lying smoothly.It is also revealed in 'The Goat' that by Ted's 31st birthday, Robin will be living in Ted's apartment. This happens in present-day in 'Not a Father's Day' when Robin moves into Ted's apartment after coming back from a brief job in Japan. Future Ted also reveals that Robin traveled the world and lived in many different countries.Many people thought that she was the "mother" referred to in the show's title, but this was ruled out when Future Ted is talking to his children in 'Pilot', and refers to her as "Aunt Robin." Based on this, though, is apparent that even in the future Robin remains a very important part of Ted's life and eventually the lives of his children.Relationships:Ted MosbyRobin dated Ted, who, believing he loved her, professed his feelings for her on their first date. After that incident, Ted and Robin split up, on the grounds that they wanted different things in relationships. They remained friends until it is later revealed that Robin has feelings for Ted, just as he embarks on a relationship with baker Victoria, whom he meets at a wedding. When Victoria goes to Germany for a culinary fellowship, Ted lies to Robin and tells her he and Victoria broke up in order to start a relationship with Robin. Robin, however, finds out, and this almost ends her friendship with Ted.They manage to rebuild their friendship, and in the first-season finale, Ted again professed his feelings for Robin, but she already had a date of sorts with fellow news anchor Sandy for the company camping trip. The trip, however, is canceled by a thunderstorm that Ted himself "caused" by doing a rain dance. Robin decided to finally act on her feelings when Ted went to see her that night, and the two finally embarked upon a relationship. This relationship comes to an end nearly a year later in the second-season finale, again because they both want different things in a relationship; it is at this point that Ted reveals that he no longer sees Robin as "The One."Ted and Robin's friendship post-breakup was initially somewhat rocky, and in Slapsgiving they decided to stop seeing each other. However, in the same episode they realize that their friendship is an 'involuntary reflex' and they remain close. As of Not A Father's Day, Robin has moved in to Marshall and Lily's old room in Ted's apartment. They attempt a friends-with-benefits relationship in Benefits, but Ted decides to end it after learning that Barney has feelings for her.Their former relationship has caused some tension with girls Ted has dated.Barney StinsonIn the season 1 episode Zip, Zip, Zip, when Barney is missing a wingman due to Ted's relationship with Victoria, he and Robin embark on a night of "bro" activities that include laser tag and smoking cigars. He then mistakes an invitation to her apartment to play hardcore Battleship as code for sex, at which point she confesses to him that she has feelings for Ted.In Slap Bet, Barney uses his various connections (including a man in Malaysia) to find Robin's "Let's Go To the Mall" video. At the end of the season 3 episode 'Sandcastles in the Sand,' Robin and Barney kiss while they're watching Robin Sparkles's second music video. In the next episode, 'The Goat', it is revealed they slept together. While at first she insists that it "never happened", feeling guilty, she later apologizes to Ted about the fling, explaining that she was feeling vulnerable following being dumped by high school boyfriend Simon (James Van Der Beek) a second time. Ted seems to accept this explanation, reserving his anger for Barney. For the rest of the third season, Robin and Barney continue to pretend that they never slept together.In the season 4 premiere, 'Do I Know You?', Barney tells Lily that he is in love with Robin, though he has no intention of pursuing her in a romantic relationship. He eventually attempts to tell her how he feels, but is stopped short when Robin reflects aloud that dating friends doesn't ever work out (Benefits). In the season 4 finale, 'The Leap,' after a number of false professions of love, Robin and Barney confess their true feelings for each other.In the first episode of season 5, Lily force Barney and Robin to define their relationship. They end up lying, saying that they see each other as boyfriend and girlfriend. In the end, Ted asks Lily if she knew that they were lying, but Lily says that 'they just didn't realize they weren't lying,' while we see Robin and Barney holding hands.In the episode Robin 101, Robin finally acknowledges that she and Barney are dating, and in Bagpipes, we see Barney and Robin having their first fight, which causes them to seek Marshall and Lily for advice. The couple break up in The Rough Patch, acknowledging that the two just don't work together.Lily AldrinLily and Robin are best friends and confidants. Their friendship was cemented when they spilled Thai food in Marshall's car and tried to cover it up, as shown in Arrivederci, Fiero. Robin once kissed Lily, but it was clearly not romantic.Marshall EriksenMarshall and Robin connect in the fourth season episode Little Minnesota as both are from frigid areas and enjoy the same things while in a Minnesota-themed bar. They sometimes fall on opposite side of an argument, such as how love is best portrayed (Three Days of Snow), but each admit to the validity of the other's argument and remain friends. Robin is also the most cynical of the group, whilst Marshall demonstrates his optimism frequently as a 'believer'.In “Last Cigarette Ever,” Robin is frustrated by her new co-anchor Don, a perpetual morning show anchor, who has given up ever making it to a network (despite being on one for a short Labor Day weekend). He won’t even wear pants to work and often stops reading stories in the middle of them. When he makes a mistake he says, “brain fart” because he doesn’t believe anyone is watching the early morning news show. Robin tries to prove Don wrong by getting the mayor on the show but when he cancels she starts to see that maybe he’s right. She is also trying to quit cigarettes and Don tries to get her to smoke a cigarette on the air unless someone calls. That’s when the entire gang, trying to quit, calls her and tells her not to smoke. She heads home to them and joins them on the roof -- for one last cigarette. They try. Future Ted reveals that none of them stopped smoking that day. Ted would quit two weeks into dating their mother, Barney would quit in 2017, Lily when she started trying to get pregnant, Marshall when he had his son, and Robin in 2013.	143469
1963	J. Jonah Jameson	CB			First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 1, #1 (1963). Source; Marvel	Editor John Jonah Jameson (aka J.J.J., Jolly Jonah, Flat-Top, Prune Face, others used by employees). Occupation is Owner, publisher and Executive Editor of the Daily Bugle and Now Magazine. CEO of Jameson Publications,. Philanthropist. Former publisher of Jameson News Digest. Publisher of Woman Magazine. Editor-in-chief, city editor, reporter, copy boy, paperboy of the Daily Bugle.  Place of birth: New York City, New York. Known Relatives: David (father, presumed dead). Betty (mother, presumed dead). Joan (first wife, deceased). John (Man-Wolf, son). Dr. Maria Madison-Jameson (second wife). Martha “Mattie” Franklin (Spider-Woman, foster daughter).  Group Affiliation: Century Club, Daily Bugle Staff.Education: High school dropout. Later G.E.D. and college work.Height: 5’11”. Weight 181 pounds. Blue eyes and Graying black, white at temples hair. Abilities: is an accomplished reporter, editor, and businessman, knowledgeable in virtually every aspect of print publication. He demonstrates surprising fitness, though he is subject to fits of rage, has had multiple heart attacks, and is a chain smoker of cigars. His brusque behavior, capitalistic outlook, and obsession with Spider-Man frequently mislead people into believing him less principled and compassionate than he in fact is. The son of an abusive veteran, Jameson began his journalism career as a paperboy, then copy boy for the Daily Bugle, formerly edited by old man Jameson, whom some presume to have been his father. A sullen and bullying student, he quit school after becoming a reporter. At twenty he uncovered police corruption by supposed department hero Sam Kenner; beaten and bombed, Jameson nonetheless exposed Kenner with the help of Bugle owner William Goodman. He became a full-time Bugle reporter, including a stint as a war correspondent, criticizing most costumed heroes as glory-seeking vigilantes upstaging the common man. Marrying his high school sweetheart Joan, Jameson rose to editor-in-chief and became renowned for supporting civil rights and opposing organized crime. When Goodman's heirs put the Bugle up for sale, Jameson tapped his last dollar and made the newspaper his own. He worked hard to support his wife and their son John, eventually becoming a millionaire member in New York's elite Century Club; although earning a reputation as a notorious miser, he supported many charities and often helped employees in true need. Still a reporter at heart, he ventured to Korea for a story but was crushed when Joan was killed by a masked gunman in his absence; this and other self-perceived failures contributed to his distrust of masked heroes and the heroic ideal. In recent years, when the superhuman performer Spider-Man became a crimefighter, Jameson vowed to expose him as a publicity-seeking scofflaw, and not even the rescue of John from a space flight disaster dissuaded him. He relied on photos from Peter Parker, not knowing he was employing Spider-Man himself. Jameson heralded the Spacemen as superior heroes, but this gambit failed when Spider-Man exposed them as criminals; support for Mysterio yielded similar results. Despite his many achievements, Jameson's harsh self-analysis weighed upon him, for his hatred of Spider-Man was motivated by fear that he was indeed the selfless hero Jameson could never be. Jameson hired Dr. Farley Stillwell to mutate investigator Mac Gargan into the Scorpion to defeat Spider-Man, but the debacle left Stillwell dead and the insane Scorpion hating Jameson. Plagued by guilt, the publisher confessed his actions to his friend Norman Osborn. Scientist Spencer Smythe soon offered Jameson the first of many Spider-Slayer robots, with which he battled Spider-Man to a standstill before the web-slinger escaped. Jameson rallied New York against the Kingpin's crime wave; abducted for his insolence, he remained defiant before being rescued by Spider-Man. Months later, Osborn, the Green Goblin, seemingly died in battle with Spider-Man; Jameson suspected Spider-Man of outright murder, hiring Luke Cage to bring the wall-crawler in, but desisted when John became the Man-Wolf. Jameson's obsession paled before concern for his son, but his own safety became an issue when he was attacked by the Grizzly, a violent wrestler he had blacklisted a decade before. Spider-Man rescued Jameson but chided him for the grudge; in response, Jameson hired Daniel Berkhart to harass Spider-Man as Mysterio's supposed ghost. When this failed, he contracted Farley Stillwell's brother Harlan to mutate a new operative, but fugitive Rick Deacon usurped the process and became the criminal Fly, killing Stillwell and becoming an enemy of Spider-Man and Jameson alike. Jameson mysteriously received photos depicting Spider-Man with the body of Peter Parker; the photos, sent by Osborn's drug-maddened son Harry, were actually of a clone. Jonah nevertheless kept them quiet but stepped up his traditional campaigns. He approached Dr. Marla Madison to construct her own Spider-Slayer but met no better success. Finally confronting Parker, whom he imagined had been slain and replaced by Spider-Man, Jameson believed his story of faked photography. His relationship with Madison turned romantic, and he proved his principles anew by denouncing the terrorists of the People's Liberation Front. The PLF responded by hiring the Hitman, but even in the face of death Jameson ridiculed his abductors, who were defeated by Spider-Man and the Punisher. Meanwhile, Smythe, whose obsession had outgrown even Jameson's, learned he was dying and resolved to take Jameson and Spider-Man with him to the grave. He mesmerized the Man-Wolf into abducting Jameson and fighting Spider-Man; Jameson believed John dead when he saw his son teleported away. Smythe suddenly shackled Jonah and Spider-Man with a bomb, dying afterward. Jameson broke down, admitting his obsession had harmed him far more than its subject, but Spider-Man deactivated the bomb, leaving Jameson devastated at his confession. Scientist Jonas Harrow targeted Jonah, driving him mad, but his tenacity challenged even Harrow, and after being rescued by Spider-Man, Jameson was soon his typically paranoid self. Months later, John resurfaced alive, barely remembering his extradimensional adventures, and Jameson was overjoyed with his son's cure. Longtime colleague Ian Fate resurfaced as a sorcerer in the company of the monstrous Man-Thing; naively expecting Jameson to help reshape the world, Fate lashed out when refused, but while Spider-Man fought the Man-Thing, Jameson calmed Fate and set him on a more peaceful path. Jameson himself returned to basics by investigating waterfront extortion, interrogating no less than the Kingpin and risking his life to uncover the perpetrators, albeit with unexpected assistance from Spider-Man. Perhaps in unconscious gratitude, Jameson's subsequent scheme to discredit Spider-Man with impostors proved half-hearted at best. The Hobgoblin, secretly Jameson's Century Club crony Roderick Kingsley, learned Osborn's secrets and tried to blackmail Jameson over the Scorpion's mutation. Spider-Man ended this scheme, but the conscience-stricken Jameson publicly revealed his guilt anyway, then married Marla Madison. Soon afterward, he hired the alleged mutant hunters X-Factor and the mercenary Wild Pack to bring in Spider-Man but, more at peace than he had been in years, he seemed content to restrict his castigations to the printed page. However, his vendetta literally took new form when the Chameleon imprisoned and impersonated him, bringing anti-Spider-Man sentiments to new heights. Inevitably rescued by Spider-Man, he found a new crisis awaiting him, for Thomas Fireheart, secretly the mercenary Puma, acquired the Bugle to build up Spider-Man's reputation. Jameson sought solace in his lifelong convictions, denigrating neo-Nazi Eric Hartmann in print; when Hartmann's forces invaded the Bugle, for once Jameson played the rescuer when he downed Hartmann before the madman could shoot the intervening Spider-Man. Fireheart eventually returned the Bugle to Jameson, but his control was wrested away by Norman Osborn, alive after all, but Jameson nonetheless investigated the mutant-hunting Operation: Zero Tolerance. Hoping to placate the publisher, the android-human Bastion offered him the outlaw X-Men's secrets, but Jameson refused, as his distaste for prejudice outweighed even his dislike of costumed heroes. The X-Men defeated Bastion, but Jameson was scarcely short of enemies when Osborn hired Daniel Berkhart, who had joined Mysterio's cousin Maguire Beck in the identity of Mad Jack, to force Jameson to sell the Bugle. Soon afterward, when Venom was ordered to put a scare into him, the madman mistook his instructions for a kill order, and even Jameson winced at the beating Spider-Man took in his defense. Jameson regained the Bugle when Osborn went mad in a mystic ritual, which also empowered teenager Mattie Franklin, who became a new Spider-Woman and was, ironically, entrusted to the care of the Jamesons. A different legacy hounded Jameson as Spencer Smythe's even madder son Alistair threatened Jameson's family before receiving his latest defeat. Berkhart and Beck, now Mysterio and Mad Jack, abducted Jameson but were outwitted by Spider-Man and Daredevil. Unencumbered by gratitude, he sought to capitalize on the revelation of Daredevil's secret identity but was undercut when reporter Ben Urich refused to participate. Jameson hired superhuman investigator Jessica Jones to break a similar story on Spider-Man, but Jones merely put his money to work for charity, making her later rescue of Mattie from drug dealers all the more biting. Even Jameson began to face his vendetta's futility, and his invective grew sparse. After fresh humiliation in a libel trial, he agreed to a new Bugle feature with a theoretically objective focus on super heroes, co-managed by Urich and Jones, but he was stunned by seeming proof that his son John had, inexplicably, been Spider-Man all along. Jameson's hatred of Spider-Man can only intensify when he inevitably learns the truth.	145335
1995	Jill Francis: Air That Kills	NM		Taylor, Andrew	#1 Jill Francis Mysteries	Reporter Jill Francis of the Gazette in Lydmouth, an English town,  is a heartsick London journalist visiting a former colleague and his wife in the postwar English countryside.In Lydmouth, she is caught up in a local police case involving the town ne'er-do-well's discovery of an old wooden box containing an infant's bones, a scrap of yellowed newsprint and a brooch.Police question Francis' friend's wife, whose family owns the newspaper the fragment matches. A local historian is killed. Francis, who has been helping the historian's daughter cope with her father's death, stumbles on the truth.Francis teams up with the police inspector to solve the crime.Crime Novelist Martin Edwards writes:At the start of the first installment of the series, “An Air that Kills” (1994), both Thornhill and Jill are newcomers to the old market town. Lydmouth is an insular place; Thornhill, who has come from East Anglia, quickly becomes aware that ‘anyone from outside the county ranked as a foreigner’ and lacks rapport with his boss, Superintendent Williamson. Married (Edith Thornhill is described early on as ‘an orderly woman’) with two children, he is intelligent, and also prey to strong passions. Jill has come to Lydmouth to escape from an unhappy love affair. When they first meet, Jill envisages an ‘adoring wife…Thornhill might have seemed quite handsome if his expression had not been so supercilious; he looked…like a grammar-school master whose absolute control over the boys in his charge had gone to his head.’Jill and Thornhill are attracted to each other and Taylor has himself described the series as, in effect, ‘a love story’. Over the course of the series, their relationship deepens and eventually becomes adulterous. The surface respectability of the 1950s coupled with their desperate need to keep their affair secret adds to the tension. Taylor’s choice of period was deliberate: ‘I felt it would be refreshing to write not just about a different time but also about a different moral climate from our own. The 1950s are so relatively recent that we tend to assume that they are part of the present, that people were not so very different from ourselves in 2001. But they were different. That generation sits uncomfortably on the fence between past and present. Britain had won the war, more or less, and was in the slow and inexorable process of losing the peace. We were discarding an empire and acquiring a welfare state. The political, social and economic certainties of the past were dissolving. The differences between then and now weren't just a matter of the externals - the dandruff, for example, the omnipresent cigarettes, the ill-cut demob suits smelling of sweat and the council estates jerry-built for returning heroes. There was an even bigger difference in the psychological and moral baggage that people carry around them. I wanted the plots of the novels to turn as far as possible on how people thought and lived in that extraordinary decade just after World War II.’All the books feature multiple viewpoints, a device which enables Taylor to add depth to his study of Lydmouth society. Pace derives not only from rapid switches between viewpoints but also from the timeframe: typically, the events of each novel take place over the span of just a few days, even though in some cases they represent the consequences of long ago sins. The developing relationship between Jill and Thornhill is entwined with the involvement that, in their different ways, they have with murder mysteries. Jill’s newspaper contacts provide her, on occasion, with clues not available to Thornhill through orthodox channels. As is often the case with Taylor, the puzzle element of the books is of secondary importance to the depiction of character, and here to the portrait of a particular society at a particular time. Nevertheless, the plots are more than adequate, and the way in which suspicion over the killing of Mattie Harris shifts from one person to another in “Where Roses Fade” (2000) is especially well done.Although far from unknown, it is still relatively uncommon for a crime writer to conceive a lengthy series of this kind right from the outset. More typically, a one-off book, and its detective hero or heroine, strikes a chord with readers and reviewers, thus leading to a demand for follow-ups. But Taylor was successful in securing a commission from publishers for the first three books in the series on the basis of a proposal and “An Air That Kills” painstakingly lays the ground for much that is to follow. Perhaps an analogy can be drawn between this book and the first episode in many a television series. Because of the over-riding need to establish character and setting, the story tends to play second fiddle. Certainly, “An Air That Kills” is in some respects a muted book. The atmosphere is far from being laden with sentimental fondness for the time. The bleak tone is reflected in the central crime: workmen demolishing an old inn discover the remains of a newborn child in a disused privy. Taylor has commented that the set-up enabled him ‘to use an idea I had had in my head for years - that of a body lying in a sea of poppies on Remembrance Sunday. The storyline includes an illegitimate baby and the black market; and above everything is the theme of remembrance, of the poisoning effect of nostalgia.Although the series is best read in chronological order, there is no doubt that it gains in strength as it progresses. One has the impression that Taylor – a writer unafraid to take risks and try something different, rather than sticking to formula – has become emboldened, the more comfortable he has become with the people and the place he has created. All of Thornhill’s investigations are worth reading, but those from “The Lover of the Grave (1997)” onwards are especially compelling.At an early point, Taylor had the excellent idea of taking his titles for the Lydmouth novels from the works of A.E. Housman. Much of Housman’s work is set in border country, if not quite in the Lydmouth area, and its darkness is again well suited to the mood that Taylor seeks to establish. The second book in the series was “The Mortal Sickness” (1995). As Taylor says, this introduced not only the local vicar but also ‘his wife (whose guilty secret is that she writes detective thrillers) and a clutch of decaying gentlefolk. Among the latter is Victor Youlgreave the churchwarden. Exceptionally devoted readers will recognise the surname from the Roth Trilogy and also from a novel for older children, Double Exposure, which I wrote in 1990. Victor comes from the Herefordshire branch of the Youlgreave family, rather than the junior branch which settled near London and in South Africa. I enjoy knitting together all my fiction into a single patchwork whole. Lydmouth is part of a greater world.’ “The Lover of the Grave” begins with the discovery of a corpse after the coldest night of the year. He is dangling from the Hanging Tree with his trousers around his ankles. It is not the kind of case which whodunnit writers of the 1950s, or indeed their usual readers, tended to favour, but Taylor handles the material with his customary sensitivity. The case (which proves to be one of a murder sought to be disguised as suicide) brings both Jill Francis and Richard Thornhill into contact with Ashbridge School and those who teach in it. Families play an important part in the story: as a key character puts it, ‘I was brought up to believe that one must put the family first.’ Taylor depicts the corrosive nature of many family relationships with much skill.Equally accomplished is “The Suffocating Night,” the storyline of which was influenced by a conversation that Taylor had with a woman who ‘remembered the insults she had suffered in the early 1950s because her father happened to be a communist. This was the time of the Korean War, when Reds lurked under beds, the Russians had the atomic bomb and the Cheltenham city fathers decided not to renovate the Pittville Pump Room, one of the town's architectural glories, on the grounds that World War III would soon break out.’“Where Roses Fade” (2000) features another period touch, neatly integrated into the plot. Malcolm Sedbury suffers from polio. As Taylor says, this is ‘now largely a memory but fifty years ago a disease that terrified parents and blighted children's lives. It affected the middle classes particularly badly because working class children lived in less hygienic conditions and had already developed the necessary antibodies when they routinely coped with low-level doses of infection.’ The murder victim is portrayed warts and all, but it is impossible not to be moved by her dreadful fate. This book handles very effectively the different attitudes of men and women towards sexual experience – and, in some respects, to life itself. The reaction of Thornhill when Jill tells him that she may be pregnant seems true not just to the time, but to life itself.The starting point of “Death’s Own Door” (2001) was the encouragement given to Taylor to tell Edith Thornhill’s story. The presumed suicide of a widower with a distinguished war record is the starting point this time. Edith knew the dead man; she decides to attend the funeral without telling her husband and shadows from the past begin to emerge. Sex and sexuality, as in all the Lydmouth stories, are key to the unfolding of the plot as well as to the portrayal of the society. This was a time when giving birth outside marriage was frowned upon and homosexuality illegal and Taylor explores the consequences for individuals trapped by their own desires as well as, in some cases, by their own folly. A seventh Lydmouth book, “Call the Dying” (2004). In 1998 Taylor wrote ‘The Woman Who Loved Elizabeth David’ an excellent short story with a Lydmouth setting but told from a different, first-person perspective. Edith features briefly, but not her husband or Jill Francis. Completists may find it in Past Crimes, a Crime Writers Association anthology. Presumably because it got off to a rather quiet start, the Lydmouth series is still, perhaps, less celebrated than Taylor’s first series, featuring the amoral William Dougal, his award-winning trilogy of Roth novels now collected as Requiem for an Angel or excellent stand-alones such as The American Boy.  But its quality is enduring and, although Richard Thornhill is a flawed man, he is undoubtedly likeable, as well as being a highly successful detective.	146041
1967	Joseph “Robbie” Robertson	CB			First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man, Vol. 1 #51 (1967). Source; Marvel	Editor-Reporter Joseph “Robbie” Robertson of the Daily Bugle. Occupation: Editor-in-Chief, Daily Bugle; former convict, city editor, reporter.  Citizenship: U.S.A. with a criminal record (pardoned). Born in Harlem, New York. Known Relatives:Martha (wife), Patrick Henry (son, deceased), Randolph (Randy, son), Samuel Robertson (father, deceased), Alice Robertson (mother, deceased), Amanda (Mandy, ex-daughter-in-law). Group Affiliation: Daily Bugle staff, Jameson News Digest staff . Education: Columbia School of Journalism graduate. Height: 6'1" Weight: 210 lbs. Eyes: Brown. Hair: White.Abilities: Robbie is a veteran editor, manager and reporter, well respected for his wisdom, courage and integrity. He is renowned for his saintly patience, sly wit and relentless work ethic. He has some experience with hand-to-hand combat and firearms, but is unskilled and reluctant in these areas, and seldom has to rely on violence. A lifelong pipe-smoker, Robbie is seldom seen without his trademark pipe. Joe Robertson was born to be a journalist. As a student at Harlem High School, he worked for the school paper, becoming its editor during his senior year and winning a scholarship to the Columbia School of Journalism. Hardworking and dedicated, "Robbie" was a fearless reporter-until he ran afoul of one particular subject, fellow Harlem student Lonnie Thompson Lincoln, nicknamed Tombstone. A massive albino taunted by his peers because of his appearance, the brutal Lonnie considered Robbie a friend of sorts since Robbie was one of the few who never mocked him; however, when Lonnie began using his considerable strength to extort money from classmates, Robbie prepared a story for the Harlem High paper exposing Lonnie's activities. Ambushing Robbie after school, Tombstone beat him bloody until Robbie agreed to kill the story, which never saw print. Lonnie saw this as a cordial understanding between friends, but Robbie was disgusted with himself and determined never to compromise his ethics again. Putting the Tombstone incident behind him, Joe graduated from Harlem, attended Columbia, got his degree, and landed a job several years later as a night-desk catcher with a Philadelphia newspaper. He also married his girlfriend, Martha, but Robbie's old secret would soon come back to haunt his new life. When a telephone tipster told Robbie he knew who had killed local crime lord Ozzy Montana, Robbie set up a secret waterfront meeting; but he found his informant dead in the grip of Tombstone, who had become a mob hitman with a penchant for snapping necks. Robbie fled and kept quiet about the whole incident, fearful of what Tombstone might do to him or his wife if he talked. Joe realized he had never fully recovered from his early encounters with Tombstone, and that the killer had a strange sort of hold over him. Trying to forget his Tombstone failures, Robbie threw himself back into his journalism career. He and Martha moved back to Manhattan, where Joe became a reporter for the Daily Bugle. Over the next twenty years, Robbie rose through the ranks to become the Bugle's city editor and one of the city's most respected journalists. He formed a close friendship with the Bugle's publisher and editor-in-chief, J. Jonah Jameson, supplying a calming yin to Jameson's raging yang. Though a good newspaperman at heart with a strong social conscience, Jameson has often allowed his personal biases to compromise his journalistic perspective, but Robbie's counterbalancing views have kept the Bugle's news coverage relatively fair (unlike many of Jameson's editorials). Jameson and Robertson have sharply differing views on super heroes in general and Spider-Man in particular. Jameson tends to regard costumed vigilantes with suspicion and contempt, and is consumed by a jealous loathing of Spider-Man, not knowing the hero is secretly young Bugle photographer Peter Parker. Robbie has a more objective view of New York's super heroes, judging them by their actions, and has aided Spider-Man and other heroes on many occasions. Robbie has also been something of a fatherly mentor to Peter Parker, and has often seemed aware of Peter's dual identity; but he has never voiced, exploited or acted on this knowledge, and has even protected Peter's secret on occasion, such as when he steered Bugle reporter Ken Ellis away from learning the truth. They first worked together when Robbie helped Spider-Man capture the criminal Chameleon. Later, when Robbie exposed corrupt politician Sam Bullitt, Spider-Man and Iceman teamed up to rescue Robertson from a vengeful Bullitt's thugs. Robbie went on to target another corrupt politician, mayoral candidate Richard Raleigh, and Spider-Man saved Robertson from Raleigh's savage super-agent, the Smasher, who later killed Raleigh himself. Robbie's family life often ran less smoothly than his professional life. His firstborn son, Patrick, died while still an infant. His second son, Randy, grew to adulthood, but often fought bitterly with his father over their differing beliefs. An anti-establishment radical, Randy was a key player in student protest movements at Empire State University, where Robbie sometimes intervened as both father and reporter. Ultimately deciding to pursue social work as a career rather than journalism, Randy transferred to the University of Pittsburgh, where he met and married a white Jewish woman named Amanda, much to Robbie's discomfort. Randy eventually moved back to New York and found employment as a social worker, and Robbie gradually accepted his son's mixed marriage, though Randy and Amanda later broke up. In recent times, Randy has been dating Glory Grant, long-time secretary to Jameson and Robertson at the Daily Bugle. Jameson's obsessive hatred of Spider-Man drove him to unusual lengths over the years, including the funding of several projects designed to capture, humiliate or destroy the hero. One such project created the mad super-criminal known as the Scorpion. Jameson kept his involvement secret for years, but after the Hobgoblin (Roderick Kingsley) tried to blackmail him using this information, Jameson made a full public confession and stepped down as the Bugle's editor-in-chief, promoting Robertson to replace him. While Jameson has remained a very hands-on presence in the Bugle as its publisher, Robertson has proved very successful and effective in his new role as the paper's chief editor. He has been a friend and mentor to reporters and columnists such as Betty Brant, Kate Cushing (his successor as city editor), Kat Farrell, Ned Leeds, Joy Mercado, Leila Taylor and Ben Urich. Then, at the height of Robbie's success, Tombstone brought his whole world crashing down. After years of rising through the ranks of organized crime as a Philadelphia mob enforcer, Tombstone began working for New York crime boss Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin. Consumed by guilt over having helped make Tombstone's many murders possible with his silence, Robbie confronted Tombstone with a gun, intending to take him into custody and tell the police everything. Lonnie overpowered Joe and seriously injured him, seemingly breaking his back. By this time, Robbie had left an audiotape with Peter Parker, confessing his role as an accessory in Tombstone's criminal career. But when Tombstone menaced the crippled Robertson in the hospital, Joe began to have second thoughts about going to the police. Berated by Parker and reporter Ben Urich for his weakness, and supported by Randy, Robbie finally worked up the courage to face his fears. He rapidly regained his mobility through physical therapy, and made a full confession of his Tombstone secrets to his Bugle colleagues and the public. Robbie offered to resign his editorial post, but Jameson refused to accept his resignation. Lonnie, meanwhile, had been captured by Spider-Man, who was baffled by Tombstone's admission that he spared Robertson's life because he still regarded Robbie as his friend. The public and Robertson's colleagues seemed prepared to forgive his mistakes, but a corrupt Kingpin-connected judge sent Robbie to prison for his indirect role in Tombstone's crimes. To make matters worse, Tombstone fixed it so that he and Robbie ended up in the same federal prison, where Lonnie and his cronies could continue to haunt his old friend. Robertson befriended a massive convict known as Bruiser, who acted as his bodyguard for a time, but Bruiser was ultimately taken unawares and beaten to death. Later, Tombstone broke out of prison, taking Robbie with him as a hostage. When Spider-Man intervened, Tombstone had the hero at his mercy and was about to kick him off an airborne helicopter, but Robbie tackled Tombstone first, sending himself and Lonnie hurtling toward Earth. Incredibly, they survived the fall and landed in a riverbed on Amish farmland, where Tombstone forced the Amish folk to treat the seriously injured Robbie, then challenged Robertson to a duel to settle their differences. Robertson was taking a beating until he finally struck back by stabbing Tombstone with a nearby pitchfork. Badly wounded and shocked that his "friend" Robbie would do this to him, Tombstone staggered off alone, and Robbie turned himself in to the authorities; however, the late Bruiser's brother, attorney Stuart McPhee, used his connections to secure Robertson a Presidential pardon. Robbie was released from prison and reclaimed his post at the Bugle. Tombstone soon resurfaced and Robertson confronted him again, this time shooting Lonnie; as a result of this encounter, Tombstone was accidentally exposed to an experimental gas that made him superhumanly powerful. Pleased with this outcome, even grateful, Lonnie gave up his vendetta against Robertson and told Robbie their debts were settled, though Tombstone remains active as a dangerous super-criminal. Robertson, meanwhile, has remained a mainstay of the Daily Bugle. When Thomas Firehart (alias Puma) engineered a hostile takeover of the paper as part of a misguided scheme to improve Spider-Man's reputation, Robbie was among the Bugle veterans who joined Jonah in publishing the new Jameson News Digest until Jameson regained control of the Bugle and they all returned to their old positions. Later, when corrupt industrialist Norman Osborn seized control of the Bugle, Robbie resigned in protest, but returned after Jameson squeezed Osborn out. More recently, Robbie has finally made some headway in moderating the anti-super-hero views of Jameson, and they have hired retired super hero Jessica Jones to collaborate with Ben Urich on a superhuman affairs column called The Pulse, but both Urich and Jones subsequently quit the Daily Bugle.	146554
1997	Kate Reed: Who Dares Win (Anno Dracula 1980)	SS		Newman, Kim	Vampire Journalist Kate Reed in the Anno Dracula Series. Online Story on Kim Newman’s Web Site.	Journalist Kate Reed, a radical vampire journalist who became a vampire 30 years ago and helped send Dracula packing out of England. Alternate history: the 1980 Iranian Embassy Seige with vampires and transferred to the Romanian embassy.She is invited into the Romanian embassy in London to meet the leader of the terrorists. The embassy has been taken over by “freedom fighters” who want Transylvania to become a homeland for the undead. As Special Air Service troops mass for an assault, Kate tries to negotiate a peaceful solution to the problem. The story:Palace Green was blocked, an armored car emphasising a point she would have thought established sufficiently well by police vans. Uniformed coppers -- the Special Patrol Group, of recent ill reputation -- and camo-clad squaddies were kitted up for riot, as natives kept out of homes and offices muttered themselves towards a resentful shade of disgruntled. To Kate Reed, this patch of Kensington felt too much like Belfast for comfort, though passing trade on Embassy Row -- veiled woman-shapes with Harrod's bags, indignant diplomats of all nations, captains of endangered industries -- was of a different quality from the bottle-throwers and -dodgers of the Garvachie Road.TV crews penned beyond the perimeter had to make do with stories about the crowds rather than the siege. Kate saw Anne Diamond, collar turned up and microphone thrust out, sorting through anxious faces at the barrier, thirsty for someone with a husband or girlfriend trapped inside the Embassy or, better yet, among the terrorists.'Evenin' miss,' said an elderly bobby, the survivor of a notionally more genial past, bewildered among the armored thugs now sharing his uniform, 'it's been a funny old week at Palace Green ...' Sensing the imminence of an anecdote with a moral, Kate showed him her NUJ card and won open sesame. 'We've been waiting for you,' he said, with fatherly concern, lifting a plank from the barrier. 'This is a rum old do and no mistake.'Anne Diamond and a dozen other broadcast and print hopefuls were furious that one of the least significant of their number had a free ticket to the big carnival. It wasn't even as if Kate were the only vampire hack on the street. She'd spotted Paxman, drifting incorporeally in mist-form through the crowds. She was, however, the only journo Baron Meinster would talk with.For two years, she had been waiting for the Transylvanian to call in the favour he'd granted by spiriting her out of Romania via his underground railway. She knew he'd helped her to spite the Ceausescus, with whom he had a long-standing personal feud, but his intervention still saved her life. This was not what she had expected, but the development didn't surprise her either. Since Teheran, embassy sieges had become a preferred means of the powerless lording it over the powerful. Not that the Baron, soi-disant First Elder of the Transylvania Movement, would consider himself powerless.A tall, mustached vampire in police uniform took charge of Kate with a firm grip on her upper arm. Her real police sergeant kept his distance, and retreated without offering the traditional cup of tea.'Daniel Dravot,' she said, 'it has been a long time.''Yes, Miss Reed,' said the vampire, unsmiling.'Still Sergeant Dravot, I see. Though not truly of the Metropolitan Police, I'll wager.''All in the Service of the Queen, Miss Reed.''Indeed.'She was walked over to the command post, a large orange workman's hut erected over a hole in the pavement. Dravot lifted a flap-door and ushered her inside.he found herself among uncomfortable men of power.A plainclothes policeman sat on a stool, hunched over a field telephone whose wires were crocodile-clamped into an exposed circuit box. Down in the pit, ear-phones worn like a stethoscope under long hair, was a thin warm man of undetermined age; he wore New Romantic finery -- full-skirted sky-blue highwayman's coat, knee-boots and puffy mauve britches, three-cornered hat with a feather -- and jotted notes on a pad in violet ink. Above them, literally and figuratively, hovered three vampires: a death-faced eminence grise in a gravemold-grubby Ganex mac, a human weapon in a black jump-suit and balaclava, and a willowy youth in elegant grey.She recognised all of these people.The policeman was Inspector Cherry, who often wound up with the cases involving vampires: a solid, if somewhat whimsical plod. The dandy in the ditch was Richard Jeperson, chairman of the Ruling Cabal of the Diogenes Club, longest-lived and most independent branch of British Intelligence. He had inherited Dravot from his late predecessors, to both of whom Kate had been close, Charles Beauregard and Edwin Winthrop. The vampires were: Caleb Croft, high up in whatever the United Kingdom called its Secret Police these days; Hamish Bond, a spy whose obituaries she never took seriously; and Lord Ruthven, the Home Secretary.'Katie Reed, good evening,' said Ruthven. 'How charming to see you again, though under somewhat trying circumstances. Very nice piece in the Grauniad about the Royal Fiancée. Gave us all the giggles.'Ruthven, once a fixture as Prime Minister, was back in the cabinet after a generation out of government. Rumoured to be Margaret Thatcher's favourite vampire, he was horribly likely to succeed her in Number Ten by the next ice age, reclaiming his old job. He brought a century of political experience to the ministerial post, and a considerably longer lifetime of survival against the odds. If he recalled that he and Mr Croft had put a price on Kate's head in the 1890s, he tactfully didn't mention it.'She's here,' said Cherry, into the phone.The policeman passed her the set, hand over the mouthpiece.'Try to find out how many of them there are,' said Jeperson in a stage-whisper. 'But don't be obvious about it.''I don't think we need teach Katie Reed anything,' said the Home Secretary. 'She has a wealth of varied experience.'Unaccountably, that verdict made her self-conscious. She knew about all these men, but they also knew quite a bit about her up-and-down career. Like them all, she had wound in and out of the century, as often covered in blood as glory. Ever since her turning, she had been close to the Great Game of power and intelligence.Kate put the phone to her head and said 'hello'.'Katharine,' purred Baron Meinster. His unretractable fangs gave him a vaguely slushy voice, as if he were speaking through a mouthful of blood.'I'm here, Baron.''Excellent. I'm glad to hear it. Is Ruthven there?''I'm fine, thank you, and how are you?''He is. How delicious. Ten years of dignified petitions and protests, when all I needed to do to get attention was take over a single building. How do you like the banners? Do you think He would appreciate them?'She knew who Meinster meant when he said 'He'.The flags of the Socialist Republic had been torn down, and two three-story banners unfurled from the upper windows of the Embassy. They were blazened with a tall black dragon, red-eyed and fanged.'It's time to revive the Order of the Dragon,' said Meinster. 'It's how He got His name.'She knew that, of course.'People here want to know what you want, Baron.''People there know what I want. I've been telling them for years. I want what is ours. I want a homeland for the undead. I want Transylvania.''I think they mean immediately. Blankets? Food?''I want Transylvania, immediately.'She covered the mouthpiece and spoke.'He wants Transylvania, Home Secretary.''Not in our gift, more's the pity. Would he take, say, Wales? I'm sure I can swing Margaret on that. The taffs are all bloody Labour voters anyway, so we'd be glad to turn them over to that drac-head dandy. Or, I don't know, what about the Falkland Islands? They're far distant enough to get shot of without much squawking at home. The Baron could spend his declining years nipping sheep. That's all they ever do up in the Carpathians, anyway.''There might be a counter-offer, Baron,' she told him. 'In the South Atlantic.''Good God, woman, I'm not serious. Tell him to be a nice little bat and give up. We'll slap his wrist and condemn him for inconveniencing our old mucka Ceausescu and his darling Elena, then let him do an hour-long interview with Michael Parkinson on the BBC, just before Match of the Day. He should know we like him a lot more than the bloody Reds.''Is that an official offer?''Not in my lifetime, Miss Reed. Will he talk to me?''Would you talk with the Home Secretary?'A pause. 'Not really. He's an upstart. Not of the Dracula line.''I heard that,' said Ruthven. 'I've been a vampire far longer than Vladdy-Come-Lately Meinster. He was turned in the 1870s, and he's basically little more than a Bucharest bum boy. I was already an elder when he was sucking off his first smelly barmaid.'They might be of different bloodlines, but Ruthven and Meinster were of similar type. Turned in their golden youth, they remained petulant boys forever, even as they amassed power and wealth. To them, the world would always be a giant train-set, and engineering crashes was great fun.'Katharine,' said Meinster, 'you had better come visit.'She really wasn't keen. 'He wants me to go inside.''Out of the question,' said Croft.'Not wise, Kate,' said the spy. 'Meinster's a mad dog. A killer.''Commander Bond, your concern is most touching. Are you with the SAS now? Or is everybody dressed up in the wrong uniform these days? What do they call it, "deniability"?''Aren't you supposed to be a secret agent, Bond,' sniped the Home Secretary. 'Does everybody know who you are?''I met Miss Reed on an earlier mission, sir.''That's one way of putting it, Hamish Bond.''Rome, 1959,' said Jeperson, from the pit. 'Not one of the Club's notable successes. The Crimson Executioner business. And the death of Dracula.'Lord Ruthven ummed. 'You were mixed up in that too, weren't you? How you do show up, Katie. Literally all over the map. A person might think you did it on purpose.''Not really.''We can't let a civilian -- an Irish national at that -- compromise the situation,' said Croft. 'Give the word, and I'll send in Bond and settle Meinster's hash. Set-ups like this are why we have people like him.'Bond stood at attention, ready to kill for England.'Margaret would have our heads on poles, Croft. And I'm not ready to become an ornament just yet. Katie Reed, do you solemnly promise not to succumb to the Stockholm Syndrome? Meinster's a fearful rotter, you know. Good looks are no guarantee of good character.''I've met him before. I was not entirely captivated.''Good enough for me. Any other opinions?' Everyone looked as if about to say something, but the Home Secretary cut them off. 'I thought so. Katie, our hearts go with you.''Wouldn't you rather have a gun?' asked Jeperson.'Ugh. No. Nasty things.'he was marched again, with Dravot taking hold of her arm in exactly the same place, to the front line, the pavement outside the Embassy. Power had been cut off to the street-lamps as well as the building, but large floodlights illuminated the Dragon banners, projecting human silhouettes against the walls. It must look very dramatic on television, though she overheard Paxman arguing down the line with a BBC controller who wanted if no one was being murdered just now to cut back to the snooker finals. As she approached the Embassy, there was some excitement among the crowd, mostly from people asking who the hell she was.Kate looked up and saw no faces at the windows. SAS snipers with silver bullets in their rifles were presumably concealed on the nearest rooftops. Men like Hamish Bond were trained to use crossbows with silver-tipped quarrels. There were even English longbowman schooled in Agincourt skills, eager to skewer an undead with a length of sharpened willow.On one side, Jeperson suavely ran down what they knew about the situation inside the Embassy. On the other, Croft brutally gave bullet points about the things they'd like to know.So far as they understood, there were about twenty-five hostages, including the Romanian Ambassador, whom no one would really miss since he was a faceless apparatchik, and Patricia Rice, a pretty upper-middle class student who had been visiting in order to arrange a tour of collective farms by her Marxist Student Group. As a bled-dry corpse, Rice would be a public relations nightmare: her great-great uncle or someone had once been a famous comedian, and news stories were already homing in on her. The viewers were following the siege just to see if the posh bird made it through the night. Besides Meinster, there were perhaps five vampire terrorists. It was imperative she confirm the numbers, and find out what kind of ordnance they were packing besides teeth and claws. From what she remembered of Meinster's Kids up in the Carpathians, they didn't need that much more.As they reached the front doorstep, Dravot let her go.Everyone backed away from her in a semi-circle, skinny shadows growing on the Embassy frontage.In theory, Kate could be arrested if she crossed the threshold. The Embassy was legally Romanian turf and she remained a fugitive from state justice. It occurred to her that this would be a needlessly elaborate way of whisking her back to the prison she had clawed her way out of. Which didn't mean the Securitate, besides whom the SPG were lollipop men, weren't up to it.She thought of pressing the bell-button, but remembered the power was off. She rapped smartly on the door.The report was surprisingly loud. Weapons were rattled, and she turned to hiss reassurance. If anything would be worse than being bound in a diplomatic pouch and sunk in a Bucharest dungeon, it would be getting shot dead by some jittery squatty.The door opened and she was pulled inside.n the dark lobby, her eyes adjusted instantly. Candles had been stuck up all around and lit.She had been taken by two vampires. A rat-faced fright who scuttled like an insect, his unnaturally elongated torso tightly confined by a long musty jacket with dozens of bright little buttons like spider-eyes. And a newborn girl with a headscarf, bloody smears on her chin, a man's pinstripe jacket, Doc Martens boots and a submachine gun. The girl's red eyes told Kate exactly how she felt about her: hatred, mistrust, envy and fear.'Patricia Rice?' Kate asked.The newborn hissed. She had been turned recently, in the four days since the siege began.No one had told her Meinster was making vampires of the hostages. It was the surest way of triggering the Stockholm Syndrome, she supposed. Rice had given up Marxism and pledged herself to a new cause.She remembered Meinster in the mountains, explaining why the Transylvania Movement would win.'We can make more of us,' he had said. 'We can drown them.'Rice took her hand and tugged. Kate stood her ground.She had been a vampire for nearly a century. This fresh immortal needed a lesson in seniority. Meinster was a fanatic for bloodline, pecking order and respect for elders. It was one reason he was wrong about long-term strategy: he could easily make more vampires, but not more like him. As Ruthven said, he was a parvenu anyway, a pretend-elder barely older than Kate. If Dracula were still King of the Cats, Meinster would never be taken seriously by anyone.She broke Rice's hold.'Just take me to your leader,' she said.The rat-nosferatu led the way. He moved jerkily, like a wrong-speed silent movie. He was one of the very old ones, far beyond the human norm. Kate had met creatures like him before and knew they were among the most dangerous of vampire kind. They were all red thirst, and no pretense about civilization or magic.She was taken upstairs to a high-ceilinged conference room. Freestanding candelabra threw active shadows on the walls. Hostages were tied up, huddled against the walls: their arms were striped with scabs, but not their necks. Meinster was conserving his resources.The Baron stood in one corner, with his lieutenants. They were vampire kids, child-shaped but old-eyed. These were his favored troops, not least because he wasn't himself very tall or broad. On Not the Nine O'Clock News, he was impersonated (very well) by Pamela Stephenson.Meinster wore a very smart grey cloak, over a slightly darker grey frock coat and riding boots. His ruffled shirt would have looked better on Adam Ant. His hair was improbably gold, gelled into a fixed wave. His smile was widened by his fangs.One of his lieutenants had a gun to match Rice's; the other held Meinster's two poodles. In the forest, Kate had seen Meinster kill another vampire for ridiculing his beloved dogs. They were vampire pets, little canine monsters with sharpened fangs, fattened on drops of baby-blood. They must have been smuggled into the country despite quarantine regulations designed to keep undead animals like them out -- a more serious crime than terrorism in the opinion of many Home Counties pet owners.'Katharine, well met.''Baron,' she acknowledged.'She was insolent,' hissed Rice. 'I hate her already.''Shush up, Patty-Pat,' said Meinster.'We don't need her. We only need me. You said so, when you turned me. You said you only needed me. Me.''Am I beginning to detect a theme tune?' suggested Kate. '"The Me Song"?'Rice raised a hand to slap but Kate snatched her wrist out of the air and bent her arm around her back. She got snarled up on the strap of her gun.'You turned this girl, Baron?'Meinster smiled artfully, a boy caught out.'Things must be desperate.'She let Rice go. The newborn sulked, face transforming into a bloated mask of resentment and self-pity. She should watch that tendency to shapeshift, or her scowl might really stick. She had Mr Rat-features around as a dire example of the syndrome.'May I offer you someone to drink, Katharine. We've a fine selection of fusty old bureaucrats. Oh, and three cultural attachés who admit that they're spies.''Only three?''So far. We can offer Ruthven some interesting documents from the secret files. Nicolae and Elena tell the world about modernisation and harmony with the West, but we both know they play a different hand at home. My old comrade has much to hide, and I'd be most willing to share it with your lovely Mrs Thatcher.''She's not mine. I'm Irish, remember.''Of course, Katharine. Potato famines, Guinness, Dana. I am well up on the West. As a coming man, I have to learn all these things. Just as He did, a century ago.'When he so much as hinted at the name, his eyes were radiant. She thought she saw tiny twin bats flapping in his pupils.'You so want to be him, Baron. How well did you know him?''He was more a father to me than any human family. More a mother. More anything.'On the subject, Meinster was blind. To him, Dracula was the King of the Cats, the fount of wisdom and destiny, a God and a champion. Kate knew too many vampires like the Baron, forcing themselves to be what they imagined Dracula had been, hoping to become everything he was but not knowing the whole story.'At the end, he wanted to die,' she said. 'I saw that.''You saw what you wanted to see, Katharine. You are not of his direct bloodline.''I wish that were true.''Heresy,' shouted Rice, raising her gun and fiddling with anything that might be a safety catch. 'She defiles the name of the Father-in-Darkness.'Meinster nodded, snake-swift. The old nosferatu, rodent-ears twitching, took the new-born's gun away from her.'Thank you, Orlok,' acknowledged Meinster.Kate looked again at the reeking thing. She knew who Graf von Orlok was. During the Terror, when London rose against the rule of Dracula, he had been in command of the Tower, where the 'traitors' were kept. If she had been less fortunate during her underground period, she might have met Orlok before. Several of her friends had, and not survived.Sometimes, she forgot to be afraid of vampires. After all, she was a bloodsucking leech too and no one was ever afraid of her. Sometimes, she remembered.Now, looking at the spark in Orlok's grubby eyes, she remembered the first vampires she had seen, when she was a warm girl and the dead were rising all around.In her heart, nightmare spasmed.'Katharine, I will prevail,' said the Baron.'How? The British Government doesn't negotiate with terrorists.'Meinster laughed.'What's a terrorist, Katharine? You were a terrorist. And you've just had a conversation with the Home Secretary. Once upon a time, you were a wanted insurrectionist and Orlok was a lawful authority. Once Nicolae Ceausescu was a terrorist, my partisan comrade, and the Nazis were our enemy.'That was true.'And, in our homeland, you were unjustly accused of murder, hunted by corrupt police. Then, when you came to me in the mountains, we had common cause. Nothing has really changed. we have been adrift, I'll admit. Since He passed, we have pretended to be humans, to be just another of the many races of mankind, but we are not. You've never lived with your own kind, Katharine. You've spent a century working with them, fighting for the cattle. Yet they still fear and loathe you. Here in England, the warm are polite and pretend not to despise us; but in our homeland, you must have seen the truth. Vampires are hated. And we must be hated. Our inferiors must hate and fear and respect us. He knew that. His was the vision we must struggle to bring about. We must be the princes of the Earth, not the servants of men. Then, believe me, He will rise again. What you saw was an illusion. Dracula does not die and become dust.'Meinster was trembling with excitement, a boy dreaming of Christmas morning.Kate saw Patricia Rice, adoring her father-lover-fiend.'First, Transylvania ...'Meinster let it hang.'I've seen who's out there,' said Kate. 'I know what they can do. Having hostages won't help. You had one card, and you've played it badly.'She nodded at Patricia Rice.'On the contrary, she was my masterstroke. Are you not, dearest Patty-Pat?'He reached out and touched Rice's face. She squirmed against his hand, like one of his fanged poodles.'She will be my Elena, when I rule. The first of my Elenas.'The Baron gave orders to Orlok, in rapid Romanian. Kate only picked up a few words. One of them, of course, was 'death'.'First, the fire,' said the Baron, sweeping over a candelabrum. Flames caught a tablecloth and swarmed over the furniture. The hostages began screaming. 'Now, we make a dramatic departure.'He leaped up onto a windowsill and posed against a tall window. Searchlights outside swung to light him up. He was a swashbuckling figure, cloak swept back over his shoulders.'To me, my brides.'Rice hopped up to nestle under one arm. He stretched the other out, beckoning to Kate.'Become a bride of Dracula, my fiery Irish colleen.''That's far too presumptuous, Baron.'Orlok picked her up and tossed her to Meinster.'Comfy?' he asked the two. Kate saw Rice almost swoon in delight, but didn't understand it herself.Apart from all other considerations, she could have sworn Meinster was gay.He leaned against the windows and smashed through.For a moment, Kate assumed the Baron, like his supposed father-in-darkness, could grow wings and fly. Then gravity and reality took over.They plummeted to the pavement.Meinster sprang up like a cat. Kate, badly shaken, rolled into the gutter. Rice, knees and ankles broken, howled as the bones knit back together.People rushed forward.'I have surrendered,' Meinster announced. 'To these flowers of English and Irish vampire maidenhood.'A black-clad figure swarmed up the front of the Embassy, to the broken window. Flames were already pouring out, blackening the sill.There was gunfire inside the building.Richard Jeperson helped her stand and brush herself down, showing real concern. His style was more Charles Beauregard than Edwin Winthrop: she wondered how long he could last under the likes of Ruthven and Croft, not to mention Margaret Thatcher.Along with the police, TV crews surged forward.She heard commentators chattering, speculating on the rapid pace of events.Another vampire was tossed out of the window, turning to a rain of ashes. Hamish Bond was doing his job. Kate thought Orlok might give him a fight, then she saw Dravot, out of his police helmet, signalling a cadre of black ninja-suited men, vampires all, to move in. Britain had been working for a century to create the vampires it needed rather than the ones imposed upon it.The front door was smashed. Vampires crawled head-down from the flat roof and lizard-swarmed in through upper-storey windows. It was over in moments.Jeperson and she were separated from the action by a press of people. Between riot shields, she saw Meinster and Ruthven facing each other, warily but without going for the throat. It was as if they were looking in reflecting mirrors for the first time since their turning.'What was the point?' she asked. 'This was all arranged between them. This wasn't a siege, it was a pantomime. It's not about vampires, it's about communism.'Jeperson was sad-eyed.'You of all people know Romania,' he said. 'You've seen what happens in the satellite countries. There's no real detente. We have to get rid of the whole shoddy system. Nicolae Ceausescu is a monster.''And Meinster is better?''He isn't worse.''Richard, you don't know. You weren't there during the Terror. When people like Meinster, and people like Ruthven, are in charge, people like you, and people like me, get shoved into locked boxes. It happens slowly, without a revolution, without fireworks, and the world grows cold and hard. Ruthven's back, and you're supporting Meinster. How long will it be before we start praying for Dracula?''I'm sorry, Kate. I know a lot about you. I do understand.''Why was I here?''To be a witness. For history. Beauregard said that about you. Someone outside the Great Game has to know. Someone has to judge.''And approve?'Jeperson was chilled. 'Not necessarily.'Then, he was pulled away too. She was in a crowd.A cheer rose up. A line of people, hands on heads, bent over, scurried out of the Embassy door. The hostages. Among them was Orlok, with the poodles. She would have bet that he would survive.She tripped over thick cable, and followed it back out of the press of bodies. A BBC OB van hummed with activity.This was news. She was a newspaperwoman.Somewhere near, she would find a phone. It was time to call her editor.	147350
2010	Law & Order: Blackmail	T	DVD -R HQ 11715		Episode. 1-15-2010	Freelance Journalist Megan Kerrick writing for Citysmear.com is murdered and the detectives find a connection between her and a talk show host who has had a series of workplace affairs. Editor Dennis DiPalma (Raul Esparza) of Citysmear.com.She works from home and after her murder, her laptop is stolen. She was doing a story on female workers who sleep with their female bosses. One of her sources, Sara Bradley, didn’t want to talk about it. Her boss is Vanessa Carville  (Samantha Bee), a vicious TV talk-show host of the program, “The Sisters,” who has slept with many of her female employees, even though she is married. She knew Megan Kerrick was working on the story, and she had slept with Kerrick and got dumped by her.  DiPalma, Megan’s editor, blackmails Carville and is caught in a sting. He claims the blackmail is bogus. When Megan brought him the story, the police say he had a better idea: to blackmail her and put the money in an offshore account.  So he hijacked Megan’s story. DiPalma says he is looking forward to telling his whole story in court. They say DiPalma is a practicing journalist not a blackmailer. Another journalist, Derek Fanning, is now acting editor for Featureliteristics. Turns out DiPalma was hard up for money and Derek suggested the blackmail plot., Derek also killed Megan to keep her from talking. Fake story in the New York Ledger says DiPalma is receiving half-a-million dollars to write a book about Carville brings the case to a conclusion when Derek and DiPalma have a falling out. Megan’s missing laptop is found abandoned in a coffee shop. Shows DiPalma having rough sex with Megan the day of the murder. DiPalma was forced to look as if he were strangling Megan because Derek was holding a gun on him. When Megan said she would have nothing to do with the blackmail plot, Derek killed her and hid her body. DiPalma says he did whatever Derek told him. DiPalma takes a plea to testify against Derek. Many elements of “Blackmail” are inspired directly from the David Letterman scandal. Like Letterman, Carville finds an envelope with an extortion demand on her way to work. Both Letterman and Carville decided to go public with the information rather than pay the blackmail, and both made on-screen confessions about their affairs during a broadcast of their talk show. In a restaurant, reporter Megan Kerrick tells another woman that she would be a totally anonymous source, but the other woman says she doesn’t understand the point in talking about it. She concerned someone would figure out her identity. She adds she has a new job and isn’t widely considered a slut and things are fine the way they are. But Megan argues that it is not right, and it keeps happening over and over. The other woman responds that she’ll think about it and will let her know.Later, Detectives Cyrus Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) and Kevin Bernard (Anthony Anderson) arrive at the scene of an uncompleted building, the police officer saying that the developer ran out of money. Construction ended 6 months ago and security is “half-assed.” Someone called in finding the body using 911 at a pay phone and the caller left no name. They see a woman’s body lying underneath the metal; it is the reporter we saw at the restaurant. Lupo sees bruises on her neck, but there is no blood. The police officer tells them no purse or ID was found, and wonders if she is a “working girl” who brought a john up there. But Lupo says her clothes are clean, no track marks on her arm, and no chops in her manicure. The police office comments that she could have been there forever before anybody found her, and Bernard responds he thinks that was the plan.At the morgue, ME Rodgers (Leslie Hendrix) tells the detectives the victim died last night, and she was strangled. There is no vaginal tearing and no semen so she hadn’t had sex recently or she used a condom, but Rodgers did find a public hair on her upper inner thigh that is not her. It’s the wrong gender, and Rodgers tells them to find the penis it belongs to and they will have a lead. Lupo says they will get right on that.Bernard enters Lt. Anita Van Buren’s (S. Epatha Merkerson) office to tell her they got a hit, but she is distracted by her medical bills. She realizes she was charged $89 for a “mucous recovery system” – a box of tissues. The Jane Doe is Megan Kerrick, her fingerprints matched a set in the Pentagon’s database, she was a freelance journalist who accompanied the USO troops to Afghanistan. The Pentagon takes their prints and DNA in case they are blown up. Lupo enters and tells them they also list next of kin, and he just got off the phone with her sister in San Diego who told him Megan wasn’t married, she never heard of any boyfriend, and that Megan spent most of her time writing for a web site called Citysmear.com, a site that digs up dirt on celebrities and others, the more embarrassing the more they like it. Van Buren tells them to find out who Megan has been embarrassing lately.At the offices of Citysmear.com, they speak with the editor Dennis DiPalma (Raul Esparza) who asks if Megan’s death has been reported yet. Bernard asks if he is looking for a scoop, and DiPalma says it depends on what she was working on. He calls in Derek and asks what Megan was working on but he doesn’t know, she was just working on a story about a big environmental movie star who sent her cocker spaniel to Paris. When DiPalma tells Derek that Megan has been killed, he asks if it has been reported anywhere yet. The detectives give each other a look. DiPalma says Megan wasn’t working on anything for them that would get her killed. Lupo asks if he figures the cocker spaniel is in the clear, and DiPalma laughs uncomfortably. DiPalma says Megan was a freelance contributor and they have hundreds. Lupo asks to look at her desk, but as far as DiPalma knows she worked from home.The detectives search Megan’s home and the home is neat and tidy. There is no computer and a file drawer is unlocked with a big gap inside. Bernard thinks the killer took her purse and he had her keys. Lupo checks an answering machine and there is a message on there from “Sara” who tells her she is sorry but she doesn’t want to talk about this and she thinks she should forget the story.At the home of Sara Bradley, she explains that she only met Megan that one time, she contacted her out of the blue and said she wanted to meet her about a story – people who sleep with their bosses, which she did. She didn’t want to talk about it because she has a boyfriend and a new boss, and she didn’t want them to know. Megan told Sara she talked to a woman who used to work where she used to work and had the same “position:” that she did with the boss. The problem is the boss is not a “he.”In Van Buren’s office, Van Buren, Lupo, and Bernard are watching a woman’s show called “The Sisters” with Vanessa Carville (Samantha Bee) as host. Megan was writing about women who were sleeping with Vanessa, which could have included Megan as Megan had been a production associate on The Sisters. Van Buren says she loves the show, it’s a great way of turning off your brain for an hour. Lupo asks her if she’d still love it if she knew Vanessa was plowing through her female employees. They wonder as Vanessa is married with a family if she found what Megan was writing about…and Van Buren tells them to go see her. Before they leave, she tells them, “And one more thing. I don’t know what kind of downtown look you guys are going for with this stubble and all, but it’s not working.” Lupo chuckles and asks, “For downtown or for you?” She responds, “Both. Have you looked in the mirror lately detective? You’re not in Karachi anymore. Alright?” As Lupo looks a little stunned, Bernard smiles and says, “OK” and they leave her office. Lupo turns and looks back to her and she turns “The Sisters” back on.At a restaurant, Bernard asks Lupo if he ever watches her show and he says, “Sure, when I’m not knitting booties for my cat.” The spot Vanessa sitting at a table and walk over to her and she’s dining with two men. Bernard wonders if one of them is her husband, and Lupo thinks this could be awkward. Bernard says that’s why they get paid the big bucks. When they address Vanessa, they find the man she is dining with is DA Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston), who seems just as surprised to see them. He tells they must be mind readers, he was just going to call One PP as Vanessa just came to him with her attorney as she is being blackmailed.In McCoy’s office with her attorney, Vanessa tells McCoy and Van Buren she likes to leave for the studio early so she can read the papers before anyone gets there. She came out of her house at 6 AM and nearly tripped over an envelope of incriminating photos with her and other woman, plus e-mails and diary entries. She did not see who left it. The photos are real but she’d rather deal with it than pay $3 million to some blackmailer. McCoy tells Van Buren the cover letter asks for $3 million or this will all be published in a book. Vanessa is supposed to wait at home for a phone call at noon to arrange payment. Van Buren says this involves Megan Kerrick, and Vanessa says that things with Megan ended badly and wonders if this was revenge. Van Buren tells her that Megan was murdered two night ago, and Vanessa is shocked. When Van Buren adds that before Megan died she was working on Vanessa’s story, Vanessa concludes she is a suspect. She says she didn’t know Megan was working on the article, she hasn’t spoken to Megan in over a year. She asks what they do now, and McCoy says it can’t be a coincidence that the blackmail comes at the same time as Megan’s murder. He says they should play along with the blackmailer if she is up to it. Vanessa says she has to get to the studio but will be home before noon. Van Buren wants to get her people in there before that, and Vanessa says she will arrange that. After Vanessa leaves, McCoy asks what Van Buren thinks. She says she killed Megan to keep her quiet, coming forward with a bogus blackmail story would be a smart way to throw them off. But McCoy finds that hard to believe, but just in case – and he points to Vanessa’s coffee cup for Van Buren to take for fingerprints and/or DNA.At the home of Vanessa Carville, Lupo and Bernard are there waiting for the phone call. Vanessa wonders if Megan was in on it and she tried to back out. Bernard says that’s a theory, and picks up a small sandwich to eat. Vanessa tersely asks if the other theory is that she (Vanessa) did it, and Bernard responds that’s a theory. She tells him, “No more sandwiches for you” and Bernard halts putting it in his mouth and taking a bite, and tosses it back on the plate. It is nearly 1:00 PM and no call yet, and Vanessa’s husband Wayne walks in, testy. She tells him he does not need to be there as they are handling it. Wayne says his wife’ affair with other woman and $3 million, it’s more interesting that what’s happened in the office. She tells them she is heading for the studio and they can stay if they want to, all of them/ After she walks out, Wayne, drinking, says, “Just us guys.” Bernard throws the sandwich on the plate (for the second time).Back at the 2-7, Lupo tells Van Buren the blackmailer never called. She wonders if he knew they were there and was watching the house, but Lupo said they were careful, they came in the service entrance. Van Buren wonders is Vanessa made the whole thing up. Bernard said she didn’t make this up, and he reads an entry from the file, a steamy message from Vanessa to Megan. When Bernard asks if she has seen the stuff in the blackmail package, Van Buren says she would have paid the $3 million. He also reads something from Megan’s diary where Megan said she was nervous at first but they split one of her Vicodin and a bottle of wine. Bernard shows one of the photos to “Lupes” of a picture of Vanessa in what they recognize as Sara Bradley’s apartment – the girl who said she didn’t cooperate with Megan’s research. Van Buren wonders how that picture wound up in the blackmail surprise.Back at Sara’s home, she admits she took that photo, but she never gave it to Megan. She also realizes that her back up hard drive had been stolen a few weeks ago. She filed a police report. Lupo’s phone rings, and tells the caller they will set it up. He tells Bernard that Carville got the call and it is a go.In a park area, Vanessa is going to meet the blackmailer as Lupo is waiting nearby watching and listening. Bernard is in a surveillance van doing the same. Vanessa is also wearing an earpiece so she can hear Bernard, and he tells hr to take seat on the bench. She does. Lupo sees someone approach Bernard tells Vanessa to stop talking. It is DiPalma, Megan’s editor, and Bernard comments that DiPalma said he had no idea what Megan was working on and Lupo says he guesses he lied. DiPalma asks Vanessa if she brought the check, but she asks who he is and why she is doing this. Bernard wonders what she is doing, and Lupo says she is conducting an interview. DiPalma sits down and Vanessa seems to be getting argumentative, and Lupo tells her to just give him the damn check. She does, and as DiPalma begins to walk off, Lupo stops him and arrests him.In the interrogation at the 2-7, DiPalma is there with his attorney Mr. Baron (Jason Kravits), who says the whole thing is a misunderstanding. He says he had nothing to do with Megan but his Baron tells him to shut up and tells the detectives no more questions, and asks if he should try that in French. Lupo asks if DiPalma wants to give them a key to his apartment or would he prefer they take the door off its hinges – the search warrant is on it’s way.McCoy walks into EADA Michael Cutter’s (Linus Roache) office, with ADA Connie Rubirosa (Alana De La Garza) present, and asks if the police found anything. Cutter says the found enough to nail DiPalma on the blackmail 10 times over, Megan’s notebooks, diary, originals of the blackmail material, the stolen computer hard drive. When McCoy asks if there is anything tying DiPalma to Megan’s murder, Rubirosa says the pubic hair found on DiPalma’s sheets matches the one found on Megan’s body. Cutter comments it is obvious what happened: Megan felt burned by her relationship with Carville and was expecting a promotion at least, instead she got dumped for the next flavor of the month and then laid off, it is all in her diaries. She wanted to get even, and McCoy suspects that DiPalma highjacked her article and be turned it into blackmail. McCoy asks if they can prove that, and Rubirosa says that wasn’t in her diary. McCoy asks what they do have on the murder, and Cutter says enough to nail DiPalma on the blackmail 10 times over. McCoy says it is better than nothing and could be a lever to shake something lose, telling them to move on it.At arraignment court, DiPalma is being arraigned for attempted grand larceny in the first degree. Baron enters a plea of not guilty, and Rubirosa requests remand as DiPalma is a key suspect in a related homicide. Baron says this is irrelevant to bail, and the judge asks if this is related to the blackmail of a TV personality for $3 million, but Baron says DiPalma is innocent . The judges suggests they pick a number for bail that is relevant, and sets it a $3 million.On the courthouse steps, Baron talks to reporters about the case, saying they have only heard Carville’s side, which the police and the DA have swallowed whole. As Cutter and Rubirosa watch from a short distance, he says this case is also about the motive and intent of Carville, and DiPalma wants to tell the full story in court and if in defending his reputation other people are damaged, that’s just the way it’s got to be. He says he has a few questions for Carville, adding actually more than a few. Cutter comments to Rubirosa, “Now the real blackmail begins.”In the judges chambers, Baron is seeking a long list of material and he argues that it is only fair as DiPalma has a right to get his story out and says the information is likely to lead to credible and relevant evidence for the defense. He wants tax returns for the last 10 years to see if she took any business deductions for incriminating material. Cutter sarcastically asked if he thinks Carville itemized previous blackmail attempts, and Baron says he want to know if she has bought any material similar to that offered to her by DiPalma. Cutter argues DiPalma was not selling a book, he was committing larceny by extortion. But Baron argues DiPalma was conduction a journalistic sting as he was going to publish an expose of Carville's behavior on his web site. But Cutter challenges why DiPalma demanded a $3 million check NOT to publish it? Baron says DiPalma was never going to cash that check, he was going to post a photo of it on his web site as proof she had something to hide. Cutter, smiling, says they are straying into absolute fantasy, but Baron counters asking what kind of blackmailer asks for a payment by check? Cutter responds, “A dumb one! This isn’t an intelligence test, this is a criminal proceeding, and these defense subpoenas are onerous, unreasonable, and designed merely to harass the victim of the crime. “ He goes on to read from the list, citing the defense wants the personnel files of 200 of her Carville’s employees going back to 1992, and Baron is looking for sexual harassment complaints, or if any have been granted special treatment ion exchange for sexual favors. The judge tells Baron that his requests are extraordinary but she will see the briefs on it.At the TV studio of “The Sisters,” Carville is apoplectic about the possibility the judge will allow some of this. Rubirosa says the law is on their side, but Carville said she just had a candid talk with the audience about this and she hoped she wouldn’t have to say anything else. Cutter reminds her she will have to be a witness at the trial, Carville guesses she knew that but adds things are a little tense on the home front. Her husband or his attorney may end up at that trial taking notes if they end up fighting over child custody, and the things that could come out. Cutter promises her that he will fight to keep the trial as narrowly focused as they can. Carville says the other guy is the criminal, asking why are we doing all the fighting?Afterwards as they walk down the street, Rubirosa comments that with child custody, Carville is probably wishing she paid the $3 million. Cutter says Baron is playing a game and nothing he is asking for is relevant, but Rubirosa says a judge might disagree. Cutter days they will handle adding, adding they should shoot down the claim that DiPalma was practicing journalism, not blackmail. He asks about the check DiPalma was never going to cash, and Rubirosa says that it was made out, at DiPalma’s request, to something called Feature Literistics, and Cutter asks what the hell is that?Back at the offices of Citysmear.com, Derek tells them he is busy because he is now acting editor. Rubirosa tells him he may be acting for 8 to 10. She asks him if he knows about Feature Literistics, and he says it sounds like a literary enterprise for someone who can’t read. He tells her he thinks she is on the wrong trail, DiPalma was never hard up for money, he has a nice apartment and car and tikes nice vacations, Rubirosa asks where.Rubirosa returns to Cutter’s office and informs him DiPalma vacationed in the Cayman Islands, and Cutter thinks offshore bank account. Rubirosa said it was opened one month ago under Feature Literistics, a corporation registered to a Bahamas PO box. Cutter comments that DiPalma went to a lot of trouble to create an untraceable account for a check he wasn’t going to cash. Rubirosa tells him that DiPalma opened the account in person during a 3 day stay at a beach report with Megan. Cutter says, “ A little more public hair transferring going on?” Rubirosa thinks either they were doing the blackmail together and had a falling out, and Cutter finishes, adding or she was working on an article and he found out about it and decided to go the blackmail route, and she did not want to go along, and he kills her. Rubirosa adds, “Or his accomplice did.” When Cutter asks what accomplice, Rubirosa tells him the weekend they were in the Caribbean is when Sara’s hard drive was stolen. As they were found in DiPalma’s apartment, the police assumed he stole it, Cutter commenting that they all did.At Rikers Island, DiPalma still denies he did anything, but Cutter says they have an opportunity here. Cutter tells him the murder has a higher priority, but Baron comments they have no evidence against DiPalma. Cutter clarifies that if another person was involved and DiPalma can help them find that person they can negotiate a plea. Rubirosa brings up Sara’s hard drive being found in his apartment after it was stolen from hers, and he said it was research for his expose and he got it himself. Cutter asks if he is confessing to burglary, and Baron quickly responds that he is not confessing to anything. Cutter insists that DiPalma is covering for somebody and asks why. When DiPalma doesn’t respond, Baron says they have nothing else to say, but hands him some briefs.Back in the judge’s chambers, she says she has been reviewing the briefs, but denies Baron’s requests for Carville’s tax records and notes from her marriage counseling sessions. Cutter adds that the employee files are privileged and confidential. But Baron argues this case is all about Carville’s relationships with her employees. Cutter reminds him it is about blackmail, asking Baron if he lost his copy of the indictment he can take a look at his. Baron tells the judge that DiPalma got most of the information from Megan Kerrick, and Rubirosa interjects that they suspect DiPalma murdered. Baron says there was no mention of that in the indictment either. He goes on to say that Megan conducted research of Carville’s former employees, several of who are not named and they need to find them to find out what Megan told them about her project. Cutter argues that these women do not need to be dragged into the limelight. Baron pushed back, saying if they can shed exculpatory light on Kerrick and DiPalma’s intentions, it is not their choice, he has the right to compel their testimony., The judge asks him to draft his subpoena more narrowly to include the files only of those women who might have been candidates in Megan’s research. As they break up, Rubirosa calls it Carville’s former lovers on parade, wondering how Carville will feel about that. Cutter says he will go talk to her.Later, Rubirosa comes into Cutter’s office as he is watching “The Sisters.” She asks how it went, and he tells her to see for herself. We see Carville on her show, bitching about how the legal system is handling this and how some of her ex-employees will be dragged through the mud. She doesn’t want this to happen to so many good people and good friends, so she announces she has not choice but to abandon her complains about DiPalma, even if it means a blackmailer goes free. Rubirosa adds, “Not to mention a murderer.”In court, Cutter is arguing Baron’s motion to dismiss, calling it premature and the evidence hasn’t disappeared. He judge reminds him the complaining witness has. Cutter says the trial has not begun and it is too early to say she isn’t going to show up. But Baron counters that she just told 10 million people she wouldn’t. Cutter says that made good television. Cutter goes on to say that they are continuing communication with the victim and the judge says good luck to him. She won’t dismiss for now, but she will release DiPalma on his own recognizance as there is no sense in leaving him in jail for a trial that may never happen. DiPalma grins. But Rubirosa comments that is great, he an his accomplice can go out for a beer and have a big laugh over this whole thing. Cutter wonders that may not be a bad idea.With the New York Ledger article titled “Blockbuster Bid for Carville Book" along with DiPalma's picture up on his computer screen, McCoy asks Cutter and Rubirosa if they saw what is on the internet, saying DiPalma just got a half million to write a book about Carville. When Rubirosa adds that his lawyer indicated it was a journalistic project but he is still 2.5 million short, Cutter reminds her of sales of paperbacks, movie rights and it could be as profitable as the blackmail. McCoy says that publishing it is perfectly legal, but threatening to publish it is a felony and it doesn’t seem to make sense but somehow it does. Cutter calls it coercion. McCoy nods and smiles, saying he’s glad they prosecuted for a reason.Meanwhile, DiPalma is back in his office, and he gets a phone call. A man asks if it feels good to be back, and DiPalma asks what does he think. The caller says he heard that congratulations are in order, and DiPalma says he graduated at the top of his class in Rikers. The caller says he just read about his book deal and is surprised he didn’t call him to share the good news. DiPalma says no one has called him, it is just publishing gossip. The caller mentions the half million dollars, and he wants $250K. DiPalma says there is no money it’s just a rumor. Later, Rubirosa and Cutter are listing to the recording of that call, and the caller goes on to ask if DiPalma is hiding it the Caymans like he was going to hide the money from Carville. DiPalma says there is nothing to hide, he swears. Rubirosa stops the recording, saying it worked, the phony book deal story. Cutter says he thought it would get DiPalma and his friends something to talk about. Rubirosa says the police found that the caller is Derek Fanning who works on the web site, she met him and he said he wanted to go to architecture school. Cutter quips he guesses he is raising tuition money. Rubirosa adds there were two calls made after that one, Fanning kept asking for money and DiPalma kept saying there wasn’t any, and Fanning kept calling him a liar. Rubirosa gets a phone call, and says they will be right over. It was Van Buren, the police just found Megan’s laptop.At the NYPD Computer Case Squad, Van Buren tells Cutter and Rubirosa that it was dropped off in the lobby of Megan’s building with a note saying it had been found abandoned in a coffee shop. Megan’s address was on a sticker on the bottom. There was a video on it with what looks like DiPalma trying to kill Megan, and Van Buren says it could be rough sex. Megan did not die, not on camera Cutter asks for the date of the video and the computer tech it is the day of the murder, but it is not hard to fudge the date if you know what you are doing. Van Buren does not know who dropped off the computer as the note was unsigned and no prints. Rubirosa says if they arrest DiPalma for murder based on this video there is a providence issue. Van Buren says that is the least of it, adding that the ring on DiPalma's right hand would have left a mark and the ME found no matching marks on her neck. Rubirosa wonders if he took the ring off before he killed her, but Van Buren says if he is the one who did. The computer tech notices a reflection in the alarm clock and they realize someone else was in the room when the video was taken. Cutter says on its face the video is evidence that DiPalma is the murderer but it miraculously shows up right after DiPalma’s accomplice demands a quarter of a million dollars and DiPalma tells him he can’t pay. Rubirosa comments that the blackmailer was being blackmailed.Later, in Cutter’s conference room, they show Baron and DiPalma the video. Baron says it is no secret DiPalma was dating Megan, and Cutter says , “Dating? That’s what you call it? Baron says if they thought this made DiPalma a murderer he would already be under arrest. Cutter says they haven’t given up the thought and says he hope DiPalma brought his toothbrush. Baron says they must be something wrong with the video or the wouldn’t be here. Cutter says they’d like to hear what DiPalma says about all of it or it will become people’s exhibit #1 and his murder trial and they can discuss what’s wrong or right about it there. DiPalma admits that Derek Fanning made him do it, he shot it while he was with Megan, Fanning had a gun on them and stood at the side of the bed. Baron realizes that they knew someone was there and they knew the video was fishy. DiPalma said Fanning made him pretend he was strangling Megan or he would shoot him, adding Derek was crazy. He adds that when Megan came to him about Carville, he though it was a great story and he asked Derek for help with research. Derek broke into Sara’s apartment and he said they shouldn’t publish the story and they could make a lot of money. DiPalma went along and he dropped the stuff at Carville’s door. That night Megan figured it out and she would call Carville or call the police, Derek made him do that. When he left Megan was alive and Derek called her later and said he took care of her and they could go ahead with the blackmail. DiPalma adds that he freaked and he didn’t call Carville like he was supposed to. Derek said that if he didn’t get back to it he would send that video to the police. He did what Derek said. Cutter says he thinks that is the craziest story he ever heard, and Baron said then it must be true, right?At arraignment court, they are arraigning Derek for the murder in the second degree, and Derek pleads not guilty. Rubirosa says that Derek is accused of the murder of the source of the blackmail information when she threatened to call the police. The defense attorney says the people’s main witness is the former blackmail defendant and is hardly credible. Rubirosa disagrees, saying DiPalma was as shocked as anybody at the brutal and cold blooded nature of the murder. The judge says his credibility is for a jury to decide and he sets bail at $3 million, commenting “why break precedent.”Rubirosa, Cutter, Baron and DiPalma are in Cutter’s office, Cutter saying the analysis of the video will lend some support. Rubirosa adds they also found Derek’s gun and fingerprints on Sara’s hard drive, and in Megan’s apartment, Cutter comments that the jury will be skeptical about DiPalma and they will have to work to convince them to trust his testimony. But Baron says that DiPalma has decided not to appear as it is not in his best interest to testify. Cutter, stunned, says they can still prosecute DiPalma for the murder instead, but Baron says that ship has sailed as Rubirosa already told the judge that Fanning is the killer and it would be easy to raise reasonable doubt if they try DiPalma. Cutter asks if DiPalma is afraid Fanning will be acquitted and come after him or is he holding something over his head, and DiPalma says he doesn’t think if he publicly swears he was blackmailing is the best possible career move, plus he could get sued or the Feds could come after him. Rubirosa suggest immunity and subpoena him and if he then refuses to testify they can charge him with contempt. He says contempt he can handle, and Cutter says not to worry, he already has theirs, and he opens the door for them to leave.McCoy latter comments that it’s blackmail and murder and everybody walks, suggesting they should go into another line of work, dry cleaning. Rubirosa suggests they could charge them together for both crimes, and McCoy responds that they will both stay silent and they will be pushing two rocks up two hills. He asks about the blackmail victim, but she still will not get involved as there is too much that she doesn’t want people to see. Cutter says this blackmail thing really works, and McCoy wonders if they should try it.Later, Vanessa Carville has arrived at the DA’s office, and says she could not let this go to trial . He says that is what he wanted to talk to her about, and leads her into the conference room where Cutter, Rubirosa, Baron and DiPalma are waiting. She asks if this is some kind of shock therapy to change her mind. Cutter asks her to remember how she felt when she was being blackmailed. She says it was awful but doesn’t want innocent friend to be hurt. McCoy says she is sorry, but they are going to charge her with criminal sale of a controlled substance for the ½ vicodin pill she gave Megan. She says he gave it to her, she didn’t sell it, but Rubirosa says the legal definition of sell means to sell, exchange, or give, and the law still applies and so does the penalty. Carville doesn’t believe it, and Cutter adds that the charge won’t help her in a divorce or in a fight over child custody. She calls them sons of bitches, glaring at McCoy, saying that they are no better than DiPalma is. She agrees to testify, saying sarcastically, :Sure, I can’t wait” DiPalma gets worried, asking if she still can do this. Barons says yes the case hasn’t been dismissed, but says he doesn’t think she ever will, asking that is not the plan, is it? McCoy says now that they have Carville’s cooperation, DiPalma is looking at 10 years for blackmail. Baron says if he changes his mind about testify against Fanning, he might let that slide. Carville gets a look of realization on her face as Cutter says they could probably work something out; if he nails Fanning for the murder, and takes a plea he can do two years. Carville comments that they screwed with her to screw with him, and McCoy nods yes, calling it a “bank shot.” She tells him, You’re still a son of a bitch” and McCoy smiles. Cutter asks if they have a deal, and DiPalma looks to Baron and Baron says deal.Later, Rubirosa says to Cutter that it was a blackmail daisy chain, they definitely didn't teach that in law school. Cutter says, “Turn about, it was only fair.” Rubirosa comments, “So that’s the new game plan. We do what they do. Next time we try a murderer, we’ll kill somebody “ Cutter says, “I don’t know, we’ll have to ask the boss.” They walk off as we see the open door to McCoy’s office with the light still on, as we fade to black.	149344
1997	Lone Gunmen, The: The X-Files: Unusual Suspects	T			Episode. Season 5. The third episode airs in the fifth season of The X-Files and reveals the origins of the Lone Gunmen and is a cross-over with the series “Homicide: Life on the Street.”	Journalists Richard “Ringo” Langly, Melvin Frohike and John Fitzgerald Byers publish a news publication called “The Magic Bullet Newsletter -- a pejorative reference to the single bullet theory and, like the group’s name, a reference to the Kennedy assassination. The publication was renamed “The Long Gunman,” of which FBI Agent Mulder was a loyal subscriber.  None of the three have day jobs. They are ardent conspiracy theorists, government watchdogs and computer hackers who frequently assist central X-Files characters, Mulder and Scully, though they sometimes had their own adventures. They rely on financial backers who believed in their cause, and what revenue the subscriptions to their paper generated. They share a loft apartment where they also work. They use a 1970 VW Transporter (a minibus) to commute.John Fitzgerald Byers (Bruce Harwood) was once a public relations worker for the FCC. He was a conservative dresser with a neatly trimmed beard, a stark contrast to his grungier comrades. He had at least some working knowledge of medicine, genetics and chemistry and is known for the famous line, "That's what we like about you, Mulder. Your ideas are even weirder than ours." He was born on November 22, 1963, the same day that President Kennedy died. His parents named him after the fallen president. His name would have been Bertram otherwise. Byers was the most "normal" of the three, and while Frohike and Langly were seemingly born angry misfits, Byers dreamed of a quiet, uneventful, suburban life. Byers' father was a high-ranking government official, but they never saw eye to eye and when Byers' father appears in The Lone Gunmen pilot, the two hadn't spoken for some time.Melvin Frohike (Tom Braidwood) was a former '60s radical and the oldest of the three. Though a skilled computer hacker, Frohike was primarily the photography specialist for the newsletter. Frohike had a lascivious attitude toward women. However, he had a more purely romantic attitude towards Dana Scully; when she was gravely ill in the episode 'One Breath', Frohike appeared at the hospital in a tailored suit carrying a bouquet. His unique sense of fashion made him stand out: leather jackets, furry vests, combat boots, fingerless gloves, etc. Frohike considered himself the "action man" of the trio and would often be seen doing very intense stunts (many rigged to look more impressive than they really were). Despite his childish scraps with Langly and others, Frohike's age and experience gave him a kind of quiet wisdom that occasionally surfaced when he consoled his friends about the sorry nature of their lives. In The Lone Gunmen episode "Tango de los Pistoleros," Frohike was revealed to be a former tango champion who danced under the stage name "El Lobo."Richard Langly (Dean Haglund) was the most confrontational and socially immature of the three. He was a big fan of The Ramones and enjoyed critiquing the scientific inaccuracies of the short-lived sci-fi series Earth 2, and he had a long-running competition with Frohike over who was a better computer hacker. He also had "a philosophical aversion to having his image bounced off a satellite." His nickname was "Ringo". Langly was a Dungeons and Dragons player (as 'Lord Manhammer') and enjoyed violent video games like Quake. (In the William Gibson-penned X-Files episode "First Person Shooter," Frohike and Byers were also avid gamers, an uncharacteristic development for both men and one that was never referenced again in later stories.) In the LGM episode "Octane," it is revealed that Langly is a "32 year old virgin."AssociatesFox Mulder (David Duchovny) - an FBI Special agent who was in charge of The X-Files, a special branch of the FBI that dealt with the supernatural. Mulder first met the trio when they first formed, and they would prove to be his greatest ally and friends. He would turn to The Lone Gunmen several times when needing information on elements of the paranormal or when he needed to access highly guarded government institutions. After he disappeared from The FBI, his X-Files partner Dana Scully, his boss Walter Skinner, and his replacements John Doggett and Monica Reyes would ask for the assistance of The Lone Gunmen as well. When Mulder was supposedly found "dead", The Gunmen appeared at his funeral, but when he proved to be alive, they were the ones who tearfully welcomed him back. Mulder was not able to attend the funeral of The Lone Gunmen, as he was still in hiding, but he talked to their apparitions following his resurfacing. Scully, Skinner, Doggett, and Reyes would attend their funeral, and Scully proclaimed that The Lone Gunmen "meant so much to [him]."Kenneth Soona aka The Thinker (Bernie Coulson) - an unofficial fourth member, a computer hacker, who succeeded in accessing Majestic 12 files and encrypting them onto a digital tape in the season 2 finale of the X-Files titled "Anasazi". The Thinker first appeared in the season 2 episode titled "One Breath". The Thinker was killed by assassins working for the Cigarette Smoking Man, who eventually reacquired the tape. He was referred to in the first episode of season 3 titled "The Blessing Way" as being murdered, but he was not in that episode.Jimmy Bond (Stephen Snedden) - another "fourth member", who joined the trio in The Lone Gunmen series. Though he shares the bravery and physicality of his namesake, he initially appears to be rich but not very bright, and is fascinated with the trio, who often consider him a nuisance. His saving grace is his boundless optimism, coupled with an idealistic view that the jaded Gunmen wish they still held.Yves Adele Harlow (Zuleikha Robinson) - a femme fatale thief who sometimes works with the Lone Gunmen trio (although sometimes she is their rival). The alias Yves Adele Harlow is an anagram for Lee Harvey Oswald. The anagram name, Yves Adele Harlow, could also be a reference to Marilyn Monroe. Monroe played a supporting role in All About Eve (an episode in the series is "All About Yves"). Before she died, she had planned to star in a biopic about Jean Harlow. The Lone Gunmen are obsessed with John F. Kennedy's assassination (Kennedy and Monroe were having an affair), which was supposedly committed by Lee Harvey Oswald. It was later revealed in the X-Files episode "Jump the Shark" that Yves' real name was Lois Runtz.Kimmy the Geek (Jim Fyfe) - an expert hacker and a Star Trek fan who occasionally helps the trio. He is the twin brother of Jimmy the Geek, a character killed by a bus in The X-Files episode "Three of a Kind", played by the same actor.Susanne Modeski (Signy Coleman) - was an employee at the Advanced Weapon Research Centre at White Stone Army Base in New Mexico who assisted in the development of a biological weapon that creates psychotic hallucinations. Modeski appears in the The X-Files episodes "Unusual Suspects" and "Three of a Kind". Modeski appeared to be Byer's love-interest in The X-Files series.The Episode:At a Baltimore warehouse in 1989, a SWAT team breaks in, finding a naked, disoriented Mulder in a box, shouting, "They're Here!" Three men attempt to flee the scene and are captured; they are revealed to be the Lone Gunmen. As they sit in a city jail, they begin blaming each other for the predicament they are in. Detective John Munch interrogates Byers, who tries to explain what happened.Byers tells Munch that he is a public affairs officer for the FCC, and had attended a computer and electronics convention. Byers follows a beautiful woman who passes by his booth; he also passes by booths manned by Frohike and Langly. When Byers bumps into her, she introduces herself as Holly and says that her daughter has been kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend, who is in the Baltimore area.The only clue Holly has to her boyfriend's is a piece of paper with "ARPANET/WHITCORPS" written on it. Byers realizes that the words refer to a Defense Department network, which she requests he hack into. Byers finds an encrypted file on her daughter, named Susanne Modeski. Just then, a man whom Holly claims to be her boyfriend passes by -- Fox Mulder.Byers and Holly recruit Frohike to help them decipher the encrypted file. Both Byers and Frohike think it would be a good idea to assault Mulder, but don't do it when he introduces himself as an FBI agent. Returning to his booth, Byers finds his colleague being arrested for the hacking he committed. Frohike convinces Byers not to turn himself in, and recruits Langly to help them hack into the FBI database to learn more about why they are after Holly. They learn that "Holly" is actually Susanne Modeski, and that she is wanted for acts of murder, sabotage, and terrorism at a weapons facility in New Mexico.Holly/Susanne arrives and admits her deception, but claims that she has been scapegoated for trying to leave her job at the weapons facility. There, she had been working on ergotamine, an aerosolized gas that causes paranoia and anxiety. Susanne claims that the government plans to test the gas on the civilians in Baltimore. After deciphering the encrypted file, they find that she's telling the truth and learn the location of the gas. Susanne also finds evidence that she has had a tracking device put in her teeth, which she pulls out.The four of them head to a warehouse, where they find the gas stored inside asthma inhalers. Suddenly, Mulder arrives to arrest them, but two dark suited men arrive after afterwards to take Susanne. They fire at Mulder, hitting the boxes behind him and exposing to the gas. The exposure causes Mulder to strip naked, hide in the box, and hallucinate about seeing aliens in the warehouse. Susanne kills the suited men and escapes. More men arrive, led by Mr. X. He who intimidates Byers, Langly, and Frofike, but allows them to leave.Detective Munch doesn't believe Byers' story, but it is soon corroborated by Mulder. Byers, Langly and Frohike are released. They later encounter Susanne again, who has failed to get the news media to believe her story. She tells them to reveal the truth to as many people as possible. She is captured by Mr. X and his men soon afterwards. Later, the three of them meet Mulder in the convention center and explain what happened to him.	150918
2010	Mentalist, The: Bleeding Heart	T	DVD -R HQ 11726		Episode. 1-21-2010	TV Investigative Reporter Mike Brewster (Roark Critchlow) of Channel KTQZ News is doing a profile on the CBI unit, which is assigned to investigate the murder of someone close to the mayor. Cameraman Steve (Keenan Henson).  Reporter (Jay Jackson). Brewster is chronicling the exploits of CBI. He asks Patrick Jane and Detective Lisbon to sit for an interview about how he came to work as a consultant. Once the cameras start rolling, Jane decides he doesn’t want to do the interview and leaves. Brewster asks Lisbon how a case starts, she explains that a phone call comes in from the AG's office and they step in, but never, of course, stepping on the toes of local law enforcement because everybody gets along great. She says in the St. Claire homicide the AG wanted them in because there were political issues.Cut to CBI getting barked at by local cops at the scene, calling them spotlight hogs. The corpse in the ground - Martha St. Claire - is the PR flack for the town mayor, she was buried on the site of a controversial new development that was having its ceremonial groundbreaking that day.Cho says she was stabbed twice in the chest but there's no blood, which means, just like on CSI, the crime scene was elsewhere. Jane figures the killer wanted the body discovered here and Lisbon thinks it was to be able to enjoy watching the fun. They think TV cameras covering the ground breaking might have caught something. Jane sniffs the body, noting a nicotine patch that denotes she was trying to quit smoking but hadn't been successful, likely due to stress. Lisbon notices that something was snatched from her neck. Jane accurately surmises what's up with the angry cop- affair, angry wife, motel living- which the angry cop doesn't care for.Back at the office the shoot continues and Lisbon is crowing about how many cases they've closed. The Brewster points out that they're also leading in lawsuits filed. Lisbon stalks off saying to the CBI PR flack that Jane is right that this is a bad idea and she thought this was supposed to be positive coverage. Brenda says it will be and that the guy is legit and that the CBI needs it. Lisbon says to keep him confined to the office, no shooting out in the field.Brewster thanks her and he says it's a two way street and offers his help. He offers his video footage of the groundbreaking, ID-ing people in the shot and tree-hugging protesters in the background. He got the shot of the body being discovered.Van Pelt gives Lisbon stuff from St. Claire's house. Lisbon asks her to look for a necklace that was likely snatched from St. Claire. Jane thinks the killer probably kept it as a souvenir.Back on camera Lisbon talks about how she has no problems being in charge. She's reluctant to talk about what she does on the weekends. She gets caught up on why he wants to know and claims she isn't a workaholic no matter what anyone says.She and Jane head off to the mayor's office to talk to his assistant Fountenot. (He is played by the delicious Sean Maher of "Firefly" fame. So glad to see him back.) He worked closely with St. Claire. Lisbon asks after the necklace. Fountenot says it was a Christmas gift last year that she never took off. Jane asks after her busy schedule. (A city council meeting). And if she dated. Fountenot says she had no social life.Lisbon and Jane interview mayor Melba (played by Sharon Lawrence). She says the project was office, retail, and housing built with green technology. Martha was not involved in policy issues, she was just her PR gal. They ask then about tomorrow's city council meeting: a press junket, river rafting. Lisbon asks about threats for environmental activists. Melba calls them terrorists led by a mad men named Jasper. Fountenot comes in with a note that she says can wait. She shows the video threats from the environmentalists: a masked, sunglassed man saying he will stop the project. Jane calls it silly. Melba says he murdered Martha. Jane isn't so sure, why wouldn't Jasper kill her, Melba? Melba is confused. Jane asks why she didn't like Martha -apparently her tight jaw and cobra eyes when talking about her gave her away. Melba kicks them out/they leave. Lisbon thinks he needs medication and may have ADD. Jane says ADD may not be real and he stole the note. It was a call from the developer of the project.Back at the station Brewster is asking Jane, who is lying on a couch, if he enjoys police work. He says sometimes. They ask why he dislikes being filmed. He says they're stealing his soul.Cho and Rigsby go to the contractor to ask about the call. He says he calls all the time and wants to know when the project will start again. He's sorry about Martha but time is money. Turns out the contractor called Martha ten times. He says they were talking about public funds to be released for the project. He heard rumors that she was going to tell the city council to hold the funds back. But she was killed first. The contractor gets mad that they are trying to pin her murder on him. Just then someone throws a Molotov cocktail in the window of the trailer, injuring the contractor as Cho tries to get them out. The door is blocked but they bust it open and stumble out, choking on smoke.As they look over the charred remains, the contractor says Jasper did it and the chief of police isn't doing anything. The chief, the angry cop from before, says Jasper's never launched an attack in his jurisdiction before. They find a barrel of flammable material with Jasper's "J" tag on it.At the office Rigsby is interviewed by Brewster. He talks about how the job, especially being in a fire, can make you think. He is reflective and talks about being grateful for life.The gang works out some of the issues out loud. They decide to go talk to the mayor again while Van Pelt looks into Jasper- which Jane thinks is a red herring- and Cho goes after more footage.Cho is interviewed by Brewster and turns the tables asking why he's making this documentary, what's in it for him. I’m a detective, why are you a reporter? Brewster admits to being ambitious and Cho notes he hasn't gotten very far. Cho is comically uncommunicative. Brenda asks him to cooperate.Back at mayor Melba's office Jane asks if she got a bribe from the contractor- he theorizes she sold her approval of the project, Martha found out and was going to expose her to city council. Melba says if they pursue this harassment she will sue them. Jane asks if Fountenot was in on it too. He says they have no proof of any bribe. Melba asks if they checked into her lover as a suspect. Lisbon says Fountenot says she had no love life. He didn't know. She tells them they are incompetent.Van Pelt is interviewed and talks about being the rookie and working hard and how it's been her dream. The most surprising thing she's learned about the job is what she's learned about herself and other people, stuff she wishes she didn't know about why people do bad things, usually because of secrets.The gang watches all of the footage of the groundbreaking. They point out one guy with a Jasper "J" tag on his shirt. Jane sees something else that piques his interest but he doesn't share.Rigsby back from St. Claire's apartment turns up evidence of a lover, whom Jane figured all along and theorizes that she may have even had two lovers and perhaps one gave her the topaz necklace. He yells at the cameraman to turn off the camera or he'll shove it down his throat.Lisbon pulls him aside and asks him what's up, she figured he'd be comfortable with cameras. He points out that last summer, things didn't go so well when cameras were around. She realizes and apologizes. He says there's no need and there's no reason not to be civil.He goes back and apologizes to Brewster and his camera guy, Steve saying he knows they're just doing their jobs, he just doesn't like feeling spied on. He offers to take them out for a taco. While at the stand "Jasper" and his masked goons arrive and hustle Jane into a van. Steve, alas, did not get footage of this since he was holding his taco.Jane is led through the woods with a blindfold.The gang frantically works on finding Jane and the "J" guy from the scene.Janes is led into an old cabin in the woods and handcuffed to a chair. They take off his blindfold and point a gun at him. Jane says there's no reason for firearms. "Jasper" is clearly Fountenot, who proclaims his innocence. He has respect for all living things. Jane says then he shouldn't do things that require wearing a mask, especially since he's so handsome. Fountenot asks how he knows who he is. Jane backpedals and says he doesn't. He takes of his mask and asks again how he knows. Jane says his height, body language, syntax- he said "in actuality." Jasper calls him clever and pulls the gun again saying they have a problem.Cho brings in the guy from the groundbreaking and the cameras capture it. They shoot Cho's interrogation through the video. He asks where Jane is being kept. The guy says he won't betray Jasper. Rigsby asks what Jane would want them to do. They turn off the lights and close the shutters and uncuff him, threatening to break his arm and saying that they'll say he fell. They corner him and he gives up Jasper's locale.Jasper/Fountenot is freaking out at the cabin, he doesn't want to go to prison, he needs to finish his work. He says he worked with the mayor to study the enemy. He turned Martha on to the bribes. Jane offers to help, he says he won't play him, he respects his intelligence. He asks Jasper/Fountenot to sit. He does. Jane tells him to look at him and trust him and that he also wants peace and harmony. He hypnotizes him basically, puts him to sleep. The police show up at that moment saying he's surrounded.They bust in and Jane is lying on his back on the floor with no sign of Japer. Lisbon jokes about waiting for the bomb squad and then uncuffs him.Back at the station on camera Jane talks about how Jasper/Fountenot was sprouting nonsense and that he was St. Claire's boyfriend and when she found out about Jasper he killed her. He tells them to look for the necklace, a gift from Fountenot, they need it. Lisbon makes calls. Then she asks the guys to stop filming. Brewster says catching the bad guy would be a great ending. She says they can film the bust but they have to do exactly what she says and to meet them at Fountenot's.The CBIs and the cops approach the house as the crew films. As Brewster asks him questions about how he came to work with CBI- and Jane talks about his wife and child's murder and the importance of love- Jane turns the tables on Brewster big time and how hard losing love is.He says he knows that right now Brewster has a topaz necklace in his pocket, one that he plans to plant in Fountenot's house to make him look like the killer when it was actually Brewster who killed her. He was the other boyfriend, he gave her the neckless, and after St. Claire dumped him- screwing up his career since she was a news source for him- he killed her and took it back. Jane pulls out the necklace and Cho arrests him. Jane takes the video from the camera.Jane and Lisbon take him back to the office and try and get him to confess. He says there's no legal proof. The point out the traces of St. Claire's blood in the trunk of his car. He confesses. She wouldn't give him any info on the mayor even though he heard she was dirty. He was using her computer one night and found info on the mayor and he was mad she kept it from him when it could've made his career. He couldn't believe that she was mad that he was on her computer. They fought, she taunted him about being a loser, and he killed her. (We see all this play out as he says it). Lisbon says they'll take that as a confession.The gang watches mayor Melba get arrested. Fountenot will get leniency for his Jasper activities for testifying against her.In light of Van Pelt's feelings about secrecy, Rigsby and Van Pelt come in and admit they are "lovers." Everyone tells them they already knew except Lisbon, who is now mad since she has to take action since agents aren't supposed to have sexual relationships.	154669
2009	Monk: Mr. Monk and the End -- Parts 1 and 2	T	DVD -R HQ 11638 (Part 1).  DVD -R HQ 11646 (Mislabeled as 11645)		Episodes. 11-27-2009, 12-04-2009.	Columnist Trudy Anne Monk was the wife of legendary San Francisco detective Adrian Monk.  In her career as a reporter and columnist, Trudy worked for several San Francisco publications including the San Francisco Chronicle and The San Francisco Examiner, where she was on staff as a columnist at the time of her death. Trudy, 35, was killed on the morning of December 14, 1997, when an explosive device ripped through her car in a San Francisco parking structure. She died at St. Jude’s Hospital, with her husband Adrian Monk by her side, and is buried in a local cemetery, where the gravestone reads: “Trudy Anne Monk, 1962-1997, Beloved Wife and Daughter.” Despite the efforts of her husband and the San Francisco Police Department, over a decade after death, Trudy’s murder continues to remain unsolved.While investigating the murder of a doctor who may be connected to Trudy’s death 12 years ago, Monk soon discovers that his own life is in danger.Full RecapThe PastMonk notes to Trudy that they haven't been caroling since college. He thanks her for getting him out of the house and she asks about a missing woman, Wendy Stroud. Monk is heading down to the clinic where she worked to talk to her boss. He notices that something is wrong with Trudy and she says she has a lot to do and not enough time. Monk notices a present under the tree and Trudy asks him not to open it until Christmas because it's a surprise. They embrace and Trudy assures Monk that she loves him. Later, Trudy goes down to the parking garage as a six-fingered man watches her. He finally approaches her and she runs for her car. She gets in and starts the engine… and the car explodes.Monk and Stottlemeyer go to the midwife clinic and talk to Wendy's boss, Dr. Malcolm Nash, who says that he hasn't heard from Wendy. Stottlemeyer gets a call and is informed about Trudy's death, and he tells Monk the news.The PresentMonk wakes up and finds Trudy sitting on his bed. She tells him he doesn't have to sleep just on his side of the bed and he insists he isn't sleeping by himself. Trudy tells him that it's time to say goodbye but Monk admits that he can't. She smiles and says it won't be much longer. Monk reaches for her hand… and she disappears.Monk and Natalie are going to a new case and Natalie invites Monk to the dinner party she's having to introduce Julie to her boyfriend, Lt. Steven Albright. Monk tells Natalie what he dreamed and Natalie thinks it's an omen. They discover that the murder victim is Dr. Nash, who was killed at the same clinic Monk was at when he got the news about Trudy's death. Stottlemeyer explains that Nash was scanning in records when somebody snuck in and shot him twice in the head with a silenced pistol. While Monk goes over the scene, Disher talks about his two-week vacation to New York City but refuses to discuss specifics. Monk notices that all the pill bottles are there so the killer tried to make it appear as a robbery. He also determines that the killer used the computer and was left-handed.Monk, Stottlemeyer, and the others go to see Judge Ethan Rickover to get a warrant. Ethan reviews the warrant and Stottlemeyer insists they have the right man. Ethan tells them that the governor wants him to join the State Supreme Court and they offer their congratulations.The police search the suspect's apartment and talk to his ex-wife, Edie Kazarinski. She says that her ex-husband comes and goes as he pleases. Edie takes a photo of him out of the bird cage and shows it to him, while Monk notes that he gave Natalie the day off to be with her boyfriend.Kazarinski gets a call and is informed there's a change of plans, and he left a partial fingerprint. The caller tells Kazarinski to eliminate Monk because he killed Trudy 12 years ago.Trudy and Albright,are shopping for Monk as Kazarinski watches them. He approaches the cart with Monk's items and starts to walk away with it. Trudy stops him and he apologizes and then leaves.That night, Natalie, Julie, and Lt. Albright have supper at Natalie's and they discuss Julie's future plans. She talks about how she'll be moving away, and Albright asks about the case. Monk starts choking briefly, and then starts cleaning spots. He realizes he's seeing spots and convulses, and they get him to the hospital. The nurse tries to take his blood but Monk is less than cooperative. She finally calls in over a dozen staff to hold him down. Dr. Matthew Shuler from the hematology department comes in and warns there is no good news. Monk has been deliberately poisoned with a synthetic toxin.A hazmat team goes over Monk's apartment looking for the poison while Monk waits with the others for news. Shuler arrives and tells them that Monk was the only one affected, and they can't treat Monk until they identify the specific toxin. If they don't, Monk only has two or three days and will suffer from pain and vomiting before death. Natalie notices a newspaper with a photo of Kazarinski and realizes he was at the supermarket and briefly walked away with Monk's shopping cart. They prepare to go over everything she bought but Shuler warns there may not be enough time.Stottlemeyer calls together a team of volunteer officers to investigate Nash, and try to and find Kazarinski. He warns them Kazarinski must be taken alive so they can determine what toxin he gave Monk.At home, Monk is busy sorting the capsules in his medication. Meanwhile, Stottlemeyer confronts a suspect, Ronnie, who refuses to talk until Stottlemeyer hits him with Disher's laptop. The man reveals that Kazarinski bought a fake ID and a train ticket. Stottlemeyer sets up an undercover operation to watch for Kazarinski at the train station. Kazarinski, wearing a blonde wig, arrives and spots the police. Meanwhile, Disher says that he'll miss police work and notes he can't do it forever. Before Stottlemeyer can respond, he realizes that the announcer in the control tower has gone silent. Disher runs up there and discovers the man is dead. He calls Stottlemeyer, who warns him the microphone is still on. Disher fails to turn it off and sets off a panic as he warns that Kazarinski has taken the controller's uniform. Stottlemeyer spots Kazarinski and chases after him into the rail yard. The killer manages to elude Stottlemeyer but is hit by a passing train and is killed instantly.Monk sees Dr. Bell and explains that they found chemicals in the dumpster at the hotel where Kazarinski was staying, but there's not enough time to come up with anything. All the food from the shopping cart turned up negative. Monk says that he has everything to be sorry about, that he's lived like a prisoner since Trudy's death and he hasn't accomplished anything if he hasn't solved his wife's murder. As Bell pencils in more appointments for Monk to try and reassure him, Monk gets up, tells him goodbye, and then leaves.Disher reports to Stottlemeyer that the lab won't come up with anything in time. The captain pours out two drinks and explains that he always thought Monk wasn't human, but his friend saw and felt everything and was all too human.Natalie drives Monk to the cemetery to say goodbye to Trudy. He simply says that he loves her and assures Natalie he can tell Trudy the rest tomorrow. Back at home, Natalie gets a call from Shuler, who insists Monk should go to the hospital. Monk insists on staying at his apartment and asks Natalie to get him the present Trudy had for him 12 years ago. She reluctantly gives it to him and he opens it to discover it's a video tape. On it, Trudy says that she had a secret, something terrible from before they met.  End of Part 1. Part 2.Monk solves the murder of his wife, Trudy. She had an affair with a judge, which resulted in the birth of a daughter. She was told the baby had died in childbirth. But she is still alive. Her name is Mollie Evans (Alona Tal), a movie reviewer who lives 20 minutes away in Monterey and works for a San Francisco Paper. Monk’s stepdaughter brings Monk back to life and he resumes his life as it was before Trudy died 12 years ago. She convinces him, like Trudy did, that he has an important job to do in life and shouldn’t run away from his responsibilities. He spends a lot of time with Molly and is happier than he has been since Trudy’s death. After listening to Trudy’s last message, Monk finally discovers who killed his wife. Racing against time before he dies of poison, he must make a fateful decision. Full Recap: Monk pauses the video tape for two hours and Natalie says he has to continue. He finally continues and Trudy admits that she made a mistake 15 years ago before they met. She had an affair and Monk stops the tape. He then continues and she explains the affair was with her law professor, a married man at the time even though she didn't know it at the time. She was pregnant but admits that she didn't really know the man, but she loved pregnant. She had the girl January 2, 1983, and the child died the same day after nine minutes. When Trudy says the father's name, Ethan Rickover, Monk realizes it's the judge they talked to earlier. He starts the tape and Trudy explains that the missing woman, Wendy Stroud, was the midwife who delivered Trudy's daughter, and Rickover was nominated to the court. He called Trudy and wanted to meet her tomorrow, and Trudy made the tape because she suspected something. She warns that Rickover has a dark side but hopes that she's wrong. She planned to switch the tape if she was wrong, but wanted Monk to know if she didn't come back. Trudy says that Monk is her life and finishes the recording, and Monk bursts into tears.Monk gets up and wonders why Trudy didn't tell him, and Natalie insists he can't go anywhere in his condition. He insists that he won't die yet.Rickover is at his hearing for the state court when Monk and Natalie come in. Monk stares at him repeatedly, distracting him. The judge finally asks for a recess. Once the room is emptied, Rickover comes over to talk to Monk, picking up one of Monk's wipes with a pen when Monk drops it. Monk tells him he knows that Rickover had Trudy killed to cover up his affair. Rickover denies it and claims that he knew a number of unstable students, and points out that there's no record of the birth. When Nash found out something, Rickover had him killed as well. Monk tells Rickover that Trudy made a tape and Rickover then says that he remembers Trudy, and believed she was unstable. Monk attacks him until the bailiffs pull him off, but he swears it isn't over.Monk is taken to the hospital and Disher calls a woman and says he loves her. Stottlemeyer overhears him and Disher hastily covers up what he was saying. Dr. Shuler comes out and tells them that Monk's condition has improved slightly, and Stottlemeyer figures it's the hate. He goes in to see Monk and confirms that Nash made calls to Rickover. They figure that Nash tried to blackmail Rickover with the information. Stottlemeyer promises that they'll get Rickover, but Monk tells him he won't be there, and he wants Stottlemeyer to promise he'll kill Rickover. Stottlemeyer promises but Monk knows he's lying.Natalie is packing Monk's clothing at his apartment and Albright is helping. She assures him that Monk will at least die knowing what happened to Trudy.At the hospital, Monk is going over the files and realizes that something is missing. He explains to the nurse what happened, and she notes that no one bothers to cover up affairs any more. Monk agrees with her and remembers Rickover saying he doesn't plan to move from his house. Monk figures it's something at the house.At the apartment, Natalie starts to show the same symptoms as Monk and she realizes that she picked up one of Monk's wipes. At the courthouse, Rickover picked up the wipe with a pen. They call the hospital with the news but the nurse discovers that Monk has escaped and the window is open.Stottlemeyer is leaving for the night when Disher arrives to tell him that Monk has left the hospital, and they can get the cure.Rickover arrives home and finds Monk, carrying a gun, waiting for him. He tosses a shovel to Rickover and tells him at gunpoint to pick it up and start digging.Disher drives through the streets to Rickover's house while Stottlemeyer tries to find the siren in the back. He notices that Disher has a lot of his stuff loaded in the back.Monk tells Rickover to dig by the sundial in his backyard.Disher keeps speeding through the streets, swiping cars. They're finally blocked off by a van, and Stottlemeyer fires a shot to get the driver to move.Two police officers arrive but Monk refuses to let Rickover go. Disher and Stottlemeyer arrive and tell the officers to back down. The captain explains that they've identified the poison and have to get him to the hospital. Before Monk can respond, Rickover hits something. Disher takes over and they find the skull of Wendy Stroud, the midwife from twelve years ago. Monk points out that the sundial was under a tree. Twelve years ago, Wendy saw Rickover in the newspaper when he was nominated as a Federal judge. Rickover explains that Wendy found Jesus and planned to tell everyone. Then he killed Wendy and Trudy to cover his tracks. Monk drops the gun but Rickover picks it up, tells Monk to take care of "her," and kills himself.Later, a recovered Monk goes to see Dr. Bell and says that he feels fine. When Bell questions him further, Monk admits that he feels empty and Bell wonders what he's going to do now. The detective admits that Rickover's final words have been nagging at him, but he doesn't know who Rickover wanted him to take care of. Bell tells him to move on with his life.At his apartment, Monk and Natalie pack away his files on Trudy's murder. Monk finds an old article about Wendy Stroud finding an abandoned child and taking it to an orphanage. The date is just before she died, and Monk realizes Rickover was covering up the fact that the baby died and lied to Trudy. The girl was adopted and out there somewhere.Monk and Natalie go to see Stottlemeyer, who makes a call and confirms they've found the girl, Molly Evans, a movie reviewer who lives 20 minutes away in Monterey. Monk has second thoughts about seeing her but the others insist he has to go. Monk finally gives in and goes to the paper where she works. Molly finally comes out and he embraces her.Three days later, Monk shows photos of the two of them together to Stottlemeyer and the others at his office. Stottlemeyer notices that Disher has an envelope addressed to him, and takes it. Disher admits it's the right time and tells everyone that he's resigning to take a job as police chief of Summit, New Jersey. Stottlemeyer assures him that he's ready and asks why New Jersey, but they realize he's moving in with Sharona.Later, Monk meets Molly again and takes more photos. She tells him that she's going to Toronto for a film festival and will be back in two weeks. Monk offers to go with her and notes that he's retired since he's found her. Molly points out that he's broke and she isn't going anywhere, and tells him he can't quit because of her. She insists there are other Trudy's out there that need his help. As they walk along the beach, Monk tells Molly all about Trudy.One morning, Monk wakes up in the middle of the bed for the first time since Trudy died. He dresses casually and goes out to the kitchen. When Natalie comes over, he tells her that he's going to the movies with Molly. Natalie breaks into tears at the news and answers the phone. It's Stottlemeyer with a case. He checks the stove and leaves to investigate.Randy arrives in Summit, New Jersey, for his new job.Stottlemeyer kisses TJ goodbye before going to work.Monk and Natalie arrive at the crime scene, meet Stottlemeyer, and go to work.	155949
1994	Neighbours	T			Australia. Soap opera began airing in March 1985 and celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2005.	Newspaper Staff. Erinsborough News. Editor-Publisher Paul James Robinson (Stefan Dennis) was born in 1963, the son of an engineer and his wife.  He bought the Erinsborough News from Brad Jordan and became determined to find the real arsonist that murdered Marco and badly hurt Kirsten. Paul Robinson 1985-1992, 1993, 2004-Lived: 22, 26, 30 Ramsay Street, Karl's apartmentParents: Jim and Anne RobinsonMarital Status: Terry Inglis (1985-1986; divorced), Gail Lewis (1987-1989; divorced), Christina Alessi (1991-?; divorced), Lyn Scully (2006; annulled)Siblings: Julie, Scott, Glen, Jill and LucyChildren: Amy, Cameron, Lucinda [Elle], Robert and AndrewFamily Tree: RobinsonOccupation: Engineering Student, Air Steward, Manager of The Daniels Corporation, Manager/Owner/Employee of Lassiter's Hotel, Manager/Owner of The Robinson Corporation, Owner of The Helen Daniels Trust, Teacher at Erinsborough High School, Owner/Editor of the Erinsborough NewsThe eldest son of Jim and Anne Robinson, Paul Robinson was born in Erinsborough in 1963. Paul started out in life a quiet academic and was destined to follow his father into the family engineering firm. However, he shocked his father when he dropped out of university half way through his engineering degree to become an airline steward. It was here Paul met and fell in love with his supervisor, Gail Lewis. The relationship never fully developed and after Paul quit the airline, he proposed to plumber's assistant Terry Inglis after a whirlwind romance. They married at a ceremony held at Paul's family home, No. 26 Ramsay Street. Jim gave the couple No. 30, two doors down, as a wedding present. But domestic bliss wasn't to last - it turned out that Terry had a criminal past and had murdered her ex. After Paul realised Terry had murdered, he confronted her about his suspicions, and she shot him in the shoulder, before doing a runner. However, the police had closed in on her just as she was about to flee and Terry was arrested, before committing suicide in jail some time later.Paul's experiences with Terry left him bitter and hard headed - just the qualities that led to his aunt Rosemary Daniels appointing him manager of the Australian end of her company, The Daniels Corporation. Here, Paul found his niche in life - the world of corporate takeovers, lucrative business deals and the financial rewards of running a world-renowned hotel complex. He quickly built up The Daniels Corporation and employed Zoe Davis as his secretary but when she began a relationship with his father - 20 years Zoe's senior - Paul took a dislike to her and made her life at work hell for a while. As it turned out, Paul was actually in love with Zoe. But even though she had finished with Jim, Paul never got the chance to tell Zoe how he felt as she left Erinsborough with an old flame.Paul replaced Zoe with brash Madge Ramsay but he soon realised she would be better suited running the hotel bar, The Waterhole. Her replacement was single mother Susan Cole who Paul fell for in a big way. Susan was lodging with zany Clive Gibbons at No. 22 Ramsay Street, and Clive was madly in love with Susan. But she only saw Clive as a friend, and was much more attracted to the excitement Paul had to offer. They started seeing each other for a few months, but after they split up, Susan got engaged to Clive. Despite this, Susan and Paul kissed one day at the office, making Susan realise that she could never be happy with Clive. When Clive found out that Susan still cared for Paul, a wedge was driven between the two men that lasted for years to come. Susan, meanwhile, was so ashamed for having hurt Clive that she left Erinsborough. Paul was now faced with the task of finding a secretary once again - and this time found the reliable and dependable Jane Harris, who served him faithfully for a number of years.Gail Lewis walked back into his life when she successfully applied for the job of assistant manager at The Daniels Corporation. At first, their relationship was platonic although both were clearly in love with the other. Fate stepped in when Paul had the chance of an extremely lucrative business deal with Japanese businessman Mr. Udugawa. But Mr. Udugawa, it seemed, only liked to do his business with happily married men so Paul asked Gail to marry him for the sake of the business deal. Gail agreed and the couple married, much to the bewilderment of their families who had no idea Paul and Gail were even dating. The couple moved into No. 22 Ramsay Street but slept in separate bedrooms. Their secret was nearly exposed when Cousin Hilary stayed with the two and caught them sleeping in separate bedrooms. But they managed to explain it away as a row and Hilary was none the wiser. Eventually, the two realised how much they loved each other, and Paul stopped Gail from leaving Erinsborough to take a job with Rosemary in New York so that they could give their marriage a real chance. A short time after, they renewed their wedding vows at Jim's wedding to Beverly Marshall, as a sign of their true commitment to each other.The marriage hit a rocky patch when Nina Williams, an old flame of Paul's from his airline days arrived in Erinsborough with her three year old daughter, Amy, who she revealed was Paul's daughter. Gail, who desperately wanted children but was unable to conceive, thought that Amy would make Paul lose interest in considering adoption or IVF treatment. But instead Paul proved he was strongly committed to the idea of having children with Gail, and he and Gail underwent an intensive IVF treatment programme hoping to conceive. Eventually, Gail and Paul were thrilled to learn that Gail was pregnant with triplets. But throughout the pregnancy, Paul became more and more interested in his work, especially since he had recently bought the corporation and complex himself, renaming it The Robinson Corporation. The final blow to the Robinsons' marriage came with the death of Gail's beloved father, Rob, in a car accident. Gail blamed Paul for Rob's death because he had been involved in a heated argument with Rob at the Robinson house, which led to Rob storming off in his car in the middle of a bad storm. And when Paul went into the office after Rob's funeral, Gail decided that the marriage was over. Unable to cope with life in Erinsborough anymore, a heavily pregnant Gail packed her bags and left Paul for a new life in Tasmania where she gave birth to two sons, Cameron and Robert and a daughter, Lucinda. Paul flew to Tasmania on the birth of the children and agreed to divorce Gail and let her marry the new man in her life. Paul returned to Erinsborough distraught at the idea of another man raising his kids, although he and Gail had parted friends and she agreed to let him see the triplets whenever he liked.Paul coped with the end of his second marriage by burying himself in his work. He moved into a suite at Lassiter's and leased out No. 22 to his new assistant Caroline Alessi and her twin sister, Christina, who ended up falling in love with him. But Paul was oblivious to her feelings and instead sought comfort in the arms of his new secretary, Melanie Pearson, when the two had a one-night stand.After a business trip to Argentina, Paul met and fell in love with the scheming Isabella Lopez. He brought Isabella back to Erinsborough and Chrissie took an instant dislike to her, seeing through the cunning money grabber immediately. She eventually proved to Paul that Isabella was only after his money and he sent Isabella packing. Chrissie now thought the way was clear for her and Paul to get together but instead Paul vowed he was staying away from women in future. Despite this, love finally blossomed for the two and they eventually became engaged. After a short engagement they married and quickly decided to try for a child. When Chrissie got pregnant, Paul was thrilled and vowed to be a proper father to this child. Paul was so determined that everything about this child should be perfect, he planned the route that he and Chrissie would take when she goes into labour weeks before the baby was due. But the one thing Paul didn't allow for was running out of petrol, and his car came to a dead stop in a deserted country road as Chrissie was in the throes of labour. After spotting an ice-cream van nearby, Paul persuaded the driver to take him and Christina to the hospital in it, and not long after getting safely to the hospital, Chrissie gave birth to a baby boy, Andrew.Paul's new found joy was disturbed, however, when his business empire looked set to collapse around him. Glen Donnelly - the half-brother who Paul had refused to accept ever since he showed up in Erinsborough a few months prior - had fallen off the hotel roof at Lassiter's, while he was fixing a banner as a favour for Paul and ended up being paralysed from the waist down. With The Robinson Corporation already facing financial difficulties, Paul - determined to avoid legal action over the fall - was forced to sell a small share in the corporation to Madge for $20,000 and offered the money to his estranged half-brother to help him with his future. But when Paul attempted to have Glen sign a document wavering his rights to sue The Robinson Corporation, a furious Glen lashed out at Paul and threatened to sue him for a massive settlement. Paul tried everything he could to prevent Glen going ahead with his case, even trying to bribe his cousin Todd - who had witnessed Glen's fall - to testify against Glen in court. Glen finally accepted a substantial out-of-court settlement and left Erinsborough. Paul turned to a shady moneylender in an attempt to save his business and when it looked like he would lose everything, he even contemplated suicide. Chrissie found herself alone with the baby after the stress of recent events caused Paul to suffer a nervous breakdown, resulting in him going away to recuperate.He returned to Erinsborough with daughter Amy in tow and a feud developed between Amy and stepmother Christina. They eventually made up after Amy was knocked down and she soon returned to live with her mother. Paul and Christina's marriage looked destined to end when Paul and sister-in-law Caroline realised they had feelings for each other and slept together. Caroline was so upset with what she had done to her twin sister that she left Erinsborough hastily for Milan. Chrissie was puzzled by her sister's sudden departure and was shocked to find out the truth by overhearing Paul discuss the affair with his grandmother, Helen. Christina promptly threw Paul out in disgust and started divorce proceedings. But after months of persuasion and the death of Paul's cousin Todd, they realised they should make a fresh start. Paul was offered the chance to manage a luxury hotel resort in Hawaii and after renewing their wedding vows, Paul and Chrissie left Erinsborough with Andrew for a new life.Paul returned a year later to visit Helen but had to make a hasty exit when he got his brother-in-law Philip Martin involved in a fraud scandal. Paul called Chrissie in Hawaii and told her to fly to Brazil with Andrew and wait for him there. Paul then signed a letter of confession to the police taking full responsibility and bid his beloved Helen a tearful goodbye before fleeing Ramsay Street for Brazil.After four years avoiding the inevitable, Paul returned to Australia to face the music. He spent the next three years in jail, his marriage to Christina breaking down in the process, as well as the death of his beloved grandmother Helen occuring. The whole experience made him even more embittered than ever before, and when he was released, he worked hard at rebuilding his former empire.Paul finally returned to his home town of Erinsborough in late 2004, just as the Lassiter's complex was burning to the ground. Having evidently returned just in the nick of time, Paul kicked started the task of rebuilding the shattered community by paying for the use of the town hall as a make shift Coffee Shop and Pub while the complex was rebuilt. And he reclaimed Lassiter's has his own when he beat off the American firm Affirmacon to buy the complex. That company's representative in Australia, Lee Thomas, recognised Paul's good head for business and offered him a job with Affirmacon. However, Paul kept this detail from the rest of Erinsborough as he was keen to project an image of favouring the local, smaller businesses rather than corporate giants from overseas.Although many people had come and gone in the years since Paul had last lived in Erinsborough, Harold Bishop was still around, as was his son David, who Paul immediately took under his wing. David had recently decided to run for local council and Paul, recognising that it would be useful to have his very own puppet when it came to matters of local politics, became David's pseudo-campaign manager. Indeed, it was Paul who actually secured David a seat on the council by calling in a favour in the eleventh hour just as it looked like David was about to lose. However, Paul came to be frustrated by a lot of the decisions David made in terms of town planning and quickly began to regret his choice of puppet.Meanwhile, David's wife Liljana had caught Paul's eye the moment he met her, especially since he felt she shared a lot of the same qualities as Helen. It was the latter point which led Paul to offer Liljana the job of managing The Helen Daniels Trust, a philanthropic organisation that he had set up in memory of his gran to provide grants to needy causes. The role meant that Liljana and Paul would be spending a lot of time together, although it hurt Paul that she seemed totally devoted to David and he could only admire her from afar.Another local lady also attracted Paul's attention upon his return, and she was much more reciprocating to his advances. Izzy Hoyland had been running the Coffee Shop with Harold, but decided to invest in the new pub with her brother Max after the fire at Lassiter's. However, Izzy couldn't raise enough capital to invest and so, Paul stepped in and offered her a loan. Paul also came onto Izzy on a number of occasions, but she initially resisted due to the fact that she was already involved with local GP Karl Kennedy. To add to the confusion, Karl had an in-built disdain for Paul, on account of his good friendship with Philip and hearing all about Paul's framing of Phil for fraud. However, Karl's mistrust of Paul only added to the thrill of the chase for Paul and it made him more determined to bed Izzy. The opportunity finally arose when Karl went to Sydney for a medical conference and Izzy finally succumbed to Paul's advances. Izzy was then racked with guilt over her betrayal of Karl, but Paul managed to persuade him to continue seeing him after making it clear that he was in no way interested in breaking up her and Karl and merely wanted a bit of fun.Paul's feelings for Liljana, meanwhile, continued to grow and he started pulling out all the stops to ruin her marriage to David. When David was supposed to be with Lil at daughter Serena's school debate, Paul instead turned up, knowing that David was otherwise engaged, playing golf. And Paul also encouraged David to invest in a business scheme with an associate, despite Liljana's objections. Of course, Liljana remained unaware that Paul was the driving force behind David's actions and actually turned to Paul for support and advice on more than one occasion.Paul's involvement with Affirmacon, meanwhile, led to him getting embroiled in all sorts of shady deals and practices when the development giants revealed they wanted to level Ramsay Street and the surrounding suburb in order to build a giant shopping complex. Paul was set the task of manipulating the residents into selling their properties, but realising what a hard task it would be, he hatched an elaborate plan to take the decision out of their hands. Unbeknown to the council, Paul was behind an environmental report that had come to their attention which predicted a very bleak future for the neighbourhood. The report revealed that a rapidly rising water level in Erinsborough West meant that within ten years, the entire area would be under water. Although many of the residents accepted the terrible findings, Harold was adamant that a second investigation be done, and hired an independent environmental scientist to do some tests on the area. When Paul got wind of this, he dug up some dirt on the scientists past and blackmailed him into supporting the findings of the original report. With both reports therefore predicting a grim future for the suburb, Paul's plan was starting to pay off and Affirmacon moved into position to get their hands on the area by offering to buy the houses from the locals. Paul's support for the company became clear at a local meeting to decide whether or not the offers should be accepted, and local opinion started to turn against him as he appeared to be putting profit before the good of the community. Paul initially rebuffed such claims, insisting that Erinsborough was where he grew up, but the likes of Harold and his granddaughter Sky Mangel – who had been suspicious of Paul from the moment he returned – remained sceptical.David's eyes were open to Paul's manipulation, too, when Paul had him framed for defrauding The Helen Daniels Foundation. But Paul strenuously denied the allegations David was levelling against him, and things worked out in his favour when Liljana actually started to believe that David was guilty. The case was thrown out of court on a technicality, but the damage had been done to the Bishops' marriage by that stage and Lil left David. It wasn't long before Paul professed his love for Liljana and once she gave in to the feelings she had been harbouring for him for some time, they began seeing each other, initially in secret in order to spare the feelings of David and Serena.Meanwhile, Paul's affair with Izzy threatened to expose him to all sorts of problems when she realised that he had burned down Lassiter's. However, Paul knew that Izzy had lied to Karl about the true parentage of the child she had miscarried, and so, neither could afford to have their secrets known. Although their affair ended, the pair remained linked by the secrets they each held, and as Paul's conscience started to increasingly take precedence over his dirty dealings, Izzy was on hand whenever he needed a shoulder to cry on. Indeed, Paul had begun to regret his recent behaviour as his love for Liljana grew and brought out the old Paul that had had been buried deep down underneath layers of bitterness and regret, and he gradually started to do what he could to scupper Affirmacon's plans for Erinsborough. Affirmacon took note of his softening attitude, and sent one of their heavies, Tony Corbett, to Erinsborough to keep an eye on Paul. Paul initially tried to persuade Tony that there were other areas that the company could build their shopping mall in, but Tony insisted that the plans were in motion now and Paul had to continue with what he had signed up for.Polluting the local wetlands was therefore next on Paul's list, and he initially enlisted Dylan, the 18-year-old son of the rowdy Timmins family who were now living in Paul's old family home on Ramsay Street, to pour toxic chemicals into the river. Dylan had become Paul's protégé in the months following his return, after Paul recognised the same ambitious qualities in Dylan that he had when he was younger. But Paul's conscience once again got the better of him when he overheard Dylan defending Paul to Sky, and he opted to carry out the task himself. Once the deed was done, Paul realised too late that as well as polluting the water, he had also killed and poisoned the many different types of wildlife that inhabited the land and he was racked with guilt. And the guilt got a whole lot worse when Dylan – an animal lover – raced down to the wetlands to try and save some of the animals and ended up getting poisoned by the toxic waste himself. Being exposed to the waste left him with a higher chance of contracting cancer in later life, and Paul was horrified at being responsible for inflicting Dylan with the worry.Dylan's predicament was the final straw for Paul. While publicly he had to continue with his support for Affirmacon and back their offer to purchase the ruined wetlands, privately he plotted to put a stop to their plans once and for all. He gave Dylan a key card to some Affirmacon offices in the city, and he and Sky managed to obtain some documents from the office that proved the company was corrupt. But they were unable to do anything with the documents because they had been obtained illegally. Paul suggested they pass the documents onto the press, who wouldn't have to reveal their sources, but problems arose when Sky, still determined to prove that Paul was up to no good, followed him around with a camera to try and catch him out. But what she caught him doing was something she hadn't expected – kissing Liljana. And while Sky was deciding what to do about the photographs, she had failed to notice that Serena had taken the camera to a protest the locals were holding outside the Affirmacon offices. It was there that David and Serena finally realised that Paul and Lil had been seeing each other when they saw the pictures themselves, and the vilification of Paul in the community increased tenfold as it transpired that on top of everything else, he had evidently broken up the Bishops once happy marriage too.Lil opted to get away from Erinsborough for a few days in the wake of the fall-out from the revelations, while David was so furious with Paul that he attempted to run him over outside Lassiter's. Desperate to sort things out with Lil, Paul tracked her down to a country retreat and found that she was unsure of whether or not she could trust him anymore as it became more and more likely that Paul had been in Affirmacon's pocket all along. But Paul promised Lil that he was in love with her regardless of what else was going on in his life, and he managed to persuade her to go to Sydney with him for a few months to get away from everything. However, Affirmacon were on his case, and while Lil was getting ready to leave, Tony Corbett and some more heavies showed up on Ramsay Street and took Paul away to the bush to beat him up. Fearing for his life, Paul desperately tried to escape them but was chased to the edge of a cliff, before falling off it – 80 feet below.Once he had regained consciousness, Paul was in complete agony, with a particularly substantial amount of pain in his right leg. Having mustered up the strength to drag himself along the ground, Paul finally found himself at some wetlands. But by that stage, he was hallucinating heavily and seeing visions of Liljana, and ended up in the water. Rapidly losing control of himself, Paul started to drown in the water - until Dylan and Sky appeared, having found his abandoned car nearby, and pulled him to safety. Sky revived Paul by giving him CPR, and he was rushed to hospital.But Paul was by no means out of the woods. He required emergency surgery as a result of the internal injuries he had received from the fall, and his state of mind was not helped by the abscence of Liljana from his bedside. Lil had found out all about Paul's shady dealings after he had gone missing, and was disgusted by his behaviour. However, with Paul about to undergo a major operation to save his life, Liljana put on a brave face and went to see him to reassure him she loved him. But worse was to come. Paul had suffered a very bad break to his right leg as a result of the fall, and it had become badly infected, meaning the leg would have to be amputated if he wanted to survive. Paul refused to even entertain the suggestion that he lose his leg, and despite repeated attempts from Karl and Harold to talk him round, Paul resigned himself to death rather than live his life without one of his legs. However, Dylan was not prepared to stand by and let the man he idolised give up after everything he had been through, and as Paul began to fade away, Dylan forged Paul's signature on the consent form to allow the surgery take place.When Paul was brought back from theatre and came round, he was horrified to discover that the amputation had taken place. He lashed out at everyone around him, even Liljana, and upon realising that Dylan had been the one who consented to the operation, Paul rejected him completely and directed abusive insults at him. But Dylan kept coming back to visit Paul, determined that he would eventually see sense. He was joined by Harold, Karl, Susan and even Sky in trying hard to persuade Paul to begin physiotherapy and embrace the second chance he had been given. Paul finally conceded that Dylan had acted in his interests and started to spend time with him, and even agreed to let Dylan bring him to Lassiter's for a drink one afternoon. But when Dylan left him alone outside the pub for a second, Paul became frantic as he became aware of the fact that the people around the complex that he had been in complete control of where now looking at him with pity.Again striving for a way out of his misery, Paul saw another opportunity to end things once and for all when David - who had just signed up as a volunteer with the Salvation Army - had to bring him out for some fresh air one afternoon. Paul relentlessly taunted David about how much Lil loved him and how passionate their relationship had been and suceeded in pushing David to the edge just at the right moment. Once they reached the top of a steep hill, Paul told David he now had the chance to erase him out of the Bishop family's lives forever by simply letting go of the wheelchair. David had been so enraged by the comments Paul had made that in a moment of madness, he let go and Paul went hurtling down the hill headed straight for a busy freeway. But at the last second, Paul realised that he didn't want to die at all and lept from the chair just in time. The incident led Paul to re-evaluate his attitude to life and his new circumstances, and he began by begging Liljana for one final chance. But she told him she could never trust him or love him again and there was no future for them.Paul's spirits were lifted hugely when Lucy returned to Erinsborough, although he was less pleased to see Rosemary, who he hadn't seen since he tried to take over her company several years back. Lucy and Rosemary had come back to Australia to attend a screening of a special documentary Annalise Hartman had made about Ramsay Street, but Rosemary also used the trip as a chance to offer to buy Lassiter's back from Paul. Paul initially refused to consider his aunt's offer, but after Lucy brought Paul to Lassiter's for a drink, he had a change of heart. It was while in The Scarlet Bar that Paul came face to face with someone else he had wronged – Philip, who was also back in town for the documentary. Finally seeing Paul in the flesh for the first time since he had framed him, Phil had to be held back by Lou Carpenter and Doug Willis, while Paul also had to contend with a verbal assault from Serena. The altercations made Paul give up on the idea of staying in Erinsborough and he decided to accept Rosemary's offer. But Lucy wasn't convinced that her brother had made the right decision, and put pressure on Paul to start facing up to his responsibilities and stop running away. Lucy made Paul realise that it was time for him to make a proper home for himself in Erinsborough once more, and encouraged him to move back into No.22 – which he had bought back after his initial return to the neighbourhood - and retain Lassiter's. And Lucy also succeeded in helping Paul face the biggest hurdle – wearing his prosthetic leg for the first time and start adapting to his new circumstances.There was shock on the faces of the residents of Ramsay Street when Paul showed up on crutches and interrupted the barbecue that had been arranged as a pre-cursor to the documentary to announce that he was moving back into the street. Although Rosemary was disappointed to learn that Paul wouldn't be selling Lassiter's after all, she was happy to see him fight back once again and urged him to truly reform and start giving something back to their home town. Paul started trying to re-establish himself as part of the community by joining all the residents to view Annalise's documentary down at The Scarlet Bar, which was a true trip down memory lane as a host of former friends and family appeared on screen to reminisce about Ramsay Street – including Gail, who revealed that Paul may just have been the love of her life. After the documentary, Lucy agreed to stay on for a few more weeks to help Paul upon his release from hospital, and his return to Ramsay Street.But Paul's reintegration into Ramsay Street wasn't going to be easy. With the Bishops next door, for starters, he wasn't about to get an enthusiastic welcome from his neighbours. Lou had also been renting No.22, and was forced to put his anger at Paul's recent behaviour behind him, in order to maintain the status quo in the household. But within days, Lou realised that he couldn't keep living with Paul, especially when he discovered that Paul had had an affair with Izzy some months back and Paul threatened to throw Lou out if he told anyone. Lou opted to leave immediately, rather than wait to be thrown out anyway, but he was so angered by Paul that he told half of Ramsay Street about the secret affair between Paul and Izzy. That evening, Paul and Lucy arrived home to find No.22 had been trashed with a warning for Paul to get out of town spray painted on the living room wall. Of course, there were a number of potential culprits, but Paul was quite surprised when Liljana admitted she had been the vandal, such was her anger towards Paul upon hearing he had been sleeping with Izzy around the same time he had been courting her. Paul took Lil's actions to mean she was still in love with him, but Lil insisted that she was reunited and happy with David once again.Paul found himself attracting the attention of the police when Izzy went missing and her car was found abandoned in the bush, with blood stains on the driver's seat. Since Paul had been the last person to see her alive, as reported to the police by the bar staff at The Scarlet Bar, Paul was asked down to the police station to answer some questions about his relations with Izzy. To add to his troubles, Izzy's sleazy lawyer, Steve Chisholm, told Paul that if his client didn't turn up alive and well soon, he would have to open a box she had given him containing evidence of Paul's past crimes. Paul decided to take matters into his own hands and headed off to find Izzy himself, eventually tracking her down to a health farm in the bush. Izzy's life had fallen apart in recent months, due to Karl finding out that he was not the father of the baby she had miscarried, and she had nothing to return to Erinsborough for. But Paul recognised a kindred spirit in Izzy, and since she had been ostracised by the entire community too, he persuaded her to come back and live with him at No.22, where they could face the neighbours together. Izzy accepted Paul's offer, and her move into Ramsay Street caused quite a stir, particularly as she and Paul wickedly flaunted their arrangement by throwing a huge party. But the pair had some quick thinking to do when Steve Chisholm threatened to hand the box of secrets Izzy had on Paul over to the police, unless he was handsomely rewarded. Izzy hatched a plan to break into Steve's house to reclaim the box, and Paul consulted Dylan on how best to override the complicated alarm system Steve had on his house. Luckily, Paul and Izzy succeeded in their mission, and burnt the evidence once and for all.As Izzy settled into No.22, Paul became increasingly concerned by her erratic behaviour. She was often moody and tired, and was flirting with everyone from Dylan to Paul himself. Paul eventually stumbled across the root of Izzy's problem when he found pills in her handbag and realised that she had become addicted to anti-depressants. Paul confronted Izzy about her addiction, which she strenuously denied and Izzy packed her bags to leave. But she had a change of heart when Paul admitted that he had begun to fall in love with her and wanted to help her through her ordeal. Izzy was touched that someone truly cared for her, and she agreed to stay and make a go of things with Paul. It took some time for Paul, however, to allow their relationship to become physical once again, as he had lost confidence in his body since losing his leg. But Izzy assured Paul that she found him attractive regardless, and she helped him put it out of his mind and reignite their sexual relationship.Paul and Izzy's new found domestic bliss wasn’t to last for long, however, as Paul's estranged daughter Lucinda arrived in Erinsborough. Paul was thrilled to see Lucinda for the first time in years, and was mesmerised at the attractive young lady she had grown into. Desperate to make up for all the lost years, Paul invited Lucinda, or Elle as she was now known, to stay on at No.22 with him and Izzy, and he gave her a trainee position at the hotel. However, Elle wasn’t overly keen on Izzy and within hours of her moving in, the battle lines were drawn. Elle was desperate for her father's undivided attention, particularly after missing out on so much time with him growing up, and she set about trying to undermine Izzy at every opportunity. After discovering that Izzy had been recovering from an addiction to pills, Elle orchestrated an elaborate ruse whereby she manipulated situations and planted pills all over the house to suggest to Paul that Izzy was hooked once again. While Elle’s campaign initially worked, Izzy eventually became suspicious and managed to expose Elle to a furious Paul. But Paul felt so guilty about not being there enough for his daughter in the past that he agreed to put the incident behind them, and start afresh. Even Izzy agreed to start again, and Paul, Izzy and Elle went on to become an unlikely family unit, but one that actually worked pretty well.With the 20th anniversary of the opening of Lassiter's Hotel approaching, Paul asked both Dylan and Elle to come up with proposals for a suitable event to mark the milestone. Although a battle to impress Paul waged between the two, few could argue with Dylan's suggestion to have a 1920s themed joy flight to Tasmania and Paul promptly picked his protégé's idea. Paul also saw the flight as a chance to mend some fences with a lot of his neighbours and friends, and as the plane set off, Paul was in jubilant form. However, a bomb had been planted in one of the engines and just as the plane was over the Bass Straits, it went off, sending the plane hurtling towards the sea. While Paul survived relatively unscathed, Izzy and Elle were initially nowhere to be found. They turned up safe and well within 24 hours, but Liljana, David and Serena weren't so lucky. David's body was found a few days later, while Lil and Serena's were never found. Paul was devastated by what had happened, and blamed himself for the death and destruction he had caused – particularly after Izzy revealed she had found a note in their seats moments before the plane crashed telling her to think about her life and everything she had done. Further evidence that the bomb had been directed against him was found when a second note arrived at No.22 telling Paul he had been lucky to escape. And as if the note hadn't sent enough of a chill down his spine, the paper it had been written on had been poisoned. Paul and Izzy were rushed to hospital where they were in a critical condition for a number of hours.After they pulled through, Paul became obsessed with protecting himself and his family from any more harm. He had security cameras installed at No.22, hired a security guard and started working from home rather than the hotel. As the police conducted their investigations, Tony Corbett emerged as the prime suspect and there was relief all around when he was found dead a few weeks later. Safe in the knowledge that the person who had tried to kill him and his family was out of the picture, Paul threw a huge Christmas party for the residents of Ramsay Street at Lassiter's in an attempt to make amends and cheer everyone up after the dramatic period they had all been through. But one resident wasn't in the mood for forgiveness and festivities. Harold had become a broken man having lost his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter in the plane crash, and when he found a letter David had written shortly before his death in which he blamed Paul for ruining his life and expressed a hope that someone would put an end to his evil some day, something in Harold snapped. He made his way over to No.22, crept quietly in as Paul was chatting on the phone to Cameron and with a rope, strangled Paul. Having left Paul unconscious on the living room floor, Harold retreated back to No.24 while Izzy came across Paul’s body on the ground and called for an ambulance. Paul was rushed to hospital where he recovered, but once he was out, he feared that the person who was trying to kill him hadn’t been Tony Corbett at all, and the threat to him and his family was still very much alive.Paul fell back into a sense of paranoia and insecurity in the wake of the latest threat to his life, and Izzy and Elle struggled to help him back to normality. Elle's boyfriend Ned Parker even moved in temporarily to provide an extra sense of security in the house but Paul had become so paranoid that at one point, he suspected Ned of being the one who was out to get him and sent him packing. The truth emerged, however, after Harold spent some time alone in Tasmania where he searched his soul and came to his senses. He confessed all to Paul upon his return, and Paul initially reacted with complete shock. He couldn't believe that the whiter than white, pillar of the community Harold, who he had known for so many years, could ever be capable of such a thing. Paul's shock quickly turned to rage and he threatened Harold with the police, much to the delight of Izzy, who had suspected Harold of being the culprit for some time. But Paul began to have second thoughts when he realised that a man like Harold wouldn't try to kill someone for no reason, and he began to look at himself as the real reason behind Harold's behaviour. Paul concluded that it was his actions and his dodgy dealings that had caused the plane to be blown up and for Harold to lose his family. Having decided not to press charges, Paul forgave Harold for what had happened and they agreed to put the whole sorry mess behind them.But Izzy had other ideas. She was furious with Harold for what he had done, and for the fact that he had gotten away with everything, and she put pressure on Paul to get revenge on him in some way. With the restaurant at Lassiter's losing a lot of business to Harold and Lou's General Store, Izzy suggested Paul re-launch it as a café to rival Harold and Lou's trade. Paul instantly went for the idea, as it not only provided him with a way to pay Harold back for his behaviour, but also naming it Lucinda's and offering the co-managing job to Elle, would ensure she stuck around in Erinsborough instead of moving to Sydney with Ned as she had recently planned to.As the café war got underway, things turned nasty when Paul stole Harold and Lou's butcher and Lou retaliated by obtaining an events licence so they could sell alcohol to uni students during orientation week. A low point in the feud for Harold came when Paul beat him to donating prizes and catering for the hospital fundraiser, and a furious Harold confronted Paul about his treacherous ways, even pointing out how disgusted Helen would be by his behaviour if she were alive – a comment that did little to temper Paul's behaviour. As it became apparent that Harold and Lou couldn't compete with Lucinda's for long with Paul undercutting them at every opportunity, they eventually found themselves unable to pay their rent. As landlord, Paul had the power to evict them from the premises and gleefully took the store over himself, installing Elle and Dylan there to run that business too. But Lou managed to win back the store from Paul by getting an old contact at the council to con Paul into thinking the premises would have to be demolished – leading Paul to quickly sell the lease back to Lou.By that stage, Paul had his mind on other matters. Desperate to see Ned out of Erinsborough – and Elle's life – Paul and Izzy schemed to force him out of town. They arranged for a theatre director to offer the wannabe musical star an audition in Sydney, but Ned wouldn’t leave without Izzy, who he had fallen in love with and –unbeknownst to Paul – slept with. In typical Izzy fashion, she concocted a whole host of stories to discourage Ned from sticking around, eventually claiming that Paul had been diagnosed with a brain tumour. She pleaded with Ned to put his career first and go to Sydney, but he refused and a further complication presented itself when a security guard at Lassiter’s tried to blackmail Izzy with a CCTV tape of her and Ned having sex in her office. Max finally persuaded his sister to own up to Paul and when she did, Paul was stunned at her betrayal. But after Izzy explained that the only reason she had got involved with him was to keep him away from Elle, Paul realised she had been well intentioned and agreed to leave it in the past, despite repeated attempts by Ned to drive a wedge between the two.Paul was thrilled when another of the triplets arrived in Erinsborough, this time it was Cameron who wanted to get to know more of his estranged father. However, what Paul, Izzy and even his sister Elle didn't realise was that Cameron was actually the third Robinson triplet, Robert. Robert had never forgiven Paul for what he considered to be a complete abandonment of the family and as a result, was always more different and withdrawn from his siblings. What nobody knew was just how disturbed Robert had become and how he had begun an elaborate series of events aimed at extracting revenge on Paul - including planting the bomb on the Lassiter's joy flight and attempting to poison Paul and Izzy. His next move was to cause a car accident involving Cameron which put him in a coma, allowing Robert to assume his more normal and likeable twins' identity while letting everyone else think that Robert had gone travelling in Europe. Upon settling in Ramsay Street, the first person on Robert's hate list was Dylan, who he realised had become like a son to Paul. Having caused a rift between Paul and Dylan, Robert turned his attentions to Izzy. As she babysat her baby nephew Charlie at No.22 one afternoon, Robert crept in and turned the gas on, causing Izzy to pass out and almost die. Lyn Scully, who had recently started working for Paul as his PA and was also Charlie's grandmother, came to their rescue when she called over just in the nick of time. Robert then adopted a new tack, by flirting with Izzy in the hope of exposing her to Paul as an unfaithful lover. Having recorded several conversations he had had with her on his mp3 player, Robert then edited them all together to make it sound like Izzy was coming on to him and when he played it to Elle, she convinced him he had to tell Paul.As soon as Paul heard the recording, he flipped out and threw Izzy out of No.22. Paul was particularly bruised by the apparent failure of his relationship with Izzy because he had made a serious effort not to lie to her, only for her to repay him with such deceit. He found a shoulder to cry on in the form of Lyn, who seemed to be looking at Paul as more than her boss and was delighted when Paul told her in turn that he saw her as more than employee. They became even closer when Paul spotted a baby utility belt on Lyn's daughter Steph, that she had adapted from an old tool belt and they embarked on a new business venture to mass market the product. But when Paul hooked up with Letitia, one of the manufacturers, and Lyn expressed her dismay, he told her in no uncertain terms to stay out of his business.Meanwhile, Robert was on the verge of being exposed as Izzy, determined to win Paul back, broke into No.22 to get her hands on the mp3 player and eventually managed to piece the recordings back together to prove her innocence. Having presented Paul with the truth, Paul and Izzy quickly worked out that Robert had been behind so much of the drama and upset in recent months – and when Paul remembered that Robert had been behaving strangely earlier that day around Elle's car, he realised he must have been tinkering with it in order to cause her harm. Paul phoned Elle and got her to escape just before the bomb Robert had planted in it had gone off. A shaken Paul called the police but, of course, at that stage, everyone still thought it was Cameron who was behind all the physical and emotional carnage that had overcome Erinsborough. Robert, meanwhile, had gone to visit Cameron at the hospice he had admitted him to and was stunned to find the bed empty. Cameron had woken from his coma earlier that day after a visit from Robert where he had confessed all before going off to plant the bomb in Elle's car. Hiding behind the curtains in the room, Cameron jumped out and knocked Robert unconscious when he returned, and changing into his brother’s clothes, he headed for help. But his timing was awful, as just as Cameron got to Ramsay Street, the police had arrived and arrested him. And upon regaining consciousness back at the hospice, Robert slipped into the bed previously occupied by his brother and pretended to be in the coma that Cameron had spent the last two months in.The realisation that his son had caused such harm and was filled with so much hatred towards him hit Paul badly. And as confusion began to overshadow proceedings – Elle had started to suspect, rightly, that it had actually been Robert living in their midst all this time and Cameron had now somehow ended up innocently in the frame – Paul focused his attention on the comatose Robert and had him transferred to Erinsborough Hospital. Paul was also deeply touched by the support he received from Harold, particularly when he was faced with the heartbreaking task of telling Harold that it had been one of his own sons who had planted the bomb on the plane that had wiped out his family. Paul also apologised to Izzy for ever doubting her, and Izzy delighted him by telling him, for the first time, that she loved him and moved back into No.22.When a stunned Gail heard about what had happened, she quickly made her way back to Erinsborough and came face to face with Paul for the first time in over ten years at the bedside of Robert. Straight away the old feelings between the pair resurfaced – with Gail angrily accusing Paul of ruining their childrens' lives by putting the almighty dollar first as always before calming down afterwards and having a coffee with him. Gail then headed to the police station to speak to Cameron, and afterwards, was sure something was amiss. Paul insisted on Gail staying with him at their old marital home although she came into conflict straight away with Izzy, who accused Gail of being a bad mother for producing such an evil son. Paul managed to assure Gail that he didn't see it that way and the pair caught up on old times when they were finally left alone at No.22.Once Robert had 'awoken' from his coma and was released from hospital, the Robinsons were all reunited under one roof, with the exception of Cameron who was languishing in police custody for crimes he didn’t commit. Robert was disgusted that Gail and Paul were getting on so well, and told Gail that he was only staying there for her. But Gail urged Robert to mend some fences with his father and get to know him better. Meanwhile, Paul and Gail were getting to know each other better all over again. After telling Paul she wanted to visit the graves of Helen and Jim while she was in town, Paul took Gail by surprise when he expressed a desire for them to visit Rob's grave too and he finally apologised for walking out on her father's funeral to go back to the office all those years ago. Touched by the sentiment, Gail got caught up in the moment and kissed Paul, although the re-igniting of their old chemistry was short-lived as Robert saw the embrace and interrupted them. But Paul and Gail were delighted when Robert suggested he and Paul go away on a camping trip together for a few days.Something continued to nag at Gail, though, as Paul and Robert prepared to leave for their trip. Before going camping, Gail and Robert visited Cameron in prison who went crazy when Robert mentioned he was going away with Paul and warned Gail that Paul's life would be in danger. Gail's unease increased when Robert cryptically told her as he left for the trip that anything he had ever done was for her. The final proof that Robert was actually the maniac in the family came when Katya Kinski, who had been dating 'Cameron' arrived at No.22 insisting that it had actually been Robert she had been involved with because she had just bumped into him at the pub and had a flashback to a previous brush with him. Fearing for Paul's safety, Gail phoned Robert and her worst fears were realised when Robert was distant as he spoke to her and told her Paul was too busy to come to the phone. This prompted Gail, Elle and Izzy to follow them to the bush in pursuit of Paul. But Robert had already drugged Paul and trapped him in an old mineshaft, before exposing himself as the mastermind behind all the recent crimes when Paul woke up. Robert then left Paul in the shaft and collapsed the entrance, leaving his father behind to be buried alive.When Gail, Izzy and Elle came across Robert at the camping site and questioned him about Paul's whereabouts, he became agitated, threw a shovel at them and fled – leaving the women with no idea where Paul was. As emergency services were brought in to help search the area, Gail came across an old photo of her and Paul lying on the ground which Robert had thrown at Paul before leaving him in the shaft. Paul had managed to poke the picture through a tiny hole in the shaft and when Gail found it, she cried out for Paul and was relieved to hear him calling back at her from underground. Once Paul was finally rescued, he was brought back to Erinsborough Hospital where a delighted Gail showed signs of becoming increasingly close to him. Izzy warned her off Paul, but Gail was harbouring such strong feelings for him that she couldn't help herself and when she told Paul about Izzy's warning, Paul told Gail that they would always share something special and he wasn't prepared to throw it all away due to a tantrum from Izzy. Izzy became so irked by the couple's bond that she made a catty, throwaway suggestion that they get married again – an idea that Paul seized on as it would be just the thing to bring Robert out of hiding.Before long, plans were afoot for what would be Paul and Gail's third wedding ceremony, even though this one was purely designed as a ruse to catch Robert. A newspaper article was written about the nuptials which was seen by Robert and he made his way back to Erinsborough on the day to disrupt proceedings. Meanwhile, Paul and Gail put so much effort into the wedding that it looked and felt so real they were quickly caught up in the emotion of it all. Gail was particularly touched when Paul broke away from the prepared vows and spoke from the heart about how blessed he was to have found her again. The ceremony was interrupted, however, when an impatient Paul began calling out for Robert to show himself – an act which finally prompted Robert to shoot at his father from the bushes he had been hiding in. However, the police had predicted such a move and Paul had been wearing a bullet proof vest.With Robert in prison, Cameron released and the drama of recent times behind them, the Robinsons tried to start again as a family, but Paul was behaving in a strange way and almost seemed to enjoy the battle for his affections that was raging between Gail and Izzy, not to mention the ever-increasing attentions of Lyn. Events came to a head when the family went for dinner and Cameron hit it off with the beautiful Lilly DeRouge. After dinner, Paul excused himself to attend a business meeting but Gail and Izzy became suspicious when Lyn called over to No.22 knowing nothing about any such meeting. Gail and Izzy went down to Lassiter's were they were shocked to find Paul in bed with Lilly and Gail decided that whatever she thought she and Paul could have together, there was no chance of reconciliation after all. The next day, Gail returned to Tasmania, leaving Elle and Cameron behind to continue getting to know their father better and urging Paul to seek some professional help before it was too late.But Paul was on a downward slope as far as his morals were concerned. He began flirting with women all over town and rejected pleas from Max to be less public about his behaviour out of deference to Izzy. He persuaded Elle to pretend she had a fatal disease in order to retain the love of Dylan, who had been torn between her and Sky for months. He attempted to blackmail Carmella Cammeniti, who had recently joined a nunnery and become 'Sister Mary Catherine', into sleeping with him. And when Paul discovered that the baby belt design infringed a patent that was lodged years ago and he stood to lose everything he had invested in the venture, he set Lyn up for the fall by promoting her to Managing Director of New Projects at Lassiter's with a 100% pay-rise. Although she initially wanted to have the contract checked out by a lawyer, Lyn decided to trust Paul and took the job. What Lyn didn’t realise was that Paul had included in the deal, a total signing over of the whole baby belt deal to her and within weeks, she had been served with a writ for copyright infringement. When Lyn confronted Paul about his betrayal, he stunned her by kissing her, and turned on by her threats to use all the dirt she had on him from his business deals to bring him down, Paul embarked on a torrid romance with her, seeing her for the first time as more than a divorced mum of five. Blaming the baby belt idea on Izzy, who had moved out after realising Paul could no longer commit to one woman, Paul vowed to fight the infringement case with Lyn and he impressed her further by lavishing attention on her and her youngest son, Oscar. Izzy threw a brief spanner in the works by telling Lyn that Paul had killed Gus Cleary in the Lassiter's fire that had coincided with Paul's return to the area but Paul managed to persuade Lyn that Izzy was simply being malicious and had been overcome with jealousy. But Paul was privately furious with Izzy, and threatened her with finding herself in a similar situation to Gus if she raised the subject again.As Paul's descent into darkness continued, an unexpected blow came when word reached Paul that Robert had escaped from prison and was on the loose. The whole of Ramsay Street was on extra alert in anticipation of his return and this proved to be fatally problematic for Cameron, as he was mistaken for Robert by Max, when he was seen chasing Katya. In fact, he was simply catching up with her after she had left her bag behind but thinking it was Robert out to cause more havoc, Max was caught up in a moment of terror and knocked him down. As he was taken to hospital, Paul and Elle were told that he was in a critical condition but it was only when Elle went to phone Cameron to let him know what had happened and heard a phone ringing in the bag containing Robert's belongings that they realised Cameron had been the one who was run down. As Cameron's condition deteriorated, word filtered through that Robert had never escaped and had actually just been hiding from the prison guards and Paul became even more angry at the chain of events. But Cameron made Paul promise to come good if he pulled through, something which Paul worked on straight away by starting counselling to get to the bottom of his bad behaviour. However, Cameron then took a turn for the worst and died, leaving Paul even more embittered than ever before.After burying Cameron at home in Tasmania, Paul returned to Erinsborough hell bent on getting revenge on Max for causing his son’s death. He was tipped over the edge when he witnessed Max hugging his son Boyd and decided, since Max was only being charged with manslaughter, he would dish out his own form of punishment. After leaving a note for Elle apologising for what he was about to do, Paul followed Max down to Lassiter’s and pulled a gun on him. Luckily, Max managed to talk Paul out of doing anything foolish by pointing out killing him wouldn’t make his grief any easier to deal with and a broken Paul dropped his gun just as Lyn, who had found a note Paul left for Elle apologising for what he was about to do, arrived to confiscate the gun. Paul decided to act on the advice Max had offered him by refusing to pursue the manslaughter charges and allow Max get on with his life.The gun incident had led Lyn to re-evaluate her relationship with Paul, however, and she told him she didn’t want to see him anymore. But after her legal bills from the baby belt fiasco forced her to sell her home, Paul offered her and Oscar a room at No 22, on a strictly platonic basis. Lyn had no alternative but to accept, and felt a lot better about the arrangement when Izzy, on her way out of Erinsborough for good, revealed to her that she had lied about Paul murdering Gus. However, Paul had persuaded Izzy to tell Lyn this in return for him keeping quiet about the fact that she was carrying Karl Kennedy’s baby. As Lyn’s attitude towards Paul softened, he surprised her by whisking her and Oscar off to New York to visit her daughters Flick and Michelle.When Paul stayed on in America a bit longer than Lyn, she had convinced herself that Paul wining and dining beautiful young women in the Big Apple, particularly after Flick told her she had seen Paul with a mysterious blonde at one point. But Paul shocked Lyn by returning with an engagement ring and asking her to be the fourth Mrs Robinson. Lyn happily accepted, although they initially kept the news low-key. This was a difficult task to achieve, though, as the engagement ring Paul had bought Lyn was a little big for her finger and Lyn’s refusal to have it re-sized led to it constantly dropping off her finger as she went around town. The final straw came when it came off as she played ball with Oscar at Lassiter’s and it ended up in the lake. Paul hired a team of scuba divers to scour the water in the hope of finding it, but Lyn cleverly called them off at the last minute and explained to Paul that the lake was where she had disposed of his gun. Paul then took it upon himself to wade into the water and having finally found it, Lyn agreed to have it refitted.Paul was determined to make this marriage work and threw himself into neighbourly behaviour by having dinner with Lyn’s best friend Susan and Karl, who she had recently reunited with. He even decided to sell half of Lassiter’s, retaining a 49% share for himself, in order to cut back on his workload. In fact, Paul was so confident Lyn would be around for the long haul that he made plans to change his will to include her. However, as he worked on the details with the new solicitor at the Lassiter’s Complex, Rosetta Cammeniti, he found himself drawn to her. Paul was desperate to avoid the feelings he had for her, but matters were made worse by the fact that Rosetta had moved into No.30 right across the road from him. In the hope of focusing on his marriage to Lyn, Paul suggested they bring the wedding forward to just before Christmas and Lyn happily agreed. But Lyn unwittingly brought Paul and Rosetta closer when she offered her a business traineeship at the hotel. The sexual tension between Paul and Rosie came to a head when they were trapped in the hotel wine cellar together and got to discussing their past relationships. As Rosie revealed she was still a virgin and had put her professional life ahead of her private life, Paul could contain himself no longer and they shared a passionate kiss. The hotel staff found them before anything else could develop, and Paul pressed on with his plans to wed Lyn.As the wedding day arrived, Paul was plagued with thoughts and visions of Rosie, culminating with the very real vision of her passing the church in a car while Paul waited for his bride. Nevertheless, he went ahead with the ceremony and despite a brief pause as he made his vows to Lyn, the couple were declared man and wife. At the lavish reception that followed, Paul made a touching speech about how lucky he was to find his perfect woman at last. But the marriage was to be a short one, as Paul realised before the day was out that he couldn’t be trusted to be faithful and true to Lyn. A stunned Lyn was told by Paul in their honeymoon suite that he had kissed Rosetta and still had feelings for her, and would probably have feelings for lots of other women if they were to continue with their marriage. Devastated, Lyn had the marriage annulled and after going to the Maldives with Oscar on what would have been her and Paul’s honeymoon, she resettled in her hometown of Shelley Bay, unable to face Paul and Ramsay Street ever again.With Elle spending Christmas in Tasmania with Gail, Paul spent the holidays alone as he once again became public enemy number one in Erinsborough. When he passed by Rosie’s office at Lassiter’s on Christmas Day, he was surprised to see her at her desk and they shared a heart to heart over his disastrous marriage to Lyn and her disastrous flirtations with her housemate Frazer Yeats. After Rosie revealed that she had set herself a deadline of midnight that Christmas to lose her virginity, Paul offered to help her out while they still had time but before anything could happen, Frazer interrupted them with a bouquet of flowers for Rosie and a plea to give a relationship with him a chance. With Paul and Frazer now locked in a battle for Rosie’s affections, Rosie’s best friend Pepper Steiger proposed Rosie date each man for a week to work out which one suited her best. While Frazer begrudgingly agreed to go along with the plan, Paul took it as a challenge to prove himself and readily accepted it. Having wined and dined Rosie, Paul then set out to sabotage Rosie’s first date with Frazer at Lassiter’s restaurant by forcing the staff to be rude and inhospitable to the couple. But even having Frazer’s credit card cut didn’t detract from how well the pair were getting on and Paul was disgusted when she told him that the age difference between them was too great and she needed someone like Frazer to experience new things with. Paul then consoled himself by throwing himself into a period of no strings sex with Pepper, getting a kick out of the fact that she was Rosie’s best friend and confidante.Trouble loomed at Lassiter’s, meanwhile, when Loris Timmins, grandmother to the Timmins’ brood and Paul’s new partner in the hotel, signed her 49% share over to daughter-in-law Janelle and the Timmins kids. Paul was furious at the move, seeing the Timmins family as mere bogans who didn’t know the first thing about running a first rate hotel. He was further incensed by Elle’s support of them, as a result of her relationship with Dylan, and threw her out of No.22, leaving her to take refuge with at the Timmins house. The key to regaining some semblance of control over the company he had spent so long building up lay in the 2% that was owned by a mysterious, silent shareholder who only communicated at board meetings through instant messenger. Paul eventually discovered that ‘Mr 2%’ was actually The Scarlet Bar’s new bartender Will Griggs. Will was actually the son of old business acquaintances of Paul, the late hoteliers Clifford and Pamela Barnes, who had left their entire multi-million-dollar hotel chain to Will and his older brother Oliver. But with Will intent on living life as a normal, run of the mill bartender, he pleaded with Paul not to expose his true identity and Paul agreed in return for Will voting with him in all future board meetings.Determined to regain full control over his hotel empire, Paul decided he needed Elle’s support and set about ruining her relationship with Dylan. After setting Ned up to lose $25,000 in a rigged card game, Paul agreed to pay off his debts in return for Ned carrying out a number of tasks for him. Paul even sweetened the deal for Ned by putting him up in Karl Kennedy’s old flat, which Paul had recently bought and lavishly refurbished. Accompanying Elle, Dylan, and some other Ramsay Street lovebirds on a Valentine’s retreat in the countryside, Ned’s first act of treachery for Paul was to ensure Dylan fell into someone else’s bed. Ned was successful in getting him into bed with Carmella, although nothing actually happened between the two because he had drugged their drinks, but after Elle caught them the next morning, the damage was done and she went running back to Paul. With Elle back on side, Paul’s next targets were the Timmins’ themselves and he again used Ned to make life miserable for them. He had Ned rob their house, which they hadn’t insured, and mug Paul as he was taking the Lassiter’s takings to the bank, to make it look like a huge chunk of the company’s profit had been lost. Paul hoped that these actions, coupled with his announcing to the family at board meetings that the company was in serious financial trouble, would lead to them throwing the towel in and selling their shares.But Lassiter’s took a backseat to the Timmins family when youngest son Stingray died from an aneurysm after donating his bone marrow to his leukaemia stricken niece, Dylan’s baby daughter, Kerry. What Paul didn’t realise was that an enraged Dylan held him solely responsible for his younger brother’s death as Kerry had gotten the cancer from Dylan as a result of his exposure to the toxic waste Paul had dumped in the wetlands, and Stingray had died as a result of the operation to save the baby’s life. On a misson to make Paul pay, Dylan kidnapped him, taking him out to the bush where he played a dangerous game of cat and mouse with his former mentor. Dylan finally lured Paul to the same cliff where he had fallen and lost his leg, and pushed him off the edge. But as Paul was clinging on for his life, Dylan realised that he couldn’t leave him to die as he had enough grief to deal with and after helping Paul back up, he told him he was doing a good enough job of ruining his life by himself.Rather than change his ways after this latest eye opener, Paul simply became more and more vengeful and evil, and worst of all, had started to drag Elle down with him. Ever since Will’s brother Oliver had arrived in town, Paul was anxious to get on Oliver’s good side as he now owned Will’s 2% of Lassiter’s, and he realised the best way to get to him would be through a marriage to Elle. But Oliver had fallen for Carmella, and there was hardly any chance of Oliver giving Elle a second look. The only potential barrier to their happiness was Oliver’s unease at Carmella’s family, Erinsborough’s answer to the mafia. To seize on Oliver’s unhappiness with the Cammeniti way of doing things, Paul and Elle planted explosives on Carmella’s fruit van. Although they hadn’t meant to harm anyone and the bomb had been timed to go off when there was nobody in it, both Carmella and Oliver were almost killed when the explosives were a little late to detonate. Without batting an eyelid, Paul encouraged Elle to continue in their quest to win Oliver over and she used their country cabin as the perfect place to seduce Oliver when she loaned it to him after a quarrel with Carmella. The plan worked when Oliver finally succumbed and slept with Elle, much to the delight of Paul. But just as Paul’s scheme seemed to be paying off, Elle began to have second thoughts about all the deceit he had involved her in, and Elle realised that she was being used by Paul as merely another pawn in his game. Elle and Ned then opted to leave Erinsborough and get away from Paul, but Paul was adamant that she stay put, even hiding her passport so she couldn’t leave the country. Feeling sorry for Paul, Elle decided to stick around at the last minute, prompting Ned to reveal to her that Paul had arranged for him to break her and Dylan up. Disgusted at the lengths Paul had gone to to get what he wanted, Elle maintained her decision to stay, albeit with a much different purpose.Paul was thrilled when Elle arrived back apologising for contemplating leaving, and he agreed to let bygones be bygones. But what Paul didn’t know was that Elle had told Oliver everything about their plan to get their hands on the Barnes shares, and together, the pair had concocted their own plan to bring Paul down. They began by telling Paul they were engaged, and Paul was overjoyed at the prospect of amalgamating the Barnes wealth with his own. And to achieve Paul’s ultimate goal of regaining full control of Lassiter’s, Elle and Oliver convinced him that they had persuaded Janelle to sell her 49% to Oliver, which he would in turn sell back to Paul. Paul didn’t realise that Janelle was in on their scheme and so, never raised an eyebrow when Elle suggested he put the company in her name because Janelle was refusing to sell so long as Paul was involved in the hotel. Paul readily agreed to the ploy, and before the ink was even dry, he was celebrating with a cocktail party at the hotel restaurant. But he was stunned when Elle revealed that she wasn’t really engaged to Oliver but that they were now equal partners in Lassiter’s and she had taken everything away from him in order to save him from himself.Paul had Rosie scrutinise the contract he’d signed and was stunned to learn that it was incontestable and that he had signed over everything – Lassiter’s, the house, international investments, shares and even his everyday bank accounts. As he tried to return home, he found the locks had been changed and Elle had him arrested for trespassing after he crept in the back door. The only place Paul had to turn was the flat Ned had been using, and holed up there for days on end, Paul sunk into a state of despair. Bitter at Elle’s devious plot, despite it being ultimately well intentioned, Paul rejected her attempts at showing she still cared when she called over with food parcels and offered him a job at the hotel as an event co-ordinator. To add to his woes, Paul started to experience intense pain in his head and found it hard to understand what people were saying to him. It had been happening on and off for a while, but the stress of losing everything had amplified the sensations and he eventually sought medical help. He was shocked to be told that he was suffering from an acoustic neuroma, and required surgery to remove a hitherto undetected tumour that had been growing on his brain for several years. Rejecting his doctor’s advice, Paul ignored the diagnosis and resolved to carry on with his life as best he could.While still learning to deal with the news, Paul befriended a homeless teenager, known as Fox, when he tried to steal his lunch from him one day at Lassiter’s. Desperately in need of company, Paul found himself confiding in Fox and began to take onboard the advice Fox was giving him, particularly where Elle was concerned. Fox blamed Elle for all the suffering Paul had endured and persuaded him to break into No.22 and smash the house up. When Paul brought Fox to stay with him at the flat, Fox began to taunt Paul and refused to let him leave. Paul finally managed to escape and ran as far as the car park before collapsing as the noise in his head got louder and louder. He was taken to hospital where the doctors told him he must have the brain surgery or die. But Paul returned home in the hope of first making amends with Elle, only to again be met by Fox at the apartment, who was now making Paul believe Fox and Elle were working together to drive him insane. Paul started to fight with Fox, just as Elle arrived at the apartment and she was shocked to walk in and witness Paul fighting with thin air. Elle convinced Paul to go to the hospital with her, thinking he had had some kind of mental breakdown, but once there, Paul’s tumour was revealed to her and he was prepared for emergency surgery. Right up until he went under the knife, Paul was still being taunted by Fox, who was actually a figment of his imagination caused by the tumour.Paul lay in a coma for a week after the operation, with Elle maintaining a constant vigil. When Paul finally woke up, he had no idea who Elle was, and instead asked to see Jim and Helen. It quickly became clear that Paul had lost a large part of his memory during the surgery, and Elle was forced to break the devastating news to Paul that Jim and Helen had both died over ten years ago. Experiencing the grief all over again, Paul asked to be left alone to come to terms with what had happened. Things got worse when he realised Elle was his daughter, as he didn’t recall having any children and he put his foot in it with Harold when he visited and a clueless Paul started asking him how Madge was keeping. When Elle brought him in some photo albums in the hope of jogging his memory, Paul became preoccupied with the whereabouts of Gail when he saw a picture of her and he couldn’t accept that their marriage had broken up. As it became evident that the growth on his brain had been the cause of Paul’s descent into evil in recent years, and that the memory loss had made Paul forget all the bad things he had done to his family and friends, Elle opted to keep things that way in order to save Paul from any further upset and she persuaded everyone else to do the same.But Paul didn’t quite trust Elle, particularly when she claimed to have not been able to contact Gail, who Paul wanted to see. Pressing her for more information about what had happened in recent years, Elle finally told him about Cameron’s death and how Gail had broken off all contact with him since then. While Paul was sorry to hear he had lost a son, he couldn’t feel any remorse given that he had no recollection of the boy and was concerned instead about Gail. After Elle left her mobile phone behind in Paul’s hospital room by accident, he quickly found Gail’s number in Tasmania and left a message with her declaring his love for her and pleading with her to visit him. A highly sceptical Gail returned to Erinsborough, determined to have it out with Paul, believing his memory loss to be a convenient way for him to crawl back into people’s good books and rejecting Elle’s pleas to keep the truth from him. However, as soon as Gail came face to face with Paul again, she was shocked by how much he had reverted back to the man she had first fallen in love with and realised that the brain tumour must have been what caused his bad behaviour in recent years. Unable to bring herself to hurt him, Gail agreed to go along with Elle’s plan and spare Paul from knowing the truth about his past.But the truth came out when Paul overheard Gail and Elle discussing all the pain he had caused people, particularly in the months leading up to his operation, and the fact that Robert, his own son, had tried to kill him. On the eve of his discharge from the hospital, Gail sat Paul down and told him everything and he was stunned as he realised all the things that he had done to his family and friends, and by extension, what Robert had done. Upon returning to Ramsay Street, Paul broke down at a barbecue Elle had organised to celebrate his homecoming and he begged the forgiveness of his neighbours and friends for the hurt he had caused them.Adjusting to life as a father proved difficult for Paul, too, and he hurt Elle by asking her to refrain from calling him ‘Dad’ while he tried to get his head around things. When Gail pleaded with him to start working on his relationship with Elle, Paul complained that he couldn’t remember her, barely even liked her and had no feelings for her. Elle overheard the conversation and bitterly attacked Paul for neglecting her all her life and revealing how far she had gone before the operation to try and save him from self destruction. After things cooled down, Gail eventually persuaded Paul to patch things up with Elle and Paul agreed to give their father/daughter relationship a chance.As Paul settled back into some sort of normality on Ramsay Street, Gail found herself being drawn to him all over again. After spending a family night in in front of the box at No.22, Paul pleaded with Gail to give their marriage another shot. At first reluctant, Gail succumbed after Paul got her to concede that she still had deep feelings for him and they slept together. The next day, Paul whisked Gail and Elle off to the countryside for a family picnic but Gail gradually realised that they couldn’t simply wash away the past twenty years and live as if nothing had happened for any of them in between. Although still in love with Paul, Gail returned to Tasmania, explaining to him that she couldn’t bring herself to fully reunite with him as his wife, and left him heartbroken.With Gail gone, Paul put all his energy into redeveloping his relationship with Elle. It wasn't long before his paternal instincts began to kick in – when he caught Elle in a passionate embrace with Oliver, he was decidedly uncomfortable with the situation and when he expressed these feelings to Harold, Harold assured him that he was simply behaving like a father. Another person who Paul worked at patching things up with was Ned. Having bumped into him at the lake one afternoon and sensing that there was some bad blood between them, Paul extended the hand of friendship. Ned was initially sceptical of the new Paul but after a while he came around – particularly given he had just started a new chapter in his own life having been landed with Mickey, the eight-year-old son he never knew existed. Paul and Mickey also hit it off, which helped matters and when Paul realised that Ned was living with Mickey, and his pet dog Jake, in a hotel room at Lassiter's, he insisted on them moving in with him and Elle at No.22 for a while.Just as things were settling down for Paul, an unexpected bombshell was delivered to him when it emerged that he might be Oliver's father. Oliver had discovered he was adopted and had been on a quest to find his birth parents for some time, eventually finding out that his mother was Rebecca Napier – the daughter of the Barnes family's trusted manservant, Alan. After tracking her down and experiencing a few false starts, Oliver and Rebecca were finally getting to the point were it looked like they would be able to build a relationship. But then Rebecca paid Oliver a visit at No.22 and was stunned to see a photo of Paul on the sideboard. When Elle explained that the man in the photograph was her father, a horrified Rebecca fled and returned when only Paul was home. Paul was initially confused by her visit but gradually a memory came back to him when Rebecca explained that they had met on a flight back in Paul's air steward days and had shared a romantic weekend together. Although he now remembered Rebecca, Paul was still unsure of why she had appeared on his doorstep after so long but was shocked when she told him she was Oliver's mother and urged him to stop Elle and Oliver from seeing each other immediately. When Paul pressed her for a reason, Rebecca told him that he was Oliver's father.While Paul struggled to come to terms with the news, all concerned were also hugely disturbed by the fact that if Rebecca's revelation was proved to be true, Elle and Oliver – by now involved in a serious relationship - were half-siblings. Paul and Oliver agreed to have a DNA test, and Oliver tried to set Paul's mind at rest while they waited for the outcome by assuring him – falsely – that he and Elle hadn't been having sex. Meanwhile, Paul and Rebecca got to know each other better as they waited for the results and Paul pressed Rebecca to explain why she had never got in touch to tell him he had gotten her pregnant all those years ago. Rebecca explained that when she found out she was pregnant, she phoned Paul's house but the prickly Julie had taken the call and had been quite rude to her – leading Rebecca to assume Julie was Paul's wife rather than his sister and fearing she would break up a marriage, she gave up on Paul. Rebecca's long-held belief proved to be unfounded, however, when the DNA tests came back negative – much to the relief of Elle and Oliver, although Paul did tell Oliver that he would have been proud to have been his father.Rebecca went into meltdown upon discovering Paul wasn't Oliver's father and when she refused to tell Oliver who else could have fathered him, a furious Oliver cut all ties with her. However, Paul realised that there must have been a pretty big reason for Rebecca not to want to tell Oliver the truth and he met with her to try and get to the bottom of things. Rebecca admitted to Paul that if Oliver wasn't fathered by him, the only other person who it could have been was Richard Aaronow, the father of her other son, 17-year-old Declan. Paul was horrified when Rebecca went on to reveal that Richard was a violent and dangerous man who had pursued her relentlessly over the years, eventually raping her, which was what had resulted in Declan's conception. As a result, Rebecca had spent most of her life on the move, fearful of Richard catching up with her and Declan. Paul and Rebecca grew closer as he offered her his support, and Paul succeeded in getting Oliver to give Rebecca another chance. When Oliver pressed Rebecca once more to reveal who his father was, she invented the name Andrew Butler until Paul convinced her to level with Oliver once and for all and she broke the news to him about Richard Aaronow.When Elle – unaware of what a horrible man he was – tracked Richard down and told him about Oliver and Declan's whereabouts, Rebecca was furious when she found out and, terrified that he was going to arrive on her doorstep at any moment, made plans to leave town. But Paul stepped in and persuaded her it was time she stopped running, and invited her and Declan to move into No.22 where they would be surrounded by people and be safe. When Declan learnt the truth about what his father had done to Rebecca, he flipped out and lured Richard to a remote fishing spot under the pretence of getting to know him better. Paul, Oliver and Rebecca were forced to race after him when they saw a note he had left for them saying he had gone to sort Richard out. By the time they got to the river, Declan was about to be attacked by Richard and Paul and Oliver intervened and rescued him from his clutches in the nick of time. Paul brought Rebecca and Declan away to a cabin in the country to get away from it all and while there, Paul and Rebecca admitted that they both had feelings for each other and became a couple. Their new found happiness was interrupted by Richard, however, when he tracked them down to the country and set upon Rebecca while she was gathering wood alone in the bush. Although she escaped unhurt, the ordeal led Rebecca to decide to take a civil case against Richard – but a shocking surprise was in store when it emerged Richard was in end stage renal failure and only a kidney transplant from one of his sons could save him. Declan wanted to donate one of his so that Richard would live long enough to face his day in court but Rebecca wouldn't allow him and instead, Oliver stepped into the breach – extending Richard's life for the time being.Journalist Elizabeth “Libby” Grace  Kennedy-Fitzgerald (Kym Valentine, 1994-2004, 2005-cameo, 2007-). Libby is the second child of Karl and Susan Kennedy, and their only daughter. As a teenager, Libby was always bright and clever, and involved herself in her grandfather’s communist beliefs, much to the dislike of Karl. Libby always resented her father for moving the family to Erinsborough without even telling them. She quickly made friends with Brett Stark after he promptly helped Libby move furniture into their new house, which resulted in him putting the arm of a chair through the wall. Although Brett had feelings for Libby, he never acted upon them. Her first part time job was at Philip Martin’s (Ian Rawlings) news agency, which she pursued even after being threatened by a robber. Despite Karl warning her not to continue, she carried on working there until she was offered a part-time cadetship at the Erinsborough news. Libby [Elizabeth] Grace Kennedy-Fitzgerald 1994-2004, 2007-Lived: 22, 28, 32 Ramsay Street, Libby and Drew's flat, Libby and Darren's houseParents: Karl and Susan KennedyMarital Status: Drew Kirk (2001-2002; died), Daniel Fitzgerald (2009-)Siblings: Malcolm, Bill and HollyChildren: BenFamily Tree: KennedyOccupation: Student, Newsagency Assistant, Lou's Place Barmaid, Journalist, Grease Monkeys Waitress, New Voice Editor/Publisher, Carpenter's Mechanics Owner, Teacher at Erinsborough High SchoolThe only daughter of Karl and Susan Kennedy, Elizabeth Grace Kennedy was always wise beyond her years as a child, and by the time she reached adolescence, Libby was an intelligent, worldly wise young girl. Politically aware, Libby aligned herself with her grandfather's Communist beliefs, much to the dislike of Karl, and the closeness Libby shared with Grandpa Tom often caused contention for Karl since he had always had a difficult relationship with his father.Libby was appalled when her father suddenly announced in 1994 that he had bought a new house for the family in the suburban town of Erinsborough, and the family were moving out of the country. Neither Libby nor her brothers, Malcolm and Billy, were impressed with the idea of moving to the city and resented Karl for making the plans without even consulting them.However, it didn't take Libby long to settle into Erinsborough. She made a friend in studious Brett Stark on her first day in Ramsay Street, and the pair became soul mates. Although he valued Libby as a trusted friend, Brett also harboured feelings for her, but was scared to act upon them. Instead, he and Libby became embroiled in an elaborate scam to get Stonie Rebecchi elected school captain.After Mal barged into her bedroom one afternoon to borrow her walkman, Libby demanded some new house rules be brought into effect to protect her privacy. Susan told the boys they were to stay out of Libby's room unless she asked them in. But Billy was determined to get his own back on Libby for teasing him about his recent crush on Leanne 'Packo' Packington and so, sneaked into her room to get Libby's personal journal, in which she was writing a steamy novel. That evening at dinner, Billy embarrassed Libby by reading out passages from her journal, and landed her in trouble with Karl and Susan who were shocked at the steamy content of the writings. Libby's embarrassment was extended to the schoolyard when Mal brought the journal to school and read some of the steamy extracts to the other students. Libby called a family meeting where she demanded a lock be put on her door in the wake of the recent invasions of her privacy, but her request was turned down by Karl and Susan, who felt the punishment they had dished out to the boys for their behaviour was enough. Libby remained furious with Mal, however, and when Billy took some photographs of Mal flexing his muscles in the mirror, Libby had the film developed and put the pictures on display in the Coffee Shop and around the neighbourhood. The embarrassment Mal suffered as a result ended the privacy dispute once and for all - much to the delight of Karl and Susan.A part-time job at Philip Martin's newsagents in the Lassiter's Shopping Arcade was working out very well for Libby until her life was put in danger when she was held up by a robber one afternoon. Libby was forced to empty the cash register by the robber, but he refused to believe her when she told him there was hardly any money because Philip had just left beforehand to lodge the takings at the bank. As the robber became more aggressive and accused her of lying, Libby saved herself by using what she had learned at self defence class, and held him down until Philip got back from the bank and called the police. The incident left Karl convinced that the job was too dangerous for Libby to continue with, and he insisted she didn't work there again. Libby and Susan both opposed Karl's plan, and after pointing out to him that no matter where you are in life there's always a possibility of danger, Karl relented and agreed to let her continue working at the newsagents. Ultimately, Libby was to quit the newsagents anyway after landing a part-time cadetship at the Erinsborough News - her first step in her quest to become a journalist.When university graduate Luke Handley moved in next door to the Kennedys, Libby instantly got a crush on him. And Luke began to develop feelings for Libby, too, when he offered his services as a model to her in a photo-essay she was doing on the human body. When Karl came across some shots of what he thought were of Luke's bum, he suspected Libby of being involved with him and confronted her. But Libby explained to Karl that the shots in question where actually of Luke bending his arms, and Karl was forced to apologise to Libby for suspecting her of getting sexually involved with Luke. But unbeknown to Karl, Libby and Luke were becoming more and more attracted to each other, and they finally kissed. Libby was delighted by the development, and confessed to Brett that she was mad about Luke. She even told Susan and Karl about her feelings for Luke, in the hope that being honest would make them trust her. But Karl grounded Libby, and forbid her from seeing Luke. Luke, meanwhile, told Karl and Susan that he was as uncomfortable with the age difference as they were, and he insisted that he was only trying to let Libby down gently. Susan hatched a plan with Luke whereby he would shower Libby with love and attention in an attempt to make her lose interest in him. But the plan backfired when Libby realised her parents were only suddenly being so nice to Luke in order to put her off him. And Libby was gutted when Luke revealed to her that he had been involved in Karl and Susan's plan too, and he finally told her they could only ever be friends. Libby had a hard time dealing with Luke's admission, and refused to speak to him. But after she received a letter in the post from Luke in which he explained how badly he felt about the way things had worked out between them, and how deeply he cared for her, Libby accepted that he never meant to hurt her, and agreed to maintain their friendship.Libby impressed her bosses at the Erinsborough News when she began writing articles under the pseudonym Biddy Tuncliffe about the dramas her neighbours in Ramsay Street were currently going through - such as the relationship between Lucy Robinson and trainee priest Mark Gottlieb, and the romantic complications of Annalise Hartman. Brett warned Libby about the dangers involved in writing about the problems of people she knew, but Libby ignored his advice. It was only when Libby wrote a piece clearly based on Brett's (non-existent) love life that she learnt a lesson in journalistic integrity. Brett accused Libby of betraying their friendship and even though Libby insisted that she hadn't set out to portray him as the loser he appeared to be in the article, Brett refused to forgive her and became even angrier when he was teased at school over the story. Libby also had to incur the wrath of Annalise when Brett told her that it had been Libby who wrote the piece about her weeks before. Libby sought comfort from Susan as she tried to cope with the hurt she had caused her friends and neighbours, and she made one last attempt at healing the rift with Brett. Luckily for Libby, Brett had begun to receive tons of faxes and letters from girls interested in the loser in love that had appeared in the paper, and he gladly agreed to forgive her.Libby found romance over the internet after meeting surfer Sonny Hammond in a chat room and meeting him in the flesh a few weeks later. They started dating, but Libby was forced to evaluate her feelings about sex when Sonny began to put pressure on her to take their relationship further. Libby confided in Angie Rebecchi about her predicament, who enabled Libby to see that she just wasn't ready to lose her virginity yet, and shouldn't until she was absolutely sure she had found the right guy. However, Sonny piled the pressure on, booking a room for him and Libby at a guesthouse in Minerva for the weekend. Libby told Sonny she wasn't ready to go that far with him, and he accepted her decision. But the next day at the beach, Sonny started to get heavy with her when they found themselves alone in a secluded spot. Libby ended up fleeing the beach in panic, leaving Sonny feeling confused and uncomfortable with the situation. When Sonny showed up at the Kennedy house that night to find out what was wrong with Libby, he found her in the back yard in a subdued mood. Sonny persuaded a reluctant Libby to get into his van with him to talk about what had happened at the beach, but once they were inside, it became apparent that Libby didn't want to discuss the incident at all. But Sonny kept pushing and pushing and when Billy came out onto Ramsay Street, he noticed movement inside Sonny's van. After hearing Libby shouting, he ran over to see what was going on. Sonny was furious when Billy began banging on the windows of the van, and declaring that they couldn't get a moment alone to talk, Sonny drove off and brought Libby to his place. Billy alerted Karl and Susan to the situation, prompting Karl to hurriedly drive over to Sonny's. But just as Libby and Sonny were reaching an understanding about where each of them stood on the physical aspect of their relationship, Karl arrived and grabbed Sonny out of the van to defend his daughter. Sonny protested that there was nothing going on, and Libby tried to calm Karl down and assure him she was safe. But Karl refused to accept that Sonny had acted in a responsible manner, and drove Libby home. Libby was disgusted with Karl for dragging her away and interfering in her relationship and gave her father the cold shoulder over his actions. However, Libby showed that she was still nervous about bodily contact after Brett sneaked up behind her as a joke in the garden, and she was startled, turning around and lashing out at him, before breaking down in his arms and apologising.As a result of the incident with Brett, Libby confessed all her fears and doubts about sex to Susan, and she revealed that she thought there was something wrong with her for not wanting to have sex. But Susan assured her that she would know when the time was right and it obviously wasn't yet and obviously not with the right person. Libby felt a lot better after her talk with Susan, but was still faced with the prospect of dealing with the pressure from Sonny. Even though Sonny agreed to ease off, Libby needed time to evaluate whether she wanted to pursue the relationship or not, and she and Sonny took a break from each other. Libby eventually agreed to give things another go and was excited when Sonny brought her to a fancy restaurant for Valentine's night. But she was shocked when Sonny announced over the dinner that he actually didn't want to see Libby anymore because he was so insecure about how far he could go with her. A heartbroken Libby found a shoulder to cry on in the form of Brett, and Libby returned the favour for Brett a few weeks later after he split up with Judy Bergman, the older woman he had been seeing. Both Libby and Brett's relationship failures had largely been due to the fact that neither of them where ready for sex with their respective partners, and the duo managed to overcome their insecurities about losing their virginity once and for all by having sex with each other. Although they felt slightly awkward and uncomfortable the following morning, both Libby and Brett agreed that it had been the right thing to do, and it helped both of them move on with their lives. The incident confirmed the deep friendship Libby and Brett shared, and when Brett left to travel overseas soon after, he left his beloved pet gala, Dahl, in Libby's care.More problems occurred for Libby when a case of crossed wires led the Kennedy family to believe that Libby was pregnant. The misunderstanding began when Karl and Susan noticed Libby had been looking in the women's health section of the telephone directory, while Danni Stark suspected Libby was pregnant after Billy mentioned that she was 'due' soon. Danni had failed to realise that Billy meant Libby had been due home soon, and she wasted no time in spreading word of Libby's 'pregnancy' around the neighbourhood. When Mal and Danni offered Libby their full support, Libby mistook them to be referring to her attending the women's health clinic, and she was furious with them for being so nosey and interfering. Unbeknown to Libby, everyone thought she was up to a lot more than visiting the health clinic, and when Karl called a family meeting, Libby was totally stunned when she realised that her 'pregnancy' was on the agenda. Furious at them for prying into her personal business and angry that they would think she'd be careless enough to get pregnant, Libby put Karl and Susan out of their misery by revealing that she had actually been down to the women's clinic simply to discuss safe sex as part of her process of coming to terms with her growing sexuality, and then angrily requested they all stay out of her sex life in future.When Libby interviewed Rupert Sprod, the hunky captain of the school football team, as part of a video she was making about the school team, she was quickly smitten with him. Libby had previously never given Rupert a second thought, thinking of him as simply a jock and ladies man, but started to see him in a new light, after they realised they both shared an interest in photography. Libby was most impressed with Rupert when he confided in her about his dream of becoming a television sports presenter, proving to Libby that there was more depth to Rupert than she had thought. And Libby was thrilled when Rupert asked her to go to the school dance with him. The couple started dating, and enjoyed a blissful start to their relationship until school bitch Rachelle intervened and started trying to break Libby and Rupert up. Libby ignored Rachelle's early attempts to ruin their relationship by telling Libby that Rupert was messing about with loads of the girls from school. But Rachelle finally succeeded in causing trouble for the couple when she kissed Rupert at a party to celebrate the footy team's victory in the finals. Libby would never have known about the kiss if it wasn't for the fact that Toadie Rebecchi had taken photos of the party, and had snapped Rupert and Rachelle just as they were kissing. Libby was devastated when, despite Toadie's attempts at stopping her, she looked at the photos from the party and saw the shot of Rupert kissing Rachelle. Libby confronted Rupert about the photographs, and Rupert insisted that it was a one off thing and would never happen again. Libby accepted Rupert's explanation, but she was adamant that their relationship was over. Rupert pleaded with Libby to give him a second chance, and enlisted Toadie's help in talking Libby around. But just as Libby was starting to think about getting back with Rupert, Hannah Martin told her she had overheard Rupert blackmailing Toadie into working on changing Libby's mind, and Libby was furious. She decided to get her revenge on Rupert during the class to show the footy video she had been working on, and did so by editing in the Rupert/Rachelle photos with a commentary about how untrustworthy some footy players were. Although embarrassed by the stunt, Rupert still longed to get back together with Libby and again pleaded desperately with her to forgive him for what had happened. But Libby could never trust Rupert again, and resolved to put the relationship in the past.If her relationship with Rupert had caused Libby problems, it was nothing compared to the tumultuous times that followed as she embarked on her most serious relationship with bad boy turned good Darren Stark. The older brother of Brett, Darren had spent two years in prison for taking part in an armed robbery, and was the last person Karl wanted to see Libby become involved with. But Libby saw something special in Darren - he was a young man who was desperately trying to get back on the straight and narrow, and the rough edge about him made him even more appealing to Libby. However, Karl found him totally unsuitable for his daughter. Not only was Darren an ex-con, but he also hadn't finished school, and had come into Libby's life in the final months of Year 12, a time which Karl felt Libby shouldn't have time for a boyfriend. Karl's overbearing interference in their relationship took its toll on Libby and Darren, and they decided to secretly move out. They found a small flat to live in, and only Mal knew the location of it. Libby found it tough going, however, because her HSC was fast approaching, and studying in the noisy and cramped building proved extremely difficult. After being away from home long enough to demonstrate to Karl how serious they were about each other, Libby and Darren finally decided to move back to their families, and Karl gave the couple his blessing. Tragedy struck that same day, however, when Darren's mother, Cheryl, was knocked down and killed. Darren dealt with his mother's death very badly, and was slow to respond to Libby's support. He even became jealous of the bond between Libby and Brett, who had returned for the funeral. Eventually, Darren realised that he was being stupid for suspecting Libby and Brett of impropriety, and he apologised for the way he had been treating Libby.Libby was thrilled when after successfully completing her HSC, she started studying journalism at university. However, heartache was just around the corner when Darren cheated on Libby by having a brief affair with Mal's girlfriend, Catherine O'Brien. The betrayal by both their partners upset Libby and Mal greatly, and even when Darren proposed to Libby to prove his commitment to her, she couldn't trust him enough to put the affair with Catherine behind her. To take her mind off her failed relationship, Libby threw herself into a new part-time job helping out around the house of a young blind man, Rohan Kendrick. Libby found Rohan very disagreeable at first, but she soon got to the bottom of his behaviour when she discovered he had low confidence in himself as a result of his blindness. But Rohan proved himself by saving Libby's life one afternoon when they were walking in the bush, and Libby slipped off a rocky ledge. Rohan successfully went for help by himself, and saved Libby's life. Libby and Rohan began seeing each other after the ordeal, but Rohan realised that Libby wasn't yet over Darren, and ended the relationship.Just as Libby was rediscovering her feelings for Darren, she discovered he was leaving Erinsborough for Byron Bay. But Susan persuaded Libby to chase after Darren and tell him how she felt, prompting Libby to race down to the bus station to stop Darren from going. Although she was too late, Libby followed the bus until its first stop, where she then stunned Darren by confessing she was still in love with him and didn't want him to go. Darren was thrilled by Libby's confession, and opted to stay in Erinsborough after all. However, Darren cheated on Libby a second time when he kissed single mother Shannon Jones at the university ball. Libby was initially impressed with Darren's honesty when he came to her straight away and owned up to what he had done. But after a picture of the kiss appeared in the Erinsborough News, Libby realised that Darren had only told her about the kiss because he knew she would find out from the newspaper. Disgusted and betrayed by Darren, Libby ended the relationship. Darren left Erinsborough soon after, but spent one final evening with Libby when the two met at a motel as they both set out on their journeys (Libby was making her way to Grandpa Tom's farm). After they spent the night reminiscing about their relationship and looking forward to their futures, Libby and Darren parted as friends, finally bringing closure to their relationship.Mechanic Drew Kirk moved to Erinsborough from the country just as Darren was leaving town, and he immediately fell in love with Libby. Libby, however, only saw Drew as a good friend, and despite the fact that they spent all their time together, she never saw him in any other light. Drew was a well mannered, polite country boy, who was very old fashioned, and wanted to do everything the right way, so it was totally against his nature to make a move on Libby if she showed no signs of interest. Instead, Drew was content to sit watching the stars with Libby at night, and admire her from afar.Libby was devastated when she discovered that Karl had had an affair with his receptionist, Sarah Beaumont, and she rejected her father in disgust. Karl desperately tried to make things up to Libby, but it took her a long time to forgive him for betraying the family. Libby was also furious with Sarah after the affair was exposed, particularly since Sarah had confided in Libby about seeing a married man. A deep rift existed between the two girls from that point onwards, and was never fully healed. The nearest Libby ever came to forgiving Sarah was when she was forced to interview Sarah and her fiance Dr. Peter Hannay for the Erinsborough News. Libby had to interview the couple about the aid work Peter was involved with, and the couple's plans to work in that field in Holland. But just before the interview started, Sarah suggested she and Libby clear the air once and for all and get everything off their chests. Libby agreed, and after getting things out into the open, Libby managed to put her anger towards Sarah behind her at last.Libby remained oblivious to Drew's love for her, and devastated him when she started dating her uni lecturer, Mike Healy. Libby's relationship with Mike also upset Karl and Susan, who were uncomfortable with the age gap between the couple. Mike was also recently separated from his wife, Victoria, and had a young daughter, Sasha. But Libby ignored her family and friends' concerns, and kept seeing Mike, and she was thrilled when Mike moved into Ramsay Street, renting No. 32. However, Libby was cheated on yet again when Mike started seeing Victoria again behind Libby's back. It was Drew who initially broke the news to Libby, having spotted Mike and Victoria kissing one afternoon, and Libby refused to believe Drew. Libby's reaction hurt Drew so much that he made plans to leave Erinsborough, feeling there was nothing for him to stick around for anymore. But when Sasha told Libby that her mum was pregnant, Libby confronted Mike about the revelation, and he admitted that he had been sleeping with Victoria again, and the baby was his. On top of the anger she felt over Mike's betrayal, Libby was also furious with herself for the way she had treated Drew. Luckily, Libby managed to apologise to Drew before he left town, and she was thrilled when he agreed to stay.Soon after, Drew brought Libby to visit his family in his hometown of Oakey, in Queensland. Libby was immediately welcomed into the Kirk family by Drew's parents, Ron and Rose. Indeed, Libby impressed the whole of Oakey during her stay, and when she and Drew attended the local dance, they were inundated with compliments about what a lovely couple they made. On their return journey to Erinsborough, Libby and Drew discovered that Drew's kid brother, Dougal, had hid in the boot of the car in the hope of getting to the city with them. They decided to stop at a cabin for the night to get some sleep, but because Dougal was now with them, Libby and Drew were left sharing a room. To avoid any awkwardness, however, Drew insisted on sleeping in a chair and Libby took the bed.When Drew started seeing Shannon Jones, Libby couldn't hide her discomfort with the situation, and eventually told Drew about Shannon and Darren. However, Drew realised that the real reason Libby was so uncomfortable with him seeing Shannon was because she was jealous, and he decided to confess his love for Libby at last. However, Libby backed off straight away, not wanting to lose her friendship with Drew. Hoping to get over Libby's rejection, Drew started seeing Geri Hallett, Libby's arch rival from uni. Seeing Drew and Geri together made Libby finally realise that she was in love with Drew and she decided to go to London to stay with Mal for a few months in the hope of putting Drew out of her mind. But just before she left, Drew told her he didn't want her to go, and admitted that he didn't feel nearly as strongly for Geri as he did for Libby. Libby was thrilled, and at long last, she finally started seeing Drew.The strength of their commitment to each other was tested, however, when Libby decided she wanted to take a year out from uni to travel overseas. Drew was dead against the idea, and told Libby he had no interest in travelling. Libby, on the other hand, was determined to see the world, and arranged for Karl to give her a loan to buy airline tickets to Africa. But Drew was determined to keep Libby in Erinsborough, and decided to propose to her. He popped the question as the whole of Ramsay Street was seeing in the new year at the Millennium street party, but before Libby could answer, the Scully house went on fire with little Louise Carpenter trapped inside. Drew raced inside to save Lolly, and luckily, got out with only minor burns. While Drew recuperated in hospital, Libby decided that she couldn't marry him, but before she could break the news to him, Ron and Rose arrived down from Oakey and assumed Libby had accepted the proposal. The Kirks even organised a special lunch at Lou's Place to get to know the rest of the Kennedy family, but Libby eventually told Drew that she wasn't ready for marriage and turned his proposal down. Drew took the news quite well, vowing to wait until Libby was ready, and he was thrilled when Libby cancelled her travel plans in order to stay in Erinsborough with him.Arch-enemy Geri stirred up trouble for Libby when she began spreading rumours around about Drew having an affair with new arrival, Stephanie Scully. Libby and Stephanie had become good friends when Steph moved into Ramsay Street, and even though Geri had accurately recognised Steph's attraction towards Drew, she was way off the mark implying that Drew was interested in Stephanie. Anyone could see that Drew was totally devoted to Libby, and Libby proved how secure she was in her relationship by not taking any heed of Geri. Geri, meanwhile, pressed on with her attempts at hindering Drew and Libby's romance by reporting Libby's rejection of Drew's marriage proposal in her gossip column in the Erinsborough News. But Libby got her revenge on Geri by exposing Geri's practice of accepting bribes from local businesses in return for free plugs on her Uni FM radio show.When Drew's Auntie Minnie visited Erinsborough, she was determined to meet Libby and vet her out as a prospective member of the Kirk clan. But Libby had already made plans to go clubbing with Steph and Tess Bell on the night Minnie was in town, and she was forced to cancel her plans in order to have dinner with Drew and Minnie. But once the dinner got underway, Libby realised that she had made the right decision, because Drew had fast become the most important person in her life. Minnie was to prove an important person in the road to the altar for Libby and Drew, because when she organised for the couple to get a special photograph done for her, Drew proposed to Libby a second time in the middle of the photographer's studio. And this time, Libby felt the time was right and said 'yes'.As the engagement got underway, Libby was introduced to a Kirk family tradition when Minnie sent the Kirk family quilt down to her, and requested that Libby add a patch of her own to the quilt. Libby and Susan desperately tried to decide on a panel for the quilt, and encountered further pressure when Rose and Drew's Aunt Janet visited to see how it was coming along. Libby had accidentally spilt water over the quilt earlier that day, and had hung it out to dry. But just as Rose and Janet were arriving, Libby went out the back to take in the quilt only to discover it was gone. Libby began a frantic search for the quilt while Susan kept Rose and Janet busy, and she finally found it in the Scullys' backyard being torn apart by their Rotweiler, T-Rex. However, Janet and Rose comforted Libby when they discovered the truth by revealing that the quilt had encountered many spillages and tears over the years, and they tucked in to help her repair the damage.Meanwhile, the level of interference in the wedding plans Libby and Drew were getting from their relatives and friends prompted the couple to think about eloping. Their idea was given a further push when other problems arose, including Grandpa Tom's refusal to attend the wedding if they married in church and Drew's Aunt Shirley refusing to stay in a hotel. And after the band Libby had wanted to play at the reception broke up, they finally agreed to elope. But Libby and Drew began to reconsider their plans after realising just how much effort the rest of the family was putting into the wedding. Just as they were about to change their plans, however, Susan was furious to take a call from a hotel in Fiji confirming Libby's wedding package. Susan was devastated at the thought of her only daughter marrying without her family around her, but a compromise was reached whereby Drew and Libby would marry in Erinsborough in return for less suffocation from the relatives.Tragedy struck only weeks before the big day when Libby and Stephanie were involved in a horrific motorbike accident on the way home from a weekend camping trip where Libby has asked Steph to be her bridesmaid. While Steph escaped the accident with minor injuries, Libby was unconscious for days, and when she finally came round, the doctors told her family that she would have very little chance of ever carrying a baby to full term as a result of her injuries. When Karl and Susan broke the news to Libby, she was devastated, but put on a brave face. However, Libby stunned Drew by breaking off their engagement as a result of the news, thinking that he would never want to marry her if she couldn't give him any children. Despite her family and friends urging her to reconsider her decision, Libby refused to even see Drew when she came out of hospital and she broke his heart when she got Steph to give the engagement ring back to him.As the months passed, Libby grew more and more distant from Drew. After she returned from a stay at Grandpa Tom's farm, Drew's hopes of a reconciliation were raised when Libby asked him to come over and see her. But he faced more upset when Libby told him all she wanted from him was friendship. A date with Geoff, a colleague from the Erinsborough News, got off to a bad start when they went for drinks in the pub before dinner, and bumped into Drew. Libby quickly suggested that she and Geoff go straight over to the restaurant, but once they got outside, Libby realised she had made a terrible mistake and apologised to Geoff for agreeing to the date, before going home. Once home, Libby admitted to Susan that she was still in love with Drew. However, Drew had by that stage thought Libby was completely over him and made plans to leave Erinsborough and return home to Oakey. When news of Drew's plans to sell his garage and leave town reached Libby, she tried to pretend it didn't matter to her and even announced that she intended to resume her travelling plans and work in England for a while.But some stern words from Steph, who was secretly in love with Drew herself, prompted Libby to realise she was being a fool to let Drew walk out of her life. Libby stopped Drew from signing the contracts for the sale of the garage in the nick of time, and admitted to him that she was still in love with him and wanted him to stay. Drew was overjoyed with Libby's declaration of love for him and decided to stay in Erinsborough. Karl and Susan were thrilled when Libby and Drew arrived back at the house and announced they were back together, and Lou Carpenter threw an impromptu celebratory party for them down at the pub. Stephanie was taken aback when she walked in on the celebrations, but managed to put a brave face on throughout the night. The party continued back at the Kennedy house, but Steph left early, unable to take any more of the fuss. Libby followed her home, sensing that something had upset her, but Steph brushed it off as problems with her boss. When the party ended, Drew whisked Libby away to Tom's farm, and stopped to look at the stars with her on the way. Drew asked Libby to assure him she was with him for the long haul, and when she told him she was, he gave her engagement ring back - bringing to an end months of heartache and upset for the couple.As the wedding preparations got underway again, Steph shocked Libby by announcing she couldn't be her bridesmaid. Steph made up an excuse about wanting to tour Australia on her motorbike, but Libby was suspicious about the decision. After seeing how upset Libby was, Drew pleaded with Steph to reconsider her decision for Libby's sake and she reluctantly agreed. Although Libby was relieved by Steph's change of mind, she still detected that Steph was trying to distance herself from her, and finally decided to confront her about her suspicions. Drew, who had found out a few months before how Steph felt about him, tried to talk Libby out of confronting Steph, but was eventually forced to tell Libby the truth. Libby was stunned at the revelation that Steph was in love with Drew, and when she raised the issue with Steph, Steph assured Libby that she had nothing to worry about since it was clear to everyone that Drew was devoted to her alone. In light of the revelation, both girls agreed that it would be too awkward to continue with the plan for Steph to be bridesmaid, and Libby asked her cousin, Gail, instead.Libby received a substantial pay out from the Accident Compensation Board before the wedding, and decided to use the money to buy herself a brand new car. But Drew had been fixing up an old Volkswagen for Libby in the weeks preceding the pay-out and had planned to give it to her as a wedding present. And Drew's plan suffered a further setback when Libby saw the VW after stopping by the garage and - thinking the car belonged to a customer - remarked that she would never go for such an old car. Lou eventually told Libby that the car was meant for her as a surprise, and Libby felt awful for unwittingly insulting Drew. Libby was touched by Drew's idea the more she thought about it, and she happily accepted the VW instead of buying a flash car, and decided to put the compensation money aside for a deposit on a house.Karl excitedly prepared his father of the bride speech for the wedding as the big day approached, but Libby told him she didn't want any speeches, fearing that her father would embarrass her. But when Libby came across Karl's wedding speech in the rubbish bin, she was touched when she read the heartfelt words he had written. Libby apologised to Karl for not giving him a chance to show her his ideas and told him she would be honoured to have him make the speech at the wedding.The wedding plans suffered another setback when Gail called to say she couldn't be Libby's bridesmaid because her baby had to have some minor surgery the week of the wedding. Luckily, Tess and Dione Bliss plotted to heal the rift between Libby and Steph before the big day, and after the two girls made up, Libby was thrilled when Steph agreed to be her bridesmaid again. Final preparations for the big day followed, with Mal sending Libby a special videotaped message to make up for him not being able to get home from London for the wedding. Madge Bishop gave Libby a lace handkerchief from her own wedding day as something borrowed, and Libby was thrilled when Susan presented her with her mother's necklace as something old. Finally, on 21 February 2001, Libby and Drew were married, in a very touching, traditional Scottish wedding at St. Stephen's Church.Their honeymoon in Surfer's Paradise was almost ruined when Geri Hallett showed up, announcing she had been sent up by the Erinsborough News to cover their honeymoon for the wedding column Libby had been writing in the weeks proceeding the big day. Although the newlyweds initially attempted to avoid Geri, they eventually gave in, and grant her some time with them so that they could get on with their honeymoon in peace.Upon returning to Erinsborough, the couple stayed with Karl and Susan while they searched for a place to live. But Libby was less than impressed when Drew announced he had found a perfect flat for them close to Ramsay Street, and had already given the landlord the bond for fear of losing out on it. Although Libby tried desperately to like the flat, she admitted to Susan that she hated it. However, after thinking about the practical side of it and listening to Susan fondly remember her first flat with Karl and the happy memories it evoked, Libby decided to give the place a chance, and made the move into her first home with Drew.While Libby was in London for Mal's wedding, Drew found himself having to ward off the advances of Ronnie Anderson, a customer from the garage who had developed an obsession with him. Ronnie even managed to make Libby suspect her and Drew of having an affair on her return to Erinsborough. Libby's suspicions increased when she found a mysterious earring under the cushion on the living room sofa and lipstick in the bathroom cabinet. But after Ronnie showed up in a frenzied state on the Kirks' doorstep claiming that she and Drew were having a full blown affair and were madly in love with each other, Libby realised that Ronnie was making everything up. Libby started to investigate Ronnie's background, and discovered that she was actually a missing person called Pamela Scott. After contacting Ronnie's father, Libby and Drew learnt that Ronnie was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after losing her fiancee in a rock-climbing accident while on their honeymoon. Libby hatched a plan to reunite Ronnie with her father by having Drew phone Ronnie's mobile under the guise of wanting to meet with her at the garage. When a thrilled Ronnie showed up at the garage convinced that Drew had finally seen sense about their 'relationship' she came face to face with her father and broke down in tears, before agreeing to go home with him.Libby immediately fell in love with a stray puppy Drew found at the garage one day, and was determined to keep her. Unfortunately, the lease on their flat forbid them from keeping pets, and they were forced to put her in the dog pound. But Libby and Drew were devastated when they visited the puppy at the dog pound and were told she was going to be put down because she had a heart murmur and nobody would take her. Libby persuaded Drew to take the puppy home with them, and they agreed on calling her Audrey, after Audrey Hepburn, despite Drew preferring 'Muffin'. However, they still faced the problem of trying to keep Audrey's presence a secret from their landlord. A surprise inspection by the landlord threw Libby and Drew into panic one evening, and as Drew frantically cleaned up the flat to hide any clues that a dog was living there, Libby got into bed to hide Audrey under the covers. But Audrey started barking just as the landlord walked in, and Drew had to pretend that the noise was Libby coughing. Although he accepted Drew's explanation, he warned him that he would be keeping on the eye on the place for any signs of a dog. Luckily, Audrey was able to continue living at the flat without further interference.Libby received a huge shock when she suspected she was pregnant, and after a home pregnancy test showed up as positive, Drew urged Libby to see Dr. Lewin, her gynaecologist, straight away. But Libby was so excited at the idea of being pregnant, she put the risks it could pose to her health out of her mind, and held off on seeing Dr. Lewin, opting for the peace and quiet of Tom's farm instead. Susan and Karl suspected the kids of having marriage problems when they discovered Libby had suddenly gone to her grandfathers, but they were stunned when, after pressing Drew for an explanation, he told them Libby might be pregnant. Upon her return, Karl desperately tried to get Libby to see her doctor, and she eventually agreed. After the pregnancy was confirmed, Libby and Drew were devastated to be told that if Libby went ahead with the pregnancy, it would be potentially life threatening. Drew assumed that the next step would be for Libby to have an abortion, but he was shocked when Libby told him she wasn't going to have an abortion because she had a good feeling about the pregnancy and was determined to have the baby. Drew, Susan and Karl all pleaded with Libby not to put her life in such danger, but never one to be told what to do, Libby insisted she wasn't changing her mind. Drew eventually warmed to the idea of being a father, and once Libby assured him she would cut her workload and take things easy throughout the pregnancy, he supported her decision. And Karl and Susan gradually came to understand that Libby really wanted to be a mother, and they pledged their love and support.However, the pregnancy was to prove a traumatic few months for Libby. Despite her promise to Drew, she failed to cut back on her workload, and spent several weeks trying to secure an exclusive interview with the reclusive Dame Margaret Woolstead. Her hunt for Dame Margaret culminated in Libby collapsing in pain after finally tracking her down. Dame Margaret brought her inside and lay her on the couch while she called an ambulance, and as they waited for the ambulance to arrive, Dame Margaret tried to calm Libby down by granting her her long-sought-after interview. By the time Libby got to the hospital, the pain had stopped and while Drew, Karl and Susan rushed to her bedside to offer her comfort, Libby was more excited about finally getting her interview with Dame Margaret. Drew was furious with Libby for putting her life on the line by pursuing the interview in the first place, and warned her to give up journalism for the rest of the pregnancy. Libby infuriated Drew by rejecting his concerns and having her laptop and university work brought into her hospital room during her stay. But Drew came to realise that the work was just Libby's way of coping with the fear she was consumed with over the pregnancy after she broke down and told him how scared she was.Libby was thrilled when her journalism skills were recognised with an award at the Regional Journalism Awards for her expose on the fixed quiz show, Brainbusters. As a result of the award, Libby was offered a job as Youth Affairs correspondent at The Chronicle, a major daily newspaper. Drew and Susan both immediately objected to the idea of Libby taking such a demanding job while she was pregnant but Libby was determined to accept the job since it would be a major step forward in her career as a journalist. Libby accepted the job after a meeting with The Chronicle's editor, Martin West. However, the offer was withdrawn the next day under strange circumstances, and Libby quickly realised that West had pulled out of the deal after learning she was pregnant. Family friend and trainee lawyer Maggie Hancock suggested Libby sue The Chronicle for discrimination and after thinking over the idea, Libby agreed with the suggestion. A preliminary meeting with the paper's lawyer, Simon Hart, ended tensely after he accused Libby of only pursuing the case to make money and warned Libby and Maggie not to waste their time going to court because The Chronicle was prepared to fight them all the way. The meeting with Hart only served to increase Libby's determination to fight The Chronicle all the way and Maggie and Susan supported her in her determination. However, both Drew and Karl - while assuring Libby that they were proud of her for fighting against the act of discrimination - worried that the case could affect her pregnancy. Libby agreed with them after the baby kicked for the first time and helped her put things into perspective. But just as she was about to tell The Chronicle she would not be pursuing the case, they offered Libby an out of court settlement of $10,000.The offer put Libby in a difficult position. If she accepted the settlement, she was putting her reputation at risk by appearing to have only pursued the case to make money. On the other hand, the money would provide her and Drew with a decent financial base for the baby's arrival and buying a house - and Libby chose this option. But after receiving her settlement cheque in the post from The Chronicle, Libby realised they expected her to sign a document saying she had never been discriminated against by the paper and was never to talk about the incident to anyone. This infuriated Libby so much that she decided not to accept the settlement after all, and vowed to take the case to court and expose The Chronicle. Libby's fight against the newspaper was given a massive boost when Martin West's aggrieved secretary, Nancy Kelloway, approached Libby with some crucial evidence that would swing the case in her favour. Nancy provided Libby with an email West had sent her telling her that Libby was to be hired for the job on The Chronicle, and another email he had sent her later on the same day saying Libby wasn't suitable because she was pregnant. The new evidence forced The Chronicle to drop the case against Libby, and they agreed to settle with her. Libby was thrilled at her success in exposing the newspaper's discriminatory practices but her happiness was short-lived when she started to realise her name had been blacklisted in the journalism community as a result of the stand she had taken. The final straw for Libby was when her editor at the Erinsborough News - a former colleague of Martin West's - refused to publish her story in the paper. Disgusted by the betrayal from the newspaper she had worked on for so many years, Libby resigned.Drew was less than pleased when Libby announced that in light of her resignation from the Erinsborough News she was intending to start up her own magazine with Nadia, a friend from uni, using the money she had received from The Chronicle. Aside from his concerns of Libby overdoing it so much in the final months of her pregnancy, Drew also felt that the settlement money should be used to get a house and to support the baby. But the couple eventually compromised, and Libby agreed to invest $5,000 of the settlement money in her magazine, and keep the rest for a house deposit. After a lot of hard work and preparation, Libby was thrilled to pick up the first issue of Demo magazine from the printers. But she was stunned when she discovered Nadia was pulling out of the magazine having landed a job as editor on The Chronicle's new weekly magazine - also called Demo. Libby was furious that Nadia had taken their idea and sold it to The Chronicle, but she refused to give up on her dream, and published the first issue herself, under the new title, New Voice.Despite the baby being due any day, Libby insisted on going to Oakey with Drew and Karl for the annual rodeo in which Drew was competing. When Libby went for a walk during the rodeo, she stumbled across a barn and went inside to see some ponies. But a farmhand accidentally locked her in, and as Libby called out for someone to let her out, she went into labour. Libby tried to call Karl on her mobile as her contractions started getting stronger, but his mobile was switched off. She luckily managed to get hold of Susan back in Erinsborough, and after telling her what had happened, Susan scrambled to get hold of Karl and Drew. She finally got in touch with Karl by ringing Ron's cell phone, and Drew, Ron and Karl quickly found Libby locked inside the barn. Once they got her out, Libby was airlifted to Erinsborough Hospital where she gave birth to a baby boy. But her joy at becoming a mother was short lived after the warnings about it being dangerous for her to give birth proved true when she slipped into unconsciousness and flat lined. Luckily, the doctors brought her back from the brink of death, and after emergency surgery, Libby was stabilised and told she would make a full recovery.Libby and Drew decided to call the baby 'Ben', although there was uncertainty over whether or not he should take Kennedy or Kirk as a surname. They eventually agreed on using Kennedy as Ben's middle name, as well as Ian, in memory of a former editor of Libby's from the Erinsborough News who died of cancer just before the baby's christening. Libby underwent a bout of postnatal depression for the first few weeks of Ben's life, but gradually came to terms with the pressures involved in bringing up a baby. And after attending an editorial meeting for the second issue of New Voice, Libby realised that motherhood had changed her priorities significantly and decided to reconsider her commitment to the magazine.Libby and Drew were thrilled when Lou - who they had asked to be Ben's godfather -offered to let them move into No. 22 rent free since he was moving in with Harold Bishop next door at No. 24. Libby and Drew considered Lou's generous offer, with Libby strongly in favour of availing of Lou's offer and Drew less than enthusiastic about living across the street from Karl and Susan, fearing they would interfere by being so close. But Libby assured him that Susan and Karl would be no trouble, and after reminding him that they were already pretty close to them at the flat as it was, Drew finally agreed that he was worrying over nothing, and agreed to move into No. 22. They weren't alone at No.22 for long, however. Mal had returned from London and fallen out with Karl after he tried to oust Harold from the Coffee Shop, and as a result, spent a lot of time at Libby's seeking her help in healing the rift between him and Karl. And Steph moved in with the couple for a few months after discovering her fiancé, Marc Lambert had been having an affair with her sister, Flick.Libby found herself attracted to the idea of following her mother's footsteps into teaching after giving a guest talk about careers in journalism to Year 10 students at Erinsborough High. Despite getting a hard time from some of the students, Libby realised it was a rewarding career, especially after she began mentoring Boyd Hoyland in his accelerated learning programme in the wake of the talk she gave. Libby also started teaching Connor O'Neill, who was staying at the Scullys, how to read after he revealed he was illiterate. Unfortunately, just as everything was coming together for Libby in life, a series of events were to turn her world upside down, and change her life forever.When Susan slipped on some spilt milk, she suffered a nasty blow to her head and developed retrograde amnesia. The amnesia meant Susan lost the last thirty years of her memory, and Libby suddenly found herself with a mother who couldn't remember anything past her 16th birthday. Susan's amnesia brought about a massive upheaval in the Kennedy family, and Karl was devastated that his wife didn't remember anything of their marriage or children, and had no interest in remembering any of it either. Libby found it particularly difficult to deal with when Susan announced her plans to divorce Karl, and start her life afresh.In the midst of this drama, tragedy struck when Drew was killed suddenly in a horse-riding accident. Libby and Drew had been asked to move to Oakey by Ron, who wanted Drew to go into partnership with him on a stud farm. While Libby was reluctant to leave Erinsborough, she agreed to travel to Oakey with Drew to listen to Ron's proposal, and found herself gradually warming to the idea. And when Ron presented the couple with a beautiful house he was planning to buy for them, Libby and Drew were even more taken with the idea of moving to Oakey. Drew was clearly in love with the idea, but Libby was concerned about leaving her family behind at such a critical time. However, after talking to Ron, and later Dougal, Libby began to realise how important Drew's family was to him, and she started to think it was only fair that after all the time they had spent around her family, it was only fair they do the same with Drew's. And when Libby reflected on how much she missed being part of a family, between Mal living in London and Billy in Queensland, and her parents headed for divorce, she began to think that moving to Oakey would be good for her, Drew and Ben as a family. Drew was thrilled when Libby finally told him that she wanted to move up, and they toasted the new life ahead of them. The next day, Drew took Libby riding up at the stud farm, but their relaxing day took a tragic turn when Drew's cantankerous horse, Boney, threw him off, and Drew dropped to the ground in agony. Libby rushed up to the house to call an ambulance as Drew gasped for breath. Drew lost consciousness on the way to the hospital, and had to undergo emergency surgery after damaging his liver. Karl, Susan and Steph all rushed up to Oakey to be with Libby as she waited for news, and after Karl spoke to a specialist, he was forced to break the devastating news to his daughter that her beloved Drew had died.Drew was buried a few days later in Oakey, and Libby delivered a heartbreaking tribute to her husband at the service by singing Wild Mountain Thyme - the song Drew had serenaded her with at their wedding. Afterwards, Libby took Ben up to the house they would have been living in, and as they reflected on what had happened, Ron joined them. Blaming himself for his son's death by putting pressure on him to come back to Oakey, Ron told Libby that he wouldn't go ahead with the stud farm now. But Libby insisted that Ron should hold onto his plan, because otherwise, Drew's death had been for nothing.Upon returning to Erinsborough, Libby retreated into herself as she struggled to come to terms with losing the love of her life. Her family and friends rallied to help and support her, but Libby rejected everyone, locking herself away at No. 22 with Ben. It was only when young Summer Hoyland called to see her that Libby started to pick herself up. Summer had had a huge crush on Drew, and he had bought a teddy bear for Summer after she was diagnosed with Long QT Syndrome. Now, Summer wanted Libby to have the teddy, because she figured Libby needed it more than she did. The gesture prompted Libby into renewing her interest in Ben, who she had been largely neglecting in the preceding days, and she thanked Summer for her support. Susan also eased Libby's pain by offering to move in with her, and help her out around the house and taking care of Ben. Although Libby was initially apprehensive about the idea, she eventually realised that Susan meant well, and the arrangement worked out well for them both. As time passed, Susan's memory continued to improve, and her relationship with Karl had also been renewed in the wake of Drew's death. Susan also suggested she and Libby go to uni together, so that Libby could study to become a teacher, as she had been planning to before Drew's death.Karl, Susan and Libby all reunited under one roof a few months later when Susan and Libby agreed to move back home to the Kennedy house. Although slightly worried about moving back in with her parents, Libby couldn't deny that the move would be of enormous benefit to her, as she juggled being a single mother and studying. And Karl and Susan's decision to renew their marriage vows thrilled Libby, and she gladly gave her mother away on the big day. There were sighs of relief all round in the middle of the ceremony when Susan regained her memory, and the Kennedys could finally put their nightmarish few months behind them.Libby found herself racked with feelings of guilt and unease when she found herself developing feelings for Stuart Parker - an old mate of Drew's from Oakey who had stayed with Libby and Drew at their flat when he first came to town and was now living next door at No. 30. In the wake of Drew's death, Stuart had promised to be on hand for Libby and Ben if ever they needed anything, but as he spent increasing amounts of time with Libby, Stuart started to fall in love with her. Libby was initially oblivious to the fact that Stuart was attracted to her, and even entered them in a magazine competition to find the perfect couple in an attempt at winning a cash prize for Stuart to visit Flick - his fiancee - in New York. However, when Libby and Stuart made it through to the final stages of the competition and were asked to take part in a photo shoot in which they had to kiss, Libby pulled out and retreated in horror at the prospect of kissing someone else. After admitting to Susan that she was racked with guilt at realising she had feelings for Stuart, Susan suggested that Libby was just being too reliant on Stuart since he had started helping her out, and Libby decided to stop seeing so much of Stuart. Stuart was disappointed and surprised when Libby announced she didn't need him to pick Ben up from creche anymore but he was forced to accept her decision. However, matters were complicated further for Libby when Stuart met the Kennedys in the pub having lunch, and Libby was horrified when Ben called Stuart 'dada'. Stuart finally confronted Libby about her reasons for suddenly pulling back from him, and he revealed he had started to fall in love with her, and had even broke off his engagement with Flick. But Libby was adamant that nothing could happen between them, and while she had momentarily felt something for him, she no longer did.Landing a work placement at Erinsborough High as part of her teaching course delighted Libby, because it meant working with Susan and also getting to teach in her old stomping ground. However, Libby was torn between being a teacher and a friend to the students at school after coming across Lori Lee putting up a full-blown shot of new principal Candace Barkham's adjusting a wedgie. Having thought Lori had taken them all down after she had a word with her, Libby was upset to later find the pictures still up around the school, and she was forced to dish out some stern words to Lori. On the other hand, Libby proved to be of enormous support to Year 12 student Taj Coppin as he struggled to come to terms with the discovery that his girlfriend Nina Tucker was seeing his best mate Jack Scully. Libby later went on to help Taj with his English and Media classes, and eventually agreed to tutor him in the subjects - without realising that Taj was actually falling madly in love with her.It was only when Taj took to sending her bouquets of flowers and invited her to the movies with him that Libby realised he was attracted to her. Susan urged Libby to tackle him about his feelings but she refused, insisting it would all die down. Besides, Libby was busy falling for someone herself. Dr. Cameron Hodder had recently replaced Libby’s cousin Darcy at Karl’s surgery and although his initial meeting with Libby was a hostile one, they soon found themselves drawn to each other. They went on a couple of dates, but Libby was horrified when Cameron let it be known that he wasn’t hugely interested in kids. In fact, he had a young son of his own who he never saw by his own choice. Libby knew at that point that there could be no future for her and Cameron, given that Ben was a huge part of her life and before the relationship could go any further Libby called a halt to it.Libby was soon forced to return her attentions to Taj when he kissed her one afternoon at school while she was helping him with a project in the editing suite. Libby was both shocked and appalled by Taj’s actions, and warned him not to dare do anything like it again. But Taj protested that he loved her, and refused to accept Libby’s insistence that it was just a schoolboy crush. Libby began to get confused about her feelings for Taj, especially when Steph suggested that perhaps, she liked him too. Susan, on the other hand, was adamant that Libby could not even entertain the notion of becoming involved with a student, and, in her capacity as VCE co-ordinator, Susan warned Taj off Libby. But it was an unsuccessful warning, and when Taj turned 18 shortly afterwards, he was even more confident about winning Libby over. Sadly, it was to take the tragic death of Dee on her wedding day to bring Libby and Taj together. Shocked by her friend’s disappearance and also overcome with painful memories of Drew’s death, Libby retreated to the pub to drown her sorrows. Taj met her there after finishing his shift at the hotel, and comforted her as she poured her heart out to him. Afterwards, Taj walked Libby home, but as they chatted on the porch, Libby admitted that she couldn’t face going inside. Taj invited her to spend the night at his house, since his parents were away, and he assured Libby he meant in a platonic sense. Libby thanked him for the gesture, and in that moment, gave in to her passions and kissed Taj.Libby went back with Taj to his place and had sex with him, a course of action which she immediately regretted the following morning. Sleeping with Taj had proved to be a massive mistake for Libby and after she confessed all to Susan, she felt even worse. Susan was horrified that her daughter could do something so damaging to her career, and she gave her the cold shoulder for several weeks as a result. Karl, on the other hand, surprised Libby by being completely understanding with her predicament - a far cry from the days when he used to disapprove of virtually all Libby’s boyfriends.Taj, meanwhile, had fallen for Libby even more now that they had slept together, and he pursued her relentlessly. Libby eventually told Taj she was going to arrange for him to be moved to a different media studies class. Taj was furious by this announcement, and called over to the Kennedy house after school to confront Libby. Not wanting Susan or Karl involved, Libby went outside to have a word with Taj. Taj told Liby she couldn’t keep avoiding the situation, and pressed her to sort things out once and for all. But Libby insisted the whole thing had to end immediately and warned Taj to stay away from her, before running back into the house. Taj shouted after her, telling her that he loved her, and then left the garden. However, unbeknown to both Taj and Libby, Boyd and his mate Daniel Clohesy had been in the Kennedy’s back yard retrieving their football and heard the whole conversation. By the end of that evening, half the kids from Erinsborough High knew, thanks to Daniel spreading the word down at the Coffee Shop. And when Steph heard Boyd and Daniel talking about it, she warned Libby about the ‘rumours’ the boys were circulating. Libby was shocked, but didn’t tell Steph that they were actually true. The next day, however, Libby called in sick to the school, unable to face Taj and the other kids.Libby fled to Tom’s cabin in the mountains to try and clear her head for a few days. On top of the problem with Taj, Libby was also deeply upset over the tension that had erupted between her and Susan over the situation. Despite trying to call Susan several times while she was at the cabin, Susan couldn’t bring herself to speak to Libby. Karl drove up on the weekend to offer Libby his support as she contemplated her future, and unbeknown to Libby, Taj also made his way up to the mountains to see her. But when he saw her from the distance playing happily on the lawn with Ben, he finally realised there could never be anything else between them and he left a simple note explaining his feelings before returning to Erinsborough.When Libby returned home, she was back in town just in time for the birth of Oscar Scully, and it was at the hospital whilst visiting Lyn and the newest Scully that Libby and Susan finally made their peace. However, the recent events had made Libby realise it was best for her to move out of No.28 and fend for herself again. And so, when Stuart needed to find somewhere else to live after falling out with Toadie, Libby suggested they rent a flat together. Stuart was a little reluctant to take such a big step on account of the feelings they had for each other a few months before, but Libby assured him it was just a logical move of convenience between friends. Although Karl and Susan were surprised by the announcement, they recognised the need to let Libby live her own life and kept their reservations to themselves. In the end, it wasn’t an attraction between Libby and Stuart that led to the new living arrangements failing to work, but rather a lack of attraction. Stuart was a messy bloke, Libby was a fussy mother. Realising they couldn’t live together, Libby asked Stuart to move out, and no sooner had he moved back in with Toadie at No.30 than Libby had moved Steph into the apartment. Steph had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer, and didn’t want anyone but Libby and her brother Jack to know about her illness. This meant Steph had to break off her blossoming relationship with Max Hoyland, and move out of No.32 no sooner than she had moved in there. Libby was a huge source of support to Steph as she underwent an operation to have cancerous glands removed, although she did try to encourage Steph to tell Max and the rest of her family.Meanwhile, Libby decided to pack in her teaching career after the Taj debacle and sent her letter of resignation to Candace Barkham. When Susan caught wind of Candace’s intention to call over to Libby's apartment for a chat, she tried to warn Libby in advance. However, Candace got there first, and Libby braced herself for a stern talking to. But she got the opposite - Candace surprised Libby by revealing she had fallen for a student six years younger than her when she first began working as a teacher. Libby was delighted to listen to Candace’s similar experiences, and considered Candace’s plea not to give up on her teaching career. Soon after, Libby was thrilled to be offered a permanent teaching job in Adelaide and decided to take it. Although Karl and Susan were devastated at the prospect of her leaving, along with little Ben, and Steph would miss her friend as she went through chemotherapy, everyone understood that Libby badly needed a fresh start and wished her the best of luck in her new endeavour.In the initial months after Libby’s move to Adelaide, it seemed she wasn’t the only Kennedy who needed a fresh start. Karl was increasingly in turmoil over his career, missed opportunities – and most significantly, his marriage to Susan. He had turned to newcomer Izzy Hoyland, sister of Max, to confide in, although it gradually became clear that he was also attracted to the attractive new neighbour. In a matter of months, Karl and Susan’s marriage was practically over, and it culminated in Karl moving into a nearby flat. Libby was disgusted with her father, for what she saw as abandonment of her mother and she broke off contact with him. And when the opportunity of a two-year contract in Adelaide cropped up, Libby was torn over whether to accept it or return to Erinsborough. In the end, Libby decided that she wanted to be there for Susan at her darkest hour, and she and Ben returned to Erinsborugh. Susan was thrilled to have Lib and Ben back at No.28 with her, and Karl was delighted by their return. However, his joy was soured when he realised Libby had been back in town for a few days and hadn’t contacted him. At Susan’s urging, Libby called over to Karl’s flat to see him, where she vented her anger and confusion at him for walking out on nearly thirty years of marriage with Susan. Karl tearfully told Libby that it was all very confusing to him too, and that he was having difficulty coming to terms with the dramatic change in his life. But Libby took some comfort from Karl’s insistence that, contrary to rumours around the neighbourhood, he was not involved with Izzy and they were simply friends. The talk seemed to bode well for the future of Libby’s relationship with Karl, as they made their peace. But the resolution of the conflict between father and daughter was turned completely on its head when the next day, Libby called over to Karl’s unexpectedly and found Izzy there, having clearly spent the night with Karl. After Izzy hurriedly left, a disgusted Libby angrily confronted her father about the lies he had blatantly told her the day before. Karl desperately tried to explain to Libby that it had all happened unexpectedly the night before when Izzy called over and confessed she wanted to be with him. But Libby was having none of Karl’s explanations, and tearfully told him she was ashamed of him before returning home to break the news to Susan. And just as it seemed the situation couldn’t get any worse, Izzy announced she was pregnant with Karl’s child – a prospect which horrified Libby completely.In the midst of such a huge crisis in her life, a face from the past arrived on Libby’s doorstep – literally. It came as a huge surprise to Libby when she came home to find the electrician fixing the Kennedy’s fuse box was none other than Darren. Although Libby was shocked to see him after so many years, the sparks were instantly reignited between the pair, and they were catching up on their respective lives over a coffee. Darren revealed Brett had kept him informed over the years about what Libby had been up to, and Libby was touched when Darren offered her his condolences over the death of Drew. He also impressed Libby with a new, more sensitive side, and he proved to be great with Ben.The pair skirted around the fact that they were obviously still smitten with each other for weeks, and instead pretended all they wanted was friends. Darren irritated Libby by going on dates, and she retaliated by arranging to meet a guy she had been chatting to on the internet for a blind date. However, Libby was less than impressed when she turned up at the Coffee Shop to meet the mystery man and he appeared to be the same age as her grandfather. Luckily, he wasn’t the man she was due to meet and instead, Darren showed up. With no sign of her date, Libby was mortified in front of Darren, and stormed off. But she quickly realised that she had never told Darren she was meeting the guy from the internet, and clicked that her mystery man must have been him all along. After confronting Darren, Libby’s anger soon faded as he explained to her that he wanted to really show her he had changed and his whole reason for returning to Erinsborough and buying into Macauley’s Electricians was so he could give their relationship a second chance. Libby was thrilled with Darren’s confession that he was still in love with her, and they were soon dating again.However, Libby was confused by Darren’s apparent reluctance to sleep with her. Despite numerous occasions were they had the chance to be alone, Darren kept thinking of excuses and places he had to be. He finally admitted to Libby that he had taken advice from Lou to leave her waiting as long as possible to ensure she wouldn’t be disappointed. Libby assured Darren she had waited long enough, and on the night of Stephanie and Max’s wedding they finally slept together. While Susan and Libby’s friends were thrilled for her, Karl was less than happy about Darren’s return to Libby’s life and made his feelings known. However, Libby made it clear to Karl that it was none of his business, and continued to have as little as possible to do with him. In fact, it was Darren who convinced Libby to call on Karl to wish him a Happy 49th Birthday.Just as things looked like they couldn’t get any better between Libby and Darren, the ghosts of the past came back to haunt them. When there was a break-in at Jack Scully’s building site, all of the contractors who had had access to the site in recent weeks were questioned. Because Darren had worked on the site, he was included in the questioning, but he didn’t take too kindly to having the cops on his case again. Libby was initially furious when Karl suggested it was quite likely that Darren was the thief, given his criminal past, but after Darren presented her with an expensive necklace she began to consider the possibility that he may have committed the robbery. Matters were made worse when Jack, who had staged the break in himself to fund his drug habit, was convinced by his girlfriend, corrupt police constable Olivia MacPherson to let Darren take the blame. Darren was arrested, and Libby began to seriously doubt his innocence.Although Darren’s name was cleared after his alibi checked out, he was by this stage, furious with Libby for not trusting him and allowing his past to yet again cloud the present. Within days, he arranged to sell the business and leave town, only telling Lou of his plans, and admitting to him that he had bought an engagement ring and had been building up to proposing to Libby. Knowing how much Libby and Darren were meant to be together, Lou told Libby about Darren’s plans and urged her to stop him. But she was too late. After catching up with him just as he signed the papers finalising the sale of Macauley’s, Libby was devastated when Darren told her he couldn’t stay with her because she didn’t trust him completely. Darren left town that same evening, making one last phone call to Libby as he drove out of town. From a phone box, he tearfully spoke to her down the phone, but as a heartbroken Libby pleaded with him to come back and forgive her, Darren left the ring in the phone box, the receiver dangling and left Erinsborough once more.To take her mind off her broken heart, Libby decided to return to Erinsborough High when Candace offered her her former post as Media Studies teacher back. Although nervous on her first day back, Libby decided the best way to deal with any gossip and rumours amongst the students relating to her relationship with Taj was to talk frankly and openly about what she had done. The students respected her for her honesty and tough but firm approach to the situation and once day one was over, the Taj incident didn’t rear its head again.When Libby entered a competition to win a date with the star of the addictive Brazilian soap opera Lust Na Vila, Alessandro Cortes, she never expected to be the winner. But before she knew it, she found herself being invited to a slap-up lunch at Lassiter’s with Alessandro and two guests of her choice. She brought Susan and Lyn along but immediately regretted it when Alessandro appeared to only have eyes for older women and barely gave her a look-in all day. However, after Lyn and Susan were gone and Libby was just about to leave, she was surprised when Alessandro invited her to dine with him that night at the hotel. He explained that because older women were the soap’s target audience, his producers forced him to shower them with affection and his flirtatious behaviour with Susan and Lyn had purely been for the photographers. Libby was hugely flattered when he gave her his room number at the hotel and pleaded with her to join him there later. Upon arriving home to a conversation between Susan and Lyn discussing how sexy Alessandro was and how lucky anyone would be to have him to themselves, Libby couldn’t resist Alessandro’s offer and raced back down to Lassiter’s. She spent the night with him but the next morning regretted her actions and hurried home. Alessandro raced after Libby, puzzled as to why she was leaving. He tried to persuade Libby to give him a chance but she apologised and insisted she had stuff to sort out. Sindi was shocked when Libby told her about her night of passion with Alessandro and couldn’t understand why she had left his hotel room so abruptly. However, Libby revealed that she was still desperately in love with Darren and couldn’t contemplate getting involved with anyone else.No sooner had Libby realised that she was still pining for Darren than a bouquet of flowers were delivered to the Kennedy house from Darren with a card for Libby telling her he missed her. After some prompting from Sindi, Libby decided to give Darren a call and he admitted that he still loved her and wanted her and Ben to join him in Shepparton. Libby struggled to make her mind up, but after a heart to heart with Susan in which Susan urged her to grab any chance of happiness with both hands; Libby decided to make the move. Karl was a little taken aback by the suddenness of her decision, but respected Libby’s choice and finally gave his blessing to her union with Darren. After a rocky few months, father and daughter finally put the past behind them as Karl told Libby he loved her and was proud of her, and assured her that he would always be there for her. When Susan helped Libby pack her last belongings into the car, she broke down as she told Libby she had been her rock in recent months and couldn’t have got through it all without her. As the neighbours gathered on Ramsay Street to say goodbye to Libby, some last minute reservations crept in as she realised what she would be leaving behind. But everyone applauded her for following her heart and finally finding happiness with Darren. After a lingering kiss and thought of what might have been with Stuart, emotional goodbyes to her long standing neighbours Lou and Harold, and tearful farewells to her closest friends Toadie and Steph, Libby said a final goodbye to Susan as she and Ben left Ramsay Street to begin their new life with Darren. And Ramsay Street waved goodbye to a much-loved resident who had arrived ten years before as a fresh faced teenager and was leaving an independent young woman with a world of experience behind her.In 2007, Libby and Ben returned to Ramsay Street when Susan was facing one of the biggest crisises of her life. After falling asleep at the wheel and knocking down 16-year-old neighbour Bridget Parker (the daughter of Drew's best mate Steve, who had recently moved into No.26 with his family), Susan was in court charged with reckless driving. As Libby returned, the legal proceedings had a happy outcome, with Susan receiving a one-year custodial sentence, suspended for three years, but the mysterious medical condition that had caused her to fall asleep in the first place was still causing concern. After some tests, everyone was alarmed to learn that Susan had been suffering from TIAs, a series of small strokes, with the possibility of a larger one striking at any moment. Concerned for her mum's health, Libby decided to stick around indefinitely, despite the cramped conditions at the Kennedy house. In the years Libby had been living in Shepparton, Susan had married a terminally ill university lecturer, Alex Kinski, and when he died, she had become guardian to his two teenage children, Rachel and Zeke. Karl, meanwhile, had gone on to father a child - Holly - with Izzy, but she had since relocated to London and Susan and Karl were now remarried. Although Susan had come to terms with Karl's parentage of Izzy's baby, it irked Libby and tension was still apparent between father and daughter.Meanwhile, Libby began to cause suspicion amongst her family and friends when she continuously changed the subject whenever anyone asked when Darren would be joining her. She kept insisting he was too busy with work back in Shepparton to come down to Erinsborough, but Susan and Karl knew something was up when she began refusing to take his phone calls. Steph was also quick to pick up on Libby's reluctance to discuss Darren and told Toadie, who she was now engaged to, of her suspicions but whenever she tried to broach the subject with her, Libby clammed up or found an excuse to leave.Susan's continuing health problems took centre stage, however, when she was finally diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. The Kennedy family were devastated by the news, and Libby threw herself into playing the role of mother to Zeke and Rachel while Susan was in hospital coming to terms with it all. When Zeke was in trouble at school, Libby took on the task of appearing before his teacher - her old colleague, Daniel Fitzgerald - in order to keep any further drama from Karl and Susan, and she told the kids that they were to come to her with any problems for the forseeable future.In the midst of all this drama, Darren showed up on Ramsay Street clutching a bouquet of flowers and was determined to see Libby. She was having none of it, however, and refused to even let him up the driveway of No.28. Karl appeared in the middle of the stand-off between the pair, and he and Darren ended up coming to blows as Darren told him to mind his own business. Libby broke things up and told Darren that it was over between them, before storming inside and refusing to elaborate further with a puzzled Karl. It was only after much prodding that Karl finally got Libby to admit that Darren had been having an affair with her neighbour and friend, Lynda Stephens. She had originally believed it to be a one night stand but on the day of Susan's court case, Libby had discovered it was a full blown affair, prompting her to pack up and head straight home to Erinsborough. Karl tried to support Libby but when he pressed her over why she had kept it all to herself, Libby angrily retorted that she felt uncomfortable talking to Karl about it given he had cheated on Susan in much the same way. Having calmed down, Libby apologised to Karl and the two united to plan a special homecoming party on Ramsay Street to mark Susan's return from hospital. Darren, however, wasn't going away and was staying with Lou and Harold across the street, leading to many questions from Ben as to why Darren wasn't staying with them. Libby explained to him that there just wasn't enough space at No.28, particularly with Susan needing to rest and recuperate upon her return from hospital. Susan, meanwhile, was disgusted when she learnt of Darren's affair and when he appeared at the Kennedys to see her, she threw him out.Libby made moves to emphasise things were over between her and Darren by enrolling Ben at Erinsborough Primary School, and when Darren found out, Libby told him it had nothing to do with him since Ben wasn't his son. Hurt by this, Darren retreated to Toadie's to confide in him, and admitted that he had been driven to the affair with Lynda because of the Drew factor - Libby hadn't let go of Drew and when Darren had asked to adopt Ben, she had refused, fearing it would diminish Ben's memory of his father. Toadie's support for Darren caused a rift between him and Steph because Steph obviously sided with Libby.With Christmas approaching, Libby realised it was unfair to Ben to keep him from seeing Darren and she agreed to let Darren take care of him while she did some Christmas shopping. But when Darren dropped Ben home and Ben started talking about going on a fishing trip with Darren once they were all back in Shepparton, Libby accused Darren of using Ben to get her back - leaving Darren furious that she would ever suggest he'd use the child in such a way.Seeing how hurt Darren was and how he simply wasn't prepared to give up on her, Libby began to have second thoughts about ending their relationship. Witnessing how much in love her parents still were, despite all the ups and downs they'd experienced, made Libby wonder if she could forgive Darren. Steph added to her misgivings by pointing out that she was worshipping Drew's memory and unfairly measuring up her relationship with Darren against the rose coloured view she had of her marriage to Drew. Libby initially rejected Steph's theory, insisting it didn't mean Darren should have felt free to have an affair but Steph reasoned that by depriving Darren of the right to marry her or adopt Ben meant Libby was signalling to him that he would never live up to Drew. While Libby was angry with Steph, the home truths she had delivered resonated with her enough to admit to herself that her actions had played a part in the break-up and she decided to give things another go with Darren.Libby was touched when Darren presented her with a beautiful pendant for Christmas and announced he had won a major wiring contract on a new housing development in Shepparton. But just as everything seemed to be going right for them, Libby announced to Darren that she wasn't prepared to move back to Shepparton and wanted them to make a fresh start in Erinsborough. Darren was less than pleased with the ultimatum, thinking Libby was trying to punish him for his mistakes and he told her he would need time to think about things. While Libby happily started telling her family that she and Darren were back together and staying in Ramsay Street, Darren was confiding in tomboy mechanic Janae Timmins, who was fixing the engine on his van in return for him repairing the dodgy wiring at her garage. Janae was also having relationship problems with her boyfriend Ned Parker, younger brother of Stuart, and as she and Darren confided in each other, Janae kissed Darren.While all this was going on, across town further drama was unfolding. The teens of Ramsay Street, including Zeke, had sneaked off to an illegal dance party in a disused warehouse and when it had collapsed, Zeke and several others had been trapped under the rubble. Libby rushed in to help Zeke, but became trapped herself when there was secondary collapse. Having fallen unconscious, Libby was eventually rescued by Daniel, who was at the scene of the collapse in his capacity as an SES volunteer, and in the wake of the accident, she and Darren vowed to make the most of their lives together and look to the future. Libby even agreed to move to Shepparton so that they wouldn't miss out on the financial stability the housing contract would provide.Unfortunately, as had been the case with Libby and Darren since they were teenagers, another stupid mistake involving Darren and another woman was to once again prove the couple's undoing. Janae had been riddled with guilt over the kiss she and Darren had shared and had revealed all to Ned. Darren had pleaded with Ned not to tell Libby, and Ned agreed to keep it to himself unless Libby ever asked him out straight about it. Darren anxiously made final preparations for the move back to Shepparton, delighting Libby by revealing he had put in an offer for a cottage she had been admiring in Shepparton for some time. But a stressed Janae ruined everything by harrassing Darren at a party in No.30 to celebrate the birth of Chloe Cammeniti by insisting that Libby should know what they did. Just as she blurted this out to Darren, a power failure caused the music to cut out and their conversation was heard by everyone, including Karl and Susan, who demanded to know what they were referring to. Realising the game was up, Darren went to find Libby in the kitchen of No.30, where he revealed he had kissed Janae. Libby was stunned by this latest revelation and quickly became angry with herself for allowing herself to give Darren yet another chance only for him to let her down again. Unable to ever trust Darren again, Libby told him it was over and he was to stay away from her, her family and Ben. When the dust had settled a few days later, Libby asked Darren to sit down with her and explain to Ben that their relationship was over. Ben didn't understand why they were not going to be together anymore, but Darren took full responsibility, saying he had hurt his mum's feelings very badly. Later that day, Darren said a final goodbye to Ben, asking him to take care of Libby, before leaving Erinsborough, and a tearful Libby behind for good.Libby's anguish over the split with Darren was soon distracted by a family crisis. Rachel had been involved in a secret relationship with her young teacher Angus Henderson, and when the truth was exposed, Angus had lost his job and been charged by the police while Rachel and Susan locked horns over her behaviour. Libby found herself providing a shoulder to cry on for Rachel, particularly given the similarities to the position she had found herself in with Taj when she was teaching at the school. Libby's stance on the issue caused friction with Susan, but Libby explained to Susan that she needed to approach the situation as a parent and not a teacher. Further damage was done to the family when the Erinsborough News got hold of the story and prepared to publish it on its front page. Libby paid a visit to the editor, Brad Jordan, in the hope that her history with the newspaper might help talk him out of publishing the story but he refused. Brad became further involved in the saga, however, when Rachel ran away from home and hid out at Brad's house, unbeknownst to him, with his daughter and Rachel's schoolfriend Taylah. When Brad found Rachel, he promptly called the Kennedys over to take her home, and once back at No.28, Rachel unleashed a scathing attack on Susan, culminating in her telling Susan she hated her. Libby later found Rachel in her room and finally made her see that Angus wasn't going to return the multitude of messages she had been leaving with him ever since their relationship had been exposed. Libby explained to Rachel that she had been in Angus' shoes herself and how it had almost ruined her life, Taj's life and her relationship with Susan. Although the revelation had suceeded in getting Rachel to re-think her behaviour towards Susan, it only served to resurrect the bad feeling between Susan and Libby over the Taj relationship. Susan was unimpressed with Libby telling Rachel about it, believing it would only make Rachel justify her relationship with Angus even more and she reminded Libby that it had hardly been her proudest moment. With tension high between mother and daughter, Susan later apologised when she realised Libby had actually helped Rachel by telling her about Taj and Libby warned Susan not to judge Rachel in the same way she had judged her, before they hugged and made up.With a lot of her belongings still in Shepparton, Libby asked Steph to accompany her there for the weekend to pack up and tie up one final loose end. With Darren away, Libby had the place to herself but she was confronted with a visit from Lynda soon after arriving. A frosty exchange occurred but Lynda helped Libby achieve some final closure on things by telling her that Darren had always loved her, but just always felt he was never going to match up for Drew. Having packed everything up and put Lynda out of her life, Libby decided to let her down and she and Steph headed for a local pub where they got the pulses racing of the mainly male punters by dancing on the bar Coyote Ugly style.With a life to rebuild for herself in Erinsborough, Libby applied for a teaching position at her old stomping ground, Erinsborough High and found herself having to contend with the class clown Justin Hunter taking swipes at Rachel on her first day. But once settled back in, Libby was at the heart of the school once again and became a teacher who the students could always go to for help and advice. Working at the school also meant Libby was seeing more of Daniel, and they regularly hooked up for coffees and chats during and after school. It soon became evident that there was an attraction between them and things came to a head when they accompanied the Year 11 students on the school camp in the bush. But just as Libby was beginning to open up to the possibility of a relationship with Dan, he broke the news to her that the girlfriend he had once spoken about, Samantha, was actually his wife and they were still married. Libby immediately jumped to the conclusion that Dan was playing away from his wife and determined not to be the other woman, she stormed off without letting him explain any further. The following morning at camp, Dan again tried to explain things but only got as far as telling Libby that his wife was ill before she assumed he had cruelly left her because she was sick.Once they were back in Erinsborough, Libby reluctantly agreed to have a drink with Dan at Charlie’s bar to hear him out and she was surprised to learn that Samantha was bipolar. Daniel explained how he hadn’t left her, but rather she had left him because she wanted him to have a life free of worrying about when she would next have an episode or turn to drugs and casual sex with strangers (as she had done in the past) to escape her problems. Libby thanked Dan for being honest with her, but rejected his assertion that he could move on from Samantha and commit to a relationship with her because she could tell by talking to him that he still cared for his wife and as long as that was the case, she couldn’t pursue things any further with him. In order to prove to Libby that things were over between him and Samantha, Dan began trying to track her down so that he could divorce her. But Libby was unhappy at the prospect of being part of a potential divorce and sought advice from Toadie on what possible role she would play in any legal aspects of the divorce. However, on top of assuring Libby that she would play no part in the divorce because Dan and Samantha were already separated for a number of years, Toadie made Libby see that life was too short to be agonising over whether or not to get into a relationship and Libby resolved to go for it with Dan. But a spanner was thrown into proceedings when Samantha showed up in Erinsborough, having heard that Dan had been looking for her. An awkward moment occurred when Libby was introduced to Sam by Dan, and Libby detected straight away that Sam still had feelings for her estranged husband. Although agreeing to the divorce, Sam decided to stick around in Erinsborough and accepted some work at Toadie’s law practice where his partner Rosetta Cammeniti had studied with her at uni. Libby and Dan again took to tip-toeing around their feelings for each other but when Dan suffered some minor injuries in a mineshaft collapse and was taken to hospital, Samantha was on hand to comfort him and they began to rediscover their feelings for one another. Libby was then forced to put on a brave face as Dan and Sam decided to give their marriage another go.Libby, meanwhile, decided to move in with Steph at No.32 after her relationship with Toadie ended and she was rattling around the house with only her young son Charlie for company. The arrangement suited because the Kennedy house was filled with teen angst and Ben and Charlie enjoyed each other’s company, while Libby and Steph relished the chance to spend more time together. However, with Dan and Sam living happily next door at No.30, Libby found it increasingly awkward to be around them. But after Ben went missing one afternoon and Sam found him down a drain on Ramsay Street, where he was pretending to be an SES volunteer like Dan, Libby attempted to express her gratitude by inviting the couple over for dinner. Sam opted out at the last moment but insisted Dan go ahead without her. Libby and Dan went on to have a great evening together, and Ben loved having Dan around. Sam had a change of heart, though, and made her way over to No.32 where she witnessed Libby, Dan and Ben acting like a happy family unit through the window. A few days later, Sam and Libby were at No.30 together when Sam admitted to Libby that she had faked an illness so as to avoid the dinner and Libby assured her that she had nothing to worry about – she had no intention of making a play for Dan. However, Libby and Dan were once again thrown together at school when the prissy Head of Senior School Helen Carr forced them to teach dance classes for the seniors ahead of the formal dance. With Dan’s dancing skills leaving a lot to be desired, Libby began teaching him after school but when Sam dropped into the school and saw them together, she picked up on the chemistry between them.In an attempt at holding onto her man, Samantha asked Dan to try for another baby (she had miscarried some years previous)and he reluctantly agreed, even though it would mean her coming off her medication. When Libby walked in on Sam taking a pregnancy test one day at the law offices, she wrongly assumed Sam’s test had been positive and congratulated her. The test had been negative, however, but Sam decided to go along with the pretence of being pregnant. When Libby saw Dan a few hours later, she inadvertently broke the news to him and assured him that she was very happy for them both. When Dan came down with chicken pox, he sent Sam out of the house so that the baby wouldn’t be in danger and Libby dropped by the office to drop some food off for her only to find her frantically scrubbing the filing cabinets. The behaviour worried Libby, and she raised it with Dan. However, Sam had covered her tracks by telling Dan the office had been overcome by a plague of ants which had forced her to scrub the place clean, and he reacted angrily to Libby’s interference, telling her to stay out of his business.Susan Wendy Kennedy (nee Smith, previously Kinski, Jackie Woodburne). During her 15 year stint on Ramsay Street she has been divorced, remarried and widowed, she has been in a plane crash, become a stepmother to three children, a grandmother, suspended from work numerous times, had retrograde amnesia, been diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, mourned the loss of her stepson, and had frequent splits from her first husband Karl. The MS diagnosis caused Susan to take sick leave from her job at Erinsborough High and, some months later, she embarked on a change of career when Paul Robinson offered her a job as a journalist. He had recently acquired the local newspaper, the Erinsborough News and was impressed by an article Susan wrote in defense of Rachel, about whom Paul had manipulated an article relating to her relationship with teacher Angus Henderson.Journalist Riley Parker (Sweeney Young, 2007-2008).  Parker met Elle (Pippa Black) at Charlie’s Bar and the two became friends. After falling for her he competed for her affection with Oliver. Riley gained a cadetship at the Erinsborough News and shared it with Elle as a result of her losing her old job and finding an interest in journalism. They went secretly to an illegal dance party to report for Erinsbourough News even though they had clear instructions not too. In the end (after the roof collapsed) they both made it out. Riley then revealed his feelings to Elle through a draft of a news article. Elle saw it, blushed and told Riley that she wasn’t ready to be involved in a relationship Riley didn’t believe her. After revealing his feelings for Elle, Riley caught the eye of his new coworker Heather Pryor (Georgina Andrews) and developed a relationship. Elle was a little jealous but Riley and her agreed to be friends. Lucinda “Elle Robinson” (Pippa Black) quit her job as Lassiter’s manager when Will Griggs, the 51 percent shareholder of Lassiter’s demanded she fire Oliver or Paul. Instead she resigned, giving 25 percent to Paul and 24 percent to Oliver. She signed up as a journalist for the Erinsborough News under Brad Jordan. While scouting an illegal dance party with Riley for the Erinsborough News, Elle and Riley are trapped in the debris after the roof of the warehouse venue collapses. They are eventually found by the SES team, and Elle was rushed to hospital. After being released, Elle began to have horrific flashbacks of being trapped but refused to believe, even after experiencing two panic attacks, that she was suffering from post traumatic stress. In addition, she began to associate Riley with the disaster and this dampened the opportunity for a romantic relationship between them. Riley and Paul tried to help her deal with it but she pushed them away. With some persuasion, Karl helped Elle fight her post traumatic stress. Elle then apologized to Riley for the way she treated him after the roof collapse, telling him that whenever she saw his face it bought back the terrifying memories. Riley then asked her where that left them and Elle confirmed that they were “just good friends.” While reporting on Pete Ferguson with Susan Kinski, the pair were kidnapped and held hostage by Ferguson. Being confined to a car all night triggered Elle’s bad memories of the dance party. Ferguson wanted Paul Robinson to print his article in the paper, with the agreement that there be no police contact and the two women be set free and unharmed. In a moment of desperation, Paul instead printed a “wanted” notice on the Erinsborough News front page resulting in Ferguson holding Elle as bait. Steve, the man Ferguson was targeting, agreed to a tradeoff and went with Paul to face Ferguson. Elle was unharmed, but for weeks afterward she held a grudge against Paul for valuing a headline over his terrified daughter. In 2009, Elle quit her job as a journalist at the Erinsborough News after she disagreed about the way her father was running stories on the Kennedy’s surrogacy. Paul later agreed not to make the Kennedys front page news but it was too late to change Elle’s mind, despite him telling her that he bought the paper for her. She told Paul that she wanted to try and make it as a journalist without his help and the only way to do that is to make a clean break away from the paper. On November 9, 2009, Elle got a job offer at the New York News and was ready to leave for New York. She made the decision not to go because of Donna, and was later forced into not going because James Linden stole all her money. In June 2009, it was announced Elle will be leaving. Riley Parker 2007-Lived: 26 Ramsay StreetParents: Steve and Miranda Parker (adoptive); Joanna Hale (biological)Siblings: Bridget, Josie and ClaraFamily Tree: ParkerOccupation: Student, Trainee Journalist, Erinsborough Veterinary Clinic EmployeeLaidback surfer Riley spent much of his youth in foster homes before being adopted at the age of 12, along with his 6-year-old sister, Bridget (Didge for short), by vet Steve Parker and his wife, Miranda. Though grateful that his new parents had kept him and his sister together, Riley couldn’t help feeling that he wasn’t really wanted and that Steve and Miranda had only taken him on because they felt obligated after adopting Bridget. Over the years, Riley struggled to open up to his adoptive parents, simply bottling up his emotions. As he neared the end of a veterinary sciences course at university, with Steve delighted that his son was following in his footsteps, Riley realised that he needed to get away for a while and, at the age of 22, he took some time out from uni and his family to go travelling around Australia, only keeping in touch with Didge.Whilst Riley was away, the remaining Parkers relocated from Sydney to Erinsborough, a Melbourne suburb, where Steve’s brother Ned lived, and where he planned to open up his new veterinary clinic. Miranda, meanwhile, was growing deeply upset with Riley’s lack of contact, and convinced Bridget to tell her where he was. Having found out that he was spending some time surfing in and around the coastal town of Eden, Miranda and Bridget headed up there to pay him a surprise visit. Riley was shocked to see them, and broke the news to Miranda that he had dropped out of his uni course, with no intention of returning. But after a little begging, and some emotional blackmail, from Didge, Riley did at least agree to go back with them and spend a few days in Erinsborough, following them home in his beat-up yellow van.In Erinsborough, where the Parkers were now living with Ned, his girlfriend Janae Timmins and Ned’s young son, Mickey, Steve was delighted to see Riley back, but stunned by the news that he’d given up on his studies so close to completing them. Feeling that he was once again a disappointment, Riley started making plans to leave, but Didge caught up with him and explained that Steve and Miranda had sacrificed a lot to pay for him to go to university and, after setting up the new clinic, they were now broke. Miranda also convinced Steve to make an effort, and father and son had a chat, during which Riley admitted that he’d been writing for the uni newspaper and his plan was now to try and get into journalism. Though not convinced that this was Riley’s true vocation, particularly after he helped to treat a stray dog that was run over, Steve agreed to support his son in whatever he wanted to do.Though happy to have Riley back home with them, Steve, and particularly Miranda, couldn’t help noticing that he was still very distant and he finally opened up about the feelings of rejection he’d been living with since he was 12. Steve and Miranda assured him that the only reason they had hesitated was because they were only expecting a six-year-old girl and hadn’t planned on adopting a young man, but their doubts had only lasted for seconds and they had never once regretted it since. Riley wasn’t convinced, however, and ended up spending the evening in Charlie’s Bar, chatting to Elle Robinson as she drowned her sorrows over her father’s new girlfriend leaving her feeling pushed out at home. She also succeeded in making Riley realise that perhaps he was being a little harsh on Steve and Miranda, so he returned to Ramsay Street and apologised to them, agreeing to stick around and try to make things work.Despite agreeing to stay in Erinsborough, Riley made it clear that he still valued his independence and would be following his own path. He decided to start looking for his own flat, whilst also applying for a cadetship with the Erinsborough News. After impressing editor Brad Jordan, Riley was taken on as a reporter and found himself helping Elle when her dad, Paul confessed to a murder committed at Lassiter's three years earlier. Because he'd recently undergone neurosurgery, the police were unwilling to accept his confession, but Brad soon got word from the police that someone had confessed and printed a story. Worried that it wouldn't be long before her dad was in prison, Elle and Riley wrote their own story, talking about how a high percentage of murder confessions were false.It was then Elle's turn to support Riley through a family crisis, when Bridget was involved in a hit-and-run accident. At the hospital, Riley, Steve and Miranda waited for news as Didge was taken in for emergency surgery to relieve bleeding on her brain. The delicate operation was a success, but Bridget remained unconcsious and Declan Napier was immediately blamed for the accident, his car having been spotted driving away by young Mickey. But everyone was taken by surprise when Susan Kinski, the Parkers' neighbour and Miranda's close friend, explained that she had been driving, as her husband Karl had borrowed the car for a test drive, and had blacked out, then driven off without realising she'd hit anyone. The disbelieving Parkers refused to listen to any excuses and angrily warned her that they'd make sure she was prosecuted for what she'd done. Riley decided that the best way to hurt Susan was by ruining her reputation and he printed a story about the hit-and-run, using a photo of Susan carrying a bottle of wine, amongst other groceries, in from the car, and implying that she had been drinking and driving. The story led to a brick being thrown through Susan's window, which hit her stepdaughter, Rachel. At the hospital, Rachel was treated for concussion and Riley began to see that maybe his course of action hadn't been the right one. Elle agreed, and told him about her brother Cameron who'd been knocked down and killed, leading her to take terrible revenge on Max Hoyland, who'd been driving, though it had left her feeling worse than before.Riley then wrote a retraction, and the family were relieved when, after days of sitting by Didge's bed, reading the sports results and even sneaking in her pet kangaroo Pouch, she finally started to wake up. Though it seemed that her brain functions had returned to normal, the doctor was still worried that Didge had no feeling in the left side of her body and admitted that this might not simply be a temporary problem. Steve and Miranda allowed Didge to believe that she would recover quickly, but it was left to Riley to tell her the truth, and she threw herself into her physiotherapy, making it clear that she wasn't going to let her disability hold her back for long. Meanwhile, Riley found himself defending Elle when her ex-boyfriend Oliver started asking for tips on how to decorate the nursery for the baby he was expecting with Carmella. Riley reminded Oliver how insensitive he was being, since it was Carmella's pregnancy that had forced Oliver and Elle apart. The rivalry between the two men worsened during the Erinsborough fun run, when Riley tripped over, not far from the finishing line, just as Oliver was passing, and a fight quickly broke out, with Elle left to warn them both that she's wasn't a prize for them to brawl over.Owner of the News Agency Philip Martin (Ian Rawlings) has a career path has been anything but typical, from an unemployed financial expert he became the manager of the Lassiter’s hotel complex after a brief stint as the school caretaker. He then ran his own news agency business in Lassiter’s arcade, then sold it to become a romance writer with the pseudonym “Philippa Martinez” and finally came full circle to being a financial advisor again. 	158343
2003	Newshounds: All the Newshounds Fit to Print: Book 7	W		Dye, Thomas K.	All the Newshounds Fit to Print: Book 7: 10-13-2004 to 12-8-2006. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.All the Newshounds Fit to Print: Book 7: 10-13-2004 to 12-8-2006.Red vs Blue (20 October - 4 November 2004)During the run-up to the 2004 election, Sam and Alistair end up arguing as to whether the Democrats or the Republicans will win. In an attempt to stop the arguing, Lorna promises them that if they both stop talking about politics, both on and off the air, she will give them bonuses, to which they agree. Later, Sam makes another bet with Alistair as to who will win the election. If John Kerry has a clear win, Sam will have to be the "Kumquat Kanine Klown" in the farmer's market. If George W. Bush has a clear win, Alistair will be forced to become the goalkeeper for an elementary school ice hockey team. They agree with the second bet. Bush wins, but because the victory is not clear, Alistair does not have to become the goalie. Alistair tells Sam that he is willing to be the goalie, but Sam changes his mind.Kevin is Given some Faith (9-23 March 2005)Kevin becomes annoyed by Ferris's latest craze, the singer Faith Daddiscash. He still dislikes after listening to all of Ferris's albums. He tries talking to both Alistair, Sam and Renata both claim they like her as well. It is not until he hears a song on the radio which turns out to be hers that he begins to like it, but when he tells Ferris, he claims it is the worst of Faith's songs. In the end, he decides to listen to his own music, which turns out to be Della's favourite.FG-909 (20 April - 3 June 2005)Wolfram is horrified when he learns that a drug that he uses to keep his fur glossy, FG-909 is taken off the market because harmful side effects. As a result, he asks Alistair for his help in organising a protest against the ban. After the protest fails however, he takes matters into his own hands, or rather paws, by creating positive news stories about the drug. But after he fails to get his bulletins in the news broadcast, and everyone he interviews being for the ban, he finally caves in and gives up.Later, Wolfram goes out to dinner with Rochelle, where he makes it clear that his life is no longer all about him, but about them, so he therefore asks Rochelle to marry him, an offer which she accepts.The Last of Della and Randy (20 September - 5 October)Some of the KPET staff decide to have a night out. Kevin goes out with Della, Sam with Randy, and Wolfram with Rochelle. During the date, which features music played by Gene Catlow and CatsWhisker, Sam and Randy continue to have problems. However, the problems truly arise when Randy's other boyfriend Vladimir is found at the same bar, at which point, the whole relationship falls apart. Afterwards, Della makes her final preparations, and leaves Kevin, not knowing when she will return.Dilbrook the Dog/The Wedding (7 October - 29 December 2005)After breaking her tooth eating some candy samples, Lorna makes an emergency dental appointment. However, after her treatment, she ends up in a hallucination. As a result, she now thinks that she is a dog, and her staff are now humans. She also ends up believing that she is not the owner of KPET, but is just the mascot of the company.Despite their best efforts, the staff fail to make Lorna realise that she is human again. Things become worse when Virgiltech calls KPET in order to discuss their contract. Lorna, under her current state, says that a dog cannot discuss the contract, but after some talking to, she agrees to talk to Virgiltech, but when she calls Wolfram a human, the company decide to cancel the contract. What is worse, with Lorna being declared legally incompetent, there is a danger of the company going into receivership.Ernest however attempts to come up with a plan to save the jobs of everyone at KPET, but everyone is mortified when they discover his plan is to sell KPET to KRVL. Everyone tries to think of ways to save the company, include a poor attempt by Kevin to disguise himself as Lorna, but luckily, they are saved when Lorna, with Julia's help, finally comes out of her hallucination. As a result, she puts a stop to the deal, and frees KPET from their relationship worth Virgiltech.After this, Julia helps Wolfram and Rochelle with their wedding, despite her allergies, and the couple wed.The Sunflower Power Struggle (8 May - 23 June 2006)Ernest is contracted by an oil company consortium to negotiate with "Sunflower Chemicals", mainly over an additive to clean up fuel that Hal is developing, but when he learns that own[clarification needed] is a dog, he refuses to talk with Hal. However, Ernest decides to sort the whole thing out by buying Hal. As a result, Ernest becomes the owner of Sunflower Chemicals. Hal refuses to co-operate with Ernest; Ernest asks Renata to see if she can make him work. She at first refuses, but then agrees.Hal and Renata therefore try to come up with a plan in order to get Ernest to let him go. This is done when Hal decides to perform his experiments into the additive in Ernest's flat for three weeks. As a result, Ernest gives up and lets Hal go free.Rochellicopter (17 July - 1 September 2006)Rochelle and Ferris decide to create their own traffic reports, without Lorna's approval. All goes well until Rochelle corrects their helicopter pilot, telling him that Ferris is a rat, not a koala bear, thus provoking the pilot's phobia of the animals. As a result, the pilot crashes the helicopter. Rochelle ends up with some server injuries, whilst Ferris escapes mainly unhurt, but guilty. However, the main shock comes afterwards when Wolfram tells Rochelle that she is pregnant.The Grand Finale (1 November - 8 December 2006)Lorna returns home discover that the chief managing officer of MegaNewsWest, Dover Whitecliff, wants to talk to her. Lorna comes into some shocks. First, she discovers that Dover's wife is Kim Yuasa, an old school friend whom she fell out with after she failed to pay a check at the old animal shelter Lorna used to work at. Second, Dover wants to over Lorna the post of Head News Editor for MegaNewsWest. Lorna is unable to make her mind about taking the post, as it would mean shutting down KPET and putting everyone else out of work. As a result, Lorna goes out for a walk to think about it. Then she goes on a short holiday to think about it. Finally, she makes an agreement worth Dover that she will take the job, on the condition that everyone else in KPET is given a job as well. The jobs will not be same, and they would be work for Dover instead of her, but on the other hand they would be paid more and be given mainstream respect. Everyone agrees to the terms. At the same time, Rochelle goes into labor, and Della arrives at KPET.Other featuresThe IntroductionThe opening section of the book is an introduction to the Newshounds story, starting from when Lorna was a baby. It continues from there, into her childhood, her job at the animal shelter and the foundation of KPET. After this, there is a summary of the strips by year.Extra Strips and Author's CommentaryThe book also features bonus strips that had not been published in previous books, as well as a commentary on the strips by Dye himself.	159325
1997	Newshounds: Newshounds: Book 1	W		Dye, Thomas K.	Newshounds: Book 1: 11-1-1997 to 1-1-1999. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com.	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.Newshounds: Book 1: 11-1-1997 to 1-1-1999. Dorian's job hunt (January 5-10 1998)Kevin is asked by Lorna to make a report about job hunting, by following Dorian, a former accountant, on his job hunt. However, the hunt does not go to well. Apart from making a musical résumé, he cannot find the right job. Eventually, Kevin finds him a job, but it is not to Dorian's total liking.The raccoon (February 17-21 1998)Alistair gets held at "Gunpoint" by a supposed armed raccoon, but Alistair continues to point out that he will not fall for a simple finger pointed at him, or for a water pistol. When the raccoon sees that he tried to hold up someone famous, he asks for his autograph. Later, Alistair proposes that he should come on the news, but he has difficulty with Lorna.The F-3.1416 Penguinshark (February 23-March 9 1998)The KPET crew try to get pictures of a new controversial fighter plane, by sending in Ferris with a tiny camcorder and in a disguise. Ferris manages to the film the plane crashing, and gets the material put on air, but the air force claim the material was a hoax.Yvonne sues Clinton (April 27-May 1 1998)When Yvonne fails to get flowers on Secretary's Day, she decides to sue Bill Clinton on sexual harassment charges, with the help of Wolfram. Eventually, Yvonne manages to get a settlement.Pomme de Terre (May 11-29 1998)The first long-term storyline. When Renata fell off a building pursuing George Michael for an interview, she was temporarily replaced by an attractive female dog, Pomme de Terre, who had a complete lack of experience, intelligence or sense of professionalism. However, when she sat on Wolfram's lap, KPET's ratings skyrocketed.[6] Lorna then considered the thought of her as a permanent replacement and make Renata do the weather, but she suddenly left to be a "trophy girlfriend".Napalm (July 20-August 7 1998)Wolfram is stuck in the middle of nowhere, so he hitchhikes a ride from an oil tanker. However, he later discovers that it is in fact full of naplam, and is being sent to a terrorist group in Azerbaijan. After a while, they stop at motel, where Wolfram is tied down to a chair without his trousers on. He thinks that this is the worst he can get, but faces even greater embarrassment when the police storm in.Trilvania (September 28-October 7 1998)Lorna manages to get Renata a press pass to a formal state dinner, hosted by the President of Trilvania. During the dinner however, things become complicated when the President changes his title several times, and Renata starts to eat too much food. Renata eats so much in fact, she throws up over the President. However, Wolfram cheers her up when he tells her that the President was in fact a con-man.Lorna's parents (October 12-30 1998)Ernest and Julia come to visit Lorna. However, there are unaware that Lorna runs a news company full of animals, which is something of a problem due to Julia's pet allergies. When Lorna asks the reason for their visit, it turns out that Ernest, "Is currently on the run from the mob after skipping out on a $2 million loan." After they leave on Halloween morning, several members of the mob arrive at KPET's doorstep demanding the money, but Renata manages to discover that they were rather old "Trick or Treaters," who are also, "Early risers."Media basketball league (November 16-25 1998)Due to there being no NBA Basketball, Sam enters KPET in the "Media basketball league". However, when tries to make a team, only Ferris and Kevin join in. To make things worse, none of them are any good at basketball, so when they do manage to do something right, they tend to go over the top in their celebrations. When KPET face KRVL in their first game, Kevin and Ferris make Sam concede the game because KRVL where, "Gnawing on the hoops."Alistair and the new year/And there you have it (December 29 1998-January 1 1999)Although not a major storyline, this started Alistair's annual tradition of visiting the beach every New Year's Day, and reflecting on the past and future.Other FeaturesGene Catlow and the Newshounds in "What We Have HERE is…" by Albert TempleThis guest feature was drawn by Albert Temple, where his character Gene Catlow (from the webcomic of the same name) is being interview for KPET news.KPET Fall ScheduleThis was a mock guide to the other shows would be appearing on KPET during fall/autumn. They include Galaxy Seven, a sci-fi program about the creation of a star, I Love Lucy - The Next Generation "Featuring 	159326
2000	Newshounds: Press Badge Blues: Book 3	W		Dye, Thomas K.	Press Badge Blues: Book 3: 3-31-2000 to 5-25-2001. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.Press Badge Blues: Book 3: 3-31-2000 to 5-25-2001. A Nose for News/All's Fayre in Love and War (April 24-May 5 & May 25-August 15 2000)Renata shocks everyone at KPET, particularly Lorna when she comes in after having surgery to reduce her "Muzzle size." Although everyone tries to ignore it, Renata tries to attract more attention. The only person who does is Hal O'Peridol, who feels sick to his stomach about his loneliness, which gives him an idea. After the surgery, Renata becomes increasingly unprofessional, but when Lorna confronts her, Renata storms out of KPET in anger, and becomes homeless. Renata also starts to get stomach pains, but even worse she is arrested by shop she is begging outside of. Renata's temporary replacement is Rochelle O'Shea, who Wolfram instantly falls in love with. In jail, Renata's pains get worse. She is eventually bailed out, but would rather stay in jail when she discovers the person who bailed her out is Hal. When she meets Hal, Renata's stomach pains go away, but when Hal drops her off outside KPET, they return. As a result, she spends the night with Hal. Despite Sam's attempts to woo her, Rochelle goes out with Wolfram. During the night, Renata discovers a can of dog food in Hal's house which she had before before her stomach pains, thus realising that Hal is the source of her pains. Also, when Wolfram and Rochelle walk home, someone fires a gun at them. Hal admits to Renata that he controlled her brain by making it think it was having stomach pains whenever she was 30 feet away from Hal, using a combination of his chemicals and nanotechnology provided by General Swallowemup. However, they soon realise that Swallowemup might use the new chemical in chocolates to brainwash everyone in the world to help in his plan to buy every company in the world, and things look worse when they discover a professor involved in the project has been killed. Rochelle admits to Wolfram that she is really an agent working for Swallowemup, who was asked to feed a dog biscuit to Wolfram to control his memory. Whilst they talk, Swallowemup arrives and kidnaps him, then takes them to the professors house after he learns that the hitman left his notes. When he arrives, Hal tells Swallowemup that he is a pet belonging to a human Hal O'Peridol, but when Swallowemup insults him, he bites him in the leg. Soon the police arrive and arrest Swallowemup. Swallowemup is sent to jail, Swallowemup Enterprises is made bankrupt, and Rochelle enters the Witness Protection Program, much to the disappointment to Wolfram.A Nose for Trouble (May 8-24 2000)Ferris goes out to a Celine Dion concert, only to find out that he mis-read the advert, which actually advertising for a Celine Dion lookalike. Ferris accepts the job, and becomes very successful. However, he occurs the wrath of other female impersonators, and gets beaten up. They learn that Ferris will have to heavy surgery, but Renata is jealous when it learns it is on his nose. Ferris hates his new appearance, but when Renata learns that he will sound less irritating, he loses his new job.What an Emferrisment (August 28-November 10 2000)At around 2 O'Clock in the morning, Ferris broadcasts his own quiz show, Big Billion Dollar Survivor Challenge 2001, using cardboard cut-outs of famous people as contestants, and making all the questions about Beverly Hills 90210. Kevin stops the broadcast, but a few weeks later, Ferris learns that another television company has stolen his idea, and that Tori Spelling is hosting it, and Aaron Spelling is producing. Ferris decides to hitchhike to Hollywood in order to confront Spelling Entertainment. After urging him and posting him back to KPET, the company gets a big shock. They are the first ever contestants on Big Billion Dollar Survivor Challenge 2001, and Tori Spelling herself is at the house. What is more, if they do not do the show, they will be sued for $1 billion. They decide to play the game. The longer the game goes on, the more popular KPET becomes. Their rating sour, KRVL cover the story, and Ferris starts to worry about not being attractive to Tori. The final, $1 billion question, which is on 90210, needs Ferris to answer it, but he refuses to answer, until Renata tells him that Tori will kiss him if he gets it right. Ferris gets it right, gets the money, and the kiss, but they cannot cash it as Ferris is a rat. Eventually, they reach a $9,000 settlement.Date/Alistair's Trip (November 20-December 13, 2000)Lorna goes on a date with Roger, who she first met at Yvonne's Halloween party. The date goes well, but afterwards, he turns out to be rather dodgey, giving Alistair some "Grade-A catnip". The catnip has a powerful effect in him, casing him to dream that he is in New York on December 8, 1980. During the trip, he meets Lorna as a young girl, who takes her to her old school. Whilst there, he listens to John Lennon on the radio, and realises that tomorrow is the day when Lennon was assassinated. He goes to visit both Lennon and Yoko Ono to try to prevent the disaster from happening, but he fails to do so. He later comes out of his dream, with Kevin beside his bed, telling him that he has been in a coma for two weeks.Lorna Dot Com (December 14-January 12 2001)Due to Alistair's hospital fees, KPET runs into debt. This is therefore the worst time for Ernest and Julia to visit Lorna. Ernest has made a deal with the mob, and even pays Lorna back all the money he stole from her piggy bank as a child as a Christmas present, but later blows it by telling her the source of the money, Lorna's unknown half-brother. His name is Virgil Lishuss, and is a successful software entrepreneur, owning a company called Virgiltech. Ernest proposes that Lorna set up an internet based company with Virgil's help, but later Kevin has a better idea of setting up a news webcast, which everyone agrees to. During the time the webcast starts, Kevin learns that Stormy and Connor have had a fight, and she is hired by Virgiltech to market the webcast. Although she does no work whatsoever, she seems to get a six figure salary.Let's Try…Escalate Access! (February 26-May 18 2001)KPET gets a raise in publicity due to Wolfram takes his clothes off at a gala dinner. Ferris getting an e-mail from Tori Spelling, which leads Kevin to visit Manny the Mink to see if it was true. KPET seem to gain more attention, causing many companies to worry about their safety. Even Connor is told to watch KPET as part of Starbucks company policy. They even end up buying Yahoo! Manny finds something wrong with the webcast, a computer virus, and tells Kevin just before he is killed. Renata and Stormy follow a link, Virgil's estranged half-sister and porn star Angie, who leads her to Virgil. He tells Renata of his hopes that his technology could help make the world a better place, buy creating the virus that is being sent by the KPET webcast. In the meantime, Angie wants to own KPET, and KPET gets a visit from Roger, who tells Lorna that he works for Virgiltech. Lorna learns that Roger and Angie are engaged, and that within 24 hours, KPET will belong to Angie. Whilst Renata talks to Virgil, the spirit of Manny sucks him into the internet, where he tells him about what has been going on. In the real world, Virgil goes into a coma and is rushed to hospital. When Virgil learns about what he has done, he awakens for his coma, stops the virus, and admits to what he has done. Rather than expose the story, Lorna is given an offer by Virgiltech provided she keeps quiet, and Roger flees to Uzbekistan.Other FeaturesFerris at the WTO!This special colour feature follows KPET's attempt to get into a meeting of the World Trade Organisation using Ferris as a spy. He goes into a meeting of people promoting globalisation and a meeting were people were eating food from different parts of the world, biased towards American products. When Ferris comes back with the information however, it turns out he wore his hidden camera in the wrong place, so no-one can tell who was talking.	159327
2002	Newshounds: Regime Change: Book 5	W		Dye, Thomas K.	Regime Change: Book 5: 8-5-2002 to 9-18-2003. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.Regime Change: Book 5: 8-5-2002 to 9-18-2003. Kidnapper Terrorists (August 19-September 13 2002)While Kevin plays poker with some of Ferris's friends, some of the rats tell him that in the house over the road a "kidnapper-terrorist" is hiding there. Kevin tells the others the story and get the man arrested. After the story is exposed however, a moral panic starts to raise, and everyone is worried about being kidnapped. KPET decide that the only way to stop the hype is to create another story to distract the public, so Rochelle tells everyone that Justin Timberlake "Plans to strip naked at our city's founders day picnic.Nirvana (Prelude September 23-October 4 2002, Story October 14-December 25 2002)Connor arrives at KPET and tells Kevin that Stormy has disappeared. While they talk, Connor tells him that Stormy had an owner, a new age singer called Mixolydia who had the talent of being able to sing in ultrasonic song, so only dogs could hear her. During some research, they discover that they have gone somewhere in Montana, and Connor goes after Stormy. On the way there, the bus driver drops Connor of at a place called Steckman, where he meets two new age dogs, Dermot and Georgie, who take him to "The great convergence" where Mixolydia is performing. Back at KPET, Kevin hears an ultrasound message on TV, telling that all dogs will find fulfillment in Steckman, and goes with Ferris to track down the message, as well as Connor and Stormy. At the concert, Mixolydia tells them to get into the back of a truck, which they do, but instead of finding Nirvana, they are forced to build a bomb. Stormy is also at the bomb building site as a prisoner. Kevin is also lulled into the site, where he meets Stormy, who tells him everything. The idea of the bomb was Mixolydia's husband Glen Eagles, a mountain man who thought that technology could help people be more in touch with nature, but he could not do anything because of the government, so he decided to get around 1,300 dogs to build one for him. Thus they set a plan into action, Kevin and Ferris broadcast a signal telling the government about the bomb, and Stormy manages to convince Mixolydia to get the dogs out safely. Afterwards, Connor was hailed a hero, Glen was sent to jail but was given a position on talk radio, Kevin got off his unprofessional behavior due to his work in exposing the story, but sadly, although Kevin is not aware of it, Connor and Stormy finally get married.Fur Care (March 17-April 4 2003)Wolfram is worried about losing his fur, and even worse, he cannot find the right hair gel. The owner of the pet groomers is becoming increasingly frustrated about Wolfram, so in revenge, he sells him a hair gel that was made in 1983 called Bagdad Cafe Hairspray. When he tells everyone about the hairspray on the news, the government start to panic due to them thing that Bagdad is really Baghdad, the capital of Iraq. Renata manages to contract the company that used to make the hairspray, even though it is Sunflower Chemicals, and later Wolfram is realised. However, the hairspray gets its revenge when it ruins Wolfram's fur.Red Alert (May 28-June 18 2003)After getting some facts wrong in a report, Renata tries to get as many facts as she can about an expected terrorist threat. After getting reports from both the FBI and Department of Homeland Security they run the story, causing wide-spread panic. However, when a message from George W. Bush comes on the television, the president turns out to be a hoaxer employed by the government, and the entire story was a lie. The reason for it was to teach the public not to believe everything that they hear. The shock of it makes Renata ill, but the problem is fixed when she is proved right about something.Della & Randy (June 23-July 14 2003)Kevin is worried that Della, a poodle working at his local Radio Shack is trying to flirt with him, due to her offering accounts, discounts and other offers a the shop. However, he soon starts to feel more comfortable. Kevin is still worried about being sumped if he does ask Della out, so Sam provides him with some support. In the end, it is Della who asks him out and Sam telling him to say "Yes". A few moments later, Della tells Kevin about he cousin Randy who is also looking for a date. Once Sam sees her, he goes straight for her. On the date, Kevin tries his best to talk to Della, while Sam and Randy spend all their time kissing. Afterwards, Sam goes back to Randy's place and they make love and Kevin lets slip his past relationship with Stormy, although she does not seem to mind.Rainy Day (July 15-August 19 2003)Rochelle is worried about he relationship with Renata, so she has the idea of them spending some time together, on their own. Lorna approves of the idea. Meanwhile, Sam's relationship with Randy gets in the way of his work, causing him to miss a violent hockey game on which he was meant to be reporting on, and Wolfram goes to report a story about violent coyotes at the Los Muertos Canyon. On their way to the retreat, a violent storm breaks out (despite Alistair's predictions), and Renata and Rochelle crash their car into the canyon the Wolfram is meant to be reporting from. Wolfram starts to panic and goes off to find them himself. Rochelle and Renata are saved by some children who take them to their house, whose owner, Albers, is also the head of the Los Muertos Canyon Homeowner's Association. He offers them $100,000 if they can help them get any information as to how to stop the coyotes attacking people, and makes it sound as if it were a war. Rochelle and Renata agree, and go out to find them. However, on their way there, Rochelle admits to being excited by danger, only really caring for the fact that she likes the idea, of being killed by the coyotes. They find the coyotes, who recognise them, telling them that they pirate cable. The leader, Pontius, tells Rochelle and Renata that all of the problems to one very violent resident called Zodiac, but that the humans believe that they are all violent. After the learn the truth, Renata and Rochelle return to KPET betraying Albers.Other FeaturesGuest StripsThe books features two guest strips, one by D. C. Simpson, creator of Ozy and Millie, the other was written by Thomas K. Dye, but drawn by Vince Suzukawa, formerly of The Class Menagerie.	159328
2003	Newshounds: Surgery in the Park: Book 6	W		Dye, Thomas K.	Surgery in the Park: Book 6: 9-19-2003 to 10-12-2004. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.Surgery in the Park: Book 6: 9-19-2003 to 10-12-2004. Wet & Wild (September 25-October 14 2003)Rochelle tells Wolfram that she is not good enough for him, due to her addiction to danger. Wolfram pleads with her not to split up, and decides to take her out to Wet & Wild World. The day goes badly, particularly after they meet a dolphin suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, which got its dorsal fin blow off when it was sent to find mines during the Iraq war. After seeing the dolphin, Rochelle promises to give up her addiction, but Wolfram starts to worry if he is boring.Expose/Randy's Ex (October 20-November 21 2003)After Wolfram believes that everyone sees him as being boring, he decides to go alone to the Los Muertos Canyon to interview the coyotes, a job that Renata and Kevin were meant to. Renata and Kevin go after him, and Wolfram meets Pontius. Pontius is disappointed when Wolfram arrives, and intents to make him undergo a painful ritual, which involves cutting Wolfram's arm off and seeing how quickly he can reattach it, but when Renata arrives, he simply orders Wolfram to buy him some cigarettes. As Wolfram goes to get the cigarettes however, he is shot by a local resident, thinking that he is a coyote. The coyotes are please with the media coverage that they are now getting, and plan to increase it by realising Zodiac.At KPET, Kevin is worried after he sees Randy having an affair. Randy also has problems when one of her former boyfriends arrives, the boyfriend being Zodiac. Randy tells Zodiac that they are finished, telling him that she is seeing someone else. Kevin later arrives at the house, and a hiding Zodiac thinks that she is Randy's boyfriend. When he leaves, Zodiac bets up Kevin, and both are arrested. Kevin is realised, and the coyotes and humans strike a deal.Nigel (December 10 2003-January 16 2004)After a story breaks out about a Louisiana school teacher telling her pupils that "Gay" is a bad word, Alistair comes out as a homosexual himself. He gains a lot of support from the rest of the KPET staff, with the exception of Sam. Alistair later receives a phone call from Troy Mortenbloom from the lesbian/gay/bisexual awareness society, and tells him that he wants to hold a dinner in his honour. Troy also introduces his pet cat Nigel, who has something of a crush on Alistair. The following morning, Alistair see that he and Nigel have slept together, although they did not have sex. Later, Sam goes to a school where he encounters some homophobic dogs, who admit they want to kill Alistair. Sam tries to warn Alistair, but he as it is New Year's Eve, he has gone to the beach. When Alistair sees the dogs, he runs away. The chase after him, but they are stopped, by Nigel. They both run away, and hide behind a rock, where Nigel tells Alistair that he wanted to be with him on New Year's Eve. The dogs find them and start to bet them up, but then Sam arrives. The dogs invite Sam to hit Nigel and Alistair, but he hits the dogs instead, and brings them back home.Hal Bent/The Conspiracy/Della's Mistake (January 20-June 29 2004)When Renata visits Sunflower Chemicals to complain to Hal about burying a toxic perfume bottle in the KPET lawn, Hal tells her that he was on Dick Cheney's energy task force, due to him developing a low-emission fuel. She steals some information about the fuel and broadcasts the news about the fuel, but later calls Hal to apologise. However, Hal is pleased, because the extra publicity attracts the government's attention, who plan to use the fuel in the Space Shuttle. Hal later calls her to ask if she would like to go in the rocket, and Renata jumps at the chance. Later, Wolfram and Rochelle talk about microchips being implanted into people, during which Rochelle tells Wolfram that she has a microchip implanted in her already. Wolfram insists that she gets it removed, but when a vet discovers that she has two chips implanted in her, he is not willing to do so. Later, the decide to talk to the one person who might be able to tell them about the chip, General Swallowemup. He tells them that the chip was first planted in Rochelle's mother when she went to Iraq before the Gulf war, which was planted in Rochelle when she died. Swallowemup then implanted another chip in her so that the information could not be taken by anyone else. Elsewhere, Della plans a romantic night at the Radio Shack with Kevin, but when the owner returns early, she gets fired. After this, Kevin leaves Della. Later that night, Renata gets kidnapped. Ferris says he can help Rochelle, as he knows a few friends who would be willing to remove the chips, but Wolfram is horrified when learns that the surgeons are squirrels and that they will performing the surgery in the park. Renata discovers that her kidnapper is Hal, although he says he really wanted Rochelle kidnapped. Later, he kidnappers fire tranquilising darts at her, and whilst she is in her drugged state, Hal flies to Las Vegas and marries her. In the park, Wolfram meets Diana, and then receives the news that the operation was a success. Della takes the microchips, and decides to analyse them. In the park, Kevin arrives to make up, which Della accepts whilst paying little attention. Hal tells Renata about why he kidnapped her. It involves his late owner Henry, who became anti-American and became a chemical supplier to Iraq. He later reveals that he too is interested in Rochelle's chip, but he could not tell anyone until he was married. Renata then drops a bombshell when she orders Hal to annul the marriage. When they try to leave however, they discover that they have been locked in by one of Sunflower Chemicals executives. The manage to escape however when Renata throws Hal at the window when she discovers they are asleep in the same bed. Later, Lorna tells Kevin that she plans to heir Della as a technical assistant, giving Kevin a terrible shock. Later, Hal announces at a press conference that he is not only the head of Sunflower Chemicals, but he is also resigning, but later Renata gets up on stage and tells him to stop, as well exposing their kidnap and saying that she wants to remarry Hal. The executive that kidnapped them is fired, and Renata and Hal get married until Hal's will is fulfilled, then they divorce. Also, Della becomes a member of KPET as a technical assistant.Ferris the Filmmaker (September 7-October 5 2004)After the success of several film documentaries, Ferris asks a film company for money to make a documentary on KPET. He is successful, although he only receives $50,000. KRVL retaliate by forming their own animal news team in order to gain more publicity. As it goes on, it is clear that Ferris's film is awful, and KRVL even try a smear campaign, but this too fails. When Ferris premieres the film, no-one likes it, and the production company instead try to turn it into a comedy called KRVL, A Station Strong and Proud. Ferris is so despite not to be viewed as a traitor to KPET that he goes as far to disown the film, and for it to be directed by Alan Smithee. The film itself is hated by the critics, but the public still watch it.Other FeaturesJourney to American IdolThis is an autobiographical tail of Ferris failed attempt to enter for the reality television program American Idol, including his poor costume choices and his rather terrible singing.[edit]Newshounds…in an AdventureThis story is partly based on the style of Alice in Wonderland, in that it tells fantasy tale where the KPET news crew meet a range of impossible characters, but in the end, it is all a dream. 	159329
1999	Newshounds: Tonight’s Top Story: Book 2	W		Dye, Thomas K.	Tonight’s Top Story: Book 2: 1-2-1999 to 3-30-2000. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.Tonight’s Top Story: Book 2: 1-2-1999 to 3-30-2000. Vermin Nation (February 15-March 23 1999)Ferris gets invited to a nightclub called Vermin Nation, where only rats are allowed to attend. However, it turns out to be a hoax, set up by a company performing illegal animal experiments. When he fails to turn up for work, Kevin and Renata try to find him. At the medical institute, Ferris manages to escape, and Kevin and Renata manage to interview the head of institute. Afterwards, the institute turns to testing on other animals.The New Stadium (April 13-23 1999)When a new football stadium is being built on a site of environmental and historical, Alistair ties himself to a tree to stop it, much to Sam's disgust. Despite threats by the football team to build the stadium even if he does not move, Alistair stays at his post, and does so until it stars to rain.Gun Deactivator (May 3-28 1999)After the Columbine High School massacre, Alistair starts a new project. After keeping it secret for some time, he later reveals his work, a machine that will deactivate every gun in the world. While everyone is being distracted by the realise of The Phantom Menace, Alistair turns on the gun deactivator, and it works! However, when someone invents "The Portable Atomic Bomb Launcher," a product which would sell well if guns did not, Alistair tries to stop the gun deactivator before something even more deadly is realised into the world.Black Tie Affair/Kevin in Wonderland/Here's Hal! (June 8-July 30 1999)After a night out at a black tie affair with Ferris, Kevin feels unwell. After considering taking some of Lorna's stomach medicine, he changes his mind and decides to eat some grass from the lawn. However, after doing so, he ends up hallucinating. When he recovers, Wolfram and Renata try to uncover what lead to his hallucinations, and discover someone has being spraying the lawn with. After forcing the sprayer to watch Ferris's Baywatch videos (which knocks him out cold) they discover he works for Sunflower Chemicals. They go to see the owner, Hal O'Peridol. Not only are they shocked to learn that he is a dog like them, but he also has a massive crush on Renata. While Hal talks to Renata, his workers kidnap Wolfram and hold him over a tank of drain cleaner, and promises only to realise him if Renata marries him. Renata says she will, and Hal goes to realise Wolfram, only to discover that his workers held Wolfram over a tank of chocolate. While he argues with his staff, Wolfram and Renata escape.Son of Sam (August 31-October 15 1999)Sam attends a baseball match, during which a man, who is an admirer of murderer David Berkowitz called "Billy Bob" Milosevic sits next to him. When the umpire makes a bad decision, Sam yells, "Kill the umpire!" When he does so, the man attempts to really kill the umpire, obeying Sam. However, when the police arrive, they arrest Sam for provoking the crime. When he asks for a lawyer, Lorna cannot afford a proper lawyer, so she gets a member of staff to be one. Sam is horrified to discover however that it is Alistair. Alistair tries his best, but "Billy Bob" has discovered God, and there are a lack of people not biased to form a jury for the trial. As the trial goes on, it quickly becomes a show trial, which the defence calling people with no relation to the case. The trial eventually ends, finding Sam guilty, but it later turns out the verdict is misread.The Governor (November 8-19 1999)After a local governor resigns due to a drug addiction, a new one is appointed. When Wolfram goes to interview him, he asks him a question, to which he reacts by throwing a podium at Wolfram. This leads to a the start of a wave of podium throwing across the country, but soon the fad ends.Stormy Weather (December 13-24 1999)After a night spent watching Blackadder videos with his new girlfriend Stormy Knight, Kevin seems to be having a good relationship, but Stormy soon calls to tell him something. Although the night went well, the next day Stormy tells him that she wants to go back to her old boyfriend Connor O'Connor. After he is dumped, the staff at KPET try to use Christmas to distract him.Take Back the Canal (January 4-13 2000)As Alistair lays asleep on the beach after his annual New Year's Eve tradition, he is awakened by two fish who ask for his help. They ask him to help protest about America giving the Panama Canal back to the Panamanians, but Alistair points out that their plan to make a "Chain of fish" does not really work.Stormy Weather II (January 17-February 25 2000)Kevin goes to a shopping mall with Ferris in order to help take his mind from his failed relationship with Stormy. Kevin and Ferris split up, and Kevin walks into a Starbucks, where he is served by Connor, Stormy's boyfriend. While they are arguing over Stormy, Starbucks is invaded by an armed force from AOL Time Warner, who order Kevin to shoot Connor, but he backs out of it. While the soldiers threaten to shoot Kevin, Connor manages to escape. The soldiers are about to fire, but just before they pull the trigger, they learn the operation was a failure in all the other branches of Starbucks that were invaded. Afterwards, it appears that Kevin may have a loving relationship with Stormy again.Van Plan (March 13-31 2000)Lorna decides that KPET needs a News van, and thus sends Kevin, Renata, Wolfram and Sam to a dog driving school. Although their answers to the question are somewhat dubious they manage to pass. When the van arrives (before their licenses), Renata, Sam and Wolfram go for a quick joyride, driving to KRVL to show off their new van. During their ride however, they hit a car in the KRVL parking lot. Lorna learns about the joyriding, she shows her disapproval, but later forgives them after she learns about what they did at KRVL. The last strip in the series appears in the third Newshounds book, Press Badge Blues.Other FeaturesAdder… and SubtracterA short story of how Kevin and Stormy first met. Both attend a video signing with Rowan Atkinson. Stormy notices that she and Kevin are the only people to have brought Blackadder videos as opposed to Mr. Bean. As they talk, and by some more Blackadder, Stormy invites Kevin to her place, but his happiness some fades away when Stormy mentions that she has a boyfriend.	159330
2001	Newshounds: We All Come Out to Mantra: Book 4	W		Dye, Thomas K.	We All Came Out to Mantra: Book 4: 6-4-2001 to 8-2-2002. Satirical, furry webcomic drawn and written by Dye. Seven Newshounds compilations covering all of the strips. Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing. The seventh is published by Lulu.com	News Broadcasting Company in America called KPET, staffed by one human and seven antropomorphic animals (five dogs, a cat and a rat).  The strip satirizes many aspects of news companies and news stories of the day. Although sometimes strips are standalones, most of the stories span several weeks, sometimes months.As well as news gathering, Newshounds satirizes politics, sport and pop culture, with many of the characters satirizing one particular area. Newshounds covers controversial topics such as the war on terror, gay rights, and there are future plans to make a series of storylines about abortion.Newshounds is one of the longest running furry webcomics (longer running examples include Kevin and Kell (1995) and Sabrina Online (1996)). It is hosted on the Internet by the online comics syndicate Keenspot. According to the The Webcomic List, it is listed in the top 1,000 webcomics on the internet. A collection of strips entitled All the Newshounds Fit to Print won the Ursa Major Award for "Best Anthropomorphic Literary Work", and it is currently on the Ursa Major Awards, "Recommended Anthropomorphics List".The comic follows a group of anthropomorphic pet animals and their human owner, living in an unnamed American city and together operating a small news station, KPET. The world it is set in the same as the real world, except animals are intelligent. The staff of KPET (except the owner) are animals (five dogs, one cat and one rat). The animals in the Newshounds universe are subject to the same laws as animals in the real world, such as dog licenses, having owners, and not being able to vote. However, the animals of the Newshounds universe are aware of this, thus meaning that although they have their own political views and arguments, there is very little they can do themselves apart from express a view.The owner, Lorna Dilbrook, originally worked for an animal shelter. When her late great-aunt Agnes died and left her $400,000, she started the station using animals from the shelter. Her staff includes two anchordogs, the vain Wolfram Blitzen and over-ambitious Renata Fayre. There is also cameradog, Kevin J. Dog who cannot keep a relationship down, right wing sports reporter Sam Shepherd and left wing and feline weather forecaster Alistair Katt.  Ferris, a rat who was squatting in the house, was hired as a janitor. The final member of the team, danger-addicted Rochelle O'Shea, first joined the company as a temp, but later became a field reporter in 2001.There are some minor characters that have returning roles. They include Lorna's parents, Ernest and Julia Dilbrook, who often visit with a hidden motive (for example, Ernest was once on the run from the mob for not paying back a $2 million loan), Hal O'Peridol, the CEO of Sunflower Chemicals, wants to marry Renata, but she cannot stand the sight of him and Kevin's on/off girlfriend Stormy Knight. There is also a local rival news company KRVL who try to stop KPET from getting all the best stories and soldier-turned-businessman General Swallowemup, who plots to buy every business in the world.The Newshounds website has a section of comics set in the past, about how Lorna came to found KPET.Kevin J. Dog - Male golden retriever, KPET's camera operator and technical person. A fairly gentle and sensitive character, often playing straight man to the other characters' follies. He has a sister, Raine, and has had two failed relationships: one with Stormy Knight, who he first fell in love with due to their love of Blackadder, but she got married to her boyfriend Connor O'Connor. The other was with Della, a technophile and Kevin's technical assistant, who went missing during a holiday with her owners. His brooding over Stormy made him gain weight in early 2003. He is partly based on Thomas K. Dye. Renata Fayre - A female cocker spaniel and one of the two news anchors. She is strong-willed, good at finding facts, and generally clear-headed when not in the grip of journalistic ambition, or when her vicious jealousy towards Rochelle takes over. She often spars with KRVL head anchor Dirk Snoogems. Hal O'Peridol of Sunflower Chemicals often tries to marry her. They have done so twice, but both ended very quickly. She had her muzzle reduced in size in 2000, but few people noticed any difference in the "nasal twang" Hal O'Peridol first noted less than a year before, thus ruining her hopes of getting better jobs. Wolfram Blitzen - A male Norwegian Elkhound, Rochelle's husband and KPET's other news anchor. He is very fond of his looks and wardrobe; vain nearly to a degree of obsession, though the trait was largely quelled due to an incident when he became addicted to a banned fur conditioning drug in 2005. Whilst celebrating with Rochelle about getting over his addiction, he proposed marriage, to which Rochelle accepted. In August 2006, he told Rochelle that she was pregnant, and their children where recently born, named Malcolm and Emma. Other characters regard him as mundane and boring. Named after the American journalist Wolf Blitzer. Rochelle O'Shea - A female collie and Wolfram's wife. As a Field reporter, she is suave and calm but troubled by a secret addiction to danger. She first came into contact with KPET as a temp in summer 2000, although she was acting as a spy for General Swallowemup. She then went into the army, where she met Wolfram and Sam. They then returned to KPET permanently in the autumn of 2001. In August 2006, after surviving a helicopter crash, Wolfram told her she was pregnant.Rochelle is the only central character introduced since the beginning of the strip. •Alistair Katt - Alistair is a male domestic shorthaired cat. He is supposed to be a weather forecaster, but because he was only placed in this position because Lorna heard him mention one high pressure system, he more often acts as outspoken liberal commentator. He also serves as KPET's lawyer, to his disgust. In December 2003, he came out of the closet. He is very fond of catnip, but he temporarily loses his sanity when he mixes it with alcohol. Storylines around New Year usually focus on him: since 1999 he has spent New Year's Eve alone on the beach almost every year. Although Alistair long claimed to be little interested in any romantic matter, he occasionally goes on dates with his friend Nigel. Nigel is somewhat obsessed with Alistair and, in his own words, "crazy-mad in love", but Alistair preferred to remain friends until recently. In a recent strip, to his great shock, Alistair came to the realization he loved Nigel too, even kissing him. Sam Shepherd - Sam is a male black labrador and KPET's sports reporter. He is macho and decidedly right wing. He disagrees loudly with Alistair over politics, but the pair gained mutual respect as they have both rescued each other for difficult situations. Sam had been in a dysfunctional relationship with Randy, Della's cousin, but they split up when he discovered she was cheating on him with her former boyfriend Vladimir. Despite Sam's politics, he eventually accepts Alistair's homosexuality and in April 2006 he told Alistair that George W. Bush is an "insane maniac", almost giving Alistair a heart attack.Ferris the Rat - Formally a squatter in KPET's first studio, Ferris is KPET's janitor, though he is next to useless at his job. He is irrepressible, obsessed with pop-culture, infatuated with Tori Spelling, and often launches into business plans which last just long enough to cause chaos. In October 2004, Ferris got rid of his last piece of Tori Spelling memorabilia, but he still has feelings for her, particularly after her father, Aaron Spelling died in June 2006. His name probably comes from the film Ferris Bueller's Day Off.Lorna Ernestine Dilbrook - The owner of KPET, its animal staff and the only human in the company. According to the comic's back-story webpages she started the station to follow her passion for news, finding its staff in the animal shelter she had worked at previously. She has kept KPET going ever since, gritting her teeth through its endless crises. She always tries to be as moral as possible, which may explain KPET's lack of success. She once went crazy after having her tooth removed; getting delusions that she was a dog and everyone else in KPET was human.There are seven Newshounds compilations have been released, covering all of the strips. The seventh book will be released after the end of the daily strips. However, they are only available in the United States.Each book contains special bonus material. The first six books are published by Plan 9 Publishing.[35] whereas the seventh is published by Lulu.com.Book 1 - Newshounds,  Book 2 - Tonight's Top Story, Book 3 - Press Badge Blues, Book 4 - We All Came Out to Mantra, Book 5 - Regime Change, Book 6 - Surgery in the Park, Book 7 - All the Newshounds Fit to Print.We All Came Out to Mantra: Book 4: 6-4-2001 to 8-2-2002Clean And Responsible Animals (June 11-August 6 2001)Lorna receives a message from one Dr. Alfred Qua, who orders her to use a new vaccine to be used on the KPET news crew. After the animals take their first vaccine (including Alistair and Ferris after some protest) Lorna is ordered to make them take another vaccine, but the doctors are very secretive about it. After the vaccine, the KPET crew start to act oddly, becoming more right-wing, and avoiding topics considered not "Clean and Responsible". Lorna tries to complain to Dr. Qua, but she gets nowhere. Oddly, KPET's ratings raise after they become clean and responsible, even passing KRVL. In order to get back in the ratings again, KRVL consider doing a program on KPET's new success. KPET decide to get Dr. Qua to talk in the program, but he tells them that it would be irresponsible. As a logical consequence, the vaccine wears off. When they realise what has happened to them, they decide to use the KRVL broadcast to tell everyone what has happened. Whilst Dirk Snoogems interviews them, they let out all the facts. Not even the use of a church minister can stop them.Army Dogs (September 17-December 28 2001)After 9/11, Sam decides to join the army as a bomb sniffer dog, and gets Wolfram to join him. Although Wolfram is at first hesitant, he changes his mind quickly when he sees the sergeant, Rochelle O'Shea. At KPET, Lorna is forced to use Alistair as a temporary co-anchor, but his left-wing views often get in the way. After some training, Sam and Wolfram learn their first assignment, which involves working with Rochelle and the over-patriotic sergeant Bully Runyon. Their job involves finding a bomb at a complex site, which turns out to be the old Swallowemup Enterprises site. Wolfram finds the bomb in a basement (which he falls through), and Sam finds a map with written in Arabic. Sam later finds Wolfram, and with Rochelle's help gets him out of the hole before it blows up. At KPET, Alistair's attack of the government after 9/11 causes an anti-terrorist government agency to monitor them. When Rochelle's commander, Colonel Marteau, reads the map, he plans to use it at a war conference. Later, at a bar, Runyon tells Wolfram that he an Marteau plan to fly a plan in the Afghan embassy in Berlin. He tells Rochelle and Sam about the plan, who rush to the airport to stop Runyon, with large amounts of military police. Eventually, Marteau and Runyon are arrested, but despite their good work, they are dishonorably discharged. After they leave the army, Wolfram invites Rochelle to work at KPET again as a field reporter, and she accepts, but Renata does not take it well.Internal Audit/Insider Trading (January 21-February 14 2002)Virgiltech is undergoing an internal audit, thus KPET need to hand in their accounts the day after tomorrow. Lorna asks Dorian and Kevin to sort out the accounts, but when Dorian leaves Kevin to finish, he falls asleep on the job. As a result, Virgiltech appear to be ruined. At Virgiltech, the company sues 100,000 employees for insider trading, including KPET. Lorna gets Alistair to act as lawyer to try and stop the lawsuit, but luckily Virgil himself steps in to stop it.Local Yokels (February 18-March 21 2002)Sam interviews the manager of a losing baseball team, the Yokels, and he seems to force Sam to be put in charge of it. Sam clearly sees that the team are a total bunch of losers, but when Kevin mentions a sarcastic idea of replacing the contracted players with better players faking their identities, Sam goes out of his way to find 25 good players, all of whom are coaches in the little leagues. Sam manages to drug the real players and get the fake players to play, but Lorna does not approve of Sam's activities, claiming that that is a conflict of interest. Whilst worrying about his position, he forgets to drug the real players, thus the fake players threaten to kill him, but Sam stops them buy offering his management contract to the fake players.Grand Center (April 2-June 3 2002)Wolfram and Rochelle become worried about living at KPET, so they decide to find their own apartment, at the run-down Grand Center apartments. When Renata learns about it, she refuses to believe it, thinking that Rochelle is doing a special undercover feature. She researches into the building, and uncovers that it has been the scene of a series of mass murders since it was first built. The long Wolfram and Rochelle stay, the more convinced Wolfram is that the place is haunted by some ghost or a murderer is staying there. He even sees a head coming through the wall, although it is later exposed by Renata to be a hologram. Renata goes back to the apartment to see what is to blame, and later is arrested accused of being a killer. At the apartment, Rochelle discover a tiny note, which reveals that the people trying to get Rochelle and Wolfram out of the apartment are the spiders living there, who confess to the police about the whole crime. When the police come with Renata, the spider that confessed offers to name names, but the police kill it. The other spiders are killed by Sunflower Chemicals.Other FeaturesVacation Time!!This special feature tells a story set in 1982, where a young Lorna, still living in New York going on holiday with Ernest and Julia to Los Angeles. During the trip, Ernest tries to curb Lorna's obsession with the news.	159331
2006	One Life to Live: Editor Clinton “Clint” Buchanan	TS			10-25-2005 to present.Source: soapcentral.com	Editor Clinton “Clint” Buchanan (Jerry ver Dorn) of The Banner in Lianview.The eldest son of Buchanan patriarch Asa Buchanan and his first wife Olympia, Clint moves to Llanview to take over as editor for The Banner. The newspaper's previous editor, Joe Riley, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. After a failed relationship with Pat Ashley, Clint becomes close to Joe's widow Victoria Lord Riley; they eventually marry. Clint adopts Viki's two sons, Kevin and Joey.Clint and Viki's marriage is strong but troubled; it is ultimately jeopardized by Viki's multiple personality disorder, which recurs when Viki discovers that her former ward Tina Clayton is actually her sister. Tina makes an enemy in Clint as she conspires to use Viki's illness to take control of their father Victor Lord's fortune, but Clint and Viki triumph and have a child of their own, Jessica, in 1986. That same year, Clint discovers that he is the father of former flame Maria Roberts' adult son Cord, who is now married to Tina. Over the years, Clint and Viki endure much domestic drama, from indiscretions between them, Viki's battles with multiple personality disorder and family squabbles among the Lords, Cramers and Buchanans. Married and divorced twice, the two remain great friends.In 2001 it is revealed that Viki had in fact been drugged and raped by Mitch Laurence in 1986, and given birth to twins. Mitch is in fact the father of Jessica; Clint had fathered Jessica's twin, Natalie Balsom. Mitch had infant Natalie kidnapped and raised by another couple, and he orchestrates her return in to 2001 to devastate Viki and her family.Clint leaves town for London in 1998, returning for several brief periods. In 2005 he returns for an extended stay, and soon breaks it off with girlfriend Dallas Jones. Clint's relationship with Viki is complicated by his subsequent romance with Dorian Cramer Lord, Viki's longtime nemesis. After Clint's messy breakup with Dorian, she seeks revenge by taking over Buchanan Enterprises. Romance begins to blossom between Clint and Nora Hanen, only to be complicated by the return of Clint's ex-girlfriend Dallas. Clint spent months trying to get his father's company, Buchanan Enterprises, back from Dorian Lord.Actor HistoryClint Ritchie (1979 to December 30th, 1998; May 13th to June 17th, 1999; May 22nd, 23rd, 26th, 2003; May 19th, May 21st, May 24th, 2004) Jerry ver Dorn (October 25th, 2005 to present) John Brotherton (2008; as a young Clint)OccupationFormer CEO of Buchanan Enterprises Former editor of The Banner Former editor of The ChronicleResides AtBuchanan mansion, Llanview, Pennsylvania Formerly in London, EnglandMarital StatusSinglePast MarriagesVictoria Lord Victoria Lord Lindsay RappaportRelativesAsa Buchanan (father; deceased) Olympia Buchanan (mother; deceased) Renee Divine Buchanan (step-mother) Bo Buchanan (brother) Ben Davidson (paternal half-brother; deceased) David Vickers (paternal half-brother) Drew Buchanan (nephew; deceased) Matthew Buchanan (nephew) Pike Buchanan (paternal uncle; deceased) Jeannie Buchanan (paternal aunt; deceased) Austin Buchanan (paternal cousin; deceased) Rafe Garretson (paternal cousin) Sammi Garretson (paternal first cousin once removed)ChildrenCordero Roberts (son) Kevin Riley Buchanan Sr. (son; via adoption) Joseph Francis Riley Buchanan (son; via adoption) Jessica Buchanan (daughter; via adoption) Natalie Buchanan (daughter) Clinton James Roberts (grandson) Sarah Victoria Roberts (granddaugther) Demerest Buchanan (grandson; via adoption; deceased) Kevin Riley Buchanan Jr. (grandson; via adoption; deceased) Megan Victoria Buchanan (granddaughter; via adoption; deceased) Brennan Buchanan (granddaughter; via adoption) Zane Buchanan (great-grandson; via adoption)Flings & AffairsMaria Roberts (deceased) Pat Ashley Dorian Lord Victoria Lord Edwina Lewis Echo DiSavoy Carlotta Espinoza Vega Lindsay Rappaport Dallas Jones Nora BuchananCrimes CommittedFalsely tried and convicted for Dr. Marcus Polk's murder [1986]Paid off Colombian prison officials to release convicted murder Ray Montez [2008]Attempted to bribe Dorian Lord into giving up control of Buchanan Enterprises in exchange for adopting Langston Wilde [2008]Maladies and HospitalizationsShot in head and blinded (1987) Given several months to live to due bullet fragments in head (1991) Severely injured in plane crash (1993)Brief Character HistoryClint Buchanan was the first of the rugged cowboy clan to show up in Llanview. Joe Riley, suffering from a terminal illness, heard of a wonderful independent newspaper in Arizona. He contacted the editor of the paper (Clint) and convinced him to take over as editor at the Banner. Joe's devoted wife, and publisher/owner of the Banner, Victoria Lord, first met Clint when he brought a drunken Joe home after a night at the bars. Needless to say, they didn't hit it off. Following Joe's death, Viki mourned her losses and prepared for the birth of a son, Joey. Clint dated talk show host Pat Ashley, a courtship that was busted up when her sister Maggie locked Pat away and tried to take her place. Clint was fooled at first, but soon went to find Pat. Maggie and Pat struggled over a gun. Only Pat left the room alive. Traumatized by killing her own sister, Pat told Clint she had to put all the bad memories - including him, unfortunately - behind her. Clint then had a fling with town villainess Dorian Lord, but he wasn't interested in staying for breakfast, much less a relationship. By this time Clint was warming up to his publisher, but she was dating Ted Clayton, who claimed to be her ward Tina's long-lost father. Clint could tell that Ted was up to no good, but Viki didn't want to listen. When Clint and Viki went to a conference in New York, they had dinners by candlelight and began to realize they were in love. Viki planned to tell Ted the truth, but he slipped her enough drugs to convince her to be his bride. Clint kidnapped her before the wedding. Just as he got through to Viki, Ted showed up and poisoned him. The police chief showed up in time with an antidote, and Ted was arrested not only for the drugging but also for running a counterfeit ring in Llanview. Viki was shocked by what she had gotten herself into and refused to start any new relationship, even with Clint. Clint responded by moving to a rival paper, The Chronicle, and taking Banner columnist Edwina Lewis with him. They soon began a passionate affair. In 1982, Viki's good friend Jenny Wolek was being pressured over who caused her baby to be switched with Katrina Karr's baby. Viki wrote an editorial saying she knew for a fact that Jenny was innocent of all claims and charges against her. When a grand jury grilled Viki on her sources, she chose to go to jail rather than name them. Clint visited her each day, and they finally admitted they were in love. Upon her release, they were married at Llanfair. In 1983, an exotic countess/photographer, Echo DiSavoy, introduced herself to Clint, who was haunted by how familiar she seemed. Her allure led him to fall into bed with her. What he didn't know was that she blamed him for the death of her mother, and she lured him to a bridge. Upon picking a fight with him, she jumped to her death. Dorian witnessed the scene and told everyone that he had pushed Echo. Viki tracked the very-much-alive Echo down and Echo confessed her scheme. After she left town, Viki and Clint patched up their marriage. In 1985, Tina Clayton returned to town and revealed to Viki that she was in fact Victor Lord's illegitimate child through his affair with Viki's college roommate, Irene Manning. The news caused Viki to revert to her alternate personality, Niki Smith. Niki began going out to bars at night and struck up a romance with an old boyfriend, Harry O'Neill. Tina and Mitch Laurence hatched a plan to inherit the Lord estate by killing Clint and setting up Niki. The plan went awry when Mitch mistook Harry for Clint and shot him! Harry died in a devastated Niki's arms, but Viki reemerged moments later, unable to remember any details about the murder. Tina was arrested but was exonerated when Viki turned back into Niki on the witness stand and revealed what had happened. When Viki failed to re-emerge, Clint had Niki committed. Niki faked a return to Viki to get released. Meanwhile, Tina had the hots for Clint and crawled into his bed after he drank too much one night.. Tina learned of Niki's ruse and convinced her to divorce Clint. Clint found out the truth, but then Tina claimed that she was pregnant with his child and would have an abortion if he didn't marry her! Clint refused to marry her, and her scheme fizzled when Dorian told Clint that Tina was not with child. Desperate to get Viki back, Clint took Tina to the lodge and pretended he wanted to have sex with her. Just as he pushed Tina onto the bed, Niki walked in. Viki's disgust at the situation was enough to bring her back for good, and she and Clint were joyously reunited. Unfortunately, that joy was tempered when her therapist, Dr. Marcus Polk, was found dead and Clint was tried for the crime, but Viki exonerated him. In 1986, shortly before they remarried, Viki surprised and delighted Clint with the news that she was pregnant. He marveled to his "Pa" Asa that he finally had his first biological child. Asa looked a bit green for a moment, for he knew the truth -- that Clint had a 20 year old son! Clint had been madly in love with a teenage girl named Maria. Asa, disgusted at his son being involved with a Mexican, browbeat and bribed Maria and her mother into fleeing Texas without a word. Clint had never known why Maria left, or that she had been pregnant with his child. That child grew up to be Cord Roberts; like Clint, he had never known their blood ties. When Viki found out the truth, she told Clint, who was outraged at his father and Maria, but thrilled to have a good, kind man like Cord for a son. Around this time, Viki gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Jessica. Unfortunately, one of Mitch Laurence's minions, Allison Perkins kidnapped the child. The entire family was frantic. Maria Roberts found Allison, but before she had Allison return the baby, she had her dress like Niki Smith. Clint fell for the bait, and refused to believe Viki's pleas that she had never turned into Niki. Husband and wife were torn apart, just as she became closer to her late husband Joe's twin brother, Tom Dennison. Viki collapsed one day and woke up with selective amnesia, totally blacking out the last 8 years of her life. She thought Tom was Joe, and refused to leave his side. Clint managed to stall her divorce proceedings for 6 months. While spending time with Tom, he convinced her to see a doctor. She discovered she had a brain tumor. While being operated on, she went to "Heaven", where her beloved Joe told her to return to Earth and reunite with her true love, Clint. Afterwards, she remembered Clint, and her love for him. Later in 1987, Maria Roberts planned to poison Viki so she could have Clint all to herself. The plan went awry when,during a struggle with Tina, Maria got the poison on herself and died. Tina was convicted of her murder. She ran into old foe Jamie Sanders, who swore revenge on her. Tina escaped prison with Cord's help, and the charges eventually were dropped. Jamie tracked her down and took her hostage with Viki. Clint saved them, but Jamie shot him in the head. Clint was rendered blind. Angry at his helplessness, he slowly learned to cope, and moving to his Arizona ranch with Viki further aided his recovery. One day he decided to compete in a grueling horse race, in spite of his lack of eyesight. The family begged him not to get involved, but he went anyway. Little did he know that Maria's vengeful brother George had drugged his horse, Oakie, into a violent reaction. Sure enough, the horse bucked Clint and he whammed his head on a rock. When Clint woke up, he received two jolts. One, that he could see. Two, that he was in the year 1888! Buck Buchanan, the powerhouse of Buchanan City, looked just like his father. Miss Ginny, the schoolmarm, looked just like his beloved Viki. Clint learned from an Indian named Clear Eyes that he was brought back in time to reunite Ginny and her beau Randolph Lord. Otherwise, Viki would never be born. Clint thought at one point that Randolph was sterile and that he had no way back to the future. Ginny had loved Clint for many weeks, so Clint accepted her marriage proposal. Right before they said their vows, Viki burst through the door. She had been alerted by a visitor from the past and managed to travel back to 1888 through a cave. Clint and Viki reunited themselves, as well as Ginny and Randolph, and for a second task, helped the ever-feuding Buchanan and McGillis families mend fences. Clear Eyes allowed them to return to 1988, where they wondered if the whole thing had just been a dream. In 1990, Viki was elected mayor of Llanview, and was then shot and suffered a stroke. Clint stood by her side through her entire recovery. In 1991, it was her turn to stand by his side. Viki believed he was sleeping with a pretty coworker, Sondra Hall. In truth he was trying to conceal from Viki that the bullet fragments in his head had shifted, and he only had a few months to live. Viki and their children Joey, Jessica and Kevin convinced Clint to have a risky operation to remove the fragments. He pulled through. In 1992, Clint grieved for his son Cord's presumed death, all while helping Viki say goodbye to her own child, Megan. The stress and strain finally seemed to take a toll on their once rock-solid marriage. Viki was uninterested in him sexually and enchanted by family biographer Sloan Carpenter. By 1993, Clint and Viki had separate bedrooms. He refused to end the marriage, citing the kids, but when Dorian led him to a tryst between Viki and Sloan, an enraged Clint gave up. He sought solace in his Arizona ranch, only this time a plane crash caused serious injuries that he spent most of the year recovering from. When he returned to Llanview, he and Viki ended their 15-year love affair. Clint saw the deep love Viki had for Sloan, who subsequently died from Hodgkin's Disease. In 1995, Clint helped Viki through her latest bout of split personalities and the revelation that not only had her father sexually abused her, but she had killed him. Their daughter Jessica began dating sweet young Cristian Vega. Clint shared some tender kisses with Cris' mother, Carlotta, although nothing came of the relationship. In 1997 and '98, Clint and Viki began inching their way towards a reconciliation. One night over dinner, Clint proposed to Viki. Flustered, she turned him down, then went on a short cruise. Clint was crushed by her answer. Lindsay Rappaport just happened to be nearby, and after a trip to Vegas, Clint married her. When Viki returned from her trip, she planned to tell Clint that she'd changed her mind only to find out that he was already married. Due to Lindsay's insecurities over the Buchanan family and her obsession with Nora Buchanan, the marriage fell apart in a matter of months. The last straw was when Jessica got pregnant y Lindsay's son Will. Jessica and Cristian went on the run, and Clint found out that Lindsay had given them money because she wanted Jess out of Will's life. Clint threw her out moved to London to be with his son Cord. Clint returned in May 1999 to attend his father's wedding and the birth of Jessica's first child. He brought along his girlfriend, Dallas, and wished Viki and her new beau Ben (later revealed to be Clint's half-brother) well. Jessica was involved in a hit and run and Clint was left to mourn his lost grandchild and sing The Yellow Rose of Texas to his comatose daughter. When she recovered, he returned to London. He visited again in 2003 in the aftermath of the revelation that his daughter by Viki was in fact Natalie Buchanan and that Jessica was Viki's daughter by Mitch Laurence. His next visit was in 2004, when he helped Viki through her grueling heart transplant. Clint returned to Llanview after Jessica was diagnosed with Disassociate Identity Disorder. Dallas followed, but the two realized that their relationship was not meant to be and she returned to London alone. Clint proved to be an interesting voice of reason, as he could sympathize with both Nash and Antonio, each of whom was in love with one of Jessica's personalities. When Tess was only willing to talk to Niki Smith, it was Clint who was able to bring Viki back out when it seemed like Niki would take over. Together, Viki and Clint finally learned the devastating truth -- Jessica's alternate personality stemmed from numerous incidents as a child where she had been used in child pornography. But rather than turn to Viki for comfort, Clint had found a new romantic partner -- Dorian Lord. Clint and Dorian's relationship came to an end in August 2007, when Dorian falsely believed that Clint was having an affair with Nora and slept with David Vickers. Clint walked in on Dorian and David and called it quits. Soon thereafter, Clint and Nora actually began dating. Dorian, as revenge for being dumped by Clint, orchestrated a hostile takeover of Buchanan Enterprises. Dorian announced the takeover at a BE shareholders meeting, and at the same time revealed that the man Clint believed was his half-brother, Jared Banks, was in fact an impostor and was dating Clint's daughter Natalie. Clint nearly strangled Dorian to death at the meeting. Afterwards, he hatched a plan to win BE back by threatening to take away her ward, Langston Wilde. Clint paid off Colombian officials to release Langston's uncle, Ray Montez, from a prison where he was serving time for murder. Clint's actions infuriated Nora, causing a riff between them. 	162154
1979	One Life to Live: Editor Clinton “Clint” Buchanan	TS			1979 to 12-30-1998. 1999, 2003 and 2004 appearances. Source: soapcentral.com	Editor Clinton “Clint” Buchanan (Clint Richie) of The Banner in Lianview. A transplanted Texan. The eldest son of Buchanan patriarch Asa Buchanan and his first wife Olympia, Clint moves to Llanview to take over as editor for The Banner. The newspaper's previous editor, Joe Riley, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. After a failed relationship with Pat Ashley, Clint becomes close to Joe's widow Victoria Lord Riley; they eventually marry. Clint adopts Viki's two sons, Kevin and Joey.Clint and Viki's marriage is strong but troubled; it is ultimately jeopardized by Viki's multiple personality disorder, which recurs when Viki discovers that her former ward Tina Clayton is actually her sister. Tina makes an enemy in Clint as she conspires to use Viki's illness to take control of their father Victor Lord's fortune, but Clint and Viki triumph and have a child of their own, Jessica, in 1986. That same year, Clint discovers that he is the father of former flame Maria Roberts' adult son Cord, who is now married to Tina. Over the years, Clint and Viki endure much domestic drama, from indiscretions between them, Viki's battles with multiple personality disorder and family squabbles among the Lords, Cramers and Buchanans. Married and divorced twice, the two remain great friends.In 2001 it is revealed that Viki had in fact been drugged and raped by Mitch Laurence in 1986, and given birth to twins. Mitch is in fact the father of Jessica; Clint had fathered Jessica's twin, Natalie Balsom. Mitch had infant Natalie kidnapped and raised by another couple, and he orchestrates her return in to 2001 to devastate Viki and her family.Clint leaves town for London in 1998, returning for several brief periods. In 2005 he returns for an extended stay, and soon breaks it off with girlfriend Dallas Jones. Clint's relationship with Viki is complicated by his subsequent romance with Dorian Cramer Lord, Viki's longtime nemesis. After Clint's messy breakup with Dorian, she seeks revenge by taking over Buchanan Enterprises. Romance begins to blossom between Clint and Nora Hanen, only to be complicated by the return of Clint's ex-girlfriend Dallas. Clint spent months trying to get his father's company, Buchanan Enterprises, back from Dorian Lord.Actor HistoryClint Ritchie (1979 to December 30th, 1998; May 13th to June 17th, 1999; May 22nd, 23rd, 26th, 2003; May 19th, May 21st, May 24th, 2004) Jerry ver Dorn (October 25th, 2005 to present) John Brotherton (2008; as a young Clint)OccupationFormer CEO of Buchanan Enterprises Former editor of The Banner Former editor of The ChronicleResides AtBuchanan mansion, Llanview, Pennsylvania Formerly in London, EnglandMarital StatusSinglePast MarriagesVictoria Lord Victoria Lord Lindsay RappaportRelativesAsa Buchanan (father; deceased) Olympia Buchanan (mother; deceased) Renee Divine Buchanan (step-mother) Bo Buchanan (brother) Ben Davidson (paternal half-brother; deceased) David Vickers (paternal half-brother) Drew Buchanan (nephew; deceased) Matthew Buchanan (nephew) Pike Buchanan (paternal uncle; deceased) Jeannie Buchanan (paternal aunt; deceased) Austin Buchanan (paternal cousin; deceased) Rafe Garretson (paternal cousin) Sammi Garretson (paternal first cousin once removed)ChildrenCordero Roberts (son) Kevin Riley Buchanan Sr. (son; via adoption) Joseph Francis Riley Buchanan (son; via adoption) Jessica Buchanan (daughter; via adoption) Natalie Buchanan (daughter) Clinton James Roberts (grandson) Sarah Victoria Roberts (granddaugther) Demerest Buchanan (grandson; via adoption; deceased) Kevin Riley Buchanan Jr. (grandson; via adoption; deceased) Megan Victoria Buchanan (granddaughter; via adoption; deceased) Brennan Buchanan (granddaughter; via adoption) Zane Buchanan (great-grandson; via adoption)Flings & AffairsMaria Roberts (deceased) Pat Ashley Dorian Lord Victoria Lord Edwina Lewis Echo DiSavoy Carlotta Espinoza Vega Lindsay Rappaport Dallas Jones Nora BuchananCrimes CommittedFalsely tried and convicted for Dr. Marcus Polk's murder [1986]Paid off Colombian prison officials to release convicted murder Ray Montez [2008]Attempted to bribe Dorian Lord into giving up control of Buchanan Enterprises in exchange for adopting Langston Wilde [2008]Maladies and HospitalizationsShot in head and blinded (1987) Given several months to live to due bullet fragments in head (1991) Severely injured in plane crash (1993)Brief Character HistoryClint Buchanan was the first of the rugged cowboy clan to show up in Llanview. Joe Riley, suffering from a terminal illness, heard of a wonderful independent newspaper in Arizona. He contacted the editor of the paper (Clint) and convinced him to take over as editor at the Banner. Joe's devoted wife, and publisher/owner of the Banner, Victoria Lord, first met Clint when he brought a drunken Joe home after a night at the bars. Needless to say, they didn't hit it off. Following Joe's death, Viki mourned her losses and prepared for the birth of a son, Joey. Clint dated talk show host Pat Ashley, a courtship that was busted up when her sister Maggie locked Pat away and tried to take her place. Clint was fooled at first, but soon went to find Pat. Maggie and Pat struggled over a gun. Only Pat left the room alive. Traumatized by killing her own sister, Pat told Clint she had to put all the bad memories - including him, unfortunately - behind her. Clint then had a fling with town villainess Dorian Lord, but he wasn't interested in staying for breakfast, much less a relationship. By this time Clint was warming up to his publisher, but she was dating Ted Clayton, who claimed to be her ward Tina's long-lost father. Clint could tell that Ted was up to no good, but Viki didn't want to listen. When Clint and Viki went to a conference in New York, they had dinners by candlelight and began to realize they were in love. Viki planned to tell Ted the truth, but he slipped her enough drugs to convince her to be his bride. Clint kidnapped her before the wedding. Just as he got through to Viki, Ted showed up and poisoned him. The police chief showed up in time with an antidote, and Ted was arrested not only for the drugging but also for running a counterfeit ring in Llanview. Viki was shocked by what she had gotten herself into and refused to start any new relationship, even with Clint. Clint responded by moving to a rival paper, The Chronicle, and taking Banner columnist Edwina Lewis with him. They soon began a passionate affair. In 1982, Viki's good friend Jenny Wolek was being pressured over who caused her baby to be switched with Katrina Karr's baby. Viki wrote an editorial saying she knew for a fact that Jenny was innocent of all claims and charges against her. When a grand jury grilled Viki on her sources, she chose to go to jail rather than name them. Clint visited her each day, and they finally admitted they were in love. Upon her release, they were married at Llanfair. In 1983, an exotic countess/photographer, Echo DiSavoy, introduced herself to Clint, who was haunted by how familiar she seemed. Her allure led him to fall into bed with her. What he didn't know was that she blamed him for the death of her mother, and she lured him to a bridge. Upon picking a fight with him, she jumped to her death. Dorian witnessed the scene and told everyone that he had pushed Echo. Viki tracked the very-much-alive Echo down and Echo confessed her scheme. After she left town, Viki and Clint patched up their marriage. In 1985, Tina Clayton returned to town and revealed to Viki that she was in fact Victor Lord's illegitimate child through his affair with Viki's college roommate, Irene Manning. The news caused Viki to revert to her alternate personality, Niki Smith. Niki began going out to bars at night and struck up a romance with an old boyfriend, Harry O'Neill. Tina and Mitch Laurence hatched a plan to inherit the Lord estate by killing Clint and setting up Niki. The plan went awry when Mitch mistook Harry for Clint and shot him! Harry died in a devastated Niki's arms, but Viki reemerged moments later, unable to remember any details about the murder. Tina was arrested but was exonerated when Viki turned back into Niki on the witness stand and revealed what had happened. When Viki failed to re-emerge, Clint had Niki committed. Niki faked a return to Viki to get released. Meanwhile, Tina had the hots for Clint and crawled into his bed after he drank too much one night. Tina learned of Niki's ruse and convinced her to divorce Clint. Clint found out the truth, but then Tina claimed that she was pregnant with his child and would have an abortion if he didn't marry her! Clint refused to marry her, and her scheme fizzled when Dorian told Clint that Tina was not with child. Desperate to get Viki back, Clint took Tina to the lodge and pretended he wanted to have sex with her. Just as he pushed Tina onto the bed, Niki walked in. Viki's disgust at the situation was enough to bring her back for good, and she and Clint were joyously reunited. Unfortunately, that joy was tempered when her therapist, Dr. Marcus Polk, was found dead and Clint was tried for the crime, but Viki exonerated him. In 1986, shortly before they remarried, Viki surprised and delighted Clint with the news that she was pregnant. He marveled to his "Pa" Asa that he finally had his first biological child. Asa looked a bit green for a moment, for he knew the truth -- that Clint had a 20 year old son! Clint had been madly in love with a teenage girl named Maria. Asa, disgusted at his son being involved with a Mexican, browbeat and bribed Maria and her mother into fleeing Texas without a word. Clint had never known why Maria left, or that she had been pregnant with his child. That child grew up to be Cord Roberts; like Clint, he had never known their blood ties. When Viki found out the truth, she told Clint, who was outraged at his father and Maria, but thrilled to have a good, kind man like Cord for a son. Around this time, Viki gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Jessica. Unfortunately, one of Mitch Laurence's minions, Allison Perkins kidnapped the child. The entire family was frantic. Maria Roberts found Allison, but before she had Allison return the baby, she had her dress like Niki Smith. Clint fell for the bait, and refused to believe Viki's pleas that she had never turned into Niki. Husband and wife were torn apart, just as she became closer to her late husband Joe's twin brother, Tom Dennison. Viki collapsed one day and woke up with selective amnesia, totally blacking out the last 8 years of her life. She thought Tom was Joe, and refused to leave his side. Clint managed to stall her divorce proceedings for 6 months. While spending time with Tom, he convinced her to see a doctor. She discovered she had a brain tumor. While being operated on, she went to "Heaven", where her beloved Joe told her to return to Earth and reunite with her true love, Clint. Afterwards, she remembered Clint, and her love for him. Later in 1987, Maria Roberts planned to poison Viki so she could have Clint all to herself. The plan went awry when,during a struggle with Tina, Maria got the poison on herself and died. Tina was convicted of her murder. She ran into old foe Jamie Sanders, who swore revenge on her. Tina escaped prison with Cord's help, and the charges eventually were dropped. Jamie tracked her down and took her hostage with Viki. Clint saved them, but Jamie shot him in the head. Clint was rendered blind. Angry at his helplessness, he slowly learned to cope, and moving to his Arizona ranch with Viki further aided his recovery. One day he decided to compete in a grueling horse race, in spite of his lack of eyesight. The family begged him not to get involved, but he went anyway. Little did he know that Maria's vengeful brother George had drugged his horse, Oakie, into a violent reaction. Sure enough, the horse bucked Clint and he whammed his head on a rock. When Clint woke up, he received two jolts. One, that he could see. Two, that he was in the year 1888! Buck Buchanan, the powerhouse of Buchanan City, looked just like his father. Miss Ginny, the schoolmarm, looked just like his beloved Viki. Clint learned from an Indian named Clear Eyes that he was brought back in time to reunite Ginny and her beau Randolph Lord. Otherwise, Viki would never be born. Clint thought at one point that Randolph was sterile and that he had no way back to the future. Ginny had loved Clint for many weeks, so Clint accepted her marriage proposal. Right before they said their vows, Viki burst through the door. She had been alerted by a visitor from the past and managed to travel back to 1888 through a cave. Clint and Viki reunited themselves, as well as Ginny and Randolph, and for a second task, helped the ever-feuding Buchanan and McGillis families mend fences. Clear Eyes allowed them to return to 1988, where they wondered if the whole thing had just been a dream. In 1990, Viki was elected mayor of Llanview, and was then shot and suffered a stroke. Clint stood by her side through her entire recovery. In 1991, it was her turn to stand by his side. Viki believed he was sleeping with a pretty coworker, Sondra Hall. In truth he was trying to conceal from Viki that the bullet fragments in his head had shifted, and he only had a few months to live. Viki and their children Joey, Jessica and Kevin convinced Clint to have a risky operation to remove the fragments. He pulled through. In 1992, Clint grieved for his son Cord's presumed death, all while helping Viki say goodbye to her own child, Megan. The stress and strain finally seemed to take a toll on their once rock-solid marriage. Viki was uninterested in him sexually and enchanted by family biographer Sloan Carpenter. By 1993, Clint and Viki had separate bedrooms. He refused to end the marriage, citing the kids, but when Dorian led him to a tryst between Viki and Sloan, an enraged Clint gave up. He sought solace in his Arizona ranch, only this time a plane crash caused serious injuries that he spent most of the year recovering from. When he returned to Llanview, he and Viki ended their 15-year love affair. Clint saw the deep love Viki had for Sloan, who subsequently died from Hodgkin's Disease. In 1995, Clint helped Viki through her latest bout of split personalities and the revelation that not only had her father sexually abused her, but she had killed him. Their daughter Jessica began dating sweet young Cristian Vega. Clint shared some tender kisses with Cris' mother, Carlotta, although nothing came of the relationship. In 1997 and '98, Clint and Viki began inching their way towards a reconciliation. One night over dinner, Clint proposed to Viki. Flustered, she turned him down, then went on a short cruise. Clint was crushed by her answer. Lindsay Rappaport just happened to be nearby, and after a trip to Vegas, Clint married her. When Viki returned from her trip, she planned to tell Clint that she'd changed her mind only to find out that he was already married. Due to Lindsay's insecurities over the Buchanan family and her obsession with Nora Buchanan, the marriage fell apart in a matter of months. The last straw was when Jessica got pregnant y Lindsay's son Will. Jessica and Cristian went on the run, and Clint found out that Lindsay had given them money because she wanted Jess out of Will's life. Clint threw her out moved to London to be with his son Cord. Clint returned in May 1999 to attend his father's wedding and the birth of Jessica's first child. He brought along his girlfriend, Dallas, and wished Viki and her new beau Ben (later revealed to be Clint's half-brother) well. Jessica was involved in a hit and run and Clint was left to mourn his lost grandchild and sing The Yellow Rose of Texas to his comatose daughter. When she recovered, he returned to London. He visited again in 2003 in the aftermath of the revelation that his daughter by Viki was in fact Natalie Buchanan and that Jessica was Viki's daughter by Mitch Laurence. His next visit was in 2004, when he helped Viki through her grueling heart transplant. Clint returned to Llanview after Jessica was diagnosed with Disassociate Identity Disorder. Dallas followed, but the two realized that their relationship was not meant to be and she returned to London alone. Clint proved to be an interesting voice of reason, as he could sympathize with both Nash and Antonio, each of whom was in love with one of Jessica's personalities. When Tess was only willing to talk to Niki Smith, it was Clint who was able to bring Viki back out when it seemed like Niki would take over. Together, Viki and Clint finally learned the devastating truth -- Jessica's alternate personality stemmed from numerous incidents as a child where she had been used in child pornography. But rather than turn to Viki for comfort, Clint had found a new romantic partner -- Dorian Lord. Clint and Dorian's relationship came to an end in August 2007, when Dorian falsely believed that Clint was having an affair with Nora and slept with David Vickers. Clint walked in on Dorian and David and called it quits. Soon thereafter, Clint and Nora actually began dating. Dorian, as revenge for being dumped by Clint, orchestrated a hostile takeover of Buchanan Enterprises. Dorian announced the takeover at a BE shareholders meeting, and at the same time revealed that the man Clint believed was his half-brother, Jared Banks, was in fact an impostor and was dating Clint's daughter Natalie. Clint nearly strangled Dorian to death at the meeting. Afterwards, he hatched a plan to win BE back by threatening to take away her ward, Langston Wilde. Clint paid off Colombian officials to release Langston's uncle, Ray Montez, from a prison where he was serving time for murder. Clint's actions infuriated Nora, causing a riff between them. 	162155
2007	Risky Business of Love	NR		St. John, Yahrah		Reporter Clara Miller is working the congressional beat, waiting for the big story that will earn her a spot on the evening news. Then she meets senatorial candidate Jonathan Butler. He’s powerful, charismatic and the sexiest man Clara has ever seen. The chemistry they share is hot, thrilling and risky. But their illicit affair is about to lead Clara to an unexpected crossroad -- a choice between ambition and love. A Washington insider, Jonathan knows the political game well. He knows romance with a reporter is playing with fire. And yet, he’s willing to take a chance with Clara, until dirty politics, betrayal and scandal shake up his world and his feelings for Clara. Excerpt:"You're on in five." Cameraman Lance Johnson pointed the lens on Ciara Miller, general assignment reporter for Philadelphia's WTCF-FOX Channel Twenty-Nine News."Wait a sec," Ciara replied, smoothing down her shoulder-length hair with one hand while holding the microphone in the other. She was about to speak when the roar of ambulance sirens screamed in the background. Once they were no longer within earshot, she turned away from the devastating murder-suicide scene in front of her on a balmy afternoon in early July.Lance smiled as he looked through the lens. Ciara was breathtaking. He was captivated by her smooth bronze skin, brilliant hazel eyes, full lips and defiant chin. Ciara had a way of seducing the camera with her delicately carved features and exotically high cheekbones. The honey-blond hair surrounding her oval shaped face only added to her allure. The new hair color was daring but not too bold as to offend viewers. She'd said she wanted to make a statement, and that she had. Ciara was always the epitome of fashion and today was no exception. She was wearing killer-red Prada pumps, a slim black skirt and a vibrant red silk blouse.He'd known Ciara for the last five years since they'd both begun working at WTCF fresh out of college. Barely making minimum wage, they'd been paired together and had instantly developed a rapport. Their long hours and grunt work had paid off as they'd steadily moved their way up the newsroom ladder. Ciara was now a staff reporter and Lance an assistant photographer, but Ciara had bigger dreams and he knew she would achieve them; the girl had tenacity.Lance gave her a thumbs-up signal, lifted the camera on his shoulder and directed it her way. Poised and ready for battle, Ciara gave the on-screen intro to her package for the second block of the five o'clock news."The scene here today turned deadly for a young wife and mother," Ciara said as the camera focused in on the Spanish-style home that now served as a crime scene. "Hector Rodriguez accused his wife of infidelity and then turned the gun on her and then himself late yesterday evening. Witnesses say that Mrs. Rodriguez came home yesterday to discover her husband enraged after she was late coming home from work. Neighbors say they heard loud voices before hearing gunshots.Authorities indicate that Hector Rodriguez trashed the home in a jealous rage before shooting himself and his wife. Detectives indicate that a full investigation will take place. This is Ciara Miller reporting for WTCF FOX News." Ciara smiled into the camera."How was I?" she asked, batting her long curly eyelashes at her best friend and coworker. She absolutely adored Lance. He knew her inside and out. She could always be real with him. It was a shame he was so darn smart and good-looking, and with that athletic physique she could eat him up with a spoon. "Unh, unh, unh, unh," Ciara murmured, shaking her head. But she couldn't go there, they'd decided a long time ago that they'd rather have a platonic relationship than ruin a great friendship."Beautiful as always," Lance replied, turning off the camera and closing the lens cover. "And you know that." He set the camera inside the open OB truck that he used to send live feeds back to the newsroom."Yeah, I do," Ciara said grinning, "but a little praise never hurt." She watched the medical examiner's van drive away as the police secured the perimeter of the crime scene.Lance wrapped the cord around his arm and walked it back to the truck. "Since when do you need to be told you're fabulous? You know you've got what it takes.""Have you told that to Shannon recently?" Ciara asked. "Because she won't give me a break. She keeps sending me out for lightweight entertainment stories. Today was the first time I've gotten to report breaking news."Ciara had tried for months to convince WTCF's new television director, Shannon Wright, that she was more than a pretty face, to no avail. Had Shannon even looked at her résumé?She'd been at the top of her class at Johns Hopkins and had obtained a master's degree in journalism at Columbia University. She'd worked at Columbia's television station, the Columbia Daily Spectator and the yearbook. She was a member of the National Association of Black Journalists and had worked at the station for over five years. She'd started out as a production assistant before moving on to become a general assignment reporter.Ciara excelled at pushing herself. So what if that interfered with her cultivating lasting personal relationships; she was willing to make the sacrifice to get to the top of the heap. Her looks wouldn't last forever. Talent was the key."You'll have your day," Lance said. "You just have to be patient.""As you well know, patience is not one of my virtues," Ciara replied."Ain't that the truth," Lance laughed, opening the passenger side. "You'd better get in. I've got to get back and edit the footage."Ciara hopped up in the van and buckled her seat belt while he closed the door. Lance may have thought that was the end of it, but Ciara had other ideas."Now is not the right time for me to announce my candidacy," Jonathan Butler said to his father, Congressman Charles Butler, and Reid Hamilton, his father's chief of staff and personal adviser. They were in his father's office strategizing on Jonathan's campaign while his father paced the floor reciting the speech he was going to give to the press the following day. "I should let you step down first. I don't want to appear overly zealous."Charles smiled as he watched his son. Admiration shone through in his oval-shaped brown eyes at his son's stately presence. Six foot three with massive shoulders, his son towered over other men, including him. He carried himself with the same dignity and grace that Charles had conveyed during his twenty five-year tenure serving the good people of Philadelphia. He had a bright future ahead of him and had done the right thing starting off in law before becoming an alderman. Charles was sure that Jonathan would be as capable a leader as he was. It was just a shame that he had to step down because of a heart condition."Why not announce it at your father's retirement press conference tomorrow? It would be a prime opportunity with maximum coverage," Reid replied."I agree with Reid," his father said. "Capitol Hill has been rumoring for months that you'll take over my seat. Why not end all the speculation?" Charles was sure the press would be eager to meet his handsome, dark-haired son."How would it appear to the public if I announced my candidacy directly after your speech? It would show a complete lack of respect for what a wonderful congressman you've been. The public would see me as a capitalist.""There will never be a right time," Charles Butler returned."That may be true, Dad, but now is definitely not it. I haven't even hired a campaign manager or a media consultant." He'd done some preliminary legwork by getting an office, but there was still more to be done.Jonathan saw the shocked expression on Reid's face. Reid must have assumed that because he served as his father's campaign manager that he was the logical choice for Jonathan. Jonathan, however, had other ideas. He appreciated Reid's input thus far, but he wanted someone he knew and trusted leading his campaign, and his best friend, Zach Powers, was just that man.Jonathan intended to speak with Zach over lunch. Zach had just finished a successful campaign with Governor Green and Jonathan was sure Zach could do the same for him."I'm sorry, Reid." Jonathan folded his arms across his chest. "I meant to speak with you. I hope there are no hard feelings?" Jonathan extended his right hand."No, not at all." Reid returned the handshake and faked a smile.His father spoke up on Reid's behalf. "Jonathan…" "It's okay, Charles," Reid interrupted him. "If Jonathan wants to hire his own right hand, leave him be.""No, it's not fair," Charles Butler huffed. "You're practically a member of this family. Jonathan, why would you even think of going with a stranger?" "Dad, I've made my choice and I don't intend on arguing about this. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a few items to attend to." Jonathan grabbed his overcoat and leather briefcase sitting on the floor and headed out the door.Once the door closed, Charles faced his best friend and closest adviser. "Don't worry, Reid. I'll talk to him.""Don't bother," Reid said. "If your son feels he can find a better man to lead his team then by all means let him.""Thank you for understanding." Charles patted Reid's back and walked back to his desk."No problem," Reid said and grabbed the folder of notes he'd previously prepared on Jonathan's campaign and walked to the door. "I'll leave you to your speech." Reid closed the door behind himself.Livid, he stalked back to his office and shut the door. He slammed the file on his maple desk and plopped down in his swivel chair.How dare that two-bit snot disrespect him in such a manner? After everything he had done for the Butler family, after all the hours he'd spent, the personal sacrifices he'd made and Jonathan dared hire another manager? Who did he think had helped Charles get elected? Reid was responsible for Charles Butler's successful twenty-five-year run in Congress every bit as much as the man himself.Reid knew the ins and outs of politics more than most. He'd had over thirty years in the business. He'd run all of Charles Butler's campaigns and won every single one of them. Jonathan had no idea what it took to win an election. What he needed was to be taught a lesson—he couldn't mess with a real man. Reid would show him that he would not be tossed away like the gum on the bottom of his preppy-boy shoe.Oh yes, Reid mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. Jonathan Butler was in for a rude awakening.	167954
2000	Rita Skeeter	N			First appeared in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.”	Tabloid Journalist Rita Skeeter of the Daily Prophet. Born in 1951, Skeeter is a blonde reporter.Rita Skeeter is a reporter for the Daily Prophet and a correspondent for the Witch Weekly, who specialises in yellow journalism, for which she is armed with such magical devices as the Quick-Quotes Quill. Rita is an unregistered Animagus, capable of transforming into a beetle to spy on unsuspecting victims for her stories. As a reporter who fabricates information in order to write an appealing story, she is an antagonist to Harry and his friends throughout Goblet of Fire, and a brief but reluctant ally in Order of the Phoenix.Harry first encounters Rita when she interviews the Triwizard Tournament contestants for an article in the Daily Prophet, which turns out to be a highly falsified story of Harry himself. During the situations where Rita overhears information, the book subtly refers to her presence: Viktor Krum mentions that Hermione has a water beetle in her hair, and during the Yule Ball, she overhears Hagrid telling Madame Maxime that he is half-giant, Harry having noticed a beetle on a nearby statue. Rita prints an article that portrays Hagrid as dangerous, prompting letters from parents frightened by the idea of having a "ferocious" giant teach their children. When Rita encounters Harry, Ron, and Hermione in Hogsmeade, Hermione insults her. Rita, in revenge, then writes a nasty story about Hermione based on false rumours provided by Pansy Parkinson, making her out to be an ugly but skilled witch who uses love potions to "satisfy her taste for celebrity wizards," including Harry and Krum. Rita's last defaming article states that Harry is "disturbed and dangerous," and uses comments from Draco and his Slytherin cronies as its basis. Ultimately, Hermione discovers the means by which Rita spies on others and forces her to "keep her quill to herself for a full year", threatening to report her to the authorities as an illegal Animagus.In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Hermione blackmails Rita, using the above threat, to interview Harry about Voldemort returning and to submit the true story to The Quibbler. Rita later makes a brief cameo in Half-Blood Prince, where Harry is infuriated to notice her clutching a notebook at Dumbledore's funeral. Although Rita does not make a physical appearance in Deathly Hallows, she is mentioned on numerous occasions throughout the novel, generally in a negative light in relation to her unauthorised biography of Dumbledore entitled The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. The book depicts the former headmaster in an extremely negative light but is mostly based on truth, much to Harry's horror. It is implied that she got some of her information in unethical or illegal ways. When asked on a web chat if Rita was still reporting, Rowling answered; "Naturally, what could stop Rita? I imagine she immediately dashed off a biography of Harry after he defeated Voldemort. One quarter truth to three quarters rubbish", along with "Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?"It has been speculated that the fraught relationship between Rowling and the press was the inspiration for the author to develop the character. However, Rowling noted in 2000 that the character actually predates her rise to fame. Rita was intended to be in Philosopher's Stone, as Rowling revealed in an interview: "you know when Harry walks into the Leaky Cauldron for the first time and everyone says, "Mr. Potter you're back!", I wanted to put a journalist in there. She wasn't called Rita then but she was a woman. And then I thought, as I looked at the plot overall, I thought, that's not really where she fits best, she fits best in Four when Harry's supposed to come to terms with his fame."Miranda Richardson appeared as Rita in the film adaptation of Goblet of Fire and Deathly Hallows.Rita: "How about giving me an interview about the Hagrid you know, Harry? The man behind the muscles? Your unlikely friendship and the reasons behind it. Would you call him a father substitute?"Hermione Granger: "You horrible woman. You don’t care, do you, anything for a story, and anyone will do, won’t they?"— Rita speaking to Harry Potter and Hermione GrangerRita Skeeter is a witch who writes tell-all biographies and works as a reporter for the Daily Prophet. Albus Dumbledore described her writing as "enchantingly nasty" after she wrote a not-so-friendly article about him. Notable stories Rita covered include the trials of various Death Eaters after the First Wizarding War, the Triwizard Tournament, and Harry Potter's account of Lord Voldemort's return to power in 1995. She also wrote biographies of Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, and Harry Potter. Rita's writing tends to be sensationalist, and sometimes outright dishonest. Her ability to acquire information is assisted by her status as an unregistered beetle Animagus."Rita Skeeter goes out of her way to cause trouble, Amos! I would have thought you'd know that, working at the Ministry!"—Molly Weasley to Amos Diggory on RitaAlthough Rita writes primarily for The Daily Prophet, some of her articles have also appeared in other sources, such as Witch Weekly and The Quibbler. She absolutely loves her job and is often accompanied by her photographer Bozo. Rita is an unregistered Animagus who uses her form of a beetle to slip around unnoticed and spy on people to obtain fodder for her articles. In 1981, at the end of the First Wizarding War, she reported on the trials of Death Eaters such as Igor Karkaroff.She also provided a quote for the critical acclaim for Quidditch Through the Ages when she wrote, "I've read worse."Rita: "Your story's legend. Do you think it was the trauma of your past that made you so keen to enter such a dangerous tournament?"Harry: "No, I didn't enter."Rita: "Of course you didn't. [winks] Everyone loves a rebel, Harry. Speaking of your parents, were they alive, how do you think they'd feel? Proud? Or concerned that your attitude shows, at best, a pathological need for attention? The worst, a psychotic death wish?"— Rita interviewing Harry PotterIn 1994-1995, Rita wrote many nasty articles covering the Triwizard Tournament. Several students, including Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson, fed her information, and her Quick-Quotes Quill recorded the words of her subjects in a more sensational, and sometimes downright dishonest, way.Under the guise of interviewing all four champions, she confronted Harry Potter in a broom cupboard where she took his "um"s and "er"s and invented her own quotes. The article painted Harry as a tragic hero who cried himself to sleep over his late parents and who has a relationship with Hermione Granger. The article was mostly taken negatively by Harry's schoolmates, who assumed he was craving attention, although Molly Weasley seemed to take it very seriously.Rita then interviewed Rubeus Hagrid, asking many questions about Harry that Hagrid refused to answer. Her subsequent article described Hagrid as a ferocious-looking man who used his authority to terrify his students. The article also revealed to the world that Hagrid was actually half-giant, which greatly upset him and subjected him to ridicule and fear.These activities earned her the wrath of Hermione Granger, a close friend of Harry and Hagrid. After Hermione blasted her for her libel, Rita retaliated by writing an article about "the devious Miss Granger", portraying her as toying with the affections of both Harry and Viktor Krum and using love potions. Although Hermione was more disdainful than upset about the article, she started receiving angry mail from people who believed Rita's lies, and even Molly Weasley was upset with her until Harry set her straight."Rita Skeeter isn’t going to be writing anything at all for a while. Not unless she wants me to spill the beans on her... I found out how she was listening in on private conversations when she wasn’t supposed to be coming into the grounds... Rita Skeeter is an unregistered Animagus. She can turn into a beetle... I've told her she’s to keep her quill to herself for a whole year. See if she can’t break the habit of writing horrible lies about people."—Hermione Granger on her blackmail of RitaHermione soon figured out that Rita was an unregistered Animagus, catching her in her beetle form and trapping her in a jar. Hermione then offered Rita an ultimatum — stop writing horrible stories about people for a year, or Hermione would expose Rita's unregistered Animagus status to the Ministry of Magic, with serious legal consequences. Rita was forced to comply, and suffered financial strain as a result.The QuibblerRita: "But of course, Little Miss Perfect wouldn't want that story out there, would she?"Hermione: "As a matter of fact, that's exactly what Little Miss Perfect does want."Rita: "You want me to report what he says about He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?"Hermione: "Yes, I do. The true story. All the facts. Exactly as Harry reports them. He'll give you all the details, he'll tell you the names of the undiscovered Death Eaters he saw there, he'll tell you what Voldemort looks like now... I want him given the opportunity to tell the truth!"— Rita and Hermione Granger in 1996Rita getting the latest scoop.In 1995, Harry Potter's story that Lord Voldemort had returned was not believed by much of the wizarding world, as the Daily Prophet portrayed him as either a delusional boy or an attention-seeking liar. Hermione Granger wanted to get the truth to the public, and thus contacted Rita, who met her and Luna Lovegood in Hogsmeade on February 14, 1996 in the Leaky Cauldron, where they were joined by Harry after his date with Cho Chang. Harry thought that Hermione was with "the unlikeliest pair of drinking mates he could ever have imagined".Rita was initially taken aback that Hermione wanted her to interview Harry, and then resentful, since Hermione demanded that she only write exactly what Harry said and not portray him as the rest of the press was. Rita claimed the Prophet would not buy the story, reluctantly admitting that the Ministry of Magic was influencing it. Hermione told her that the interview would be printed in The Quibbler, which Luna's father's edited, and although Rita responded with disdain, she "eyed Hermione shrewdly" for a few moments and then agreed. However, when she learned she was expected to conduct the interview free of charge, she was furious. Hermione reminded her that she could report her unregistered Animagus status to the Ministry, thus Rita grudgingly complied.The interview was subsequently printed in The Quibbler, and became its best-selling issue of all time. It was banned at Hogwarts by High Inquisitor Dolores Umbridge, which seemed to only increase its popularity. Editor Xenophilius Lovegood sold the article to the Prophet after the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, when Voldemort's return became public, and he and his daughter Luna used the money to travel to Sweden in search for the Crumple-Horned Snorkack.Rita attended Albus Dumbledore's funeral in June 1997, and, within four weeks, she wrote a book about him, The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. Much of the book's content was obtained through an interview Rita conducted with Bathilda Bagshot, a very elderly historian whose words Rita very likely sensationalized. Rita seems to have authored a whole series of hatchet jobs on former headmasters of Hogwarts, including Armando Dippet: Master or Moron?Following Voldemort's death, Skeeter wrote a biography of Harry Potter that was only about one-quarter true, as well as one about Severus Snape titled Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?Physical appearance"Attractive blonde Rita Skeeter, forty-three, whose savage quill has punctured many inflated reputations…"—Quick-Quotes Quill transcriptionRita has curly, blonde hair that is strangely stiff, suggesting it is styled with the magical equivalent of hairspray. She has a heavy jaw, penciled-on eyebrows, three gold teeth, and large, masculine hands with claw-like, red-painted fingernails. She wears rhinestone glasses, and carries a crocodile-skin handbag, inside of which she keeps her acid green Quick-Quotes Quill.Personality and TraitsRita's Animagus formRon: "She’ll be after you next, Hermione."Hermione: "Let her try! I’ll show her! Silly little girl, am I? Oh, I’ll get her back for this. First Harry, then Hagrid..."Ron: "You don’t want to go upsetting Rita Skeeter. I’m serious, Hermione, she’ll dig up something on you –"Hermione: "My parents don’t read the Daily Prophet. She can’t scare me into hiding! And Hagrid isn’t hiding anymore! He should never have let that excuse for a human being upset him!"— Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger on Rita SkeeterRita is extremely nosy and willing to do anything for a good story — from spying on people in her Animagus form of a beetle to sensationalizing or outright inventing stories. She also took advantage of elderly Bathilda Bagshot's possibly fragile state of mind, even giving her Veritaserum, in order to dig up dirt on the late Albus Dumbledore for her extremely critical biography. Rita tended to portray the people she wrote about poorly, presumably because it sold more stories. However, she could also be very vindictive. For example, after Hermione Granger insulted her, Rita printed a completely false story about Hermione using love potions and toying with the hearts of both Harry Potter and Viktor Krum. This resulted in Hermione receiving hate mail, but she eventually got her revenge, blackmailing Rita into refraining from writing for a year. After this time period was up, Rita returned to her writing with as much gusto and as little scruples as before.Published worksArticlesRita's Quick-Quotes Quill.A piece about the International Confederation of Wizards' Conference, describing Albus Dumbledore as an "obsolete dingbat".A piece about Gringotts Curse Breakers in which she referred to Bill Weasley as a "long-haired pillock".One about the Quidditch World Cup aftermath.One about the mistakes made by the Ministry of Magic concerning the attack on Alastor Moody.Rita's article about Harry Potter's supposed "secret heartache".One about Harry Potter being a Triwizard Champion who supposedly cried himself to sleep over his late parents.One about Rubeus Hagrid, portraying him as a ferocious half-Giant.One about Hermione Granger allegedly dating both Harry Potter and Viktor Krum.One about Harry Potter supposedly being dangerous (before the Third Task).An interview with Harry Potter in which he described Lord Voldemort's return. This was likely Skeeter's most accurate article, since Hermione Granger arranged it and would have informed the Ministry of Skeeter's status as an unregistered Animagus had she lied.BooksArmando Dippet: Master or Moron?The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore (1997)Biography of Harry Potter with unknown title (1998)Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?	167959
1990	Sam Fowler: If I Never Get Back	NSF	OWN - H	Brock, Darryl		Reporter Sam Fowler, a discontented journalist whose family life has disintegrated, steps off Amtrak and into 1869. Before he can get his bearings, he’s a member of the Cincinnati Red Stockings, witnessing baseball in its infancy with an unbeatable team. Sam ends up inventing ballpark hot dogs, the scoreboard, “Red River Valley” and the bunt. Mark Twain makes an appearance.Fowler was taking a modern-day Amtrak home to San Francisco when an unscheduled stop somewhere west of Cleveland gives him the opportunity to stretch his legs. Instead, Sam finds that time has stretched and mysteriously transported him back to 1869. Bewildered at first, Sam soon meets up with baseball’s first all-professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, and begins to ride the rails with them on their first national tour across post-Civil War America. He encounters a political conspiracy, a get-rich quick scheme with Mark Twain, and through it all the shky-legged beginnings of America’s favorite pastime -- before it ever was. Excerpt:THE AMTRAK crawled out of Cleveland. I sat sweat- ing in my new dark suit, staring out at the blackened brick walls from which milky light was beginning to ooze. Maybe I could hold it off. What had I been thinking about: The TV. Concentrate.She opens her mouth wide: NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! But I have no intention of hitting her. I shoulder past to the console squatting near the vaulted window of her hog-rich parents' Burlingame home. On-screen is Anchorman, her lover, smarmy voice and trademark eyebrows embellishing the tripe he intones from the TelePrompTer.I get my back into it, thrust upward with my legs, muscles knotting ... no workouts for too long ... a frenzied snatch-and-lift ... I stagger sideways and heave ... picture window explodes ... shards of glass cascading ... TV in flight ... cabinet folds inward as it crashes on the flagstone ... muted cracklings precede one large red spark ... the long rumble down the hill, pieces flying ... Stephanie screaming ... for an instant ... one pure rushing instant ... I was King Fucking Kong....Milkiness encroaching. I reached for the pint of Scotch in my coat. Almost empty. The pale light was seeping in through my ears.Rock bottom. If not here, couldn't be far off. What I didn't know was whether to feel scared or relieved.The TV ...Maybe she picked him on purpose, knowing how I detested the breed: electronic jackals in symbiosis with their brain-dead viewers. Mincing on the scene, crews running interference. Checking makeup. Asking their two stupid questions. Broadcasting the shoddy results hours before our stories hit the streets.It was when she told me she was moving in with him that I assaulted the tube.It proved costly. With the divorce came a custody judgment barring drunken violent me from seeing our daughters more than once a week.Booze gradually came to fill a lot of empty places. I was a wretched part-time father. I alienated my friends. Jeopardized my job. Screwed up everything.Strangely, my father's death had seemed to offer a certain opportunity, a rite of passage to manhood."I can't imagine how they tracked you down." Stephanie's cool measured words-her telephone voice-sounding in my brain. "They called here for you. I told them our situation. If you need to miss a visit, I'll think of something to tell the girls."By burying him I would ascend some pinnacle of maturity. There, viewing my thirty-two years with new wisdom, I would find significance and a tenable position."Take a month if you need, Sam." City Editor Joe Salvio giving me a fishy smile, significant look. "Pull yourself together ... skimpy interviews ... facts not checked ... get back to your old form!"Or your ass is dead.So this morning I had picked up the suit I'd ordered, flown to Cleveland, and cabbed to the Cuyahoga County Morgue. Without ceremony they slid the cold-storage drawer out and raised the sheet. Shivering in the refrigerated chill, I peered into the sallow face for the first time, seeking traces of myself. There was no cosmetic work: skin sagged from his neck, hair sprouted from his nostrils, snowy stubble matted his jowls and collapsed cheeks.Did you fill your days? Did you love anyone?I stared at the swollen nose. It was bulbous-like mine before college boxing flattened it-and purplish, crosshatched with tiny broken vessels.Did you ever think about me?"... like a chunk of pumice...." The voice of the man from the coroner's office buzzed. "... enlarged twice normal and severely cirrhotic ... yellow and fibrous as dry sponge ... sure as putting a gun to his head, just slower...."I had a fleeting urge to reach down and lift one of the wrinkled lids. What color were his eyes? Shouldn't a son know?Burial was expensive. I opted for cremation, my hand shaking as I signed as "nearest surviving relative." I asked where he'd been living. The answer was vague; no address. I went back in for a final look. Beneath the odor of preservatives I imagined his stench rising about me. I turned away and heard the drawer slide in.So long, Pop.Outside, the afternoon heat hung like a force field. I stood uncertainly, swallowing hard, then headed for a liquor store.Lately the milky light came often. Enveloped in it, confused by it, I seemed to experience multiple dimensions. Without disappearing, things around me receded into the pale haze as distant images and voices swirled to the foreground. Most of them I recognized as my own memories. But not all. The experience was unnerving, sometimes almost terrifying. Drug overload. Or maybe I was going crazy.The idea of taking Amtrak back had been to give myself time to savor the experience, see the country. But what was to savor? A long look at a corpse? I tilted the pint up. They say drinking runs in families.The woman across the aisle was staring at me. I leered and winked. She pursed her mouth and looked away. Hell with her. The last of the whiskey slid down. My stomach churned. My vision blurred. I pressed my hands to my eyes. The milkiness was close.The delay-something about a tie-up outside Toledo-was announced not long after we'd cleared the last dismal suburb and were barreling across open country. I'd been watching the fields rush by ablaze with wildflowers, their beauty a mockery.The train's rhythm flattened as we slowed. We curved onto a siding and glided to a halt beside a weather-beaten loading dock rising like a low island from a sea of weeds and nettles. Waves of heat radiated from the wooden platform though dusk was settling. Insects swarmed in spirals. The compartment's doors opened with a hiss. A steward announced that we would be held up awhile; we could stretch our legs. I looked around. Nobody seemed eager to leave the air-conditioning. I stood unsteadily. Had to go outside. Had to do something.My shoes clumped on the long platform. I retreated inside the sounds, tried to focus on the grain of the boards. Sweat filled my armpits. I felt a chill in the thick, heavy heat.At the far end of the dock a small wooden ticket office stood darkly limned against a glowing backdrop of greenery. Drawing closer, I saw a rusted weather vane tilting from the peak of the roof. Strips of sun-bleached yellow paint curled from the wallboards; cobwebs sagged like nets from the eaves. Somebody had scrawled Sucko on a square of plywood covering the single window."Daddy?" A child's voice; my daughters' faces.I walked on, faster.The rear of the depot looked out on a meadow green from spring rains and bordered by a row of tall sycamores. Near the edge of the platform wild clover exploded in bursts of pinks and whites. From their midst a cacophony of buzzings and dronings suggested that life was indeed very pleasant. If you were a bug.A wave of dizziness passed over me. I shut my eyes for a moment, a mistake."Won't you live with us anymore?" Hope asks, her voice quavering. "Mommy says you won't." I look down at her helplessly. "Daddy?" she urges. Behind her, Susy stares with huge round eyes. "Don't go, Daddy!" she cries suddenly, and rushes to me. I press her in my arms, feel her small shoulders trembling. I struggle to find words that will tell her I don't want to go-never wanted to go.My eyes burned. For a long moment I didn't know where I was. Shapes moved in a pattern before me. I blinked. Circling in the middle distance, blackbirds played tag in the slanting light, their scarlet wing patches flashing like epaulets as they wheeled and darted over the field.... light glowing on the sallow face ..."No!"I must have said it out loud. The sound reverberated in the evening stillness. My head pulsated. I pressed my hands to my temples and leaned against the depot wall."Why do you have to go, Daddy?"Did he think about me?"Are you coming home, Daddy?"I reached into the pocket where the bottle had been. My fingers closed around my watch. I pulled it out and pressed the hidden latch that opened the silveroid case, eyes fixed on it, trying to drive the milkiness back.Years after losing Grandpa's railroad watch I'd found this one in an antique store. The name P. S. Bartlett inscribed on the works identified it as a model first made in 1857, and its serial number dated it in late '60 or early '61. The seventy-five-dollar price was steep, considering it lacked the key for winding and setting. I paid a locksmith fifty dollars to make a replacement; it came out too modern-looking but did the job. With brass polish I buffed the case to a high sheen and took pleasure that the watch kept perfect time.But now the hands said six-thirty. Hadn't it been nearly eight before I got off the train? I saw the secondhand not moving in its tiny inset. Funny, I'd wound it that morning. Pulling the key from its hole on the top-where stems were fixed in later models-I fitted it over the winding knob.At the edge of my vision was a fluttering. Two redwing blackbirds landed on the dock a few yards away. Their wings beat the air, one squawked while touching down, and their feet scratched nervously on the platform.They were real, not my imagination.When their wing markings began to vanish, I shook my head to clear my vision, although every detail was registering: the yellow borders of the patches slowly disappeared, then the red centers, leaving both birds completely black.I stared at them.Then, soundlessly, still hopping about on the platform, the birds themselves began to grow hazy. They didn't fade, exactly, or dissolve, but seemed to fill and overflow with pale light until the spaces containing them held only the light and noth- ing more.The milkiness climbed around me.Another bird materialized and flew very near my face, a dark fluttering form flashing before me, wings thrashing. It shot past. Then, for a distinct instant, emerging from the white light, I saw a human figure. It was draped in a uniform coat-military, or some kind of conductor's; long and faded, with parallel rows of brass buttons-and one arm was stretched toward me. ...	169240
2010	Smallville: Absolute Justice	T	DVD -R HQ 11779, 11780.		Episode #184. 2-5-2010. Two-hour Episode.	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).Man named Sylvester asks Chloe for help but ends up getting attacked and killer. Clark is led to the former headquarters of the Justice Society of America where he meets up with Dr. Fate, Hawkman, and Stargirl. Later, Clark, John Jones, Green Arrow and Chloe team up to help the JSA stop the killer before he murders someone else in the group. Meanwhile, Lois receives a package from a mysterious agency called Checkmate.Chloe is leaving a coffee café and trying to call Clark. She leaves him a message saying that she's trying to set up a meeting of heroes. Suddenly all the power in the area goes out. Chloe looks around sees a figure glowing with electricity. Running to him, she finds a man wielding an energy rod. He introduces himself as Sylvester Pemberton and says that they're both trying to put a team together. He knows all about Watchtower and notes that his friends did it first. Suddenly the temperature drops and Pemberton throws Chloe into a garbage dumpster. He tells her to stay down and closes the lid. Titanic forces are unleashed and shafts of ice slash through the sides of the dumpster. Chloe looks out and sees Pemberton fighting an ice-wielding figure.When the battle ends, Chloe emerges from the dumpster and finds Pemberton, mortally wounded. She yells for help but Pemberton warns that whoever attacked him will come after the others.Clark meets Chloe at the hospital where she is being treated for frostbite. Clark explains that he's been helping the Kandorians integrate into mortal society, but Chloe doesn't believe that's likely. She notices the police officers collecting Pemberton's gear and clone the calls on Pemberton's phone. A young girl, Courtney, comes in and is shocked that Pemberton is dead. Clark approaches her but Courtney reacts badly when she sees that he's with the press. As she walks off, Chloe asks Clark to help and sends him to talk to Wesley Dodds, the last man that Pemberton called.In a Metropolis apartment, Dodds is dozing off in front of a television despite the cups of coffee he's drank. As he sleeps, he dreams of Pemberton and his opponent in their battle. Dodds wakes up and contemplates a gas mask that is part of a costume. He dons the costume, and then turns to see Pemberton's killer in the apartment with him. The killer refers to him as Sandman, concentrates, and Dodds freeze solid.Oliver meets Chloe at the Watchtower and realizes that she's tapping into his e-mail while trying to reassemble the scattered heroes. She explains that Sylvester Pemberton had a long criminal record of fraud and embezzlement. Courtney Whitmore is a sophomore at Blue Valley High who hasn't been to school in weeks. Chloe tells Oliver they need to get Pemberton's energy staff and she needs his help.Clark arrives at Dodds' apartment and finds Dodds dead, skewered by ice. Written nearby in blood are three letters: J – S – A.Chloe goes to the hospital and meets with Dr. Hamilton, who is examining Dodds' corpse. He confirms that Dodds died the same way as Pemberton, and the ice had human DNA. They realize that they're up against a metahuman with power over cold. Chloe notices Dodds' mask while Hamilton asks her what "JSA" means. She figures that the killer has a score to settle, and tells Hamilton that Clark is going through the newspaper archives. She leaves to help him.In an isolated room, the killer tosses out photos of a number of individuals. Among them are Courtney and J'onn. He crosses off the photos of Pemberton and Dodds and then picks up the photo of Courtney. He then looks up at the wall, which is decorated with a chess symbol.At the Daily Planet, Clark and Chloe go through the older records and discover that Pemberton worked with twelve other criminals, including Dodds. They also find an old film. Playing it, they watch as the criminals were caught one at a time by the police. Pemberton is one of the criminals, accused of embezzling from his own company. Dodds is also in the footage, holding a young woman. However, he had no prior criminal record prior to being arrested at a student demonstration. Another criminal is listed as Al Pratt, a physics professor arrested for participating in the gym.Other men in the film is Ted Grant, a heavyweight champion, and Jay Garrick, a research scientist. Alan Scott, a broadcast CEO, and Abigail Hunkle, an elderly woman, are also arrested. According to the files, they all tried to take the blame and exonerate the others. There's evidence of jury tampering and missing witnesses, and eventually none of the convictions held up. Clark admits that he admired their loyalty. Chloe tells Clark to go warn Carter Hall, the next man on Pemberton's call list, while she continues the research. As the film runs out, Chloe wonders what brought all the criminals together.Clark goes to the museum where Carter works. Everything is covered with plastic sheets and Carter arrives to tell Clark that the museum is closed, permanently. The curator demands to know why Clark is there, and Clark explains that Pemberton and Dodds were murdered. They're interrupted when a man in the next room clutches at a bowling bag and mutters to himself. The man says that he's Dr. Kent Nelson, and Carter says that he's very sick. The curator denies talking to either of the dead men, and says he refused Pemberton's calls. Clark uses his x-ray on the bowling bag and sees a golden helmet inside. It turns on its own and faces Clark. Carter tells Clark they have nothing more to say and Clark leaves. Once he's gone, Nelson tells Carter that the voices want to help, but Carter says that they'll have to help themselves. Nelson wonders if there is someone else to help them.Oliver discovers that Pemberton's energy rod is missing. He spots Courtney walking down the street, carrying the rod. He approaches her and warns that breaking and entering is a crime. She points the rod at him but Oliver warns that two men have died and he needs answers. Nelson arrives, grabs the rod, and triggers it, saying they help themselves. Oliver is blinded by the flare, and when he recovers, Nelson and Courtney have disappeared.Oliver finds Chloe and they track down Pemberton's car from the parking tickets filed against it. The car has a stars and stripes motif and is labeled "Star Rocket Racer." They figure Pemberton was living in his car and was on the run. Inside the glove compartment is a journal with entries on all of the heroes, including their true identities. Chloe figures that Courtney knows who they are.At the museum, Carter objects to Nelson bringing Courtney's protégé there. She insists that they know who the killer is, and that they have to do something. Carter points out that Nelson is deranged, and Courtney admits that Dr. Fate may be incapacitated. However, Dodds and Pemberton are dead, and Carter needs to lead them. She wonders if she has to go to another team, but Carter dismisses them as amateurs. As Carter walks away, Courtney asks him what Shiera would have done, and Carter stops in shock.Clark meets with Chloe, who has located a former metahuman villain named Joar Mahkent, Icicle, who is now in a psych ward.Carter leads Nelson and Courtney to a conference room and tells Nelson that they're going to need "him." Nelson hesitates but Carter insists that Nelson's morality never wavered. The homeless man hesitantly approaches the bag, and admits that he wishes he could remember what his life was before Dr. Fate. He had a wife, Inza, and a family. However, Nelson doesn't know where they are since he scared them away. Carter assures him that some of his family is still there. Nelson opens the bag and the helmet glows with a golden light. He calls it Nabu and tells it not to show him the past or present. The helmet wraps itself around Nelson's head and a blue and golden costume forms around him. Dr. Fate turns and greets the others. Carter then goes to a compartment and reveals a winged harness, a mace, and a hawk mask. Carter takes the mace and says it's time to go hunting.At the psych ward, Clark and Chloe arrive and Clark figures that Carter is hiding something at the museum. They learn that Mahkent is in a vegetative state. However, when they enter, they find Dr. Fate holding Mahkent's head. Clark touches him, and Fate warns him that he is of value and his fate is binding. He notes that Chloe walks the same path that he does. Clark asks who he is, and Dr. Fate teleports himself and Clark away with a gesture.Chloe goes to Watchtower and calls Green Arrow to update him on the situation. Green Arrow is following the glow of the staff and has spotted Courtney, wearing a red, white, and blue costume. She's in Suicide Slum, standing under a spotlight, and Green Arrow realizes she's revealing herself as a bait. He calls down to her and she tells him to leave. Green Arrow drops down to the street, but she dismisses him as arrogant. Before he can get answers, the killer arrives. Courtney expands the rod, says that she's Stargirl, and attacks the killer. He lunges at he with an ice spear and the two spar. They thrust their rods together and the energy backlash knocks them both down. The killer throws ice missiles at her but Green fires and deflects them. When the killer flees, Stargirl complains that Green Arrow has ruined her chance at the killer. A figure descends from the skies, picks up Green Arrow, and flies away.At Watchtower, Chloe is trying to contact Green Arrow when he comes flying through the window. A winged figure, Hawkman, tells them to stay out of his business and flies away.As Chloe tends to Oliver's wound, he figures they have Clark locked up somewhere and they know what they're doing. Chloe worries that these retired criminals were so easily able to defeat them, and wonders if pulling the other heroes together is worth it. Oliver insists that they'll pull together, and reveals that he pulled a shuriken off of Hawkman. Chloe realizes that it came from a museum, and Oliver suggests they get some reinforcements of their own.Detective John Jones is working when he receives a phone call.Clark wakes up in the conference room. Cases of relics holds a pair of boxing gloves, a green lantern, a helmet with the wings of Mercury, a belt marked "Fair Play," an hourglass, and medieval weaponry. Another case holds a woman's hawk mask, cracked on the top. Each one is labeled with a heroic name. Clark pulls aside the cloth on the table to reveal the words "Justice Society of America" emblazoned on it. On the wall is a portrait of twelve costumed individuals, and Clark realizes they're the twelve crimefighters from the newsreel film.Hawkman flies in and says that he doesn't understand why Clark is so important. Dr. Fate and Stargirl arrive, and Dr. Fate says that Clark is important, and different from the others. Stargirl explains that Pemberton wanted to bring together the old and new heroes into a new team. When Hawkman notes that Clark doesn't know who they are, Clark says that he doesn't know who they are, either.Green Arrow arrives, firing an arrow into the portrait. He and Hawkman are immediately at each other's throats, and John Jones arrives and wonders if it's too late to work together peacefully. The two teams square off and Green Arrow points out that the JSA are criminals. Stargirl doesn't believe it, and John says that he stayed on Earth because of humanity's capacity for hope. Clark warns that they're not going anywhere as long as there is a killer on the loose.Lois arrives at the office and tells Clark about her day. However, she discovers she's talking to a another reporter and wonders where Clark is. A package with a chess motif arrives for Lois. Inside is a note saying "The truth will set you free." There are numerous files with pictures of the various JSA members. Tess comes in and Lois hastily hides the photos and asks why Tess is there. Tess notices the package and says it was for her, but Lois shows her that it's addressed to her. Tess walks off, thwarted… for the moment.The killer goes to see Mahkent and calls him "Dad," and swears vengeance for the JSA taking his family. He vows to take away their family… and their lives.At the JSA headquarters, Carter explains that his group was cleaning up the streets until a government task force learned of them. They wanted the JSA to unmask and work for them, and the heroes refused. The government then uncovered their identities and had them arrested and institutionalized, ripping them away from their families. Dr. Fate notes that they did fight back, and Carter admits he made too many mistakes. When Clark says he's made mistakes but hasn't quit, Carter says that he hasn't even started yet. Stargirl says that they need to team up and stop the killer from going after the remaining JSA members. Clark points out that Carter still cares and has kept everything of the JSA, and Carter reluctantly agrees to work together. Chloe arrives and says that there are several possibilities for Icicle's location. One is the hospital, and another is a nitrogen storage facility where the villain can recharge his abilities. Chloe goes to work on the JSA's antiquated computer.Tess returns to the Planet that night and discovers someone has placed a white queen chess piece on her desk.Courtney goes to Watchtower with Chloe and admires the hardware. However, she wonders where the furnishings are that would make it a home. The JSA brownstone was used for family gatherings. Courtney explains that her stepfather Pat was Pemberton's original sidekick. She found her stepfather's equipment and enjoyed the feeling of using it to help people. Courtney suggests that Chloe's team might be more effective if they got together occasionally when there wasn't an emergency. Chloe considers what she's said and then receives a message from Green Arrow. Chloe tells him that she's created a false emergency alert on Mahkent to lure his son in.As Hawkman and Green Arrow wait atop the hospital, Hawkman explains that he's watching over Green Arrow. Green Arrow wonders why the killer is avenging his father after all these years, and figures something else is going on. Hawkman dismisses his concerns.At the museum, Dr. Fate talks with Clark and explains that Clark is the hope that John spoke of. He explains that he sees everyone's fate except for his own, and that seeing Clark's future has given him hope as well. Clark will lead the present generation of heroes, like Hawkman led the JSA. When Clark notes that the Legion spoke similarly about his fate and how they were vague, Dr. Fate gives him specifics and says he will one day triumph over Lex Luthor, and will help everyone embrace a new age.Lois arrives at the museum and Dr. Fate explains that she's the key. Dr. Fate unlocks the door and Clark is forced to flee before Lois can see him. Dr. Fate greets her and Lois explains that she's looking for Carter Hall. He tells her that he knows her fate, and she will need the "savior" and he will need her. Lois backs out and Dr. Fate closes the door behind her.A woman walks into the room where the young Icicle is waiting, and warns him that he's taking it too personally. He calls her Agent Waller and tells her that it is personal. Waller says that his mother died during his birth, but the killer freezes her still and tells her that he's only helping her to get revenge. Waller, unimpressed, refuses to back down. Icicle says that he killed everyone she asked him too, and it's his father's fault that he has blood on his hands. He tells Waller to clean up her own mess, and Waller admits that it's a black mark on Checkmate's board. Icicle demands to finish it, and Waller walks away.Clark goes to the Planet and checks in with Chloe. He figures that someone directed Lois to the museum. He discovers Tess going through Lois' files and tells her to hand them over. She notes that he thought that it would be tough for him to have a nosy girlfriend, and warns that Lois is in over her head. As she leaves, Clark looks over the photos of the dead Sandman. Lois comes in and she shows him the classified intelligence that she's gathered that relates to the two murders. Clark tries to get a look at the files and offers to help, but Lois wants to keep the information to herself. She explains that according to her source, the two dead men were vigilantes like the Blur. Further, Carter Hall injured Mahkent, and someone high up got Mahkent's son out of juvie. There were other bad guys that the JSA fought, and they have all been released from prison and their records purged. Clark realizes that someone is collecting them.John and Dr. Fate check out the nitrogen storage facility. Dr. Fate is curious why John is there and what he does, and notes that John sees the same thing in Clark that he does. Fate explains that he can see the future and see what might be. However, eventually he saw too much. Fate asks about John's family, and John admits that he misses his wife and daughter. Fate suddenly says that they're in danger. They hear a noise and go to investigate. They find two security guards, frozen dead. Fate says that it isn't John's fate to die and then strikes him with a glowing hand. John briefly transforms into a green-skinned Martian form before falling back. Icicle stabs Dr. Fate in the chest and says that he's in his prime. As Dr. Fate collapses, the helmet falls off of him, leaving Nelson behind. Icicle picks up the helmet and smiles in triumph.Hamilton gets word of the incident and finds Fate and John. Hawkman flies off after Icicle and Green Arrow goes after him. Clark and Courtney go to the hospital, and Hamilton explains that John is undergoing some kind of incubation. Courtney wonders if it's wrong to hope that Hawkman finds Icicle first and kills him. Clark says that it is and Courtney says that Pemberton told her the same thing. She explains that Hawkman crossed the line too many times, and Clark says that it's up to her to make things right as the next generation. He tells her to keep Pemberton's legacy alive and she'll keep him alive as well.Lois is going through old files at the Planet. Waller comes up behind her and says that they're classified, and she left them for Lois. Lois wonders why she was chosen, and Waller says that Lois is good at digging out secrets and embracing the truth. She hands Lois a cell phone with a chess motif and says that they'll be in touch.Icicle goes to see his comatose father and boasts that Fate's helmet will help him finish off the other heroes. he takes his father's hand and says that he's ready, and then says goodbye. He pulls the plug on his father's respirator and then dons the helmet. The helmet glows red and Icicle screams in agony.Hawkman goes to the museum to get his weapons and refuses to listen to Oliver's advice to get the others. Oliver looks at the case with the Hawkgirl mace and asks who she was. Carter admits that Hawkgirl was his wife and that love has always ended in his past lives. Oliver is skeptical and Carter explains that he and Shiera were born a thousand years ago, and then cursed to fall in love, die, and repeat the cycle lifetime after lifetime. Carter figures that the sooner his current life is over, the sooner he sees his wife again. Oliver admits he's never had a connection like that, and Carter says that he hides how important others are to him by acting like a jackass. Oliver admits that he knows what it feels like to want to throw one's life, but points out that Carter stayed for Nelson, and he needs to put his death wish aside and help his team. He hands Carter his mace, and Hawkman flies him across the city to Watchtower. Clark and Stargirl arrive, and Chloe says that they'll have to wait. Carter says they should have stayed together from the beginning.Icicle teleports into the Watchtower and suspends Chloe within an ice field. All four heroes attack but Fate's helmet protects Icicle against the brunt of their attack. Hawkman knocks him down but Icicle unleashes a mystical blast that sends them flying. He advances on Stargirl but John arrives to save her, and deflects the next ice blast with his newly recovered powers. The heroes close in and Hawkman smashes the helmet loose with his mace. He catches it and Clark expresses his condolences about Nelson, and Carter admits that he's sorry too.Later, Hawkman returns to the museum with Clark, and notes that he isn't a hero because of a desire for glory or vengeance. Carter admits that Clark's team is better than he thought, but Clark notes that his team isn't like the JSA. He isn't sure if his friends will ever be what the JSA is. Carter tells him to trust them, and that he has to remember that they're people and will make mistakes. All they can do is keep trying. Carter explains that he learned to fly after his kingdom was attacked and he realized that his people were what are important. He considers Shiera's mask, and says that if Clark overcomes his own chains, he'll soar higher than any of them. Carter says that with Chloe's help, he and Courtney will find the protégés of the JSA and help them on their path. Stargirl comes in and says that some of them have already done so. She asks Clark what he calls his team, and Clark admits that they're a work in progress.Chloe is working at Watchtower when John arrives at superspeed. He explains that Fate restored his Martian powers at the cost of his own life, and someone will be drawn to the helmet to become the next Dr. Fate. John plans to continue protecting and servicing. Chloe says that she will do the same, and John notes that there is a limit to how much knowledge someone can have. It drove Fate insane, and John worries that Chloe is in similar danger. She insists she can handle it and John assures her that he care for them as his new family. Oliver arrives and suggests they go out for dinner. John agrees and after a few seconds, Chloe agrees as well.At the Planet, Lois shows Clark her front page article about the JSA. He hopes they'll be seeing more of them. She points out that he could have had a byline with her, and mentions what Dr. Fate said about her destiny. Clark asks what she was told, and Lois says it about a mysterious savior. Clark asks if she believes in fate, and Lois says she believes in the fate you make happen.Icicle is confined in a heated cell and demands to see Waller. She comes in and he explains that the helmet messed with his mind. He wants another chance to finish what he started, but she congratulates him on bringing the JSA back into the spotlight. Waller tells him that he's done what she needed, and she'll need the assembled heroes to survive the coming apocalypse. She then draws a gun on him and welcomes him to the Suicide Squad. Waller shoots him in the head and walks outside… where Tess is waiting for her. Waller calls her Agent Mercer and says they have a lot to catch up on.Justice SocietyThe Justice Society of America is the DC Universe's premiere superhero team, having been active prior to World War Two. They first appeared as a team in All Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940), and were assembled by Gardner Fox and Sheldon Mayer. The team consisted of the premiere heroes of that era, uniting at the beginning and end of cases while splitting up on their own or into small teams to take on various cases. The primary members of the Golden Age include: Dr. Fate, Dr. Mid-Nite, Wildcat, Mr. Terrific, Wonder Woman, Johnny Thunder, Hourman, and the Golden Age Flash, Green Lantern, and Hawkman. They later went into retirement when accused of being Communist dupes by Joe McCarthy, but emerged later to fight alongside many modern-day heroes, including the Justice League. Many of their members have died and they have taken on many "legacy" heroes: heroes embracing the names of the heroes of the bygone days, often with similar abilities and/or a blood relationship to an original JSA member.HawkmanThere have been a number of different characters bearing the name "Hawkman." The original Golden Age Hawkman was Carter Hall, the reincarnation of Egyptian Prince Khufu, fighting evil in the 1940s (in Flash Comics #1 - January 1940). He used ancient weaponry and a belt made of nth metal to fly. With the new scientifically-based Silver Age, Hawkman was redone (in Brave & The Bold #34 - Feb-March 1961) as an alien policeman (a "Wingman") named Katar Hol, from the planet Thanagar, who used ancient weaponry and an anti-gravity belt made out of nth metal to fly. He and his wife Shiera came to Earth tracking down a criminal and stayed, becoming the museum curators at Midway City in their secret identities. Through an elaborate series of events he eventually became the "Hawk Avatar" then banished off to another dimension. The next incarnation of the Golden Age Hawkman eventually "merged" with the Silver Age one and was reborn, gaining Kaytar's memories as he had those of his other incarnations, and is currently a member in good standing of the Justice Society.Dr. FateDr. Fate (first appearance - More Fun Comics #45, May 1940 - origin revealed in #67, April 1941) was created by Gardner Fox and originally Kent Nelson, the 12-year-old son of archaeologists who were killed while unearthing an ancient sorcerer, Nabu. Nabu taught the boy vast magicks, gave him a golden helm and amulet, and matured him to adulthood, then "died" and apparently merged with Fate's golden helmet. Fate's powers have varied over the years and on occasion he wore a non-mystical golden helmet without the bottom half. Not one of the more popular Golden Age heroes despite his Justice Society membership, he was brought into the Silver Age as an "Earth-2" hero (as were most of the Golden Age heroes). His popularity grew substantially upon his "return" and he had several mini-series and played a substantial role in various crossovers. It was later revealed that the helmet held the spirit of Nabu, who could take over Nelson and/or make him less human. Through an elaborate series of rewritings and retcons, Nelson later died and has several successors since then.StargirlCourtney Whitmore first appeared in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. #0 and got a taste for the superhero life when her mother remarried Pat Dugan, who was the World War II hero and temporally relocated Stripesy. She got hold of her stepfather's deceased partner's cosmic converter belt and used it to become a superhero. Calling herself the Star-Spangled Kid after her predecessor, Courtney originally used her powers to annoy her stepfather but soon became a hero in her own right. She joined the JSA and although initially viewed as a mascot at best, she has since become a full member. She has also become the designated successor of the Golden Age Starman (after his son the superhero retired), and wields both the converter belt and Starmans' cosmic rod while now using the name Stargirl. Courtney is a skilled acrobat and competent fighter, but her converter belt and rod boost her strength, let her fly, fire energy beams, and short-circuit an opponent's neural system.Star-Spangled KidSylvester Pendleton the 3rd first appeared in Action Comics #40 (Sept. 1941). He fought crime with the aid of his partner and chauffeur, Pat Dugan, who took the role of Stripesy, partner to the original Star-Spangled Kid. A member of the Seven Soldiers of Victory, he was lost in time and brought back to the late 20th century with the other Soldiers. Another Golden Age hero, Starman, chose Pemberton as his successor and gave him the Cosmic Rod. Pemberton made it over into a belt and fought crime first as the Star-Spangled Kid and then as Skyman. he was killed by Solomon Grundy and Stargirl has since become his successor.SandmanWesley Dodds first appeared in Adventure Comics #40 (July 1939) and was created by Gardner Fox and Bert Christman. Donning a business suit, cape, slouch hat, and gas mask, Dodds used a gas gun to fight crime. He later took on a partner, Sandy the Golden Boy, and changed his costume to a more heroic skintight outfit. He fought crime on and off throughout the decades, both on his own and as a member of the Justice Society. Dodds eventually went into semiretirement but donned his costume once more to sacrifice his life to prevent the sorcerer Mordru from learning of the Fate Child.IcicleThe modern-era Icicle, Cameron Mahkent, first appeared in Infinity, Inc. #34 (January 1987) and was created by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, and Todd McFarlane. His father, Joar, was a supervillain in the 40s who used a cold gun. Radiation from the weapon altered his DNA, giving his son Cameron an innate ability to project ice and cold.Amanda WallerAmanda Waller first appeared in Legends #1 (November 1986) and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and John Byrne. A widow who grew up in Chicago's Cabrini-Green neighborhood, Amanda gained a doctorate in political science and then became a congressional aide. She eventually used her connections to form the Suicide Squad, an organization that put heroes and villains to work directly for the government. After using the Squad for her own aims, she was tried and convicted, but managed to negotiate a pardon and return to lead the Suicide Squad yet again. She later became the Secretary of Metahuman Affairs under Lex Luthor. As of the time this episode aired, Amanda was once again leading the Suicide Squad.	172856
2010	Smallville: Conspiracy	T	DVD -R HQ 11800		Episode #187. 2-26-2010	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).When a doctor that the Kandorians resurrected for experimentation becomes determined to prove that aliens have invaded Earth, he kidnaps several of Zod’s people and Lois Lane in the hopes of exposing the truth. Zod disguises himself as a Daily Planet reporter, finds the kidnapped Kandorian and the kidnapped Lois but is shot trying to help them escape. He is dying, but Clark Kent pierces his skin with kryptonite and pours a drop of blood into Zod’s wound saving his life.  That drop of blood, however, not only has curative powers, but the ability to give Zod Superman powers.Full RecapIn Metropolis, Faora reads an article about the destruction of the tower. She's wearing her Kandorian tag and Clark finds her. He warns her not to reveal her alien nature in public, but she wonders how she can have any hope after the tower's destruction. Her only hope is Clark, who found her sister, Vala, who is now working at a bookstore and blending into human society. Vala insists that Clark will protect them but Faora isn't so sure. As Clark leaves to deal with a crime, Faora warns Vala that she can't fall in love with Clark and tells her to close up. As Vala goes back into the bookstore to close up, someone apparently comes into the store. Vala turns but doesn't see anyone. As she closes the door and goes back into the store, a man grabs her and sprays her with gas, rendering her unconscious. Later, Vala wakes up and finds herself in a hidden laboratory contained within some kind of device, surrounded by two other similarly imprisoned Kandorians. The next day, Lois is working on a story at the Planet when she gets a call from Amanda Waller. She quickly puts her special phone away as Clark comes in. When he wonders what's going on, she suggests they have a romantic dinner together. Clark agrees, but Faora arrives and asks for Clark's help. He claims that she's part of a story he's working on and gets her off to the side, where she explains that Vala has been kidnapped. Oliver is in his office after exercise and finds Tess in his desk. She wonders why he's not worried about the destruction of the Solar Tower, and figures that he might be involved. Oliver denies it and Tess says that she doesn't believe him. She warns that someone at one of Oliver's subsidiaries is embezzling funds. Tess tells him to find who is responsible and put an end to it. Clark goes to Vala's store and finds Zod there. The major tells Clark that he's dealing with it and he should go save humans. He blames Clark for driving a wedge between Zod and the others, and now they've abandoned him, someone is abducting them and leaving their crests behind. Clark refuses to give him his powers back and Zod attacks him, but Clark easily stops him. Zod recovers his composure and tells Clark to admit that he's turned against the Kandorians. Clark points out that Zod can't tell his own people because he doesn't know which ones he can trust, but Zod says that the blood of the Kandorians is on his hands. In the hidden laboratory, Vala's abductor, Dr. Bernard Chisholm, removes his mask after locking her in an anti-contamination container. He explains that when he found them, he realized they want to colonize the planet. When she denies it, Chisholm says that he's going to gather proof and show the world so that the Kandorians are hunted down and exterminated. He then puts on his mask again and turns her around to show her a severed arm with a Kandorian brand. Then Chisholm goes back to work, cutting apart another Kandorian. Oliver comes to see Chloe at her apartment. She's glad to see him but Oliver ignores her and looks around. He then turns up the music and embraces her, and explains that Tess might be listening. Oliver warns her that Tess' evidence indicates that Chloe is stealing from him. She says she was borrowing the cash to buy insurance for the entire planet. Clark goes to see Faora and ask what happened to the other two Kandorians, and how Vala was connected to them. Faora explains that all three of them were cybernetic engineers who performed tests to recover the Kandorians' powers. She wonders if the tests are responsible for her abduction. Clark asks her to explain and Faora admits that they were experimenting on humans. Lois goes to the restaurant where she planned to eat with Clark and orders for one. When she looks up from her paper, she discovers Dr. Chisholm sitting opposite her. He says that he has a story for her that will make her career: aliens are living among them. Lois doesn't believe it and tries to walk away, and Chisholm says that he's captured some of them. She admits that he's convincing and claims she's calling her editor on her cell phone, and goes outside. She then calls 911 but Chisholm follows her and takes her prisoner at gunpoint. Back at his lab, Chisholm shows a manacled Lois blood samples that he claims proves his prisoners are aliens. When she warns that no one will believe him, he shows her the prisoners, including a cryogenically proven specimen: Vala. As he starts to freeze her, Lois tries to stop him and he reveals that his skull has been cut open and crudely stitched together. Chisholm says that he died of a heart attack and the Kandorians, including Vala, inserted kryptonite spikes into his skull as part of a process to bring him back. Now he can't stop thinking and his new thoughts are driving him insane. Chisholm warns Lois that the invasion has begun and they have to save mankind. Clark and Faora go to the hospital and Faora explains that Vala and the others store cadavers from the morgue. Clark insists that it wasn't right and Zod should never have allowed it. Faora tells Clark that Zod didn't know, and insists that Clark has no right to pass judgment on her leader. She tells of how Zod risked his own life to save her during a battle. When Clark notes that Zod let Jor-El die, Faora insists that Zod has always considered Jor-El his friend. He admits that he might be wrong, and Faora warns that he doesn't know the man. Zod goes to the Planet and secretly steals what he needs to pass as a mild-mannered reporter. He then goes to see a reporter, Molly Nichols, and asks her to help him find some information about alien conspiracy nuts. She gets him a box of letters, including all of the ones that Chisholm tried to send to warn of the alien threat. Chloe takes Oliver to a secret storage container where she has gathered kryptonite weapons for the day that the Kandorians get their powers back and try to conquer the world. All of the IDs she's given them have tracking devices hidden in them. Chloe explains that they can't afford to trust Clark again. As they leave, Tess' man Lenkov takes photos of them. Lois is working on her story when Zod comes in and frees her. He claims he's an FBI agent and goes to release Vala. Before he can stop the cryogenic process, Chisholm arrives and shoots him in the chest. He tells Lois to finish her story while Zod bleeds out. After Chisholm leaves, Lois gets free and runs to help him, putting pressure on the wound. He warns her to leave before Chisholm returns, but when she refuses, he wonders why. Lois says that it's what Clark would do, and Zod warns that his supposed FBI backup isn't coming. He tells her to save herself and Vala. Clark and Faora talk to Dr. Flores, who works in the morgue, and ask if all of the bodies were recovered. He admits that one body, John Corben, was never recovered. He tells them that they'd have to talk to the attending M.E., Dr. Chisholm, who has been released for psychiatric reasons. Clark threatens to quote him as a source, and Flores explains that Chisholm said that he saw the body snatchers, claimed they were aliens, and had a heart attack. Then they brought him back to life. Clark convinces Flores to give him Chisholm's address. Chisholm returns to the lab and discovers that Lois is gone. Lois ambushes him and knocks him into an electrical panel. As she tries to free Vala, Chisholm recovers and knocks her out. He sees Zod's Kandorian tag and realizes that he's an alien. Chisholm picks up his surgical gear and prepares to cut Zod open, ranting that he'll stop the invasion now. As he moves in, he hears a whooshing noise. Clark knocks him aside but Chisholm grabs his drill, swings it overhead, and inadvertently electrocutes himself. Clark is unable to go to his aid due to the kryptonite spikes present so he frees Vala and then runs to Zod's side. Zod says that Clark will get what he wants, but Clark insists that Jor-El's last wish was for him to save Zod. Zod admits that's something that Jor-El would have done, grabs his hand, and says that Clark can't save him. He dies and Clark takes one of the kryptonite spikes, cuts open his hand, and drips his blood into Zod's wound. There's a burst of light and Zod's wound heals. Lenkov takes Tess to the container only to discover that it's empty. She tells him to find the weapons her money is being spent to purchase. Chloe is watching and is surprised to discover the weapons are gone. Oliver arrives and tells Chloe that he figured Tess was following him, and has hidden the weapons where she can't find them. Chloe demands to know where they are and wonders if they should tell Clark, and Oliver says they should… when the time is right. At the Planet, Lois calls the laboratory to have one of Chisholm's blood samples examined. She then goes to her office and hides the sample in her desk, although Clark spots it. Lois notes that all of her evidence has disappeared, and the FBI has no record of an Agent Zod. Clark claims that Zod is deep undercover and offers to tell her what he knows, if she reveals what she has hidden in her desk. Lois concedes that a little mystery might be good for their relationship. Clark gets a call from Zod to meet on the rooftop and he makes a hasty exit. Once he's gone, Lois gets a call from Waller, thanking her for the blood sample. Lois checks her desk and discovers that the sample has been replaced with a white chess piece. On the roof, Zod asks if Lois is well, and admits that she protected him. He realizes why Clark cares for her, and admits that he is a changed man. Zod wonders how Clark knew his blood would cure him, and Clark admits it was a guess. The major then admits that he trusts Clark now that he realizes he cares for the Kandorians. They shake and Clark leaves to deal with another crime. Once he's gone, Zod goes to the edge of the roof, embraces the sunlight, and then lets himself fall. Halfway down he gains the power of flight and soars into the sky, smiling.	172878
2010	Smallville: Disciple	T	DVD -R HQ 11750.		Episode #183. 1-29-2010	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).Oliver's former mentor, the Dark Archer, seeks revenge on his pupil and launches attacks on Chloe, Lois, and Mia as part of his plan. When Oliver is driven to his limits and beyond, Clark must come to the aid of his friend.Full RecapClark and Lois are attending the Daily Planet's Wishing Well Foundation Gala. As they leave, they talk about the fact it's their first personal outing as a couple. Clark suggests they go back to the farm and she jokingly turns him down, and Clark leans forward and kisses her. Lois responds for a moment and then insists that they slow down. As she prepares to go, Clark hears a robbery with his superhearing and runs off. Lois gets into her car and tries to start it, but the engine doesn't turn over. As she opens the hood, an arrow slams into the car. She looks up and sees a figure that appears to be Oliver. She yells at him that he's jealous but the figure draws another arrow. Realizing that the figure is deadly serious, Lois runs but the attacker shoots her in the back and she collapses to the ground.Oliver is meditating at his gymnasium and a figure approaches him from behind. Oliver reacts and savagely defends himself from the black-clad woman. He finally slams her down and rips off her mask to reveal Tia. She explains that she was trying to surprise him in the hopes of defeating him, but he didn't even respond to his name. Oliver gets a call from Chloe telling him what has happened.Clark returns home to find Zod waiting for him, contemplating an apple. Zod explains that he and his people bowed down before him full-heartedly, but Clark doesn't seem to have responded in kind. They want Clark to lead them and provide them with powers, and Clark admits he has no idea how to do it. Zod wants to work together with Clark to find a solution, but Clark warns that turning Earth into another Krypton is a dangerous plan. Zod warns that his people will do whatever it takes if they don't get their powers together. He explains that they need their powers to protect themselves from the humans, who will hunt them down. Clark says that he will make sure it doesn't happen, but Zod figures that Clark doesn't trust him because he believes Zod killed Jor-El. The major explains that he lost a son and would never deprive anyone of their family. Clark considers what he says and then gets a call about Lois and superspeeds away to see her.Clark arrives at the hospital and apologizes to Lois for leaving her. She doesn't blame Clark and figures some psycho decided to make headlines for himself by shooting her. She explains that her killer was dressed as Green Arrow. Outside, Green Arrow sees them and turns away, and finds Chloe there. Chloe wonders if he still has feelings about her, but he asks what she's found. She tells him that Lois was shot with an arrow, and that it barely missed a major artery. Oliver realizes that the arrow was designed to take down a target without killing them, and that it took amazing skill to place the shot. Chloe shows him a photo of the arrow and he seems to recognize it, and then turns and leaves.Oliver enters his LuthorCorp office and opens a hidden chamber. Inside is a bundle of arrows similar to the ones the archer uses, and Oliver mutters the name Vordigan.In an apartment somewhere in Metropolis, a bearded man dons dark clothing and arms himself with more of the arrows.At the hospital, Lois uses her laptop to research arrowheads. Zod comes in with flowers and Lois figures he has the wrong room because she has no idea who he is. Zod claims to be an old friend of Clark's and avoids Lois' questions about how he is connected to Clark. He offers to tell her about the real Clark Kent one day, and then gives her a small charm that he claims he obtained at the hospital as a gift. He leaves as Lois contemplates the Charm, and the symbol it represents.Oliver goes over surveillance photos of the city as Mia worries that she's scaring him. He explains that someone is following him and is trying to find them. Mia notices a photo of the street where Lois was shot, and Oliver angrily snatches it away from her and tells her to drop it. Mia refuses to back down, but he says it's too dangerous for her to be his student and orders her out.At the watchtower, Chloe is reviewing photos of the arrow when an alarm of a security breech goes off. She looks at a monitor image and it's replaced by a drawing of a hooded archer. The lights go out and the archer appears, draws, and fires an arrow. She manages to duck just in time and the arrow grazes her shoulder, but the intruder draws another arrow. As he prepares to kill her, he hears a noise and uses a crossbow winch to depart through the roof. Clark comes in seconds later and Chloe tells him that there's a new archer at large.Mia is walking the streets when the Dark Archer comes up behind her. He tells her that Oliver has a greater destiny… and she's going to help him fulfill it.As Clark tends to Chloe's injured shoulder, Chloe wonders if Oliver may have a split personality. Clark doesn't believe it and Chloe tells him that she was the one who helped Oliver become a hero instead by setting everything up. Clark insists she should have told him, but Chloe notes that he might do right, but he won't do what's necessary. She worries that she may have shattered Oliver, and Clark goes to pick up the pieces. Once he's gone, Chloe checks her computers again and discovers it's turned up a match for the arrow used in the attack.Lois finds Oliver, who explains that someone is trying to hurt him through her. When Lois wonders why the Dark Archer targeted her, Oliver explains that his attacker knows that she's the only one he ever cared about. Lois tells him that the Dark Archer went after Chloe, and Oliver realizes that he's going after his lover, his ally… and his disciple, Mia.Clark goes to Oliver's office and sees the surveillance photos. Using his x-ray vision, he finds the bundle of arrows. Chloe comes in and tells him that her research shows that the arrows may have belonged to someone else. Clark shows her the bundle and wonders if she was right initially. Chloe recognizes the symbol on the bundle as part of a Celtic society formed by 13th century vigilante assassin/archers. According to the records, the apprentices swear off lovers, allies, and disciples. They figure that Oliver honed his skills by joining the group, the Brotherhood of Sion, and now someone is seeking revenge.Oliver goes to his gymnasium to find Mia but finds a sign painted on the wall referring to the apprentice's master, and the symbol of the Brotherhood.The Dark Archer takes Mia to a hedge maze shaped like the Brotherhood's symbol and leaves her there, explaining that she's to serve as bait. He frees her with an arrow shot and runs off, only to quickly discover she's trapped at the center of the maze.Oliver enters the maze and the Dark Archer shoots away his bow and then emerges from the shadows. He tells Oliver that it's time to fulfill his vows. Oliver admits that Vordigan embraced him as a son, but Vordigan explains that he was badly wounded and is losing his edge. He wants to leave the world while he's still strong, and wants Oliver to kill him. Oliver says that he left them when he realized what they really were, but Vordigan says that he left when he realized how much he loved the thrill of the hunt. He tells Oliver that if he doesn't fulfill his vows, he'll kill Mia to provoke Oliver into taking vengeance. Oliver garbs his mentor and slams him against a tree, but then says he won't kill him. Vordigan grabs him and thrusts an arrow into his hand, pinning it into a tree, and then leaving.Chloe is checking the computers when Clark arrives and tells her that he's checked all of Oliver's usual haunts without success. He notes that Chloe needs to get out occasionally and avoid losing herself but Chloe insists that she's find. She finds information showing that the Altar of Sion was shipped to an estate in Coast City. Chloe gets a satellite image and confirms there's a maze there in the shape of the Brotherhood's symbol. Zooming in, she identifies Mia and they realize that Vordigan is eliminating anyone close to Oliver. Clark superspeeds away to help.Mia tries to find her way out of the maze, unaware that Vordigan is stalking her. She breaks off a branch and YY hears her. He closes in but she manages to ambush him. As she tries to run away, Vordigan trips her long enough to get to his feet and fire three arrows. Oliver shoves her out of the way and prepares to die in her place, but Clark arrives and blocks the missiles. Oliver draws and fires, shooting Vordigan in the shoulder. As Clark walks over, Oliver notes that Vordigan said that Oliver's dark side would rise up… and tells Vordigan that he was wrong.Later, Lois meets Clark for their date and notes that she had to take a cab from the hospital. Clark apologizes and Lois shows him the charm that Clark's "friend" gave her. When she mentions Zod's name, Clark asks what Zod said. Lois says that Zod only said good things and plans to have a dinner with him. Clark warns it's not a good idea, but Lois figures there's nothing Zod can tell her about Clark's secrets. As Lois turns, she sees Oliver watching him. After a few seconds of hesitation, she turns and goes with Clark.Mia is training in the gymnasium when Oliver comes in and compliments her. He explains that he split from her in the hopes that Vordigan wouldn't target her. She asks him for the truth about Green Arrow, but as she leaves, Oliver says that he's not done with her and wonders if Mia is done with him. Mia is glad to be back, but Oliver admits that he can't stop thinking about Vordigan. He's worried that the Dark Archer will be an old man by the time he gets out. Oliver also worries about whether there is a dark place within him. Mia tells him that the point is to rise above it. Clark finds Zod and gives him the charm, telling the major that Lois is off-limits. Zod explains that it's a Rao Symbol, and wonders why Clark took it as a hostile gesture. Clark says that he believes it was a warning, but Zod notes that he doesn't trust anyone… including Lois. He insists that he's trying to save his race, but Clark accuses him of saving his soldiers to bolster himself. Clark tells him that if he goes near Lois again, he will destroy them all, and then leaves. As Clark leaves, Zod notes that he may not have to. He then meets with Fiona and says that when they find what they need, the Book of Rao that Jor-El left somewhere on Earth, they will transform the yellow sun into a red sun, and force Clark to join them… or else. He looks up to where the Solar Tower is already under construction.	172893
2009	Smallville: Idol	T	DVD -R HQ 11620		Episode #181. 11-13-2009	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).Zan and Jayna come to Metropolis and assist the Blur with his fight to take down crime, but several of their rescue attempts fail, which leads Clark in trouble with the corrupt District Attorney. Clark gets glasses. Lois Lane defends the Blur.Full Recap: Lois is daydreaming of being in bed with Clark at the loft. As she looks outside, Clark comes to her and says he wishes they had more time. They kiss… as a red sun burns outside.At the Daily Planet, Clark notices a distracted Lois staring off into space. She finally snaps out of it and admits that she bolted for two weeks out of instinct. Clark notes that she's embarrassed and suggests they talk about it, but Lois walks away. A delivery man arrives with a crate for Lois with a bow on it. She opens it and finds several seeming criminals inside. However, they explain that they were undercover cops and someone screwed up. They hear a commotion outside and run out to find the Blur's symbol outlined in the windows of an office building.Lois wonders if the botched arrest was the Blur's work and wonders why she's been ignoring him. The city editor tells Lois to do a story on the Blur's botch because it resulted in the release of crime lord Adrian Pope. Lois prepares to go undercover and tells Clark not to follow her.Later, Lois meets with a psychiatrist, Dr. Evans to discuss her dreams and explains that they seem to be real, and involve her being naked. Dr. Evans is aware she's talking about Clark, and suggests it means a lack of clothing indicates something hidden and revealed. She notes that it may have to do with Lois' three weeks of blocked memories. Before Lois can pursue the matter, she gets a call from the Blur, but she cuts off. She claims that she doesn't have feelings for the Blur, and Dr. Evans suggests that Lois focus on the man in front of her.Clark is at the Watchtower trying to call Lois in the hopes she can make it clear that the Blur isn't responsible. Chloe notes that whoever is responsible has been for setting up Facebook and Twitter accounts, and believes there have been five messy but successful saves. Clark believes the person needs to be stopped before someone gets hurt.That night, a jewel smuggler is heading for a rendezvous when a cougar leaps onto the front of his limo. The car hits a patch of sudden ice and goes out of control, crashing into an electrical pylon. The cougar reverts into the form of a girl, Jayna, while the ice transforms into her brother Zan. They figure the police will realize they have good intentions and start taking photos while painting the Blur's symbol on the limo. However, the pylon falls, knocking out the city's power.The next day, Lois and Clark arrive at the crime scene and Lois complains D.A. Ray Sacks is there to promote himself and his campaign for mayor at the expense of the Blur. She believes that the Blur's ego is getting out of control. When Clark asks if the Blur tried to call her to defend himself, Lois admits that she didn't take the call and wonders why Clark is coming to the Blur's defense. Lois notes that she has no intention of helping the Blur after he ignored her for weeks. She then notices a potential witness and goes to talk to them. Clark notices Jayna's cell phone and picks it up.At their apartment, Jayna realizes that she dropped her cell phone. Zan wonders if they're hero material. Zan's phone rings and they prepare to activate their powers, but Clark intervenes and the backlash knocks them both out. The two would-be heroes wake up at the Watchtower and realize the Blur brought them to his "lair." When Zan prepares to tweet everyone, Chloe appears and tells them she'll destroy every trace of their virtual existence if they say anything. They vow not to give away his secrets and explain that they're just trying to help. They admit they've screwed up and ask how they can make up for their actions, and Chloe tells them they'll know when the right moment comes.Lois is typing up her story on a typewriter when the power comes back up. The Blur tries to call her again and she reluctantly takes the call. He explains he's not the one responsible and he's not going to turn over his misguided fans to the D.A. Lois wonders if that's the best thing and the Blur tells her everyone deserves a second chance. She goes off on that, snapping at him that he didn't give her a second chance.At the Watchtower, Zan and Jayna look around and inadvertently tamper with Chloe's scrambling equipment… and at Lois' end of the cell phone, she realizes that the person talking to her is Clark.The next morning, Clark finds Lois at his doorstep. She shows him her story, supporting the Blur, and suggests that they start carpooling so they can get to know each other better. Clark realizes something is going on and Lois apologizes for doubting the Blur. When he asks what's going on, Lois explains she's seen things clearly for the first time. They're interrupted by an interview on the news with Sacks, who wants the Blur to come out of the shadows and work with the police. He plans to hold a press conference later that day to ask the Blur to come forward, and Clark tells Lois he has a busy day and he'll have to pass on the carpooling.Lois goes to see Dr. Evans and explains that she's learned that Clark and the Blur are one and the same. Dr. Evans suggests that Lois might be projecting to cover her feelings for Clark, and Lois insists she just wants to tell Clark that his secret identity doesn't matter to him. However, she begins to have second thoughts and considers not revealing she knows his secret. When Lois wonders what she can do to help, she gets an idea and runs out.Chloe meets with Clark and tells him she has the twins under control. She realizes Clark plans to go public and warns against it, but Clark says that he wears his father's symbol and it's time to go public. Chloe insists that he has no choice but to let Sacks do what he will, and that Jor-El lives through Clark, not the symbol. They're unaware that Jayna in the form of a lady bug is watching them.Clark goes to the press conference and Sacks asks the Blur to come forward. As he prepares to go forward, Lois gets onto the stage and says she knows the Blur, She explains that the Blur knows the best way to protect everyone is to stay clear of politics and publicity, and remain a symbol of unadulterated hope. Lois tells everyone that the Blur's intentions are good, and the crowd bursts into applause.Later at the Planet, Lois finds a rose from the Blur and a note thanking her and inviting her to meet him on the roof. She goes up and finds Sacks waiting for her. He insists that the safety of Metropolis is his business and demands to know who the Blur really is. He isn't impressed and warns him that she has an expose prepared on his crooked dealings. In response, Sacks reveals he's painted the Blur's symbol on the roof, and is prepared to murder Lois to discredit the Blur. Lois doesn't believe he can convince the public but Sacks notes that she established a motive by claiming to be the only person who knows the Blur's identity. When Lois tries to run, Sacks' men grab her and throw her over the side. They leave, unaware she's clinging to the flagpole below.Down below, Clark notices that Lois is missing as the staff realizes Lois is hanging from the side of the building. Clark superspeeds to the roof and climbs to her normally to pull her up. Meanwhile, Jayna in the form of a bug watches what's happening and then flies back to the Watchtower to tell Zan what's happening. She wonders if they should disobey Chloe but Zan insists this is the moment that Chloe talked about. They touch and activate their powers.On the roof, Lois tells Clark to let her go rather than expose his secret. Clark says he doesn't understand what she's saying, and a cloud of mist springs up. Lois loses her grip and falls into the mist, and Clark superspeeds down. Lois wakes up and finds herself on the sidewalk, unharmed. As she smiles and looks upward, Sacks gets into his limo and prepares to escape.  only to discover Jayna in the form of a vicious dog.Clark greets Lois and she thanks him. Clark says that he took the elevator down and Lois notes that he can't tell her the truth even after everything. The phone in the nearby booth rings and Lois runs to answer it. It's the Blur, who tells her to be careful. Lois tells a puzzled Clark who called.Zan and Jayna celebrate at the Watchtower when the Blur talks to them from the shadows, noting he put out his symbol to inspire hope. He tells them to believe in the symbol, not him, and to believe in themselves. As Clark steps from the shadows, he tells them to be more careful and warns that heroes don't get second chances when the world is watching.Lois meets with Dr. Evans and admits she was stupid to consider Clark a superhero. She dismisses the voice scrambler incident as a phone glitch and Dr. Evans assures her it's natural to project feelings for an unattainable interest on a co-worker. Lois admits her thoughts keep going back to Clark, who tried to save her.Chloe congratulates Clark with a cup of coffee with the El symbol on it. She assures him that Sacks is going to jail, and that she provided the Blur's synthetic voice. When Clark wondered how she knew when to call, Chloe admits that she had security cameras on the roof and has been monitoring cell phone traffic. Clark isn't happy that she's been monitoring his private life, but Chloe warns him that if Lois takes an interest in the Blur, he needs to be careful.Later at the Planet, Clark reveals his new secret to Lois: he's wearing glasses. Lois admits she's been shortsighted and apologizes to Clark for projecting her feelings for the Blur onto him. However, she suggests he wears contacts. Clark admits it means a lot that she thought he had something heroic in him. Lois starts to go and then turns and kisses him. Suddenly she experiences more of her visions from the future beneath a red sun, seeing assassins, Chloe dead, and Clark locked away by soldiers. She then passes out in Clark's arms.	172927
2009	Smallville: Pandora	T	DVD -R HQ 11630		Episode #182. 11-20-2009	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).Tess takes steps to learn what Lois saw in the future: a powerless Clark subservient to Zod under the Red Sun with Chloe and Oliver leading a resistance group against the Kandorians. But present-day Clark, Lois, Chloe and Oliver and change the future.Full RecapAt LutherCorp, Oliver is making arrangements to get the comatose Lois the treatment she needs. Clark arrives and tells Oliver that she's gone missing from her hospital room. Oliver informs him that Emil requested a copy of Lois' test results and figures the person Emil is working for would: Chloe.Tess has had Lois abducted and taken to Belle Reve, and has Stuart use technology to scan Lois memories to find out what she learned during hr missing three weeks. They see a series of fragmented blurry images but Tess recognizes one of them: the Solar Tower that Zod is helping Tess to build. She realizes that Lois has gone to the future. Lois starts reliving her memories…Lois finds herself in the Daily Planet after her fight with Tess, but the furniture is covered with dust. She notices a red light streaming through the windows and goes outside to find Metropolis a devastated wasteland. A huge red sun glows in the sky. One of Zod's soldiers, Basquat, comes up behind her and realizes that she's a human, and the zone is off-limits to her kind. When she asks questions, Basquat tells her it isn't her place. Lois runs off but Basquat superspeeds ahead of her. She asks where the Blur is and warns that he'll stop him, but Basquat boasts that the Blur is dead. Lois turns and sees the Blur's tattered jacket hanging from a lamppost.Tess taps directly into Lois' memories, syncing her brain waves to hers. Stuart warns against using the Somerholt technology it but Tess insists she needs to get a clear picture of what Lois saw. Stuart reluctantly proceeds and the memories continue.Lois is taken to the Kent farm, which is now a confinement camp with dozens of other humans. Another Kandorian, Alia, brings one prisoner in, accuses him of stealing, and brands his back using her heat vision. Lois asks for food and Alia wonders what she can trade, and Clark appears to offer her his father's watch. Alia agrees to let Lois off for now. Clark and Lois embrace and Lois insists it's still a dream. Clark explains that it's all real and Lois realizes the invasion is tied to the Orb and Tess knew about it. Clark explains that the aliens' leader is Zod, but he made the wrong choices and a lot of people died. He's not sure if Chloe is dead, and admits he hasn't talked to her in months. Lois realizes that she's traveled into the future via the Legion ring, and Clark asks if she still has it. Before Lois can give it to him, Basquat comes in and orders Lois to come with him. Clark tells Lois to protect the ring and briefly fights back, but Basquat smashes him aside and leaves with Lois.Chloe is at the Watchtower reviewing Lois' medical records when Clark arrives to accuse her of taking Lois. She denies it and notes that Tess is the one who has been keeping secrets much longer. Chloe figures that Tess is running tests on Lois and they reveal Lois is suffering from post-traumatic syndrome. She calls Stuart to see what her man on the inside can find.Stuart watches over the unconscious Lois and Tess, unaware that Chloe is calling him. The equipment gives off an alarm.Lois remembers being taken to the Luthor manor where Zod greets her. He demands to know who snuck her into the restricted zone and offers her food in response, but she refuses to talk He finds the Legion ring and asks what it is, but before she can answer, Tess comes in. Tess explains who Lois is, and Lois hits her and accuses her of being a traitor. Tess insists that she's the savior of the planet, and Zod wonders what Lois' connection is to Clark. He says he kept Clark alive in the hopes he would help to bridge the gap between the Kandorians and the Earthlings. Tess admits that Clark probably won't come over despite her best efforts, and Zod tells Lois that her usefulness and Clark's is at an end.Zod prepares for the execution but first gives Tess a Kandorian tag to initiate her as a soldier. They go back inside where Clark has been brought in. Clark offers his life in return for Lois but Zod says that Clark has forced his hand by defying him. Basquat forces Clark to kneel while Zod draws his sword and prepares to kill him, but suddenly Oliver and a team of commandoes come in, firing kryptonite arrows. One of them hits Tess. Zod flees while Oliver and his squad kill the remaining Kandorians. The leader, however, is Chloe. Oliver goes to the dying Tess, who finally admits she did it to herself despite her best intentions. As Tess dies, Chloe notes that she took the shot. Later, Oliver removes Tess' dog tags and buries her while Lois looks on.Tess wakes up, shocked at the memory of dying at Chloe's hands. She reluctantly thanks Stuart for helping to revive her, and then tells him to wipe Lois' memories. He warns against it and finally rebels, and Tess shoots him down. As she goes to the equipment, Clark arrives but is weakened by the kryptonite in the area. Tess tries to blame Stuart but Clark knocks her aside, rendering her unconscious. He tries to unfasten Lois but taps into her memories.Lois explains that she is from one year in the past, and Zod now has the ring. Clark realizes they need to send Lois back to warn their past-selves. Both Chloe and Oliver accuse Clark of abandoning them, and he admits he thought he could defeat Zod on his own. Lois point out they'll all have to work together to destroy the tower. Chloe explains that the solar tower collects solar energy and beams it up to LuthorCorp satellites, and then provides red sun energy to power the Kandorians. Watchtower is still functioning, and Chloe plans to use it to destroy the tower. Lois wonders how destroying the tower and restoring the yellow sun will let Clark help them, but Clark will only say he has a history with Zod.Later, Clark is washing up when Lois goes to see him. She admits that she can't believe that he and Chloe aren't friends any more. Clark admits that it's his fault for turning his back on her. Once Lois disappeared, Clark couldn't be around Oliver and Chloe because they reminded him too much of Lois, so he left to train himself to fight Zod. Lois asks what history he has with Zod, and Clark says that he's made some mistakes. She tells him that he's not alone and they kiss and then make love.Emil and Chloe find Clark and try to revive him. Chloe has called an ambulance for Stuart, who should survive. Emil tries to disconnect Clark, but Chloe says that he should wait until they have all the information they need to prevent the destruction of the world.Chloe, Oliver, and Lois go to Watchtower and Oliver arms himself with his old bow and costume while Chloe powers up the computers. Oliver gives her a lead-covered kryptonite knife to defend herself and Chloe hacks the solar tower's computers and uploads a virus. Oliver goes to scout ahead and takes Lois with him, and Chloe assures them she'll be right behind them. However, Alia catches her out in the open and stabs her through the stomach with a sword. Oliver tries to draw a bead on her but the Kandorian superspeeds away. Lois runs to her cousin's side and tries to assure her she'll be okay, but Chloe dies in her arms. Oliver insists that they have to find the ring so Lois can go back and alter history to save Chloe. As Lois runs, Oliver prepares to open fire on the hundreds of Kandorians coming after them.Zod easily defeats the powerless Clark and drags him through the streets. Lois sneaks up while Zod tells Clark that it would be easier if humanity would simply surrender and join him. Clark insists that humanity will never yield. Lois tosses Clark the kryptonite knife but Zod steps on Clark's hand to stop him from unsheathing it, and then kicks him into a nearby wall. Lois runs to Clark but Zod grabs her… and the solar tower shuts down. Clark, his powers restored, tells Zod his reign of terror is over and he'll send Lois into the past to undo what happens. The powerless Zod insists that Clark is to blame for forcing him to unleash his powers. Clark takes the Legion ring from Zod, but Zod stabs him with the kryptonite dagger. Clark throws Zod away and pulls the dagger out, and Lois runs to him. He tells Lois to put on the ring and promises that she'll see him again. Clark kisses her just as Alia arrives. Lana puts on the ring but Alia manages to touch it and they are both transported a year into the past, to the present day.Clark wakes up and Chloe assures him that Lois will be okay. Emil has managed to erase Lois' memories and stop the physical damage they were causing. Chloe asks Clark what he saw and notes that judging by the look on his face, it isn't good.Later, Clark meets Lois at the Daily Planet and insists he doesn't want to lose her again. He then asks her what is going on between them, but Lois insists on slowing things down. She admits that she's been in so many bad relationships that she's leery, and Clark says they should take their time. Lois agrees and goes with him for lunch… and holds his hand in the elevator.Clark goes to the Watchtower later and meets with Chloe and Oliver. Chloe points out that they're going to die in the near future but Clark seems particularly cheery. Oliver suggests they go after Zod but Clark insists his glimpse of the future showed that to be the wrong path. Chloe and Oliver disagree but Clark believes that his father wanted him to save Zod rather than treat him like the enemy.Zod is addressing his soldiers and assigning them missions to get the solar tower built. He turns to address Alia, but Clark arrives. Zod responds by telling all of his troops to kneel before Kal-El., son of Jor-El. They do so, much to Clark's surprise.	172964
2010	Smallville: Warrior	T	DVD -R HQ 11789.		Episode #185. 2-12-2010	Reporters Clark Kent (Tom Welling) and Lois Lane (Erica Durance) of the Daily Planet. Former Reporter Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack) and Photojournalist Jimmy Olson (Aaron Ashmore).  Luthor’s successor and now publisher of the Daily Planet Tess Mercer (Cassidy Freeman).Zatanna goes to a comic book convention to find an enchanted comic book and asks Clark for his help. While Lois sees them together and becomes jealous, Chloe is rescued from an accident by a teenager who has acquired the comic book and used it to become Warrior Angel.Full RecapAt a comic book convention in Metropolis, young Alec Abrams runs through the crowd, taking everything in. He finally locates the booth dedicated to Warrior Angel, and the rare comic featuring the secret origin of Warrior Angel. He asks the owner, Harry, if he can look at it, but Harry refuses to let anyone open it and ruin the value. When Harry is distracted by someone knocking over his comics, Alec takes the keys, opens the case, and steals the comic book. As he runs away, he bumps into a stormtrooper. After he goes, the storm trooper finds Chloe, removes her helmet, and reveals she's Lois. Lois is less than thrilled that she's been assigned as an embedded reporter to cover the convention. Lois wonders if she can't let loose because of her fear of intimacy. Chloe gets a message from Oliver that there's a villain on the loose. However, Lois suggests that Chloe relaxes a little herself around people with similar interest and have some fun. Chloe reluctantly agrees and Lois goes to make a phone call.Alec runs into a storeroom and starts reading the comic. When he discovers the secret power words that a young boy speaks to become Warrior Angel, a glow flashes out from the comic. A large planet display falls from the ceiling toward Chloe… and a masked and caped adult figure arrives to catch it just in time.Lois makes her call to Clark, who has just finished dealing with two crooks. He apologizes for running late and she asks him to get something from her closet. When Clark needs to go off after a third crook, Lois insists. Clark quickly knocks out the last man and agrees. He goes to her apartment and finally finds the outfit she wants him to bring.Alec has transformed into Steven Swift, much older and handsome, admires himself in a mirror and accepts Chloe's thanks. She notes that he made it easy to follow him and explains that she's in the business of helping superheroes. He's happy to talk with her and clearly enamored with her. Chloe invites him to have coffee sometime and he accepts immediately.At the convention, Clark arrives and Lois finds him and claims her uniform. She insists the people there are looking for something to escape from their mundane lives. When Clark talks about the duties of a hero, Lois says that wearing a costume is a way of looking at things differently, and Clark should try it. A woman arrives and agrees with Lois: Zatanna. She wants to talk with Clark alone and asks Lois to borrow him for a bit. She quickly gets him away while Lois looks on in disappointment.Once they're alone, Zatanna explains that she detoured her magic road show to look for items that her father cursed during a brief villainous spree. The Warrior Angel comic book is one such item. She asks Clark for his help. Before he can respond, he hears Lois arguing with someone and goes to investigate. She's in the men's bathroom because the line to the women's room is too long. She finally comes out… wearing a female warrior's outfit. As everyone stares, Lois tells Clark that she's investigating the comic book theft story. Clark admits that he already learned about it from Zatanna, and Lois becomes jealous. Another man dressed as a soldier comes over to get his photo taken with Lois, and she insists on searching with him to make Clark jealous.Chloe and Steven get coffee and he tries to cover for the fact that he's a child. She tries to learn more about him but Steven wonders why she's so bored with the fact that she knows superheroes. Chloe wonders about his origins and Steven explains that he's an orphan who came to Metropolis to live with his aunt. He then lies and says he gained his powers from a chemical fire. Steven then focuses and hears bullies beating up on a kid and stealing his bike. He dons his Warrior Angel costume but when they ignore him, he lifts one up into the air. The bullies run off and the other boy thanks him. Chloe arrives and is clearly impressed.Zatanna and Clark search backstage and Zatanna flirts briefly with him. Using his x-ray vision, Clark finds the comic book hidden in some boxes. Clark casually dismisses his powers and admits that he's spent too much time with reality. Zatanna explains that she has become blasé about her own magic powers, but figures that at least Clark has Lois to liven things up. Clark admits that he's kept Lois at arm's length but insists that everything is under control. Zatanna suggests that he have a moment of true fantasy and magically summons candles, and then enchants him into kissing her. However, Clark regains his self-control and Zatanna says that it's a shame.Clark goes to the Daily Planet and finds Oliver finishing a conversation with Lois. He comes out and says he was getting some tickets, and warns Clark he might not want to go in. Clark goes in and Lois is clearly jealous of Zatanna, but claims she's not worried about it. She figures that if anything was going on between Clark and Zatanna, she'd tell him about it. Lois then finishes talking to the police about a missing person. When Clark wonders what happened, Lois explains that the thief's aunt reported him. She has footage of the theft, and discovered that he kept sending letters to the Blur through the Daily Planet. In them, he talks about how he wants to have powers so he can save his parents. Clark realizes that Alec is just looking for someone to understand what he's going through.Chloe takes Steven to Lois' apartment above the Talon. He's busy playing video games when she thought he wanted to do something else. He finally invites her to play, even though she thinks she'd look ridiculous, and says that she needs to have fun. Chloe finally agrees as long as he'll answer her questions. As they play, he describes his powers… and inadvertently discovers he can fly, much to his surprise. Steven falls back to the ground and then goes to the window and invites Chloe to join him. They go to the roof and he prepares to fly. Chloe worries what will happen if she falls, but he promises to catch her. They jump and Steven flies off with her to Metropolis.Zatanna finds Clark and explains that she was trying to give him some perspective. Clark insists that they need to stick with reality. Chloe arrives and admits she's had a good night for the first tie in a while. She notices Zatanna's research and Zatanna explains that her father put a curse on the comic book publishers to punish them for stealing an idea from a friend. However, no one opened the comic until now. Chloe reads the comic and realizes that the hero's real name is Stephen Swift. They explain that the curse turns the thief into an adult hero, and Chloe realizes who Stephen Swift is. When they ask her to use Watchtower to find the adult so Zatanna can cast the counter-curse, a shocked Chloe leaves, telling them that she'll get back to them. Once they're gone, Zatanna discovers that the comic has a twist: Warrior Angel turns into the villain, Devilicus. They realize that once Stephen feels betrayed, he'll become a monster.Clark goes back to see Stephen and tells him what she knows. Stephen doesn't want to go back to what he was and becomes normal, where he gets beat up. He tells her that he has what he always wanted, and Chloe tries to calm him down. Stephen refuses to accept that he's Alec any more and refuses to go back. When he feels betrayed, Stephen transforms into the villainous Devilicus.At Watchtower, Clark and Zatanna set the computer to run an aging program on Alec's picture. As he reviews the footage of the convention, Clark realizes that Chloe knew Stephen all along. He figures that Chloe will try to fix it herself and uses his superhearing to find her. Zatanna finishes the counter curse and tells Clark to bring Chloe there while she performs the ritual.Atop a building, Stephen demands to know where Clark is. She tries to get through to him by reminding him of his parents, but he snaps at her. Zatanna's counter curse starts to affect him and he screams in pain as she burns the comic. A burst of mystic energy surrounds Stephen, knocking Chloe off the roof. Clark catches her and jumps to the roof. Alec has become a kid again and Chloe embraces him. Clark tells Alec that everything will be okay, as Chloe sheds a tear.Later, Clark takes Alec to the farm and gives Chloe some time by herself. Alec admits that it's the first time that he felt like bully, and Clark points out that no one ever starts out wanting to be a villain. He explains the responsibility that comes with great power, and he does it because he chooses to help people. Clark tells Alec to go home and be a kid, and remember that there's some goodness in everyone. As they go, he shows Clark a picture he drew of what he imagined the Red Blue Blur was like.Clark takes Alec to the Daily Planet where he's reunited with his aunt. Zatanna suggests they stay together for a while, but Clark figures he can find his fantasy somewhere else. Zatanna tells him to make sure Lois knows how lucky he is and then leaves. Clark goes to see Lois, who notes that Zatanna managed to get the charges dropped against Alec. Clark finally admits that Zatanna kissed him but he didn't mean it to happen. Lois already figured it out and Clark assures her it won't happen again. He admits that it's new to him and Lois admits that she doesn't like being insecure. Clark is surprised at her reaction and she tells him to expect the unexpected… and then grabs a co-worker and kisses him. She then tells Clark to remember how he felt the next time one of the women who crush on him come by. Clark then finishes his apology by inviting her to a costume ball at the convention, and says his fantasy is to be there with her. She accepts but warns him that she's going to pick out her costume.Chloe goes to see Oliver and finds him practice shooting. She takes off her jacket and grabs a drink with him, and then explains that she can't remember the last time she had a good time. Oliver admits that he can understand someone being on edge, and tells her that you have to take your fun where you can get it, particularly when it's right in front of you. He then invites her to take the bow and practice a few shots, while he holds her close to guide her.	173037
1999	Spider Jerusalem:Transmetropolitan: Volume Two: Lust for Life	N		Ellis, Warren (Darick Robertson, illustrator)	#2 Transmetropolitan. Graphic Novel Reprints #4-#12.	Journalist Spider Jerusalem, renegade columnist and outlaw journalist rants his way through self-contained stories about television, politics, religion and other facets of the complicated world of The City.Three-part "Freeze Me With Your Kiss," finds Spider on the run from hitmen/kidnappers who have his ex-wife's frozen head, a misshapen creature claiming to be his son, and a talking police dog who wants to rip him to shreds.BackgroundSpider is a renegade gonzo journalist forced to return to The City after having exhausted a substantial advance from a publisher without completing the books required by contract. After five years of effective retirement as a long-haired hermit in a compound in the mountains, he returns to The City to complete the books, takes up work for an urban newspaper to support his writing, and finds himself battling political corruption at the highest level.One of Spider's most apparent character traits is his heavy drug use, which he makes no attempt to conceal. In addition to being a chain smoker and heavy drinker, Spider uses an extensive and bewildering variety of drugs ranging from mild stimulants, intellect enhancers, and mood-altering drugs to cocaine, heroin and rare, exotic, futuristic drugs. As is common in his society, Spider is resistant or immune to many forms of drug addiction, as well as lung cancer. Spider is well known for his foul language, especially when combining the word "fuck" with other words to make new and amusing insults. Spider is easily angered, his displays of temper ranging from mild verbal outbursts to violent physical assault. However, despite his temper and contempt for the City as a whole, Spider is often seen to treat innocents (particularly children) with extreme kindness and care.Spider's past is not well known, however characters like Mitchell Royce and Spider himself have referred to past memorable incidents such as the enfant terrible (a French child assassin from the Anglo/Franco war) and the Prague telephone incident (in which Spider caused six politicians to commit suicide using just a phone). There are also hints at his childhood and early ambitions—"I wanted to be a Sniper, when I grew up. Didn't everyone?"—and his parents' growing madness. He claims to have worked as a prostitute at some point in the past, and as a stripper at 8 years old. He grew up on the City's docks with drunken parents as an only child. His father drove a city bus and his mother was a housewife who cooked lizards for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day. He returned to the docks as an adult to see that everyone was gone and the docks were abandoned and vowed to never forget his childhood there.PhilosophySpider is a firm believer in the truth and delivering the Truth to his readers in the most direct and blunt manner possible. (He often capitalizes it as "The Truth" in his writing.) This is made most notable in one story, when Spider's editor recounts the tale of how Spider submitted an article on the election of the Richard Nixon-analogue "The Beast", which consisted of the word "fuck" repeated eight thousand times (see Transmetropolitan #1).The primary focus of conflict within Spider's psyche, over the course of the series, is a combination of concern for his delivery of 'The Truth' and misanthropy towards his public. Spider hates and struggles against authority figures who oppress others, but he is also bitter toward the uninvolved public who give the authority its power. Likewise, he struggles to convince the public to listen to The Truth, but is disgusted by those who blindly accept what he reports. In addition, Spider's talents earn him unwanted fame and adoration, which clouds his ability to "get at The Truth." His editor, Mitchell Royce, opines that Spider needs to be hated in order to function.Despite his absolute disdain for those around him, Spider is quite loyal to those few who he considers friends and is equally quick to hurt those who would betray him. Indeed, much of Spider's motivation in the second half of the series was dedicated to bringing the President to justice for ordering the murder of Vita Severn, whom Spider had befriended.Although he opposed The Beast, Spider is not loyal to any political party or organization, and his initial support of The Smiler was tinged with contempt at his cynical attitude and false altruism. He is also an avowed, often virulent atheist who opposes all organized religion, which he sees as little more than unworthy authority figures that exploit their members. It is therefore interestingly ironic when, in an early issue of the series, Spider travels to a religious convention and begins upending tables and destroying booths while wearing an improvised robe, a reference to Jesus throwing the money lenders out of his local temple.WeaponsHe proudly claims to be "always armed", and is shown with several hidden firearms, at least one of which is powerful enough to blow up a vehicle, another of which was titled "The Upper Hand." He has also possessed a rocket launcher, which he used to blow up a bar at the base of his mountain home; the bar resembles the Woody Creek Tavern, itself not far from the home of Hunter S. Thompson. He was accidentally given a bandolier of grenades at a party, which he took as a sign that "There is a God".Spider's weapon of choice for most of the series is a handheld "bowel disruptor," which causes instant and painful loss of bowel control, with various settings that allow him to vary the level of pain and discomfort the device will inflict, ranging from simple diarrhea to complete rectal prolapse. At a much harsher level, the victim has a bowel movement so dramatic and agonizing that it induces unconsciousness. While at least three times in the series, it is revealed through dialogue that the gun can be set to 'Fatal Intestinal Maelstrom'. Spider prefers this weapon because, despite being illegal, it is (usually) non-lethal and its effects are untraceable. His assistants, Channon and Yelena, have also been armed with bowel disruptors during The Cure arc.On a few occasions, he has been known to carry lethal firearms, though according to Spider, he only carries such weapons in emergency cases. He has, in at least one case, used a handgun to lethal effect to kill two would-be assassins.(A third was beaten to death against a maker, a kitchen appliance similar to a replicator from the Star Trek franchise.) However, in this case, the weapon was not Spider's, but was rather taken by force from one of his would-be killers. (See issue #10.) In issue #38, he is revealed to be a competent gunfighter, having learnt his skills in "places you never want to go." It is also revealed in issue #38 that he has killed sixteen people, all but one in self-defence; he never specifies how or why (although it could be inferred that Vita Severn is meant, as Spider feels responsible for her death).Regardless of whether or not he is armed, Spider is shown to be a very capable, though not invincible, fighter. He frequently lashes out violently at those who threaten or aggravate him, and often defeats opponents who are well-trained or much more imposing physically. He is also not averse to brutalizing people in order to get crucial information (as is shown in his Year Five assault on Fred Christ). Like Channon, he had also gained experience in firearms while in school, though unlike Channon, he and his classmates had had to make their own arms—to prevent the teachers having an unfair advantage. He often uses improvised weapons to gain the upper hand - for example, putting his cigarette out in the eye of a guard.AppearanceInitially, Spider is shown with a huge amount of muddy brown, shaggy hair and a long unkempt beard, claiming he has hair in places that his once and future editor/friend Mitchell Royce doesn't even know he owns. On his return to the City, nearly all his hair is removed by a malfunctioning cleaning unit in his first apartment's bathroom. For the rest of the series, he is portrayed as virtually hairless, the exception being his eyebrows and a small amount of pubic hair. Spider is a small, slight figure with a long nose and slightly crooked teeth. His body is covered with black tattoos, combining geometric tribal designs and other more Western images (his right buttock is marked "kiss here"), including a small spider on his upper forehead. He is also said to have a tattoo on his penis, though this is never shown.Although he prefers not to wear clothes much of the time, when in public his primary mode of dress is typically a "black linen suit, urban weight, generous cut" (jacket and pants, no shirt under the jacket) with a pair of heavy black leather boots, although during the winter he is sometimes seen wearing a black jumper under his jacket; also, on the rare occasions when modesty is required of him he will wear knee-length boxer shorts. He also wears a pair of 'live-shades', sunglasses with built-in still-photography capabilities; the right lens is green and rectangular, whilst the left one is red and circular (the AI that created them was on drugs at the time, and thought it would be funny). The first pair he owns have gold rims around the lenses, while the ones he obtains during the second part of the Dirge arc have no rims. This appearance, and the comic's futuristic setting, has made Spider Jerusalem a cult (albeit fictional) character among rivet heads, in a similar manner to Tank Girl.InfluencesSpider Jerusalem is reminiscent of previous "muck-raking" or "Gonzo" journalists such as H. L. Mencken and Hunter S. Thompson.Hunter S. Thompson is perhaps the most obvious inspiration for the character of Spider Jerusalem, and the fictional reporter's fondness for weaponry and spectacular consumption of drugs both indicate a resemblance toward the American gonzo journalist. (In Transmetropolitan #13, page 5, a book by Thompson is clearly visible amongst the objects strewn across the table in Spider's apartment.)Visually, Spider Jerusalem is based on Darick Robertson's friend Andre Ricciardi. In the first issue, his "mountain man" appearance was based on Alan Moore.Synopsis: Some time in the future (how long precisely is never specified) Spider Jerusalem, retired writer and bearded hermit, lives an isolated existence in a fortified mountain hideaway, retired from City life for the last five years.[5] Following a call from his irate publisher demanding the last two books per his publishing deal, Jerusalem packs his belongings and descends the mountains before traveling back into The City, a twisted amalgam of pervasive consumerism, sex, violence, and drugs. While never named, the City retains several distinguishing monuments (one resembling the Statue of Liberty) and neighborhoods (the West Egg neighborhood) which imply that it was originally New York and has grown to become the largest city in the world and the center of the political and social culture. However, this futuristic culture is highly liberal, self-centered, and focused almost exclusively on present-day matters. "Revivals" from cryogenic stasis are largely ignored and left to fend for themselves on the streets. Cultural "Reservations" are established for the sole purpose of preserving past civilizations. Some people convert to "foglets," clouds of nanomachines that make anything from particles in the air and can spread thin enough to be invisible. No one even knows the current calendar year (this fact revealed by Spider in Issue #42), so everyone always refers to events in time relative to the present day.Jerusalem returns to working for his old partner and editor Mitchell Royce, who now edits The Word, the City's largest newspaper. The first assignment he attaches himself to is an attempted separatist secession by followers of the Transient movement (a group of people who use genetic body modification based on alien DNA to become a completely different species, forced to live in the Angels 8 slum district) led by Fred Christ, a former rock group manager and impresario similar to Malcolm McLaren. Jerusalem manages to stop the (secretly staged) riots and police brutality that follows, only to be beaten brutally by police on the way home for his troubles.The first year of the series focuses upon a series of one-off stories exploring The City, Spider's background, and his often tense relationship with his assistants/sidekicks, Yelena Rossini and Channon Yarrow (known collectively as the 'filthy assistants'), who become his full-time partners in his journalistic battles as the series progresses.With the second year of the series, the series shifts towards a lengthy storyline for the remainder of the book's run, involving the election and the corrupt presidency of Gary Callahan, nicknamed "The Smiler" by Spider. Though Spider initially considers Callahan to be the lesser evil when compared to "The Beast", his investigation into Callahan's past and his ties with a right-wing hate group (who provided him with a genetically cloned Vice President), ultimately leads to the murder of Vita Severn, the Smiler's politically naive campaign manager, to whom Spider had taken a rare liking.Once elected, Callahan begins to use his presidential power to torment Spider. Spider escaped from a massacre conducted by the city's corrupt police against protesters during a scandal where several police officers watched as a young man was murdered by racists over his genetic background. Callahan spikes the story via "D-Notes", a form of government mandated censorship over any or all stories that could "embarrass" the country and the Callahan administration. After being informed of the "D-Note", Spider leaks the story onto the internet via a news feedsite known as "The Hole" and follows it up with a story exposing Callahan's corrupt circle of advisers, one of whom was revealed to be a pedophile. When Royce runs the story, Callahan extorts the paper's board of directors into firing Spider, who by that point had already formed an alliance to have his future stories published by "The Hole". However, after Callahan arranges for the City to be left defenseless from a hurricane-like "ruinstorm" that ravages the city and kills thousands, Spider collapses and is quickly diagnosed with an incurable degenerative neurological illness with similar symptoms to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease due to exposure to Information Pollen (which Spider had been exposed to multiple times earlier in the storyline). Diagnosed with a year to live and only a 1% chance of not suffering any sort of permanent loss of mental capacities, Spider increases his vendetta against Callahan, ultimately exposing his evil deeds and bringing the President down.Afterwards, in the final issue epilogue, Spider returns to his mountain home because the effects of his neurological disorder have started to manifest themselves. It is implied that he and Yelena have become lovers. After a visit with Royce and the departure of Yelena (who has become a successful writer herself by this point), Spider pulls out a gun while sitting in his garden as if to commit suicide. However, it turns out to be a novelty lighter, with which he lights a cigarette. He yells "One percent!" as he twirls the "gun" and bursts into maniacal laughter, implying that Spider beat the illness with his body and mind intact and is simply letting Royce and everyone else believe otherwise in order to live his life away from the rest of the world.	173961
1967	Vic Sage: Question, The	CB		Ditko, Steve (Created by).	First appearance in Blue Beetle #1 (June, 1967). Originally created for Charlton Comics, then acquired by DC Comics in the early 1980s and was incorporated into the DC Universe. Source: www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Question-(comics)#52	TV Reporter Vic Sage. Single. Lives in Hub City. 6'0", 175 pounds. Blue Eyes. Reddish Blond hair. Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive investigative journalist with a reputation for obnoxiousness.The Question is one of the more philosophically complex superheroes. As a tireless opponent of societal corruption, the Question believes in Objectivism, during his career as a minor Charlton hero. IN an acclaimed 1987-1990 solo series from DC, the character developed a Zen-like philosophy.BIOGRAPHY:Based in Hub City, Vic Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive investigative journalist with a reputation for obnoxiousness. Not long after starting his TV appearances, he began to investigate Dr. Arby Twain.Sage was approached by his former professor, scientist Aristotle Rodor, who told Sage about an artificial skin he had co-developed with Dr. Twain called Pseudoderm. Pseudoderm was intended to work as an applied skin-like bandage with the help of a bonding gas, but it had an unforeseen toxicity which was sometimes fatal when applied to open wounds. Rodor and Twain agreed to abandon the project and parted ways, but Professor Rodor discovered that Dr. Twain had decided to proceed with an illegal sale of the invention to Third World nations, regardless of the risk to human health.Sage resolved to stop him but had no way of going after Dr. Twain without exposing himself. Rodor suggested that Sage use a mask made of Pseudoderm to cover his famous features. Armed with information, and more importantly a disguise, Sage eventually caught up with Dr. Twain, stopping the transaction and extracting a confession, and then leaving Twain bound in Pseudoderm in an ironic twist. On television, Sage reported on Dr. Twain's illegal activities.Sage decided that this new identity, partially inspired by The Spirit, would be useful for future investigations, and partnered with Professor Rodor, who supplied the Pseudoderm and eventually modified the bonding gas to change the color of Sage's hair and clothing. The two men became good friends, with Sage affectionately referring to Rodor as "Tot".DC ComicsThe Charlton characters were acquired by DC Comics after the former company went out of business in 1986. DC gave the Question his own acclaimed solo series in 1987, which was written by Dennis O'Neil and primarily drawn by Denys Cowan. The series was published for thirty-six issues, two annuals, and five "Quarterly" specials. In Question #1, the Question was defeated in personal combat first by the martial arts mercenary, Lady Shiva, beaten near to death by the hiring villain's thugs, shot in the head with a pellet gun, and thrown into the river to drown. Lady Shiva then rescued him for reasons of her own and gave him directions to meet Richard Dragon as soon as he recovered enough to get out of bed. Once there, Sage learned both martial arts and eastern philosophy. When he returned to the city, he resumed his journalist and superhero careers with adventures that tended to illustrate various philosophic points. [1] To further illustrate those ideas, Dennis O'Neil had a reading recommendation in the letters page of each issue.In the O'Neil series, Victor Sage is an investigative reporter for the news station KBEL in Hub City, who uses the identity of the Question to get the answers his civilian identity cannot. Unlike other vigilante superheroes, O'Neil's Question is primarily focused on the politics of his city, and rather than hunting down the perpetrators of petty theft, he tends to fight the corrupt government of Hub City. O'Neil's Hub City is noted as being "synonymous with venality, corruption, and violence", perhaps even outranking Gotham City as the most dismal city in the DC Universe. Despite the impoverished and scandalous nature of Hub City, O'Neil insisted repeatedly that it was based on an actual US city, though for most of the series' run he refused to comment on which one that might be. He eventually confirmed, near the end of the run, that Hub City was based on East St. For the majority of the series, he is covertly assisting the goodhearted Myra Fermin win the seat of Mayor. His interest in Myra extends beyond admiration, as the two shared a relationship before his near-death experience with Lady Shiva, and his training under Richard Dragon. Upon his return he discovered that she had married the corrupt drunkard, Mayor Wesley Fermin. Despite losing the election by one vote, Myra's competition was found dead as a result of what was called "the worst tornado in history." At her victory speech, her husband Wesley shot her for supporting what he believed to be Communist beliefs, putting her into a coma and sending Hub City further into chaos. Sage donned the guise of the Question, acting as the city’s only form of justice for a short while, before the Mayor woke from her condition. The gang warfare in the weeks following the election led Sage to Lady Shiva, first as a combatant, and then enlisting her help as an ally of sorts to get in a position to talk to the gang-leaders. As Myra adjusted into her role as Mayor of Hub City, she and Sage began to rekindle their relationship, although Myra told Sage that she would not act on her feelings until she left office. Despite their long-term friendship, she never connected that Sage and “the man without a face” were one and the same until the very end of his time at Hub City.O’Neil’s Question is also very conflicted on how far to go in enforcing justice, often feeling tempted to kill. He resisted this temptation during his time in Hub City, realizing that part of his desire to go so far is just to see what it feels like to take a life. His relationship with his mentor, Aristotle Rodor, is one of many things that keep him from going over the edge and back towards the darkness he had shown in his youth on the streets of Hub City.Eventually, during a massive hallucinogenic trip, his subconscious told him through his mother that he had to leave Hub City to ever be able to live happily. Around the same time Richard Dragon came to see Victor as he had sensed that he was on the verge of a major turning point in his life, and convinced him that living in Hub City was killing him. In an agreement with Richard, Lady Shiva arrives with a helicopter to usher The Question and Aristotle Rodor away, at which point she decides to stay in Hub City and embrace the chaos. He nearly convinces Myra to come with him and escape the chaos of the city, but she is unable to leave. She leaves her only daughter, Jackie, and wanders back to the city alone to meet her duties as Mayor and do her best to stand for what she believes in.After leaving Hub City, Vic takes Jackie with him to South America, hoping to rid himself of his "No Face" alter ego and find a land free of the clutter and corruption that filled Hub City. However, this was not fated to last for Vic as he quickly gets drawn into a drug war which ultimately forces him to kill a man in order to save Jackie's life. This marks a major turning point in the Question's career as he thinks to himself that he didn't feel anything and would kill again if needed. Though it is not entirely clear what the Question's current view is on murder, he kills again in the 1991 Brave and the Bold mini-series and the 2005 Question mini-series.The Question Annual #2 retroactively altered the character's origin by revealing that Victor Sage was originally Charles Victor Szasz, an orphan who had a reputation as a troublemaker. Szasz prided himself in defiantly enduring the physical abuse of the Catholic orphanage where he was housed. He eventually managed to get into college where he studied journalism. However, his higher learning did not mellow his violent tendencies, such as when he beat up his pusher for giving him LSD which caused the frightening experience of doubting his own senses under its influence.The 2005 Question mini-series suggested that the Question's long experience and practice with meditation had led him into shamanic trances, and later into a more permanent state of shamanic awareness, in which he was able to interpret coincidences and thus "talk to the city." In this state, he was also able to sense chi, or life force. He is now able to "walk in two worlds" for an increased awareness of his surroundings and of any disturbances in a city's natural order.52While Batman disappears for a year following the events of Infinite Crisis, the Question takes over as the protector of Gotham City. Partnering with ex-Gotham police detective Renee Montoya, the two investigate an invasion of Gotham by Intergang, as well as the appearance of a new Batwoman in Gotham. The Question reveals his civilian identity to Renee, as well as how he transforms into the faceless Question, as a sign of his trust in her.Having gone to Khandaq to further investigate Intergang, Montoya and The Question are arrested by the local authorities, but manage to escape. While in hiding Montoya figures out that Intergang is planning on bombing Black Adam and Isis' wedding, and the two are able to avert the threat. Awarded the Order of the Crescent medal from Black Adam, the Question gains the help of the Black Marvel Family against Intergang. Finally, the Question leads Black Adam and Isis in the Intergang lair in Khandaq, where they manage to free kidnapped children (including Amon Tomaz, Isis' brother) from being brainwashed into Intergang operatives.Parting ways with Black Adam and his family, Renee and Question travel to Nanda Parbat so Renee can train with Richard Dragon. The Question reveals that he is dying of lung cancer (he confesses to being a former smoker, and that he didn't quit soon enough), and is grooming Montoya as his replacement. After returning to Gotham to save Kate Kane, the Question is forced to enter hospice care at Kate's, but is moved to a hospital after not breathing for three minutes. He continues his descent in near-death madness, reliving moments from his original series and singing "Danny Boy" as the new year approaches. Renee opts not to perform assisted suicide, as death is the one question he has left. Finally, Renee decides to take him back to Nanda Parbat, in the hopes of saving his life. However, the Question does not survive the journey and dies after asking Renee who she "will become".Months later, Renee assumes the mantle of the Question as she and Nightwing search for the captured Batwoman[4] and retains the role afterwards. After the recreation of the Multiverse, an alternate version of Vic Sage is shown to be alive on the new Earth-4.EquipmentThe Question's mask is made from Pseudoderm, a substance made by Doctor Aristotle Rodor. According to the revamps of 52, this substance was developed using technology lifted from an old Batman foe named Bart Magan (Dr. No Face) and Gingold Extract, a fruit derivative associated with the Elongated Man. The Question's series by Denny O'Neil presented Pseudoderm as Rodor's attempt to build an artificial skin for humanitarian purposes.The Question's specialized belt-buckle, which releases a gas that binds his mask and temporarily recolors his garb, is similar to that of the Spider-Man villain Chameleon. In his initial appearances, which were drawn by Steve Ditko, the Chameleon had used a device in a belt buckle which emitted a transformation-enhancing gas. It is possible that Ditko used that as inspiration for the Question.Inspiration, homages and other versionsInspirationThe Question's appearance — ordinary clothes, fedora hat, and a face with no eyes, nose or mouth — may have been inspired by two characters who appeared in comics in the late 1930s:The Blank — A Dick Tracy villain who first appeared in the comic strip in October 1937. He was a former gang leader whose face had been destroyed by gunshot and covered it up while killing off his former associates. He also appeared in the 1990 film Dick Tracy.Charles Maire — Appeared in an early Batman adventure by Bob Kane, published in Detective Comics #34 in December 1939. He was the featureless victim of a villain who used a ray that cut away his face. Batman helped Maire and his sister get their revenge.HomagesRorschach — When Alan Moore was unable to use Charlton Comics characters by name in his comic book series Watchmen, he patterned Rorschach after the Question, making him a merciless trenchcoat-and-fedora-clad vigilante who took moral absolutism to its most violent extreme. On a trip, the Question reads Watchmen and initially sees Rorschach as being quite cool. After he is beaten up trying to emulate Rorschach's brutal style of justice, he concludes that 'Rorschach sucks'.The Question was featured in Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again as a libertarian, anti-government conspirator. This version of Sage — as a nod to Ditko and Alan Moore — is Randian and preachy, at one point going on television for a series of humorous "Crossfire"-style exchanges with the liberal archer Green Arrow. Additionally, he is shown as a technophobe monitoring the dark conspiracy Batman and his allies must face.Q, an enigmatic character from the fighting game Street Fighter III, is similar to the Question.[citation needed]52In the final issue of 52, a new Multiverse is revealed, originally consisting of 52 identical realities, including a new "Earth-4". While this new world resembles the pre-Crisis Earth-4, including unnamed characters who look like the Question and the Charlton characters, Grant Morrison has stated this is not the pre-Crisis Earth-4. [6] [7]Other versionsQuestion has appeared in the Justice League Unlimited spin-off comic book.Other mediaJustice League UnlimitedThe Question in Justice League Unlimited.The Question is a major recurring character in the animated television series Justice League Unlimited, voiced by Jeffrey Combs. Like his comic book counterpart, he uses a special mask (bonded to his face by a gaseous chemical) to conceal his identity. He is portrayed as a conspiracy theorist, a blend of Rorschach from the Watchmen comics and Fox Mulder of the popular X-Files series. His character design is similar to the O'Neil/Cowan revamp of the character.The Question of the DC Animated Universe is a completely obsessive, darkly comic loner — skeptical, eccentric, paranoid, antagonistic and unpredictable. He is often given to believing in various odd conspiracy theories and is suspicious of even his fellow League members, yet is one of the Justice League's best detectives. At one point, he mentions that Supergirl eats peanut butter sandwiches before going to bed, to which she asks him if he goes through her trash: he responds, "Please... I go through everyone's trash."The Question's various conspiracy theories (he insists that it's a single, tied-together theory) are usually portrayed in a humorous manner. He claims the motives and purpose of aglets (the plastic caps at the end of shoelaces) are "sinister", believes in ominous links between boy bands and global warming, the Girl Scouts and the crop circle phenomenon, and fluoridated toothpaste and spy satellites. He also believes there was a literal 'magic bullet', forged by Illuminati mystics to hide 'the truth' (though this was said under torture and might have just been him mocking his captor). In recent investigations, he also discovered that Baskin-Robbins in fact has thirty-two flavors of ice cream, and is concealing the thirty-second for dubious reasons. All of these theories are apparently tied to a single, vast conspiracy by a hidden cabal dating back to ancient Egypt, which has supposedly ruled the world from the shadows for millennia, aided by the common man's ignorance of it.After the events of "Fearful Symmetry", in which Supergirl encounters her clone Galatea, Batman assigns Question to investigate and find out whatever he can about those responsible, much to the chagrin of the other League founders. The title, "Fearful Symmetry," is a reference to Watchmen, and is derived from William Blake's poem "The Tyger".In the episode "Double Date", the Huntress (recently kicked out of the League for making a failed attempt on the life of Steven Mandragora, the mob boss who killed her parents), appeals to Question for help tracking him down, in exchange for information she claims to have on Cadmus. He agrees, knowing in advance she's lying. After being pursued by Green Arrow and Black Canary to the dock where Mandragora was meeting his son, Question talks Huntress down from killing Mandragora, and she instead pins him under rubble to await imprisonment. Afterwards, he reveals to Huntress that, despite having known the outcome of the encounter far in advance, he helped because he likes her. In response, Huntress kisses him and drags him away, presumably to show her appreciation; the two would continue to be an item throughout the rest of the series, the Huntress dubbing him with the nickname "Q". (This episode was probably inspired by the Batman-Huntress comic book mini-series Cry for Blood, though in that story the Huntress deliberately lures an enemy into what she knows will be a fatal trap and the Question turns his back on her in disgust.)In the episode "Question Authority", the Question discovers Lex Luthor's plot to instigate a full-scale war between the government and the Justice League. He also learns of an alternate universe (seen in the Justice League story "A Better World") in which Luthor becomes president, has the Flash killed, and is murdered in the Oval Office by Superman as revenge, an act that eventually leads to the renamed Justice Lords taking over the world. Convinced that the history in this alternate universe was in fact a predestined time loop that would eventually repeat itself, the Question decides the only way to derail this possible future permanently is to kill Luthor himself, before he can become president and before Superman can kill him. Furthermore, he was confident that his reputation for being a paranoid 'crackpot' would deflect any suspicion that he was doing this on the orders of the Justice League, allowing the League and Superman's legacy to survive his actions.However, Luthor, now augmented with super-strength thanks to Brainiac (who, in the Superman episode "Ghost in the Machine", had planted a nanotech copy of his programming in Luthor's body), delivers a savage beating to the faceless vigilante while admitting that his presidential campaign was nothing but an expensive ruse to keep Superman on edge, "a small part of a much grander scheme." Question is turned over to Project Cadmus for interrogation by Dr. Moon. After almost a week of torture without caving in, he is rescued by Huntress and Superman and transported to the Watchtower for treatment. Although still weak from the torture when the Ultimen invaded the Watchtower, Question subdues one of the clones by hitting him over the head with a bedpan."Question Authority" has several homages to Ditko's objectivist beliefs, as well as to Rorschach, Alan Moore's infamous Question pastiche. As he recoils from the information he's downloaded from the Cadmus files, he begins to speak in monotone sentence fragments, as Rorschach did. ("Not alternate reality," he quavers. "Time loop.") In the same episode, Huntress' comments indicate that, while spending days at his research, Question has neglected everything else, including his personal hygiene — another Rorschach trait. In his room on the Justice League satellite is a poster warning of a global fluoridation conspiracy, a reference to the last page of Watchmen, which in turn references Kubrick's black comedy about nuclear war, Dr. Strangelove, in which mad General Ripper believes that it is part of a Communist plot.Later, as Question confronts Luthor at his penthouse office, he declares that "A is A... and no matter what reality he calls home, Luthor is Luthor." This is similar the law of identity phrase "A is A", on which Ditko based certain characters and their opinions. Additionally, in the episodes follow-up "Flashpoint" shows the injured Sage without his mask, with bruises and injuries to his face similar to those suffered by Rorschach during his capture and imprisonment by the police. He notes that Huntress was right when she said "he had to be the ugliest man in the world" to wear his faceless mask; Rorschach, since childhood, had been teased and bullied because of his appearance.The Question makes cameos in the episodes "Flashpoint", "Panic in the Sky" and "Grudge Match", as well as the series finale "Destroyer". In the battle between the League and the forces of Apokolips, he is seen fighting off Darkseid's Parademons by running them over with his car, while Captain Atom, Hawk and Dove and the Creeper battle them on foot and in the air; each of these characters was created by Steve Ditko. His last appearance, in the same episode, is running down the steps of the Metro Tower alongside his fellow Ditko/Charlton era Leaguers.AppearancesBlue Beetle #1 (June 1967) to #5 (November 1968)Mysterious Suspense #1 (October 1968): "What Makes a Hero?"Charlton Bullseye Vol. 1 #5 (July-September 1976) [fanzine]Charlton Bullseye Vol. 2 #1 (June 1981)Americomics Special #1 (August 1983)Crisis on Infinite Earths #6 (September 1985)Blue Beetle Vol. 2 #4 (September 1986) to #7 (December 1986)Question #1 (February 1987) - Question #36 (March 1990)Detective Comics Annual #1 (1988) "Fables, Part I"Question Annual #1 (1988) "Fables, Part III"Question Annual #2 (1989)Green Arrow Annual #3 (1990): "A Walk in the Wind"Question Quarterly #1 (Autumn 1990) - Question Quarterly #4 (Winter 1991)Question Quarterly #1 (Autumn 1990): "Any Man's Death"Question Quarterly #2 (Summer 1991): "Gomorrah Homecoming"Question Quarterly #3 (Autumn 1991): "Hell In Hub City"Question Quarterly #4 (Winter 1991): "Waiting For Phil"Brave and the Bold (Mini-Series) #2 (January 1992): "Chapter Two"Brave and the Bold (Mini-Series) #3 (February 1992): "Chapter Three"Brave and the Bold (Mini-Series) #4 (March 1992): "Chapter Four"Brave and the Bold (Mini-Series) #5 (May 1992): "Chapter Five"Brave and the Bold (Mini-Series) #6 (June 1992): "Chapter Six"Question Quarterly #5 (Spring 1992): "Outrage"Showcase '95 #3/3 (March 1995): "Homecoming"Azrael #10 (November 1995): "Arena" [As Vic Sage]Azrael Plus #1 (1996): "The Anger, the Terror & the Question"Question Returns #1 (February 1997)Steel #38 (May 1997): "The Gambler"Batman Chronicles #15/3 (Winter 1998): "An Answer In the Rubble"L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #1 (September 1999): "Avatar Rising"L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #2 (October 1999): "The Way of the Warrior"L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #3 (November 1999): "The Past is Always Present"L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #4 (December 1999): "Martial L.A.W."L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #5 (January 2000): "To Serve And Protect"L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) #6 (February 2000): "The L.A.W. ...And Order!"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #1 (June 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 1"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #2 (July 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 2"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #3 (August 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 3"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #4 (September 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 4"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #5 (October 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 5"Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #6 (November 2000): "Cry for Blood, Part 6"Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again (2002)The Question #1 (January 2005) - #6 (June 2005)Justice League Unlimited #8 (June 2005): "The island"Solo #5 (August 2005): "The Question: 'Al Kufr'- The Infidel"52 Weeks 1-2,4,9,11-12,14-16, 26-27, 33-34,38, 52 (May 2006-2007)Helltown (Novelization by Denny O'Neil, 2006)The Action Heroes Archives, Volume 2 (DC Archive Editions, 2007)Justice League Unlimited #36 (August 2007): "Wild Geese"CameosCrisis on Infinite Earths #7 (October 1985)Guy Gardner: Warrior #29 (March 1995): "It's My Party And I'll Fight If I Want To""Kingdom Come" #1 (1996)"Kingdom Come" #2 (1996)Detective Comics #723 (July 1998): "Fight Back To Gotham"Green Arrow Vol. 3 #16 (October 2002): "The Archer's Quest Chapter One: Photograph" [Flashback]Batman: Gotham Knights #38 (April 2003): "Knight Moves, Part One: The Queen is Dead"Batman: Gotham Knights #39 (May 2003): "Knight Moves, Part Two: Castling"	181508
2006	Vic Sage: Question, The: 52: The Origin of the Question	CB			52 Comics.  #18-#52 	TV Reporter Vic Sage. Single. Lives in Hub City. 6'0", 175 pounds. Blue Eyes. Reddish Blond hair. Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive investigative journalist with a reputation for obnoxiousness.All Charles Victor Szasz ever wanted was answers.Who were his parents? Why did they orphan him? How would he survive a brutal childhood......And what kind of man would he become?As "Vic Sage," he pursued a career as an investigative reporter in the crime-ridden, festering town known as Hub City.It was a fairly easy job. Corruption in Hub City wasn't difficult to find......Though it hated like hell to be uncovered. To do that job and live to tell about it would require some measure of anonymity.Enter Aristotle Rodor, one of Sage's former college professors. Rodor, drawing from the extract of the Gingold plant and from the notes of Gotham criminal Bart Magan, had created the substance pseudoderm.As an artificial skin, pseudoderm was designed for dressing wounds.When exposed to a certain gas, however......It masked Sage's appearance while allowing him to see and breathe normally.As reporter Vic Sage, he pursued the facts.As the Question, he pursues the truth.Trained by Richard Dragon, one of the world's foremost martial artists, the Question is a supreme hand-to-hand combatant. He is also keenly observant and exceptionally intuitive as a detective.HistoryWhen Vic Sage, a television investigative journalist, encountered stories he couldn't investigate by normal, legal means, he donned a special mask (kept in his belt buckle) that made it appear that he had no face. As the Question, Sage investigated corruption in the face of all danger, leaving a blank "calling card," which, when touched, emitted a smoky question mark.Childhood and Early CareerVictor Sage was born Charles Victor Szasz, and grew up an orphan who had a reputation as a troublemaker.  Szasz prided himself in defiantly enduring the physical abuse of the Catholic orphanage where he was housed. Though he managed to get into college, higher learning did not mellow his violent tendencies. Some time during college, he brutally beat a drug dealer for giving him LSD, which had caused Sage to doubt his own senses under its influence.After graduating from college (where he nursed an unrequited crush on fellow student Lois Lane), Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive reporter with a reputation for obnoxiousness in Hub City. He then moved to television journalism, which eventually led him to investigate Dr. Arby Twain. This particular story would alter the course of Sage's life permanently.Birth of the QuestionSage was approached by his former professor, a scientist named Aristotle ("Tot")Rodor, who told Sage about an artificial skin called Pseudoderm, which Rodor had co-developed with Dr. Twain based on the notes of Gotham criminal Bart Magan and research into Gingold, the chemical responsible for the Elongated Man's powers.Pseudoderm was intended to work as an applied skin-like bandage with the help of a bonding gas, but had an unforeseen toxicity which was fatal when applied to open wounds. Though Rodor and Twain agreed to abandon the project and parted ways, Professor Rodor later discovered that Dr. Twain planned to proceed with an illegal sale of the invention to Third World nations, despite the risk to human health.Sage resolved to stop him but had no way of going after Dr. Twain without exposing himself. Rodor suggested that Sage use a mask made of Pseudoderm to cover his famous features. Disguised by the Pseudoderm mask and armed with information, Sage eventually caught up with Dr. Twain, stopped the transaction, and extracted a confession from him. He then left Twain bound in Pseudoderm in an ironic twist. On television, Vic Sage reported on Dr. Twain's illegal activities.With his first venture a success, Sage decided that this new identity would be useful for future investigations. He continued to work with Professor Rodor, who supplied the Pseudoderm and eventually modified the bonding gas, giving it the ability to alter the color of Sage's hair and clothing, as well. Vic became good friends with "Tot," who became a mentor to him in both of his identities.Shortly after debuting in Hub City, Vic Sage relocated to Chicago, IL in order to join the staff of WWB-TV as a crusading journalist. He would continue to operate as The Question there, and would make an ally of Chicago's other resident hero, the Blue Beetle. He would also travel to other cities in the course of his investigations, and eventually teamed up with Batman and briefly participated in the Crisis.The Question's early crime fighting career was somewhat successful, but his black-and-white moral viewpoint and lack of commitment would soon lead to a turning point for both Sage and his alter ego.Near-Death Experience and Further TrainingAfter his time in Chicago, Vic Sage returned to Hub City and KBEL television, where he worked alongside news anchor and occasional love-interest Myra Connelly. During a mission as The Question, he was badly beaten in personal combat by the mercenary and martial artist, Lady Shiva, and then nearly fatally beaten by her employer's thugs and shot in the head with a pellet gun.  Though he was thrown in a river to drown, Shiva rescued him for reasons of her own and gave him directions to meet Richard Dragon as soon as he was recovered enough to get out of bed. Following a vision of Batman (during which the Caped Crusader called Sage an "incompetent dilettante") while in his sickbed, Sage sought out the master martial artist, who retained all of his skill even while confined to a wheelchair. Sage spent a year learning martial arts and Eastern philosophy from Dragon. The training changed and deepened The Question's moral perspective, and the crimefighter became more understanding of the moral ambiguity of his chosen work.Vic Sage returned to Hub City and resumed his career as The Question with a new, broader worldview, and a belief that crime had to be fought at more than one level.The New QuestionThough The Question had originally established himself as a crimefighter by fighting street crime, his post-Dragon career found him attacking the systematic corruption of Hub City at its highest levels. Hub City was noted as being "synonymous with venality, corruption, and violence," and perhaps even outranked Gotham City as the most dismal city in the the United States.The Question's work in defending the city extended beyond street crime and into the realm of politics and social justice. He re-enlisted as an ally his former girlfriend, Myra, who had married the corrupt, alcoholic mayor of Hub City, Wesley Fermin, in his absence. He also meet Batman again and have the first of what would be many encounters with the Green Arrow.After spending months running Hub City while her husband descended into mental illness, Myra Fermin announced her intention to run for mayor herself, and received Sage/The Question's full support. Though Myra's marriage to the mayor was loveless, she resisted the temptation to reunite with Sage, but she eventually gave into her temptation and had affairs with both Sage and The Question, whom she did not realize were the same man. When Myra lost the election by one vote (partly due to Sage's being too preoccupied to cast a vote on election day), she was elected to the position anyway, as her challenger had died as a result of what was called "the worst tornado in history." However, during her victory speech, her husband, Wesley Fermin, shot her in the stomach for supporting what he called "Communist beliefs." Wesley was subsequently killed during a police stand-off, but Myra entered a coma, and Hub City was plunged further into chaos. For some time, the Question, became the city's only guarantor of justice, though Myra eventually awoke from her coma and assumed her role as mayor.The gang warfare in the weeks following the election led Sage to a reunion with Lady Shiva, who at first resumed her adversarial relationship with The Question and then became an ally to him. Through Shiva, The Question was able to meet with the gang-leaders who were creating chaos in the city.Although he had the support of Myra and his mentor, Tot Rodor, Sage/The Question often felt troubled about his role as the city's protector and as a fighter of crime. Reconciling his original, stark, mindset with the enlightenment he had received from Richard Dragon continued to be a source of conflict for The Question, who struggled to determine how far he should go in his pursuit of justice. With the help of his allies, The Question realized that a perverse part of him wanted to know what it felt like to take another's life, and he managed to successfully (if temporarily) defeat his temptation to kill.Leaving Hub CityThough The Question did his best to contain the chaos around Hub City, he felt himself growing increasingly dark as time wore on. A hallucinogenic trip caused his subconscious, in the form of his mother, to tell him that he would never be able to lead a happy life unless he left Hub City. Richard Dragon echoed this viewpoint during a visit to Vic Sage, when he sensed that Sage was on the verge of a major turning point in his life. Lady Shiva soon after arrived by helicopter to spirit The Question, Rodor, and Myra Fermin away from the city, though she herself decided to embrace the Hub's chaos and remain there. Sage nearly convinced Myra (who had only recently learned that Vic Sage and the Question were the same man) to leave the city with him, but her sense of duty convinced her to remain. Before Sage left, Myra gave to him her only daughter, Jackie, and wandered back to the city alone to meet her duties as Mayor and do her best to stand for what she believed in.Sage took Jackie with him to South America, hoping to rid himself of his "No Face" alter ego and find a land free of the clutter and corruption that filled Hub City. However, this sense of serenity did not last long. Sage was quickly drawn into a drug war which ultimately forced him to kill a man in order to save Jackie's life. The Question's philosophy from that point changed once again, as he realized that he had no guilt over the killing and would do it again if necessary. He would kill again.Unfortunately, Jackie would die anyway, en route to her mother in Hub City.Career after Hub CityAfter leaving Hub City, Victor Sage held a series of journalistic positions in various cities, while reviving his Question persona when necessary. Previous experiences teaming up with such heroes as Green Arrow and Batman had established the Question in the superheroic community, and he would participate in major events such as the Alien Invasion and Brainiac's attack on Metropolis. Following his abandonment of Hub City, The Question helped protect an Indian reservation alongside Green Arrow and John Butcher. He traveled the United States and would meet Steel and Azrael. He even very briefly became a member of a team, when he joined the L.A.W. (Living Assault Weapons) alongside his old comrade Blue Beetle and Nightshade, Sarge Steel, Captain Atom, and Judomaster during a disappearance of the Justice League of America, in order to stop Judomaster's former sidekick, Tiger, from conquering the world. On that mission, the Question would also first learn of the mysterious land of Nanda Parbat. He would also return to Hub City several times, and eventually got a bittersweet shock when he learned that Myra had finally moved on.Following the near-destruction of Gotham City after a major earthquake, the Question relocated to Gotham and teamed with the Huntress, with whom he had a short-lived affair.After years of dabbling with hallucinogens, meditation, and his mask-activating gas, The Question developed a shamanic awareness, in which he was able to interpret coincidences and thus "talk to the city".  In this state, he was also able to sense chi, or life force. He became able to "walk in two worlds" for an increased awareness of his surroundings and of any disturbances in a city's natural order. This ability came in handy when Sage relocated to Metropolis and teamed up with Superman against Lex Luthor and the Psychopomp.52Following the events of the Infinite Crisis and Batman's disappearance, The Question returned to Gotham City to assume the role of its protector. His first act was removing the bat symbol sticker from the Bat-Signal and spray painting a giant question mark in its place. This was not strictly an act of ego, however- he shone the light on Renee Montoya's apartment building in order to get her attention. Three days later, he entered Montoya's apartment and left her an address: 520 Kane Street. When Montoya visited the location, he hired her to watch an abandoned building located there for "two hundred dollars a day, plus expenses," and implied that it would be used by a third party. This mysterious behavior would lead to a partnership that would last nearly a year.Two weeks and one night later, the two teamed up against a strange creature who entered that building. The course of their investigations then led them to Kahndaq, where they investigated Intergang dealings and prevented a suicide bombing during Black Adam and Isis's wedding, an action that earned The Question the Order of the Crescent.After returning to Gotham City, the Question learned that he was suffering from lung cancer. Though Montoya immediately had Sage hospitalized and later took it upon herself to transport him to the Himalayan city of Nanda Parbat in the hope of using its mystical properties to save him, she was too late. After suffering through great discomfort and hardship, Victor Sage, The Question, passed away. The Question's legacy lives on, however: Renee Montoya has been seen wearing the mask and garb of the Question in Gotham City, and, on an alternate version of Earth, a version of Vic Sage lives on.	181525
1968	Vic Sage: Question, The: Destroyer of Heroes, The	CB		Ditko, Steve	Blue Beetle (Charlton), Vol. 1 #5. November, 1968. Source: www.vicsage.com	TV Reporter Vic Sage. Single. Lives in Hub City. 6'0", 175 pounds. Blue Eyes. Reddish Blond hair. Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive investigative journalist with a reputation for obnoxiousness.Not long after appearing on TV, he began investigating his former professor, scientist Aristotle Rodor who told Sage about an artificial skin he had co-developed with Dr. Twain called Pseudoderm.Sage used a mask made of Pseudoderm to stop Dr. Twain from selling the skin-like bandage because of its toxicity. On television, Sage reported on Dr. Twain's illegal activities.Sage decided this new identity would be useful for future investigations. So The Question was born. Sage worked for news station KBEL in Hub City. Question is primarily focused on the politics of the city fighting corrupt government.At a Hub City art museum, critic Boris Ebar lectures his students on the misshapen, dirt-colored piece known as “Our Man”: “This anonymous work is a perfect example of art that reveals the true spirit of man…man as he really is.” Ebar highlights the missing eyes and heart, as well as the closed hands that symbolize, “man’s inability to solve or control the illusion we call existence.”Passer-by / art lover / part-time action hero Ted Kord comments to his companion Tracey that it’s a shame that a majority fo the folks gathered around Ebar seem to support that claim. One of those in agreement with the poor state of man is the gorilla-faced Hugo, the artist behind “Our Man,” who thinks to himself: “That’s exactly how I feel! Man is an incompetent nothing in a world of mystic terrors…all without meaning or purpose!”The Hub City art museum seems to be the action hero hangout, as none other than Vic Sage drops by. Ebar calls out to Sage for support in his argument, but Sage will have none of it: “Your views and that thing belong on a junk heap! But it’s perfect for all of you…perfect for self-admitted nothings who have nowhere to go in their world of nothing!” Kord tells Tracey that he’d prefer Sage’s company to Ebar’s, and they venture in to the next exhibit, where more heroic pieces are on display. These, says Kord, are representative of an artist who thought better of the world.But the group of nihilist beatniks that follow Ebar’s opinion find the room of heroic art unbelieveable — suitable only for fairy tales. Not only that, but the art is offensive to them; it represents what they feel they can’t be. Sage opines: “It’s so unfair, isn’t it! You can’t have what you want and wishing for it should be all the effort you need to get anything.”Meanwhile, the artist Hugo has found particular offense with one statue, called “The Unconquered,” and raises his fist to smash it. Kord lays hands on Hugo to prevent the destruction of the artpiece, and soon the nihilist beatnik parade has gathered around to threaten violence to Kord. Sage steps up to support the man who is secretly Blue Beetle, as does Tracey, but the beatniks vamoose, worried that the cops might be called.Kord thanks Sage for standing with him, and Sage insists that it should be the other way around — Kord saved an inspiring piece of art. Ebar suddenly appears at Sage’s shoulder, demanding an apology for the earlier embarrassment, but Sage retorts: “I owe you nothing! How you feel about your own evaluation of art is your business! Don’t try to use me to foster your opinions!”Sage leaves, and Kord and Tracey stand admiring “The Unconquered.” Something about the statue has struck a chord with…Kord, “It’s proof that man is not helpless! man can set a goal and achieve it. As the sculptor did with his statue, so can anyone else! But man has to motivate himself!”But Hugo has championed a different statue, “Our Man,” to represent his philosophy of humanity: “Man doesn’t have the power to achieve anything! Man is a helpless speck in an unknowable universe ruled by strange forces that control man’s will and destiny! By himself, man is nothing and can do nothing!” Hugo walks home, full of bitter resentment for “The Unconquered,” thinking that everything that shows man as heroic is really evil. The illusion of man’s worth should be obscured, he believes. In him, he feels a command to destroy the heroic artwork. Once the symbols are destroyed, man will finally be satisfied his true lowly place in the universe.A few days pass, and the Blue Beetle sets out in the Bug to perform a nightly fly-by of the art museum. Part of him worries that the ruffians will return to destroy the art, and part of him wonders if he’s making excuses just to see “The Unconquered.” But the Beetle’s instincts were correct — as he touches down on the roof, he catches a strange sight. The “Our Man” statue appears to be mobile. Inside the costume, Hugo comes to the conclusion that Beetle’s existence carries worse import than the artwork: “He dares to set himself up as a god! …He’s trying to be a hero…to be better than everyone else!”“Our Man” takes a swing at the Beetle, and the Beetle returns in full. But “Our Man” has an armor-plated suit: “He can’t hurt me, and he knows it!” thinks Hugo inside the suit, “He’ll have to quite, to ive up and I’ll expose his heroic pose!” The Beetle keeps fighting, trying to set “Our Man” up to knock him off-balance, but the walking sculpture plants a right hook across the Beetle’s jaw. Hugo thinks: “Why does he keep fighting me! He should run! He can’t win! His evil heroics keep him trying to achieve the impossible! The fool still tries to overcome his fate, to struggle against the laws of destiny!”Beetle goes over the edge of the museum, and “Our Man” shatters the ledge with a kick, sending the Beetle plummeting. A guard comes out on the roof to investigate the noise and Hugo runs away, fearful that the police will be crawling all over when they find the Beetle’s body.But Beetle’s not down for the count yet. He grabs onto a conveniently placed flagpole and uses the momentum to swing back to the roof. He summons the Bug and tries to track down “Our Man.”Meanwhile, “Our Man” rampages through a Hub City park, destroying statues of town heroes. The beatniks have assembled there and cheer on the sculpture-on-sculpture violence. As a police officer protects a passing woman and her child from the falling debris, Beetle swoops down from the Bug to save the day: “You seem to get your kicks out of destroying. I get mine from kicking the destroyers.”The beatniks step in again to protect “Our Man,” their faces contorted with rage as they hurl baseball-sized rocks at the Beetle. As Beetle gets pummeled, “Our Man” takes his cue to exit, stage left. The beatniks form a line to stop the “fascist” boys in blue from arresting their hero, challenging the officers to display their “gestapo-type brutality.” The Beetle swings back up to the Bug, having lost “Our Man”’s trail.Boris Ebar appears on a Hub City news station the next day to champion the beliefs and actions of “Our Man,” promising to replace the destroyed park statue with one that, “doesn’t signify a self-glorifying act or a so-called heroic deed.” Ebar reiterates his opinion that “Our Man” truthfully represents the lowly state of real humankind and encourages viewers to embrace this poor estimation of themselves. Heroes, he says, present a fantasy of perfection that no one can live up to. “Our Man” represents the acceptance of imperfection, and the inability to raise oursselves above our flaws.In the hallway at W.W.B., Sage’s colleagues encourage him to televise Ebar’s exhibit, citing the prestige of being “in on this hot fad,” but Sage will have nothing of it: “Sorry, gentlemen. That statue is trash to me!”The nihilist beatniks in the meantime have created a hero cult for “Our Man,” celebrating the pessimistic view of life that he represents, and working to channel their spirit to give “Our Man” the strength to, “overcome the disbelievers.” Hugo feels called by forces beyond his control to take up the “Our Man” costume again.At a society party, a chap who looks suspiciously like Syd Starr debates the qualities of “Our Man” with other party-goers: “This rat race of always proving yourself is insane!” But a woman who looks suspiciously like Celia Starr counters: “You smear the best as unworthy so you have an excuse to remain as lousy as you are!”The argument spreads across the party. A man: “…And no one will ever be perfect so why knock yourself out trying, why kid yourself? We are all like “Our Man!” Still another: “I see! The doctors that treat you and your family…the people that make your drugs, build your cars…anyone who’s action affects the lives of others shouldn’t try to do their best…why bother, huh?”Down in the alley, two kids enter the philosophical debate: “You’ll be a super hero with no legs but I’ll give you super powers so you won’t need them and everyone will feel sorry for you!” says one. “That’s stupid! Why wreck me if you can give me powers!” says the other.Tracey, watching “Our Man” coverage on television, wonders when someone will counter the nihilists properly. “The best way would be to present a better example!” says Kord, who suddenly has an idea.Vic Sage agrees to cover the exhibit containing “The Unconquered,” which ticks off the supporters of “Our Man” to no end. Ebar and his critic pals get together to threaten to force Sage’s sponsors to drop out. Ho-hum, that again? Sage tells them to mind their own business.Meanwhile, Hugo feels the call of the “Our Man” and takes up the costume again. He sets out to destroy the exhibit while the police are investigating a bomb scare, but Vic Sage is there to slow him down. Sage launches himself toward the walking sculpture, and Hugo again wonders why anyone would enter into a fight that they have no hope of winning. He smacks Sage away, but Blue Beetle comes swinging in just in the nick of time. He grabs “Our Man” between his knees and carries him to a rooftop, but the statue-man manages to overpower him. He flips the Beetle over, and socks him across the chin: The outcome can only be the Blue Beetle’s defeat! No one will ever think well of or look up to him again!”The Beetle takes blow after blow, but manages to avoid the direct hit. Below, the cruel faces of the nihilists yell “Stomp him! Cripple the Bug!” But Sage doesn’t give up on the Beetle yet. Beetle manages to get in a kick that puts “Our Man” off balance, and the hero shifts his gameplan. He keeps “Our Man” off of his stride, and manages to use the weight of the statue costume to flip his opponent. Below, the crowd calls him a dirty fighter.Hugo feels as though the forces that called him to fight the evil of heroism have abandoned him. He gathers a moment of strength and catches the Beetle with a double uppercut. He glances a kick off of Beetle’s chest, but that only sets him up for a double kick from the Beetle. “I’m getting so tired, weak!” thinks Hugo. “He won’t let me rest! He keeps coming at me…he won’t let up….”Below, the crowd starts to plot ways to help “Our Man.” But their hero has begun to doubt himself: “I am now a mere man against one who truly has supernatural powers. I never had a chance against him! I never had a chance for anything! Why fight on…I was doomed to defeat from the start! Even with powers, how could I hope to achieve anything. It…it’s an illusion!” Beetle lifts “Our Man” above his head and spins him like pizza dough at the edge of the building. “I surrender. Don’t destroy me! Please! I didn’t mean it!” exclaims Hugo.Below, members of the crowd distract a policeman and steal his revolver. One of them aims and fires at the Beetle. “Hey! Don’t they know there’s never been an open season on people!” yells the Beetle as “Our Man” runs away. Sage kicks the gun from the shooter’s hand and says, “Because you deliberately turned yourself into a mental cripple…that doesn’t excuse your actions! Since you won’t think I’ll tell you! Your feelings don’t determine anything! Especially the life of a human being!”Hugo manages to slip out of the costume. The nihilist finds the empty “Our Man” shell and celebrate his getaway, but Hugo’s just glad to get out of the conflict alive.Sage stands below, watching the Blue Beetle’s Bug fly away: “I wouldn’t have missed this night for anything!” He’s confronted by Ebar, who says he’s gotten two sponsors to drop Sage’s show in Hub City. But Sage replies, “If sponsors or anyone else lets you do their thinking for them, they’re in trouble, not me!”Tracey asks Kord how black and blue he is the next day, and Kord responds that no matter the pain, he couldn’t stop fighting: “All through the fight in the back of my mind I saw, ‘The Unconquered!’ I was fighting for everything it stood for…to me! For the best in a man whatever it is, whatever it took to make that statue…whatever it takes to achieve anything worthwhile! It can only be done by struggling to succeed! ‘Our Man’ could only have won if I gave up…on what that statue stands for, for what it means to me!”The nihilists make a shrine to “Our Man,” hoping that one day, he’ll reclaim it. But Hugo has other ideas: “By himself, manis to helpless. Unless he has some supernatural powers like the ones the Blue Beetle has to help him! Everyone else is like ‘Our Man’…we can achieve nothing! We are doomed to failure before we try!”But somewhere else in Hub City, a young man hammers away at some schoolwork. A classmate mocks him: “You’re crazy, Lou! You got to be a genius or like the Blue Beetle to solve those problems. Give up like me and Huck! You’ll pass anyway!” But the student stands strong: “No! If I give up, I’ll never know! They can be done and I know I can do them! I know it!”His secret known only to Prof. Rodor, Vic Sage assumes the identity of the Question to help his fight against injustice!Boris Ebar returns, now giving away more nihilistic art as a present to Syd Starr: “When I saw it, I knew a man like you would love to have it! …A man who understands the finer points of culture and humanity.” Syd scratches his chin, faux-thoughtfully, and replies: “Yes, I can see it…it reall is all you say…it’s very moving…very enlightening…deep feeling…and…and…”Syd takes a moment to admire the picture, a painting of a tiny, huddled man being trampled by larger feet beside a bent and smoldering cigarette butt. An empty soup can completes the collage. Ebar explains: “It represents man’s inhumanity to man! The refusal of man to help his fellow man get out of the gutter! …The real attached can is pure genius! It proves the reality, the truth of it all!”Syd falls, as they say, hook line and sinker. He shows his new art piece to coworker Nora Lace. Nora has a painting of her own, given to her by Vic Sage. This painting features a worker standing in a triumphant pose atop some cragged architecture. What does the art critic Ebar think about it? “I denounced it as childish, lac[k]ing in any aesthetics…it’s an insult to man and humanity!”Ebar accuses Sage of buying the painting to insult him, but Sage replies that he makes his own decisions without caring whether it pleases anyone else. As Sage walks away, Ebar confesses his hatred: “Sage has an evil soul!” He implores Starr to get rid of Sage, but Syd has exhausted all methods of getting Sage fired.Later, in Ebar’s apartment, the bitter art critic can’t get over his hang-ups: “That blasted painting! Why did Sage have to bring it into my life again! …It keeps accusing me…It makes me think of when I felt like…No! I must not think about then!” After some more paranoid soul-searching, Ebar hires two thugs in a west side Crown City alley to take the painting and destroy it.The thugs burst in on Nora, who has fortunately just finished a date with Mr. Vic Sage. As the thugs enter her apartment, a third faceless figure explodes on them from behind, throwing double punches. A couple of strong ones on the chin, and the crooks decide to vamoose. The Question checks on Nora, and then chases down one of the crooks.“I’m not talking and you can’t make me!” says the crook. “Suit yourself!” says the Question, releasing the gass from his belt buckle. “Then you will never talk to anyone again!” The thug tells Sage he was hired to steal the painting, and then breaks free, panicking in the gas cloud. The Question lets him go, as he has bigger fish to fry — namely, Boris Ebar!Sage drops by to see his old friend, Professor Rodor, and they put together a prank involving a glass tube blow gun, and a quick-drying solution that reacts colorlessly and odorlessly. With these objects in hand, Sage sets out for Ebar’s.“Oh, how I wish I could see Sage’s face when he learns the painting’s gone!” thinks Ebar, smugly sitting on his couch. There’s a knock at the door and Ebar goes to check it, assuming it’s Syd Starr. But no one waits for Ebar at the door. Instead, the figure from the painting has appeared on his door. As Ebar checks the hallway, the painting starts to dissolve. When Ebar turns around again, it has disappeared: “Did I really see it? That accursed painting won’t give my mind any peace! Why won’t it leave me alone??”Ebar returns inside his apartment, where a larger version of the figure has appeared on his wall. He covers his eyes and turns away in fear and confusion, and again the painting begins to dissolve. When he returns his gaze to the wall, the painting is gone again: “It knows I betrayed it! I joined those who claim this is a world we never made! That we can’t help it. It’s not our fault…we’re innocent! But that cursed painting keeps asking Why? Why didn’t I? Someone has to keep giving the world shape and direction! Yet, I took no part in it. I let others do as they wish and I hate what they made for me! I never questioned…or judged what was right…I accepted what others said was right!”The painting appears again, this time larger: “Stop! Stop accusing me!! I couldn’t help it! I tried and failed!” The Question, standing around the corner with a blowgun, dissolves another painting by firing one of the chemical pellets at it. The hero thinks, “He won’t be able to take much more of this!”As the painting disappears again, Ebar doubts his sanity. He decides the only way to find peace is by destroying the original painting. He pulls a sword-dagger and sets out for Nora Lace’s apartment. The Question gives chase, and is spotted by some citizens outside. He ducks around a corner, transforms into Vic Sage again, and gives the curious followers the slip.Ebar, in the meantime, bursts into Lace’s apartment with sword drawn, demanding that the painting be destroyed: “You don’t understand! It won’t leave me alone! …Destroy it! I’ll pay anything you ask…just destroy it now!” Nora provides the painting, but says: “I won’t destroy this art to satisfy your emotional exercises!”Outside, the thugs have returned for the painting, wanting the remainder of the money they feel is coming to them. “I should never have let you talk me into coming back! I’m still shaking from that guy!” says one. Unfortunately for him, “that guy” happens to be right behind. Sage retransforms into the Question, and comes up behind them in a cloud of gas. The two panic and start running, but the Question socks them both with knockout punches. He removes his mask, and runs into the building, hoping it’s not too late to save Nora or the painting.Inside, Boris is pleading with Nora: “Don’t force me! Don’t make me do it! I’ll pay you…but destroy it!” But Nora has no such plan: “I’m not a hired accomplice to any crime! Any force will start from you!…You want the painting destroyed…you, alone will have to do it…if you can!” Sage enters at this moment and adds his two cents as well: “Well, Boris, it’s up to you! Your terror brought you here…what you can’t bear to face is within your reach to destroy! What stops you?…The figure on the canvas?”Boris draws his dagger closer to the painting, but the eyes of the painting stare back at him: “I’ll show you…Stop! Stop staring!…Stop accusing me! I didn’t mean to betray you! I tried to be like you…I tried! You expect too much of me…I’m only human! Why won’t you let me lie to myself? Why do you keep making me see what I let myself become…stop it! I must destroy you…to destroy the proof of what I once wanted to be!” Boris lunges with the dagger!At the last second, Sage pulls the painting away like a matador withdrawing a cape from the horns of a charging bull: “Why cover your eyes now, Boris? You blinded yourself a long time ago! You’ve been refusing to see…refusing to know! You act now physically as you did then, mentally!”Boris falls to the ground, curling into the fetal position and covering his hands with his head. A police officer comes to the door to ask about the commotion and the two unconscious thugs: “Oh! Vic Sage!…I guess you can explain it all!”Syd Starr stands backstage in a panic the next day, worried that Sage will tie him to Ebar on the broadcast: “No matter where I go, I’ll have people whispering about me…hating me!” But as Sage doesn’t do anything of the sort, Syd digs deeper into his paranoia: “He’s making me sweat till the trial…that devil! I know him. He wants to disgrace me so my father will pick him instead of me to take over! I’ve got to stop him, somehow!”Sage has another one of his coworkers on his mind: “That’s it, Nora. The rest of the evening is ours!”	181548
1968	Vic Sage: Question, The: Return of the Question	CB		Ditko, Steve	Mysterious Suspense (Charlton), #1. Source: www.vicsage.com	TV Reporter Vic Sage. Single. Lives in Hub City. 6'0", 175 pounds. Blue Eyes. Reddish Blond hair. Sage made his mark as a highly outspoken and aggressive investigative journalist with a reputation for obnoxiousness.Not long after appearing on TV, he began investigating his former professor, scientist Aristotle Rodor who told Sage about an artificial skin he had co-developed with Dr. Twain called Pseudoderm.Sage used a mask made of Pseudoderm to stop Dr. Twain from selling the skin-like bandage because of its toxicity. On television, Sage reported on Dr. Twain's illegal activities.Sage decided this new identity would be useful for future investigations. So The Question was born. Sage worked for news station KBEL in Hub City. Question is primarily focused on the politics of the city fighting corrupt government.What is the greatest battle an individual must fight? Is it against the mystic terrors of unknown dimensions? Is it against the hordes of alien beings from outer space, or against foreign armies or criminal conspiracies? No! The greatest battle you or any person must constantly fight is not any of those! What, then, is man’s greatest battle…The Question stands on a wet ledge stories from the street, listening to two figures speak through a rain-soaked window. One of the figures is Max Kroe, one of “the biggest racketeers in the state!” So far, Kroe has been like Teflon and has gotten away from the law scot-free, but the Question has taken great pains to follow him to a secret meeting.The other figure is the respectable Crown City king of the soda pop industry, Jason Ord. The meeting’s not for blackmail or a pay-off, but there seems to be some money passing hands. The men seem to be on good terms with each other, leading the Question to think they’re in cahoots: “Ord’s worse than Kroe! Ord’s using an unearned reputation to deceive the decent people he deals with!”Meanwhile, at W.W.B., Syd Starr has launced another one of his “Get Rid of Vic Sage Quick” schemes, convincing a businessman named Fry to drop his sponsorship of Vic Sage’s controversial show in favor of more family-oriented fare. Fry approaches Sage in the hallway and tells him the news. Sage isn’t offended: “It’s your money, Mr. Fry, you can spend it anyway you please!…One question! Did you come to this decision by yourself?” Suddenly, Fry is offended: “What difference does that make?” Sage replies, “If you’re spending your earned money on what others decide you should buy, are you getting what you want?” Syd and his Yes Men gather around Fry to celebrate, but suddenly, Fry’s not in the mood for such joviality.But as soon as Syd succeeds in his plan, things are foiled. One of his flunkies pops in with the news that the Soda Pop King himself is here to sponsor Sage! Sage meets with Ord in Sam Starr’s office, and immediately refuses to shake his hand: “Mr. Ord’s not acceptable as my sponsor!” Ord accuses him of joking, but Sage assures him this isn’t a joke. Starr believes it to be a misunderstanding, and uncharacteristically lashes out at Sage: “Vic, this is intolerable! Jason Ord! …And you treat him like he’s a plague! Why??” Sage responds that he believes Jason Ord to be in cahoots with Max Kroe, owing to a tip-off from a trusted source.“Honest men don’t deal with known thieves. It can only lead to corrupting that which is honest! I intend to prove Kroe and Ord are two of a kind!” Starr calms down, but still believes Sage’s source to be wrong: “You lost Fry and now you’re refusing Ord! The network could lose the whole Ord account because of your attitude with an unprovable charge!” Sage responds: “A man’s a fool to accept things on faith! You can only decide about Ord on what you know or can prove! And I can’t ignore what I know!” Starr acknowledges that Sage never makes charges recklessly, and agrees to give him until he gets back from an out-of-town trip to prove his case.Syd Starr, hearing from a flunkie who had an ear to the door, couldn’t be more ecstatic: “We couldn’t have done a better job on him than he did himself!” He tries, in vain, to steal away Vic’s staff, focussing specifically on Sage’s secretary/girlfriend Nora Lace. “What’s the name of those things that crawl to trouble spots so they can get their thrills abusing the victims?” she asks her fellow reporter. “They’re called ‘Sydics,’” he replies, infuriating Syd, who leaves. “When they can’t find victims, they feed on themselves,” Al adds.But things aren’t all fun and games and mocking co-workers. Al has fears about job security if they all stick with Sage. Nora is steadfast however in favor of her boss/boyfriend. Fred Pine chimes in: “Let’s stick to the faces and that is we’re riding on a collision course to disaster and we don’t know why!” Vic Sage arrives to hear his staff contemplating disaster and demands that they settle now: “If I ever expected blind obedience in any of you, I’d have fired him! No one here owes me anything! Anyone who wants the best will be glad to have any one of you working for him!” His staff responds: “That’s not what we want to hear, Vic! Just give us the facts like you’ve always done!”But Sage can’t give them the whole story without revealing his extra-curricular heroing activities. He tells them as much as he can and they’re skeptical. Al says, “And on that alone, you’re going after Ord! If your charge leaks out to the public before you can prove it, you’ll be denounced by everyone! …You realize the kind of pressure he can put on the network, on you, on all of us?” Sage promises not to use anyone on the investigation that doesn’t want to be and leaves to start said investigation, but the team is still concerned. Bob Hasel sums it up: “I think Vic’s making the fatal mistake that a lot of people have been praying he’d make.”Jason Ord stands in his office, indignant and infuriated by Sage’s attitude: “Sage is going to regret what he did! I’m going to break him! Before I’m through, Sage will come crawling to me to sponsor him…then Mr. Sage, it will be my turn!”A group of journalists approaches Sage as he eats dinner. They start by saying they hate his guts, but ask him, out of the spirit of professional brotherhood, to save himself the trouble and give in. Sage replies, “Why, gentlemen, should I, this one time, accept poison in my food?” The journalists walk away, one of them accusing Sage of twisting everything and refusing to face facts. But another has a clearer mind about the situation: “No, he makes them too clear! We hate him because he’s fighting the battle we ran out on before it ever started! He won’t give in to what is wrong and we refuse to stand up for what is right!”Jason Ord meets with Syd Starr, and explains that he’s not an unreasonable man, he only wants an apology from Sage. Syd replies that Sage, “needs to be knocked off his self-made throne!” The two decide to align their powers to take Sage down. Ord starts by handing money to a chap named Felix and ordering him to start a smear campaign against Vic Sage. Felix replies, “Before I’m through, even Sage will hate himself!” But Ord has more in mind than making Sage apologize. He’ll act like he’s still going to sponsor Sage if he reneges his accusation, but will use that moment of apology to, “spit in his eye and turn him down!”The smear campaign begins, as news spreads that Sage tried to frame Sam Starr, that pressure by Sage drove some to suicide, that Sage bugged the W.W.B. conference rooms and blackmails his bosses and sponsors to keep his job, and finally, that he spoke out against the U.N. But when faced with the accusation, Sage responds by asking, “if decent people should deal with cutthroats, and if not, why should free governments deal with dictatorships that enslave their own citizens.” And now, the picketers have gathered outside of W.W.B. with signs reading: “The U.N. must stay! Sage must go! / Sage wants our sons to die!” and also, “Sage is a war monger! Remove Sage!”Syd sets up a meeting between his father and Sage, while Captain Lash drops by with the results of a file search: Nothing connects Kroe to Ord. Sage asks, “You think I’m rubbing two names together so some of Kroe will stick to Ord in people’s minds? Lash responds: “Not you, Vic. But I think you fell for a lie! Drop it before you get in too deep to back out!” But Sage refuses to stop his fight, even as he’s attacked verbally by the protesters outside. Inside, he finds that Al has disappeared. Syd accuses Al of…well, Syd says, “What’s the quote about ships deserting a sinking someone or other, you know how it goes!”Syd and Sage go to a meeting with Sam Starr and Jason Ord. Ord has threatened to take his advertising to other networks unless Sage apologizes, which would cost W.W.B. millions. But Sage continues his line of thought, asking an outraged Ord if he ever knew or met Max Kroe. Sam puts the direct question to Sage: will he accept Ord’s offer of sponsorship? Sage replies: “No!”The other W.W.B. staff in the room raise fists to Sage, demanding he take Ord’s offer. They call on Sam Starr to sack Sage, but Starr refuses: “Too many sudden smears and pressures have arisen…I don’t like it! Those tactics are worse than if a man used a gun to get his own way!” Starr gives Sage the two weeks until Fry’s contract expires to prove his case. But Syd and his gang of brown-nosers rejoice at finally having Sage where they want him.Sage talks to his staff in the office, promising to keep after Ord even after the time limit runs out if need be: “I can’t willingly accept a known evil or pretend it’s something less than it is! You have no way of judging Ord, so…If anyone’s going to stand with me, he’s going to have to give a good reason why! I won’t accept the lame reasons about my being the under-dog, every misfit can claim that! Or that I need help. I’m not a charity case! I’ll accept only a reason why you personally want to make the stand and on your behalf, not mine!”Ord takes a phone call from Max Kroe, who has a dynamite idea for getting rid of Sage. Ord finalizes plans and hangs up gleefully: “He’s going to be finished for good!” At the same time, Sage walks down the sidewalk, ignoring the jeers and insults of everyone around him.The greatest battle a person must constantly fight is to uphold proper principles, known truths, against everyone he deals with! A truth cannot be defeated! But when a man refuses to know what is right or deliberately accepts, or does, what he knows is wrong…he defeats himself! The truth remains unbeaten!Part II:What is a hero? Is he a man with super powers, who, when in costume, fearlessly seeks out dangers, daringly confronts all obstacles and performs great feats of bravery but then returns to his everyday life, living in helplessness and fear? …Afraid of what he says and how he acts for fear of revealing his secret identity, thus forcing himself to live unnaturally, stripped of the ability to face up to and act upon the everyday problems of life? His response to them may not be one of fearlessness, daring or bravery but one of a constant brooding about his inability to cope with them successfully! Is it a power or a disguise that makes a hero or is a hero a man who faces up to the challenges and obstacles of life and acts on them in a manner that does credit to himself and the proper principles that have been proven to be true?! WHAT MAKES A HERO?Nora provides her reason for deciding to stay (”Decent people can’t exist where force is the only rule for dealing between groups.”), Fred doesn’t like having his job threatened and didn’t appreciate bribe attempts, and everyone is in except for Al. But hey, where is Al? Sage receives a phone call from Capt. Lash and dashes to police headquarters where Al is being held on charges of murder! Apparently, the police found Al groggily standing over the body a man named Joe Elp with a weapon in his hand after an anonymous call reported gunshots.Al spills his side of the story to Sage, saying that Elp had tipped him off long ago that Ord and Kroe were in cahoots. They shared a few drinks while talking until Al found himself being bludgeoned from behind. Sage asks Lash to hold off on breaking the news of Al’s booking, and heads off to make the evening broadcast. Al feels terrible: “And I had to add this to all his troubles!” But Capt. Lash sees things differently: “Vic’s not complaining! He knows the difference between victim and assailant! He doesn’t penalize the innocent for what the guilty cause!”That night, Sage reports that his assistant has been charged with homicide, but instead of distancing himself from him, lets it be known that he’s standing behind Al and believes him to be innocent. Apparently, Sage didn’t break the news to anyone else before the broadcast. Fred and Nora are shocked, but vow to back Al up. Syd Staff attempts to push his father into firing Sage again. Calls from viewers denouncing Sage flood the switchboards and Ord and Kroe share a secretive chuckle over the phone at the effectiveness of their plan.Sage finds himself facing more angry citizens outside the W.W.B., who believe him to be a hypocrite for standing up for Al. He walks by them without comment and heads to the police station where he bails Al out. Al’s shoulders are drooped as he walks down the steps: “I can’t go back with you! I’ve caused you enough trouble! It’ll be better for you if I keep out of the way!”Sage snaps back that Al is doing him no favors: “If you want to crawl in a hole even though you’re innocent…go ahead! If you’re ashamed to be seen with your firends…run away! If you can’t stand the stares and tongues of public idiots…go hide! But don’t tell me I’m responsible for what you decide…that it’s for my benefit! You owe me nothing!” Al apologizes for feeling sorry for himself and stands up straight. Back at W.W.B., Vic rallies the troops for theWhile Sage and crew work round the clock to find leads on the Ord-Kroe connection, the program continues to face issues with advertisers. Kroe drops by the network and puts on the face of a reasonable man, offering to renegotiate with Sage. Crosstown, at the King Drug Co., the owner faces pressure to drop his financial support of Sage. But he refuses, comparing the use of his drugs to fight bodily diseases to Sage’s commentary that clears up issues of the mind: “You can refuse to buy my products or listen to Vic. But if you deliberately reject quality and truth, you must be willing to settle for that which is inferior and lies! You do not hurt Vic or me if you choose to cripple your body or mind!”Sage faces the rejection of everyone fearing the backlash they’ll receive just from socializing with him. But he takes on his status as a social pariah well, rejecting a gossiper trying to sell information on Syd and his crowd. Sage meets with Capt. Lash who has just interrogated local stoolie Lippy to no avail. Sage follows Lippy down the street and plans to ask some questions in a different persona. He removes the mask from his belt, smooths it over his face, releases gas from his belt buckle, and waits for the chemical reaction. Vic Sage has become the Question!The Question uses the element of surprise against Lippy, coming in through the window and releasing his trademark yellow gas into the room. He puts a finger to the small of Lippy’s back and demands answers. He gets them: Joe Elp’s real killer was Bo Bene, currently staying at the Grand Hotel. The Question exits through the window and warns Lippy not to try to warn anyone, or else he’ll be back with dire consequences.Ord is starting to crack. Sweating and drinking, he calls Kroe, who reassures him that everything is taken care of. A hired killer in a derby and bow-tie takes care of Bo Bene with compliments from Kroe just before Sage and Lash arrive. Both men are frustrated that they seem to be a step behind, but Sage has a sudden spark of inspiration.Thirty minutes remain before Ord’s deadline comes around. Syd and his crowd are already toasting Sage’s downfall. Nora, Al and Fred continue working and plan to until Sage tells them to quit or they’re tired. Sam Starr stands at his window, hoping that Sage will come up with proof. And Ord finds himself holding a mysterious envelope.As Ord opens the envelope, it begins to smoke and a question mark appears. The letter states that the Question has photographic and audio proof of Ord meeting with Kroe and that he’s seeking a payoff. Without the money, he’ll turn the evidence over to Sage. Ord gets Kroe on the phone, and together they set up a plan to take down the Question.Sage tails Kroe to a secret warehouse meeting place, with a camera and tape recorder to get the proof he’s already told Ord, via his secret identity, that he has in his possesion. He knocks out the guard muscle, but finds himself on the business end of the derby/bow-tie’d killer’s pistol. The killer takes him to Ord and Kroe. Ord panics, but Kroe points out the obvious: “A scoop is no good to a dead newscaster!”But killing isn’t good enough for Ord, he wants Sage to suffer: “I want to hear him beg me to stop!”Part III:Why does a man fight? To survive! To achieve proper values and goals! To keep secure the values he already has! The alternative? Give up…lose by default.Kroe does the dumbest possible thing and launches a punch at Sage, who deftly side-steps and kicks the gun from the killer’s hand in the confusion. Sage fights his way out of the room, throwing a chair through a window and swinging from electrical cords to the warehouse floor. Ord has begun to sweat and panic again: “He better not get out! If he does and he talks, I’ll be ruined! You know what that means, Kroe?” Kroe, who has started to sweat himself, replies: “Shut up! You should never have gotten mixed up with Sage in the first place!”Below, the thugs spread out to find Sage. But Sage has a plan for mass confusion — by switching back and forth between himself and the Question, he can convince the bad guys that they have more than one enemy. Sage, quickly donning and then removing his featureless mask, is making short work of the thugs, as Ord and Kroe continue to panic: “That lousy age and the Question are down there! They must be in this together…! It was a trick…The Question didn’t have any evidence!” Kroe shakes a fist at his business partner: “Now Sage does! Then we have to stop both of them! I could kill you for dragging me into this jam!”Back at W.W.B. Syd and his crowd have gathered to gloat over Sage’s impending pink slip. They think he’s gone into hiding rather than face up to the consequences. But Nora arrives, saying Sage asked her to represent him surrogately. She puts his contract on Sam Starr’s desk. Syd laughs: “That gutless boss of yours is too scared to face us himself! That coward had to send a woman in his place! The great Mr. Sage turned tail. Ha ha. Where’s your fearless newscaster hiding? Who’s protecting him while you’re here?” Tired of his ramblings, Nora decks him. Sam kicks his son out of the office, and tells Nora to take Sage’s contract back, as he doesn’t yet have anyone to replace him.Nora goes back to the office shaken, but soon finds herself present for good news. Capt. Lash drops by to let Al know that he’s been cleared: the gun was proven to be Bene’s. Al feels the weight of the world taken off of him: “Thanks, Vic, wherever you are.”Vic happens to still be in the warehouse, performing his quick change and beating up thugs. But the constant running and fighting is wearing Sage down, and soon, he suspects, the thugs will bring out their guns. He spots a phone on a pole and sneaks over to it, putting in a call to Nora. Handily, Lash is still standing by and heads to the warehouse to help. Sam Starr orders the newsteam to prep the mobile unit, and everyone heads off to cover the big story. They pass Syd in the hallway, where one of his lackeys wonders where their co-workers are running off to. Says Syd: “Who cares! Sage probably stubbed his toe and they’re going to give him a blood transfusion!”Meanwhile, back at the warehouse, the sirens are getting closer as Ord and Kroe are in a state of full-blown fear. The two start throwing careless accusations at each other, unaware that Sage waits around the corner with tape recorder in hand. The thugs run from the building like rats from a sinking ship, and Ord and Kroe head for a secret exit. But Sage foils their plans again: “No one’s leaving this party yet! You two are going to become a public item…trial and prison!” Kroe throws punches while Ord goes for his pistol, shooting Kroe in the back: “If I get rid of both of you, I’ll never have to worry about anything! You know too much about me, Kroe! You’d make a dal to save your hide! I’ll find someone else to run the rackets…I’ll still be Jason Ord, respectable businessman, with you dead, Sage!”Ord fires a shot that glances off Sage’s forehead, and runs to the alley, where he finds Lash and the W.W.B cameras waiting. He drops the gun and raises his hands in surrender. The news team races upstairs where they find Sage taking Kroe’s dying words of confession on tape. “It seemed unbelieveable…Kroe and Ord, partners in crime!” says Nora. “It was,” replies Vic, “…As long as there wasn’t any proof!” Sam Starr asks Sage to clean up the paper that, “your secretary littered my desk with…see that it is removed!”But Syd has one last chance to undercut Sage. With his father called away to Washington, Syd can scoop Sage’s story on Ord by appearing on the roundtable discussion show “Community Challenge.” Syd finds himself being questioned on the removal of Ord as an advertiser, and Syd lays it on thick: “When we became aware of his activities, though not prove…we refused any additional sponsorship. We took the loss until the issue was resolved! We tried to be fair to all concerned, now it belongs to the courts.”Sage’s news team is infuriated at the scooping. “What are you going to do, Vic?” asks Al. “Nothing! Syd is building his own trap and he’ll find himself caught in it! Syd can’t hurt my program, he’s just mouthing and distorting events. I’m covering the fundamental principles of the proper relationship in dealings between people…that explain the Kores and Ords! I’m not reporting on what happened, but why and how! It’s the difference between just seeing something and understanding the nature of what that something is!”Syd finds himself the center of attention in the W.W.B. hallway, as people question him of his heroism in helping take down Ord. “Well, I don’t like to take all the credit…others did do their part after the facts were pointed out to them. I was suspicious of Ord very early in our dealings…” Syd starts. But then he catches sight of Sage walking behind him and begins to stutter. He can’t go on lying, excusing himself by saying that he has a slight throat infection. But his fists are clenched and shaking at the sight of Sage walking away.When does a man achieve victory? When after he has honestly applied himself to the task facing him and having overcome it…is secure in the knowledge that whatever he has accomplished, the fruits of that goal belong to him! He will know…no one else matters.	181588
2006	Whitewater Rendezvous	NR		Baldwin, Kim		TV News Executive Megan Maxwell of World News Central and a laid-back outdoorswoman Chaz Herrick meet on a wilderness kayak adventure. The workaholic news executive works out of Chicago as the executive producer for a national TV news station. She has it all, terrific job, terrific friends, terrific health and a terrific sex life. The only thing that is missing is romantic love. Now Maxwell and Herrick battle the challenges of nature for survival and discover that true love may be nothing at all like they imagined. Megan, 32 and a vice president of a news division of a TV company is stressed to the max. She had her heart broken five years earlier and she no longer has the desire for a relationship., She has become something of a workaholic but is very satisfied with what she has because she knows she can never be hurt again.  Chaz is a wilderness guide in the Alaskan summer and a professor during the academic year at the local college in Fairbanks. She has plenty of girlfriends, but no one she has dated had created the spark. When Megan’s friends in the Broadcast Broads group decide to go kayaking in Alaska for their annual vacation together, she reluctantly agreed to go. The trip will change her life. Anchor Shelley of WNC News. Reporter Justine. Excerpt:Chapter OneChicago, IllinoisMegan Maxwell pressed the first two fingers of her right hand firmly against the throbbing in her temple, as she pushed open one of the thick glass double doors that led from the World News Central newsroom to the executive offices. As soon as the door whooshed shut, blissful quiet enveloped her, the first respite in a stressful and very long day. It was 7:15 p.m. and the management wing was dark, but for the light spilling out from under her office door at the end of the hallway.She made it halfway there before the BlackBerry on her left hip vibrated. Sighing, she reached beneath the tailored jacket of her navy pantsuit for the handset. The display read 911 control room.“Maxwell,” she answered in a clipped voice as she returned to the newsroom.“A small plane has entered the restricted air space around Camp David.” The voice belonged to the executive producer of the sportscast currently on the air.“Page Shelley to the studio,” she told him. “Extension 7892. She’s probably in makeup. I’m headed your way.” Shelley Vincent and Ted Gilliam were her 8 p.m. anchor team, and of the two, Shelley was by far the better ad-libber with breaking news.Megan strode briskly past the noisy assignment desk and the four large U-shaped communal writing pods where teams of writers, editors, and producers were preparing for upcoming new shows. She made a point of appearing oblivious to the eyes that glanced her way as she breezed through toward the control room, but she was well aware of the effect she had on her staff. No one had better appear to be idle when the vice president of news was around.As soon as she entered the dimly lit control room with its intimidating array of monitors and switchboards, the executive producer she’d just spoken to wordlessly vacated his chair so she could slip into it. There were two rows of seats in the futuristic control center, both facing a wall of monitors. The operations personnel who controlled the massive switchboards, a mind-boggling array of lighted buttons and switches, occupied the front row: audio operator, technical director, robotics camera operator, Chyron and graphics operator.In the second row, set on risers, were seats and computer terminals for the producer, executive producer, and director. The wall behind them was made of glass. On the other side was the studio, with its wide mahogany anchor desk and blue chroma-key wall for weather.Megan quickly scanned the Associated Press bulletin on the computer in front of her. It said only that a small plane had violated the no-fly zone and was approaching Camp David, and that the Air Force had dispatched two F-16 fighters to intercept it.“Two minutes out,” the director announced.Megan glanced at the monitors to make sure the other networks hadn’t beaten them to air with the story, then swiveled around in her chair to see her anchor just entering the studio.She punched the button that would key her mike to the studio speakers. “Less than two minutes, Shelley,” she informed the anchor. “Get your IFB in so I can brief you.”The anchor took her seat and fumbled for her earpiece. The interruptible feedback system allowed on-air talent to hear both program sound and instructions from the control room.Megan, meanwhile, keyed her mike to a small speaker on the assignment desk. “Nick, do we have confirmation?”The disembodied voice of the evening desk manager answered, “Yes, but nothing beyond what AP has.”“What about a live shot?” she asked.“From the Pentagon, roughly ten minutes away,” he answered.“One minute out,” the director announced. “Camera two, tight on Shelley.”Megan keyed her mike to the anchor’s IFB. “Another small plane has entered the restricted air space around the nation’s capitol,” she told Shelley, glancing at the monitor where the anchor’s image was being framed up and brought into focus. “This one is approaching Camp David, where the president is spending the weekend. Two F-16 fighters have been sent to intercept. We’ll have a live shot from the Pentagon shortly.”The anchor nodded and began jotting down the information.“Thirty seconds,” the director said. “Coming back on camera two.”“Since nine-eleven, hundreds of small planes have violated Washington’s restricted air space,” Megan spoke quickly into the anchor’s IFB. “Such incidents have become so routine that most go unreported. Four, however, have forced evacuations of lawmakers and others, the most recent of which was just two weeks ago, on April 18th. The so-called Air Defense Identification Zone comprises some two thousand square miles around the three D.C. area airports.”“Ten seconds,” the director announced. “Ready camera two. Shelley’s mike.”“Toss back to sports when you’re done,” Megan told the anchor as the floor director counted down the seconds.The cut-in went smoothly, the anchor reciting the information Megan had fed to her as effortlessly as if it had been typed on the teleprompter.They met two minutes later in the hallway outside the control room.“Nice job,” Megan said. “You should stick close. That live shot should be up soon.”“You know, it never ceases to amaze me,” Shelley responded, as she plucked a dark brown hair from the front of her taupe designer suit with a frown.“What does?”“How you can recite off the top of your head the background information on just about any story that crosses the wires. Names. Dates. Places. Context. And you’re never wrong.”Megan shrugged. “I’ve always had a pretty good memory.”“Phenomenal is more like it. I bet you can recite the names of every teacher you ever had, can’t you?” Shelley studied Megan’s face, clearly awaiting a response.She considered the question a moment. “Honestly? I could probably name every classmate, too, if I had to.”“We really should do a story on you.”“No, what we really should do is get back to work. You have a newscast to prep for.” She started to leave, but Shelley’s voice stopped her in her tracks.“By the way…” The anchor was looking at her with an impish smile and a sparkle in her pale blue eyes, like a child with a secret. “You…have some ink…” She pointed to Megan’s right cheek.“Ink?” Megan touched two fingers to her face as though she could feel the mark. “Is it bad?” She glanced around for a reflective surface: glass, chrome. Nothing.“You have a blue Sharpie…” Shelley drew a short jagged streak in the air with a perfectly manicured index finger. “Kind of like that Harry Potter—Lord Valdemort scar thingie.”“Sharpie?” Megan asked, aghast. “I haven’t had a Sharpie in my hand since…” She trailed off as she focused inward, remembering. Since my department head meeting. She knew immediately what had happened. She had nearly fallen asleep listening to the head of the sales department drone on and on about the latest ad revenues. Had sat at the conference table with her hand propped against her cheek, fighting back a yawn. Taking notes. Oh, crap. That meeting was at four and it’s after seven.“Since…?” Shelley’s voice interrupted her mental recounting of everywhere she’d been and everyone she’d seen in the intervening hours.“Never mind,” she grumbled, but she felt her expression soften when she looked at the anchor. “Thanks, Shelley.”“Don’t mention it.”She took the long way back to her office to avoid the newsroom and to make a stop in the expansive ladies’ lounge adjacent to the bookings unit. Designed for visiting celebrity guests, it was the nicest of the restrooms on the floor, and, best of all, it was deserted at this hour.The faint floral scent of hair spray assaulted her nostrils as she flicked on the lights and headed toward the long mirror where the hair and makeup artists worked. Her green eyes narrowed as she winced at her reflection. In addition to the three-inch-long jagged Sharpie tattoo, her normally impeccable façade was marred by an errant blond strand of hair that stood straight out of the side of her head.“And no one bothered to tell me,” she griped aloud. No one dared tell me. Grace had already gone home. Her assistant certainly would have told her how foolish she looked. And maybe a handful of others.The fact irritated her greatly. When she’d moved up the corporate ladder and starting making six figures, she began spending a good bit of money on her appearance, and as with everything else in her life, she paid attention to the details. Nice jewelry. Understated makeup. A $400 salon stop every five weeks for a trim from Ritchie and a touch-up to the blond highlights she added to her straight, shoulder-length medium brown hair. A pedicure, manicure, and massage twice a month. A designer wardrobe of suits—twenty-four in all—size eight, except the pants always needed to be shortened slightly to fit her five foot six height because she refused to wear heels.Not a single person said anything. Megan had learned to have a thick skin in her position, but it rankled to think that no one cared enough about her personally to spare her the embarrassment. At least no one you ran across in the last couple of hours, she tried to console herself. Whose fault is that? The question came and went like a whisper. She didn’t dwell on such things.It took a large dollop of cold cream, a couple of squirts of liquid soap, and vigorous scrubbing to erase the marking pen. Her cheek was beet red, like someone had slapped her, but that would pass. A spritz of hair spray tamed the unruly tuft of hair, and she felt almost presentable again. Not too shabby. Back to business.A loud groan escaped her lips when she opened her office door. The chaos awaiting her was far worse than she’d expected. Her massive oak desk was piled high with anchor audition tapes, employee contracts awaiting her signature, the latest ratings, reports from her department heads, and a vast number of other scripts, tapes, documents, and letters. Great. Just great. I’ll be lucky to get out of here by midnight.She slipped off her shoes and sank into her high-backed leather chair, automatically reaching for her remote to turn on the six monitors set into the opposite wall. The one tuned to WNC she left barely audible; those showing the competition were muted.It was only then that she noticed a space carefully cleared in the center of her desk so that her eyes would be drawn to the travel brochure placed there, isolated from the bedlam surrounding it—an enticing island in a hostile sea of paperwork. A yellow Post-it note on top relayed a message penned in the familiar backhand slant of her best friend Justine Bernard, a reporter with WNC.Give it up, already. You are coming along.I’m going to nag you until you do.Megan smiled for the first time that day. Justine was so damn persistent. But that is why you’re such a good reporter. Never take no for an answer.She started to toss the brochure into the trash, but stopped herself when she caught the picture on the back. It was breathtaking, a wide-angle photo of an endless caribou herd, tens of thousands of animals, set amidst a landscape of snow-topped mountains and lush, vibrant green valleys. She turned the brochure over and pulled off the Post-it note, revealing the words Discover Alaska, Land of Endless Adventures. Surrounding the header was a collage of happy tourists enjoying all the possibilities: dogsledding, whitewater kayaking and rafting, backpacking, fishing, whale watching.Opening the brochure, she saw that Justine had circled the trip she’d been chattering about for the last several days. Kayak the remote and scenic Odakonya River as it cuts through canyons in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and journeys across the coastal plain to the sea. Witness the magnificent spectacle of the annual migration of the Porcupine caribou herd. Fish for Arctic char and grayling. Explore the grandeur of the last great American frontier. An unforgettable experience that will change your life.There was a quote from Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas about the refuge that read, “This is the place for man turned scientist and explorer; poet and artist. Here he can experience a new reverence for life that is outside his own and yet a vital and joyous part of it.”Those are some pretty hefty promises. She had to admit they really were striking photographs. And as a child, she had dreamed about traveling through an untamed wilderness, like the early explorers she had read about. But that had been too many years ago, and she’d long since given up her childhood fantasies. And her only real experience with the out-of-doors had been a nightmare. Besides, there’s no way in the world this place could get along without me for two whole weeks. Even one week would be disastrous.	183453