BlackJack Fairgrounds - Jericho Roadshow

Welcome to the September Blog Carnival, Jericho Roadshow Edition! This months theme is 'Jericho Minstrels: Fan Fiction, Videos, Poems and Songs'. And we have a lot of fun stuff to get to, all thanks to the passion of the fans who love their show, Jericho. Many thanks to all the creative Rangers out there who help keep the spirit of Jericho alive!

First off, Fan Fiction! Those of us familiar with fandoms in general know all about fan fiction. We have several Rangers who have put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and taken us on some fun journeys through their stories. KrzyKat has given us the adventures of The JLA Squad (Jericho Liberation Alliance), out saving Jake, and helping keep Jericho safe from mysterious strangers. Xtemeroswellia over on LiveJournal has a nice little Jake/Heather story called "Worth The Wait" for all those Jeather fans out there (very satisfying!), and another LJ fan, Revelininsanity, has written a story about Gail Green finding out about Jake being held captive and a peek into her life away from Jericho called "The Sun Moving". Fascinating. Jericho Fan Fiction, a site I must admit I didn't even know existed (much to my dismay... what kind of Ranger am I?), is chock full of stories for all you fan fiction junkies. Fantasy_cat has written a post-Bonnie-death piece with Stanley and Mimi called "Surprise You". Also, there is Stephensmat's response to the Songfic challenge over on Jericho Fan Fiction, a story about Eric and Mary's beginnings called "Eyes On Me". Stephensmat also has some Dale/Skylar fic to check out. Heck, there is plenty over there to keep you busy. Check it all out, you will be pleased, I'm sure.

A poem! Raycheetah has channelled his inner Shakespeare and regaled us with a sonnet to accompany flowers to Nina Tassler called "Transmission From Jericho", reminding her that we are still here, and still thinking of her. Lovely!

Video? Have we got videos for you! As most of you know, our Rangers are prolific video makers (just type 'Jericho' into the YouTube search and you'll see what I mean), and we have some great submissions this month.

Bombwatcher, maker of all those awesome siggies over on the CBS boards, has given us a video in tribute to all the great actors on Jericho called Some Gave All. Stanley and Mimi are the sweet subjects of Ldyoutlw's Between Your Heart and Mine. Xwarp has taken a silly look at our favorite deputies Jimmy and Bill with Cops In Jericho, and Ka4ist gives us Robert Hawkins: CBA(Certified Bad Ass), which is a hoot! And finally, Gwen has found these sweet vids of Pamela Reed (Mamma Green) reading the children's story "Stellaluna", Part One and Part Two. Very cute.


Larissa has started up a Jericho podcast! It's called Future Traditions, and she has various other Jericho related tidbits for you to chew on.

Maybei has pointed to the The Nut House over at Radio Free Jericho with some fun stuff going on, including a screencap story called Emily Bakes A Cake. A little gentle ribbing of our favorite blonde bombshell of Jericho. Also over at RFJ is a spiffy stationary design by Jojocat1 to use for sending your letters to CBS/Paramount, and they also have some fun Jericho e-cards to send to your friends for Halloween, or just because (including some of the motivators made by me!).


As you can see, we have a great depth of creative Rangers out there on the Internet, entertaining us with their stories and songs and pictures. I hope that this sample has inspired you to sit down at your own computer and share your love for Jericho with everyone!

Honestly people, if this face doesn't inspire you, I don't know what will!

Special thanks to Gwen over at Jericho-Kansas, Inc. for all her hard work and keeping the Blog Carnival going. Thank you so much for letting me host this month. It was my pleasure. October's edition of BlackJack Fairgrounds will be Cast and Crew interviews, and I know there is a great treasure chest full of them across the Internet. For info on past and future hosts, you can go here.

Black Jack Fairgrounds Blog Carnival

Far be it from me to turn down a reason to post a picture of Skeet (aka Jake Green in Jericho). Welcome to this week's Black Jack Fairgrounds. I am Erika, and I will be your host.

Those old crones Margie & Edna have posted a little something about where to watch Jericho, on a typically circuitous route, through the strawberry patch. Thanks ladies for pitching in!

Jane has renamed the Famous JerichoMonster blog to simply The Monster, commenting on all television, and the frustrating practices the networks employ to decide on our favorite shows fates. Here she comments on the latest Jericho fan nutty protest, shelling Nielsen with two palettes of nuts, protesting their antiquated ratings system. This latest protest was orchestrated by Jericho message board regular NorsU, and the effort has gotten some media attention as seen here and here. Jon over at El Noticiero de Alvarez Galloso has given his take on the annoying Nielsen system: Jericho’s Nutty Fans Protest Nielsen’s Ratings System. When will they learn, we will not go down quietly?


Also, the letter writing campaign to CBS Paramount continues. Info here and here for the two of you who may not have the addresses memorized by now (hee!).

Radio Free Jericho has got all kinds of fun stuff going on to keep the fans happy and motivated. Check out the silly Emily Bakes saga in the Nut House or hone your survival skills at the recently revamped Survival of the Fittest section to prepare for the next who-knows-what. Schumi's Useless Fact of the Day culls fascinating and funny tidbits from her very large brain, and Clare Carey, aka Mary Bailey, owner of Jericho's favorite watering hole, Bailey's, answers
fan questions here. Thanks, maybei, for helpfully pointing out the going's on over there.

Outlaw, one of our more creative Rangers, has started up his own online series that is a companion to the goings on in Jericho, called Grapevine, TX. He has posted his awesome trailer, along with another great promo by the equally creative Darthleland over on YouTube. Looking forward to seeing the show guys.


Jeritopia, chat room extraordinaire, is still hosting several weekly chats, including the Great Jericho ReWatch chat on Tuesdays, and the Monthly Birthday Bash, this month celebrating May birthdays on Sunday, May 18th at 9pm ET. Come on over and join the fun! No really! I was never a chat room type, but this place is loads of fun.

RubberPoultry has been keeping every one's spirits up with his graphic skillz, most recently with his Jericho Linen collection. He also just posted a quick note from Karim Zreik, giving us all hope that there is still some kind of life yet for Jericho.


Whew! Hows about that folks? The Jericho Rangers are a busy bunch. Thanks to all for submitting your stuff. Extra special thanks to Amy Vernon over at Remote Access for being such a great Jericho fan and for asking me to host this week. It was fun. And don't forget to keep your eye out for more Jericho goodness in the next few weeks, and here is where you can submit your posts!. Gwen over at Jericho-Kansas.com is our next host on May 29th. C'mon guys, give her some love!

Don't Say It's Over!

Is it really time to eulogize Jericho? I, for one, am not ready. So please excuse the randomness of this post, I am still working through the grieving process, and I'm not sure which stage I am actually working through yet.

Season Two as a whole: Wow! Given the truncated season, and the slashed budget and a shortened shooting schedule, they really gave us something to behold. Not only did they pick up and run with a compelling storyline, but they gave us action, thrills, tears and satisfying character growth. Jake grew up, Stanley was deeper and more layered than we had ever seen, Heather showed us her steely side, and even Stupid Ol' Eric grew a pair and showed us that he is Johnston's son after all.

The writers and producers gave us a tight, focused seven episodes, and had us on the edge of our seats for an hour every Tuesday night for almost two months. It was a great ride, and highly satisfying.

The impact of Jericho: This show had an enormous impact on me. If someone had told me a year ago that a TV show would lead me to a rousing SOS campaign, and introduce me to a great bunch of folks, I would have rolled my eyes and shook my head. As I've said before, I was a cynical bastard when it came to believing in people, but I have a new group of pals that are kind and thoughtful and actually do their best to help each other. Just like those crazy Jerichoians. Looking back, I shouldn't be that suprized that a show that touted loyalty, family, and stepping up when times are tough would attract exactly those kind of people. Schmaltzy and starry-eyed? Maybe. But really, I have met some awesome souls, and I don't care how cheezy it sounds, it is the truth, and I love it!

Why was no one watching this show??!!!!: Honestly, such a great show. My friends and I would shake our heads at the end of each episode of season two, knowing the ratings, and declare this statement time and time again. I understand the people who were scared off by the beginning of the first season, the show took some time to get its legs. But once things got rolling, it was smart and asked very interesting questions of how people react to great adversity. I am a fan of the history of our country. HBO is airing an excellent take on the American Revolution right now, putting David McCullough's awesome book 'John Adams' the TV as a lovely mini-series (no really, check it out, it's gooooood). After watching the first two installments, I thought to myself, Jericho has stolen some of these stories, and retold them in a modern and interesting way. Watching characters struggle with making the tough choices while doing their best to keep their humanity is good stuff. One of the only things that makes me truly happy, is the knowledge that people are still discovering this show, and most of them, no matter how cranky and fight-y they are about it at the beginning, eventually find themselves cheering and getting sucked in like the rest of us Nuts. That is most satisfying, indeed.

No, really, why weren't people watching this show?: Please take the Nielsen numbers with a big, fat, grain of salt. Because for some reason, this show appealed to the Internet types. Jericho has had good numbers on iTunes, Unbox and various other alternate viewing platforms. The numbers of streaming episodes on CBS.com were high. Two weeks ago or so, Jericho was #15 in the Top 20 of all shows DVRd (that's what my Entertainment Weekly told me!). So first of all, the numbers were generally higher than the old-fashioned, creaky Nielsen numbers would tell us.

But other than that, why didn't this show have higher 'live' numbers? I mostly blame CBS. The show was actually doing pretty well in its first season before a poorly-timed hiatus, and practically ignored return, against American Idol, killed the ratings. I know plenty of people who thought it had been cancelled, or who just plain forgot it was back on. And while the show got lots of press after the Nuts Campaign brought it back, and the bloggers made some noise when it returned, CBS waited much too long to air Season Two in a bleak, writer's strike induced wasteland. They promoted the shit out of it on their own network, but we didn't see ANY magazine covers, billboards, talk show visits or blitz of any kind trumpeting its return. If you weren't a regular viewer of CBS (kinda like me), you probably didn't know it was on.

Some are lamenting the viewing audience as a whole. Saying that your average TV viewer just wasn't interested. Hmmmm... I'm not buying that. One of the most complex, interesting, genre-busting shows on TV has a huge audience, and its name is Lost. That show has numbers that networks kill for. It has a passionate, loyal base, and is a complicated, conspiracy driven serial. I used to get mad at people comparing Lost to Jericho, but they do have some similarities, and somehow, ABC figured out how to not only market the show effectively, but engage that rabid fan base and expand upon it. Personally, I think the real problem, is that CBS was fat and happy as the ratings leader, and didn't have a stake in nurturing a newbie, no matter how promising it was. They already had all the money, while ABC was struggling when Lost came along, saw the gem they had, and busted their asses to make it work.

What's next?: There are still a lot of Jericho fans (me included), who aren't ready to give up hope. Many of the fan built message boards, and the CBS boards, are full of motivated, passionate fans throwing out any idea to try and save the show again, hoping something will stick. I love it. It makes me happy that so many are still moved by this show. I am getting out my snail mail to Paramount, letting them know that I will follow this show, and to give the producers the option to take the show somewhere else. Executive Producer Carol Barbee has said that she is shopping the show, and there is some interest out there. Maybe a long shot, but Jericho was all about hope, in my opinion, so I am on board. If you'd like to voice your opinion, send your cards and letters to:

CBS-Paramount Network Television

4024 Radford Ave.
Studio City, CA 91604

Final thoughts: It's always nice to have a show that you adore. I am lucky enough to have a few of them. But I am a TV junkie. It is always sad to have a show you adore not given its due. The years are littered with shows I loved that never got a chance. This is the first time I was engaged enough to participate in a SOS campaign. Glad I did. No matter what happens next, I have learned some stuff, I have seen some amazing acts of love because of this show, and I have the ability to always say, I was part of that. Yes, it's just a TV show. But it is also a bunch of people. The fans, the cast and crew, the bloggers, the cheerleaders. Even the people who hated the show, even the people who attacked my friends, all of them affected me, and many others, and being affected by anyone in this world is important and a great part of life. It helps you put a focus on what you want your life to be, and that should be an ever evolving thing. That is what I got from Jericho. Pretty cool, yo.

Just because I can, a little quick trip to the shallow end, because even though I like to think I am above all the fluff of the world, sometimes the shallow end makes us all feel better. Hee!

What's Goin' On

So, there are all kinds of things running through my head tonight. Many of them spurred on by, what else, television.

Tomorrow is the season premiere of Jericho. I am beyond excited. The past year has been a really interesting ride for me. I jumped on the SaveJericho train almost right from the beginning, and I have found a whole community of passionate and humble fans. They have encouraged me and commiserated with me, and I can truly say that I have made some new friends because of all of this. Everyone worked so hard to save the show, and then continued with great ideas for promoting and getting the word out. The fans voices have been loud and strong, and we have been rewarded with not only seven new episodes, but the pleasure of cast and crew members reaching out to us through message boards and chat rooms. It is a great feeling, and I can't wait for it all to start.

This weekend I spent watching Band of Brothers on The History Channel. This was a ten part mini-series originally shown on HBO back in 2001. I caught a few installments back then, but never really had a chance to see them all. This season, I became a fan of the show Life, which stars Damian Lewis, who also had a major role in BoB as Captain Dick Winters. Yes, I wanted to check it out because of him. Yes, he is one of my new TV boyfriends (what?), and he was great. But I gotta say, once I got rolling on this series, the thing that really stood out was the whole story. WWII is an amazing time in our history, and the story of Easy Company is remarkable. I can't really shake what I got from this show. And I spent a good chunk of today thinking of our soldiers over in Iraq and Afghanistan. How anyone who has been to war can come home and get on with some semblance of a normal life is beyond me. I have a deeper respect for anyone who has been in a combat situation. War is horrifying and numbing, and to run into the fire is nothing more than heroic. Forget the politics, forget the reason they are there, these kids deserve everything we can give them, both on the front, and here back at home.

Don't these two make a nice pair?

I am not shy in letting people know that I am a proud Democrat, and a fervent Hillary Clinton supporter. Not that I rhave anything against Barack Obama, but I feel like Ms. Clinton is the best choice. Regardless of how this all turns out, we will get a quality candidate. But I gotta say, I thought sexism was more dead than it really is. Day after day I see and hear things about Ms. Clinton that is insanely offensive to me. The misogyny that is running rampant in this camapign is intolerable, and the fact that no one with a big voice is up on a soapbox denouncing this is disheartening. Someone told me that she was talking to some female coworkers of hers about it, and they said, 'That's just the way it is, it's never gonna change.' I was agast to hear this. There is plenty to do about it, starting with just talking about it. It's pretty eye opening to someone like me, who on a day to day basis doesn't feel the sting of sexism, but now I realize that it is boiling under the surface, and it frustrates me.

Anyway, that is what's rolling around in my head today. Wonder what will be there next.

Jericho! ... And other TV stuff

Ladies and Gentlemen, Jericho returns February 12th at 10pm! We are all very very excited. I hope you all tune in and see what all the hub-bub was about. CBS still has all of season one streaming on their site, or you can Netflix or rent or even buy the season one DVDs (they're so pretty!). If you don't have that kind of time or patience, CBS made a nice little promo to help you catch up. And if you still need some motivation, check out the extended season two promo full of Jericho goodness! C'mon, that promo is hot! Please join us in seven episodes of post-apocalyptic fun.

Now, on to other TV stuff...

This season gave us some good TV. The new standouts for me were Journeyman, Life, Reaper, Chuck and Dirty Sexy Money.

I gave up on cop shows after Homicide: Life on the Street went off the air. But Life has given a new turn of the old hat procedurals with a detective exonerated from a life sentence who has taken on the notion of Zen while trying to track down the bastards who framed him. Another smart, character driven show that uses the LAPD as it's backdrop, and stars one of my new TV boyfriends, Damian Lewis, who makes his troubled, vengeance driven character interesting and compelling. The supporting cast is excellent, and we care about them way before we find out any of the details of the conspiracy that drives the plot. In reality, this is not a cop show, but a show about two people who have been to hell and back, and now in recovery, doing their best to choose good. I adore this show and was thrilled to hear that NBC gave it a full season pick-up even though the ratings were a bit shaky. If you have got some time on your hands, NBC has all 13 episodes streaming on its site.

And then there is the dark horse, Journeyman. A new take on the time travel idea that was compared to Quantum Leap (even by me at the beginning), but carved a very different path in its 13 episodes. This is one of those shows that would have surely been pulled if it hadn't been for the writer's strike, and while it passed its official renewal date, NBC has yet to make that cancellation official. I dare hope that this strike just may give it another chance. There is the now requisite SaveJourneyman campaign, and NBC has just released all 13 episodes on their website. It is a smart and thought provoking hour and I highly recommend you giving it a look (especially the later episodes), before it disappears forever. If nothing else, it has a kicky little theme song and an Actual Opening Credit sequence! You know I love that.

I must also mention 30 Rock here. I enjoyed all my favorite returning shows this season, but 30 Rock kicked up a notch or two and is, dare I say, the funniest sit-com on TV right now. Tina Fey has got some crazy, hilarious characters inhabiting this world, especially the much lauded Alec Baldwin as NBC Exec Jack Donaghy. A show that is well worth a half hour of your time every week.

And now for the ugly stuff, the writer's strike.

I have been having a hard time writing about this because I am so pro-union, and so anti-world-wide-conglomerate I was afraid that I would come off as a ranting loon. But just let me say this: the creative minds behind so many of my favorite shows should be getting money for their work. If the studios and networks are making money off of selling ads online, then so should the writers (and everyone else who worked on these projects). It seems so obvious, it makes these huge corporations look like greedy scum.

If you are still not sure what the writers are asking for, here's a video that explains it all. Then there are the execs, bragging about all the money they will make off the internet, while claiming to the writers they have no idea if the internet is feasible.

If you'd like to see what's going on with the strike, please go over to United Hollywood and look around. Thanks!

P.S. Before someone scolds me for linking to the network sites and encouraging people to stream episodes, let me say this: I am all for boycotting the sites as long as the writers aren't getting residuals for online content, but I adore some of these shows, and feel like if they get some activity online, maybe someone will notice that they are worth while and will keep them around. Does this conflict with what I just said about the money-grubbers? Yes, but we all know that the world isn't black and white, and this is my gray area.

Hooray For Our Side!

Well, that was fun!

After three weeks of nuts and emails and cards, CBS relented and gave us our show back, even if it is only on a trial basis. Fan-tastic!! (oh god, please ignore my silly pun...)

There is still much work to be done if we want to keep our show around, but now is the time to celebrate!

If you'd like to play catch up and see what all the fuss is about, you can check out all the episodes from season one on CBS.com!

Or, if watching TV on your computer isn't your thang, CBS will be re-running season one all summer long (starting July 6th at 9pm), and last, but not least, check out iTunes and buy yourself the season (DVDs available October 2nd, for all you 'extras' junkies).

Obviously, this is a show that I adore, and I think this summer is the perfect time to catch up and get ready for season two. Someone over on YouTube has already taken the first step, and cut together their own Season Two promo. Enjoy!

I've Become a Fangirl

"Heartbreaking!" "I'm DEVASTATED" ""WHAT??!!!" Just some of the comments I heard from my fellow fans of Jericho after learning the show was unceremoniously cancelled.

As some of you know, I have been a diligent watcher (and sometime participant) of the campaign to help save one of my favorite TV shows of this past season, Jericho. For the past couple of weeks, in my spare time at work (which there is plenty of, by the way), I have been watching the Jericho Rangers trying to save The Show. As of this posting, there have been over 34,000lbs of nuts sent to CBS in protest, we broke the 100,000 mark on the online petition, and over $10,000 has been raised to help the town of Greensburg, Kansas after being obliterated by a F5 tornado a couple of weeks ago. Pretty impressive for a show that one CBS Executive described as "losing steam" as a reason for cancellation.

Unfortunately for CBS, after promoting the show extensively online and making the show available on CBS.com for free, selling it on iTunes, and making it available on xBox and various cable On-Demand platforms, they forgot to count a large chunk of their audience. Now, that audience is rebelling. It's a beautiful thing.

For those of you who never watched Jericho, or for those who started and then lost track during the long hiatus (some even thinking it was cancelled way back in November), this is a show with tons of heart. Being a new show, it struggled creatively a bit in the middle of the season, but found it's footing soon after the hiatus was over, and ended strongly with the last four or five episodes. A show that may have scared some people who thought it was too depressing, considering it's post apocalyptic setting, became a testament to the strength of community
within that world.

After spending lots of time on the CBS boards, I have learned that not only did this show have lots of uncounted fans in this country, but in countries all over this world. There have been posts from people in Canada, Turkey, Israel, Brazil, France, England and many others. Not only that, but it turns out this was a show that a lot of families watched together. Posts from Mom's and Dad's who said this was the only time in the week when their teens would sit down with them and watch as a family. It's astounding to me that a show that can appeal to people from teenagers to baby boomers could be treated so poorly.

Some have brought up the idea that if this many people can rally for a TV show, what about rallying for things like politics or the environment? This is what I think. CBS, like all the other networks, are targeting the 18-49 year old demo, and it seems like they got a lot more of this demo than they knew of because of the online community. This is a group of people that have grown up feeling like they have no say, and nothing they do will make any kind of difference in the world. But what if, after an experience like this, they see that maybe when they join together for one cause, they CAN make a difference? Maybe this victory (and it is a victory, no matter what the outcome for the show), will inspire them to have faith in other parts of their lives. Something like this can change a lot of minds. The last Presidential election showed that the Internet had an influence and a voice, maybe this is the next step in people feeling like they do have some power in their world. What kind of world do you want?

Listen, this show has some interesting things to say. But don't get me wrong, Jericho is a pleasure to watch. It is full of action and intrigue, with some romance and just the right amount of laughter. From what I've seen, this show appeals to men and women across the board. You've got your family values, you've got your mysteries, you've got your action!sequences, and you've got SuperSkeet! How can anyone go wrong!

I don't know how many of you out there happened to watch Jericho. I hope that I have piqued the interest of some of you. If you have the time and the inclination, check out the pilot episode over on CBS.com: http://www.cbs.com/primetime/jericho/videos.php. C'mon! What else do you have to do tonight?

If you would like to donate to the Nuts protest to CBS, buy a t-shirt or mug, donate to Greensburg, KS, or just check out what all the hoopla is about, go here: http://www.nutsonline.com/jericho

You can sign the online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?09272006

Or visit the main rallying sites, where everyone is getting together to protest the cancellation of their beloved show, Jericho:http://www.jericholives.com/

http://www.jerichorallypoint.com/

http://jerichoboard.cbs.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?webtag=CBSMBJericho

Or just go to CBS and let them know that the viewing audience has changed, and everyone should be counted:http://www.cbs.com/info/user_services/fb_global_form.shtml

I've had a lot of fun with this. A lot of the cast members of the show have posted on the CBS boards to thank everyone for their support. It really is heartwarming to see everyone join together.

This is one of my favorite Save Jericho videos on YouTube right now (and I am too impatient to deal with embedding this video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8TJeOzCBX0&NR=1

Go on, join us! You know you want to!