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Anonymous writes...

Hello, Mr. Weisman! First off let me say that I think you and your
team vastly improved the world by creating Gargoyles! Also, I appologize
in advance if any of these questions have been asked before (I have been
unable to view the full archive).

1)If a gargoyle is killed at night, what happens to the body? Does it
turn to stone one last time, or just stay flesh?

2a)Since Angela and the other "eggs" were raised on Avalon by two
medieval humans, does this mean that they have been raised as Christians (even
very generally)?

2b) If so, what does Angela think about the more undefined "religion"
the other Gargoyles follow?

3a) Since Hudson has facial hair, but not the others, does this mean
they shave? ;)

3b) (kinda silly but...) Could female gargs have facial hair (beards
and sideburns and such)?

4) Approximately how many gargoyles (including clans we never saw
during the show) were there alive during the course of the show?

Greg responds...

1. Stays flesh, as long as flesh stays flesh.

2a. Sort of. Certainly, with a sense of Christian values.
But neither the Princess, the Magus or Tom were particularly devout.

2b. I think (or at least I like to think) that the Magus taught
them a bit of that. He had time to research Gargoyle society between
the Massacre and the death of King Kevin. And he knew the eggs would
hatch eventually. He'd have wanted to do right by Goliath's children.
So I think they were raised with a sense of their own true faith. It's
sort of a Christianized version, with a healthy pagan influence, but I
doubt that the fairly non-intrusive religion of the Manhattan Gargoyles
would have been shocking. Interesting questions.

3a. It might. It's also possible that facial hair doesn't
exist on certain gargoyles and that on others it doesn't start to grow
in until the gargoyle is much older.

3b. I doubt it. Throughout the animal kingdom, males have a
plumage thing going. But, you never know.

4. I've never counted.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

Hi Greg -- this may have been asked before, in various forms, but I
don't recall seeing it answered, so I thought I'd add you to the list of
screenwriters I've bugged.

I have wanted to write cartoons since I was about nine or ten and have
been writing assorted fiction two or three hours a day, ever day, since
sixth grade (I'm 22.) What specific advice would you have for somebody ready
and willing to produce a sample script?

I've been told to:

1.) Submit a correctly formatted sample script to agents -- which
leads to two questions -- A) What does a correctly formatted cartoon screenplay
LOOK like? I've taken a VERY unhelpful college screenwriting class -- got
an "B", learned the three act structure, and got a blank look and a "that's an
interesting career goal" when I asked the professor about cartoon
screenplays. And B) How does one find an agent knowledgeable in the
field? I have friends with "agents", and have heard enough horror stories to be
wary.

2.) I've also been told to move to LA -- which isn't going to happen
for health reasons (I have significant asthma and other serious health
problems -- smog can and has put me in the hospital) but *shrug* it's
only about seven hours from my house to Los Angeles. HOW important is it to
actually live in California? (I'm in Phoenix and have no intention of
leaving the perfectly good and interesting job I have now for a pipe
dream in Hollywood, at least not yet.)

3.) I've also been told to break into other writing fields first --
which is something I'm working on, without much luck so far. Do I have ANY hope
of getting a foot in a door without a resume of previously published
work?

4.) Finally, are there any books or other materials specifically aimed
at writing animated screenplays? One of my big questions is how much of
the action do I describe -- I know describing action in a live action
screenplay is a big No-No, but cartoons are a bit differant ... and nobody I've
been able to talk to knows the answer to this one. (I could cheerfully
follow the accepted protocols, if only I knew what they were!)

Greg responds...

1A. Get one. Write to a cartoon company for a show you're
interested in writing a spec script for and ask them to mail you copies
of a script. Some will say no, but if you send a polite letter complete
with a self-addressed stamped envelope, someone with a little free time
will eventually make a xerox for you and send it out.

1B. Get a job in animation, and you'll hear about agents. If
you get successful, the agent may even come to you. But agents rarely
get a new writer his or her first job.

2. It's extremely important. A well-known writer can live
anywhere. But even a well-known writer risks losing out on interesting
opportunities due to "out-of-sight-out-of-mind." Cary Bates doesn't
live in L.A., but I use him. But keep in mind that I've known him for
years. He and I were writing partners for years. He was one of the
groomsmen at my wedding. That is, he's an exception. He lives in
Northern California and can fly in at the drop of a hat. But people
forget about him. He knows it. It's a risk he runs cause he hates L.A.
(Me, I was born here, and I love this town.) Now, you. You are a new
writer. I don't know how the hell you break in while living in Phoenix.
You can't network, etc. I'm not saying it's impossible, but I don't
want to kid you either. You'd have to write a killer script (not just a
good one), fly in here often and still overcome the prejudice that you
don't live in town.

3. I don't think this matters as much. God knows a full resume
doesn't hurt. My comic book and teaching experience definitely helped
me get my first couple of jobs in animation. But there are other ways.
A lot of writers at Disney started out as comedians at the GROUNDLINGS
or the IMPROV, for example.

4. I teach a course on this subject. I'm teaching it again in
the fall of '98 (here in L.A.). It takes me ten weeks. So I'll never
be able to condense all that here for you now. So if you want to be
self-taught, get a lot of animation scripts. Then read and study them.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

It's cool that you take the time to answer our questions. :) I have
one; what are the real names of the various members of the Pack, aside from

Greg responds...

1. Dingo is Harry Monmouth. I haven't named Wolf, Jackal or
Hyena yet. Though I'd probably give Wolf a last name that was
reminscient of Hakon.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

-[a]-   In your vision of the Gargoyles Universe, what is the true
identity of the Bard of Avon?  i.e., do you side with the Stratfordians and say
Shakespeare's just _that_, or are you more of a Bacon/de Vere type of
guy?

-[b]-   Would Shakespeare have any connection (any at all) to the
Illuminati or Rosicrucians?

Greg responds...

a] Shakespeare is Shakespeare on any world, as far as I'm
concerned. I've never seen any even vaguely convincing evidence of the
other school. Nothing. This is on top of the fact that Shakespeare was
a minor celbrity in his day. It's like someone 100 years from now
saying that Neil Simon never wrote "The Odd Couple" or whatever.
Frankly, Simon isn't as big a celebrity to us today, as Shakespeare was
in his day. I don't think a secret that big could have been kept
secret. Ben Johnson (a man whose credits no one questions) was
Shakespeare's friend and competitor. Why would Johnson have put up with
a front man? In private and in public? Rubbish.

b] Perhaps.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

HI Greg. I just have a few "what if" and "do you think" type questions
for ya, so please bear with me.
Do you think Gargoyles would have done better in the ratings
department if it were a non-saga type show? (Where all the episodes aren't
interconnected, and if you miss one you can get completely lost in the story line. Of
course this would take away the whole point of the show, but I am just
asking) I am asking this because of a trend I am seeing with series. Take
Batman: TAS and Star Trek for example; these show are somewhat saga like, but
if you miss one or two episodes it really doesn't throw you off, and the
fandom of these shows is wider, but the fandom isn't very strong.
Now Take Gargoyles and another pure saga show like Babylon 5; the
fandom isn't diverse but the fans of it are VERY loyal to the show.
(Would you agree with me on those last 2 statements?)
Also speaking of Babylon 5, are you a fan of that show, or have you
ever watched it? Because (IMHO) that is defiantly one of the best written shows out
there and ever beats Gargoyles by a good factor.

Greg responds...

I watched the pilot to Babylon 5. I didn't care for it. Later
people told me the show was good. So I tried to watch an episode. And
appropos of your question, I couldn't make heads or tails of it. What I
saw didn't make me desperate to figure it all out. So is that a viewer
connection issue or a "Saga" issue? Maybe some of each. Was all this
an issue with Gargoyles? Undoubtedly, though I tried to make every
episode of Gargoyles somewhat accessable. Did I succeed? I don't know.
Up to a point, I'm sure I did. Up to a point from the other direction,
I'm sure I didn't. But at any rate, I made the show I wanted to make.
No regrets there.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

Hello Greg. Thank you for taking the time to help us. Here are some ?
that I would really be thankful if you answerd:

1) Is the Captain of the Guard one of Oberons children? If he isn't
then when Hakon asks him why did he betray his own kind, why did he answer
in such a serious manner that they're NOT his kind.

2) This is just my oppinion, but Yama and Brooklyn have some things in
common. They're both loyal to theire clans but somehow they betray
them to someone they thought they could trust. Brooklyn to Demona and Yama to
Taro. Could another thing they have in common be that Yama will (or already
is) the 2 in command in his clan?

3) Oberon became king when he got rid of Queen Mab (right?) so if
Merlin is Oberon's REAL child, could one day Merlin become King of Avalon?

4) You've said that, someday, Lex will find a mate. After that, how
many children would he and his mate have?

5) Before Lex finds the right girl, would he have shown any sings of
jealousy toward both his brother now that they all had a mate but not
him?

Greg responds...

1. No. The nobles of the castle were not his type. He didn't
like them. That wasn't meant to imply that the Captain wasn't human.
He was very human. Maybe too human.

2. I think Yama has more in common with Demona. In fact, I
viewed the BUSHIDO story as a modern-day retelling of AWAKENING, Parts
One and Two. It had a happier ending, but that was because Taro's goal
was decidedly more modern than Hakon and the Captain's.

3. I doubt it. Merlin's a halfbreed and a bastard. He's very
powerful by human standards, but not by Oberati standards. Besides, I
think Titania might have something to say about the choice. And I doubt
Merlin wants the job.

Do you realize what I've done? Let's say I ever get to do the
PENDRAGON spin-off in some format, someday. Arthur and Griff (and one
other) search for Merlin. O.K., no big surprise, they eventually find
him (after much trouble and tribulation). Then at some point in the
series our cast comes up against OBERON. Oberon takes out Arthur, Griff
and ... (ah, ah, I'm not telling now). He then turns to Merlin, who
says "What will you do now..." Long Pause. "...Father?" Dah dah dah.
Oh, my god. Oberon is Merlin's father. Of course, it makes such sense.
Maybe some of you guessed. But many of you have that wonderful feeling
of surprise. EXCEPT... ALL OF YOU ALREADY KNOW. Doesn't that suck?
Oh, well. Can't unring a bell.

4. I'm not saying right now.

5. Yes.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

Thanks for answering my questions:

#1) You said once that the current leader of the Illuminati was also
the founder. Does this mean that he is immortal??

#2) I think you said is name was Duval or something like that, is this
right(leader of the Illuminati)??

#3)If you were planning to do a DARK AGES spin-off, how would you deal
with the names thing??

#4) Brooklyn mentioned in one episode the play A MID-SUMMER NIGHT'S
DREAM(which is one of my favorites). Did Shakespeare know Puck, or
another member of Oberan's children??

#5)If the Pheonix Gate can take you anyplace you want as well as
anytime, how would Brooklyn cope with all the different languages in his TIMEDANCER adventures??

#6)Is there a place were I can find your "Master Plan" or did you just
send it to certain people??

Greg responds...

1. Pretty much. Doesn't mean he'll live forever.

2. Yeah. Duval. But it's one of many aliases.

3. I've answered this before. Check the archives.

4. I haven't decided. He did know Macbeth. But he didn't know
he knew Macbeth.

5. With difficulty. Real difficulty.

6. It's been posted a few places. You might check out
Castle.Net. Does that still exist? (Gore, feel free to add an addendum
here if you can answer this question. Heck, maybe you could just post
the Master Plan right here so that we can make it part of the archives
once and for all:
[THE MASTER PLAN -- for what it is worth.]

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

thanks for answering ever more questions.

#1) If gargoyle eggs take 10 years to hatch, and a female is only
fertile every 20 years, I take it that means that a gargoyles can have no
brothers are sisters unless they are 30 or 40 years older or they had a twin.
Would it be 30 or 40 years, I'm not very good in math??

#2) Did MacBeth or Demona ever have any feelings of compasion for one
another?? Did they at least regaurd each other as friends??

Greg responds...

1. If you're talking about biological brothers, it would be 20
years between siblings. (One egg every twenty years, means one
blood-sibling every twenty years. Get it?) But you guys are obsessing
about blood relations. A gargoyle would not regard a blood sibling as a
rookery brother or sister. They would simply be another older member of
the clan. Whereas, they'd be raised with thirty or so rookery siblings,
many of which they'd be close to for the rest of their lives. Brooklyn
may have had a blood-sibling who died in the massacre, but he was much
closer to his rookery siblings Broadway and Lexington, who survived.

2. I think during Macbeth's so-called Golden Age of rule after
the death of Duncan and before Canmore's return with the English, he and
Demona shared mutual respect and regard for each other. Some compassion
perhaps. Something that bordered on friendship, even if Demona didn't
admit it to herself or anyone.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

1)Would Brooklyn ever of visited New Olympus in his Timdancing
journeys??

2)If so, what time would he of visited them in??

3)Out of all your proposed spin-offs, which one came closets to being
put in production?? Second closest?? Third?? Not even close at all??

Greg responds...

1. Maybe.

2. Don't know.

3. Well, doing more Gargoyles actually happened: GOLIATH
CHRONICLES. So that would be #1. Second would have to be BAD GUYS,
which we developed extensively and did an animatic reel. Third would
probably be DARK AGES, which we did a short art pitch on and actually
pitched to CBS. Fourth, would probably be a tie between NEW OLYMPIANS,
which we did another art pitch on (for internal purposes) and PENDRAGON,
which I pitched verbally and internally and sparked some brief interest.
Sixth would be FUTURE TENSE, which CBS expressed a brief interest in.
Seventh would be TIMEDANCER, which I basically came up with too late in
the game. It was never seriously considered.

(GDW / 4-29-98)

Response recorded on April 29, 1998

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Anonymous writes...

I have a few questions I would like to ask:

1) We know that Demona and the Captain of the Guard worked together to
betray the Castle to the Vikings, but who came up with the idea in the
first place?

2) On a related note, we saw in City of Stone that Demona had the
opportunity to warn some of the clan about the Vikings- so why didn't
she? Surely she didn't really believe that one person (the Captain) would
be able to stop the entire Viking horde from destroying the clan. It seems to
me that she could have made up some story about overhearing the Captain
conspiring with another guard, adn warned the others to leave. After
all, gargoyles may protect, but I would think the gargoyles would have
realized that, with the Vikings attacking at dawn, there would be nothing the
clan could do to help and that it was necessary for them to flee.

3)We know that gargoyles do not formally acknowledge individual
parentage, but do they have some informal methods of keeping track of these
things? I ask this because it seems to me that, depending on the number of times
a female becomes fertile in her lifetime and the approximate age at
which the cycle begins, there could be the possibility of inbreeding among
gargoyles(I worked it out assuming that the cycle starts at the biological age of
20 and lasted for three breeding cycles, and found that there appeared to be
the possibility of uncles/aunts mating with their nieces/nephews, as well
as the chance for 1st cousins to breed).

Greg responds...

1. The captain.

2. She was a coward. Emotionally, she still is.

3. It's possible, but unlikely. It's also possible that
pheremones and a gargoyle sense of smell would reduce the likelihood of
biological incest.

(GDW / 4-28-98)

Response recorded on April 28, 1998


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