"THE PHOENIX" TV series starring Judson Scott as Bennu

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Ye Admin
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Re: "THE PHONENIX" TV series starring Judson Scott as Bennu

Post by Ye Admin » Fri Apr 19, 2019 3:36 pm

The screen-used prop belongs to the gentleman who owns the DVD rights. This is his description.

"The chain is 24 or 25 inches long and has an off-center clasp near the top. I suspect that may have been where a "break loop" was inserted for the scene in "In Search Of Mira" where the chain breaks as the deputy pulls it off his neck - and then is whole again in the jail scene.

"It is 3 1/8 inches in diameter. I don't know what it weighs, but the frame is very thin, only 1/16th of an inch. It and the Phoenix are brass, but the Phoenix is much thicker and deeply detailed. It is beautiful!

"The backing, which we all assumed was some sort of metal with a white finish, isn't. There is a fabric with probably a thin water-resistant coating on the back. The "white" front is actually GREY, and it has its own special effect built in. When light strikes it full on, it is as you see it. But when light rays strike it at a low angle of incidence (to be technical) - for example, overhead light with it being vertical as it would be worn, as the angle changes it whitens until it is so bright white that it seems to have a faint glow. I do not understand the physics of this (and I have an MS in organic chemistry), but the grey finish is almost smooth, with no glittery bits or little beads like on a road sign."
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Re: "THE PHONENIX" TV series starring Judson Scott as Bennu

Post by aeon » Fri Apr 19, 2019 3:43 pm

The one I saw had the diamond in the outer circle right above the apex of the triangle. That's strange 6 or 7 years ago I read that there were people claiming they worked on the set and there was one original made of real gold. Wish I could find that website again.

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Re: "THE PHOENIX" TV series starring Judson Scott as Bennu

Post by Ye Admin » Fri Apr 19, 2019 10:28 pm

Strange, at some point in the thread it became "The Phonenix" in the subject line.

I don't remember making that mistake.

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Re: "THE PHOENIX" TV series starring Judson Scott as Bennu

Post by Ye Admin » Tue Apr 23, 2019 2:10 pm

For those who want to buy "THE PHONENIX" TV series on DVD, here's how to obtain the show's DVD set.
The Phoenix DVDs
Open Letter to fans of "The Phoenix" from Richard Kaplan:
Yes, it’s true. I’ve worked out all of the kinks as much as possible and sets of the 4 “The Phoenix” TV series episodes are now available. First, I have a few apologies, then further details.

1) Fans have had all sorts of fantasies about what I might do with the copyrights. So did I at first. However, about the only rights I have are to have my name on them and to make DVDs (NOT Blu-Ray; Mark [Carliner, producer of "The Phoenix"] was quite specific about that) for my fellow fans AT COST. That means at about a 10% loss, as I must pay residuals to the Writers, Actors, and Directors Guilds. That part I will absorb as a charitable contribution to my fellow fans.

2) This means that they can’t be been screened at conventions, put on line- not even screen captures - nor sold outside the US (except Canada, and I haven’t got the details about that worked out yet). Please do not disrespect the show, Judson, or all of the time, effort, and money - LOTS of money - I put into this project by making unauthorized duplicates (which would also deprive Judson of the residuals he receives from my sales, something I’m sure no Phoenix fan wishes to do), nor by disrespecting the great amount of love I also put into this. Nor do I wish to either make Mark regret the trust he gave me by allowing my name to be on the copyrights or get in legal trouble with the Guilds - nor have to take legal action against those who violate copyright.

3) Please understand that at first Mark wanted only to license the DVD rights at a truly sticker-shock price. Had I asked for ANY more rights he quite likely would have raised the price and I was already stretching my full budgeted amount. Then we would have had NO DVDs. (That he found the original TV series Medallion is actually what made the deal possible; I have hoped and fantasized and dreamed about it for many years. It was also very expensive, but not so much when I consider it my Work of Art, and one I can, on occasion, hang around my neck and not just on a wall. When I do it’s as awesome a feeling and as great an honor as you would expect.) The case art, by the way, shows the Medallion in full size and in its natural grey color. Somehow the coating has the ability to gather light and seems to brighten as the angles of source and viewer’s eye align until it does seem to gently flare brighter than the incoming light, something very hard for me to capture on camera.,p. The case and disk art are also copyrighted by me; I have given Diane permission to display them in her availability announcement if she chooses to do so.

4) If anybody wishes to negotiate for rights to distribute the series overseas or license the pilot for non-profit DVDs, he probably has a master magnetic tape for that, too, and it would be the full original length. I have a strong feeling that he does not wish ANY commercial use to be made of “The Phoenix”; if you wish to try to obtain licenses have your lawyer contact his. IF he’s agreeable, be prepared for the same sticker shock I had!

5) The quality of the DVDs is now almost perfect. There is a 2 second transfer flaw in episode 3 just past the 37 minute mark which puts several horizontal lines on the screen. That can’t be corrected. Unfortunately, the master magnetic tapes was surely made years after the shows were filmed and there had been some reddening, especially in episodes 1 and 4. I’m sure Mark was quite unaware of this - he surely would not have wanted “his baby” to be sold in other than the best possible condition and simply ran a set of master DVDs off for me as part of the sale. I got most of that color corrected, though you will still see traces on occasion. I did try to get this part of my costs refunded but could not so - UNfortunately, color correction is quite expensive (I used the company Mark said was the only one he felt he could trust) and so each set will cost $62 plus $12.65 for priority shipping in a flat-rate box, and that’s what I had to pay.

6) Ordering instructions. As I have said, the cost is what I am paying, $62 per set plus $12.65 priority mail. I have 96 sets for sale; they are serially numbered in order of receipt of order and signed on the back by me as copyright holder. Anybody wishing a short dedication may request one and I will try to accommodate you; the set for Judson will say “To Bennu, who brings hope, from all of his fans”, for I am making this set a gift from both me and the rest of the Phoenix fans. All of us would do this for him if we could; as only I can, I am the one doing it. The sets are already dedicated to him, the show, and all of us fans.

As I have only a vague idea of the demand please only order one set for now, and yes, additional sets can be made in a few weeks time if needed. Payment by postal money order strongly preferred, but I will accept personal checks and not delay shipment. Send payment to RICHARD KAPLAN 84 SHARON COURT METUCHEN, NJ 08840-1730, along with a filled out priority mailing label (my printing is bad and this will speed the process.) If you include an email contact address I will email you when the order is received and when it is shipped, along with the tracking number. It may take a little time to get the initial orders sent as I can only ship two a mailing day.

The timing is set as it is since he is scheduled to attend the Las Vegas Star Trek CreationCon convention. As of the latest update to the site on June 25 he will be in attendance on August 8. The fronts of the case art have a space for “autographs” - his, primarily - so any fans planning to attend may be able to get their sets signed by him. I would appreciate being emailed any comments (hopefully favorable) about the set. I do not have any social media accounts as a) I don’t like their privacy policies, b) they get hacked much too often, and c) I don’t have the time. I have serious to major collections in several fields (including, of course, Judson/The Phoenix; he was impressed enough to declare mine “the best collection of The Phoenix in the world when I met him over a decade ago and its grown massively since then), as well as being a ham radio operator. I just do not have time for social media. Comments, questions, discussions, etc can be sent to WB2CUT@AOL.com - I told you I was a ham.

As for that “Best in the world” collection, if anybody has I have almost all of the fanzines containing anything about Judson or The Phoenix except From Ash and Flame #1, “Potpourri (a 1989 one containing one The Phoenix), and “Alien Sushi Crossovers (1993, containing 1 The Phoenix), though there are undoubtedly others, mostly with Joachim that I’m unaware of; they turn up once or twice a year on average.

Having started later on this aspect, I still need a fair number of fan club newsletters, especially “Khan and Joachim”, “Phoenix Rising” (from “Phoenix Fans United”), “In The Wings” (from “Project Phoenix”), and “The Phoenix Flash”, (“Official Judson Scott Fan Club”); I have most of “Scott Express”, but not #2, and most of 1992, as well as a few others. Also membership cards, various things given away or sold by clubs, imitation Medallions (there are two sizes of the Intergalactic Trading Company one), Judson / The Phoenix t-shirts (all sizes), etc. Aside from the common one, I need almost all promo photos (originals with paper tags) from the pilot, though I’m pretty good on ones from the series. I need most programs from events Judson appeared at. It’s a specialized collection, like several other I have. All offers (if any) welcome, with price quote if possible.

7) The rest of this is directed to a subset of fans. There are many reasons to be a fan of the series. It was shown twice on national TV in the US, in Australia, presumably New Zealand, and, surprisingly, Thailand. When Judson first emailed me after returning from his October conventions, he said that he had “met many fans who expressed their undying love for Bennu and the hope for humanity he represents”. That statement requires some serious thought.

Of all of the people who ever watched any of the series, a small but not negligible percentage are changed by it, positively, permanently, and knowing that watching (or rewatching) the show are responsible. There are a number of Effects I have cataloged (and surely ones I am unaware of); their strength varies from Recipient to Recipient, presumably depending on need. One of the first was mentioned by Judson in an early fan magazine - that teenagers told him that they felt increased confidence in themselves. Another appeared a few times - fans saying that the show brought a sense of peace to them. This is part of what I term “Harmonization” - the increase in harmony within oneself, between oneself and others, and between oneself and Nature. The finding or increase in Spirituality is another Effect; the first one I felt, though not until I watched it for the first time since 1982 - on, amusingly enough, January 1, 2000. I was very confused; I have an MS in organic chemistry and had no need I was aware of for spiritual effects. It took a little while to begin to understand what was happening to me - and has continued to happen over the last 15 plus years. (Harmonization did not take place until early April of 2000, when I bought and started wearing a Gemini Press imitation Medallion, but that Effect was immediate and violently powerful.)

Note that the Spiritual Effect is separate from the fact that all Recipients are linked into a spiritual Community. This happens because The Phoenix was initially written by the Lawrences [the original writers of the pilot/concept for "The Phoenix"] with spirituality embedded in it and acted by Judson in accordance with the inherent spirituality. Thus all Recipients are linked that way to the series, and so through it to each other.

Then there is the “hope for humanity” part of the statement, which Judson seems to accept. Perhaps some Recipients who watch these DVDs will find the Effects strengthened in them. And, as the Effects are real, so too is this an Effect - that this Hope will increase in us and sweep us to “fully develop the powers of the human mind”. Perhaps not, but I will have tried my best to bring the Time of The Phoenix into being, and in any case will have done my best to bring Judson’s “little gem” that is so often in the forefront of his thoughts back to life by making available very good legally issued DVDs.

As for the mechanism of these Effects, apparently Judson put himself LITERALLY into the series, for apparently some of his qualities were absorbed by the Medallion, bound together with hope, and sent out into the world. The explanation, if any, of how this happens depends upon the beliefs of each Recipient and is in any case irrelevant. Only the Effects matter, and they do not discriminate as to race, religion (if any) “or any other division we use to separate us one from another”.
Originally posted in 2015 on Diane Mullen's THE PHOENIX/JUDSON SCOTT fan site.

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