Sorry that you feel that way...

I have requested that the moderators make a post verifying your post if that makes any difference.

Or if you wish you could email me (Google my forum name and you'll find the address) or indeed drop into the chat room.

Having (as I have said too many times) hung around writing forums, I have seen forums fold because of false claims of idenity. I've also witnessed real people ending up being validated by the moderators or known members.

Some one asked about Howard Baker. So better late than never I'll try to reply.
To be honest of you'd asked me a year ago I'd have also said:"Who?" But I saw a university drama group do Claw. Very badly as most uni productions are but they do have money to mount their plays in pro theatres and decent amateur ones.
I was impressed by the play if not the atrocious acting and appauling production values. So whilst having a drink in the bar it became obvious to me that the director had walked in and was sounding off about his production. So I asked him about Howard Baker. Not one to lose an opportunity of impressing his friends he sounded off for about ten minutes on Baker and his achievements.
A couple of days later I managed to get the first of a collection of Baker's plays and it really was a revelation to me.
This was no new playwright, Claw had been written in 1975 and during the last thirty years Baker has continued to write more than thirty plays. Most of them published in Calder Boyars five volumes, a sixth was promised but the publisher has put it on hold. In fact I think the company has now been taken over. And no I'm not thinking of Methuen.
The problem is productions in the UK of Baker are rare though he is popular abroad. He's worth trying to get hold of though. You may be pleasantly surprised.

His name is Howard Barker, not Baker. 'Scenes From an Execution' especially recommended.

And with that.....

Thanks for the correction.
It's late and the whiskey gets to you
at this time of night.
Sincere thanks.

quote:

Ok. That's enough. You are unconvinceable, and consequently unhelpable.

PhilStein

Why is my friend unconvinceable? What have you said or done to convince him of anything? We, at least, have excellent circumstantial and tangible evidence to support the contention that you are a liar. What have you given us to convince us that you are anything but?

Why do you run from the debate? Were I to be he you claim to be, I should be highly offended and would certainly seek to prove my bone fides - and would have the position so to do. Why do you not do so?

quote:

Wow, Admansterama, I leave the forum for two days and I come back to apocalyptic messages of the end of the forum. Don't leave me now! Had a strange meeting with a real theatre producer. Maybe there is hope!

I want everyone on this forum to get their plays out there and end on a happy note. Is that too much to ask? I would also like George W to resign and for there to be no more ASBOs and I would like more transparency in local government. And I would like an eleven carat canary yellow diamond ring. And I would like to solve the mystery of PS/NP before we all ride off into the sunset.

Anyone else have any final requests?

Umm...
any of the above, I guess, Swann.

Oh, I'd like my orange and lemon trees to fruit this year, I wheel them out of the conservatory whenever the sun shines; flowers, yes, fruit no.

Re: Neil or Notneil?

If this is an imposture, it's fallen rather flat.

Or a bored actor, surfing on his laptop in between camera set-ups?

I agree he would have to be mindnumbingly bored to log on here...
and after his initial reception, why would he return, again and again?

What has he gained?
What could any one gain by this?

But...
A lynch mob, even a virtual one, is not a pretty sight.
Sorry, Adman- Jays, I don't know if he is or if he isn't or really care either way; so I think I'll stay in the saloon with Swann.

On second thoughts; Lynch Mob is unacceptable and I withdraw it with apologies.

Substitute instead: the school-yard; a primary school with Adman and Jays gang hazing the new kid.

I repeat what harm has he done?

I've seen too many people driven off this forum- small wonder we're regarded as cliquey and unfriendly.

He actually comes across as an intelligent guy with a good knowledge of the theatre.

If someone impersonated me, my concern would be if it cost me anything tangible or he made me look or sound like an idiot!

The only person with a legitimate interest in this matter is Neil Pearson.

So, let's all chill and get back to what matters- for this, please see Swann's posting above.

Regards and respect to all who post in here,

Lewes.

I gave PhilStein no bad reception until s/he claimed to be Neil Pearson. I didn't 'haze the new kid', nor did Jay, until s/he made that claim. And, since then, all I've done is ask questions Lewes. And I thought that was part of what this Forum is about.

And as for 'what harm has he done' then, I agree, none; but PhilStein came on here to 'answer any questions you might have about the show'. Isn't it quite in order to seek the qualifications of an advisor before seeking their advice?

I don't see the problem.

If it's Neil Pearson, then he's an intelligent bloke, he should have known that appearing under an unofficial handle would cause suspicion, and even if he hadn't thought it through he could very easily have arranged an official presence afterwards anyway.

If it isn't, but s/he claims authority because of it, why should I engage him in any kind of dialogue, or engage in his? Or believe anything s/he has to offer?

If we all sit around saying 'hey, Neil, it's great that you're here', what would newbies think of us? Or would they believe 'Neil' because we seemingly do?

Fair enough, this is your position, and of course, I respect it.

What I would suggest, again with the greatest respect, is that we all keep a sense of proportion.

This is a a forum/chatroom, afterall, and as such quite inconsequential.

Logging on here; there is nothing to be gained or to be lost.

As for the good opinion (or lack of it) of anyone on here- "newbie" or regular- surely this would entirely spurious?

At any moment all could vanish; leaving us with what?

Time spent, nothing more.

So, why get exercised by anything or anyone on this forum?

quote:

Logging on here; there is nothing to be gained or to be lost.

Lewes, I agree with everything you say except the above.

I've gained a lot from this Forum; knowledge, ideas, many good online friends and one very good offline friend and co-writer, even the spur to change my work/life balance; almost none of which I could have gained if I'd been suspicious of the people here.

I just find the Phil thing irritating to be honest. And Lewes, you talk about him like such an innocent - being picked on. If you read his earlier posts he pretty much started by critising and patronising everyone and then (I think) tried to give his opinion credence by claiming he was Neil Pearson. Swann I think got the brunt of most of it.

Also, the only thing that seems to be perpetuating this topic is that you keep coming on here and steadfastly defending this person, convinced that it might actually be Neil Pearson. Other keep coming back with a number of reasons of why it can't possibly be him, and all we get back is "Well, what does it matter". Obviously you don't care being made a fool of (with all respect) - but that matters to others.

This is my last post about Phil Stein. No doubt he's been laughing his head off at how much of an argument he's managed to make on the forum. Most posts lately have been about him, and that's probably what he wanted from the beginning.

quote:

Logging on here; there is nothing to be gained or to be lost.

Anybody fancy hearing a cliché?

‘The pen is mightier than the sword.’ ‘Information is power.’

This is where I am forced to disagree with you, and over our year of online friendship, that causes me considerable discomfort.

Plus I really was hurt by the retracted ‘lynch-mob’ statement, that was not eased by its transference to ‘school-yard’ comment.

I shall endeavour to contextualise:

I started writing plays seven years ago – and I didn’t have the first idea what I was doing, other than reading the scripts that I was performing in (okay – it’s AmDram… But that isn’t the point here).

I wrote, directed and acted in my first full-length manuscript. I thought that was the end of it.

But the adjudicator of the final performance told me that (in his opinion) I had a marketable product, and that I should develop my skills.

I tried.

I used forums, I searched the net, I pitched to agents…

Then I landed an agent! The party we had that night!

But something in my gut told me that it was too easy – so I checked again. I then discovered that the ‘agent’ that I had landed was a scammer – if I had remained with him and listened to his BS, I would now be no closer to seeing my play on a shelf, or a production in any theatre, but at least £4,500 out of pocket.

People come to forums to learn – and they hone in on the people that know what they are talking about and the professionals in their industry.

I know not if PS is NP – but my greatest fear in this matter is not for myself, but for someone like me 7 years ago (and that may include one of the people that lurk here, but don’t have a forum ID and don’t comment).

Information is power – but when that information could be false, as we have allocated credibility to something that is not yet substantiated in fact… There lays the path to danger.

We now call it psychological operations. My parents call it propaganda.

And that is nothing more than one individual’s comments, driven by their goal, presented with unsubstantiated ‘facts’.

It is because of unsubstantiated comments and unverified professionals that companies like PublishAmercia (please do a search) are still in business and driving talent into debt and away from their goals.

Please tell me to return to the playground.

Ahem...
I don't think I'm defending anyone...
I'm only suggesting that we should try to be more positive, more friendly and tone down some of the aggression.

And perhaps discuss the theatre or other happier topics?

I honestly, don't know if PS is NP, nor do I really care one way or the other.

I'm not the one laying down rules as to who may log on here.

This is a forum a chatroom- full ,for the most part of chatter. And therefore of little or no importance.

As for making "friends" we know no more of each other than we know of "Philstein".
How many people on here, would one actually wish to meet in reality?

I recognize that some see this forum as something alltogether grander and more significant.

Towards the beginning of last December, I decided that I'd had quite enough of this forum and its denizens and took a break- many others did the same- to return with the start of the TV programme.

I think it's time I took another indefinite break.

Bye.

Obviously you're gone now, Lewes, so you won't even be reading this, will you?

I haven't been on this forum long, but when I did arrive everyone was more than welcoming and friendly, and although they made familiar digs at each other it's clear everyone respects what each other has to say.

My perception of you, since you started to post again, has been that you are far more aggressive and patronising than you give yourself credit for. You also obviously take this forum far more seriously than you claim we do with such a dramatic "I can't take this anymore, I'm taking a break from all you" departure.

Ultimately, posting here is fun. The little tiffs are fun. No rules have been laid down but questions HAVE been asked of posters, and then reasons for asking such questions have had to be defended. Maybe we don't have a right to know anything about any of the posters here - but why do you think so little of people WANTING to know.

Sorry for being all aggressive myself - forum dramatics just wind me up. It IS a shame you've decided not to post anymore, cause like most posters here you know your stuff. But then again, this forum is bound to be shut down soonish - especially since no one is even really talking about On The Third Day anymore. Incidentally, did you go and see it in the end?

Actually Mrs M, in slight defence of Lewes, he's probably one of the mildest-mannered of the 'old guard' who have now been here for over a year! But, as always, I think you make some good points.

Like I said on another thread; it's hot, it's been the end of a long road. As far as I'm concerned I'll chat to anyone about almost anything, and welcome them, so long as they are not antagonistic or claim authority under the guise of someone they are not (or, having done so, fail to validate such a claim)!

So long as the subject isn't football or tennis!

I know. To be fair it's silly of me to get so irritated by the whole thing. Here's hoping topics can return to more interesting things!

Yes, but the problem is, the more interesting things never get discussed.

I do see Lewes' point in his discomfort with the antics of the silverbacks but boys will be boys.

I just want to clarify with Adman et al - so that whole initial thread where I told PhilStein to be nice and he told me he was NP - that's all been taken off? Do you guys think I was too harsh on him?

Mrs. Rachie, I still don't believe I've read anything on here about your play. May I?

Swann - no, you weren't too harsh. As I recall (and yes, it's gone) the thread was initially fairly tongue-in-cheek on both sides and in other circumstances would have prompted an interesting debate. The only reason why it was deleted was because of the insubstantiated claim to fame!

What are 'the more interesting things' that we haven't discussed?

And silverbackanitis only reared its head after PhilStein claimed to be Neil Pearson and started popping off at people.

BTW - I'm still not sure whether 'silverbacks' is an insult or a compliment! But I must admit my children do indeed eat an inordinate amount of bananas...

Hey Swann - do you mean my play for TPTT, or just in general? I'm afraid I never entered the competition, which is why I've never really posted here until the TV show went to air. I had no desire whatsoever to have my rejection filmed and thus recorded for all time, and also believed that the winner would be given something of a poisoned chalice (which incidentally, I think Kate Betts got). But obviously being a writer the competition fascinated me and I couldn't wait to see the results.

quote:

Originally posted by TheAdMan:

BTW - I'm still not sure whether 'silverbacks' is an insult or a compliment! But I must admit my children do indeed eat an inordinate amount of bananas...

Ain't the English language grand?

quote:

Originally posted by mrs_rachie:
Hey Swann - do you mean my play for TPTT, or just in general? I'm afraid I never entered the competition, which is why I've never really posted here until the TV show went to air. I had no desire whatsoever to have my rejection filmed and thus recorded for all time, and also believed that the winner would be given something of a poisoned chalice (which incidentally, I think Kate Betts got). But obviously being a writer the competition fascinated me and I couldn't wait to see the results.

So what are you writing? Do you write plays? What are your plays about?

That's the kind of stuff I like to hear about, so I thought I'd ask.

Poison chalice? IS that the chalice from the palace? Mine is a flacon with a figure of a dragon. The chalice from the palace has the pellet with the poison. The flacon with the dragon has the brew that is true.

My undying respect for the person who i.d.'s that excerpt . . . anyone??

Try to have a happy Monday morning.

Swann

Darn you Swann! I've HEARD that chalice from the palace ditty and trying to remember where it's from is driving me crazy! For some reason I can visualise Danny Kaye saying it. Am I warm...?!