J Michael Straczynski
Joseph Michael Straczynski, commonly referred to as JMS for short, (born July 17, 1954) is an American writer/producer of television series, novels and comic books. He is most famous as the creator, executive producer and head writer for the science fiction TV series Babylon 5. Straczynski wrote most of the Babylon 5 episodes, notably an unbroken 59-episode run including all of the third and fourth seasons. The only reasons the streak did not last until the end of the series were a single Season 5 episode penned by famed comic book prose author Neil Gaiman, and one co-written with legendary science fiction writer Harlan Ellison.
Straczynski's professional name is J. Michael Straczynski, although informally he goes by "Joe". In print, and particularly on USENET, he is often referred to by his initials JMS.
Straczynski is a graduate of San Diego State University, having earned degrees in psychology and sociology (with minors in philosophy and literature). While at SDSU, he wrote prolifically for the student newspaper, at times penning so many articles that the paper was jokingly referred to as the "Daily Joe."
He is a friend and collaborator with speculative fiction author Harlan Ellison, a student and friend of Norman Corwin and an outspoken admirer of the work of Rod Serling.
Straczynski currently resides in the Los Angeles area with his wife, fellow writer Kathryn M. Drennan.
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Television
Straczynski's most famous television work is Babylon 5, a 1990s science fiction series concerning the development of humanity about 250 years in the future, and how it finds its place in the universe alongside various alien races. It is essentially a character-driven space opera which occurs on a space station and is also notable for its five year story arc and its pioneering, extensive use of CGI for its special effects.
Straczynski has also worked on the series Jake and the Fatman, Murder, She Wrote, Walker, Texas Ranger, The New Twilight Zone, Captain Power, The Real Ghostbusters, and is the creator of Crusade (an aborted sequel series to Babylon 5) and Jeremiah. He also wrote several episodes of the 1984/1985 season of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe. [1] (http://www.he-man.org/cartoon/episode_reviews/index.php?brandID=1)
Novels
Straczynski is the author of three horror novels - Othersyde, Demon Knight, and Tribulations - and two compilations of short stories, Tales from the New Twilight Zone and Straczynski Unplugged.
Comic books
Straczynski has been the writer for many comic books, including Midnight Nation (Top Cow Productions) and Rising Stars (Top Cow), both of which he created, and The Amazing Spider-Man (Marvel Comics). In 2003 he was hired by Marvel to reboot the Squadron Supreme characters in a new series entitled Supreme Power.
Upcoming Marvel comic book work includes a Doctor Strange miniseries detailing the character's origins, simply titled Strange.
Other work
Straczynski has also written the book The Complete Book of Scriptwriting, often used as a text in introductory screenwriting courses, and now in its third edition. In the book Straczynski cites Mignon McLaughlin: "Anyone can write. The trouble with writers is that they can't do anything else." Throughout the book it becomes clear that he perceives himself as one of these hopeless writers.
Trivia
- The asteroid 8379 Straczynski, discovered in 1992 at the Kitt Peak National Observatory, was named in honor of Straczynski.
- Straczynski appears in a cameo role as a technician in the final episode of Babylon 5.
External links
- JMSNews (http://www.jmsnews.com/), an exhaustive archive of Straczynski's online postings from 1991 to the present.
- City of Dreams (http://www.scifi.com/cityofdreams/), a series of 8 audio plays written by JMS and available free as streaming audio.
- J. Michael Straczynski (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0833089/) at the Internet Movie Database
eo:J. Michael STRACZYNSKI es:Joseph Michael Straczynski fr:Joe Michael Straczynski
Categories: Babylon 5 | Television writers | Television producers | Science fiction writers | Horror writers | California writers