Summer Specials: Boyband Wallet Pix Exclusive Interview with Christy Marx Podcast Review DJ of the Month!
t and � M ’s y DJ J e� Joey Fatone th Gr�t wi
Summer mme 2022
We
y DaJnonrdan Mark
D N A B BOY E R FOLD ! CENT
COMMUNITY BIRTHDAYS: Community & Staff Birthdays........................................................................2
THAN K YOU ! Summer 2022
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Jaime aka DJ Lady J EDITORS Jaime aka DJ Lady J Sue aka DJ StickyAngel Erzsie aka DJ Lady Erzsie CONTRIBUTORS / WRITERS Erzsie aka DJ Lady Erzsie Sam aka DJ Sam Mac
PATRON OF THE MONTH: Celebrating a Special Patron ..................................3 STREET TEAM MEMBER OF THE MONTH: Celebrating a Special Street Team Member ...........3
FEATURED COLUMNS BOYBAND TRIVIA: Can you answer these questions .................................. 2 MOTIVATIONAL CORNER: “Vulnerability” with DJ StickyAngel ................................. 6
BOYBAND NEWS BOYBAND REVIEW: Quarterly Boyband news ........................ 12 BOYBAND HAPPENINGS: Exciting Boyband Happenings ................ 17
Lyssa aka DJ Spicy Kristen aka DJ Konfetti Jennifer aka DJ Jenny from the Block Victoria aka DJ V Debra aka DJ Loop D Loop Raven aka That Wahlbugres Chick DJ Psyberdoll Laura Wahlbonkers LAYOUT & DESIGN Shannon aka DJ JoeyMacFreak This is a product of
SUMMER SPECIALS WHY WE LOVE DANNY, JORDAN AND MARK: In honor of their birthdays ............................................................. 8 EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Christy Marx, creator of Jem and the Holograms ........................ 14
EXTRAS THOSE BOYS IN THE BAND: Special Centerfold ................................. 10 WALLET PIX: Exclusive NKA wallet pix ........................ 19
STATION NEWS FOLLOW US ON TWITER @NKAirplayRadio
2
DJ OF THE MONTH: NKA Staff Highlight .......................................................................................5
FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK @NKAirplayRadio
PODCAST REVIEW: Our podcasts review.....................................................................................7
FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM @NKAirplayRadio
NK AIRPLAY SCHEDULE: What’s on!...................................................................................................18
Birthdays
Happy Birthday to our NK Aiplay Community!
April
May
April 2 Arianna Moreno (DJ Spicy’s granddaughter)
April 16 Hope Moreno (DJ Spicy’s daughter)
May 1 Ashley Hornsby Mimi Michelle Nowlin
April 3 Lora Wright
April 17 Victoria (DJ V)
May 3 Amy Green
April 4 Susan (DJ Sticky Angel) April 5 Denise Leuken
April 19 NK Airplay Radio April 21 Kimberly Burton
April 7 Michelle Farnsworth Robin Smith
April 24 Dee Huston Jolene Torrentine
April 11 Nancy Dymeck Baloga
April 28 Angela Cartwright
April 12 Melissa Campbell
May 5 Jessica Stetson May 11 Danille Drummer
June May 21 Tommy Erickson
June 5 Mark Wahlberg
June 19 Michelle Farley
May 22 Jodi Schulman Jennifer Govern-Morrow Victoria Ahmed
June 9 Meredith Garvey
June 20 Ruth Ann Day Margaret Easter Somers
May 25 Michelle Wodtka Kevin Patrick O’Brien Rebecca Damon
May 14 Danny Wood Milli Daddato
May 26 Christel Green Michelle Toy Rhea Langlois Highsmith
May 16 Kevin McInvale
May 27 Angel Simpson
May 17 Jordan Knight Tara Dracup Mielo Christina Burke Honeycutt
May 28 Brandi Johnson
June 14 Monique West O’Connor June 15 Stephanie Mace June 17 Julie Homan June 18 Danielle Johnston
June 22 Laura-J Hinks June 26 Brenda Fleming June 30 Laura Halsey
May 30 Wren Nealon
Let’s put your boyband knowledge to the test! Trivia Have fun & remember - you never know when boyband trivia might come in handy!
1. On an episode of Big Time Rush, what was the name of the magazine that James was reading? It featured a former American Idol winner on the cover. 2. Which A1 song is the following lyric from: "Are you afraid of the dark?" 3. How many versions of "Back For Good" were recorded according to Gary Barlow? 4. Who is the youngest member of the group Dreamstreet? 5. Can you name the first song that was written by The Jonas Brothers?
1. Pop Tiger 2. Scared 3. 89 4. Jesse McCartney 5. Please Be Mine
3
Patron of the Month
Patron of The Month NK Airplay Radio would like to take the time to introduce and congratulate Lori Ann Bollary as our patron on the month.
Lori Ann Bollay, from Texas, whose hus‐ band was in the process of retiring from the Army. Lori served about a year and a half in the Na‐ tional Guard until she received a scoliosis diagnosis. Lori, along with her 4 kids, listens to NK Airplay while cleaning the house or do‐ ing other activities. When the family first started listening to the station together, Lori’s kids would get involved by re‐ questing songs from the NKOTB Christ‐ mas album as well as “Summertime”.
Lori discovered NK Airplay pre-COVID19, and a few months before Donnie’s interview with the station back in 2020. She started researching what the sta‐ tion was about and liked what she dis‐ covered. Lori likes to listen to the sta‐ tion in the daytime, especially to DJ Jenny and DJ Spicy. She also has a lot of respect for JBLOCK and what he does on the airwaves because of his time being at the station. Sometimes after she listens to a show on NK Airplay, Lori will look up a song
that she connected with or wants to lis‐ ten to more on Amazon Music and add it to her playlist. Lori has even caught several episodes of our podcasts, Boy‐ band Nation and I Remember When.
tion to become a Patrion if they can because she believes that every little bit always helps.
As far as her favorite NKOTB member, Lori was always a Jordan girl but then switched to Donnie because of his sur‐ prising change after the guys reunited in 2008. Recently, Lori was on an episode with her daughter on Danny After Dark on YouTube.
“Please stay strong. NK Airplay will be around in the long run. “
Along with NKOTB, Lori is also a fan of other boyband groups. Of all the groups, she highlights Backstreet Boys the most. She has been to at least one of their concerts. So why did Lori be‐ come Patreon of the month? She chose to support the station be‐ cause of its small busi‐ ness energy. She be‐ lieves in supporting any small businesses and encourages supporting them locally. She even encourages anyone who listens to the sta‐
Here is Lori’s message to the station:
She continued saying that the station has longevity, loyalty and the fan base that got It on the map. While competi‐ tion comes and goes, the station is go‐ ing to remain. She wants to listen as long as it is on the air. When telling others about NK Airplay, Lori has talked to moms in her circle. The theater moms she knows have heard about them a lot. She tells them that the sta‐ tion is “family-friendly”; there’s no negativity, and it’s a fun, feel-good station to listen to. The NK Airplay staff would like to thank Lori Bollay for her Pa‐ treon support.
Street Team Member of the Month If you would like to become a Patreon, please go to http://www.nkairplay.com and click on the “Become a Patron” link for more information.
Street Team Member of the Month Congratulations to Lyssa Moreno. She is the NK Air‐ play Radio Street Team Member of the quarter.
Lyssa started listening to the station right af‐ ter the Mix Tape Tour ended in 2019. She had seen a Facebook post and decided to tune in. She says, “I remember the first DJ I heard. It was DJ Lady J. She loved the variety of music, as well as the fact that there was a station that played New Kids on the Block. She was seri‐ ously hooked.” 4
When asked why she wanted to be a member of the Street Team, Lyssa said “I wanted to be a part of something that could help the station grow, and to spread the word.”
When asked who her favorite DJ is Lyssa said, “It's fair to say that I do not currently have a favorite DJ. I love listen‐ ing to each one, because each DJ has a different passion for what they do.” Lyssa’s favorite New Kid is Danny. She said “There are so many reasons why. Many notice his looks and automati‐ cally like Danny, but I consider myself a different type of Danny girl. I have pretty much been a Danny girl since the start. It was his beautiful smile and his eyes that drew me in. There were no muscles back then. Over the years, I loved how
talented he was, his great voice, his passion for Remember Betty, his hum‐ bleness, his sense of humor, his close‐ ness to his family, and how talented he is in the kitchen. I can keep going on and on!” Lyssa also likes other boybands too. She is a huge fan of Menudo (past and present. MDO), Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees, and Color Me Badd. If Lyssa could give a message to the fans, what would be? Lyssa responded by saying “The station has had its fair share of obstacles over the years, but that hasn’t stopped it from growing. Continue working hard because all the hard work and dedication is showing, and it makes you shine bright.”
DJ of the Month
DJ Name: DJ Jenny from the Block
Favorite Childhood Memory: Vacations to Disney world with my family
Birth Sign: Cancer Favorite Color: Hot Pink, Lime Green, and Purple Favorite Food: Italian and Mexican
Favorite Vacation Spot: Walt Disney World, New York City, or Italy Most Memorable Moment: Traveling across Italy while studying abroad
Favorite Snack: Ice Cream Favorite Book: Anything by Danielle Nicholas Sparks, or Stephen King
Steele,
Favorite Movie: Titanic and School Ties Favorite Singers: NKOTB, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, and Reba McEntire Favorite Songs: “Single” by NKOTB, “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls, “3am” by Matchbox Twenty Favorite TV Show: Blue Bloods, Big Brother, Party
of Five, Beverly Hills 90210, Melrose Place Favorite Actor(s): Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg, Tom Hanks, Robin Williams Favorite Actress: Meg Ryan, Drew Barrymore, Sandra Bullock
What are your best qualities? My sense of humor and my willingness to do anything for others What are your worst qualities? I'm shy, and I have social anxiety. I think I let those things stop me from approaching people and doing the things I want to do. What are your hobbies? Crafting, my work with NK Airplay, volunteering with underprivileged and special needs children, and reading Fun Facts: I’ve seen NKOTB 12 times as a group and also on solo tours. All the shows have been with my best friend of 40 years. I’ve also met Danny Wood and Joey Fatone. I grew up a Joey (McIntyre) girl, but Donnie stole my heart in 2008 after the reunion. Now I call myself a “Joe-Don” girl. 5
Motivational Corner
Vulnerability
Imagine that you are planning something (such as an event, vacation, etc.) when something big suddenly hap‐ pens in your life. It could be positive or negative: war, sickness, death of a loved one, money, a new job, a new move, etc. You feel lost and helpless. You feel as if you are the only one in the crowd dealing with these complexities. Your sleep patterns, means of communication, the way you do the things you always did have now changed. Maybe you feel kind of stuck. Maybe you hit a big mental block. What you thought was, is no longer. But you need to act, need to do something. Yet, you don’t know what it is. You are now feeling vulnerable. Too often, we tend to put up this shield, wear a mask, or put on a certain face because we feel that’s what we need to do to cover up our feelings. For women, this is espe‐ cially the case. We want to be perfect, no matter what. But guess what?
It’s ok to embrace your imperfections. It’s ok to release your honesty. It’s ok to take off the mask. It’s ok not to be ok. Sometimes we need to have that permission to express our thoughts. We need to hear personal stories so that we can be inspired enough to share them. As a result, not only does it feel like a release and a weight has been lifted off our shoulders, but those stories create miracles along the way. When I first did a presentation on this topic for a Business and Professional Women webinar event, I told the story about the stress of just planning my presentation. I went through the process of explaining how difficult it was to just not only think of the topic, but the process I went through to get to the final product. I even referenced au‐ 6
thor/speaker Brene’ Brown and businesswomen Barbara Cocoran as my inspirations. Then, as I got ready to host a Zoom event recently, I changed a few things and told the story of my mother and what I went through from her diag‐ nosis with Stage-4 Metastatic Breast Cancer until her death on March 12, 2022. No matter what you are going through, remember that you are not alone. From the mundane of creating a simple presen‐ tation to deep, emotional traumas. We have all been there.
So, you must be wondering, how does one maintain sanity? 1. 2. 3. 4.
Connect with a support system Write it out Get creative Make peace with oneself and the reality of the sit‐ uation
Those are just a few ideas. There are a lot more that can be added to list. But they are a good start in coming face-toface with vulnerability, as well as dealing with your sanity.
I hope that in reading this, something has resonated within you. We must remember that we need to be open and honest about who we are, as well as our situations. We need to express ourselves more, act, and not be afraid to feel and express that vulnerability we feel inside. Personal stories of any kind can make an impact from a social to a political level. They help show a human face, rather than saying what the problem is and then demand‐ ing a solution. They are also relatable, no matter how sim‐ ple or mundane they are. We all have a story. So now, I challenge you to release your vulnerability. If you feel stuck or uncomfortable, that’s ok. It’s a process. If you begin to take off the mask and reveal your true self, you are already making the first step.
For the next show, she asked listeners to look into her Boyband Spotify playlist. In another episode, she created two acrostic poems to spell out "DJ Konfetti Loves Boyband Nation" & “Happy Birthday NK Airplay Radio''. There was also the "International Boyband World Tour'' episode. For the last three episodes in of May, DJ Konfetti included a "Boyband Evolution Mixtape'' & a collection of hit boyband classic songs done as remixes.
Podcast Review Over the last two months, DJ Konfetti has done about 15 different episodes of Boyband Nation. Here are just some of the episodes:
The first episode was a collection of love ballads from many different boybands.
Tune in Tuesdays from 7 pm to 9 pm ET to hear Boyband Nation. Also feel free to come play "Guess the Boyband with DJ Konfetti". The game is on Twitter, where five different clues are posted and the listeners guess the boyband. Each week, it will be a different group. and The Tramp, Lisa Frank and the Trapper Keeper. April was also Dog Appreciation Month, so what better way to celebrate than to talk about Hollywood Hounds? April was also School Library Month, and we had a lot of fun remembering and talking about our favorite childhood books. In May, we aired their Star Wars episode, alongside two very special guests - Armando, who is That Wahlburgers Chick’s best friend, and DJ Loop D Loop’s son, AJ. Both are fans of the Star Wars Trilogy. Another episode that aired was all about those cute and cuddly Care Bears and episodes about Top Gun and ET.
April and May were two very exciting months for DJ Lady J and DJ Spicy, as they kept the nostalgic vibe going with their show, I Remember When. In April, they spoke about childhood memories such as, Strawberry Shortcake, Lady
Join DJ Lady J and DJ Spicy every Wednesday at 2 pm ET. You never know what kind of memories they will help you reminisce about. Missed the show at its regular time and day? Not to worry, you can catch the re-air on Sundays! May kept the excitement going with Amy talking about her love for *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys. Lisa chatted it up with us about the boys from LFO. Alan talked to us about what it’s like to be a male NKOTB fan. We also had an amazing interview with Chris and Adrian from Rattail, where they talked to us about all things NKOTB and gave us the details about their after party after the NKOTB concert in Sacramento. Oh My Boybahds! airs on Tuesdays at 3 pm ET. If you’d like to catch any of our past episodes, you can find them airing on our Spotify channel.
April and May were exciting months for the girls of Oh My Boybands! In April, we talked to an LFO fan named Elizabeth, an NKOTB fan named Amanda, and an OTown fan named Margaret, as well as catching up with Naomi from the Dope Nostalgia Podcast.
7
I love all his movies, but I think my favorites are Four Brothers, The Fighter, and Patriots Day. I just absolutely love everything about him. - Chrissy Mack
We
me e t actually I didn’t e walked right h him, but at the grand e m first by of the opening Wahlburgers. h Pittsburg le to take a b a s a w I him. picture of Minich - Me g h a n
y n n a D Jordan k r a M
Why We Love Danny, Jordan Mark
I h a ve Wahlberg never met My favori , but would lov Mark Home an te movies are Da e to! Mark's lod Four Brothers. ddy's family. A ve for God an I love about Mnother interestin d his g fact dealersh ark - he has a Wahlbergip in Columbus O car hio Chevrole t. - Paula B rierly
I love Danny because of his words of encouragement and dedication to all his fans. Just his smile can bring a lot of joy. He is also so handsome. - Danielle Drummer
I love h is smile and his sense of humor. H e also has a hu ge heart and will do anyth ing for h is family and his fa ns. - DJ Jenn
y from th
e Block
Every time rsistence. e p is h ve I lo rcise regbout his exe a ts e e tw e h d to work m motivate f imen, I a rogram. O my PhD p t lo A . harder on xy se nny is also y n a m course, Da so y wonder wh of times, I e that! Be se ’t n ca s n fa e r re e oth have th Danny, I e cause of closest I’v e t are th a th s d n ie fr ever had. Richmond - Erzsie De 8
f vie o e m o a n Jo b . it r o v a li My f is The Ita et him Mark’sve to me I’d lo day. some olo an Pa anie S h p e t -S
You know I st ar girl. I loved his ted out as a Jordan the time, Jord smile (and still do). At swoon. Unfortuan’s voice made me now have a he nately these days, I makes his fals aring impairment that et still find him se to unbearable. But I a Donnie girl. xy. However, I'm also
I love his on! determinati - Emily J. Buckner
- Maddie Mad
He's aweso actor. I love me, handsome, a importantly that he's a family m nd a great a , HE'S A W AHLBERG n, but most !!! - Jaime Ne lso
I think he’s a actor g re a t handso and m e . My fa very movie v now orite Unchar te d . never I ha is person met him ve him wh, but I have se in the age en I was aboen with Th of 13 at a cluut e Funk y Bunc b h. - Heath er Pow ell
rth n-to-ea w dow he is! I o h e v ble I lo and w hum and ho w thoughtful uch o m h how love is and ll the kind he cares about a he w ly o u h tr ve he f us also lo fans! I s so many o ! ts te e a e v ti tw o t m workou with his Wagner einhart - April R
falsetto beautiful how he , e il m s is I love h d dimples. I lovef the fans. voice, an rforming in front o enjoys pe Millonida - Jennifer
He’s always been so hot. He has aged like a fine wine. He’s also a great singer and dancer. I’ll be meeting him for the 1st time in July. - Carrie L Lewis
ison
He is m favorite y . - Berth
a Solis
e is Because h cial. e p s o s just - Sueann Colasanti
Because he's a great singer, and he has always been gorgeous. - Amy Greene
Where sense do I start? I lo dedicati of humor, ve his his not to mon to his fam does fo ention, everythily, and watch h r his fans! I ing he and to im perform o love to n voice.... listen to his a stage n o t ju st with Nmazing but with (“Dream Solo Wood, KOTB, a my play Away” just c s well. a me o n li s t a s I ty smile is to die fo pe this!) His he r....and g e when smirk.... ts th at .. .* s little w o be neg on*. It mentionlectful of me would friendsh some of the a not to becaus ips I have mazing e for him! of our mutu gained al love - Joy H obbs
has e h e e e ks s u a c h Be test c the cu world. in the is ifer Ell - Jenn
9
Boyband Centrefold
10
11
Which boy bands have been making the last few months be tter?
i Konfett J D h it w
Boyband Review
Jeff was r e d summ song calle e h t d a gs off released up teame n i h t o e r g t, h Kickin ns of 98° - pey. The g music artis , m " o y Timm aturing Po ith countr the Same t e ' w f n , i e "Lit" ollaborat g "A e son 022. c h t o t n p o 2 u l, 22nd, Kisse Brett d on April e releas
98° News:
New Kids on the Block News: On February 26th, New Kids on the Block released their single "Bring Back the Time" where they collaborated with Rick Astley, En Vogue, and Salt N' Pepa. April 23rd marked the 33rd NKOTB Day. The Mixtape Tour 2022 started on May 10th in Cincinnati, OH and goes until August 7th in Honolulu, HI. 12
Big Time Rush News:
Back in F GMA to ebruary, Big T im promote their ne e Rush appea Up." It w w re d o n a s The gro s officially rele ingle "Not Givin a up is h itting th sed on Februa g You their Fo e ry rever T our whic road this summ 25th. ru n s u n h starts er with til Augu st Ju D'Ameli o, in sele 20th with spec ne 23rd and ial gues cted citie t, Dixie s.
Backstreet Boys News: On February 23rd, the Backstreet Boys announced their DNA World Tour 2022. It kicked off with four shows: April 8th, April 9th, April 15th and April 16th. They were all at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, NV. The DNA World Tour started on June 4th and runs until November 6th, 2022. April 20th also marked 29 years since the group was first formed back in 1993. They marked this special day by releasing a YouTube documentary called "Making of the DNA Tour." 13
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW! with Lyssa: Hi, and welcome to the I Remember When interview series. This is Lisa, aka DJ Spicy and I'm with Jaime, aka DJ Lady J. We are with Christy Marx, the creator and writer of the Jem and the Holograms cartoon, along with some other major cartoon productions. We are so excited that you are with us today! Thank you for taking the time out of your day to do this with us. Christy: Well, hello there. Glad to talk you, as well. Exclusive Interview withtoChristy Marx Jaime: So, let's get right into it. How did you get started writing for animation? Christy: I actually was mostly interested in writing for comics, because I was a complete comics-obsessed kid from a very early age and would just read every single comic I could get my hands on. So, when I moved to Los Angeles, I had the good fortune to meet Roy Thomas. And through Roy Thomas, I got my break writing for comics. And so, I was a fanatic about anything involving Marvel Comics. So, I was very much in the Marvel Comics by that point. And because I was just breaking into writing for comics, I got to know a group of people in the Los Angeles area. There's an organization called CAPS (Comics Art Professional Society), which are people who write and draw and so forth for comics. We get together once a month and have meetings and socialize and so forth. And so, I got to know people. And one day one of those people said to me, “There's this studio called the Patty Freeling. They're doing a Fantastic Four show, and they're looking for people who know, Fantastic Four, or whatever. And so, I just cold-called and got a meeting with David dePatti, one of the heads of the studio. This is something that could never happen today, you understand. But, in those early days, it was possible to do something like this. So, I had this meeting with David dePatti and walked out with an assignment to write a Fantastic Four cartoon. It was how I got in it, and it was I got in via comics. It was sort of indirectly because I had never really thought about writing animation. I mean, it never crossed my mind that somebody like me could do animation. It was fairly new. Actually, writing animation had only just developed. So, I wasn't aware of it. What I cared about was the Fantastic Four. That led into writing for Spider Man, you know, which is like, awesome. So that's amazing. Jaime: Yeah. Wow, that's awesome! Lyssa: I remember The Fantastic Four growing up. I was a big fan of theirs. Christy: In this particular series, they didn't have the Human Torch in it. It was a very early series. So, this would have been around 1979 or so, I think. We couldn't use the Human Torch for a number of different reasons. So, they substituted this stupid, cute little robot. Lyssa: Wow. How long would you say it takes you from the concept to the finished product to create an episode? Christy: Actually, what happens is the story editor sets a deadline and you meet it. So, you know if they say they want an outline in a week, you do that. If they want a script in two weeks, you do that. And that's pretty common. Thatʼs kind of a tough turnaround. Of course, thinking about time, becoming familiar with the series, reading a Bible about the series, coming up with pitches, and having someone to approve the pitches. You know, there's obviously not that amount of time that's involved in it. But the actual writing time is determined by when the deadline is. 14
Creator of Jaime: So, what inspires you when creating a character or storyline? Christy: That's a really broad question because it depends on so many different factors. I mean, am I just free to completely come up with a character myself? Or it within the context of one that already exists? For example, some years back, I was writing Birds of Prey for DC Comics. And because it was a monthly book, I had to keep coming up with villains and opponents. So, you just kind of sit there and let your brain ramble until you come up with something. And then, I got to do a reboot of The Amethyst comic book. So, there I was working within the structure of an existing IP, at least roughly and IP, but because it was a reboot, I was free to kind of to reinvent the main characters and who the main characters were. In that case, I was just delving into the whole world that existed in the universe that these characters came from and coming up with some interesting mix of characters that would fit. I mean, you're always looking for good, strong, interesting lead characters. Then there's all the characters around them that contribute to the story. And then there's the characters that are in opposition to one another And all those things coming togethers should create a really lovely stew that is interesting to play in with your characters.
Jaime: Wow. I mean, it's got to be a fun thing. Because it's fun for us to watch! Christy: Oh, absolutely. I mean, you know, its writing these for me, at any rate, the supreme act of creativity where I follow the impulses of my demented brain and have fun with it. Yes. I created a comic and book series. Back around 1985. Right around the same time I was doing Jem, called The Sisterhood of Steel. That was 100% my creation. And it was it was inspired by things that I couldn't do with Red Sonia. I had been writing the Sonia stories for Roy Thomas. I was frustrated with the limitations of the character. So out of that frustration, and my desire to come up with an interesting approach to a more realistic set of warrior women. That was what inspired me to do the Sisterhood of Steel. So, there can be different inspirations that come from different directions for different reasons. Jaime: Oh, yeah. Neat! Lyssa: Wow, that's incredible! Are you currently working on any upcoming projects that maybe you can tell us a little bit about? Christy: That I can tell you about? Not yet. There are very strict rules of silence around some of these things. But yeah, it should be excitingwesome.
Jaime: We're looking forward to it. So, I'm a huge Jem fan. I've got the whole DVD series and everything. So, itʼs just huge for me. But my main question that I wanted to know is do you model, or did you model any of the Jem characters from someone you knew? Or was it a figment of your imagination? Christy: Well, in terms of who they were sort of modeled on physically, remember, I was working from the Hasbro toy line. So, we all had the dolls. In fact, one of the things I asked for right away, when I first started doing the development
was asking them to send me some pictures of the dolls because that visual look is in itself a very big inspiration for creating the character. I had to push and push and ask and ask and ask. And they finally sent me some Polaroids with of the prototypes of the dolls that were in development. I would have at least a little bit of something to work with from the visual appeal of these characters. They gave me a great deal of freedom. There were only a few basic elements that were laid out. Obviously, we knew that there was Jem and Jerrica. At first, they were called M., then Misty and Morgan. I mean, the name kept changing. Eventually, it became Jem and Jerrica. So, they laid out the fact that she's a rock star. And she's also this other person. Whoever this other person was, there was absolutely nothing you knew about this other person, except that she could change back and forth. They laid out that a doll called Kimber who was going to be a sister. Then, they laid out that she'd have this boyfriend named Rio. And obviously, she has Synergy that changes her identity. So, they gave me this basic plank of stuff to work with. And then from there, it was just a matter of okay, what is going to be a fun and interesting thing to do with these characters? It's about the music scene. How do I play the music scene into this? What is the basic theme going to be? Then, I just started playing around with just various ideas, drawing from a lot of stuff that was happening on MTV, obviously, because there were some big female stars at the time. But it wasn't like based on anyone particularly. It was just a part of the whole thing - the appeal of the times - that went into it. At first, it was only a 15-segment series of about six minutes each. It was an actual half-hour animation show when I first started doing the development. I knew that I needed to have a lot of elements to play with. And you know what? I just wanted to have fun with the characters. That's really what it gets down to – youʼve got the good girls. And then, there were the bad girls too - The Misfits. So, they are always fun to play these characters against one another. And then I came up with the whole idea of the love triangle. That really strengthened what was going on with the characters. And of course, you think about all your character interactions. You create your character. But that character doesn't just stand by itself. So you have to focus on what are the interactions going to be between all of these characters? That's what's going to carry your series. It isn't just about plot. It's about relationships. Jem especially, is about relationships. So that was a big part of it. Jaime: I liked her with Rio, but I don't know - there was something about Riot and The Stingers. But you know, holograms were fairly new at the time. So that was up and coming. I think that was pretty awesome, too. Christy: Yeah, and you may already know this piece of trivia because it's certainly been out there for a while. But when I had to come up with names for Jem and Jerrica and the rest of the characters that were in The Holograms, I went and obviously got research on The Holograms, because I wanted to try to get as much of the scientific or technological basis as I could. So, I just pulled the last names of the best-known researchers into Holograms and use their last names for my characters.
full of characters, vehicles, weapons, and other things that went into GI Joe. What they would do is say, “Okay, pitch us a story using this set of characters, these two vehicles, and these three weapons.” They had very specific things. Then, it was up to me to just go off and come up with a story that use those characters and come up with a setting that would allow them to use those particular vehicles. So that that was an interesting challenge. I really enjoyed doing that. With Jem, I was free to do whatever I wanted. It was just entirely up to me. That was my favorite thing right there. Of course, it was also having total creative freedom to come up with it every story I wanted to come up with. Today, it has been very common in my career. It's not unknown at all to have a story like Babylon Five, for example, where Joseph Lodzinski handed me a paragraph around what he wanted that story to be. And that it was up to me to come up with the with the entire script. But you know, he had his idea of what he wanted that episode to be about. And that happened on Captain Pounds Soldiers. The future was like that as well. So that that's not uncommon. It's fine to work that way. But I do really enjoy having the freedom to come up with whatever I want. Jaime: So, talking about Jem again, what was it like for you as the creator of the cartoon to see everything that came out from it – from the lunch boxes to DVDs? I know you already had the dolls at that time, but there was such an exposure to merchandise. How did that feel? Christy: Well, I you know, I had nothing to do with any of the merchandising. I never got any of the merchandising. I never even got a doll. Hasbro never gave me any dolls or anything. No, not at all. I mean, I wasn't even aware of 90% of the merchandising. I really had no idea what was going on. It's not like they were consulting the writers. So frankly, I mean, decades later, the internet connected me with the fans. They would say, “Oh, there were these coloring books and there was this View Master reel.” Jaime: The merchandise is so expensive now to try to get on eBay or anywhere. They are collector's items. And I know that you've been to Gen Con. How is that experience?
Christy: It's in Minneapolis in beginning of September this year. Jaime: Okay. I'm from little town Elberton, Georgia. So, it would be really hard to attend. That would be cool though. So do you attend them? Christy: Not every single one. I've been to many of them, usually when I'm invited to come as the guest of honor. In the past couple of years, we've had to do them virtually because of COVID. I won't do it this year. I don't know if I'll be doing anything virtual yet. Lyssa: So, what did you think about the Jem movie? Christy: Unfortunately, they strayed way, way, way too far away from what Jem actually was. And it wasn't even necessarily a bad movie. It just wasn't Jem – it was called Jem. But it was not true to the essence of Jem.
Jaime: Oh, I didn't actually didnʼt know that!. That is interesting. Thank you.
Jaime: Yeah. It wasn't a bad. But like you said, it's just the name Jem and maybe a few things.
Christy: So, Bennett was the name of one of these researchers. Just the last name Leaf, that from one became Shana. He = was one of the researchers of holographic technology.
Christy: It was kind of like a female Justin Bieber story. And there's nothing wrong with that. But don't slap the name Jem on it. I got to meet John Chu, the director. He got in touch with me. I ended up really liking John a lot. He came across as being quite sincere about what he was doing. He was actually trying to do the best he could with a tiny, tiny, tiny budget. You know, $5 million for a movie is just nothing. Within that structure, he was trying to do the best he could do, and he seemed to really genuinely care about what he was doing. So, I ended up really liking John a lot. Because I had that relationship with him, I ended up doing a cameo in the movie. So, I'm there at the end of the movie playing a character that I created: Lindsey Pierce.
Lyssa: Now, when writing, would you rather be given a storyline and have to create the characters to play it out, or be given character descriptions and have to come up with a storyline for them? Christy: On the latter, I would say that was actually how GI Joe worked. GI Joe, which had tons and tons of episodes, had a massive character Bible that was like a thick three-ring binder
15
Jaime: Now I have to go back and watch that! Christy: Oh, that was fun. You know, I got my start before I broke into working in television production. I was a production secretary - production assistant - whatever you want to call it. I've always loved production. I always loved being on set. So, I just enjoyed the hell out of it. Jaime: Oh, yeah. So, you've created many, many characters. Do you have a favorite one that you've created in general? Christy: Well, I mean, my favorite characters are obviously going to be my own. Lyssa: Yeah. Are there any obstacles you feel you as a female writer that you had to overcome working on shows that were primarily geared towards boys? Like GI Joe, for example, Christy: I think I got lucky. And I was working with good people; really some of the best people. I consequently never really ran up against any obstacles at all, to tell you the truth. I found a great deal of acceptance from the very beginning Boyband Happenings when I started working. Roy Thomas was completely open to having me work on a story for Conan, for example. And I had the greatest luck working with Steve Gerber on GI Joe, who was just an absolutely wonderful person. He became a very good friend of mine. Everybody seemed to really love the fact that a woman was writing this action-adventure stuff. So, no, I did not encounter many obstacles. I don't know if it's just because I've had a great deal of luck in my career, and I just happened to work with really good people who didn't give me any problems. I've only had one instance in my entire career that I can really straightforwardly call sexual harassment, which was fairly early in my career. But otherwise, I think I've been quite lucky. Jaime: Good! Not for the sexual harassment, but for it only being one instance. Christy: Part of it might just be that I am naturally a person that doesn't take any crap. have, in fact, been accused of being intimidating. And, and that's fine with me. I'm quite willing to be intimidating. Lyssa: You have to be a strong woman the way things are nowadays.
16
course, how animation is being done has evolved tremendously. I got to work on some of the early CG shows like Raiders of Cold War Planets. That was very cool, and very interesting. And, of course, what's wonderful now is that is that you have adult animation. It's not just, “Oh, we have to have a toy line in order to finance a show for kids.” Now, there's all kinds of animation. There's wonderful, radical experimental stuff. You've got all these other streaming channels and ways that you can put animation out there. It's just an explosion of creativity in what you can do with animation now. You have everything for kids, to teens, adults, to X rated, to whatever, and can be just so much more interesting and creative. You just have so many more outlets for it. It's just wonderful. I think this is probably going to be seen as a golden era for animation. Lyssa: Wow. Yeah. Now, what advice would you give to someone trying to break into the industry as an animation writer?
Christy: I would tell them to buy my book because I have a whole chapter in which I delve into the complexities of trying to break in. It's going to be a lot harder for someone now than it was when I started. So, I have a book that came out not too long ago. It's called Writing for Animation, Comics and Games. It covers all of the nuts and bolts of what you need to know about the animation format and all the do's and don'ts and lots of little tips and information on breaking in. I basically have to go through that whole chapter to try to get information across. Itʼs a lot harder now than it was when I was breaking in. It's much tougher. And you have to be prepared to just put a lot of work in upfront, do a lot of writing - write a lot of scripts, and just study the markets out there. Itʼs just gonna be a lot of work. I mean, any of these fields are going to be tough to break into now. Anything creative is tough to break into. And really, every person you ask will have a different story of how they did it. So, there's no one way of support. There's no one way to make it happen. You have to find your way to make it happen - networking, research, and doing the work (meaning writing the scripts). Thatʼs really what it gets down to. Jaime: Well, thank you for that. So go buy the books, folks – christymarx.com! Lyssa: Buy the books for sure. Oh, yeah,
Christy: Yeah, I don't know. Does that say that things have gotten worse? I just I don't know. Or it may be coming to light more. Maybe that's really what it is.
Christy: For sure. So, if you go to christymarx.com, you'll see the book there and there will be a link that will take you to the publisherʼs page. And so far, the publisher seems to have a better price break for the book than anywhere else that Iʼve found.
Jaime: So how has animation evolved for you as a writer over the years?
Jaime: Yes, we will have to check that out. What would you be doing if you hadn't gotten into writing?
Christy: How has it evolved in technical ways? When I started writing for GI Joe, Steve Gerber told me I had to get a computer. He would only work with people that had computers. And so, I literally had to go out, get a computer, learn to use a computer, and write with my computer almost overnight in order to get this job. But that was great, because Steve gave me very early grounding. I was way ahead of the curve in terms of working on computers. So, the technology by which we have done these things has advanced obviously, from using an electric typewriter to using the computer. It was a big jump for me. And the scripts themselves have evolved quite a lot. Like when we were writing for GI Joe, we were using a style that was (and I don't want to get too overly technical here) a style in which the scripts ended up having every single shot with a slug line called out so that the scripts were very long. They could be anywhere from 55 to 65 pages for a halfhour script. And gradually, it seems it has evolved into what I have been seeing now, which is something that's almost close to a live action script. So, you're still having to call out a lot of the shots and be very storyboard creative in the way you lay out a script. But they've been getting shorter and shorter, and moving them closer to something that's more like a live action script. So that part of animation has evolved. And of
Christy: Wow, who knows. When I when I was in college, I thought I was going to go into making jewelry. I was very much into making jewelry, I really wanted to learn about making jewelry, making stained glass - something artistic and creative like that. And I used to make what was called copper enamel jewelry. You take pieces of copper and you put them down in the glass powders and threads, or little chunks of glass or whatever, and create your pattern, design, decoration, whatever. Then, you put it into a little kiln and fuse it and come out with this beautiful glass piece work of art. So, I used to make that jewelry and sell it on the campus. I was very much into those kinds of creative endeavors. I mean, there's no telling what would have happened. But my original goal before I realized I wanted to write was some something in the creative arts. Jaime: You're just a very creative person. That's awesome. Lyssa: Thank you again, so much for taking the time out of your day to do this with us. It was definitely a great pleasure speaking with you. Christy: Well, thank you very much, as well!
DJ Je�y’s M�t and Gr�t with Joey Fatone On April 23, I had the pleasure of meeting one of my favorite non-NKOTB boy band members when I attended my first ever ComicCon in Indianapolis. I met Joey Fatone from *NSYNC! I have been an *NSYNC girl since the beginning of their career, and I couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Joey was super sweet and took the time to talk to all his fans. He even recorded a station ID for NK Airplay - we are super excited about that! This was one of the best days of my life. I’m so proud I got to do this and share a part of it with my NK Airplay family.
17
WALLET PIX NK Airplay Scedule
18
NK Airplay Radio Schedule NK Airplay Radio Schedule Sunday 11 am ET
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
DJ Jenny 11 am - 1 pm
DJ Spicy 11 am - 1 pm
DJ Jenny 11 am – 1 pm
DJ Spicy 11 am - 1 pm
DJ Jenny 11 am – 1 pm
Saturday AM Dance Loop 11 am – 2 pm
12 pm ET 1 pm ET
Oh My Boybands! Re-Air
Pinup 2 pmBoyband ET I Remember When Re-Air
Motivational Monday on the Loop 2 pm – 4 pm
3 pm ET
4 pm ET
I Remember When w/ DJ Spicy & DJ Lady J 2 pm – 3 pm
L*A*W’s Tha Planet 12 Podcast 2 pm – 4 pm
Oh My Boybands! w/ DJ Konfetti & DJ Loop D Loop 3 pm – 4 pm Boyband Nation Re-Air
5 pm ET 6 pm ET
7 pm ET
Interviews / Specials /
DJ Loop D Loop
Interviews / Specials /
Re-Airs
6 pm – 8 pm
Re-Airs
Interviews / Specials / Re-Airs
Boyband Nation w/ DJ Konfetti 7 pm – 9 pm
Remix the Block (with DJ StickyAngel) 7 pm – 9 pm
8 pm ET
9 pm ET
Interviews / Specials Re-Airs
DJ StickyAngel 7 pm - 9 pm
DJ V 8:30 pm – 10:30 pm Soft Rock w/ RO (Roger Ortega) 9 pm – 11 pm
JBLOCK 9 pm – 11 pm
19
