Joss Whedon: The Biography Read online

  “I’d read the scripts in a restaurant …” Head, interview by the author.

  “I was looking for a guy whose life …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “This is completely different …” Head, interview by the author.

  “It has nothing to do …” Whedon, quoted in Head, interview by the author.

  “shy, clumsy, sensible …” Whedon, handwritten notes, in “Joss Whedon: From Buffy to the Bard” exhibit.

  her “own sort of shy quirkiness” … Whedon, director’s commentary, “Welcome to the Hellmouth.”

  “charming, decent looking …” Whedon, handwritten notes, in “Joss Whedon: From Buffy to the Bard” exhibit.

  a “ friendly but pointed” conversation … Daniels, Season Finale, 123.

  “They had absolutely no time …” Head, interview by the author.

  a “nightmare, [with] the worst crew …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “But the suits don’t get it …” Head, interview by the author.

  “ it would be like if somebody …” Solomon, interview by the author.

  “I don’t read the notes” … Ibid.

  “Hey, if this thing goes to series …” Whedon, quoted in Solomon, interview by the author.

  “They all just kind of fit …” Solomon, interview by the author.

  “I thought that he had captured …” Daniels, quoted in Sepinwall, The Revolution Was Televised.

  “The pilot was not great” … Ancier, quoted in Sepinwall, The Revolution Was Televised.

  “I think Buffy will do for The WB …” Daniels, quoted in Jacobs, “Interview with a Vampire Chronicler.”

  “part of the reason …” Regan, quoted in Whedon, interview in Making It with Riki Lindhome podcast.

  Regan “came into the room …” Whedon, interview in Making It with Riki Lindhome podcast.

  “OK, so she’s talking about how guys …” Hannigan, quoted in Perenson, “Leather on Willow.”

  “Willow is a good role model” … Hannigan, comments in 20th Century Fox Television, Buffy the Vampire Slayer international press kit.

  “I’m no more Buffy …” Gellar, interview by the author.

  8. Buffy Premieres

  “could go down as the creepiest show …” Everett, review of Profit.

  “It’s got feeling …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “David was more responsible …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “Joss remembered one line …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “Tell me your favorite horror movie …” Whedon, interview in “Joss Whedon on Buffy’s Legacy.”

  “controlling parents as Stepford …” Whedon, handwritten notes, in “Joss Whedon: From Buffy to the Bard” exhibit.

  “Oh! This show’s gonna be …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “I like my stuff to have an edge …” Ibid.

  “We learned early on …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “He knows what he wants when he sees it …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “The question then becomes …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “Joss reverse engineered …” Gordon, interview by the author.

  “When we’d break stories” … Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “We spent four or five hours …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “Well, here’s what it should look like” … Whedon, quoted in Batali, interview by the author.

  “The first year, it was like …” Whedon, quoted in Ken P., “An Interview with Joss Whedon.”

  “I did not cook at all …” Cole, interview by the author.

  “One of them is funny …” Whedon, quoted in “‘Avengers’ Director Joss Whedon,” CBS News.

  Joss had wanted to preface the story … Holder, Buffy: The Making of a Slayer, 21.

  “For each generation, there is only one slayer” … Buffy the Vampire Slayer premiere trailer, WB.

  “The following two-hour world premiere …” Ibid.

  “You know, we had our television tropes” … Whedon, interview by the author.

  “He’s atheist, but never seemed …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “We didn’t write that …” Ibid.

  “I’ll never forget …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  9. The Bronze

  “We were not a wealthy or respected show …” Solomon, interview by the author.

  “Part of Joss’s genius …” Head, interview by the author.

  “People who never watched Buffy …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “These are really, really smart people …” Cole, interview by the author.

  “So many of the people …” Buchanan, interview by the author.

  “It’s a place where, in order to really fit in …” Nielsen, quoted in Rachel Hyland, “The Bronze Age.”

  “I remember him frequently talking …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “I’d rather make a show …” Whedon, featurette commentary in “Buffy the Vampire Slayer: TV with Bite.”

  “Well, you have to go on …” Hannigan, quoted in Head, interview by the author.

  “And so I did” … Head, interview by the author.

  “Some Bronzers hated everything …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “Am interested in showing dreams …” Whedon, Buffy.com post, circa February 2, 1998.

  “It was always such a BIG DEAL …” Morris, interview by the author.

  “It was special that [Joss] …” Salomon, quoted in Tuszynski, “IRL (In Real Life): Breaking Down the Binary of Online Versus Offline Social Interaction.”

  “It was always lovely …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “I don’t think people realize …” Cole, interview by the author.

  10. The Buffy Way

  “It is a show …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “distinctive voices who can blend …” Whedon, interview in Joss Whedon: The Master at Play, DVD.

  “the person behind the words …” Ibid.

  “I got offered a job …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “a director doesn’t have to …” Whedon, quoted in Ken P., “An Interview with Joss Whedon.”

  “I don’t have to write …” Ibid.

  “The thing about fantasy …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “possibly the best” scene … Whedon, director’s commentary, “Innocence.”

  “harder edged” and “uglier” … Ibid.

  “You have to make sure …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “Not only were we making a movie …” Ibid.

  “This one’s a French farce! …” Ibid.

  “Joss’s shows are really …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “There was almost never a day …” Ibid.

  “Once, I’d worked a long time …” Ryan, interview by the author.

  “Behind all of the intelligence …” Gordon, interview by the author.

  “He would pace around the room …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “delightful, funny people …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “Sofas, easy chairs, etc….” Fury, interview by the author.

  “We had lots of toys …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “there were little magnetized ball bearings …” Ibid.

  “If he lies down on a table …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “But he wanted us to look …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “I think that is the great privilege …” Gordon, interview by the author.

  “Marti, we’ve read your script …” Whedon, quoted in Noxon, interview by the author.

  Joss said “Leprechauns” … Ibid.

  “I have never lived the leprechauns down …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “I go for the comic ones …” Whedon, interview in
The Write Environment, DVD.

  “I had just come off …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “That’s dumb” … Whedon, quoted in Gutierrez, interview by the author.

  “Joss was definitely …” Gutierrez, interview by the author.

  “Muji made a wonderful notebook …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “If I’m writing by pacing …” Ibid.

  “By the time he sits down …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “He basically taps his thumb …” Gutierrez, interview by the author.

  “Oh my God, he would do this thing …” Noxon, interview by the author.

  “He hates to rewrite” … Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “You could always tell …” Head, interview by the author.

  “I would get up at five …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “Can we make him smile …” Batali, interview by the author.

  “The Dear Leader of that cult …” Espenson, quoted in Bridges, “SerenityStuff Welcomes Jane Espenson.”

  “He sent us all out …” Ibid.

  11. Front-Page News

  “My first impression wasn’t …” Espenson, quoted in Vary, “Life Inside the Whedonverse.”

  “There was a lot of tension” … Whedon, quoted in Ken P., “An Interview with Joss Whedon.”

  “You just had to encourage actors …” Britt, interview by the author.

  “two kids who suspect …” Whedon, quoted in Hontz and Petrikin, “Whedon, Fox Vamping.”

  a comedy about someone who is kidnapped … Hontz and Petrikin, “Whedon, Fox Vamping.”

  “none of us turn out exactly …” Whedon, interview in Joss Whedon: The Master at Play, DVD.

  “It’s hard to ignore the idea …” Whedon, Buffy.com post, December 15, 1998.

  “On the inevitable subject …” Whedon, Buffy.com post, May 13, 1999.

  “if anything [violent] had happened …” Turell, quoted in “Buffy Breaks Out,” Entertainment Weekly.

  “Even Elvis Costello riffed …” “Buffy Breaks Out,” Entertainment Weekly.

  “OK, I’m having a Grateful Dead moment …” Whedon, quoted in Johnson, “Fans Sink Teeth into Bootlegged ‘Buffy.’”

  “hot water” with the WB … Whedon, Buffy.com post, June 19, 1999.

  “We are the people …” JenKatz, “Bootlegging Buffy.”

  “Joss had an old black Toyota …” Brendon, interview by the author.

  12. Growing Up: Angel

  “When Joss [brought up the idea] …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “David was a great guy …” Ibid.

  Joss was “blown away” … Whedon, interview in Joss Whedon: The Master at Play, DVD.

  “I frankly didn’t think …” Minear, interview by the author.

  “Marti Noxon, Jane Espenson …” Gordon, interview by the author.

  “Trust me. I don’t sing …” Ibid.

  “There were the freshmen” … Minear, interview by the author.

  “We wanted a much darker show …” Whedon, quoted in Havens, Joss Whedon, 101.

  “One time, Angel arrives too late …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “Buffy is always the underdog …” Whedon, quoted in Havens, Joss Whedon, 102.

  “Touched by an Equalizer” … Whedon, interview in Joss Whedon: The Master at Play, DVD.

  “turned it into another ensemble …” Ibid.

  “terrific, but troubled …” Greenwalt, interview by the author.

  “weird uncomfortableness” … Minear, interview by the author.

  “Well, when you wipe your ass …” Ibid.

  “There was sort of a high school …” Ibid.

  “I quit” … Ibid.

  “We’ve been here for months! …” Ibid.

  “Great” … Ibid.

  “That’s a really big show …” Greenwalt, quoted in Minear, interview by the author.

  “Because I wasn’t happy” … Minear, interview by the author.

  “I don’t even think …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “I had already fallen in love …” Denisof, interview by the author.

  “We just couldn’t figure it out …” Britt, interview by the author.

  “I ran into David Boreanaz …” Benz, interview by the author.

  “If you’re available …” Ibid.

  “Angel got very dark …” Minear, interview by the author.

  “When he talked about a story …” Ibid.

  “I had always had the belief …” Ryan, interview by the author.

  “Look, I’ve been lucky enough …” Minear, interview by the author.

  “I definitely want to get credit …” Whedon, quoted in Minear, interview by the author.

  “Let’s be honest …” Minear, interview by the author.

  “At the beginning of season one …” Ibid.

  “Absolutely, you should …” Whedon, quoted in Minear, interview by the author.

  he called Minear a “genius writer” … Whedon, quoted in Adalian, “‘Angel’ Writer Gets Fox Wings.”

  “That’s the thing …” Minear, interview by the author.

  13. A New Challenge: Silence

  “just get his coverage …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “remind people of what scared them …” Whedon, director’s commentary, “Hush.”

  “The Globolinks came …” Whedon, quoted in “Joss Whedon’s Plan to Monetize Internet Content,” Knowledge@Wharton.

  “genuinely disturbing imagery” … Murray, review of “Hush.”

  “a true tour de force …” Bianculli, TV Tonight, March 21, 2000.

  “in a medium in which producers …” Bianco, Critic’s Corner, December 14, 1999.

  “ ‘Hush’ … redefined what an episode …” Espenson, featurette commentary in “‘Hush’ Featurette.”

  conservative church groups told members … Tuszynski, “IRL (In Real Life): Breaking Down the Binary of Online Versus Offline Social Interaction.”

  the fans “heard from other people …” Paula “Polgara” Carlson, quoted in ibid.

  “LESBIAN TOASTER …” Whedon, Buffy.com posts, August 1, 2000.

  “Somewhere along the line” … “Missi,” quoted in Tuszynski, “IRL (In Real Life): Breaking Down the Binary of Online Versus Offline Social Interaction.”

  as the organizers established partnerships … Gatson and Zweerink, “Choosing Community: Rejecting Anonymity in Cyberspace.”

  “you could see the stars of the show …” “Leather Jacket,” quoted in Tuszynski, “IRL (In Real Life): Breaking Down the Binary of Online Versus Offline Social Interaction.”

  “I read the Parable …” Whedon and Fury, Buffy.com posts. May 17, 2000.

  “Joss came on …” Hein, quoted in Tuszynski, “IRL (In Real Life): Breaking Down the Binary of Online Versus Offline Social Interaction.”

  “There’s no other word …” Gellar, quoted in Pond, “Sarah Michelle Gellar’s New World Order.”

  “He was very upset …” Pruitt, interview in the Hellmouth, June 21, 2000.

  14. Shakespeare Fanboy

  “You can’t get upset …” Whedon, quoted in Minear, interview by the author.

  “What we decided to do …” Minear, quoted in Gross, “ANGEL: Writer-Producer on directing ‘Darla.’”

  “You know what we should do? …” Whedon, interview by the author.

  “It’s hilarious …” Whedon, quoted in Ken P., “An Interview with Joss Whedon.”

  “I think Shakespeare works …” Ibid.

  “No one cares. Just come …” Whedon, quoted in Head, interview by the author.

  “James had always had a real thing …” Head, interview by the author.

  “I waited, waited” … Whedon, interview by the author.

  “He found nuances in it …” Head, interview by the author.

  “When you’re in a couple …” C
ole, interview by the author.

  “a happy one” … Ibid.

  “He knows I love it …” Denisof, interview by the author.

  “It’s not always the part …” Ibid.

  “He called me …” Benz, interview by the author.

  “If you’re working with him …” Acker, interview by the author.

  “We had amazing, amazing readings” … Whedon, interview by the author.

  “Suddenly you saw a whole different side …” Head, interview by the author.

  “I told him ‘I can’t talk …’” Cole, interview by the author.

  “I was ‘nonspecific duke …’” Denisof, interview by the author.

  “It’s just the fun of hearing …” Ibid.

  “It made me want to eat …” Harris, interview by the author.

  “It’s crazy! …” Espenson, interview by the author.

  “It was that that got him thinking …” Denisof, interview by the author.

  Joss describes it as Vietnam in the morning … Whedon, interview by the author.

  “I just pictured it in my head …” Cole, interview by the author.

  “He loves it so much” … Ibid.

  15. Buffy Goes Back to High School

  “have a really important, intense emotional relationship …” Whedon, quoted in Miller, “The Man Behind the Slayer.”

  “She was all cranky …” Whedon, quoted in Havens, Joss Whedon, 19.

  portraying Buffy’s grief “was probably the most awful …” Gellar, quoted in Jensen, “To Hell & Back.”

  “It’s my own fault …” Whedon, quoted in Jensen, “To Hell & Back.”

  “Buffy had cut a swath …” Loeb, interview by the author.

  “I’m not sure if he’s asking …” Ibid.

  “One wanted to star Giles …” Ibid.

  “ funny, clever, had twists …” Whedon, interview in Joss Whedon: The Master at Play, DVD.

  “Unlike the series …” Whedon, quoted in Robinson, “Joss Whedon—Web Exclusive” (interview).

  “That’s a tall order …” Loeb, interview by the author.

  his new series and his previous one “were very similar …” Wight, interview by the author.

  a demonic driver’s ed instructor … Loeb, quoted in Cairns, “An Animated Guy.”

  “It’s a very silly show” … Whedon, quoted in Robinson, “Joss Whedon—Web Exclusive” (interview).

  “the scripts were like fine pastries …” Loeb, interview by the author.

  “We were met …” Buchanan, interview by the author.