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The Degrassi Digest # 52 December 12th,1998
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1st Anniversary Special Issue

For this special year-end "wrap up" issue, there will be no new posts or fan fiction. Instead Mark Aaron Polger and Natalie Earl collaborated to select memorable posts from the past year and comment on them. The regular format will return next issue.

I would like to thank all the people who posted this year.
A big thank you to Natalie for helping me on this issue, and to all everyone who visited our sites (TUDW and DL).
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INSIDE:

1) Some Memorable Posts From Dec12/97-Dec12/98

2) Alternative Names for Degrassi Digest

3) Survey favourites

4) People Who Posted the most during the year.

 
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1) Some Memorable Posts From Dec12/97-Dec12/98
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We picked some posts that are representative of the year. We commented on some of them.
They are from past posters who may or may not be subscribed now. The only headers are From: and Subject:
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From:"Scott Carlson"
Subject: I want all Degrassi episodes at once!

I am a glutton and want all the Degrassi episodes at once. How do I get them all and at one time?

*Mark* This kind of post is the most common I get..."Where can I buy all the episodes".
I always give them the starting point of My addresses page.
http://www.degrassi.org/Features/pertinentaddresses.htm
As Natalie mentioned TRIO airs Degrassi. Degrassi episodes can also be found at large public libraries as they are counted as educational films.
 
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From: Wayne Roache
Subject: 90210 vs Degrassi

 That area is how you compare Beverly Hills 90210 with Degrassi . . . You make it sound like all or most American's live in the 90210 mindset and that all or most Canadians live in the Degrassi mindset. What should really be said is that 90210 is Hollywood, California's mindset.

 
**Mark: I think that Beverly Hills 90210 is regionalist, that it is representative of kids in Beverly Hills, California. I do think the show is representative of American society. I do not mean the teenagers, but the general ideologies and the whole context of the show. It is true that there are Canadians that fit the Beverly Hills 90210 image, but they are few and far between, in my opinion. Although the two countries are neighoubors, I find both shows reflective of the society we live in. Stereotypes are not good, because people pre-judge and have images in their mind about people. These images are incorrect, but some stereotypes sometimes are true.
**Natalie: I think that Aaron Spelling creates stereotypes of Americans. Where I live in San Fernando Valley, it "nothing" to see 13-16 year old kids with tattoos, pierced tongues, or nose jobs. However, the same applies to New York or Sydney or Toronto or London or Tokyo (eyelid surgery is a status symbol). Big city kids tend to be extreme. However they do not reflect the millions of kids who choose to be conservative. 90210 existed to play upon the fantasy of wealth and glamour. If you want to see a true representation of American teens, watch My So Called Life or Party of Five.

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From: Mary-Beth Furneaux
Subject: Re: Degrassi Digest #19

If I were enterprising and had the time I would try to get a Lilith Fair-type of roadshow together which would bring the former Degrassi actors together and Australia and other places where there are pockets of immense Degrassi loyalty. I am sure there is a market for this type of thing.

*Mark* I'm sure many Degrassi Website creators get e-mails about having a Degrassi kind of festival. This would be wonderful if there was enough of a demand and enough funding to make these conventions happen. It would be expensive to get people to come from all over the world to meet, and where would they meet?
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From: "Madaline Hunter"
Subject: Have any of the Degrassi actors become stars?

Which of the Degrassi actors are now appearing in television and movies? Have any of them made the big time?

**Natalie: Bill (Shane), Pat (Joey), Siluck (Yick), Anais (Lucy) and several others are pursing careers as actors or behind-the-scenes. Then, why is it that none of them are famous yet? Pat described the challenge well: In Canada they are type-cast, in American they are unknown.
**Mark: As Natalie quotes from Pat, they get type casted in Canada, but they are unknown in the United States. Canadian TV is not as vast an industry as the United States, who monopolizes the world with their media. Some of them did movie of the week, or some specials, while many are now behind the scenes, like Directing, Producing, and Administration
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From: "Corina Hitchcock"
Subject: Youth Gangs in Canada

I would have to say that the reason gang-related problems were never shown on Degrassi, is that Canadian youth gangs are a recent problem, having only become prominent in the past few years, after Degrassi had been taken off of the air. If Degrassi was on today, you can bet your life that youth gangs would have a sufficient space in the spotlight.

**Mark: We can say we are a bit behind the U.S. with youth gangs. They are a social problem now in Canada and the U.S., but they were not a major social problem when Degrassi was on the air. It is the style of everyone to compare Canada with the U.S., and since we are different countries, many social realities are different. (television, crime, drugs, youth gangs, violence, media)

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From: Darlene Dazzle
Subject: Degrassi publicity tours

I don't think it is fair that Playing With Time hosted Degrassi publicity tours all over Canada (shopping malls, etc.) but never came to the United States. Perhaps they could not afford the air fare. Whatever the reason they were sure missed. I am surprised that they did not do more specials and spinoffs with CBC or WGBH Boston. It is like they were totally abandoned after School's Out.

**Natalie: After 10 years of Degrassi sagas, I am sure that the cast and crew were eager to get off Degrassi Street. Fun Canadian promotions included "The Pepsi Challenge" where fans could audition for a walk-on role for School’s Out, and Tampax’s "Win a Date with a Degrassi Character", the 13 year old female winner got to meet Pat Mastroianni and Siluck Sasanasy.
**Mark: PWT did host birthday parties, and they did do fashion shows, talks, speak at some conferences. I only met Rebecca Haines and Pat Mastroianni when I was 17 years old when they were promoting Degrassi Talks in 1991.

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From: Nancy Harper & Andy Cherniak
Subject: Guilty pleasure

I'm 29 years old, and I absolutely ADORE Degrassi Junior High/High! I consider this a guilty pleasure because clearly I'm too old to be so obsessed by a show of this nature. Anyone else pushing 30 who hates to miss an episode?

 
**Mark: Degrassi fans come in all ages as we can see in this post.

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From: "Shaunna Bednarek"
Subject: Re: Degrassi Digest #39

Hey how come it is that every time someone had sex on Degrassi they always got pregnant, aka Spike, Erica and Tessa?

**Natalie: I am glad that Degrassi did not portray teen sex as being easy, fun, and gratifying. There is a lot more to a good sexual relationship than just orgasms. Most teens are not mature enough to handle the risks and emotional baggage that comes along with intercourse. It’s been my experience that promiscuous teens use sex as a replacement for love, popularity, or self esteem.

**Mark: Degrassi showed the reality, that you can get pregnant the first time. Teen sex is so easy now and Degrassi did not portray this reality. Most teens are not as innocent as the Degrassi characters. The show seemed to make the characters appear as innocent (except Spike and Erica) and then suddenly, went opposite in School's Out with alcohol, marijuana, smoking, and a great deal of sexual content.  

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From: Darlene Dazzle
Subject: Degrassi fads and fashions

Being an American, I thought that the Canadian fashions worn on Degrassi seemed unusual and exotic. Were the clothing worn by the Degrassi gang typical of the Toronto teenagers?

**Mark: NOT AT ALL! Canadians get their fashions from American influence. In fact, most of Canada, except the province of Quebec are english speaking and get influenced mainly by the U.S. If you look very carefully back to the 1980's, Canadians got their fashions from their neighbours (U.S.)
I remember in the 1980's, going to the U.S., our fashions were very similar. (I am referring to working class and middle class fashions)
Canada's large influence is the U.S. and we tend to copy the United States in many respects.
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From: galaxyglider
Subject: Favourite things about Degrassi

My favourite thing about the Degrassi series is that the kids had messed up lives. It wasn't typical prime-time teenage problems either. Like on Full House or Family Matters where a "crisis" was a cancelled prom date or bad haircut.

 
**Mark: People commonly posted their favourite aspect of Degrassi....and Natalie and I found that this post was very appropriate for this issue.

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From: "Danny Rinehart"
Subject: Could you imagine a Degrassi website back in the 1980s

Too bad that the internet did not exist back in the 1980s. That would have been so cool to log on the 'net 5 minutes after the episode played and smooze with other fans.

**Natalie: Yes, the Internet allows specialized sub-cultures like ours to congregate in a democratic way. But knowing us, we probably would have been tempted to mush about trivial details (e.g. Do you think that Heather and Blaine were really French kissing?)

 
**Mark: The internet was around, but not for the public. It would have been very interactive to discuss the shows after they were on. I enjoyed getting an episode guide in high school, so I would know all the episodes before they came out on CBC. For me, it was like I was taking part in the episode, because I knew what was going to happen.
For Danny Rinehart: If Melanie and Caitlin are your favourite characters check out
http://www.degrassi.org/collages/melanie.htm
http://www.degrassi.org/collages/caitlin.htm

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From: "Tony Zagnutti"
To: mark@degrassi.org
Subject: The Degrassi Conspiracy Theory
Date: Thu, 06 Aug 1998 18:09:21 PDT

I want to inform you about a conspiracy involving former Degrassi actors which I think is currently taking place. Ever since the demise of the show in the early 90's, there has been a steady increase of new stars in the pornography industry. I believe two such stars were once former Degrassi cast members. The one star I am positive about is Neil Hope, who played the character of Derek Wheeler (a.k.a. Wheels) . . . to become one of the most popular male pornstars of the 90's: Jon Dough. Ever since then I have been watching many episodes of Degrassi and porn, and have found that another Degrassi character, Shane, is now a rising porn star going by the name of Alex Sanders. People must know that their favorite teen idols: Wheels, Shane have a hidden darker side. As for the actresses of Degrassi, I am keeping my eyes peeled and am constantly scanning porn 24/7

**Natalie: Perhaps you would be interested in a nice little flick called SWAMP SEX ROBOTS. Then you can get a two-for-one flyer at Klub Kat, the strip joint that the Zit Remedy got kicked out of.

**Mark: This guy still makes me crack up. He posted in August...and we thought that it was a funny post. He revealed to us that he watches porn all the time, and that he has the time to analyze and make conclusions that Neil and Bill are now porn stars.
Check it out for yourself: http://www.degrassi.org/Conspiracy/
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Date:Tue, 16 Dec 1997 08:54:21 -0500
To:Degrassi_Digest
From:Jason Berger
Subject:shafted

I really feel the characters of Amy and Allison were shafted in the ways of character development and on air screen time. They were pretty cool, and cute! =P Does anyone else feel this way?
-j

**Natalie: I think that Degrassi wanted to de-emphasize beauty, popularity and fashion. Too many shows star characters that are similar to Amy and Allison. For once the "beautiful people" became the butts of many jokes (i.e. stripping in the girl's washroom).

**Mark: I think Degrassi made it out to be that they were the snobby, uptight, and pretentious gossipy girls of the school. Degrassi tried to show their characters as the "black sheep" of the school. It was too bad their characters were not developped enough. Maybe we can figure out why Allison and Amy were such snobs.
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From: "Michael Syrett"
Subject: Degrassi World Fan Fiction Submission idea

Ok my submission to Degrassi World would be about the episode where they kill off my favorite character Claude Tanner. I would have re write the episode if I could so that Claude never really killed himself. What happened is this. Claude got pissed off with the world he was living in and he randomly chose one of the bitches that was picking on him. He talked them into the bathroom using chloriform to drug them, dressed them in his clothing and shot them in the head. Snake wouldn't have been able to tell the difference and Claude would hide out and forever stalk Caitlin forever. I know you won't post my fantasy but thanks for reading it.

**Natalie: Cool and interesting plot. It matches Claude's personality. DWFF is open to offbeat ideas (comedy, horror, sci-fi, etc.) provided that it is presented in a fun-loving, appropriate way.

**Mark: Why not write a DWFF episode? Writing DWFF is a way of making all your fantasies come true.
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From: Mortimer Gumbolt
Subject: Joeys Hat

Hi there. I was recently looking for a hat like the one Joey Jeremiah wore. Do you know what those kinds of hats are called? Are they fedoras? I'm sorry to be asking you, I know this isn't your area of expertise but I thought it might be a start.

**Natalie: It would be fun to scavenge thrift shops and yard sales to compile a 1980's Degrassi wardrobe. There are certain clothing items that I wouldn't mind having, like Spike's spider web nylons on "Crossed Wires" and Claude's Bauhaus jacket on "All in Good Cause".

**Mark: I always wondered if Pat wore the hat in real life, or if it was part of the "Joey" role. I thought it suited his character well. It is interesting how appropriation of our clothes and accessories molds our character.
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From: Darlene Dazzle
Subject: If only real high school were like Degrassi

The cool thing about Degrassi is that they did not have any cliques or popular groups . . . it was not like the vicious segregation in real high school. None of them wore name brand clothing . . . Nobody used swear words. Nobody carried guns or knives.

**Natalie: My friend who attended a performing arts high school said that her school was a lot like Degrassi. Since everybody was driven by their performance goals, nobody bothered with the usual high school "politics" like the cool kids, the popular kids, the gangsters, etc.

**Mark: Degrassi was not like my high school. Everyone on Degrassi seemed to tolerate each other, and everyone more or less liked each other. I could not identify with it, but I'm sure in some high school the students were nicer than in my high school.
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From: "Madaline Hunter"
Subject: Degrassi in retrospect

I think I appreciate Degrassi more now in my old age of 24 than I did as a real teenager. In an era of unrealistic teen shows like Full House, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and Saved By The Bell - Degrassi was truthful, it was like watching my own life. It felt so good to watch the characters go through all the painful stuff I had to face.

**Natalie: I think it is hard to appreciate anything (teachers, parents, Degrassi) when you are a real teenager because you have not learned to be grateful yet. As you face the troubles of the adult world, all of a sudden the guidance and comforts from your youth are understood.

**Mark: me too. I often look back at the episodes and see the mistakes I made and see that I grew up. Degrassi is nostalgic.
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From: MACARENA MARTFELD
Subject: school's out

Well, well, well. It seems our good old gang isn't as pure as we thought. I had never seen the movie before and it was quite educational-to say the least . . . all hell broke loose . . Drinking smoking pot, swearing and nudity too? tsk tsk. Finally, they seemed to be acting like regular teenagers!

**Natalie: There are mixed feelings about School's Out. Some fans felt betrayed by the turbulent change, others felt that the series finally "grew up".

**Mark: I personally did not like School's out...It may have been more realistic, but it was rough around the edges.
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From: Yvette Poshoglian
Subject: More than a fan letter

I know that the show reached and informed a great deal of high school students themselves in Australia in a way which was not patronising. It was successful because it dealt with a lot of the serious issues, but did not forget the angst and the fun which is a part of every student's life.

**Natalie: I agree that the key to Degrassi's success was their perfect combination of hard-hitting trauma, everyday idiosyncrasies, and priceless humour.

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2) Some Alternative Names to "Degrassi Digest":
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I have gotten some e-mail from people who have suggested the following new names for Degrassi Digest.

Caitlin's Journal
Caitlin's Diary
The Degrassi Chunk
The Weekly Chunk
The Purple and Blue Journal
It Creeps
The Honourable Narbos
The Broomhead Review
Degrassi Update
The Zit Times
The Zit Review
Narbos We Are
Playing With Time Journal
The Newsletter
The Degrassi Postcard
The Degrassi Forum
The Degrassi Messanger
Lucy's Chronicles

*Mark* Thank you all for your contributions :-)

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3) Survey Results
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The results are what most people in the survey voted for:

SMARTEST Male and Female Snake and Caitlin
COOLEST Male and Female Joey and Liz
MOST ATTRACTIVE Male and Female Joey and Caitlin
FUNNIEST Male and Female Alexa and Joey
SEXIEST Male and Female Clutch and Liz
BEST DRESSED Male and Female Clutch and Lucy
MOST DANGEROUS Male and Female Claude and Liz
BEST COUPLE (Joey and Caitlin) and (Alexa and Simon)
BEST CLIQUE Lucy, LD, and the twins
MOST UNDER-RATED/NEGLECTED Male and Female Bart and Trish
CHARACTER THAT YOU COULD MOST IDENTIFY WITH there was no character that everyone voted for.

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4) People Who Posted the most during the year.
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People who advertised their site the most: Paige

People who posted the most often: Andrew Sutcliffe, Rachel Cherwinski, Natalie Earl, and Jennelle Cleary.

First person ever to subscribe to Degrassi Digest: David Nashtir

People who post sporatically: Oren Shay, Ange, and Ravi

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5) The Degrassi Digest Timeline-July 1997- Dec 1998
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July 1997- Preparation for the Unofficial Degrassi Website on the Fortunecity Webserver. (http://www.fortunecity.com )

November 1997- Creation of Degrassi Digest, The Degrassi Internet Mailing List

December 1997- David Nashtir is the 1st person to subscribe to Degrassi Digest

December 12,1997-Issue #1 of Degrassi Digest is sent.

January/February 1998- Bought the degrassi.org domain name.

March 1st,1998- Launching of http://www.degrassi.org

March 1998- Creation of the Degrassi Webring.

April 1998- Mark and Natalie become friends and brainstorm about DWFF.

April 8th,1998- My big analyis of Degrassi vs. Beverly Hills 90210 is submitted to McGill University. Read it at http://www.degrassi.org/paper.htm

April 18,1998- Launching of Degrassi World Fan Fiction, initiated by Natalie Earl.

April 25th,1998- Degrassi World Fan Fiction's 1st episode is written by Natalie Earl.

June 15th,1998- Launching of http://www.degrassi-junior-high.org (Degrassi Legacy)

Summer 98- Newspaper article about my site http://www.degrassi.org/Press-Releases/eyeonthenet.htm

Week of October 30,1998- Yahoo Canada (http://www.yahoo.ca )chose my site as one of the 4 picks for the week of October 30,1998.

December 2nd, 1998- Fight with the lawnmower monster- http://www.degrassi.org/haircut/
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Happy Birthday Degrassi Digest #52
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To unsubscribe, simply reply to this with unsubscribe in the subject header.
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