20 Questions with Jessie

whosers.com goes into interview mode with those who make & maintain the sites that we love - letting them say their own opinions on a few issues. These opinions may or may not reflect the opinions held by whosers.com. Not that that matters, but you know, we have to say it ;)

This time we've turned the tables on one of our own and made Jessie, the original founder of this website, take a turn at having to answer instead of asking. Though she grumbles, she no longer can stop us & we can post the following ...

Whose Line

1) What is the first sighting/reaction to whose line you had that you can recall? Were you hooked right away?

I can't remember my first exposure, except in relation to the second. My father calling me up at university to tell me that on a cable channel I didn't get was 'that show we used to watch on YTV, remember it?" Hmm ... nope. didn't remember it at all to be honest. Told him that. He tried to explain. I still didn't remember it. So he said the most fateful words ever ...

"I'll send you a tape"

Which was so good that it ended up being followed by more. And then I got the cable station when I moved. And that is history.

2) Who is the improvisor who had the first/initial largest impact on you? Who is the improvisor who has impressed you the most over the long run?

First impact? Paul Merton. Sarcasm has always been my thing. Long run though is so much harder, depends on in what way you mean it ... Colin is near and dear, Greg gives my snark quotient ... if we're talking long run as in didn't get them at first & now love them, put Chip on that list. Chip is even the one that my fiance ends up going 'is it Chip?' as they announce the fourth seat each rerun of the american series we get so there's that bias too ;)

3) If you had to choose your ideal cast of whose line (4 improvisors, one host, & either the american or british musician team), who would you choose?

Clive hosts (sorry Drew, you're cool and all but I've never fallen asleep and woken up to your voice, only Clive's - long story). Laura Hall and ensemble for music - as a pianist & saxophonist (dreadfully out of practice on both) has to be. Performers ... err .... Paul, Greg, Colin, Chip.

4) Name one moment on the show that still never fails to crack you up when you think about it. If you remember, tell us what season/who was involved/what version etc.

Right now what comes to mind is the Bald hoedown from the american drews line, mainly cause I was there. I remember us booing Brad, shaking our heads at Drew, and screaming at Colin's tremendous comeback.

Online

1) Can you remember what made you go online to search out whose line related information?

Insomnia, basically. Having sleep problems meant I was awake at university when everyone else was asleep. Which meant that it was either lie in bed staring at the ceiling or go online - and given that I'd just done my first job in web design the summer before online had become very appealing. So a little research seemed a good way to pass some late night hours.

2) Can you remember what was the first site you encountered, & what you thought when you found it?

Mark's, followed by Allison's Board. Mark's was very intense, and very full of information, so I believe I was a little overwhelmed. I hadn't really expected to find much.

3) Name one site/community/messageboard that you once were quite fond of but now is no longer active/has disappeared. Name one site/community/messageboard that you visit regularly (other than your own sites/communities) and why you do so.

Well, Alison's board holds a certain fondness for me, just because it lured me in, so I guess I'd have to say that. As for one I visit regularly, I must say Michelle's Messageboard, although I mostly lurk. Just cause it's nice to get multiple points of view :)

4) What do you think is the future of whose line online? Of your own site?

Whose Line online seems to thrive quite well - as long as the show still goes on I think it shall. The Whosers Page is a site for the fans - not the show, so as long as I am getting a feeling that the fans still want it, I'll keep trying to help keep it up to date.

Community

1) What's one of the strangest experiences you've ever had related to whose line communities/whosers (no names if they are involved please - you can use vague generalizations if you're worried as well i.e. just the type of experience)

Strangest relating to fans, whosers or no - oh there's many, but I don't think I'd be safe listing them off here ;). Strange in a good way I'd have to go with showing up knowing hardly anyone at the first semi-con (due to exam stress and burnout just saying 'what the hell, I can leave and come home if I'm not happy) ... and getting dragged right in.
Strangest relating to whose line - being on an early morning flight on the same flight as a performer and having to deliver notes from everyone I was with (and I hadn't a note amongst them, so even weirder). I am also notoriously grumpy and so not sociable in the morning - as well as having very strong feelings (most of the time) on not harassing them on their own time - so it was very brief, I'm sure a relief for him. Basically I just stumbled over to his line and handed it over and then said I was going for caffeine *L*. He got better seats than me though - looked much more comfy. lucky man!

2) Which is more important to you in community - the fanship or the friendship? At the present time how much of your interaction in communities is to talk about the show, and how much is to chat with those who have become friends?

Friendship. Bar none. Vacations that were a blast and many times had very little to do with whose line. I have sat in pubs/bars with people who have performed on the show sitting a little while away and paid basically no attention to them - because I was having way too much fun with my friends. I have gotten grief because i have returned from trips without autographs because well, I was too busy having fun to be bothered with bothering the contestants (which I'm sure makes them happy too *L*) I even can say the best roommate I ever had I met through this, even if the times we lived through were crappy it still comes out the best roommate (& Ness - don't tell Darren I said that ;) if you read this ... )

3) What do you think is the best thing you'll take away from the whose line community when all is said and done?

Outside of the friendships? Well, lets see ... great memories, tattoos, photos, and a bouncing tigger named DG (aka Durable Goods *G*)? And honestly - a really good resume/portfolio piece. Experience that helped me get myself more setup in my career. A place where I could experiment with things just so I could show that I knew how to do them. People who I felt confident enough around being myself and not scaring them off allowing me to do that as well.

But DG Tigger has much meaning so is probably just as important ;)

4) What do you think of when you hear the term 'whoser'. Who do you think it encompasses? Do you consider yourself to be one?

As stated on the website, where I did the little weird definition thingy one day while bored - whosers to me are fans of the show. Although in my personal definition I tend to go further & say fans of the show that are not highly scary (you'd be surprised), don't stalk, & are friendly - but that's probably more 'whosers I can party with' then my 'whosers' definition ;) I really don't give a damn how long you've been around, what you've attended, where you go to chat about it. You are. I shall label you all! ha! And then I shall bug you pitifully for contributions.

Impact (getting personal)

1) As someone who has been around the Whoser community from the beginning and continues to be a semi-active participant, what are your impressions of how the community has changed and evolved over the years?

Well, the community has tended to change with the show itself. When I started it was a british show that had some playing on cable networks in North America & other countries, and most of the fanbase was scattered over the world (with a surprisingly large base in Southern Ontario). It has gotten massively more diverse - including a larger chunk of the younger audience - since the american debut. And the amount of americans, who at first didn't get very good chances to see the british show, has increased massively. Meanwhile, the british & actually ... most of the outside north america contingent has nearly disappeared with the lack of british show. Even the canadian content has decreased - but you'll never get rid of us ;)

There's also the fact that the community has grown & splintered off in many ways because of the greater numbers of people & differences between them. Which can be good and can be bad - depends on how the interaction goes.

2) You state many many times that the whosers page is not a page for the show, but more a page for the fans. Can you elaborate on exactly what you mean?

Well, to me, when I came around and finally decided I wanted to do a website, it seemed ... silly almost, to do a site about the show, as there was Mark's amazing piece and I couldn't compete with that. And also, I had found that although I enjoyed the show, my obsession - if you would - wasn't with it as much as going out and having fun with weird and crazy people ;) So at the time, the site was a tribute to those people as much as anything, and what they'd helped me with.

Then, as the fanship expanded, I realized that there were a lot of people, those I knew, those I didn't, who enjoyed this show & loved to share what they enjoyed about this show. So at that point it was decided that all fans of whose line were welcome, and the site would be for all of them. Contributions & content trying to relate to all - and hopefully getting input from as many as I could hassle to do so!

3) Have you ever considered quitting the website? Why did you think about it, and what made you change your mind?

Yes. Frankly, I have considered it at time or two. Although I love the whosers and their wonderful selves, they are pig headed stubborn as hell annoying sometimes when you're trying to pry opinions and content out of them. And when you are doing a site about & for these people, lack of contributions from them can frustrate you to no end. It's hard to have a site for the whosers if you have nothing from them to show.

What made me change my mind? For a little while, I kept the site going for one reason only. It looked good on a resume. I left it stagnant. But then people came up, and wanted to contribute again, and I realized that maybe part of the problem was that the structure didn't leave as many ways to contribute as I thought, and I started getting excited about the idea again. And so we changed the structure to this nice quasi-webzine style, and things seem to be going better.

Still would like more content though :P Anyone who reads this ... please? I don't beg but I can plead :)

4) What thing would you love to have on the website that you haven't got yet?

I'm quite disappointed that the whosers picks section hasn't taken off as well as I hoped it would. I thought suggestions of things that would appeal, since there is a sharing of opinions, would be good. But I haven't gotten much of any input on it and that saddens me, really.

Otherwise, hmm ... I would love to be able to get some database stuff up, really nice database driven things that I can do ... but server space for the programming I'd play with is too expensive for this volunteer gig at the moment :) The only other thing I would LOVE to have is any ideas that are not my own for sections or series of articles or whatever. Ideas from outside always make new ideas from inside crop up!

Beyond Whose Line

1) Do you participate in or go watch live improv at all? What do you think of it compared to whose line? Do you think it ought to be compared to whose line really (or are they totally different things)?

I used to. I miss it sometimes but it's a lot harder to make the trips when you're not a university student ;) Whose Line - depends on which version. Neither are pure improv, but the british version is closer to it, while the american version is more orientated to being entertaining first rather than improv first (both versions have their advantages and disadvantages & entertain me in different ways *G*). So comparison - I don't think so. There's a totally different vibe live - but then, there is with most things (i.e. bands live vs. recorded) so I think society is used to it by now.

2) Have you found that interest in an improvisor has led you to a new area of interest (new show, new type of comedy, etc) via something else they have been involved in outside of whose line?

Well, live improv generally. I get such a kick out of it. I would also have never found the hilarity that is Greg Proops & Eddie Izzard's standup. And various british shows that I don't for the most part get to experience like HIGNFY & JAM but have gotten glimpses of that just make me go 'oooh'.

3) Do you find that whose line has similarities to other non-television things you have an interest in? If so, what connections do you see? If not, why not?

Improvisation is definitely key to a lot of stuff I do. I have for many years been involved in something you could either call online roleplaying (though that gets connotations of rolling dice & creating characters with certain stats, which is so unlike what I've done) - or really you could call it improvisational storytelling (much more what the type I'm involved with is). You have to make it up to fit in with everyone else, you have to go along with it. And it's fun (as well as helping greatly with writing ability)

Even work - the creative part of it, or sometimes the political part ;) - has the need to think on your feet, make up new stuff, try and fit what you can think of into something else - so I can see the whole essence in it. Either that or it's the essence of my own insanity (or concentration/memory issues *G*) & it just taints everything I do ;)

4) What other shows that the performers are in (other than whose line episodes or tapings) have you seen? What other ones would you want to see?

I have seen such a wide variety that I can't really say, a combination of Canadian & American & British shows that is mindblowing when you consider it all - and has muffled my memories of each individual somewhat. I would love to see much much more HIGNFY & JAM & other british comedies. And I would love to see Eddie Izzard live (a few months and counting ;) )

Esoterica

1) Name the strangest (i.e. due to it being something you normally wouldn't listen to, or due to the content) song you've had stuck in your head recently.

You know your mama, and your daddy, saying I'm no good for you ... they say I'm dirty from the alley ... and I don't know what to do ...
Oh everyttime I come sneaking around trying to get to your back door. I crawl past the garbage and your mama jumps out screaming don't come back no more - can't take it!
My guitar wants to kill your mama ... my guitar wants to kill your mama ... my guitar wants to burn your dad ... oh I get real mean when it makes me mad ... (cue guitar riff)

Proof other than the names of his children that Frank Zappa had very interesting thought processes (though the version I have stuck in my head is a remake by a trio of beyond amazing guitar players that call themselves G3 when together)

Just be thankful I didn't start going into lewd celtic songs instead ... might offend some censor somewhere ;)

2) Recommend one other tv show that is not at all related to whose line, and tell us why you'd recommend it to whosers.

Buffy. but it's ending. but still Buffy. There are repeats. Why would I recommend it to whosers? Hello? Self-referential sarcastic as hell humour? Do I have to draw the connection? :).

3) Tell us about either the city or region or country (your choice) you live in and why you would recommend people consider that as a place to visit someday.

Okay. Ontario I can plug easily (well, not as easily as before as the whole SARS paranoia has gotten way out of hand - how many people in a city of millions? sheesh) but I would suggest you take yourself a car and you drive north young man. There is a huge difference between Southern & Northern Ontario (realize we have big provinces here people, they cover a lot of ground, so there's lots of difference) - both are great, but Northern Ontario beats the south hands down on gorgeousness. Rocks and trees and trees and rocks and water and very pretty. Though you might want to avoid winter if you're allergic to that snow thing. we have lots of it up there in the winter :)

4) What were you doing just before you answered these questions? What are you going to do now that you've finally finished them?

I am redesigning a website at work. And I am getting SOOOOOOO sick of purple (corporate colour that must be incorporated at all costs). Normally it's not a bad colour but nowadays? Blech!!

And now I get to put this up (since others get to ask the questions but I get to upload ;) ) and then go get a lunch. Hmm. Maybe a hotdog from the vendor? mmmmmm ....

Posted 20/06/2003

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So that's what we managed to get out of Jessie. Have an opinion on the site she started & her part in it? You want to agree with something she said? You want to disagree with something she said? Write a letter to the editor & respond to this interview! (don't worry, we'll make sure someone else fields all answers!)

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