HSHost says "Join us tonight for Richard Barton-Lewis, creator and producer extraordinaire. He is the creator of Poltergeist: The Legacy and many many other great shows, including The Outer Limits. Start sending in your questions. Welcome to the first night of our special Thirty-one Days of Terror Series. It's October 1st and you are chatting live (or undead) at Real Horrorwood! My name is April and I'll be your macabre host for the evening. Joining me in the studio tonight are my spooky producers Mike and Peter, and our gothic typist, Michelle. For the entire month of Shocktober, we'll be presenting the strangest, the weirdest, the scariest of guests, leading up to the most sacred of horrordays, HALLOWEEN! Stars of big and small scream, uh, screen, will be joining us as the sun sets and the night holds reign."

HSHost says "If you would like to ask our guest a question this evening, it's very simple. Just type in /ask a space and then your question. If you're using "Excite's VP chat" you need only click the "something to say" icon at the bottom right corner of your screen. We are all very excited about our special guest this evening, producer Richard Barton-Lewis, the creator and producer of "The Outer Limits" and the creator of Poltergeist: The Legacy. Welcome to Hollywood Spotlight, Richard!"

SpiderWeb asks "How much time do you have to spend between some of Trilogy's projects, such as Poltergeist: The Legacy, Outer Limits and Magnificent Seven?"

RichardBartonLewis says "It is a very appropriate questions as I was dealing with controversy and problems today on all three series. We are also doing Magnificent 7. There is never enough time. The real challenge, particularly in Poltergeist where you have an ongoing cast, I have formed close bonds with the characters and their colleagues and they are real people. I would like to spend more time in Vancouver where we shoot most of it but..We are there everyday. Also, I have my 10 month old boy here."

guest7735 asks "I heard that Poltergeist and The Outer Limits are goingto be on the Sci Fi Channel is this true?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, it is fantastic. Poltergeist is going to leave Showtime and begin airing January 22nd on sci Fi. It is great. It is 50 million subscribers versus 7 or 8. So we can be sampled more. This year, starting in January, they will play all original episodes then six or so months later they will be playing it 5 nights a week."

felixthedog asks "Where did the concept for the OUter Limits come from?"

RichardBartonLewis says "You should remember, Outer Limits was created in the late 50s and they did 60 episodes. It was before Twilight Zone and Night Gallery. it is the granddaddy of sci fi shows. MTM came to my partners 5 years ago because of the motions pictures we were able to make. They asked if we wanted to bring the concept back and when do we begin. We took the spirit of the original show and then created all new episodes. We created three that are remakes of the original series. Leonard Nimoy was in I Robot, in which a robot kills his master and then is put on trial for murder. We brougth him back as the lawyer in the remake and had his own son direct it."

RichardBartonLewis says "It was really neat. We brought back David McAllen back to do a remake. I think we will keep doing those like one out of each year."

Clarianna asks "Why, for over two years and zillions of requests via email and snailmail, has MGM not made any merchandise available for purchase? (Legacy Journal blank books alone would make a killing.)"

RichardBartonLewis says "You know, dammit, I agree with you. I think it will change with the Sci Fi Channel. I think it is economic driven. They do not have the wherewithal to do it. I think it will change. The same with Outer Limits...It is frustrating but...we will see what we can do. We will keep pushing."

Laura_O asks "Is there any chance that Patrick Fitzgerald will return for any episodes in the 4th season?"

RichardBartonLewis says "You guys really like this fellow. I have gotten more messages. It was fun casting the actor in that role because I was looking for a Robert Shaw kind of character, a young version of the preist in the Exorcist. The young actor who played that role really captured it. We had 6 leads in the show and that is one that we put on hold but yes we are going to bring him back. He is in fact Irish and his brother is a priest."

Clarianna asks "Mary Alice asks: Richard, we lost both Patrick Fitzgerald and DJT because apparently someone erroneously thought that we had enough main characters on the show-yet the character of Kristen was introduced. Was it just the 'blonde bimbo' factor (trying to lure in more male viewers with a pretty, but empty, character)?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Oh Mary Alice, Kristin is not a bimbo at all. Both her parents are professors. She speaks about 5 languages and is a concert pianist. She is there to be the opposite of a bimbo. As the creator of that character, I take umbrage with that. She is evolving into a complex character, who to my knowledge, hasn't slept with any of the others. Characters evolve. I get the message about Patric."

catpaws asks "When you did the auditions, did you have an image of the *perfect actor* for the role"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, I did. Derek Raines character came from a brief aside, there is a town in California, Carmel, where I grew up...there was a show store and I was walking down the street and it said Derek Raine Unlimited. It was an elegant name and I was looking around for an actor, I wanted a European, charming, elegant, distinguised. I saw him in a movie and asked if he would be interested and then he changed his mind and flew over just to meet with me to tell me he couldn't do it. I said you flew a long way to say no and that he had a reason, something happened and he said he had to come. Derek was what I had in mind and he has grown into it."

RichardBartonLewis says "For Alex, For Rachel - that was written for Helen Shaver. Robbie was a character created for Robbie Chong. The studio was excited to work with her. She had the least experience of all the actors but she has really grown in. Martin Cummings I was looking for a young troubled rugged...aks first...later a no bull**** kind of person. Martin has had a tragic life. The actual people who came to these parts came with skeletons in their closet and it is remarkable how similar these personalities are to the characters we created. They all care about the work. This year the cast and crew are all enjoying themselves thoroughly."

SpiderWeb asks "Are you surprised at the "following" Poltergeist: The Legacy and Outer Limits has despite the fact that it wasn't very promoted (if at all) by Showtime?"

RichardBartonLewis says "I think it happened when the comet went by a year and a half ago. I threw a party on a yacht for the cast and we all ate and drank and the comet was hovering over the bay as if it was a painting. We all talked about where we wanted to go. The cast said they all want to have affairs with each other."

Clarianna asks "Was the San Francisco Legacy House originally planned to be the "Ruling House" and then the writing was altered as Season One was written?"

RichardBartonLewis says "It was, you are right. In a early conception on my part and then I started thinking...it is a socratic society, that is where I got the concept of, having people with a position of stature sit around and debate life experience, the good and the bad. Once I did that, San Francisco hasn't been around enough..."

LadyViper asks "Are you keeping the same cast for the Magnificent Seven..(by the way LOVE THE SHOW)"

RichardBartonLewis says "Great. Thank you. It is the same cast. This year we added Tyne Daly from Cagney and Lacy. She is in a number of episodes. Robert Vaughn is back in an ongoing way."

Laura_O asks "DJT = Daniel J. Travanti"

RichardBartonLewis says "Old Danny Travanti, he came in really to shake up the story telling a little, to get a sense of the outside legacy house. It was getting a little claustrophobic and I think he served that function well. I thought there was an imbalance of male and female. I wanted more women involved. They seem to have more intuition. They are more in touch than men. I felt by adding Kristin that we just add another element. The women are fairly empowered and I think it makes it interesting."

WHTWOLF asks "How much involment do you have in each show, ie. storyline, direction ect.?"

RichardBartonLewis says "The blessing and the curse is every show. We sat down this year at the Riviera Country Club where they played the Senior Open and spent the day debating where we want the show to go and I pitched a vision of how I wanted to challenge the legacy and the character arcs. I have a wonderful team of writers, Grant Rosenberg.....we all sit and chew it out. Once we do that, the stories are worked out by myself or the fellow writers on the team. I go through every story and script and rewrite what I feel I can contirbute to and then hire the guest stars. Music is my favorite part of the show. A little bit of self promotion. I won an emmy for ...from Fame."

RichardBartonLewis says "The score for this is really important. It started with Zimmer and Mark Mancina. We started with world class composers. My favorite part is putting music with the movie. I go through the mix and .... That is a good idea. Geez Mary, there you go."

MaryW asks "Any chance of having an episode where the outcome is no supernatural events, just lots of coincidences for the Legacy group to get confused by?"

SpiderWeb asks "Congrats on Magnificent Seven returning to CBS .... are you personally involved on that project as well?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Polar opposite, my partner John Watson is the leader of that show and he is responsible for brining it back and recreating it based on the movie. I have zip to do with it. Between Fame last year and the Outer Limits and Poltergeist and the Creature...I kind of had my hands full and...the ten month old baby."

Clarianna asks "We wouldn't mind more men than women - especially if it'll get Sloan out of Hell. Any chance Derek will find a way?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Well, I hear what you are saying. It is not that I want to watch more women, but I must confess...we could do more men, now we are doing the show by concensus. Derek is stuck in hell. I put a lid on that one."

Merano asks "Will there be any resolution to the Sloan-in-hell scenario on Poltergeist?"

Clarianna asks "Season One's Twelfth Cave with David Ogden Stiers as Randolph Hitchcock was one of the best episodes ever - any chance Hitchcock will come back in Season Four?"

RichardBartonLewis says "You bet. I agree. I thought that was really good. It was compelling and a had a sense of adventure. David is a wonderful actor. He did the voiceover for Beauty and the Beast. He is coming back in an episode of the Outer Limits called The Shroud."

WHTWOLF asks "What made you decide to make a show out of Mag 7"

RichardBartonLewis says "Again, MGM had the rights to that title and it actually started conceptually as a movie. For trilogy, Zimmer, had just finished with Mark Mancino a very long commercial that plays in the movie theates in Europe for Marlboro. The Marlboro theme was taken from the Magnificent Seven. They did a 15 minute minature movie using that music and it was incredible. I brought John Cally and played the music and said now imagine this. Summer 1999, Kevin Costner, Mel Gibson, Harrison Ford and on you go. Magnificent Seven. That picture would make 300 million in a secon. They tried to get Kasden, The Big Chill, what else did he do, the one with Bill Hurts, Body Heat. They couldn't make a deal with him so ultimately it floated down to Symes and he asked if we wanted to do it on TV. It is a dream come true. When I go out to see John on the set, he is in the middle of a western."

Clarianna asks "Just wanted to say, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions and I have really enjoyed watching the series, Poltergeist: The Legacy, and the wonderful cast y'all assembled in the beginning - Derek de Lint as Derek Rayne is darn near PERFECT! The series had me hooked before it even aired since it sounded somewhat similar to Anne Rice's Talamasca and the Highlander's Watchers."

RichardBartonLewis says "Please tell all your friends to watch. If we do well the 4th year on Sci Fi there can be a 5th year. If not...The cast would love to come back and I would like to keep developing this show."

Clarianna asks "Was the Season Three character Kristin Adams planned early on in the series to be introduced in Season Three or was she an afterthought?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Neither, really in the middle. As we were developing toward the end of the first season, I thought it would be interesting to develop a character like this and if she would be a love interest to any member of the cast, male or female. I am not going to answer that yet."

Clarianna asks "Father Philip Callaghan was (and still is) a character many fans really enjoyed and his troubles with being in both the Church and The Legacy was a very captivating plotline? We've been given umpteen excuses why he's not back? Is it the actor who has other committments or does he just not fit the arc or what?"

Clarianna asks "Is the series "bible" for Poltergeist The Legacy a dynamic document which gets added to over the production of each season so that future writers know what's kosher and what's not when it comes to details about the characters? There have been a few "mistakes" over the seasons like naming Nick's father "Jonathan" in Season One's "Dark Priest" and then in Season Three's "Father to Son" his name was Robert?"

Clarianna asks "From my vantage point on the Internet and having gathered with other Poltergeist The Legacy Fans there over the last two years, I can say a very large majority of this series' viewers are female (and the crowd I hang with are over professionals over the age of 30) - why are there absolutely NO female writers, directors (except for Helen Shaver) and producers???"

RichardBartonLewis says "I am thrilled that you all are interested enough in this character to write in about him. He has been the number one request that we have had. I suspect, though I wasn't planning on it, i suspect we will bring him back to life."

Clarianna asks "Julia Kosatka asks: The writing in Season 3 was pretty pitiful overall (Rachel being the one exception - 3 was her best season). What steps are being taken to ensure that Season 4 comes back up to the standards set by the first two seasons."

RichardBartonLewis says "Well, we put a gun to the head of all the writers and if they don't keep up to your level of acceptance that is the end of it. Seriously, I respectfully disagree. I think there have been episodes in all three seasons that are compelling. There are inevitable episodes that don't work. In season three, The Darkness Falls and Light of Day, I thought they were terrific and compelling. I thought the Father and Son and Debt of Honor were compelling. I think what we try to do is learn from the stories that seem to command a response. The ones we are excited about as creative people that don't always get your response but satisfy us... we learn from it. This year we have worked triply hard to work out impactful stories that are smart and intriguing and well made. We will do the best we can. It starts January 22nd. I don't know what time, I think 9 but I am not sure."

catpaws asks "Your creation has lots of fans and they're quite organized on the internet. Do you ever visit any of the sites dedicated to P:TL?"

RichardBartonLewis says "My staff has. A number of the writers have. I confess, I have been given two or three packets of e-mail and I thoroughly enjoy the positives and wince at the negatives and I do pay attention. I am not a real internet person but now I am, I am here. I am internetting. I am hip now."

MaryW asks "Do you have someone who keeps track of details such as past characters names for Poltergeist: The Legacy?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, generally the writers since the beginning, we do. We have botched a couple but generally, we are all into the story and you know the characters so you do the best you can."

catpaws asks "I have noticed a strong commonality in the topic of child abuse in your shows. Is that a particular concern of yours?"

RichardBartonLewis says "One of many. Particularly now I have my own child. I think this supernatural genre in general lends itself to stories involving children and the vulnerability of children. I wouldn't say naive but the curiosity of children. Children are very direct. We try to deal with those issues. I think it is part of the genre. Children tend to have an involvement and the abuse, whether sexual, mental or physical is part of the lore and that is what we are tapping into. We are doing an episode this year, it will be on my property, there are three giant trees at the base of one of them, legend has it was an old bordello called the Cop's shack and the cops took their girls up there to part. When the guy was clearing my trees, he said you know this used to be a hanging tree. He said he didn't know if it was one hanging or more. I am thinking immediately where did they put the bodies and he siad he didn't really know. We are doing a show called Vendetta and it involves that tree."

RichardBartonLewis says "I lost track of what the original question was. Also, you remember the omage to the original movie. Spiritually....the little girl could hear the ghosts through the tv and I think kids have an intution that we have lost touch of."

Clarianna asks "The viewers absolutely love the chemistry and unresolved sexual tension between Derek Rayne and Alex - will we be seeing more tension between the two in Season Four?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Oh, you bet. They would love nothing better. I am making, you know that old song A Slow Hand. We are milking this one."

MaryW asks "Will Helen Shaver being directing any more Outer Limits episodes?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, she is going to do one or two this year and possibly a Poltergeist. We gave her her first directing job and she has really grown into it. She has just finished a two hours movie. She did a stunning job for me last year on Fame."

catpaws asks "Do you anticipate any major changes once the show makes the switch to SciFi?"

RichardBartonLewis says "No, no. They are being extremely supportive. I think you will see promotion you have never seen before. They are going to promote the hell out of it. Pardon the pun."

catpaws asks "Why did you add the character of Kristen Adams?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Last year in season three. For people who didn't catch it, her father was a member of the Legacy and he is missing, supposedly dead but she is convinced he is still alive."

MaryW asks "Can we expect some sort of reoccuring story arc for Poltergeist: the Legacy?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, that is the biggest thing we are going to do this year. I have thrown caution to the wind as far as syndication goes. We have been able to because of syndication because they air out of sequence so this year Derek is going to fall in love. Wait til you see. The other fun one, Kat, who is Rachel's daughter, a teenager and all those conflicts, she is going to get pulled and get into witchcraft and it is going to cause quite a...I think many mothers think their daughters are involved in witchcraft and the fun about this shouw is we will do it for real."

MaryW asks "Can we expect some of the previous villians to return to Poltergeist?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes and this year we have two new ones. Corvus - it is an omage of Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven. It is really scary. It is where a spirit travels from one person to another."

Clarianna asks "I know I asked this of Mark Stern a long time ago but why doesn't Trilogy have a website?"

RichardBartonLewis says "You know, what did Mark say. He should have said we are getting one. I think we are going to do one. MGM has one for the others so... I am sure it will happen. I will be on them tomorrow to make sure it will happen."

SpiderWeb asks "Which Poltergeist: The Legacy's character or character(s) are you most like?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Remember those, in Lights Out, those little Scottish spirits floating around, that is me. It was scary but they were little scottish warriors who a curse was put on them and they were turned into little balls of light and wreaked havoc on Legacy. I am a combination of Derek and Rachel."

MichaelMeyers asks "What's it like working with Showtime?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Is it Mike Meyers from Austin Powers. Showtime is terrific. They are very supportive. We have had huge success with them. Poltergeist they were supportive on. We get to do whatever we want to do. They give us notes but we do whatever we want to do. The same with MGM. It is like, just keep making money and keep the fans ..."

MichaelMeyers asks "The special effects on the show are incredible. Who does them? What else have they worked on?"

RichardBartonLewis says "We use a dozen different vendors. There are a lot of people involved. They key is Bob Habros who has worked on Outer lImits. He is a gifted visual effects artists. I push them hard, because Trilogy comes from a Motion Picture background like Backdraft, I take a lot of pride in making it credible and unique. I don't differentiate between a motion picture and tv visual effect. We push the envelope. It is Bob and Northwest Imaging and Digital Magic and obviously we step on the shoulder of ILM and anyone who had ddone work in this area. We want it to be believable. Since I was five I used to say things looked fake and now we do the best we can."

Dan_K asks "How do you always get such good people to be in your projects?"

RichardBartonLewis says "I think that we care passionately about the work and I think that is contagious. All of us are filmakers first and foremost and writers. In our profession you don't get many chances to do what you want to do so we like to have fun at it and we challenege each other and set the bar pretty high. I think there are a lot of people in TV and they see the movies we were involved in and we say hey we want it like that and I think there are a lot of people in tv who don't set their sights this high. There are those who do, like David Kelly, etc. I say we don't settle. It is never perfect for me. Oftentimes I wish it were better than it is."

guest7740 asks "What was the first thing you ever worked on?"

RichardBartonLewis says "I went to film school, graduate school at UCLA and my senior thesis was a show I called Class Clowns. I did a live comedy with animation I shot beforehand. It was like a variety show and my host was Dana Carvey. No one knew who he was. I paid him $200. I did an improv and a live show in front of a live audience. I was scared ****less. I sat outside in a truck. I remember my father knocking on the window and saying what are you doing and where are you getting the money. I said Dad, just let me do it. It went off. I sold it to ABC, local and it aired. I am sure I lost money but it gave me the confidence to go on."

RichardBartonLewis says "I remember seeing Robin Williams and he was doing the industrials for Hewlett Packard and he kept getting fired because he couldn't do it straight. Dana Carvey is a neat guy."

Laura_O asks "I'd heard that there was a possibility that Harlan Ellison would be writing an Outer Limits episode for the 5th season. Is that going to happen?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, it is and he is writing. We did a stephen King last year. We are doing a Harland Ellis this year and we have a few more surprises this year."

MaryW asks "Any chances of our seeing members of other houses - prefereably some Hispanic or Asian Legacy members?"

RichardBartonLewis says "That is a neat idea. Possibly, yeah. We have actually had some asian members but hispanics we haven't had but why not."

WHTWOLF asks "You've done alot with the charactor's background-are we going to see more of that in season 4?"

RichardBartonLewis says "You bet. Where is Cat Paws from?"

catpaws asks "I loved Irish Jug and it was so fun to see Derek deLint show some comedic talent. Can we expect to see more humorous shows?"

RichardBartonLewis says "We are doing a sequel to Irish Jug. The actor who played opposite Derek is one of the world's greatest stage actors. I saw him when I was 12 years old. He played kind of a Mrs. Doubtfire and he was brilliant. I have never forgotten him. The same with Finoula Flannigan. She is great and she is coming back as well."

catpaws asks "I wanted to tell you that I loved the vampire episodes. They must have been so much fun for the cast to film!"

RichardBartonLewis says "This is total kick because what a great challenge for Robbie Chung. This was her first leading show and she went for it and it was great fun. It is actually interesting that it started as a single episode that I wanted to know what happened. I said let her get bit and who knows what happens. This year we will have a number of two parters."

MaryW asks "Don't suppose I could convince you to film something down in Texas, say around the Space Center?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Send us some tickets. We will be on our way. We are going to do an Outer Limits episode that is unbelievable, It is called Joy Ride. I think in the next ten years or so, with the right money, you can go up in the Space Ship. There are private companies and it is already in the works. We took that and blended it with John Glen and what if they went up in space and had an encounter that so unsettled them that when they came back to earth it was hard for them to handle their relationships. They start to alienate nasa and they find their way onto a private space and....he wants to go up and takes control of the ship. It is intense."

SpiderWeb asks "Martin Cummins portrays Nick Boyle SO WELL .... is he how you originally envisioned the character??"

RichardBartonLewis says "Yes, Martin is actually darker than I envisioned. He is a brooding fellow. I think it is wonderful to watch how he has grown. He is a very dark intense fellow and he has brought that to the show."

SpiderWeb asks "Are there plans to introduce "Nick Boyle's Mom" in the 4th Season??"

RichardBartonLewis says "These are cool."

WHTWOLF asks "What made you want to be a producer?"

RichardBartonLewis says "I wanted to be two things when I grew up. A baseball player and I played semi pro baseball. I was fascinated with Jill Goodall and I wanted to go to Africa and work with the chimps. Unfortunately the year I wanted to go, the students were kidnapped and the whole program was shut down. The combination of science and entertainment hit me at an early age. I saw the Andromada Strain....the baseball thing...you want to be in control. It is kind of like pitching a no hitter."

RichardBartonLewis says "I was 17 or 18. I stumbled into it. I started as PA for no money and worked my way up. I just had the conviction I was going to do it. Out of my graduating class of 100 at UCLA only 3 people have been working in the industry. I am lucky and it is an incredible life. What makes it profound is getting all these questions..someone is actually watching. sometimes in tv you don't know, you have ratings and you don't really know. It is nice to see that people see it."

guest7735 asks "What's next for Richard?"

RichardBartonLewis says "Last year, we were shooting in san Francisco and two actresses walked into a department store and the sales lady knew who they were. A lot of surprises. I have a movie She is Funny That Way that I want to do with Goldie Hawn. That is what we are doing. Thank you. Everybody keep paying attendion. Keep the constructive criticism coming and the suggestions coming."

HSHost says "Richard, thank you so much for joining us tonight. It was a pleasure to have you on the show!"