Dear Devoted Buffy Fans:
This information has just come to us from The WB Television Network.
Hopefully it will answer any questions you might have about this recent
development. If you have any comments please direct them to
[email protected] or
call us at (818)977-2897. Thank You!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER SEASON FINALE TO BE DELAYED UNTIL LATER IN THE
SUMMER
Burbank, CA (May 24, 1999) -- The season finale of the highly acclaimed
one-hour series BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER titled "Graduation Day, Part
Two," which was scheduled to air tomorrow night, Tuesday, May 25, 1999,
will be delayed until later in the summer, it was announced today by
Jamie Kellner, CEO of The WB. In its place, The WB will air an encore
episode of the series titled "Band Candy."
The following statement was made by Jamie Kellner.
"It is out of sympathy and compassion for the families and communities
that have been devastated by the recent senseless acts of violence
perpetrated on high school campuses that we have decided to delay this
broadcast. Our decision is also borne out of a deep sense of
responsibility to The WB's loyal young audience.
"At issue for us was a short part of the climactic scene of this
powerful two-part season finale. During a solar eclipse that occurs
during his commencement speech at Sunnydale High's graduation ceremony,
the mayor morphs into a 60-foot serpent and attacks the students. In
turn, Buffy and her classmates are forced to defend themselves. Given
the current climate, depicting acts of violence at a high school
graduation ceremony, even fantasy acts against 60-foot serpents and
vampires, we believe, is inappropriate to broadcast around the actual
dates of these time-honored ceremonies.
"We apologize to the millions of loyal 'Buffy' viewers who are eagerly
anticipating this episode. We sincerely hope that you understand that
the last thing we want to do is pre-empt our season finale. However, at
this time, we feel that it is the best and most responsible decision for
us to make.
"Like most of its loyal fans and the nations critics, we at The WB
consider BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER to be one of the highest quality
programs on television today. We plan on being able to broadcast
"Graduation Day, Parts One and Two" later in the summer. Next season,
Buffy and her cohorts, having graduated from high school, will be
involved in their greatest adventures ever."
Contact:
[email protected]