At 08:38 PM 2/11/2003 +0000, Mark Tiller wrote: >Did anybody else notice that Issola was written with a certain nod >towards television. One of the things struck me was the habit SKZB had >in the book of putting a dramatic line or paragraph right at the end of >a chapter as a TV Show would just before an ad break. It actually predates TV. The technique was more-or-less created by none other than Alexandre Dumas. But I have *certainly* been influenced by television. Especially "The Wild, Wild West," and "The Man From Uncle." And my sense of humor was formed more by the Smothers Brothers than any other single influence that comes to mind.