October 2, 2007
by Steve Hammons

A grassroots populist effort to convince leadership of the pay TV channel HBO to bring back the series "John from Cincinnati" has been launched in a big way.

Using the Web site SaveJFC.net as a focal point, fans of the innovative and unconventional series are actively lobbying HBO executives to reconsider the decision to cancel the show after one 10-episode season.

Is this simply an effort by fans of a TV show to have their program given a second season?

Or is it more than that?

The fact that this campaign to bring back the series is being generated from average Americans shows us once again that democracy and grassroots action can be effective not only in political and social spheres, but also in the activities and behaviors of our mass media.

It also indicates that leaders in media, government, education, commerce and other fields are wise to be responsive to the intelligence of the people.

The wisdom of average Americans, coming from the bottom up, has frequently been found to be worth paying attention to.

Despite the fact that much of our media, governmental, economic and social processes and activities flow from the top down, the perception of average people, including fans of "John from Cincinnati," is a significant viewpoint that is important.

WHY BRING BACK "JOHN?"

For those who didn't catch the series when it premiered this past summer, the story, on the surface, centers around a San Diego-area family of three generations of surfers: the grandfather, his adult son, the third-generation 14-year-old and a circle of family, friends and acquaintances.

In the first episode, an unusual stranger shows up. This is John. And soon, unusual things start to happen. Metaphysical and paranormal things. Anomalous phenomena.

The surfing grandfather spontaneously levitates several inches off the ground. A pet bird is brought back to life.

In a later episode, the 14-year-old is totally healed after a devastating surfing accident and after a hospital physician has declared him brain-dead.

And these incidents are followed by other unusual occurrences that delve into current emerging discoveries about quantum physics and human consciousness.

These unique developments are woven into the everyday lives of the characters as they get in touch with their fears and pain. Then, their confusion leads to gradually increasing understanding and healing.

The excellent cast and team of producers, directors, writers and crew brought together different professional and life experiences to tell this story in ways that fascinated many fans, while also confusing some viewers.

But maybe there was a method in the madness of the show's creators and writers.

Life and especially the emerging discoveries and phenomena we are facing now are confusing. They are unclear. They are mysterious. They can be upsetting.

Some of the things that were tackled in the show include topics like ESP and "anomalous cognition," synchronicity (meaningful, purposeful "coincidences"), deeper levels of reality such as Einstein's "unified field" and what is now being called a "zero point" field.

These elements, like the "John from Cincinnati" series, are confusing, unclear and mysterious, even for the scientists, physicists, psychologists and others exploring them.

That is the point. These and other phenomena are emerging and bubbling up within us and around us in ways we do not yet fully understand.

"John from Cincinnati" examined these situations, and how they will be manifesting in our lives. How they will cause anxiety, change and healing.

MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE CONNECTIONS

The people now joining up to bring back "John from Cincinnati" are also noting the many military and intelligence references and circumstances contained, sometimes mysteriously, in the show.

The series is set and partially filmed in Imperial Beach, a community in the far southern reaches of San Diego County on the border with Mexico . San Diego County is home to the largest military complex on the planet, including many important Navy bases and activities as well as Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

Especially in these times we are living in, the roles and responsibilities of our military personnel, their families and the communities in which they live are of the utmost importance.

In the first episode of "JFC," a Vietnam veteran finds John walking in an outlying area near Imperial Beach. As the vet gives John a ride, viewers briefly see that "Vietnam Joe" gives John what appears to be an Army Special Forces baseball type cap to wear on the drive. Many viewers may have missed this.

For those unfamiliar with Army Special Forces, one of their major roles is to train and provide support for friendly populations. They often enter an area discreetly, might work undercover and establish rapport and communications with the target population.

Another repeated scene of interest is the Navy's huge circular signals intelligence antenna array in Imperial Beach. In the second episode, while walking on the Imperial Beach pier, John gazes at the antenna array. In later episodes, the "elephant cage" or "Bulls eye" antenna is featured several times.

This naval antenna system in Imperial Beach is one of several U.S. Navy arrays in various locations around the world that pick up electronic information from aircraft, ships and submarines.

In other words, it is an intelligence and information receiving apparatus that perceives the unseen and makes sense of it. The symbolism is fairly clear once we think about it a little bit.

Yet another interesting aspect to the San Diego location is the fact that military and intelligence research into the ESP techniques called "remote viewing" has been coordinated for many years from a San Diego-based company, Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). SAIC headquarters is located up near the University of California San Diego (UCSD) campus.

Project STARGATE was the research and operational remote viewing program that most people are familiar with. The CIA, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Army, Navy and Air Force all had a hand in the nearly three-decade efforts in which remote viewing was developed as a legitimate intelligence resource.

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There were also questions as to whether John might be an angel or maybe an extraterrestrial who just hopped of a UFO. Maybe he came from another spiritual or cosmic dimension. This is left for us to wonder about. Believe it or not, there is military and intelligence community interest in these kinds of situations too.

Again, this kind of phenomena is repeatedly explored in "John from Cincinnati" in ways that viewers might puzzle about, and also find enlightening.

Thousands of people who have chosen the U.S. Navy as a youthful experience or career live in the area where this show takes place.

Navy activities in the San Diego area include North Island Naval Air Station on Coronado Island, just north of Imperial Beach, which is a birthplace of naval aviation. Nearby Point Loma is home to the Navy's Marine Mammal Program which works with, and learns from, dolphins, whales, sea lions and other marine creatures. A Navy SEAL headquarters is also nearby.

The many Navy operations and activities in the San Diego are far too numerous to mention . and many can't be mentioned anyway because of the sensitivity and security surrounding them.

HUMANS AND OCEAN

Fans of the show and those lobbying HBO to give it a second season point out the many elements of the show related to life by and with the Pacific Ocean.

The fact that this series takes place on the interface between land and sea is no accident. The creators wanted the show to be about boundaries of different kinds.

Surfing, apart from being a metaphysical activity in itself according to some people, is also an example of humans interacting with the ocean in a positive way.

In these days when the oceans are being polluted, fish species being decimated by over-fishing and when climate change might soon cause oceans to warm and sea levels to rise globally, this setting for "John from Cincinnati" seems very worthwhile.

A San Diego-Tijuana region's coastal conservation organization called WiLDCOAST worked with the show's cast and crew to include the group's name in some of the episodes. "John from Cincinnati" also included several online videos and references about efforts to fight ocean pollution near the U.S.-Mexican border.

And we probably shouldn't overlook the many symbols and metaphors about the ocean in regard to physics, consciousness and spirituality.

There are those ideas that we individual humans are but waves on a deeper spiritual sea. The unified field and zero-point field might be compared to a fluid ocean-like phenomena. There is also that old idea that there exists a "sea of love."

The San Diego region is filled with ocean lovers. The harbors and coast are filled with recreational boats. San Diego's Sea World park is known around the world. And the region's beaches are a source of beauty and a kind of relaxing "altered consciousness" experience themselves.

And into this mix of the Pacific Ocean, highly intelligent marine mammals, somewhat intelligent surfers, ocean lovers, beaches, Navy people and intelligence operations comes the mysterious stranger John.

When John first appears, he is trying to find the member of the surfing family who is the son and the father - son of the grandfather and father of the 14-year-old.

Through a confusing interaction which is the first of many confusing communications between John and others, it is determined that John wants surfing lessons. We soon learn though that John already is an accomplished surfer, or a very quick learner.

The surfing aspect of the show seemed hard to relate to for some viewers. After all, most of us are not surfers.

However, the emersion of John and the other characters in the Pacific Ocean can be an example of other kinds of interaction with and exploration of Nature. It can be a metaphor for hiking in the forest, canoeing down a river, learning about wildlife, watching the stars at night.

WHY WAS "JOHN" CANCELLED

Many media watchers and now the coalitions of viewers who want "John from Cincinnati" back on the air have noted that quite a few factors might have contributed to the initial modest ratings and reactions toward the series.

HBO's "The Sopranos" and "Deadwood" were very popular shows, and many fans were disappointed and angry when those programs ended.

HBO had a change of top executives between the time the "John from Cincinnati" project was approved and when it was cancelled.

In truth, the show was sometimes confusing and did not follow the usual paths of other TV series. So, some viewers and critics were unsure about the Zen-like happenings in the story and the many mysterious references. And, some critics chose to be, well, critical.

For many viewers, the frequent use of rough and salty language, especially the "f-word" might have been a turn off. Yes, we all know that word is a paradox of our society: The word for making love and creating babies is also the word about insulting, hurting and cheating others and is an offensive expletive. Sure, we should get over this contradiction. Still, the word did seem to be over-used at times in the show.

The ratings for "John" were not stellar. But, as the group advocating for its return has noted, it was launched in the summer and, reportedly, its ratings were actually comparable to early episodes of "The Sopranos."

In addition, some of the characters in the show were filled with pain, anger and confusion. Family and marital conflicts and losses were especially painful. One character had slipped into destructive heroin addiction. The surfing family was not the Waltons, or the Jetsons.

This was sometimes uncomfortable to watch.

The unconventional and unusual goings on with altered consciousness, ESP phenomena, miraculous healing, other dimensions, spiritual elements and similar subjects are fascinating for some people, yet are looked at as "junk science" or "BS" by others. That which we do not understand is sometimes the subject of ridicule and avoidance.

A "perfect storm" of sorts hit "John from Cincinnati" and its cast, crew, creators, producers, directors and writers . as well as HBO decision-makers.

The question of the day might be: What do we do about it now that we have greater insight?

The people pushing to get a second chance, and a second wind for this innovative and important creative TV series seem to know what they are going to do.

They want HBO bigwigs to reconsider the decision to cancel "John." They want thoughtful and intelligent understanding of the various factors and dynamics in play surrounding the show.

They want populist and grassroots democracy to be felt at HBO, in the media and in our society.

And isn't that a good idea?

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Steve Hammons [send him email] has worked as a journalist, editor, counselor, juvenile probation peace officer, public safety urgent-response specialist, teacher, instructor and US Government researcher. He graduated from Ohio University with studies in communications/journalism, health education/psychology and pre-law. Hammons's two novels, Mission into Light and Light's Hand, tell the story of a US joint-service military and intelligence research team investigating emerging special topics.