Excerpted:

[Note: I consider direct quotes the property of the speaker and not Warner Brothers. But I have excerpted the article at the request of the magazine.]

Official B5 Magazine #(5?)

Official B5 Magazine -- No. ? (early 1998)

"It's very frustrating not being on the air," said Bruce Boxleitner, speaking exclusively to Babylon 5 Magazine, adding that his frustration has been somewhat assuaged by Babylon 5's new network's support.

He gestures to a new TNT poster advertising the series on the wall beside him behind the scenes at Babylonian. "It seems TNT, as you can see from that poster there, is going to make a big presentation out of it, which it never really had before, and make an 'event' out of the show; to quote Brad Segal, the President of TNT. He was here the other day having lunch with us, which was very cool. His enthusiasm was infectious."

"I'm very up about it, to tell you the truth," he reveals. "It's what I always envisioned ever since I walked onto this thing. I feel like we're sitting on something that will live longer than we will, that it will be something to really sit back and be proud of. And I think they'll show this for a long, long time, and it may be a benchmark for other science fiction sagas."

"It's a bizarre role I'm suddenly playing, and it's kind of frustrating," comments Bruce Boxleitner. "I want to get in there, shoot the PPG's and race around in the space ships. It's what I've been used to doing. It's like being desk bound and office bound." His new role as President of the Interstellar Alliance, however, does offer other challenges for both the character and actor. "It's still a part of the dilemma of being in command," says Bruce, "and also being in a large command now than just a space station. It's about a larger thing, this rickety alliance that's constantly wavering and cracking. And so Sheridan's a bigger character than just this captain. It encompasses more."

"I'm not sure I'm changing him any," he says. "A lot of what I'm trying to do is to emphasize a lot of his frustration, if there is a way to do it. He really can't be more hands-on anymore. He has to look at the larger picture, and now it's about negotiation, not 'Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.' I don't believe you'll see that Sheridan anymore. I've now got to look at the whole picture, in a much bigger way; and the responsibilities I have here. Like the President of the United States, you can't just go out and get in a street fight!"

"I've had a number of council meetings in these first ten or eleven episodes," he says. "I'm trying to find things to work on my oratory to turn him into this politician and this leader.

"I've been watching more of the things (President) Clinton's handling. You know, it's funny -- actors, we're weird. I'm playing a role and suddenly I look at things in a little more detail and go, 'How would I do that? How would I handle this crisis?'"

(thanks Bev!)