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From: wjb@burl.UUCP (Bill Buie)
Newsgroups: net.startrek
Subject: Re: THE WOMEN and who is Dr. Who?
Message-ID: <516@burl.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 27-Jul-84 09:44:35 EDT
Article-I.D.: burl.516
Posted: Fri Jul 27 09:44:35 1984
Date-Received: Sat, 28-Jul-84 07:47:55 EDT
References: <1464@garfield.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Technologies; Burlington, NC
Lines: 35

--
The referenced article is the second or third one I've seen that
inquired into the Doctor's identity, with nobody so far explaining. 

At first I said, "There's somebody out there who never heard of the
Doctor?  Ah, come on!"  But maybe I'm the one who's weird.

First of all, his name is not "Doctor Who".  He is addressed as
"Doctor", and referred to as "the Doctor".  Who is the Doctor? 
Well, that's a good question.  Let's start with "*WHAT* is the
Doctor?"  The Doctor is a Time Lord.  What is a Time Lord?  I don't
know as that questioned has ever been answered, but some relevant
characteristics seem to be that they can assume any of 17 humanoid
shapes, they "regenerate" when a shape is old, burned out, or
damaged (implying long life spans-- the Doctor is something like 750
years old, himself), they have an exteremely high technology, and
have mastered the secrets of time and space travel.  The Doctor
appears to be something of a renegade, preferring to traipse around
the universe in his TARDIS (an acronym-- sorry I can't tell you what
it stands for), helping individuals and Galaxies out of trouble
rather than meet his obligations on his homeworld.  There have been
~5 actors playing the Doctor, as he regenerates every time a 
contract expires.  (This show has been playing a LONG time in Great
Britian). 

I got hooked on the Doctor Who show watching Tom Baker play him on
the local Public TV station.  Baker doesn't appear to take himself,
the show, or his part very seriously, and the result is very funny,
very entertaining science fantasy.  More experienced Doctor Who fans
are invited to refrain from further contamination of this newsgroup,
but anybody interested can subscribe to net.tv.drwho
 
-- 

				--Bill Buie