FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE! GRAY AREAS, INC. P.O. BOX 808 BROOMALL, P.A. 19008-0808 EXAMINING THE GRAY AREAS OF LIFE We are pleased to announce the birth of a new quarterly publication. It is called Gray Areas and will focus on live music and taping as well as other gray areas of law (discussed further below). The magazine will appeal to collectors of memorabilia such as video, audio, discs and printed treasures. Initially, the first issues of Gray Areas will focus heavily on bands such as Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, ABB, Hot Tuna, Little Feat, Janis Joplin and CSNY. However, we intend to be very responsive to reader suggestions and to new music trends. Future issues could expand to address artists like Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, QMS, Frank Zappa, Doors, Who, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones as well as contemporary artists who are hot today. You may already subscribe to music fanzines which do a great job of covering music. However, it is fair to say that their coverage of the tapes of these bands is minimal and they focus on current concert tours rather than on tapes, history and controversial debates. By contrast, more mainstream publications tend to be pretty broad and try to be all things to all people. We doubt we'll be covering acts like Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra or genres like country music. Gray Areas will concentrate on the following: 1. Tape reviews of both video and audio. To our knowledge, no other publica- tion reviews live video tapes. Audio tapes are discussed about once a year in other publications. We intend to print what they won't dare to. 2. Tape histories of popular bands. The first issue of Gray Areas will include a listing of every known Grateful Dead videotape. This was done years ago in a publication called The Golden Road. However, hundreds of videos have surfaced since then. Next we will tackle a listing of all Jefferson Airplane videos which has never been published before. 3. Interviews with soundmen, roadies, pioneer and current tapers and musi- cians. The first issue of Gray Areas will include an interview with Frank Zappa about his views on live tapes. 4. Ongoing reader debates and editorials on the ethics of selling tapes, open drug sales at concerts, noise reduction, scalping tickets, etc. 5. Reviews of compact discs (both bootlegs and legitimate releases), books, equipment, computer software, unusual magazines, cool catalogs and other pro- ducts relevant to our readers. 6. Concert reviews to let you know what various bands are up to this tour as well as reviews of classic concerts. We are planning to present the above information in a sociological framework which focuses on gray areas of law as a whole. We will cover computer software piracy and compare and contrast it to the distribution of concert tapes. We'll also investigate piracy of Hollywood movies on videotape, home taping and copy- right laws, drug testing and even what to do if you are being busted. We're in- terested in exploring all points of view about topics involving illegal acts, potentially illegal acts and those considered immoral. We plan to feature sto- ries on other gray areas of legal and moral controversy as well, such as com- puter viruses, tattoos, motorcycle gangs, swinging and the adult film business. This first issue will contain an interview with former adult film star Kay Parker detailing an insider's view on what it's like to make films, what stars earn, why she left the business and what she's doing now. In addition, we assume that as collectors you are interested in other types of collectibles and so will cover hobbies like Fillmore and Avalon posters, ani- mation cels, Disneyana and even more unusual ones like Pez dispensers (they sell for up to $600 each!). We'll tell you how to store your collectibles, stay abreast of what they are worth, provide auction results and tell you where to turn to get top dollar when you sell them. As you can see, we'll have no shortage of material to cover! As your leaders on this voyage, our credits include collecting tapes since 1975 and helping with the original Garcia Band lists in Deadbase. Netta Gilboa is credited on Jorma Kaukonen's Magic lp., helped with Robert Hunter's Live '85 lp., worked for Dupree's Diamond News for two years and several other publishers, and holds two Master's degrees from Northwestern University in advertising and sociology. Alan Sheckter has been taking photographs at concerts since 1977, and since 1986 has been an active member of the Grateful Dead conference on the WELL, the Sausalito, CA-based computer group. E-mail can be sent to us at: grayarea@well.sf.ca.us You're invited to become a charter subscriber to Gray Areas. We are offering several subscription packages: 1. Advertiser's Special. This offer includes two subscriptions (you may use one as a gift) as well as four business-card-size black-and-white ads. Total cost is $300. You must run the same ad each issue and copy must be camera ready. If you prefer quarter-page ads, total cost is $600. Advertising rates will dra- matically increase as circulation increases and you will save hundreds of dollars by prepaying. We intend to print 10,000 copies of our first 48-64 page issue and to start out with an explosion rather than taking several years to get there. Larger display ads are available at prepublication prices as well. 2. Supporter's Special. This offer is for those who want to provide seed money but have no interest in purchasing ad space. For $50 you can purchase three subscriptions. Use two as gifts (a note will be sent to each recipient), do- nate them to prisoners (we'll send you their names) or sign up now for three years and save $$$$. 3. Basic subscription. Like any new publication, we expect Gray Areas to be hard to find in stores initially. Be sure you don't miss it by subscribing! A four-issue subscription is $18 ($26 outside USA, shipped via air mail). Al- though the price is high, we're quite sure you won't find the information we publish elsewhere. We also anticipate high costs to check the legal accuracy of what we print. We will not accept tape trading ads as they are illegal. We'll explain why in our first issue. You may run one free personal ad to ad- vertise for a penpal, a spouse or to say hi to your friends. Feel free to in- clude an ad of up to 50 words with your subscription. Sorry, ads which offer anything for sale or solicit business are restricted to display ads. All ads are subject to approval and we reserve the right to reject unsuitable ads. Although we have already started on the first issue, we still need several months to get your letters, ads and to prepare final copy. We expect the first issue to appear in the fall. However, we will acknowledge all subscriptions immediately. Please send in your letters and ideas. We'll print as many as possible. We're also eager to hear from photographers, artists, cartoonists, attorneys, writers and reviewers. All correspondence is presumed to be for pub- lication unless you specifically request that we omit your name or refrain from publishing your comments. Get involved and make Gray Areas your magazine! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Name__________________________________________________ Address_______________________________________________ City_____________________________ State_______________ Zip__________________ Country______________________________________________ ___(Advertiser's Special A) My camera-ready-copy business-card-sized ad is enclosed with payment of $300. ___(Advertiser's Special B) My camera-ready-copy quarter-page-sized ad is enclosed with payment of $600. ___I need a bigger ad. Please send me your display ad rates. ___(Supporter's Special A) I have enclosed 2 other addresses and payment of $50 for three U.S. subscriptions. ___(Supporter's Special B) Here's my $50. Send 2 of my 3 subscriptions to prisonersand tell me who they are. ___(Supporter's Special C) Sign me up for 3 years at $50. I know a good deal when I see one (Foreign $75). ___(Basic Subscription) I have enclosed payment of $18 ($19.08 for PA resi- dents) for 4 issues. ___(Foreign Subscription) I have enclosed an international money order for $26. All issues shipped via air mail. ___(Workingman's Special) I'll tie up $5 now for a sample and probably sub- scribe after I see the first issue. ___I have a store. Send me your terms and I'll consider carrying Gray Areas. Mail this form and payment to: Gray Areas, Inc. P.O. Box 808 Broomall, PA 19008-0808. Pennsylvania residents must include 6% sales tax. If you are ordering Advertiser's Special A and B or Supporter's Specials A or B, they include additional subscriptions. Please list the addresses for any being sent elsewhere below: Name_____________________________ Name____________________________________ Address___________________________ Address__________________________________ City______________________________ City_____________________________________ State____________Zip______________ State__________________Zip_______________ -----------------------------------------------------------------------------