Trivia and In-Jokes
About the Story:
Early Edition was a new obsession for me. Gary Hobson started
catching my eye, and I finally decided that he’d be one of AL’s guys. I had a
lot of trouble figuring out why she was in Chicago in the first place, but then
I had the idea of the mad scientist being after her. The similarities between
Dr. Von Braun and Doc Brown from Back to the Future were intentional, and
may or may not become something in the future.
Title:
On the Side of Angels: A song by LeAnn Rimes. I chose it because AL
hates being compared to an angel.
Chapter One:
Dr. Walter Von Braun: “Von Braun” is a name from Back to the
Future. It’s what Dr. Brown’s family was called before his father changed
their name after the First World War.
England/Totters Lane/Coal Hill School/military operation/Amsterdam/San Francisco: All references to the show Doctor Who.
Malibu: A reference to the show Diagnosis Murder.
Los Angeles: A reference to the show Angel.
Chapter Two:
Animals being pure of heart and seeing only the truth: A Quantum
Leap reference.
Chapter Three:
Wisconsin: My ex-fiancé lives there, as does the character in this
story based on him (see Chapter Thirteen entry).
Chapter Five:
Pete: A character from the Doctor Who Movie, though he was a
morgue attendant.
Chapter Seven:
10:04PM: Another Back to the Future reference.
“Hey, this date…this is tomorrow’s newspaper…”: Yet another Back to the Future reference.
Chapter Eleven:
Florence Nightingale Effect: Sort of from Back to the Future.
In the words of Doc Brown, “It happens in hospitals when nurses fall in love
with their patients”.
Chapter Thirteen:
The whole rainstorm shtick: Because it rained a lot while writing
that chapter.
Benjamin Del Ponte: My ex-fiancé’s real name and the name of his character, Jedi Ben, or JB. He’s a reoccurring figure in AL’s life (hence her annoyance at his appearance).
Chapter Fifteen:
Two wrongs don’t make a left turn, right?: It’s a quote from
Doctor Who.
Chapter Nineteen:
Big brown puppy-dog eyes: Yes, this is a nod to Doc Brown from
Back to the Future.
Mention of Parkinson’s disease: AL knows people. Michael J. Fox is most likely one of them.