I disagree with the term ego in this connection. (Big surprise,
right?) On one level, anyone who is involved in any aspect of the arts
has exercised ego in the sense of, "I am going to make little black marks
on this piece of paper," or "I am going to make colored brushstrokes on
this canvas, and they will be sufficiently impressive that you will want
to pay money for them." That aspect is part and parcel of working in any
form of the arts.

But B5 specifically? I don't think so. First off, there's a great
deal of misunderstanding in this discussion about how television works.
In a TV series, the story editor *NEVER, EVER* rewrites the executive
producer. It would be a hideous breach of protocol. On MURDER, SHE WROTE
or JAKE, or other shows, I *never* touched my exec's scripts. The network
puts an executive producer/writer on premises for one singular reason
(not counting the one billion others): to set the tone for the writing for
everyone else to follow. They rely on YOU to absolutely govern that
aspect, or you're not doing your job, and betraying your commitment to the
network.

So when someone says "It's ego not to let the story editor revise the
executive producer's scripts," that betrays a total lack of understanding
of how television production works.

Finally, working 5 years to get B5 produced had nothing to do with
ego and everything to do with obsession. There's this story that I like,
which I hope others will like. The ONLY way that this story will ever be
told is if one person fights for it tooth and nail for every day of every
year required to tell it. I have an obligation to this story to see it
through. Getting doors slammed in your face for five years takes its toll
on the ego; ego says, "Screw it, go find a nice cushy job on another show
where nobody'll slam the door on you." Obsession says, "Keep going."
Ego hates to fail. Obession *requires* that you fail from time to time,
in striving for something greater.

jms