sp; The New York TimesThe New York Times just posted a recent feature article on the origins and background of the new twelve episode mega-series HBO & BBC co-production. Inside, it revealed some new facts about the show that have come to light:

- The production budget for the first season stands at US $75 million. Assuming its successful enough, expect the same cost for a second & potential third season.

- A broad idea for the series was hatched by the creator after watching the DVD box set of the acclaimed 1976 UK 13-episode miniseries "I, Claudius" which starred the likes of Derek Jacobi, John Hurt, Patrick Stewart, John Rhys-Davies, Brian Blessed and James Faulkner. Like that ground-breaking show which spanned decades and several rulers (ie. Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, etc.), this is expected to cover a great passage of time as well.

- The concept was to peek at imperial Rome from the perspective of the common man's living room rather than from the Caesar's lair. What emerged was a plot that whirled around two soldiers who return to the city after years away dismembering Gauls

- In early March, the producer rented a bus and with a large group of the actors an d traveled two hours south to the remains of Pompeii, near Naples - "It just gives you a sense of the life: the width of a street, the size of a room. It builds a subconscious picture that's part and parcel of everything

- The show's production staff is taking great pains to be true to the past. They collected a small library's worth of obscure tomes, including several on the physical gestures of ancient Romans.

Thanks to 'Dust Bunny'.