>From cn577@cleveland.freenet.edu Tue Aug 17 13:46:19 1993 Subject: CYBERSPACE VANGUARD 1:5 Copyright 1993, Cyberspace Vanguard Magazine ================================================================ |----------------------------------------------------------------| | C Y B E R S P A C E | | V A N G U A R D | | News and Views of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Universe | ================================================================ | cn577@cleveland.freenet.edu Cyberspace Vanguard@1:157/564 | | PO Box 25704, Garfield Hts., OH 44125 USA | ---------------------------------------------------------------- | TJ Goldstein, Editor Sarah Alexander, Administrator | | tlg4@po.cwru.edu aa746@po.cwru.edu | ---------------------------------------------------------------- Volume 1 August 15, 1993 Issue 5 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS --!1!-- Ramblings of a Deranged Editor --!2!-- Mysteries from Beyond the Scifi Channel: Why DR. FRANKLIN RUEHL Can't Be Abducted By Space Aliens --!3!-- The Illusion of Falling: KENNY BATES Makes His Mark On Filmmaking --!4!-- PETER CUSHING And The Mystery Of The Missing Films: Trying To Write A Book About The Master Of Horror --!5!-- Guesting for the Old Comics Curmudgeon -- Asserting Your Independents --!6!-- Reviews by EVELYN C. LEEPER --!7!-- SF Calendar: What's Coming Up in the Near Future --!8!-- All The News That's Fit To Transmit --!8!-- SPOILERS AHOY/Including Episode Guide For HIGHLANDER Season One --!9!-- Publications and Conventions --!10!-- Administrivia --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!1!-- Ramblings of a Deranged Editor --------------------------------------------------------------------------- We're baaaaaack ... Last issue I rambled on quite a bit, so this time I'm going to make it short and (hopefully) sweet. First, thanks to all the people who wrote in offering help. I believe that we finally got back to everyone, so if you haven't heard, we might not have gotten your letter. Feel free to write us again. We've gotten a few people to do specific subgenres, such as television, books, etc., so what would be nice now is for people to write in with article ideas, (A query about an article idea will definitely get a quicker response. An article will most likely be tagged for reading in my "copious spare time" -- and if you're a regular reader, by now you know what an oxymoron that is. If you've queried me first I'll know to look out for it. Second ... this issue is going to be short on articles and long on news. Because we didn't run much last issue, we found ourselves backlogged, and a surprising amount of it was still current. Of the interviews we are carrying this month, we've got Dr. Franklin Rhuel, the host, creator, and brains behind the Scifi Channel's MYSTERIES FROM BEYOND THE OTHER DOMINION. It's a bit weird, but if you like that sort of thing, it's worth a look. Then we've got Kenny Bates, the man who is responsible for William Shatner falling off a mountain. And last but not least, Deborah Del Vecchio and Tom Johnson, authors of PETER CUSHING: THE GENTLEMAN OF HORROR AND HIS 91 FILMS. They give us an interesting perspective not only on the man himself, but what it's like to try and track things down in the murky world of films. Also, we are thrilled to announce that Hugo nominee Evelyn C. Leeper has joined our ranks as a reviewer. If you are on the main networks (or if you get Lan's Lantern) you've probably seen her stuff already, and know how lucky we are to have her. (Rick will probably join her next issue.) Also on tap, we've been getting a lot of requests for episode guides, so this month we're bringing you one of the most frequently requested: HIGHLANDER. If there are others that you'd like to see, let us know and we'll see if we can get them. Finally, there's the news. There was so much of it we had to break it up into loose categories. I say loose because the boundaries can get fuzzy. If they make a movie out of a William Gibson story, what section do you put it in? So we make no guarantees as to the classifications. Also included in the news is a ballot for Clarinet's Electronic Science Fiction Award. It mirrors the Hugo's, but you don't have to belong to anything in particular to vote. You just have to have access to e.mail. They've extended the deadline, but you've got to get them out soon. So there it is. Enjoy! ----------------- CYBERSPACE VANGUARD: News and Views of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Universe is registered with the United States Copyright Office. It may be reposted anywhere IN IT'S ENTIRETY. (We'd like to know where, but only because we're trying to see how far it goes.) If you would like to repost individual articles, you must contact us so that we may get permission from the author. If you are using a small amount of news, that's fine, as long as information about the magazine and how to get it is also posted. Print magazines and fanzines wishing to use CV news should contact us first. Note to sysops: We would like to put together a list of local BBS's that carry CV so that we can send it to people who may prefer to pick it up in that way. If you wish to be included in such a listing, send the BBS name, phone number, and address along with your name to any of the addresses below. ----------------- HOW TO CONTACT US: Internet: cn577@cleveland.freenet.edu Snail Mail: PO Box 25704 FidoNet: Cyberspace Vanguard@1:157/564 Garfield Hts., OH Delphi: CVANGUARD 44125 USA --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!2!-- Mysteries from Beyond the Scifi Channel: Why DR. FRANKLIN RUEHL Can't Be Abducted By Space Aliens --------------------------------------------------------------------------- by TJ Goldstein [MYSTERIES FROM BEYOND THE OTHER DOMINION airs on the Science Fiction Channel twice on Sundays, 4:30pm and 7:30pm Eastern Time.] I'll admit it: I don't have the Scifi Channel. But it's not my fault. I'm one of those millions who lives in an area where the cable company, for one reason or another, doesn't carry it. Of course, I'm not alone here. Like millions of other cable viewers, Dr. Franklin Ruehl doesn't get SFC either. There is one difference between us, of course. I'm just a viewer; Dr. Ruehl is the creator and host of MYSTERIES FROM BEYOND THE OTHER DOMINION, SFC's highest rated show. "I tried. I called them up and said 'Right here in your city, in Glendale, you have the star of the top new show on the Scifi Channel. Why don't you run it?' A lot of people want the Scifi Channel, but it's really having trouble making it." While this may sound like a sales pitch, he has very little to do with promoting the actual channel. "I'd be glad to help them, but they haven't really enlisted my aid. I've just done what I could and tried to get on local TV shows and get coverage for myself and hopefully that will translate into more people clamoring for it and more systems listening to their subscribers and finally putting it on." Right now only 10 percent of cable networks in the United States are carrying SFC. When the tape of the show arrived, I have to say that my first thought was that it looked like a top of the line public access cable show -- lots of special effects and computer graphics, but mostly a guy behind a very small desk. It seems I was right. Long before SFC was a gleam in anyone's eye, Dr. Ruehl was expounding his theories on public access cable. "I was originally trying to get on Scifi because I thought that this would be the ideal venue for my show. Then I was on DONAHUE in a segment on public access producers and I met a local representative for the Scifi Channel. I thought 'finally!' Then I spoke to the president out in Boca Raton Florida, and he wasn't really too enthusiastic. But they were having trouble actually getting it off the ground until they sold it to USA Networks, which actually owns Scifi. Finally someone that I know at Universal was working on my show and had an in there, and since Universal owns USA which owns Scifi, I was able to finally get the show on. So it took a long time even to get on this." Since 1984, Ruehl has done more than 130 shows, always trying to get the show nationally syndicated. Now that he has succeeded, the show has undergone some changes. "It's basically the same agenda or content, with the addition of some pretty spectacular special effects." (Um ... while I will say it's better than what you usually find on public access, we are NOT talking about JURASSIC PARK here, folks. Not by a long shot. Not unless it's the Terry Gilliam version.) "We also have actors doing re- enactments of some of the stories, and we have some fantastic visuals, which I certainly did not have the money for when it was public access." The picture quality is also much better. But missing also are the interviews with science fiction celebrities. "The set really wasn't built for it. Besides, there are just too many delays. With public access, I could say be here at 2:30 and we'll start taping at 2:45. Here it's so unpredictable they could be waiting around 2 or 3 hours and storm out because they weren't put on." The show does regularly hit on a few different topics, such as strange medical cases (like a man who had a face on the back of his head -- and was eventually driven to suicide by its moaning, which kept him up at night,) historical oddities (like the fact that the first man killed in the American Civil War died when a cannon misfired during the surrender ceremony). Some have great names like "Strange Droppings from the Sky" that make you think that he's not quite serious, but he is. By far the most coverage, however, goes to UFO's and extraterrestrials. How much do they check out the sometimes outlandish claims? "As much as we can. We don't really have a staff to be able to send out investigators, so we've been covering mostly the classic UFO cases, which have been studied and investigated and then I put my own spin on it, giving what I feel are the weak and strong points of each case. We did have a few instances of phony UFO reports and cases which we showed at the beginning of the series because we're trying to encourage people to send in UFO videos. One was a photograph of a hubcap with a dent in it that was thrown up in the air. What I was trying to do was discourage people from sending in phony cases. Well, I got virtually nothing as a result. People think, well, these guys are going to investigate this pretty thoroughly, what's the sense of trying to kid them. I do have some UFO video that is excellent that we are going to use next season. It looks to be an unusual facial formation on a mountain down in San Diego. It certainly looks open to interpretation. We look for things like that. ... We're also getting a lot of calls, which I hope to use next season, of people with ghosts in their basements, UFO's that have landed in their backyards ... but again, with our staff it is hard to check these things out of they aren't located locally, so I'm not sure how we're going to handle that." So does he really believe all this? "You know, a lot of things I'm very skeptical of myself. Anybody, just for publicity, and claim that they've spotted by a UFO, or even been abducted. And now, the scenarios have been reported so well that everyone's saying about the same thing. They were taken aboard a UFO, blood samples were taken, then they went home and forgot about it, and then they suddenly started to have dreams about aliens, went under hypnotic regression and remembered that they had been abducted two weeks ago. So it's hard to separate the real from the phony. I am a scientist. I look at the evidence. And I have interviewed a number of people who claim to have been abducted, and I have been present at a hypnotic regression, and everyone seems to be legitimate. I know some psychiatrists who claim that the people really don't want to talk about it. They are like mugging victims. They feel that they will be ridiculed, and aren't coming out with books, and for them they retain a quotient of credibility. They people I've talked to all sounded sane, and they didn't sound like publicity hunters. So I think that there are some good cases out there, and I think that something might be going on. Or it might just be a subconscious memory of a science fiction movie they saw years ago." All of this leaves him in an awkward position. "I've never seen a UFO. But if I did see one now, in my position as host of the Scifi channels greatest show, that I would not be believe and I would have to decide whether I would even want to report it because it might actually torpedo my credibility. So that'd be the dilemma I'd be in. I couldn't even report a good sighting if I had one. I think every UFOlogist, would like to see and encounter aliens, although I have to say that I would probably be quite frightened, depending on how non-human they appeared to be." At this point I asked him if he really thought that alien abductions were on they rise, and if so, why. I was rewarded with about 20 minutes of statistics to numerous to go into here, but it boiled down to this: "I believe that there is strong evidence for the existence of extraterrestrial life. If you look at the statistical evidence, if you look at the biological evidence, look at the diversification evidence, we are certainly not alone in this universe. Given the temperament of the universe and the fact that it is 20 billion years old, certainly other species have reached the spacefaring capability. Some may have dispatched the UFO's in other directions, and some may have landed here. Now. Whether people have actually seen it or not ... I haven't seen any case that's convinced me 100%. But as we're talking I wouldn't be surprised if there's an emergency news flash that a UFO had indeed landed on the White House lawn giving us concrete proof of the existence of extraterrestrials." So why ARE people so interested in UFO's? "With more movies and more books coming out about UFO's, I think that more people are also coming forth with cases. Now some are obviously phonies who are looking for publicity. No doubt about that. Others legitimately believe that they have seen something or been an abductee. but I think certain shows, like sightings, probably beginning with Star Trek, which is so popular, and of course now we have Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Star Trek Deep Space Nine, and of course the movies, talking about extraterrestrials I think all of that tends to increase interest in it, and that brings out both the legitimate and the illegitimate cases. So I don't think that we're necessarily having more abductions, but I think that the media is helping to bring out more of them. Although we have had, in the past, years when there were UFO waves, such as 1952, but the fact is the media is bringing out more of it. Some people are afraid to speak about their experience because of the fact that they thought they would be ridiculed. I don't think there's as much fear today. But again, undoubtedly phonies. It's so hard to really tell who is telling the truth and who isn't. You have to look at the evidence and judge each case individually." For my part, I agree with the people who thought the set should be brighter. In some respects it's like a scientific equivalent of Whoopi Goldberg's now-deceased talk show. It needs something to jump out at you. I also think that the show would be vastly improved if they rebuilt the set -- and the production schedule -- to allow for guests. That, and more "location" stories, would bring a bit of variety that the show needs. Dr. Ruehl throws out a LOT of information, and you need time to recover. When you come right down to it, though, the show is Dr. Franklin Ruehl and that very information. Probably the strongest thing he's got going for him is that he DOESN'T try to convince you of anything. He presents the evidence, both for and against, and let's you decide for yourself. He has an agenda, and he's quite serious about it. "We present the scientific evidence for controversial theories and subjects such as those from UFOlogy, parapsychology, paleontology and cryptozoology as well as anything else of an unusual and curious nature, with the basic underlying idea that it is interesting. Of course, I can make it interesting because I believe you can take any subject, no matter what it is, and make it intriguing for your audience." When you come right down to it, he's reading for one thing. "My goal is to make this show the greatest program in the history of television with a weekly viewership of 1 billion with a target date for those goals the year 2015 of not sooner, I say, if not sooner." And so, since I promised the good Doctor I'd leave you all with a little cosmic empowerment, "May the power of the universe be with you!" --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!3!-- The Illusion of Falling: KENNY BATES Makes His Mark On Filmmaking --------------------------------------------------------------------------- by TJ Goldstein My first pro writing job was explaining how the fall at the beginning of STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER was completely impossible in real life. (Actually, it was the sudden stop at the bottom that was my problem, but why split hairs?) My contention was that anyone who fell off El Capitan and came to a sudden stop at the bottom would find their insides somewhere around their eyeballs, whether they hit the ground or not. What I found out talking to stuntman turned producer Kenny Bates, however, is that it IS possible to survive a fall like that. Sort of. After all, he's the one who did the falling. "Inverted, I've pulled up to 12 g's. G's can kill you in the right conditions, but it's how short of a time you pull those g's and what kind of condition your body is in. I've been in a situation where I've popped blood vessels in my eyes, I've cracked teeth, you're face swells up for a couple of days ... the reality of it is that you get diarrhea for a couple of weeks." "You're born with two basic fears," he explains, "a fear of loud noises and a fear of falling. When you've put yourself in a situation where you're falling at 100 miles and hour with no airbag and the loud noise is you screaming all the way down, it's like combining those two. You're body rejects it. You have a few nightmares, but you learn to shake it." There are some people who might not shake it, though. They're the people who called the ranger station to report that a man had fallen off El Capitan. William Shatner, who was not only starring as James Kirk, but was also directing, "liked it so much that they actually changed around the opening of the picture a little bit to accentuate the shot. So it was very gratifying." Bates cheated, of course. While he DID fall 450 feet off the mountain, it certainly wasn't a free-fall experience. He won the Science and Technical Academy Award for the design and development of the Decelerator System, which provides two advantages. First, it allows a stuntperson to fall from much higher platforms. "To back up a little," Mr. Bates explains, "just to give you an idea of how this came to be, if you date back into the early days of motion picture history, when stuntmen first started doing high falls, they would do it into water, or they would put up two sawhorses and put planks between the sawhorses, and they would actually jump, say, 15 or 20 feet onto these breakaway planks. These are how high falls basically originated." As falls got higher, stuntmen began to use haystacks, nets, and cardboard boxes. "I've heard of stuntmen falling up to 10 stories, or 100 feet, into cardboard boxes. These boxes were actually set up in a configuration to break the fall." Then came the airbag. "The highest high fall into an airbag is 311 feet. That's 31 stories. Most commonly, though, airbags are used for doing falls from, oh, 20 feet up to 150. The most common falls are between 20 feet and 80 feet." While airbags are great and they're still in use today, they still leave one problem. Shooting down. With any of these devices, the director must always shoot from the bottom up to avoid filming whatever it is the stuntman is going to land on. What's where the Decelerator's second advantage comes in. Since all you've got is a cable attached to the stuntman's ankle, it doesn't matter what direction you film in. In the film SLIVER, in fact, Mr. Bates did a double fall, actually filming from alongside as a woman as she fell a building. But that's only part of Mr. Bates' bag of tricks. "When we did Die Hard, I started using a device called a Descender, to do controlled falls. In other words, we do a controlled fall from I've been anywhere up to 105 stories. The fall is controlled because your descending on a small cable. If the film is undercranked, it looks like you're falling." What Bates has done is used his knowledge of physics and film to calibrate the speed of the fall versus the degree to which the film must be undercranked. "In DIE HARD, where Alan Rickman dies, falling backwards out of the building, that would have been a death defying feat. Instead we came in and packaged an illusion for Joel Silver. Since then I've done every one of his films." He also doubled Bruce Willis when he leapt off the top of the building with a firehose. But Bates doesn't just know about this because of all the jumps he does. He is also the head of Alternative Innovations, which routinely "packages illusions" for films. "I think of myself as a filmmaker and not as a stuntman. The Decelerator system is used in that way." So what does that mean? "When I come in to do a picture, I come in for the whole picture. I'll come in through my company, and we'll act as either a consultant or as a rigging package, and what we'll do is we'll put together, say a dozen sequences for a film. In other words, we shoot a lot of things practical instead of process." That means what instead of using special effects to throw somebody off a building, they actually throw somebody off a building. "Somebody said my company represents the new Hollywood Houdini," he laughs. "We create illusions on film, whether it's moving vertically or horizontally like in the film CAPTAIN HOOK or many other films, we create looks on film that are very very interesting. As far as action goes, we are the most advanced equipment in the business. There are lots of advantages to using this system as opposed to the traditional airbags, even for falls that don't break records. "Using the Decelerator, you can actually free fall until the last 15 or 20 percent of the fall. In other words, when you come out of a window, you're in free fall and there's no restriction of the camera. When you can shoot from any angle, there's quite a impressive visual look to it. In the LAST BOY SCOUT, I fell about 5 stories and stopped about 3 feet from a spinning helicopter blade. For the movie THE FIRST POWER with Lou Diamond Phillips, I leaped 12 stories to my feet with the Decelerator, pulled a quick release and took off running. That was a first. "When we do these things, they've become so advanced that we'll come in beforehand and work with different insurance companies to give them different specifications on every part of the fall. We'll give load distributions, airflow, acceleration, air flow, how many g's we're pulling. We have a dynamometer gauge to calculate how many pounds we're pulling, so it's all calibrated as much as possible. Right now, I'm the only one who's using it throughout the world. So you can see there's a little bit of demand for it. We stay real busy and even though we do the big stunts and the big looks, we do little stuff too." How big does it get? "The biggest one was on DEMOLITION MAN where I doubled Stallone and jumped 23 stories out of a helicopter and stopped about 6 feet before the roof of a building. Stallone did part of the stunt, too. he put his life in my hands in a dangerous situation that was another calibrated situation, and he was very good about everything. Together we got a great sequence on film -- probably one of the greatest opening action sequences ever on film. The opening of this picture is incredibly visual, and it's probably the most money I've ever seen invested in the opening sequence of a film. It's incredible. We had a helicopter that we flew down from Portland to test with that cost $9,000 an hour. We're talking millions of dollars just for the opening sequence of this film. I'm going on an on about it because I get excited when I talk about it. As a filmmaker I get excited about the illusions we create on film." So what does the Hollywood establishment think of all this? "There are people who have been in the business for a hundred years, and some of them are still using the same flying stage techniques that they used 50, 75 years ago. We deal with pneumatics. To give you an example, we're taking a person and we're flying him 100 feet in the air and he's getting up 40, 50 feet and he's landing on his feet on top of a building somewhere, and he's looking around and leaping to the ground again all in one cut. So it's just phenomenal." Although the technology is so new, he doesn't have a problem with older producers or directors giving him a problem once he's one the set. "An old filmmaker is one that isn't current. When you talk about action films, if you don't know something exists, then you're not going to plan on using it. I think it's the people that do more research are the people that benefit financially." The financial advantages are twofold. For one thing, film time is expensive. Often what Mr. Bates does in 45 minutes would take 3 hours to do with traditional methods. That means that you have more time to make a shot or a sequence perfect, which itself can be financially rewarding when the film hits the theaters. "A lot of directors want something better than what they put together. You wouldn't want to work on a film with Burt Reynolds or Clint Eastwood, or Bruce Willis, or Stallone or any of those guys and not offer them 100 percent because your name's on it. We do all kinds of fims. I was just associate producer on a film that was 9 million dollars and we're getting ready to do one that's 80 million. I don't adjust my price for the project, I just basically base my fee on what it's worth." The paramount concern when doing a stunt like this, of course, is safety. Often Bates is asked if he treats the celebrities he works with differently because of who they are. "I think it's a lot of responsibility whether it's Stallone or anybody that works with me, I mean I still take the same precautions in calibrating any of the equipment or preparing them safely. I don't say, well, it's Stallone so we're going to throw two more ropes on him. If I don't feel good about it, then I won't hook it up in the first place. You have to know the limitations. You can go overboard and overboard, you just never want to go underboard. You want to build in a good safety factor so you have a good safety margin. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration uses something like a four to one margin, and we try to operate in those parameters or better. So we have a very good track record, and we get a lot of different looks. Believe it or not, it's the people, and Stallone isn't that crazy about working with heights, but he's very good about working with people, so he does open up to being put in a precarious situation even though he's apprehensive. He does open up to people when they're able to perform and they know their business. That's kind of good to know." It sounds almost like cliche, but what he really wants to do is produce. "My goal is to produce my own film within the next two years. I've had a couple of offers and hopefully I can bring something to the screen that people will appreciate. I hope have the talent to give the viewer something that is quite entertaining. I've already done it on other people's projects, and I hope I will do it on my own projects, within the next year and a half, two years." When you come right down to it, however, death-defying is still his stock in trade. "If I were to count world records I'd probably have 15 or 20, but I don't count world records. I create illusions. I'm not in this to be the toughest guy on the block. I have a better chance getting injured driving to and from work then while I'm there." Unfortunately, it does happen, and this spring, it did. Brandon Lee was killed during the filming of THE CROW when a gun that was supposed to fire blanks allegedly fired a live round. So far an investigation has not settled the question of what actually happened. "I was affected by the death of Brandon Lee. I don't know what the outcome will be. I worked on the film but at the time, I wasn't there, so I don't know and I'm sure that the research will be done. Whether it was an accident, or negligence or something else, it's a shame that it happened... I've lost friends in the business before. Dar Robinson was a good friend. I worked with him for about 4 years. The tough thing about this business is that you DO lose friends. People do die in this business. It is a business where you can get killed. Not so much as an accident, though it does happen. You know there's a possibility, even if it's only one in 10,000. You know they're going to do 10,000 stunts in a year. " He is currently working on a one hour television special about the behind the scenes facts of being a stuntperson. Burt Reynolds will produce and host the show, which will air brand new footage. It won't be like the old STUNTMASTERS show, but "it removes the macho mask from the business and shows the real mechanics of what happens." William Shatner, Steven Segal, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, and other stars are scheduled to appear. So what goes through his mind as he's sitting on the top of a mountain (or building, or whatever) getting ready to hurtle off into nothingness with only a cable between him and the ground? "Usually I look around and I say, I don't want to die here. Then I think why am I saying that? I don't want to die anywhere! Once I get in the air, I'm too busy thinking about what I'm doing and my movement and making sure I look the way I should look or turning the way I should turn that I never think of that. It doesn't even come into my mind. All of my anxiety is before the stunt. "I want to leave my mark on this earth, and not on the pavement." --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!4!-- PETER CUSHING And The Mystery Of The Missing Films: Trying To Write A Book About The Master Of Horror --------------------------------------------------------------------------- by TJ Goldstein One of the nice things about this job is talking to people who take those things many of us only dream about, and do them. Take Deborah Del Vecchio, for instance. For years, she headed the Peter Cushing fan club here in America. Lots of people do stuff like that, right? Many of them think of writing a book about their heroes, but most of them never do. "I've always aspired to be a professional writer," Debbie told me in a phone interview earlier this year. "Tom [Johnson] and I had thought about doing this book on Peter, but we had other things. We both had full time jobs, he got married, I got married, and we just never got around to it. Finally it got to the point where we said, well, nobody else is doing this, and we know so much about him, we said, well, why don't we give it a try. So we contacted MacFarlane, and they were interested, and that's how it came to be. It's as simple as that, really. We were very lucky. They were the first publisher we had written to." Tom laughs at the simplicity of her explanation. "It sounds a lot easier than it was." In fact, they sent a traditional proposal, complete with sample chapters, to MacFarlane. The end result was PETER CUSHING: THE GENTLE MAN OF HORROR AND HIS 91 FILMS. Almost immediately afterward, Debbie sold her first article to a professional publication -- a piece on Peter Cushing for STARLOG. It certainly wasn't her first experience with writing, however. While running the fan club, she also published a journal detailing Mr. Cushing's activities and films. In late 1972 she wrote to him about starting an American Club in the United States. There was already an organization in Canada, but she didn't feel that she would be competing with it. As it was, the club was a rousing success, drawing members from all over the world, including lots of people who either were in or went on to be in the movie industry. Tony Temponi, editor of FANGORIA, was a member, as was Forry Ackerman. In 1975, Ackerman invited Mr. Cushing to be the Guest of Honor at a convention in New York City. 8000 people attended, and that was just on the first day. Fifty of the 400 worldwide members showed up -- on two weeks notice. They were certainly rewarded for the trip, as they had dinner with the man who had brought them together. Debbie and Tom had first met him, actually, in 1973 during the looping (sound re-recording) for BEYOND THE GRAVE. A small group from the club were going to England and were invited to have lunch with him, Max Rosenberg, the director, and Roy Wood Baker. "You're always worried. You think, 'I've corresponded with this individual over the years, I've seen his films, and here I'm going to meet him in person. It's either going to be the best ever or it's going to be a disaster.' There's no in-between." So how did it go? What kind of person is he? "I tell you, this man felt like family. It was like I knew him all my life. It's his charm, his personality, the fact that he's just such a down to earth person. He's very modest. He'd rather talk to you about you than talk about himself. A lot of actors, if you're not talking about them, they tune out. It wasn't that way with Peter at all. He'd look over and he'd say, 'Finish your dinner. Are you sure you have enough? Can I get you anything?' This man was just like a dad. He had all his kids around the table and he was making sure that everybody eats, and that they get what they want, and it was just astounding. This man was just so accommodating and so gracious. Barb Liltz, a member of the club and talented artist -- "She can never be too successful as far as I'm concerned" -- did an oil painting of Mr. Cushing in TALES FROM THE CRYPT, and they presented it to him that day. "I remember that he sat there and he was astounded. He was without words, because he's an artist himself. He was praising her work and he was just so touched by this." Tom cuts in. "You got the impression that he would have been very impressed had it been a stick figure drawn with crayons." Debbie disagrees. "He was impressed with her artwork from the covers she did for the journals, and this was even better. And he was touched that we thought enough to give it to him." She's got proof to back it up. "When he did his next film, he brought the painting on the set and had the stills photographer take pictures of himself, and Freddy Francis, and the portrait, and he sent a copy to us. I think that it was nice that even that far down the line he was still touched by it." And so, deciding that nobody else was going to write the book that they wanted to read, they decided to write it themselves. There was just one problem with writing a book with every one of Peter Cushing's films: "Some of the ones that he made in the United States in the early 1940's," Tom explains, "have literally vanished. There were a also few from the early '60's, like CONE OF SILENCE, that were low budget but were not horror movies. A low budget horror movie develops a life of it's own. It's always available somewhere. But some of the straight dramatic films he made ..." "For example," Debbie explains, "BLACKJACK was nowhere to be found. That's a film that he did in Spain. He did it around the same time he did MYSTERY ON MONSTER ISLAND. MMI was released. It was a fantasy/mystery kind of film. But BLACKJACK completely disappeared. We've only recently learned that it was released on video in Germany. But prior to that we had searched high and low, contacting the Spanish Embassy, archival museums over there, nothing. And here it was available on video in Germany. BATTLEFLAG was another one. That was never released but it was shown on German television. HITLER'S SON disappeared completely. TOUCH OF THE SUN, which he made in Zambia, Africa -- nobody's ever seen it. It's vanished. It's gone. The others were released. SWORD OF THE VALIANT, TOP SECRET," which stars a very young Val Kilmer, "and of course BIGGLES came out on video and cable, but these films didn't have any wide release, or in some cases no release at all. It goes to show you what can happen. You think, well, because it was made in the '40;s, there's just no interest in it. But there's these films that were made in the '80's that no-one's ever seen!" Tom is optimistic. "We have scant hope that some of these from the early forties will show up on [the cable station] American Movie Classics" Trouble is they don't always know what to look for. "He did a movie called THE HOWARDS OF VIRGINIA, where he has a very small part in a scene with Cary Grant and Richard Carlson, and Peter Cushing never even listed this on his film list because he'd apparently forgotten about it. There's really no reason why he would have remembered it. I guess he began compiling a list of his movies in the early 1960's, and this had just slipped his mind, yet he's in it, plain as day. Debbie and I were just saying today that we live in horror that someone's going to find another one like that that he did, where he just walks across the street, and that's always possible. You never know. He could have made 2 or 3 other movies in the 1940's that he's forgotten about. The trouble is, we're not talking about large time commitments. "Well, something like this, it was only a one day kind of thing, where somebody says, 'OK, we need a British actor, for this role, and he was there and said, 'OK, I'll do it.' He comes on screen and presents himself, and that's it. It's a one day shoot, and he would have written that off as a walk on. He was even surprised that we found it." Plus, it gets even more complicated. "He didn't even recognize it as THE HOWARDS OF VIRGINIA. He finally recognized it under it's British title, TREE OF LIBERTY. It was a shock to him to see it." So, given that some of the films were not available, where did they get the detailed information, not only as to plot, but cast and crew? "There's a magazine called SCREEN INTERNATIONAL that was published in England, and we found production information and synopses from trade screenings." Much of the later information, however, came from Mr. Cushing himself. "When I ran Peter's club, he used to send me the publicity kits and photos from the studios, so I had a lot of this stuff to begin with. He was able to get me production information, background on the cast and the crew, that kind of thing, everything you would normally get in a press kit. Peter was very good about it. He used to send me everything. I have quite a collection, so I was really ahead of the game because I had all this stuff, plus the information that Tom and I had collected really helped us. We still made trips in to Lincoln Center and other libraries to get as much information as we could. For the film BLOODSUCKERS, there were lawsuits, internal feuds, "It would probably have been better off it they had let it die. It's awful. It's available on video," but they don't recommend it. "The startling thing about a movie even that terrible, and it IS terrible," Tom says, "is that I swear to G-d he's great in it. He's only in it for about five minutes, but it's like he was doing Shakespeare. It's like it was an Academy Award nominated film that would have a royal premier. He just doesn't play down to the audience even in a lousy movie like that, and that's one of the reasons he has as many fans as he does. "Actually, I take it back. I DO recommend that everybody see it, just as an example of what a talented actor who actually has some standards of what he will consider a performance can do even with a piece of garbage like that. In fact, I think if I wanted to explain Peter Cushing to somebody, I'd ask them to watch that instead of one of his good movies. Anyone can look good in a good movie. It takes a real pro to look good in a piece of dirt like this one." So what does Mr. Cushing think of modern horror films, which, more often than not, are gorefests? Debbie explains. "He's very disturbed by it. He always felt that his films were pure fantasy. You went into the theater and you had a good fright and then you went home and went about their business. Nowadays, he says, they show everything on the screen and there's nothing but blood and gore, and he's just horrified by it because he says there's just nothing left to the imagination." Tom continues. "You get the feeling that he doesn't want people to associate him with that kind of film. He made horror films, yes, but he doesn't want people to think that he made slasher type of films. That would be very embarrassing for people to lump him in with that kind of thing. His films were adult fairy tales, but most of them had some sort of literature base." And what about the film that younger readers might remember him for? Debbie remembers, "I'm thinking back to 1976 when nobody had even heard of George Lucas. I got a letter from Peter telling me that he was making a film with George Lucas called 'The Star Wars'. And he mentioned something else about it and I'm thinking 'oh my G-d what is this?'" "Bad career move," Tom adds. "Yes, I'm thinking WHAT is he doing? Nobody knew anything at that point. It was all secret, all hush hush, closed sets and all that, so not much news was getting out. I remember going to the theater thinking 'well, Peter Cushing is in it, I'm going to see it.' I went on opening day and by the first 10 minutes, I was cheering. It was monumental. At the time, it was a phenomenon. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY was an experience in itself but this was just miles, generations beyond that. I just did not believe what I was seeing on the screen and I was SO GLAD that Peter Cushing was in it! I did a complete turn around. While he was thrilled to be seen by a whole new generation of fans, "he was very upset that they blew him up at the end because then he couldn't be in the sequels. Originally he was offered the part of Obi Wan Kenobi, which eventually went to Sir Alec Guinness. Then, when George Lucas met the two of them, he decided to reverse their roles. I always worried about that because I wondered what it was that George Lucas saw in Peter Cushing that I didn't see that meant he should play a villain. The man is so far removed from a villain that it's laughable, but he accepted the role because he figured, well, this is the director, and I should do what he says. That's the way he is. You don't argue with the director. So he took it, but he was very upset because he never got a chance to be in any of the other movies, which he would have been if he had been Kenobi. He's always hopeful that they'll do that prequel, but the man is 79 years old. He'd certainly do it, but there's only so much you can do with makeup nowadays. Peter, it's going to be rough." In the meantime ... "Hyberion films, which had done GHOUL and LEGEND OF THE WEREWOLF, they went out of business as far as motion pictures were concerned, but they have been involved in some television work. They're trying to get this project made. It will be shown in England, and hopefully will be picked up here, called the HERITAGE OF HORROR. Peter says it's his gift to all his fans, and he's looking forward to doing it. Basically Peter is an actor who used to do things like King Lear, and of course nobody wants that anymore, and he tries to convince them otherwise. It's all top secret, so he won't tell me anything about it. I keep trying to get information out of him, but no luck. I don't know whether it's a matter of luck, or what, but I guess he wants me to be surprised." In the end, no matter how the book sells, it was certainly a success in one respect. Tom's friend Mark Miller is doing a book on Cushing Christopher Lee films, and he met with Peter Cushing in England in November. "He goes to a little restaurant almost every day and that's where Mark met him, and he was taking the book in with him to show the regulars. He was saying how proud he was and how pleased he was with the book. That was the only review we were interested in, and that's the one we got." Once that book was finished, they contracted with MacFarlane to do a similar book about the company that made many of the films for which Peter Cushing is best known: Hammer. "Watching early Hammer films is hard because they mad a lot of NON horror, and the monsters just aren't showing up. You've got to look at it in a different way." Examples of non-horror Hammer films are the Lyons family films such as LIFE WITH THE LYONS and THE LYONS IN PARIS. In England they were apparently the "ideal" family, the way Americans refer to Ozzie and Harriet. The book will be out somewhere around July 1995, but they are looking for a catch subtitle to follow "HAMMER FILMS INC:". "And then, of course, it will be up to MacFarlane. We didn't originally choose the subtitle to the Cushing book. They chose that. There was some gnashing of teeth about it, because to me it sounded a little silly -- 'Gentleman of Horror and his 91 films.' They'll find that out when they open the book, that he made 91 films." I suggested that perhaps the company thought people might think he was a deranged killer who murdered stuffed animals or something. Tom says that he hadn't considered that people might not know what the book is about. "Unless they're like five year olds, is there anyone out there who doesn't know who Peter Cushing is?" Actually, among younger fans, I've met many. "Well, I have a suggestion." Tom says. "There's this great book that will explain it to them. All 91 films are included ... " [PETER CUSHING: THE GENTLE MAN OF HORROR AND HIS 91 FILMS is avaliable from MacFarlane Publishing, PO Box 611, Jefferson, NC, 28640, USA.] HOW YOU CAN HELP: The following Hammer Films are "missing." They cannot be located, either in film or video form. Since our readers are the sort to have collections that are not only off-beat but extensive, we thought we'd run the missing titles by you. If you have, or know where the authors can find, any copy of any of these films, please contact Deborah Del Vecchio, 115 Prospect Ave., Westwood, NJ, 07675 USA; (201) 664-5889. Let her know you saw the list in CV. US titles for the British films are listed in parentheses. 1935: The Public Life of Henry the Ninth 1937: Sporting Love 1948: River Patrol, Who Killed Van Loon? 1949: Dr. Morelle -- The Case of the Missing Heiress, Celia, The Adventures of P.C. 49 1950: The Man in Black, Meet Simon Cherry 1950: What the Butler Saw, Dick Barton at Bay, The Lady Craved Excitement, The Rossiter Case, To Have and To Hold 1951: The Dark Light, The Black Widow, A Case For P.C. 49 1952: Death of an Angel, Whispering Smith Hits London (Whispering Smith vs. Scotland Yard), Never Look Back, Wings of Danger (Dead on Course), Mantrap (Man in Hiding) 1953: The Gambler and the Lady, The Saint's Return (The Saint's Girl Friday) 1954: Life With the Lyons, Mask of Dust (A Race for Life) 1955: The Lyons in Paris (The Lyons Abroad), Third Party Risk (Deadly Game)(TV title was Big Deadly Game), Murder by Proxy (Blackout), The Glass Cage (The Glass Tomb) 1958: Up the Creek, Ten Seconds to Hell, Further up the Creek 1959: I Only Arsked, The Ugly Duckling, Don't Panic Chaps 1960: Never Take Sweets From a Stranger 1961: Visa to Canton (Passport to China), Weekend With Lulu, Watch it Sailor! 1962: Nightmare 1964: The Brigand of Kandahar 1968: The Lost Continent 1969: Moon Zero Two, Crescendo 1971: On the Buses 1972: Mutiny on the Buses 1973: That's Your Funeral, Love Thy Neighbor, Nearest and Dearest 1974: Man at the Top, Holiday on the Buses 1975: Man About the House --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!5!-- Guesting for the Old Comics Curmudgeon -- Asserting Your Independents --------------------------------------------------------------------------- by Mike Hill I remember the day I became a comic collector. It was the summer of 1975 and I was thirteen years old. I went to the local candy store and looked through the rack of comic books. I found a book called THE INVADERS #1. It was a comic book from Marvel about the World War II adventures of Captain America, Sub-mariner, and the Human Torch. I took it home and read it cover to cover at least ten times. I was hooked! I eagerly awaited each issue as it came out (and at that time it was a bi-monthly book -- ouch!) As new series came into print I would pick up the first issue. Some books I would continue to collect and others I would not. After all, I only had my weekly allowance with which to finance my hobby. My teens turned into my twenties. I joined the work force and with a regular pay check my collection grew. In 1984, Marvel Comics published "Secret Wars" and DC Comics answered it with "Crisis On Infinite Earth." "Wow!" I thought, "what a great idea! The comic companies would each bring all of their major characters together in one book to fight a common foe all in a twelve issue mini-series. Then in 1985 Marvel published "Secret Wars II." I thought, "Okay, it was fun the first time around. Let's do it again." But at the completion of this mini-series the story was not resolved, and instead Marvel continued the story throughout all of its titles. DC did the same thing with its comic books. "Wait a minute!" I thought. "In order to keep up with one story I must collect a bunch of titles I did not normally collect." Then, like Wile E. Coyote, my eyes slowly shifted upwards to see a giant boulder falling down towards me. The great rock hit me with a ton of grim reality. "They don't care about entertaining me! All they care about is getting more of my money!" Don't get me wrong. I know that comic books are a business and that the object of any business is to make money, and hopefully lots of it. But I feel a company should make its money due to the fact that it produces quality products that you can pick and choose from. Quality = Demand = Money. I felt that these comic book companies were holding a gun to my head and saying, "If you want to keep up with the story you must buy ALL of our books. Continuity was being held for ransom and at a high price -- a price I refused to pay. I quit! it wasn't easy. I felt like I was casting away a part of my childhood. I packed all of my comic books in white Defence boxes and stored them away in my parents' attic. My twenties became my thirties. I would visit the comic shops once in a while, but only to purchase other items of interest (role playing games, posters, tee-shirts, etc. ...) One day last year I was in a comic shop and as I passed the comic book section I thought my blinders were firmly in place. But one cover caught my eye. It was titled SPAWN, from a company called Image. Curiosity forced my hand. I reached for the book and a small voice in back of my head said "NO!!!" I flipped through the pages sampling the art work. "NO!" warned the voice. "Remember!" it said. "Remember." "But it's only $1.95" I said, and I walked up to the counter. I asked the sales clerk, "what's this?" She said it was a new company started by some guys who used to work for Marvel and they had another book out called YOUNGBLOOD. I read these comic books and I was hooked all over again. I started collecting again, primarily Image, Topps, Innovation, Harris, and other small independents. I feel that I am receiving quality for my money and continuity is just standard equipment included in the cover price. And I'll tell you, it's good to be back! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!6!-- Reviews by EVELYN C. LEEPER --------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE DESTINY MAKERS by George Turner A book review by Evelyn C. Leeper This story, like many others by Turner, is set in a future, pre- holocaust Australia. There's been no bang, but the world seems to be going through one long drawn-out whimper. Politicians spend time trying to figure out how to stretch Earth's resources over an ever-growing population. There are technical advances, but on the whole Turner paints an Australia of not-quite-enough for everyone--except of course the upper class. Shortages and substitutes are the order of the day. Only the veneer of equality, of "we're all in this together" spirit keeps the lid on. But in Australia the government has even more problems--or at least the prime minister does. Having illegally rejuvenated his father (in a world bursting at the seams, extending lifetimes is not considered a good idea), he then discovers that his daughter is illegally pregnant. (Everything, it seems, is controlled. But everything has to be to keep the world together.) Harry Ostrow, a policeman of the lower-middle class, finds himself called upon not only to protect these high-level politicians, but to extricate them--and perhaps the world-- from the mess they've gotten into. The background of THE DESTINY MAKERS is well thought-out and developed, but the story itself is somewhat weak, and the resolution for some of the plot threads contrived and rushed. The main idea of the end might have made a good novel in itself, but here it's wasted as almost a throwaway. It could be that Turner will take this idea and expand it in a future novel (as he expanded "In the Nursery" to BRAIN CHILD.) But as it is, I can recommend THE DESTINY MAKERS only for its description of a seedy, run-down future facing the abyss. (It is unlikely that a sequel will appear soon, since it is reported that George Turner has been hospitalized following a stroke.) %T The Destiny Makers %I AvoNova %A George Turner %O hardback, US$20. %C New York %G ISBN 0-688-12187-X %D February 1993 %P 321pp HARVEST by Robert Charles Wilson A book review by Evelyn C. Leeper What if aliens offered us the chance to live forever--if the only price we had to pay was to give up being human? That is the premise of Robert Charles Wilson's latest book, HARVEST. As might be expected from the premise, HARVEST is more a study in characters than an action story, though there is a very impressive storm sequence. Wilson looks at the world through the eyes of those few who chose to remain human. And they are a motley crew--a doctor, a fundamentalist Christian, a car salesman, a politician, two teenagers, a farmer's wife, an Army colonel, a retired worker. They have little in common--except their decision. What makes some choose one way and some another is one of the main questions of the book, but Wilson never satisfactorily answers it, and indeed, towards the end HARVEST becomes very much like an update EARTH ABIDES, as the remaining humans cope with lack of electricity, the search for food, and so on. Wilson also makes a few flubs. He says that on election night, "a long Republican ascendancy over the White House had come to an end," obviously expecting Bush to win in 1992. (Internal evidence says the story takes place in 1996.) He also seems to think Lima is in a time zone between Los Angeles and Anchorage, while it is actually in the same time zone as New York. In spite of these minor quibbles, however, I would still recommend HARVEST. Wilson at least touches on the nature of humanity, and his characters and their reactions to the situation and to each other may give us some clues, if not to *the* answer, at least to *an* answer. %T Harvest %I Bantam Spectra %A Robert Charles Wilson %O trade paperback, US$12. %C New York %G ISBN 0-553-37110-X %D January 1993 %P 394pp ---------- Copyright 1993 Evelyn C. Leeper --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!7!-- SF Calendar: What's Coming Up in the Near Future --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The BOOKLIST .......... As you can see, the list of upcoming books is beginning to grow. If you have a favorite small press that you'd like us to keep track of, drop us a note with the company's name and address and we'll see what we can do. AUGUST: DEL REY: THE SHINING ONES (2nd book of _The Tamuli_) - David Eddings, STORM RUNNER (3rd book of _Wolfwalker_) - Tara K. Harper, THE WIZARD'S SHADOW - Susan Dexter, TIME, LIKE AND EVER ROLLING STREAM (Sequel to THE RAGGED WORLD) - Judith Moffett, THE BIRTH OF THE BLADE - Dennis McCarty, STAR TREK LOG 7/LOG 8/LOG 9 - Alan Dean Foster TOR: HARVEST OF STARS - Poul Anderson, LETTERS TO JENNY - Piers Anthony, IN THE CUBE - David Alexander Smith, RING OF SWORDS - Eleanor Arnason, ALIEN BOOTLEGGER AND OTHER STORIES - Rebecca Ore, FLYING IN PLACE - Susan Palwick, THE TOWERS OF THE SUNSET (prequel to THE MAGIC OF RECLUCE)- L.E. Modesitt Jr., ALIEN PLOT - Piers Anthony, BLACK UNICORN - Tanith Lee, CONAN THE SAVAGE - Leonard Carpenter ORB: THE FALLING WOMAN - Pat Murphy ------------ SEPTEMBER: DEL REY: THE FAR KINGDOMS - Allan Cole and Chris Bunch, THE OATHBOUND WIZARD (sequel to HER MAJESTY'S WIZARD) - Christopher Stasheff, MUDDLE EARTH - John Brunner, THE LOSERS - David Eddings, DEL REY DISCOVERY: THE RISING OF THE MOON - Flynn Connolly ------------ OCTOBER: DEL REY: THE STRICKEN FIELD (book three of _A Handful of Men_) - Dave Duncan, UPLAND OUTLAWS (book two of _A Handful of Men_) - THE GUNS OF THE SOUTH - Harry Turtledove, THE EARTH SAVER (sequel to CHILDREN OF THE EARTH) - Catherine Wells, MORNINGSTAR - David Gemmell DAW: WHEN TRUE NIGHT FALLS - CS Friedman, TOR: THE SHADOW RISING - Robert Jordan, THE FIRES OF HEAVEN - Robert Jordan ------------ NOVEMBER: PEGUNIN/ROC: SHROUD OF SHADOW - Baudino Gael BANTAM/SPECTRA: GROWING UP WEIGHTLESS - John Ford ------------ DECEMBER: POCKET: STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: DARK MIRROR - Diane Duane Upcoming MOVIES .......... This is not really the "Upcoming Movies" list that Bryan D. Jones (bdj@engr.uark.edu) puts out over Usenet every week or so. It's actually a pared down version that he was kind enough to let us print. We thank him and remind you that if you have any updates or corrections, please send them on to him. (Especially if you have access to the National Association of Theater Owners listings ...) All dates are US wide release dates. -Bryan D. Jones (bdj@engr.uark.edu) Aug 13: Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday(was Friday the 13th Part IX), Johnny Zombie, Needful Things, The Secret Garden Aug 20: The Crow Aug : Warlock II: The Armageddon Summer: Body Snatchers, Deep Blues, Delta Heat, The Giving, Nemesis, Starfire, Carnosaur, Enchanted Forest, The Speed Racer Movie Show Sep 10: Ghost in the Machine Sep 17: Fortress Sep 20: Surf Ninjas Sep 24: Deadfall Oct 1: Blink, Wilder Napalm Nov 5: Flesh & Bone, The Nightmare Before Christmas Nov 19: Addams Family Values Nov 24: Annie and the Castle of Terror Nov : RoboCop 3 Fall : The Fantastic Four Dec 10: Sister Act II, Tombstone Dec 17: Intersection Dec 22: Schindler's List Dec 25: Batman: The Animated Movie, Frankenstein, The House of the Spirits, Sgt. Rock 1994 : Crusade, Clear and Present Danger, Ed Wood, Interview with a Vampire, The Lawnmowerman 2, The Mask, Sinbad Tales, Tremors II Spring: The Lion King (animated, was King of the Jungle),The Muppet Treasure Island Summer: Aliens vs. Predator: The Hunt,Cartooned, The Flintstones, Spiderman Decemb: Godzilla (American) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!8!-- All The News That's Fit To Transmit --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ........... Books, Stories, and SF Literature in General ..... ........... According to TERRY PRATCHETT, the people putting out THE DISCWORLD COMPANION will be publishing a map of Ankh-Morpork in November, all from the descriptions in the books. The first three DISCWORLD books will be out on audio on November 4, and the TRUCKERS trilogy on September 23. (Dates are for the UK. Look for them in Australia, Canada and New Zealand, but he says in a Usenet post that although South Africa will get them "in the fullness of time," but he doesn't expect for us to see them in the United States or in languages other than English. They will be read by TONY ROBINSON, of BLACKADDER fame. (Sod off, Baldric!) DAVID BRIN is reportedly working on another Uplift novel. He is also working on a graphic novel version of THE VANILLA NEEDLE, The world really is moving towards electronic publishing. This year Clarinet is offering an electronic version of the Hugo and Nebua nominees, along with lots of extra stuff. What kind of stuff? Well, for one thing, how about nomineee A FIRE UPON THE DEEP, with 500K of hypertext provided by VERNOR VINGE himself? They are also providing the nominated artwork in machine readable form. The collection comes in a disk, CD-ROM or network version, and costs $11.95 to $29.95, depending on how much stuff you want on it. For more information, send mail to net-sf@clarinet.com. For those not on the net, you can connect to sf.clarinet.com by dialing 408-296-3733 by a modem. Log in as "sf", then select "o" for order at the menu prompt. You'll run an interactive order script. VISIONS OF MARS: Science fiction is riddled with stories of colonists finding messages from the past. Now real life is going to imitate art, as the Planetary Society and the Russian Space Research Institute prepare to put together a CD-ROM containing thousands of pages of fiction about the planet Mars. The discs, called Visions of Mars, will be placed in special landers and sent with the Mars 94 mission to the Red Planet next year. In addition to Mars-related fiction from various languages and cultures, the disc will also contain a portion of the 1938 ORSON WELLES WAR OF THE WORLDS broadcast, artwork depicting our conception of Mars in various eras, an audio recording of reactions to the landing of Viking I on Mars from the likes of GENE RODDENBERRY and ROBERT HEINLEIN, and brief messages to the future from such notables as ARTHUR C. CLARKE. The disc, which will be designed and produced by Time Warner Interactive Group, will sport an instruction label in English, Finnish, French, German and Russian, the languages of the Mars 94 mission. Facsimiles, capably of running on MS-DOS or Macintosh machines, will be available in bookstores. ENDINGS: With great sadness, Del Rey Books announces the passing of LESTER DEL REY, author of approximately 50 books and founder (with wife JUDY-LYNN BENJAMIN DEL REY) of Del Rey Books. According to his wishes, there was no memorial service or public funeral following his death on May 10 after a week of hospitalization for serious heart problems. Mr. Del Rey was responsible for discovering many of today's best selling science fiction and fantasy authors. .. Cartoonist VINCENT T. HAMLIN, creator of the ALLEY OOP comic strip, has passed away. No word on the cause of death, but he was 93 years old. ... AVRAM DAVIDSON, former teacher and editor of THE MAGAZINE OF FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION, and author of the Hugo award winning story "Or All The Seas With Oysters," several anthologies and 25 novels, including, most recently, the Owlswick Press novel ADVENTURES IN UNHISTORY, died May 8th at the age of 70. Although he suffered a series of strokes seven years ago, he continued to write from his wheelchair with one hand on his typewriter. He is best remembered for his VERGIL MAGUS stories. ........... SF and Fantasy Movie News .... ........... Composer JOHN WILLIAMS, who wrote the score for seven of the top ten money making films of all time, has retired from his position as conductor of the Boston Pops. I was lucky enough to attend his final regular season performance, and here's what I have to say about it. Please forgive me for a little sentimentality, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way. First of all, for 13 years I have been saying that "someday" I would get out to Boston to see him conduct. I have been mesmerised by his work from the first time I conned my parents into letting me see STAR WARS, and so, for his final concert, I took a train 600 miles to do just that. It was worth it. Definitely. There were 3 sets, and while the first two were exquisite classical pieces, the final set was the theme from Superman, then Jurassic Park, then Jaws, and finally The Imperial Death March, Princess Leia's Theme, and the music from the ceremony and ending credits from STAR WARS. I tell you, to be right THERE (front row center, no less -- I could read the viola's music!) and hear it performed live knowing that it is EXACTLY what he had in mind -- no arranger intruding here -- was something out of a dream. And to see him conduct ... the man was a blur. He really put everything he had into that performance. When it was over he looked like he was practically in tears. He received at least three standing ovations: When the last piece from SW was over, after his first encore (Varsity Rag and Satin Doll (or was it String of Pearls -- I told you it was a dream)), and after the finale, the traditional Stars and Stripes Forever. The last standing ovation was something like SIX curtain calls and 10 minutes long. The only reason we stopped was because he finally came out and, awash with emotion, pointed at his watch as if to say, "Come on, everyone, it's late. Go home." He had no mike and did not speak to the audience, but mouthed the words "Thank you" more times than I can remember. This man wrote the soundtrack to my adolescence. All I could think of was, "No, thank YOU." -!- WILLIAM GIBSON is coming to the big screen. Rumors are that ABEL FERRARA will be directing a film version of Gibson's short story "New Rose Sentinel" and that VAL KILMER (WILLOW) will be starring as JOHNNY MNEMONIC, with JANE MARCH and ICE-T filling out that cast. SPIDERMAN is going to be busy this year. Rumors are flying about an ANIMATED TV show by the same people who are doing the X-Men. This is in addition to the live action version, which will be written by NEIL RUTTNEBURG and JAMES CAMERON for Carolco. Cameron will also direct. And according to rumors ... THE MANGLER, based on the STEVEN KING short story, will be directed by TOBE HOOPER. King will also have a cameo in THE STAND, as will TOM SAVINI, SAM RAIMI, and MICK and CYNTHIA GARRIS ... WES CRAVEN will be making NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 7 ... HELLRAISER IV will start shooting any time now, and HELLRAISER III is out on video in both an R and an NC17 version ... the same fate will likely befall JASON GOES TO HELL: THE FINAL FRIDAY, which has been trimmed for the R rating. Production is wrapping for the last time at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, north of London, England. While many classic films were filmed at the historic studio, genre fans will probably be more moved by the fact that it was the site where sequences were filmed for the STAR WARS films, the INDIANA JONES films, the SUPERMAN films ... well, you get the idea. STEVEN SPEILBERG has described the studio as "a home away from home." In the past three years, the slowdown ofthe British film industry has led to more than half of the 28 acres being sold to a supermarket chain for $42 million. The Brent Walker Group, which owns the studio, has been subsidizing the studio hoping that a buyer would take it over with the intent of continuing its use as a film studio, but it was not to be. The Save Our Studios Campaign vows to continue the fight. Thought you were safe from a Batman movie this year? Wrong. Christmas Day will see the release of BATMAN: THE ANIMATED MOVIE. In addition to the Joker (the be voiced by MARK HAMMILL, who also does the voice in the TV show), there will be new characters, including a villain called Phantasm. The animated film ASTROCOPS: PEACEKEEPERS OF THE FUTURE will feature the voices of JAMIE FARR, EDDIE ALBERT, and JAMES WHITMORE. It's written by GENE AYRAS. GEORGE ROMERO will direct THE BLACK MARIAH, about a man running away from a curse. The film, which is scheduled to begin production this fall, is from New Line Cinema, and is based on an as yet unpublished novel by JAY BONANSINGA. Then there's MANDROID, a film shot completely in Romania, about a killer indestructible robot. No word on what language it's in, but it will be released on video August 11th by Paramount Home Video. HIDEAWAY, based on DEAN R. KOONTZ'S novel about two very different men returned from the dead, will be directed by BRETT LEONARD (LAWNMOWER MAN). TriStar purchased the rights in 1991, and are hoping that NEAL JIMENEZ can come up with a suitable script. Preproduction will start this fall. JAMES CAMERON and ARNOLD SCHWARTZNEGGER, the team that helped to bring you TERMINATOR and T2, will be reuniting for TRUE LIES, an action comedy. Londoners can now enjoy food and films at their very own PLANET HOLLYWOOD, owned by SCHWARTZNEGGER, BRUCE WILLIS, and SYLVESTER STALONE. They spent $21 million buying the place and redecorating, including the addition of a 75 seat cinema. As a side note, Schwartznegger and wife MARIA SHRIVER are expecting their third child. DAN ACKROYD, who, along with JANE CURTAIN is starring in the revival of their old Saturday Night Live sketch THE CONHEADS, has more than just a new movie to celebrate. He and his wife, DONNA DIXON, were blessed with a daughter, Belle Kingston Aykroyd, June 9. They already have a 3 year old daughter, Danielle. ALAN RICKMAN (ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THEIVES) will be starring in MESMER, about Dr. Franz Mesmer, the founder of hypnotism and the basis for the word "mesmerize." It will be directed by ROGER SPOTTISWOODE, and executive produced by DAVID BOWIE (LABYRINTH). The Imagine Films production GREED, a dark comedy about a fight over a will, will have quite a few genre veterans, including MICHAEL J. FOX (BACK TO THE FUTURE), BOB BALABAN (CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE 3RD KIND) and ED BEGLEY JR. (MEET THE APPLEGATES). SURVIVING THE GAME, about a homeless man, will star RUTGER HAUER (BLADERUNNER, LADYHAWKE) and ICE-T. It's from New Line Cinema. Showtime Networks has added TriStar to the list of studios whose films it can broadcast exclusively. Showtime Networks, which includes Showtime, The Movie Channel, Flix, and Pay Per View, signed a five year deal with TriStar, which incidentally is owned by Sony Corp.. The deal covers all films slated for theatrical release starting in 1994. Showtime already has exclusive rights to films from Castle Rock, New Line, Disney, and PolyGram. And speaking of cable, CRUSADE, starring ARNOLD SCHWARTZNEGGER, could very well start a new trend. The PAUL VERHOVEN film, which goes into production next spring, could very well be the first film in a major step towards interactive television. Tele-Communications Inc. is spending $2 billion upgrading its cable system to give it the capability to provide 500 channels to its subscribers, and one of its projects involves a $90 million deal to air up to four Carolco films on Pay Per View -- a week before they are released in the theaters. FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA, fresh from directing BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA and on his way to producing FRANKENSTEIN for TriStar, will also be directing a series of six 23 minute "films" for VH-1. They will actually be long-form music videos, and will be produced through his company, American Zoetrope, and Palomar Pictures. Coppola 's FRANKENSTEIN, meanwhile, will star KENNETH BRANAGH as Dr. Frankenstein and ROBERT DENIRO as the monster. Brannagh will also direct the film for TriStar. BATMAN III rumors: We've previously reported rumors that MICHAEL KEATON and MICHELLE PFIEFFER had signed. Now, according to USA Today, it is indeed in the works, with TIM BURTON as executive producer and JOEL SCHUMACHER (THE LOST BOYS) as director. After protests from American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Disney has agreed to change some of the lyrics from ALADDIN. The claim was that the lines, "... if they don't like you're face, they'll cut off your ear ... it's barbaric, but hey, it's home," perpetuate the stereotype that ancient Arabia was a barbaric place. They will be redubbing for the video release, but the ADC says that the changes aren't enough to reverse what they call the racism of the movie. One of the big questions we keep getting is "What about an X-MEN movie?" Well, it's certainly somewhere in the reasonably near future (i.e., the next couple of years) but we don't know whether it will be animated or live action. According to CNN, 20th Century Fox has bought the rights, and with the current popularity of the mutants, we can't see them holding on to them too long without doing something about it. FIRST KNIGHT, an action adventure about King Arthur and the round table, has been postponed by Columbia. JERRY ZUCKER will be directing when it goes back into production in January. It's being held up by script delays. ABEL FERRARA wasn't too informative about his new version of INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS when it was screened at Cannes last month, but he did joke that the idea is "to take great old stories and screw them up." Critics, however, have commented that there isn't much original in his version, though it is less violent that his last film, THE BAD LIEUTENANT. He told UPI that though he hadn't really considered taking an a science fiction project, but "the truth is, I always loved Martian movies. I used to dress up as a Martian when I was a kid, and go out and terrify the neighbours." GARY OLDMAN (BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA) will produce, direct, and star in LORDS OF THE URBAN JUNGLE, about small-time British criminals. It's from his company, Matisse, and Portman Entertainment, and will be filmed on location in London. JACK NICHOLSON (BATMAN) will star in CROSSING GUARD, about a man awaiting the release of the drunken driver who killed his daughter. It's from Warner Bros. He will also be seen in MIKE NICHOLS' WOLF with MICHELLE PFIEFFER (BATMAN RETURNS), who has just adopted a baby daughter. Purists should be happy. After years of complaining that movies are butchered when shown on a conventional television screen, they can get the new RCA "CinemaScreen," says Thomson Consumer Electronics. The television, at 16 inches by 9 inches, duplicates the shape of a movie screen, allowing the full effect for widescreen films. For the less concerned, it also allows two conventional programs to be shown on the screen at the same time. As yet there was no word on how you're supposed to watch them both, or whether special versions of widescreen films will be needed. According to a National Public Radio interview with ARTHUR C. CLARKE, the rights to THE HAMMER OF GOD have been bought by Paramount. According to UPI, a QUANTUM LEAP movie is being planned, but not for a year or two. It would seem that Disney's film HOCUS POCUS has offended a very specific religious group: witches. LAURIE CABOT, the "official witch" of Massachusetts, is the high priestess of the Wicca temple in Salem. Her temple has several thousand members, and she has spent her life trying to defend the image of modern day witches, who insist that they are NOT connected with the Devil. According to the Boston Globe, she has cast a spell on the film to ensure that it is a box-office bomb, but if the critics are correct, she needn't have bothered. KIM BASINGER (BATMAN) will have a cameo in WAYNE'S WORLD II. She has filed for bankruptcy protection following a multi-million dollar judgment against her for pulling out of BOXING HELENA. The film version of INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, the ANNE RICE novel, is well underway. Geffen Pictures says shooting will begin October 18 in London and New Orleans. Who's in it? BRAD PITT (COOL WORLD), RIVER PHOENIX (INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE) as the reporter, ANTONIO BANDERAS, STEPHEN REA, and as the vampire Lestat ... TOM CRUISE. Yes, TOM CRUISE. He will reportedly be receiving more than $15 million for the role. The film, which will be distributed by Warner Brothers, will be produced by STEPHEN WOLLEY and DAVID GEFFEN and directed by NEIL JORDAN, who also wrote the screenplay. Jordan won this year's Oscar for best screenplay for THE CRYING GAME. The list of "interesting convention souvenirs" might have just gotten a little longer. SYLVESTER STALLONE is thinking about suing the Sunday Mirror for printing -- censored -- nude pictures of him taken on the set of his science fiction thriller DEMOLITION MAN. Don't be surprised if the uncensored version makes its way to dealer rooms. It would seem that the big screen version of THE FLINTSTONES will have some big names. Perhaps the biggest will be ELIZABETH TAYLOR, who will be playing Wilma's mother, Pearl Slaghoople. Other stars? JOHN GOODMAN (ROSANNE, as well as the psuedo-genre film MATINEE) as Fred Flintstone, ELIZABETH PERKINS as Wilma, RICK MORANIS (HONEY, I SHRUNK THE KIDS) as Barney, and ROSIE O'DONNELL as Betty. Look for LEA THOMPSON (BACK TO THE FUTURE) as the Donna Reed mom in DENNIS THE MENACE, and as a "real sexpot" in THE BEVERLY HILLBILLIES. SUPERMAN will be doing double duty this year, as the subject of both LOIS AND CLARK, a new series on ABC, and SUPERMAN: THE NEW MOVIE. More info as we get it. Also in the rumor mill is SGT. ROCK, starring ARNOLD SCHWARTZNEGGER. If it is true, let's hope it does better than his last action movie ... DIE HARD 3 was supposed to be on a cruise ship, but they were beaten to it by STEVEN SEGAL'S UNDER SEIGE, so now it looks like it'll be in a subway system. Anime fans be on the lookout: Universal is supposedly trying to line up a deal for putting out a $60 million live action version of AKIRA. Walt Disney Co. has signed a multimillion dollar multi year liscencing deal with DIC Animation City, Inc. In addition to DIC programs, Disney's Buena Vista Home Video will be working on interactive and multimedia programming. DIC is the producer of INSPECTOR GADGET, SONIC THE HEDGEHOG, SUPERMARIO BROS, and lots of others. The 17th JAMES BOND film has been approved by MGM. It will star TIMOTHY DALTON. The summer movies season is heading for a record. Between MICHAEL CRICHTON's JURRASIC PARK and RISING SUN, and THE FUGITIVE, the summer is currently running 11 percent ahead of the record setting 1989, when BATMAN, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, and LETHAL WEAPON 2 were in the theaters. Orion will be releasing ROBOCOP 3 in November. That is, in the United States. It was supposed to be out here in July, but so was JURRASSIC PARK. It has already earned more than $12 million in Japan and South Korea, and made $2 million on it's opening week in France, but that money, along with all overseas revenues from Orion films, goes to Columbia/TriStar, which does Orion's overseas distribution. Orion, by the way, doesn't make films anymore. They just finance them, but they still have 700 movies in their library. Columbia has named LISA HENSON, daughter of the late JIM, to replace MICHAEL NATHANSON as the president of production. Analysts see this as the part of a management shakeup following the $100 million bombing of LAST ACTION HERO. Purists beware... TED TURNER is reportedly negotiating to buy New Line Cinema and Castle Rock. He will supposedly pay $500 million in the deals, but he needs approval from his partners, Time Warner Inc., and Tele- Communications inc.. Bertelsman Music Group, a German-owned company, is also trying to buy Castle rock. While Turner owns five cable TV stations, Bertelsman owns RCA, Arista, Doubleday, Bantam, and Dell. And, to make things even more complicated (is that possible?) Castle Rock reportedly receives most of its financing from New Line in a deal that is about to expire. The wife of BRUCE LEE has auctioned off some of his personal collection, including photos and writings and the cap and suspenders he wore as Kato on THE GREEN HORNET. No word on how much was paid, but a portion much or all of the proceeds went to charity. ROBIN WRIGHT (THE PRINCESS BRIDE) has given birth to a 7 pound 5 ounce baby boy named Jack. He is her second child with SEAN PENN. Her daughter, Dylan, is 2 years old. SEAN CONNERY (HIGHLANDER,INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE, ROBIN HOOD, JAMES BOND (need we go on?)) is currently in negotiations over the starring role in SMOKE AND MIRRORS, about Houdin, a French illusionist in the 1850's. It's written by JANET SCOTT BATCHLER and LEE BATCHLER, and is from Disney's Hollywood Pictures. It's being called a "period action drama." And last, but certainly not least, there's JURASSIC PARK. If you haven't seen it in your part of the world yet, here's when you will: Germany: Sept. 2, Sweden: Sept. 3, Italy: Sept. 17, Netherlands: Sept. 30, Spain: Oct. 8, France: Oct. 20 and Greece: Oct. 29. The big story though is just how much MONEY this thing has brought in. To tell you the truth, we don't have room to list all the records this film has broken. Previously, the top ten domestic grosses looked like this: 1. E.T. -- The Extraterrestrial (1982) $399.8 million. 2. STAR WARS (1977) $322 million. 3. HOME ALONE (1990) $281.6 million. 4. RETURN OF THE JEDI (1983) $263 million. 5. JAWS (1975) $260 million. 6. BATMAN (1989) $251.2 million. 7. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981) $242.4 million. 8. BEVERLY HILLS COP (1984) $234.8 million. 9. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980) $223 million. 10. GHOSTBUSTERS (1984) $220.9 million. And for those of you who are interested, BACK TO THE FUTURE was at #12 with $208.2 million, T2 was at #14 with $204 million, INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE was at #15 with $197.2 million, and INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM was at #17 with $179.8 million. Once it cracked the list of top grosses, JP just went on a rampage, climbing up the list like some of the characters running from T-Rex. It took only a month to reach number 10, and four days later it was at number 7. A week after that it was at number 5. Two weeks later it was in the number 3 spot. Frankly, we haven't checked in a few days. It might very well have topped STAR WARS already, but we doubt it. It might be held up from topping SW or E.T. for a little while, at least, by the fact that both domestic totals include rereleases, of $35.2 million and $40 million respectively. E.T. brought in a total of $645 million for Universal, counting domestic and foreign ticket sales. Remember, these are just DOMESTIC grosses. JP is breaking records all over the world. Internationally, the top grosses at this point are: 1. GHOST (1990) $290 million. 2. THE BODYGUARD (1992) $289 million. 3. E.T. -- THE EXTRATERRESTRIAL (1982) $286 million. 4. PRETTY WOMAN (1989) $279 million. 5. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991) $263 million. 6. INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE (1987) $258 million. 7. RAIN MAN (1988) $240 million. 8. BASIC INSTINCT (1992) $235 million. 9. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991) $202 million. 10. ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES (1991) $201 million. Between theater rentals (which usually run at half the gross) domestic and foreign home video and television rights, JP is expected to bring Matsushita, Universal's parent company, a net PROFIT of almost $340 million. Frankly folks, we're stunned. ........... SF and Fantasy TV News .... ........... First let's get the announcements of new shows out of the way. If things go well, we should be able to put out a CV: Extra with more info. Keep your fingers crossed. NBC, Sunday 8-9 pm Eastern -- SEAQUEST DSV: From STEVEN SPEILBERG. Eco- science fiction, with ROY SCHIEDER as the head of a submarine patrolling the deep. ABC, Sunday 8-9 pm Eastern -- LOIS AND CLARK: THE NEW ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: DEAN CAIN and TERI HATCHER as the leads. It's supposedly closer to the comics than we've seen before. Sci-FI -- THE NEW ADVENTURES OF GIGANTOR: (Remember, folks, we don't make this up.) There's really not much to say here, except that there are 52 new animated episodes, and they're in color. Fox, Friday 9-10 pm Eastern -- THE X-FILES: Let's just say that the producer/creator's favorite show as a kid was NIGHT GALLERY. It's about an FBI agent who decides to take on those "weird" unsolved cases, like aliens and the paranormal. CHRIS CARTER promises it'll be good and scary, but not bloody. We'll run the interview with him either in the Extra or the next issue, depending on how things go. Syndicated, so bug your local stations: BABYLON 5: Laurel Takashima is, in accordance with many people's wishes, gone. WALTER KOENIG is a bad guy. We don't have room for everything here. Check out CV issues 1 and 3 for details from J. Michael Straczynksi himself. Syndicated, so bug your local stations: ROBOCOP: If there's anyone who hasn't seen the movie, it's basically about a cop who's been turned into a cyborg by a heartless corporation running the police force of Detroit. He starts to remember who he is and fights against OCP -- the corporation. The TV series apparently picks up from there. That's all we've got for now, so on to the rest of the news ........... DR. WHO fans have been up and down in the last few months. First there was a rumor that the BBC was reviving the show. Then there was a rumor that they MIGHT revive the show if there was enough interest in the special that they were going to air for the 30th anniversary of the show in November. Then there was gossip of problems between the surviving Doctors (or that actors playing them, anyway.) Supposedly, JOHN PERTWEE, PETER DAVISON, and SYLVESTER MCCOY were upset because the bulk of the show had gone to TOM BAKER. (COLIN BAKER had not signed, citing prior committments.) Then the word was that the special had been pushed back to early next year. Now it seems that it was all pointless, because the rumor is that the BBC has cancelled the special completely, and has no plans to revive DR. WHO on television in any form. They will not even be showing any more reruns for at least two seasons. (U.S. readers remember: In England, a season is 13 weeks.) On the brighter side, rumor is that BBC RADIO LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT and the BBC Audio Collection will be producing 35 radio episodes of DR. WHO starting JON PERTWEE as the Doctor. Some of the people who have reportedly been contacted are KATY MANNING, ELIZABETH SLADEN, ERIC SAWARD, TERRANCE DICKS, BARRY LETTS, PHILLIP MARTIN. Even more unconfirmed is that some of the "lost" episodes that exist only in audio form may be released on cassette tape or compact disc. QUANTUM LEAP: Continuing on in life, SCOTT BAKULA will be starring in MERCY MISSION, about the rescue of a single engine plane lost in the Pacific Ocean. ROBERT LOGGIA also stars, and TED DANSON will produce. It will air sometime in the 1993-4 season on NBC. (Yes, NBC.) But, of course, the big news is that Bakula will be a semi-regular on MURPHY BROWN. His role has been described as an "aggressive but charming international reporter." Look for "strong sexual tension" between him and CANDICE BERGEN. DEAN STOCKWELL will play an "evil strip miner" trying to obtain the Ponderosa in BONANZA -- THE RETURN, about the next generation of ranchers and staring the sons of the original series, MICHAEL LANDON JR., and DIRK BLOCKER, and LINDA GRAY. And speaking of sons, JASON CONNERY, son of SEAN and formerly of ROBIN OF SHERWOOD, will be starring in the film IESKA,about a Sioux Indian. It will start shooting in Nashville this fall, and will also star FRANCESCO QUINN (son of ANTHONY) and TAHNEE WELCH (daughter of RAQUEL). Also for you alumnus watchers, ROBERT WOLTERSTORFF, former QL Supervising Producer and writer is now the Executive Producer of DANGER THEATER, which we have been looking for an excuse to mention. It's a half hour parody of the action shows of the 1970's and '80's and it's (in our humble opinions, of course) a fun way to spend 30 minutes. The show also features genre veterans ADAM WEST (BATMAN) and ROBERT VAUGHN (THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.). There are two segments each week, so there's little time for a gag to get stale. The two are "The Searcher" starring DEITRICH BADER -- a takeoff on everything from THE HITCHHIKER to the A-TEAM, and "Tropical Punch", starring West in a straight takeoff of HAWAII FIVE-O. (Also, for those of you following the campaign to save QL, the infamous Harriet will have a cameo as a Liz Taylor lookalike in "Sex Lies and Decaf" to air August 22nd. So you thought you read it all in GROWING UP BRADY, the controversial biography of BARRY WILLIAMS? Now there is a tell all memior from, of all people, BURT WARD. Yes, the boy -- now a man -- who played Robin opposite ADAM WEST'S BATMAN in the campy 1960's television show. The book will be called BOY WONDER: MY LIFE IN TIGHTS. (As tempting as it was, we are NOT making this up.) Among the "revelations" to be found among the pages are the existance of a nude Christmas special shown only to the executives. (Can you imagine THAT in a dealers' room?) Remember, now, that Ward was a very young man at the time, but if you've been following his life since, you know that he has certainly gotten ... older. He claims that there are no less than three chapters that are so sexually explicit that should not be read by minors. WHOOPI GOLDBERG's talk show has been cancelled becuse of low ratings. Looks like we're going to have a wait for GEORGE R.R. MARTIN'S DOORWAYS. it seems that ABC scheduled it for July 10 -- in a one hour slot. The problem is that the short version of the pilot is 90 minutes long, with the European version running 2 hours. Columbia pointed that out to ABC, but there were no 90 minute slots available in the summer, so we may have to wait as long as a year. Steven Speilberg is taking TINY TOON ADVENTURES one step farther. Fox has picked up STEVEN SPIELBERG PRESENTS ANIMANIACS. It's about three Warner Bros characters, Wakko, Yakko, and Dot, the Warner Brothers (and Warner sister) who have supposedly been kept in the WB water tower since their creation 50 years ago because they were too outrageous. It will air at 4pm on weekday afternoons. We'll let you know what will happen to TINY TOONS, which is currently airing in that slot. Looking for RED DWARF scripts? Fans in the UK have spotted PRIMORDIAL SOUP: THE LEAST WORST SCRIPTS, by Grant Naylor. It's from Penguin Books, and even includes "Psirens," a script from the sixth season which has not even been shown yet. See SPOILERS AHOY for a little bit more information. According to "Red Dwarf Smegazine," Season 1 of RD would be released on video in the UK around May 4th, so it's probably out there somehwere. No word on when other countries would see it. There seems to be an affinity among science fiction fans for the classic detective, SHERLOCK HOLMES. Maybe it's that intelligence runs in both groups. Or perhaps it's just that Holmes, like the average sf fan, was always looking forward to the future, to technology ... and to all the little things that mundanes usually miss. Well now CBS is combining both groups with a TV movies called SHERLOCK HOLMES RETURNS! IN THE ADVENTURE OF THE TIGER'S REVENGE. The story revolves around Holmes' adventures when he is thawed out after 94 years. I seems that he was so bored in Victorian England that he invented cryogenics and jumped in. Written by KENNETH JOHNSON, it will star ANTHONY HIGGINS as Holmes and (surprise!) DEBORAH FARENTINO as his sidekick. Instead of the stodgy Dr. Watson, we get Farentino as a sexy doctor companion. (Yes, tension, but no romance -- yet.) If it does well, there may be a series of TV films. Although they have tried to keep things like the meerschaum pipe and deerstalker cap, Holmes adapts to modern life pretty quickly. Just picture Sherlock Holmes with the resources of computers and networks behind him and you get the idea. And while we're on the subject of Holmes, it was at about this time 100 years ago that ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE, sick of the detective he had created, sent him hurtling over the Reichenbach Falls to his death. Well, a year or two later he was forced by public outcry to bring him back, but that isn't stopping the United Kingdom from issuing a set of Sherlock Holmes stamps to commemorate the anniversary. They should be in the stores October 12. (Or should way say 12 October?) ........... STAR TREK News .... ........... MOVIE NEWS: OK, here's the poop. STAR TREK VII will not be called STAR TREK VII, though nobody knows what it IS going to be called. Right now the leading candidate is STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: THE MOTION PICTURE, so that should answer the question as to which crew will be in it. There will, however be 18 minutes of TOS characters. There are at least two scripts in the works, and the will pick the one they like best for the first film. The first two will have a budget of $100,000,000, if statements made by Creation are correct. Paramount has booked 2400 theaters for Christmas week, so it had better be ready. This meant that the TNG actors had to go back to work early, and will get only one week for their mid-season hiatus, leaving them free to start production July 1, 1994. Apparently one problem with making another TOS film is the insurance companies. When you're making a film, you buy insurance that pays off if for some reason you can't complete the film -- like the death or serious illness of one of your stars. Given the advanced age of some of the cast, STVI could only be insured for $26 million. Also, the rumor that Paramount will be making yet another Star Trek series once TNG ends is now a fact. It will take place on a starship and not a space station, and during the same time period as TNG, so forget RICHARD DEAN ANDERSON as a grown up Wesley Crusher. There is talk that TERRY FARRELL is pregant. This is completely UNCONFIRMED. WALTER KOENIG suffered a heart attack while attending a convention in Chicago. He was hospitalized and subsequently underwent heart surgery. Koenig, whose age has been variously listed as 54 and 56, is doing fine, and his family thanks all of those who sent their good wishes during the crisis. In a monumental display of well-meaning but misinformed explanation, United Press International distributed an article about a STAR TREK convention in Pasadena, California. The article patiently explains that you shouldn't call fans "trekkies" because "Since [DEEP SPACE NINE] was launched in 1993, Star Trek fans have sought a more serious image, hence the name change." To it's credit, though, the article also quotes trekker Neil Norman as explaining that "Being a trekker is about everyone getting along. It's not about space ships and monsters." UPI also ran a report recently detailing MARINA SIRTIS's refusal to attend a question/answer session until all video equipment was removed from the room, quoting an unnamed con organizer as saying that the TNG people just "stay for their hour and leave," and that the TOS people are more personable. Anybody want to comment on that? (UPI also ran the story of Walter Koenig's heart attack under the headline "Star Trek character suffers heart attack".) BRENT SPINER was reportedly offered a chance to direct, but turned it down. Not so for ADAM NIMOY (son of LEONARD), who will be directing another episode -- but we don't know which one. A strange sounding rumor, supposedly from E! (the cable network) says that JOHN DELANCIE has been signed for 26 episodes of TNG. A theory put forward is that he might be playing a new regular in alien makeup. There's just no stopping that STAR TREK franchise. According the The Wall Street Journal (7/12/93), Paramount Video has sold 200,000 copies of "The Cage," the original TOS pilot. That's $3 million, folks. For one episode. The other 79 episodes have sold 50,000 to 100,000 each, and the TNG episodes on the market have sold 25,000 to 30,000 each. DWIGHT SCHULTZ (BARCLAY) will be starring in a brand new series come fall. BOOMTOWN is about a dreamer who buys a run down rural hotel in anticipation of a superhighway that winds up bypassing them, leaving them broke. Funny how statistics can be manipulated ... According to the TIME Magazine, the fastest growing language in the world is Klingon, created by Mark Okrand. Why? It's very simple. As recently as a few years ago, practically nobody was speaking it, but now, with the publication of the KLINGON DICTIONARY, lots of people are spitting their way to being bilingual. On the lighter side, it seems that plenty of things are out there if you just ask for them. For instance, Riverside, Iowa was designated the birthplace of James T. Kirk because then City Councilor STEVE MILLER saw a listing in THE MAKING OF STAR TREK of Kirk's birthplace as "a small Iowa town." Paramount told him that the first Iowa town to lay claim to him could have him, so they did. So now every first Friday after March 22 (yes, it's also WILLIAM SHATNER'S birthday) is the annual summer Trek Fest, complete with Romulan Ale -- food coloring in the green beer left over from St. Patrick's day. The British satellite channel Sky One has purchased the rights to STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, and will begin showing it in the next month or so. JOHN DELANCIE just finished making a movie with BRUCE DERN, and plans on doing more audio tapes. (What did he do before?) He has also done a comic for DC, but reportedly does not plan to do another. Since the beginning, big name stars have been showing up in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and we may see more of that in what future the show has left. "Descent," the final episode of the sixth season, featured a small role for scientist STEVEN HAWKING, who is reportedly a huge fan of the show. (The staff was apparently quite excited that such a world renowned scientist is a fan. He also reportedly has quite a sense of humor, and Levar Burton reccommends renting A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME, the story of Hawking's life.) According to a TV Guide interview with executive producer RICK BERMAN, other celebrities who have expressed an interest in appearing are JASON ALEXANDER, DANA CARVEY, CHRISTOPHER LLOYD, LYLE LOVETT, who, according to Berman, is "an obsessive fan," Los Angeles Laker JAMES WORTHY, who has reportedly signed to be the tallest Klingon in the show's history, and ROBIN WILLIAMS. Berman says that they are looking for something more than a cameo for Williams -- but nobody's mentioned the return of Mork from Ork. Various sources are also saying that ARNOLD SCHWARTZNEGGER has signed on to be an alien captain, but we think that if that were true, Rick Berman would have mentioned it to TV Guide. Others mentioned in a March issue of Entertainment Weekly are JOHN GOODMAN and ELLIOT GOULD. WILLIAM SHATNER was also talking to TV Guide for their special "Sci-fi" episode, and what he had to say might surprise a few people. He said that he had no idea that much of the rest of the original cast of STAR TREK didn't like him until he started to write his memiors. WALTER KOENIG -- Pavel Chekhov -- agreed to talk to him for the book, but what he had to say was far from favorable. He said that Shatner always felt that aside from the Big Three, the other actors were insignificant. JIMMY DOOHAN wouldn't even talk to Shatner for the book. Doohan also has a book deal for his memiors and though he does not yet have a title, he told TV Guide (man, they talk to everybody!) that "It may have a whiff of blasphemy, so I have to check it out with a couple of priests first." NICHELLE NICHOLS is also writing a book. It's called BEYOND UHURA, but she says that if you're looking for lots of details of the much heralded "liason" between her and GENE RODDENBERRY, you're going to be disappointed. She says that it happened long before STAR TREK, it was short-lived, and that it will only get a couple of sentences in the book. ........... Contests .... ........... Attention writers: ASIMOV'S SCIENCE FICTION MAGAZINE and the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts (IAFA) have announced the creation of the Isaac Asimov Award for the best unpublished science fiction or fantasy short story by an undergraduate student. The award is $500, a trip to IAFA's annual conference in Florida to receive it, and consideration for publication in ASIMOV'S. Submissions, which should be in the range of 1,000 to 10,000 words, are due by November 15, 1993. For more information, write to Isaac Asimov Award, USF 3177, 4204 E. Fowler, Tampa, FL 33620-3177. -!- The UPC SCIENCE FICTION AWARD [Editor's note: We were going to try and paraphrase this, but there's just so much in the way of specifics you need to know that we decided to just reprint the posted notice, since you don't really have time to write to them for more info. It IS a yearly contest, however, so even if you don't make it this year, there's always the next go-round.] This message contains the rules of the UPC Science Fiction Award 1993. This competition is organized by the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC). Since its 2nd edition in 1992, the works can be presented in Catalan, Spanish, English or French. Last year, Jack MacDevitt won the award with the short novel "Ships in the Night". Conrado Martinez (conrado@lsi.upc.es) UPC SCIENCE FICTION AWARD 1993 RULES 1.- Any unpublished narrative work which comes within the science fiction genre may take part in the competition. 2.- The works presented must be of between 75 and 110 pages, written in Catalan, Spanish, English or French. Two copies of the manuscript must be submitted, typewritten and double-spaced with 30 lines on each page and 70 characters per line. The submitted manuscripts will not be returned. 3.- The author must sign his or her narrative with a pseudonym, and enclose a sealed envelope containing the following details: full name, personal identification number (identity card or similar), full address and contact telephone or fax. The title of the work and the pseudonym of the author must appear on the outside of this envelope. Members of the UPC community must also state "UPC Member" on the outside of the envelope. 4.- Manuscripts must be send to: Consell Social Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya Edifici ETSAB Diagonal, 649 08028- Barcelona (SPAIN) The envelope should be clearly marked: "UPC Science Fiction Award 1993". 5.- The final date for presentation of manuscripts for the 1993 edition is August 30, 1993. The decision of the jury, which will be final, will be made public before the ending of year 1993 (December 1st, 1993). 6.- According to the decision of the jury, a prize of 1,000,000 PTA will be awarded. If the awarded narrative is not written in Catalan or Spanish, a special mention with a prize of 250,000 PTA may be awarded to the best narrative written in these languages. A further prize of 250,000 PTA may also be awarded for the best narrative presented by a member of the UPC. 7.- The competition, which is held every year, may be declared vacant. 8.- The prizewinners grant the rights of the first Spanish edition to the UPC, and waiver their right to any other monetary remuneration from this edition. 9.- The winning novellas will be published by the UPC through Ediciones B, in its collection "NOVA ciencia ficcion". 10.- The jury for the 1993 edition will be composed of Lluis Anglada, Miquel Barcelo, Pere Botella, Josep Casanovas and Domingo Santos. 11.- The participation in the UPC Science Fiction Award 1993 involves the implicit acceptance of the rules. Barcelona, February 1993. -!- [Editor's note: The official closing date for voting was supposed to be the weekend of August 13th, but Brad Templeton of Clarinet says that since the ballots are still coming in and they're so easy to process, they will be accepting them for a while longer -- but they absolutely must close the balloting Labor Day weekend.] The Electric Science Fiction Award Ballot Clarinet is also running an electronic version of the Hugo voting. Simply put, replace the question marks with your choices, in order of preference. If you hate something, rank it below "No Award." All ballots will be machine processed. They state in the instrctions that "BALLOTS THAT CAN'T BE PARSED WILL BE DROPPED ON THE FLOOR." Neat trick for an electronic ballot, but hey, it's their poll. One more note from Clarinet: To not rank a story is to rank it last. Thus if you have stories you hated, you should actually rank them after stories you didn't read, rather than not ranking them, presuming you wish to give them the benefit of the doubt. Likewise, you may wish to rank stories you didn't read above No Award if you want to give them the benefit of the doubt. =====CUT HERE===== Mail this part, or at least the answer lines, to esf-vote@clarinet.com #start: Best Novel A China Mountain Zhang by Maureen F. McHugh B Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson C Steel Beach by John Varley D A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge E Doomsday Book by Connie Willis ! No Award #novel: ??? Best Novella A "Uh-Oh City" by Jonathan Carroll B "The Territory" by Bradley Denton C "Protection" by Maureen McHugh D Stopping at Slowyear by Frederik Pohl E "Barnacle Bill the Spacer" by Lucius Shepard F City of Truth by James Morrow G "Contact" by Jerry Oltion and Lee Goodloe H Griffin's Egg by Michael Swanwick ! No Award #novella: ??? Best Novelette A "True Faces" by Pat Cadigan B "The Nutcracker Coup" by Janet Kagan C "In the Stone House" by Barry N. Malzberg D "Danny Goes to Mars" by Pamela Sargent E "Suppose They Gave a Peace..." by Susan Shwartz F "Matter's End" by Gregory Benford G "The July Ward" by S.N. Dyer H "The Honeycrafters" by Carolyn Gilman I "Prayers on the Wind" by Walter Jon Williams ! No Award #novelette: ??? Best Short Story A "The Winterberry" by Nicholas A. DiChario B "The Mountain to Mohammed" by Nancy Kress C "The Lotus and the Spear" by Mike Resnick D "The Arbitrary Placement of Walls" by Martha Soukup E "Even the Queen" by Connie Willis F "Life Regarded as a Jigsaw Puzzle of Highly Lustrous Cats" by Michael Bishop G "Lennon Spex" by Paul Di Fillipo H "Vinland the Dream" by Kim Stanley Robinson ! No Award #short: ??? Best Professional Artist A Thomas Canty B David A. Cherry C Bob Eggleton D James Gurney E Don Maitz ! No Award #artist: ??? Best Original Artwork A Cover of Aristoi by Jim Burns B Dinotopia by James Gurney C "Bridges" by Ron Walotsky D Cover of Illusion by Michael Whelan E Asimov Tribute Portrait, by Michael Whelan ! No Award #artwork: ??? Best Fan Writer A Mike Glyer B Andy Hooper C Dave Langford D Evelyn C. Leeper E Harry Warner Jr. ! No Award #fanwriter: ??? Best Fan Artist A Teddy Harvia B Merle Insinga C Linda Michaels D Peggy Ranson E Stu Shiffman F Diana Harlan Stein ! No Award #fanartist: ??? Best New Writer of 1991-1992 from the John W. Campbell nominees A Barbara Delaplace B Nicholas A. DiChario C Holly Lisle D Laura Resnick E Carrie Richerson F Michelle Sagara ! No Award #newwriter: ??? Other questions: For these questions, replace the answer field with the right answer. If you see something like "yes|no" it means we expect you to leave either a yes or no in the field. If you leave a literal "yes|no" we will disregard your response. 1. Did you purchase the ESF 1993 Hugo and Nebula Anthology? (You can vote even if you didn't, but we would like to know.) #purchase: yes|no 2. Are you a member of the 1993 WorldCon, ConFrancisco? #worldcon: yes|no 3. Did you or will you vote on the Hugos? #vote: yes|no #end: Brad Templeton ClariNet Communications Corp. Sunnyvale, CA 408/296-0366 ........... .... And Awards ........... Genre and related nominees for the 45th annual Primetime Emmy Awards, to be presented live on ABC on Sept. 19 from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium: Actor, drama series: QUANTUM LEAP -- Scott Bakula Supporting actor, drama series: QUANTUM LEAP -- Dean Stockwell Animated program, one hour or less: BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (Fox); INSPECTOR GADGET SAVES CHRISTMAS (NBC); LIQUID TELEVISION (MTV); THE REN & STIMPY SHOW (MTV); THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT AND BENJAMIN BUNNY (Family Channel). Directing, drama series: THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- Northern Italy, 1918 -- Bille August Art direction, series: QUANTUM LEAP -- Cameron Birnie, Ellen Dambros- Williams, Robert Zilliox; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE -- Herman Zimmerman, Randall McIlvain, Mickey S. Michaels; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Vienna, 1908 -- Gavin Bocquet, Keith Pain, Maggie Gray Art direction, miniseries or special: WILD PALMS -- Dins Danielson, Mark Zuelzke, Suzette Sheets Cinematography, series: QUANTUM LEAP -- Michael Watkins; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- David Tattersall Editing, series, single-camera: QUANTUM LEAP -- Jon Koslowsky Cinematography, series: QUANTUM LEAP -- Michael Watkins; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- David Tattersall Supporting actor, miniseries or special: BARBARIANS AT THE GATE -- Jonathan Pryce (BRAZIL) Costume design, series: QUANTUM LEAP: LEE HARVEY OSWALD -- Jean-Pierre Dorleac; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Time's Arrow, Parts 1 & 2 -- Robert Blackman; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- Peggy Farrell Music composition, series, dramatic underscore: QUANTUM LEAP: Leaping On A String Part 1 -- Velton Ray Bunch; THE SIMPSONS: Treehouse of Horror III -- Alf Clausen; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Young Indiana Jones and the Scandal of 1920 -- Joel McNeely; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Vienna, 1908 -- Laurence Rosenthal Main title theme music: COVINGTON CROSS -- Carl Davis; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE -- Dennis McCarthy Sound editing, series: QUANTUM LEAP: Leaping Between The States -- Greg Schorer, Gary Macheel, Rick Crampton, Dan Luna, Bob Costanza, Rick Steele, Ernesto Mas, Bruce Frazier; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE: Emissary Part 2 -- James Wolvington, William Wistrom, Ashley Harvey, Miguel Rivera, Jeff Gersh, Sean Callery, Steffan Falestich, Steve Rowe; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Time's Arrow Part 2 -- William Wistrom, James Wolvington, Miguel Rivera, Masanobu Tomita, Guy Tsujimoto, Jeff Gersh, Dan Yale, Gerry Sackman; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Somme, 1916 -- Tom Bellfort, Larry Oatfield, Chris Scarabosio, Michael Silvers, David Slusser, Tom Villano, Jamie Gelb- Forrester Costume design, series: QUANTUM LEAP: Lee Harvey Oswald -- Jean-Pierre Dorleac; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Time's Arrow Parts 1 & 2 -- Robert Blackman; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- Peggy Farrell Music composition, series, dramatic underscore: QUANTUM LEAP: Leaping On A String Part 1 -- Velton Ray Bunch; THE SIMPSONS: Treehouse of Horror III -- Alf Clausen; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Young Indiana Jones and the Scandals of 1920 -- Joel McNeely; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Vienna, 1908 -- Laurence Rosenthal Music composition, miniseries or special, dramatic underscore: THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Young Indiana Jones and the Mystery of the Blues -- Joel McNeely Main title theme music: COVINGTON CROSS -- Carl Davis; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE -- Dennis McCarthy Sound editing, series: ``QUANTUM LEAP: Leaping Between The States'' -- Greg Schorer, Gary Macheel, Rick Crampton, Dan Luna, Bob Costanza, Rick Steele, Ernesto Mas, Bruce Frazier; ``STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE: Emissary Part 2'' -- James Wolvington, William Wistrom, Ashley Harvey, Miguel Rivera, Jeff Gersh, Sean Callery, Steffan Falestich, Steve Rowe; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Time's Arrow'' Part 2 -- William Wistrom, James Wolvington, Miguel Rivera, Masanobu Tomita, Guy Tsujimoto, Jeff Gersh, Dan Yale, Gerry Sackman; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: Somme, 1916 -- Tom Bellfort, Larry Oatfield, Chris Scarabosio, Michael Silvers, David Slusser, Tom Villano, Jamie Gelb- Forrester Sound editing, miniseries or special: STEPHEN KING: THE TOMMYKNOCKERS -- Richard Taylor, Peter Austin, David Mork Beadle, Peter Bergren, Ken T. Gladden, Sonya L. Henry, Gary Lewis, Myron C. Nettinga, Brian Thomas Nist, Adam Sawelson, Matthew Sawelson, Bruce Tanis, James B. Hebenstreit, Albert Edmund Lord III, Marty Weresky Sound mixing, comedy series or special: THE SIMPSONS: Tree House of Horror III -- Brad Brock, R. Russell Smith, Greg Orloff, Anthony D'Amico Sound mixing, drama series: STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE, EMISSARY Part 2 -- Bill Gocke, Christopher Haire, Richard Morrison, Douglas W. Davey; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: A Fistful of Datas -- Alan Bernard, Doug Davey, Richard Morrison, Christopher Haire; THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES -- Carl Rudisill, Gary Summers Makeup, series: SPACE RANGERS: Death Before Dishonor -- Marvin Westmore, Ed French; STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE: Captive Pursuit -- Michael G. Westmore, Jill Rockow, Karen J. Westerfield, Gilmosko, Dean Jones, Michael Key, Craig Reardon, Vincent Niebla; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Inner Light -- Michael G. Westmore, Gerald Quist, June Abston Haymore, Karen J. Westerfield, Jill Rockow, Doug Drexler Hairstyling, series: STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE: Move Along Home -- Candace Neal, Ron Smith, Gerold Solomon, Susan Maust; STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: Time's Arrow Part 2 -- Joy Zapata, Candy Neal, Patty Miller, Laura Connelly, Richard Sabre, Julia Walker, Josee Normand Music direction: THE YOUNG INDIANA JONES CHRONICLES: YOUNG INDIANA JONES AND THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUES .............. The editors of TV Guide picked their favorites: STAR TREK took the award for Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy of the 1960, and STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION won Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy of the 1980's. PATRICK STEWART also won Best Dramatic Actor of the 1980's. The best SF/F of the 1950's was TWILIGHT ZONE, and, in a move that makes us wonder, they chose MORK AND MINDY as the best SF/F of the 1970's. And, it seems that someone's always running a "Sexiest Men" contest, and this time it's Playgirl. Among the winners for 1993 are JOHNNY DEPP (EDWARD SCISSORHANDS), BRAD PITT (COOL WORLD, INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE), DANNY GLOVER (PREDATOR 2), and ROBERT DENIRO (FRANKENSTEIN). Genre winners of the 29th annual Academy Awards: Makeup: Greg Cannom, Michele Burke, and Matthew W. Mungle, BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA Animated Short: Joan C. Gratz, MONA LISA DESCENDING A STAIRCASE Visual Effects: Ken Ralston, Doug Chiang, Doug Smythe, and Tim Woodruff, DEATH BECOMES HER Sound Effects Editing: Tom C. McCarthy and David E. Stone, BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA Original Score: Alan Menken, ALADDIN Costume Design: Eiko Ishioka, BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA Original Song: WHOLE NEW WORLD, from ALADDIN, music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Tim Rice On the other hand, ALAN MENKEN was also "honored" with the Golden Raspberry Award for worst original song for his part in the writing of HIGH TIMES, HARD TIMES for Disney's NEWSIES. The Razzie is a gold spray painted mangled film reel about the size of a golf ball, and is valued at $1.79. CELINE DION and PEABO BRYSON, both Canadian, have been awarded the Candian Grammy award for their rendition of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. LEVAR BURTON'S READING RAINBOW, has been nominated for Outstanding Children's Series in the 20th Annual DAYTIME EMMY AWARDS. The nominations for Outstanding Animated Children's Program went to BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES, DISNEY'S DARKWING DUCK, DOUG, RUGRATS, and TINY TOON ADVENTURES, and the nominations for Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program went to BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES, DISNEY'S GOOF TROOP, DISNEY'S RAW TOONAGE, RUGRATS, and TINY TOON ADVENTURES. Nominations for Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series went to JOHN ASTIN for THE ADDAM'S FAMILY, and LEVAR BURTON for READING RAINBOW. The Boring Institute has made its choices for 1992, citing, among other movies, BATMAN RETURNS and SEAN CONNERY'S MEDICINE MAN. They also cited the acting of BATMAN alumni JACK NICHOLSON and KIM BASINGER. QUANTUM LEAP: A Song for the Soul and JON KOSLOWSKY, ACE are winners of the American Cinema Editors Award, and the Motion Picture Sound Editors 1992 Golden Reel Award for Television One Hour Series ADR editing went to Supervising ADR Editor ERNESTO MAS and ADR Editor J. MICHAEL HOOSER for QUANTUM LEAP: Leaping of the Shrew. The winners of the 1992 Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards: Novel: Connie Willis, Doomsday Book (Bantam) Novella: James Morrow, City of Truth (St. Martin's Press) Novelette: Pamela Sargent, Danny Goes to Mars (Asimov's SF) Short Story: Connie Willis, Even the Queen (Asimov's) Grand Master: Frederik Pohl --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!8!-- SPOILERS AHOY/Including Episode Guide For HIGHLANDER Season One --------------------------------------------------------------------------- According to reports, we can expect the following early next season on STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATIOM: Hugh Borg will be returning for the second half of "Descent," lending credence to those who were sure that he would be an integral part of the solution to the Enterprise's problem. After 6 years, we will finally see Geordi's conception of himself. In the upcoming episode "Interface," Geordi will be working in a virtual reality environment, and we will get to see how he views himself WITHOUT the visor. He will apparently be performing some sort of remote operation on a space probe. As reported here, Levar Burton, who plays Geordie, loves technology and new toys, and reportedly had lots of fun with this episode. In another episode, we will get to see Geordie's parents, his missing-in- action mother (who is the captain of her own ship) and his father, to be played by BEN VEREEN. (Burton originally wanted SIDNEY POITIER, but he was unavailable, and he is apparently quite happy that Vereen stepped in.) Also rumored: Net sources have quoted Science Consultant NAREN SHANKAR as saying that there is a Wesley Crusher oriented show in development for the upcoming season. WIL WHEATON, who plays Wes, is currently attending UCLA, and his character is at Starfleet Academy. She also mentioned that they were going to pick up the theme of Data's dreams. On the other side of the camera, once again we will see cast members directing: The sixth episode will be directed by PATRICK STEWART, the tenth by JONATHAN FRAKES, and the twelfth by LEVAR BURTON. No episode titles are available yet. AIR SCHEDULES FOR THE UNITED STATES: Star Trek: The Next Generation 8/7/93 -- Frame of Mind 8/14/93 -- Suspicions 8/21/93 -- Rightful Heir 8/28/93 -- Second Chances 9/4/93 -- Timescape 9/11/93 -- Descent 9/18/93 -- SEASON PREMIERE: Descent Part 2 (unofficial title) Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 8/7/93 -- Progress 8/14/93 -- Duet 8/21/93 -- If Wishes Were Horses 8/28/93 -- The Forsaken 9/4/93 -- Dramatis Personae 9/11/93 -- In the Hands of the Prophets 9/18/93 -- The Nagus 9/25/93 -- SEASON PREMEIRE (Title unknown) ............. HIGHLANDER EPISODE GUIDE -- SEASON ONE Original by Bill Reeves -- breeves@oracle.com Additions by Obie Slotterbeck -- obie@hirama.hiram.edu, Roderick Lee -- rnlee@sdcc3.ucsd.edu, and Jonathan Blum -- jblum@eng.umd.edu. Additional information taken from the Net. REGULAR CAST: Adrian Paul as Duncan Macleod Alexandra Vandernoot as Tessa No:el (that's an umlaut over the o) Stan Kirsch as Richie Ryan TEXT FROM THE BEGINNING OF EACH EPISODE: First form (6 episodes): I am Duncan Macleod, born 400 years ago in the highlands of Scotland. I am Immortal, and I am not alone. For centuries we have waited for the time of the Gathering, when the stroke of a sword and the fall of a head will release the power of the Quickening. In the end, there can be only one. Second form: I was born 400 years ago in the highlands of Scotland. I am Immortal, and I am not alone. Now is the time of the Gathering, when the stroke of a sword will release the power of the Quickening. In the end, there can be only one. Short Episode Listing --------------------- 01 The Gathering 03R Road Not Taken (repeat) 02 Innocent Man 04R Bad Day in Building A (repeat) 03 Road Not Taken 06R Deadly Medicine (repeat) 04 Bad Day in Building A 12 See No Evil 05 Free Fall 13 Band of Brothers 06 Deadly Medicine 14 For Evil's Sake 07 Mountain Men 15 For Tomorrow We Die 08 Revenge is Sweet 16 The Beast Below 01R The Gathering (repeat) 17 Saving Grace 09 The Sea Witch 09R The Sea Witch (repeat) 10 Eyewitness 11R Family Tree (repeat) 11 Family Tree 10R Eyewitness (repeat) 02R Innocent Man (repeat) 12R See No Evil (repeat) 07R Mountain Men (repeat) 08R Revenge is Sweet (repeat) 05R Free Fall (repeat) 18 The Lady and the Tiger EPISODE DETAILS --------------- Format #) Title Written by writer, directed by director Guest star actor as character Semi-regular actor as character Short plot summary 01) The Gathering Written by Dan Gordon, directed by Thomas J. Wright Christopher Lambert as Connor Macleod Richard Moll as Slan Quince Wendell Wright as Sgt. Powell Connor Macleod comes to town to visit his kinsman Duncan, and together they fight the evil Slan Quince. 02) Innocent Man Written by Dan Gordon, directed by Jorge Montesi John Novack as Sheriff Howard Crowley Victor Young as Lucas Desiree Vincent Schiavelli as Leo Atkins Amanda Wyss as Randi McFarland Wendell Wright as Sgt. Powell Duncan's old friend Lucas Desiree is killed, and Vietnam vet Leo Atkins is framed for the murder. Duncan must protect Leo and track down the real killer. 03) Road Not Taken Written by Terry Nelson, directed by Thomas J. Wright Dustin Nguyen as Chu Lin Soon-teck Oh as Kiem Sun Wendell Wright as Sgt. Powell Christianne Hirt as Angie A friend of Richie's is killed by a mind control drug, and Duncan suspects an old friend could be behind it. 04) Bad Day in Building A Written by Kevin Droney, directed by Jorge Montesi Andrew Divoff as Bryan Slade Amanda Wyss as Randi McFrland Jay Brazeau as Comissioner Comanski Terrorists take over a courthouse and take Duncan, Tessa, and Richie as hostages. When they decide to execute a hostage, they choose the wrong one... 05) Free Fall Written by Philip John Taylor, directed by Thomas J. Wright Joan Jett as Felicia Martins Eli Gabay as Devereux Jay Brazeau as Comissioner Comanski An evil immortal pretends to be innocent in order to gain Duncan's trust, and endangers Tessa and Richie. 06) Deadly Medicine Written by Robert L. McCullough, directed by Ray Austin Joe Pantoliano as Doctor Wilder Amanda Wyss as Randi McFarland Duncan is critically injured in an auto accident -- when he makes a miraculous recovery, his E/R doctor takes an unhealthy interest in him. 07) Mountain Men Written by Marie-Chantal Droney, directed by Thomas J. Wright Marc Singer as Caleb Wes Studi as Sheriff Benson John Dennis Johnston as Carl the Hermit Duncan must rescue Tessa, who's been taken captive by an immortal who has been hiding in the wilderness for years. 08) Revenge is Sweet Written by Loraine Despres, directed by Ray Austin Vanity as Rebecca Lord Christoph Ohrt as Walter Reinhardt Christianne Hirt as Angie Tim Reid as Sgt. Bennett An old enemy of Duncan's uses his former girlfriend as a tool to get Duncan's head. 09) The Sea Witch Written by David Tynan, directed by Thomas J. Wright Stephen Macht as Alexei Voshin Johannah Newmarch as Nikki One of Richie's friends from the old neighborhood is involved in a drug deal gone bad, with one of Duncan's old enemies behind the deal. 10) Eyewitness Written by David Tynan, directed by Ray Austin Tom Butler as Andrew Ballin Amanda Wyss as Randi McFarland Tim Reid as Sgt. Bennett Tessa witnesses a murder and becomes the target of an immortal crooked cop. 11) Family Tree Written by Kevin Droney, directed by Jorge Montesi J.E. Freeman as Joe Scanlon Peter Deluise as Clinch Tamsin Kelsey as Mrs. Gustavson Matthew Walker as Duncan's father While trying to help Richie find his father, Duncan has painful memories of his own past. 12) See No Evil Written by Brian Clemens, directed by Thomas J. Wright John Hertzler as Marcus Korolus Dee McCafferty as the Scalper Moira Walley as Natalie Ward Amanda Wyss as Randi McFarland Tim Reid as Sgt. Bennett Duncan becomes involved in a series of murders which are similar to several he witnessed in the 1920's. 13) Band of Brothers Written by Marie-Chantal Droney, directed by Rene Manzor Werner Stocker as Darius James Horan as Grayson Earl Pastko as Victor Paulus Amanda Wyss as Randi McFarland Duncan must protect a world-famous philanthropist from assassination by an ancient evil immortal. 14) For Evil's Sake Written by David Abramowitz and Fabrice Ziolkowski, directed by Ray Austin Peter Howitt as Kuyler Hugues Leforestier as Inspector Lebrun An immortal assassin strikes in modern-day Paris, and the police officer in charge of the investigation believes Duncan is involved. 15) For Tomorrow We Die Written by Philip John Taylor, directed by Robin Davis Roland Gift as Xavier St Cloud Werner Stocker as Darius Hugues Leforestier as Inspector Lebrun Duncan must stop an immortal thief and murderer who targets Tessa's art fundraiser with a nerve gas time bomb. 16) The Beast Below Written by Marie-Chantal Droney, directed by Daniel Vigne Christian Van Acker as Ursa Dee Dee Bridgewater as Carolyn Werner Stocker as Darius An immortal who lives in the sewers underneath Paris falls under the spell of an opera siner, who asks him to kill for her. 17) Saving Grace Written by Elizabeth Baxter and Martin Broussellet, directed by Ray Austin Julia Stemberger as Grace Georges Corraface as Carlos Cendero Werner Stocker as Darius Duncan protects an old flame (and we do mean old) from her possessive immortal lover. 18) The Lady and the Tiger Written by Philip John Taylor, directed by Robin Davis Elizabeth Gracen as Amanda Jason Isaacs as Zachary Blaine An immortal femme-fatale is planning a major robbery, but must contend with both Duncan and her former partner, who wants her head. LIST OF IMMORTALS ----------------- Duncan Macleod (episodes 1-18) Connor Macleod (1) Slan Quince (1) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Lucas Desiree (2) (deceased, killed by Howard Cromley) Howard Crowley (2) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Kiem Sun (3) Felicia Martins (5) Devereux (5) (deceased, killed by Felicia Martins) Caleb (7) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Carl the Hermit (7) (deceased, killed by Caleb) (there is some debate as to Carl's immortality) Walter Reinhardt (8) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Alexei Voshin (9) (deceased, killed by his ship's propellors) Andrew Ballin (10) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Marcus Korolus (12) (deceased, killed by Duncan in the 1920's) Grayson (13) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Darius (13,15-17) Kuyler (14) (deceased, killed by Duncan) Xavier St Cloud (15) (dis-armed by Duncan) Ursa (16) Grace (17) Carlos Cendero (17) (deceased, beheaded by subway train) Amanda (18) Zachary Blaine (18) (deceased, killed by Amanda) ... And a couple of HIGHLANDER spoilers for season two from sjgavula@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu: JIM BYRNES (Lifeguard on WISE GUYS), will be seen in some of the first episodes of season two. The recurring character will be a good "Watcher" in contrast to those evil "Watchers" (formerly "Hunters"). Also showing up will be RON PERLMAN (Vincent from BEAUTY AND THE BEAST), will play the immortal of the week in the fifth episode to be produced for season two. No episode titles are available yet. .............. Reports are that the sixth season of RED DWARF takes place mostly on Starbug, as Lister and Rimmer (who spends time as "solid light") looking for Red Dwarf. There's no Holly, but we will see the stimulants (robot antagonists who "pull your head off and spit down the stump") and a virtual reality episode set in the Wild West. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!9!-- Publications and Conventions --------------------------------------------------------------------------- CV has no connection with any of these magazines, other than the fact that we know they're out there. (If we know more than that, we'll say so.) We are listing them as a public service, and make no warrantee as to their quality or reliability. To have a publication listed, send a SHORT but complete description to xx133@cleveland.freenet.edu. ............ Quanta, has been awarded the Digital Quill by the Digital Publishing Assiciation, and in our opinion, they deserve it. You can pick up this magazine of fiction by FTP from ftp.eff.org or export.acs.amu.edu. You also request e-mail subscription from quanta@andrew.cmu.edu The APA DIMENTIA is looking for new writers. The idea is that entities from all sorts of timestreams communicate via letters and diaries sent by interdimensional fax machines sent by the sorcerer/wizrard "Procavia." Writings are ENTIRELY in character, and writers are not to give away their real identities to anyone but the managing editor. The dues are $5 per year, and the minimum activity is four pages, in character, every four months, if we read it right. Issues have been running 150-200 pages. For more information or to join, write to: Apa Dimentia, c/o Emory Churness, 2705 N. Shepard #1, Milwaukee, WI 53211 USA. The first issue of MINDSPARKS should be out by now. From what we've heard, the monthly newsletter has an emphasis on the science of science fiction, carrying fiction and nonfiction, the latter including articles on straight science that can be or has been incorporated into science fiction or about the scientists and writers themselves. For more information on subscriptions or submissions, contact MINDSPARKS, P.O. Box 1379, Laurel MD 20725-1379. According to Issue 72 of ANSIBLE, MILLION: THE MAGAZINE ABOUT POPULAR FICTION (which has seen its subscriptions dwindle) will be combining with INTERZONE. Certain mainstays of M:TMAPF will make their way over to INTERZONE, but the magazine "will not change it's nature." MILLION subscribers will get INTERZONE. ............ CONVENTIONS ............ Convention listings are provided as a public service to our readers. Cyberspace Vanguard makes no warranty as to the reliability of the information -- or the cons, for that matter. We have not checked out these cons and are not affiliated with them in any way. Listings should be sent to xx133@cleveland.freenet.edu. They should be in the following form: CONVENTION NAME: Dates; Hotel; City, State, Country; GUESTS; Rates (Please indicate currency. $30 is thirty US dollars. #30 is thirty pounds sterling); Address, including country; Telephone; E-mail address, if any; Comments -- PLEASE, 150 characters of less! -!- VISIONS '93: November 26-28; Hyatt Regency O'Hare Hotel; Chicago, IL USA; JON PERTWEE, PETER DAVISON, COLIN BAKER, SYLVESTER MCCOY, FRAZER HINES, ELIZABETH SLADEN, NICOLA BRYANT, SOPHIE ALDRED, LOHN LEVENE, CAROLE ANN FORD, ANTHONLY AINLEY, JEREMY BENTHAM, JEAN-MARC LOFFICIER, JOHN PEEL, JOHN NATHAN TURNER, DANNY JOHN-JULES, GARETH THOMAS, MICHAEL KEATING, JOHN ABINERI, JEREMY BULLOCH; (deadline/3 day/2 day/1 day) 11-1-93/$85/$75/$65, door/$100/$90/$80; Her Majesty's Entertainment, PO Box 1202, Highland Park, IL 60035 USA; fergus@areaplg2.corp.mot.com FARPOINT (formerly OktoberTrek): October 9-10, 1993; Marriott's Hunt Valley Inn; Cockeysville, Maryland USA (12 miles north of Baltimore); GEORGE TAKEI, JOHN DELANCIE, and more; $30 for pre-order 3-day ticket, also sold at door; Farpoint, 5657 Utrecht Road, Baltimore, MD 21206 USA; (410) 866-5516 WISHCON III: November 19-21, 1993; Sheraton Monarch (413) 781-1010; Springfield, Mass. USA; ARMIN SHIMERMAN, WALTER KOENIG, JONATHAN HARRIS, JOHN LEVENE, MELISSA CRANDALL, BOB GREENBERGER, CORTLAND HULL, RON D. MOORE (tent.), MARK OKRAND (tent.), KEN PENDERS, and ARNE STARR; Advance ('till Oct. 15th): $35/Weekend, Door: $40/Weekend, $20/One Day, Reserved Seating: $10 extra (total $45). By mail only, cut off Oct. 15th (or sooner if sold out), Saturday Night Banquet: $23 by mail only; Checks to K & P Productions, 500 Monroe Turnpike, Monroe, CT 06468. Ticketmaster also has week end and one day passes available at the same prices, though service charges may apply. Call (413) 733-2500 or (617) 931-2000. NO Reserved seats at the door or through TIcketmaster. NO one-day passes available through the mail; (203) 459-0413 for information -- use numbers above for phone-in tickets; Chreotho@cup.portal.com. To receive Progress Reports, please include an SASE and register by mail. MILFORD SF WRITER'S CONFERENCE: September 12-19, 1993; has been cancelled FANTASYCON XVIII: October 1-3, 1993; Birmingham UK; #30, or for BFS members - #20; 137 Priory Rd., Hall Green, Birmingham, B28 0TG, UK ARMADACON V: November 12-14, 1993; Astor Hotel; The Hoe, Plymouth, UK; Various guests, all 'subject to work commitments'; #20; 4 Gleneagle Ave., Mannamead, Plymouth, PL3 5HL UK MASQUE III (costume con): March 4-6, 1994; Stakis Victoria Hotel; Nottingham, UK; ; Advance (to December 30, 1993) - #20; Ednaston Ct, Ashbouorne, Derbyshire DE6 3BA UK CORFLU NOVA (fanzine con): May 20-22, 1994; Arlington, VA USA; $47; P.O. Box 1350 Germantown, MD 20875. Corflu plans to exhume a long-dead horror: the partly rugose and partly squamous Fanzine Activity Achievement Awards --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --!10!-- Administrivia --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, it's a big one. I wonder how many of you actually stuck it out this long ... Well, for those of you who did, thanks. We also want to thank Carol (wangc@cpsc.ucalgary.ca), without whose newsgathering skill this would be impossible, Elizabeth Jenkins (est@lingua.cltr.uq.oz.au), Linda E. Smit (LINDAESM@uga.cc.uga.edu), sjgavula@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu, Mike Hill, and of course Evelyn C. Leeper. As always, electronic subscriptions to Cyberspace Vanguard are free and can be obtained by dropping a note to cn577@cleveland.freenet.edu. If you would like to write for us (or do anything else, for that matter) feel free to contact us at xx133@cleveland.freenet.edu. Also, for those who missed the last issue, the paper version of CV is on hold temporarily. No checks have been or will be cashed until we are up and running on paper. (Unless you want to send donations, of course.) Until next time, THANKS A MILLION ---- TJ Goldstein, Editor -- CYBERSPACE VANGUARD MAGAZINE News and Views from the Science Fiction Universe TJ Goldstein, Editor | Send submissions, questions, comments to tlg4@po.cwru.edu | cn577@cleveland.freenet.edu