Star Trek Discovery Update

CBS issued press release:Star Trek Discovery launch has been pushed 

back.  DISCOVERY will now launch in May 2017.

To get more information please press HERE

Beam Me Up Episode 472 - Expanded Horizons by Gustavo Bondoni

Beam Me Up 472 is up and ready.  

After my opening comments I play all along the watch tower performed by Jimmi Hendrix (again one of my all time favs) 

From the blog I have a sound byte from Elon Musk thanking  Nevada allowing his giga factory to build affordable electric cars.

NASA TV will be showing the latest spacewalk on the ISS.

Nelson sends over links for audio of Asimov's Foundation series.

Expanded Horizons by Gustavo Bondoni is my final offering of #472 

Enjoy

Beam Me Up Episode 472 link

Mark has been talking about CBS dropping Super Girl, which has become a fast favorite.  There was hope that CW, which it did, would pick the program up (The CW is co-owned by CBS and Warner Brothers)

The announcement went out Thursday the 19th of May and the Super girl series will begin with the start of the 2016 continuing into the 2017 prime

time season.

Super Girl will play Monday 8:00-9:00 PM 

Read more by selecting MORE INFO

Supergirl's Fate May Already Be Sealed

 

Supergirl continues to hang in the balance, but the DC series could find a new home at The CW in time for season 2, according to deadline.

Switching from CBS to The CW would seemed like an already done affair.  Especially since CBS and CW co-own the series. What's more CBS happens to hold co-ownership of The CW with Warner Bros. Entertainment.  This, it would seem, blows the rumor that CBS wants more viewer-ships and leans closer to licensing fees – reportedly clocking in at upwards of $3 million per episode could seal the switch-over.

Space 1999 Behind the Scenes

Hey, were you a fan (like someone that will remain nameless) of the 1970s British TV science
fiction series Space 1999?  if you were then you will flip over this behind the scenes short that
shows the model building in action.

Behind the scenes film

Behind the scenes web page

"Space1999 Year1 Title". Via Wikipedia.

Creation of the Dr. Who Theme

Today in the world of A/V production, you want sounds added to a track or even mixing in a completely new track is child's play and a single computer.

But in the middle parts of the previous century it was a feat only accomplished by the truly dedicated and a room-full of dedicated equipment.

Here is a fascinating look under the hood of the creation of one of sf television's most iconic themes.

Lost Girl Good For Season Four

Fans of the fantasy series Lost Girl rejoice!  Mark Wilson over at About.com writes that SyFy has renewed the series for a fourth season.  Production should resume in April 2013 but don't look for the new episodes until 2014. 

Thirteen episodes have been ordered so we can look for a complete season.   No word on what we can expect plot-wise, however executive producer Jay Firestone assures us a roller-coaster ride.  Main character "Bo" alliances will be challenged and everything she thought she knew about her past will be turned upside down.

Fringe, We Gona Mis Ya

Again for those that might have lived in a cavern over the past several years, I am writing about Fox's sf series Fringe. Staring Anna Torv as Olivia Dunham, Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop, John Noble as Dr. Walter Bishop and a cast that enjoyed many recurring as well as regular appearing characters.  Check out the wikipedia here. 

Fringe is a secret government project that investigates very odd and strange occurrences  that don't make any sense.  This in itself is a twisted plot device.  At first they are attacks from possibly a parallel dimension, but there are other things going on that point to very strange individuals, from someplace even stranger!

What it comes down to is that in it's run, Fringe is and was a very smart program.  Even when there were occurrences the science seemed so plausible  even if it does fall under the general field covered by as Rucker calls bogocity generators (I just LOVE that term!)  

Now a lot of shows did what Fringe did....but no where  did they dare do it all at the same time.  Not that Fringe didn't have plot arcs, because it did, but they were like Russian nesting dolls, one inside another.  

Yes, it was a very smart program and one that I put off ending as long as I could.  For those of you that would like to catch up on fringe you can find it on Hulu and Fox.  If you haven't seen the last season or the last few programs, you own it to yourself.

Original Batmobile Sold For 4.6 mil!

The original Batmobile driven on the 1960s TV series sold for auction on Saturday for $4.6 million. The seller was legendary kustom car king George Barris who had transformed the 1955 Lincoln Futura for television. The buyer was Rick Champagne, owner of an Arizona logistics company. Champagne says he's going to put the car in his living room...

Boing Boing

original CNN article

Star Wars Christmas Special....are you kidding me?!

Ok, Barry floored me with this heads up! This is a documentary clip about the ill-fated Star Wars Holiday Special

First off, my disclaimer is that I am not a follower of the Star Wars universe, no, I am probably one of the most ill informed Trekee ever but I know enough to start an argument if need be! lol.

On the flip side however I did follow Star Wars through the late seventies and early eighties. So when Barry blows in and said 

•  "This is a documentary clip about the ill-fated Star Wars Holiday Special."

I was whaaaaaaaaaa Christmas?  Star Wars?  Have any of you ever heard of this?  It is not a prank!  There really IS a Christmas Star Wars special and it is in the wind!

So far, from what I have gleaned is this is most likely one of the worst pieces of Television in existence today bar none.  Lucas has been heard to day that.....well, watch the clip, be prepared to be dumbfounded.    

That is just a short taste.  If you like having your eyes burned out and a major big gulp of pain, point your browser here "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFB627wyzR0"   and Kallamis points out that if you have the fortitude to want to watch thespecial, he found a link to part one here
" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQt7LRTSVTA"

Fringe Ends Run in January of 2013

According to Mark over at About sci-fi / fantasy, Fringe will end its run in January of 2013.  Fox has set the Fringe series finale: to Friday, Jan. 18, and it'll be a two-hour windup.  

However we know that not everything on Fringe is what it seems and that plays true with the final episode.  The double episode will in truth be the twelfth and thirteenth of the season. It will actually be the last two-thirds of a three-part story arc that starts on Jan. 11.  And as you can guess no new shows during the holiday  season.  

I am sorry, but the rest of the article reads like an obit and that just depresses the crap out of me.  You can read it all HERE

Guess Who's Coming for Dinner

Mark Wilson writing in About SF reports that the SF channel's Lost Girl has been renewed for a third season!  Yaaaaaaaaaaae!

And even better news is that Linda Hamilton of Terminator and Chuck fame will be, as Mark puts it, guesting as Acacia, a ruthless assassin.  So far Acacia is slated for just one episode.  (please let there be more!)

I know, not much to report, but as a Lost Girl fan and also always happy to know that Linda "Sarah Connor" Hamilton is still going strong, was a double payday for me. 

So look for her in an upcoming episode of Lost Girl on SyFy.

Get A Life!

Xnews man sends in an article from the NY Daily News concerning one of the funniest and one of the most iconic phrases spoken by a science fiction television show personality. I even remember seeing this episode of SNL where William Shatner faces a gathering of fanatical (and faux) "Trekies". After a stream of inane questions from the fans, Shatner informs the gathering in frustration to "get a life!"

Never one to let an opportunity pass, Shatner went on to pen a book in 1999 called “Get a Life!,” exploring the cult of “Star Trek” fans and conventions.

Expanding on the 1999 book, Shatner now plans to host a documentary of the same name.

“Get A Life!,” is set mostly at the 2011 Las Vegas Star Trek convention. It features interviews with fans from around the world who travel to the gatherings, as well as cast members from the franchise.

Life copying art copying life....

For more you can check the NY Daily News article here

Batman tv Show Window Gags

Here I came across a very funny series of clips from the old Batman tv show. They were called the window gag. Somehow I don't seem to recall these little asides inside a show, maybe early on I didn't realize the camp and only later, but then it was a double whammy for me, first just enjoying a quirky show and then being able to watch it again for the campy fun...win win.

So check out the window gags and catch the gag within a gag...have fun!

COMMENT: Goodbye Eureka

Wow, last episode. I am going to leave the "how

disapointing" or "how disappointed I am with SyFy" and just for a few minutes ponder the loss of another great show. Eureka was always a quaint proposition in the first place. They took their science from the Star Trek school of physics most of the time and often the show was blatant morality plays. But if you were a fan, you were a FAN. The people were easy enough to identify, if you didn't get it right off, our everyman Carter was there to "this is what I do...." But they managed to go out in style, yes a tear jerker at times, I know, but the closed loop at the end?!!! I am SOOOOO loving that.

So not so much as losing a close friend, the feeling for Eureka at the risk of being anthropomorphic, was having that close friend move away.

The sting will fade as it has before with better, far better shows, but if you have enjoyed the years, then you know the characters you have come to enjoy aren't there. TV Science Fiction is plainer for it.

Good bye Eureka

Oh and thanks to Kallamis for the graphic find!  Sweet!

Lost In Space's Robot Has Lost His Voice

Airlock Alpha reports that the iconic voice of the 60s classic Lost in Space's robot has died. Dick Tufeld who's famous lines like "Danger, Will Robinson" and "That does not compute"  died Jan. 22 he was 85.

Tufeld worked on many of producer Irwin Allen's productions such as Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and  The Time Tunnel though, as AA points out, his work often went uncredited.

Tufeld is survived by two sons, two daughters and six grandchildren.   His wife Adrienne died in 2004.   

ST:TNG Gets HD Makeover

Topless Robot reports that ST:TNG is getting a high definition remastering for its next release. Later this year ST:TNG will be available in outrageous color and HD. Before all you Trekkers'start foaming at the mouth with the prospect of waiting months for the release, CBS Home Entertainment plans on whetting you appetites, on Jan. 31 they plan releasing three episodes — "Encounter at Farpoint," season 3's "Sins of the Father," and season 5's "The Inner Light" — in Star Trek: The Next Generation – The Next Level on Blu-ray.

You got to see the difference, so here is a side by side example of just how stunning the re-edit really is. Check this video out.

click this link for a demo on youtube of the difference!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyzc8d3c7_8

Source Code to Become a Series

Mark Wilson over at About SF writes that The movie Source Code is coming to the small screen as a series. The new series is being developed by Mark Gordon (he was a producer on the film) at ABC Studios and has been sold to CBS, with the pilot being written by Steve Maeda (Lie to Me and Lost). The skinny is that there will be 3 former federal agents who involved in the top-secret program. It really is starting to feel more Quantuum Code ummm I mean Leap. The idea has been pitched and sold to CBS but there is no long term info on who will head up the series or the cast, just the pilot is being considered right at this moment.

Eureka Canceled?! Say it ain't so!

Mark Wilson over at About SF has some pretty distressing news for SF fans. One of the best shows to come out of SYFy's writing stable has been the quirky Eureka - a secret DOD facility in the guise of a small town, rife with ubber geeks and weird science. Mark reports that SY FY has backed out of any commitment past season 5, effectively ending the show at the end of season 5.

The really aggravating thing however is that this decision was not precipitated by ratings lagging but by the new merger ala wrastlin....

Warehouse 13 was renewed though...but Eureka?!!! come oooooooooonnnnnnnn!

Anyone else out there feeling as betrayed by Sy-Fy's actions as I am? Damn...I really like this show!

RIP: Jeff Conaway of Babylon 5 fame

Airlock Alpha reports that Jeff Conaway, best known to genre fans as Security Chief Zack Allen on the syndicated series Babylon 5, died May 27th at 60 after being removed from life support.

Conaway was found unconcious in his home May 11 from what his doctors describe as complications from pneumonia and sepsis.

Complete Airlock Alpha article, Wiki article