Connor Jessup b. 1994 (Falling Skies)
Louisa Connoly-Burnham b. 1992 (Wolfblood)
Melissa Rauch b. 1980 (Big Bang Theory, True Blood)
Isabella Leong b. 1978 (The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor)
Emmanuelle Vaugier b. 1976 (Lost Girl, Supernatural, Painkiller Jane, Unearthed, Andromeda, Smallville, Charmed, MythQuest, Mindstorm, Level 9, Shapeshifter, Saban’s Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation, Highlander [TV])
Joel Edgerton b.1974 (The Thing [2011], Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith)
Selma Blair b. 1972 (Hellboy, The Fog, Xena, Amazon High)
Martin Klebba b. 1969 (Pirates of the Caribbean, Monsters on Main Street, Project X, The Cape, Van Helsing, Charmed, Planet of the Apes)
Joss Whedon b. 1964 (writer, Avengers, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., In Your Eyes, The Cabin in the Woods, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Commentary! The Musical, Serenity, Angel, Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Titan A.E., Toy Story)
Billy Wirth b. 1962 (Charmed, Space Marines, Starlight, Body Snatchers, The Lost Boys)
Frances McDormand b. 1957 (Transformers: Dark of the Moon, AEon Flux, Darkman, The Twilight Zone [1986])
Russell Mulcahy b. 1953 (director, Teen Wolf [TV], Resident Evil: Extinction, Mysterious Island [TV], Jeremiah, The Hunger [TV], Tale of the Mummy, Perversions of Science, The Shadow, Highlander I and II)
Lauren Shuler Donner b. 1949 (producer, X-Men, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant, Constantine, Ladyhawke)
Bryan Brown b. 1947 (On the Beach [TV], Journey to the Center of the Earth [TV], 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea [TV])
Ted Shackelford b. 1946 (Space Precinct, The Twilight Zone [1988], Wonder Woman)
Jerry Ahern (a.k.a. Axel Kilgore) b. 1946 (author, Survivalist, They Call Me the Mercenary)
James Marcus b. 1942 (A Clockwork Orange, Doctor Who, UFO)
Larry Blyden b. 1925 died 6 June 1975 (The Twilight Zone)
Dennis Price b. 1915 died 6 October 1973 (Son of Dracula, Theatre of Blood, The Erotic Rites of Frankenstein, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland [1972], Dracula Contra Frankenstein, Vampyros Lesbos, The Horror of Frankenstein, Voodoo Blood Death, The Earth Dies Screaming, H.G. Wells’ Invisible Man [TV], Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde [TV])
(Paul) Orban b. 1896 died 6 April 1974 (artist)
Joss Whedon turns 50 today, so the Picture Slot is not a discussion. Usually, if someone is a writer and director, I list the direction credits, but Whedon is a writer first and foremost. Last year, before I had done as much research, Melissa Rauch was the featured birthday girl, but next year don't be surprised if it's the artist Orban, a prolific artist of both covers and interiors during the pulp magazine era who is nearly completely forgotten. The guy doesn't even have a Wikipedia page, though he is noted on the Internet Speculative Fiction Database. I think I'll see if I can remedy that today.
A random thought in closing of the birthday celebrations: Poor Dennis Price! He was so good in Kind Hearts and Coronets, though overshadowed by Alec Guinness, but finishes his career in movies like Vampyros Lesbos and The Erotic Rites of Frankenstein. Brits are very fond of the "when you get a role, take it" view of their jobs, but that's a heck of a way to pay the rent.
Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
Predictor: OMNI Future Almanac, published 1982
Prediction: A new 3-D movie craze may arise, but will die for the same reasons the technique faded in the 1950s: poor picture quality, shoddy low budget productions and the inconvenience of wearing special glasses to watch the films.
Reality: There are purists who dislike 3-D because it doesn't add to the experience, the late Roger Ebert to name just one. But we are in the middle of a 3-D craze that doesn't have an end in sight. Whether or not it adds anything to a story, poor picture quality and shoddy low budget productions are NOT problems in the 21st Century. Computer generated animation is a look the public likes and it lends itself to 3-D intrinsically. Of all the complaints in the prediction, only the cost of glasses is a factor today.
Sorry, guys, right now I have to give you low marks for this one.
Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!
Another glimpse into the collectivist paradise of 2010 as imagined by Geoffrey Hoyle in 1972.
Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
I like to imagine what would have happened if they had kept Firefly going for 4 or 5 seasons, like Buffy and Angel. What kind of finale would he have whomped up?
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, a clear sign of the basic unfairness of the universe is someone who is that bald by 50. Of course, I guess I would trade my hair for his Whedon's level of success, so maybe things even out after all.
I may be a bit bipolar today. Well, maybe not.
I think he has come to terms with it, but then I read his tweets and wonder if a suicide watch is in order.
DeleteI would also like to point out that even modern 3D versions tend to give for headaches. IN some ways, OMNI films work much better, and can be much more immersive. Low marks, certainly. But at least they didn't say "in the future, films will have more definition and louder noise, and possibly the use of computers to augment visual effects!"
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see some actual customer reviews of Oculus Rift. I worked on VR technology back in the 1990s and it was awful, both headache and nausea inducing. I know the hardware is massively better than what we had then, but the lag when you move your head can be very disconcerting.
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