Saturday, January 3, 2015

3 January 2015

Birthdays
Alex D. Linz b. 1989 (The Uninvited, Lois & Clark)
Julia Levy-Boeken b. 1985 (World War Z)
Zak Santiago b. 1981 (Witches of East End, Continuum, Chupcabra vs. the Alamo, Once Upon a Time, Battlestar Galactica, Fringe, V, Stargate, Alice [2009 TV], Eureka, The 4400, Smallville, Kingdom Hospital, Stephen King's Dead Zone, Jeremiah, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven, NightMan, Seven Days, Poltergeist: The Legacy )
Caleb Pinkett b. 1980 (Charmed)
Jennifer Lynn Warren b. 1979 (Creature, American Horror Story, The School in the Woods)
Alisen Down b. 1976 (12 Monkeys [2015], Supernatural, Lost Girl, Stargate, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Battlestar Galactica, Smallville, Stephen King's Dead Zone, Mysterious Ways)
Nicholas Gonzalez b. 1976 (The Flash, The Purge: Anarchy, Resurrection, Sleepy Hollow, Witches of East End, Grimm, True Blood, Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid)
Jason Marsden b, 1975 (Deep Space Nine, Eerie, Indiana, The Munsters Today, Robot Jox)
Danica McKellar b. 1975 (The Nerdist, The Big Bang Theory, Tasmanian Devils, Heatstroke, Path of Destruction, Babylon 5, Twilight Zone [1980s])
Dan Harmon b. 1973 (Monster House)
Sarah Alexander b. 1971 (Stardust, Dr. Terrible's House of Horrible, Red Dwarf)
Matt Ross b. 1970 (Revolution, American Horror Story, Invasion , 12 Monkeys)
Rebecca Broussard b. 1973 (Mars Attacks!)
Jewel Shepard b. 1958 (Return of the Living Dead, Zapped!)
Mel Gibson b. 1956 (Signs, Forever Young, Mad Max)
Glen A. Larson b. 1937 (producer, Battlestar Galactica, Knight Rider, NightMan, Automan, Manimal, Conquest of the Earth, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The Six Million Dollar Man: Solid Gold Kidnapping, The Six Million Dollar Man: Wine, Women and War)
Jeremy Kemp b. 1935 (Conan [1998], Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Greatest American Hero, Space: 1999, Undermind)
Dabney Coleman b. 1932 (Target Earth, WarGames, The Invaders, I Dream of Jeannie, The Outer Limits)
Robert Loggia b. 1930 (Independence Day, Lifepod, Innocent Blood, The Six Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman, Wonder Woman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Lost Missile)
Mara Corday b. 1930 (Tarantula, The Giant Claw, The Black Scorpion)
Bill Travers b. 1922 died 29 March 1994 (Gorgo)
John Russell b. 1921 died 19 January 1991 (Jason of Star Command)
Jesse White b. 1919 died 9 January 1997 (Small Wonder, The Cat from Outer Space, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Harvey [1972 TV and 1950], Land of the Giants, The Reluctant Astronaut, Mr. Terrific, The Munsters, The Addams Family, Twilight Zone, Topper)
John Sturges b. 1910 died 19 August 1992(director, Marooned [MST3K], The Satan Bug)
Ray Milland b. 1905 died 10 March 1986 (The Sea Serpent, Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land, Battlestar Galactica, Escape to Witch Mountain, Frogs, X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes, Panic in Year Zero!, Premature Burial)
J.R.R. Tolkien b. 1892 died 2 September 1973 (author, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit)
Josephine Hull b. 1877 died 12 March 1957 (Harvey)

Notes from the birthday list
1. The Picture Slot. Previously, I had Tolkien in the Picture Slot and his influence in the genre can't be denied. I had a lot of other choices today, notably Ray Milland and Mel Gibson as stars of genre films, the great Jesse White if I wanted to go Oh That Guy or Jeremy Kemp as Jean-Luc Picard's brother. But as is often the case, I was in a fabulous babe mood, so we get the scrumptious Mara Corday from Tarantula. Besides being lovely and iconic, Ms. Corday and her fellow exact birthday sharer Robert Loggia are The Guy and the Gal at the Door. Special wishes for long and happy lives for both of them.

2. Spot the Canadians! There are two and they have the typical resumes and ages, both born after 1970. You should be able to spot them.

3. Start of a new label. I already have a label "Mystery Science Theater 3000" for the folks who were regulars on the show, but today at the request of regular commenter Zombie Rotten McDonald, I begin a new label "MST3K", which means a movie on our list of credits was given the treatment from the folks at Best Brains. Today it is John Sturges' film Marooned. I blush to admit that I don't know every last MST3K movie, so if any sharp-eyed commenter sees one on any birthday list going forward from today, let me know and I'll add the label if it isn't there already.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list, most especially Mara Corday and Robert Loggia, and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
Predictor: National Intelligence Council's Global Trends 2015, published in 2000

Prediction: Here's the stuff they got right, with the underlined stuff being the most specific.

Financial volatility
Anonymous cyberattacks
Widening economic divisions
An increasingly assertive China
WMD-wielding North Korea
growing illegal migration to the U.S. from Central America
A mercurial, authoritarian Russia that "remains internally weak and institutionally linked to the international system primarily through its permanent seat on the UN Security Council"
The Middle East tormented by "demographic pressures social unrest, religious and ideological extremism, and terrorism," and shaped by the destabilizing impact of new technology and the allure of political Islam.

Reality: This weekend prediction's come from an article published this week by The Atlantic. The article notes that it was released after the Supreme Court decided Bush v. Gore but well before the 11 September attacks. Tomorrow, we will look at the stuff that is incorrect.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

In the Picture Slot, a fabulous babe from the original Star Trek wearing a famously revealing outfit.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!




3 comments:

  1. Zak Santiago and Alisen Down are the Canadians.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Not that I want Mel Gibson to get any other positive vibes, but I suspect _Forever Young_ should be counted.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As usual, Ken, when you take the time to correct me, I have to agree. The movie is added to the list.

      Delete

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