11 April 2015

Birthdays
Morgan Lily b. 2000 (Deadtime Stories, X-Men: First Class, 2012)
Dakota Blue Richards b. 1994 (The Secret of Moonacre, The Golden Compass)
Marcus Johns b. 1993 (The Punisher)
Eka Darville b. 1989 (The Originals, Terra Nova, Power Rangers R.P.M.)
Kelli Garner b. 1984 (Horns, Buffy)
Monica May b. 1984 (Battle Planet, Power Rangers S.P.D.)
Alessandra Ambrosio b. 1981 (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2)
Matt Ryan b. 1981 (Constantine, Torchwood)
Marlene Katz b. 1980 (Arachnophobia)
Reina King b. 1975 (Scrooged)
Tricia Helfer b. 1974 (Ascension, The Librarians, Battlestar Galactica, Bloodwork, No Ordinary Family, Warehouse 13, Supernatural, Them [2007], Jeremiah)
Jennifer Esposito b. 1973 (Dracula 2000)
Simon Reynolds b. 1969 (Haven, Warehouse 13, Earth: Final Conflict, The 5th Quadrant, Our Hero, Forever Knight)
Patrick Bishop b. 1958 (Starship Troopers, Werewolf)
Gerry Becker b. 1951 (Charmed, Spider-Man, Angel, The Cell, Mystery Men)
Jay Benedict b. 1951 (The Dark Knight Rises, Genie in the House, Mansquito, Lexx)
Bill Irwin b. 1950 (Interstellar, Lady in the Water, Third Rock from the Sun)
Carl Franklin b. 1949 (ALF, The Incredible Hulk)
Peter Riegert b. 1947 (The Mask, The Runestone, Twilight Zone [1985], Americathon)
Meshach Taylor b. 1947 died 28 June 2014 (Hyenas, Ultra Warrior, Mannequin, ALF, The Howling, The Incredible Hulk, Damien: Omen II)
John Milius b. 1944 (director, Twilight Zone [1985], Conan the Barbarian)
Shirley Stelfox b. 1941 (Nineteen Eighty-Four)
Louise Lasser b. 1939 (Mystery Men, Frankenhooker, Slither)
Joel Grey b. 1932 (Warehouse 13, Buffy, A Christmas Carol [1999 TV], Star Trek: Voyager)
Billie Hayes b. 1932 (Tabitha, Bewitched, Lidsville, Pufnstuf)
Jack Betts b. 1949 (Spider-Man. Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, Alien Avengers II. Batman & Robin, Batman Forever)
Paul Douglas b. 1907 died 11 September 1959 (The Gamma People)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. On 11 April 2013, there was a picture of Tricia Helfer on the blog.

On 11 April 2014, yet another picture of Tricia Helfer.

Are you beginning to detect a pattern?

The other people I consider iconic in genre are Joel Grey as Doc on Buffy and Billie Hayes as Witchiepoo from all those Sid and Marty Krofft shows.

Instead, we have a third picture of Tricia Helfer. Sue me.

2. Spot the Canadians. You might be able to tell Simon Reynolds is Canadian from his credit list, but did you know Tricia Helfer is as well? This gives me an excuse to look at her picture again.

...
...

Okay, I'm back.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Predictor: Henry V. Boynton (1835-1905), Union general, journalist, asked to predict the future in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition held in Chicago

Prediction: Before the next centennial, the American South will be the manufacturing empire of the continent. The rich lowlands surrounding it will find consumers there for its products. The mountains and hill resources, the manufacturing population and the supporting lower countries together will form mighty communities, of which the new life now everywhere throbbing through this wonderful region gives certain promise.

Reality: As far as I can recall, this is the only prediction that deals with the great nagging political problem of the late 19th Century, the tendency of both parties to re-fight the Civil War over and over again, which was referred to as "waving the bloody shirt". A history teacher friend of mine says the first instance of Americans re-uniting for a single cause after the Civil War was in their fervor for the Spanish-American War, which is still a few years away when Boynton writes this praise for the South. In reality, while there is manufacturing all over this country, most people would point to the states bordering the Great Lakes as the manufacturing empire of the country in the 20th Century, now sadly referred to as The Rust Belt.

Note: this is the last prediction from the book on the 1893 Columbian Exhibition. As of next week, a new regular will sit in the Saturday slot.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Sunday means another visit from Robert A. Heinlein and his predictions for the second half of the 20th Century in his 1956 book The Door Into Summer.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

4 April 2015

Birthdays
Patrick Hurd-Wood b. 1995 (Solomon Kane, Peter Pan)
Sarah Gadon b. 1987 (Dracula Untold, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Antiviral, Mutant X)
Amanda Righetti b. 1983 (Captain America: The First Avenger, Friday the 13th)
Kett Turton b. 1982 (Forever, Gotham, The 100, Fringe, Primeval: New World, Wrath of the Titians, Supernatural, Blade: Trinity, Kingdom Hospital, Dead Like Me, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Dark Angel, Smallville, Dead Last, Strange Frequency, So Weird, First Wave, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, The X Files, Millennium)
Benjamin Ciaramello b. 1981 (War of the Worlds)
Collette Wolfe b. 1980 (Hot Tub Time Machine 1 & 2, Interstellar, Reaper)
Heath Ledger b. 1979 died 22 January 2008 (The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, The Dark Knight, The Brothers Grimm)
Natasha Lyonne b. 1979 (4:44 Last Day on Earth, Blade: Trinity, Modern Vampires)
Jessica Napier b. 1979 (Ghost Rider, The Lost World)
Matthew MacCaull b. 1978 (Tomorrowland, iZombie, Once Upon a Time, Supernatural, Fringe, Riverworld, Snakehead Terror, Jeremiah)
James Roday b. 1976 (Gamer, Repli-Kate)
Claudette Mink b. 1971 (Fringe, Reaper, Battlestar Galactica, Smallville, Dead Like Me, Kingdom Hospital, Paycheck, Phenomenon II, Monkeybone, Andromeda, Sliders, NightMan, Conan, Welcome to Paradox, Earth: Final Conflict)
Barry Pepper b. 1970 (Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, Battlefield Earth, Sliders, Highlander [TV])
Xenia Seeburg b. 1968 (Lord of the Undead, Lexx, Total Recall 2070)
Lisa Hammer b. 1967 (The Venture Brothers, Frankenstein and the Creature from the Blood Cove)
David Cross b. 1964 (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Men in Black II, Small Soldiers)
Robbie Rist b. 1964 (Sharknado, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Harry and the Hendersons [TV], The Munsters Today, The Wizard, Knight Rider, Galactica 1980, The Bionic Woman)
Robert Downey Jr. b. 1965 (Avengers, Iron Man, Incredible Hulk, A Scanner Darkly, The Shaggy Dog, Weird Science)
A. Michael Baldwin b. 1963 (Phantasm I through IV, Voyagers!)
Ava Fabian b. 1962 (Lobster Man from Mars)
Hugo Weaving b. 1960 (The Hobbit, Cloud Atlas, Captain America: The First Avenger, Transformers, The Wolfman, Lord of the Rings, V for Vendetta, The Matrix)
Lorraine Toussaint b. 1960 (Forever, Dark Skies, M.A.N.T.I.S., Red Dwarf)
Phil Morris b. 1959 (Smallville, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Dark Planet, Babylon 5, Star Trek III; The Search for Spock, Star Trek)
Armin Rohde b. 1955 (Contagion, Run Lola Run, The Canterville Ghost [2005 TV], 666: In Bed with the Devil)
Mary-Margaret Humes b. 1954 (Time Trax, Eerie, Indiana, Manimal, Knight Rider)
Cherie Lunghi b. 1952 (Wizards vs. Aliens, The Canterville Ghost [1996 TV], Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Excalibur)
Tim White b. 1952 (artist)
Simone Griffeth b. 1950 (The Greatest American Hero, The Incredible Hulk, The Six Million Dollar Man, Monster Squad, Death Race 2000)
Christine Lahti b. 1950 (Amerika, The Henderson Monster)
Dan Simmons b. 1948 (won 1990 Hugo for Hyperion)
Craig T. Nelson b. 1944 ( Creature, Poltergeist, Wonder Woman, Flesh Gordon, Scream Blacula Scream, The Return of Count Yorga)
Kenneth Mars b. 1935 died 12 February 2011 (Weird Science [TV], Lois & Clark, M.A.N.T.I.S., Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Twilight Zone [1986], Misfits of Science, Project U.F.O., Wonder Woman, Young Frankenstein)
Anthony Perkins b. 1932 died 12 September 1992 (Edge of Sanity, The Black Hole, On the Beach)
Andrei Tarkovsky b. 1932 died 29 December 1986 (director , Solaris [1972])
Peter Vaughan b. 1923 (Game of Thrones, Brazil, Time Bandits)
Peter Burton b. 1921 died 21 November 1989 (A Clockwork Orange)
David White b. 1916 died 27 November 1990 (Bewitched, The Incredible Hulk, Wonder Woman, The Amazing Spider-Man [1977], The Six Million Dollar Man, My Favorite Martian, Twilight Zone)
Richard Coogan b. 1914 died 12 March 2014 (Captain Video and his Video Rangers)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. The top three names on imdb.com for popularity today are Robert Downey Jr., Hugo Weaving and Heath Ledger, and they would be excellent candidates for the Picture Slot, each of them with at least one iconic role in genre. The thing is, I used all of them before, Ledger in 2013 when I incorrectly listed his birthday as April the 7th. Even with those three worthies gone, there are other iconic roles, and the top three remaining in my estimation are Kenneth Mars from Young Frankenstein, Xenia Seeburg for Lexx and Peter Vaughan from Game of Thrones. Usually in such a situation, the fabulous babe would be the massive favorite, but I want new Game of Thrones so bad, Vaughan gets the nod. Also, Mr. Vaughan is the oldest living person on the list, so good on him for that. Because there are people younger than him already gone, he is not The Guy at the Door.

2. Spot the Canadians! Today, we have four Canadians, all born after 1970 and all with at least one Canadian produced genre show in their credits. The hardest to spot is Sarah Gadon. Kett Turton, Claudette Mink and Matthew MacCaull are a little easier to recognize.

3. Nepotism FTW. He's made a good career for himself, but it is here noted that Phil Morris is the son of Greg Morris. Another son of an actor is Patrick Hurd-Wood, son of Philip Hurd-Wood. That family is in Great Britain and the father's career is not all that successful, so claims of nepotism are not quite as strong.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Movies released
The Adjustment Bureau released 2011
Captain America: The Winter Soldier released 2014
 

Predictor: J.P. Dolliver (1858-1910), Iowa politician

Prediction: Is it as sure as any future thing that the making of money - or, more properly, the accumulation of money - is to go on through the coming century. Nor does it take a very acute insight to perceive that we are approaching a time that will not be defined by the reforms proposed by state socialism. Rather, during this time, the products of labor, the fruits of genius, the dividends of investment and the spoils of commerce shall be more and more willingly put aside in generous plans by the rich as trust funds, involving a high stewardship, for the ultimate use of the community.

Reality: The last time income inequality was as bad as it is now in the United States was the 1890s when this grease weasel is writing his little suck-up to the wonderful rich. He was wrong about state socialism not stepping in. The government began to impose very high taxes on high incomes and decreed the destruction of monopolies. I don't want to slam philanthropy, but it doesn't change the fact that Bill Gates became the richest man in the world producing shit software and a lot more of the rich are like the Kardashians or the Hiltons, completely useless drains on our economy and civilization.

Not that I feel strongly about this,

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Another lazy Sunday and we hear from Robert A. Heinlein predicting the stuff that will be invented in the second half of the 20th Century.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

28 March 2015

Birthdays
Jenna Berman b. 1990 (iZombie, Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn)
Jimmy Wong b. 1987 (Misscliks D&D Demigods, Video Game High School, John Dies at the End, The Guild)
Michael Wayans b. 1985 (Blankman)
Gareth David-Lloyd b. 1981 (Enoch the Traveler, Warehouse 13, Red Faction: Origins, Torchwood, Doctor Who)
Annie Wersching b. 1977 (The Vampire Diaries, Extant, Revolution, Touch, No Ordinary Family, Journeyman, Supernatural, Charmed, Angel, Birds of Prey, Star Trek: Enterprise)
Richard Kelly b. 1975 (writer/director, The Box, Southland Tales, Donnie Darko)
Shanna Moakler b. 1975 (Timecop, Lois & Clark)
Nick Frost b. 1972 (Syrenia, Doctor Who, The World’s End, Snow White and the Huntsman, Paul, Hyperdrive, Shaun of the Dead)
Vince Vaughn b. 1970 (The Watch, The Cell, The Lost World: Jurassic Park)
Brett Ratner b. 1969 (director, Hercules [2014], X-Men: The Last Stand)
Max Perlich b. 1968 (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Charmed, Dinocroc, Buffy, The Butcher’s Wife)
Darcy Laurie b. 1966 (Strange Empire, Arrow, Continuum, Supernatural, Fringe, V, Battlestar Galactica, Kyle XY, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Stargate SG-1, The Chronicles of Riddick, Jeremiah, Dark Angel, The Chronicle, Atomic Train, Poltergeist: The Legacy, The X-Files, Highlander: The Final Dimension, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven)
Orla Brady b. 1961 (Doctor Who, Fringe, Sinbad [2012], The Deep, The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns)
Chris Barrie b. 1960 (Red Dwarf, Lara Croft)
Stephen Ure b. 1958 (The Hobbit, Legend of the Seeker, Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lord of the Rings, Xena, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys)
Reba McEntire b. 1955 (Tremors)
Jason Robards III b. 1949 (They Live)
Dianne Wiest b. 1948 (Category 6: Day of Destruction, The 10th Kingdom, Practical Magic, Edward Scissorhands, The Lost Boys, The Purple Rose of Cairo)
Conchata Ferrell b. 1943 (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, K-PAX, Buffy, Edward Scissorhands, Faerie Tale Theatre)
Mike Newell b. 1942 (director, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)
Jeff Burton b. 1924 died 18 January 1988 (Bewitched, Batman, Planet of the Apes)
Frank Lovejoy b. 1912 died 2 October 1962 (House of Wax)
Charles Starrett b. 1903 died 22 March 1986 (The Mask of Fu Manchu)

Notes on the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. The previous Picture Slotter was Chris Barrie from Red Dwarf. This year, the competition was between Reba McEntire is her first role in Tremors and the winner Nick Frost, pictured here with Simon Pegg from Shaun of the Dead, which still gets my vote for funniest zombie movie.

2. Spot the Canadians. Darcy Laurie has a typical Canadian resume, and sure enough he is. Jenna Berman is also Canadian, but it's not quite as obvious.

3. The Guy at the Door. As will happen from time to time, the deceased are all at the bottom of the list and the oldest person alive gets the title of The Guy at the Door. Today it's director Mike Newell, who is only in his early seventies. Here's hoping Mr. Newell lives long and prospers.

4. Nepotism FTW. Not sure if it's exactly a "win", but Jason Robards III had a brief career in movies.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list, especially Mike Newell, and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Movie released 
G.I. Joe: Retaliation released, 2013
  

Predictor: Walter Wellman (1858-1934), journalist and explorer, predicting the world of the 20th Century in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition in 1893

Prediction: The speeds of trains will climb to 80 to 100 miles per hour, and within 10 years, some electrical railways will achieve 150 miles per hour in ease and comfort. Railways in the western hemisphere will stretch from Alaska to Patagonia.

Man will be able to extract magnetism from the earth and convert it into electricity.

Heavier than air navigation will be solved in the next century.

The greatest advance will be elevated electric trains over the main thoroughfares of the great cities, at once beautiful and practical, keeping the rain and snow off the pedestrians below and keeping the street from being covered in mud.

Reality: Wellman scores a lot of points here, not just for the uncomfortable clothes, magnificent mustache and the pince nez. Predicting airplanes in 1893 is very bold indeed. So is extracting magnetism from the earth, one of those sources of energy we aren't even close to tapping. The major thing he misses in his prediction is the automobile, which is a less bold prediction than the airplane, since Benz had a patent in Germany in 1886. He loses points for the 150 mph electrical railway by 1903 and tapping the magnetic field of the earth, but still, a solid performance.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Let's see what Robert A. Heinlein has to say about the second half of the 20th Century, shall we?

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

21 March 2015

Birthdays
Scott Eastwood b. 1986 (Texas Chainsaw 3D)
Sonequa Martin-Green b. 1985 (The Walking Dead, Once Upon a Time)
Honorine Bell b. 1981 (A Guy, A Girl, A Space Helmet, The Thirst: Blood War, )
Sam Troughton b. 1977 (AVP: Alien vs. Predator)
Joseph Mawle b. 1974 (Sense8, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, The Awakening, Game of Thrones, Merlin[2009])
Laura Allen b. 1974 (Clown, Ravenswood, Awake, From Within, The 4400)
Vanessa Branch b. 1973 (Pirates of the Caribbean, Lost, The Invisible Man [TV], Star Trek: Voyager, The Cell)
Jaye Davidson b. 1968 (Stargate)
Karyn Kusama b. 1968 (director, Jennifer’s Body, Aeon Flux)
Greg Ellis b. 1968 (The Hobbit, Touch, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Trek [2009], Knight Rider [2008], Beowulf, Megiddo: The Omega Code 2, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Brimstone, The X-Files)
Lara Lamberti b. 1967 (Aenigma, Red Sonja)
Phillip Troy Linger b. 1964 (The Hunger Games)
Matthew Broderick b. 1962 (The Stepford Wives [2004], Inspector Gadget, Godzilla [1998], Project X, Faerie Tale Theatre, WarGames, Ladyhawke)
Kathryn Greenwood b. 1962 (Wonderfalls, Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy, RoboCop [TV], Maniac Mansion)
Kassie Wesley DePaiva b. 1961 (Time Trax, Evil Dead II)
Sabrina Le Beauf b. 1958 (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Gary Oldman b. 1958 (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, RoboCop, The Dark Knight Rises, Harry Potter, The Dark Knight, Batman Begins, Lost in Space [movie], The Fifth Element, Dracula)
Timothy Dalton b. 1944 (Penny Dreadful, Doctor Who, Hercules [2005 TV], Tales from the Crypt, Flash Gordon)
Lorene Yarnell Jansson b. 1944 died 29 July 2010 (Spaceballs, Wonder Woman)
Alex Courtney b. 1940 (Programmed to Kill, The Bionic Woman)
Kathleen Widdoes b. 1939 (The Invaders, Way Out)
Roger Hammond b. 1936 died 8 November 2012 (Bedazzled [2000], A Christmas Carol [1999], Ghostbusters of East Finchley, Morons from Outer Space, Doctor Who, Queen Kong)
Al Williamson b. 1931 died 12 June 2010 (illustrator, Flash Gordon)
James Coco b. 1930 died 25 February 1987 (The Stepford Children, Twilight Zone [1985], The Ray Bradbury Theatre, Alice in Wonderland [1983])
Cliff Norton b. 1918 died 25 January 2003 (Tabitha, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Mr. Terrific, It’s About Time, The Munsters, My Favorite Martian, My Living Doll)
Peter Bull b. 1912 died 20 May 1984 (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland [1972], The 3 Worlds of Gulliver, A Christmas Carol [1951], The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus [1947])
Gustav Frohlich b. 1902 died 22 December 1987 (Metropolis)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. In previous years, the Picture Slot went to Joseph Mawle as Benjen Stark from Game of Thrones and Gary Oldman from Harry Potter. Even with these two removed, there are plenty of good choices for iconic, including Timothy Dalton from Flash Gordon, Matthew Broderick from WarGames, Jaye Davidson from Stargate, or an illustration by the late great Al Williamson. But I decided on the late Lorene Yarnell, the woman who was inside the Dot Matrix robot in Spaceballs. I was not aware she was dead.

2. Spot the Canadian! If you know your 20th Century Canadian genre productions, today's solo Canuck should not be tough to find.

3. Nepotism FTW. Scott Eastwood started his career using his mother's name Reeves, but he's pretty much got his dad's face. He's Clint Eastwood's son.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Movie released
Divergent released, 2014  
 

Predictor: Hempstead Washburne 1852-1918, mayor of Chicago, asked to predict the world of 1993 in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition

Prediction: The political condition of the United States in 1993 will be very similar to that of the present. Railroads and telegraphs will be under public control. We will still be on the gold standard. Corporations will tend towards more perfect centralization, until the monopolies become so obnoxious that they will be regulated by federal and local statutes. The accumulation of wealth will continue, but laws will be enacted to regulate the amount of wealth that can be inherited. The laboring classes shall organize and become a large part of the middle class. It is not improbable that women will obtain the franchise in many states.

Reality: Washburne starts by saying it's business as usual, then proceeds to predict a much more liberal form of government than the one that was in place in 1893, with women's suffrage, successful labor unions, trust busting government and taxes that discourage a permanent class of inherited wealth. It is interesting to note that besides the gold standard and women's suffrage, Washburne's topics are still a big part of the liberal-conservative debate even 122 years later.

As for facial hair, it's a bold mustache, but the rest is pretty tame. He kind of looks like the actor Bruce McGill, doesn't he?

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

I'm not keen on repeating myself this year on choices for the Picture Slot, but tomorrow looks like one of those days.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

14 March 2015

 Birthdays
Ansel Elgort b. 1994 (Allegiant, Insurgent, Divergent, Carrie)
Demetrius Joyette b. 1993 (Carrie [2013], Wonderfalls)
Jamie Bell b. 1986 (The Fantastic Four [2015], Jumper, Snowpiercer, Jumper, King Kong [2005])
Mercedes McNab b. 1980 (Supernatural, Angel, Buffy, Escape from Atlantis, The Fantastic Four [1994], The Addams Family, Harry and the Hendersons [TV])
Chris Klein b. 1979 (Rollerball [2002])
Daniel Gillies b. 1976 (The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, True Blood, Spider-Man 2, Jeremiah, Cleopatra 2525, Young Hercules)
Corey Stoll b. 1976 (Ant-Man, The Strain, Charmed)
Ernesto Cantu b. 1975 (Extinction, World War Z)
Grace Park b. 1974 (Battlestar Galactica, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Andromeda, Jake 2.0, Stargate SG-1, Dark Angel, The Immortal)
Veronica Gray b. 1974 (La Femme Vampir, Batman & Robin)
Meredith Salenger b. 1970 (Race to Witch Mountain, My Apocalypse, Werewolf in a Women’s Prison, Lake Placid, Buffy, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Village of the Damned [1995], Tales from the Crypt, )
James Frain b. 1968 (Agent Carter, Intruders [2014], Sleepy Hollow, Grimm, Tron Legacy, True Blood, FlashForward, Dark Relic, Fringe, Invasion, Threshold, Tales from the Crypt, Loch Ness)
Kevin Williamson b. 1965 (writer, The Vampire Diaries, The Faculty)
Kiana Tom b. 1965 (Universal Soldier: The Return, Cyber Bandits)
Laila Robbins b. 1959 (Witchblade)
Season Hubley b. 1951 (Humanoids From the Deep, The Twilight Zone [1985], Escape form New York)
Billy Crystal b. 1948 (Which Witch?, Tooth Fairy, The Princess Bride, Faerie Tale Theatre)
Steve Kanaly b. 1946 (Scorpio One, Twilight Zone [1989], Time Express, The Bionic Woman, The Terminal Man)
Tim Rossovich b. 1946 (Harry and the Hendersons [TV], ALF, Knight Rider, Automan, Voyagers!, Looker, Wonder Woman)
Anita Morris b. 1943 died 2 March 1994 (Eerie, Indiana, Tales from the Crypt, Martians Go Home)
Wolfgang Petersen b. 1941 (director, The Neverending Story, Enemy Mine, Outbreak)
Raymond J. Barry b. 1939 (The 100, LA Apocalypse, Lost, The X Files, Flubber [1997], Tales from the Crypt)
Eugene Cernan b. 1934 (astronaut)
Michael Caine b. 1933 (The Last Witch Hunter, Interstellar, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, Inception, Children of Men, The Prestige, Bewitched [2005], 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea [1997], The Muppet Christmas Carol, Jekyll & Hyde [TV], The Hand, The Swarm, The Magus)
Skip Young b. 1930 died 17 March 1993 (Lobster Man from Mars, Earth vs the Spider)
Arch Johnson b. 1922 died 9 October 1997 (Wonder Woman, The Invisible Man [1975], Bewitched, Land of the Giants, The Invaders, The Munsters, Twilight Zone)
Dennis Patrick b. 1918 died 13 October 2002 (Twilight Zone [1987], The Incredible Hulk, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Dark Shadows, Lost in Space, The Time Travelers)
Albert Einstein b. 1979 died 18 April 1955 (physicist)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. In previous years, the Picture Slot went to astronaut Eugene Cernan and Mercedes McNab from Buffy and Angel. The contenders this year were Albert Einstein, Michael Caine, Billy Crystal and the winner, Grace Park from Battlestar Galactica.

Wait, the fabulous babe won? That's just weird, I tell ya. 

2. Spot the Canadians! Besides being a fabulous babe, Grace Park was raised in Canada, though not born there. True natives on the list are Daniel Gillies, Mercedes McNab and Demetrius Joyette.

3. Hey... no Star Trek! Yet again, we have a day without any Star Trek actors. Just one of those things

4. MST3K. Skip young was in Earth vs the Spider.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories. 
 

Predictor: Octavus Cohen (1860-1927), music and drama critic.

Prediction: Shakespeare will still be in vogue, but the popular concoctions of today will be forgotten. Regional theater will be strong and the two great cities for drama will be San Francisco and Chicago. Few performers will have incomes commensurate with Sarah Bernhardt or Adelina Patti. America will produce composers the equal of Beethoven and dramatists equal to Sheridan and Goldsmith, though no equal to Shakespeare shall ever live.

Reasonably well-to-do men will have telephotes in their home and be able to watch performances from anywhere in the city live in the comfort of his own home. Refreshments at the theatre will be dispensed by machines.

Reality: Okay, here's a guy going out on a limb. His "telephote" is our television, so he gets full points there. Machines for refreshment, another good call.

As for the first paragraph, he's right about Shakespeare still being at the top of the heap, and as for late 19th Century entertainment other than Gilbert and Sullivan, almost all the rest is lost. New York outshines Chicago still and the desert city of Los Angeles is more important than San Francisco. (I should probably refrain from cracks about "desert cities". We in Oakland are probably about two years away from being a desert city ourselves.) We have loads of entertainers making Sarah Bernhardt money or better. I don't think any 20th Century classical composer stands equal to Beethoven in the public consciousness, but we do have playwrights much better known than Sheridan and Goldsmith.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

More of Heinlein's guesses about 1970 and 2000 from his vantage point in the late 1950s.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

7 March 2015

Birthdays
Justin Kelly b. 1992 (Lost Girl, Warehouse 13)
Mike Lobel b. 1984 (Suck, Zixx Level One)
Raquel Alessi b. 1983 (Ghost Rider)
Aaron Diaz b. 1982 (Dinoshark)
Audrey Marie Anderson b. 1975 (Arrow, The Walking Dead, Touch)
Karim Saleh b. 1978 (Iron Man 2, Highlander [TV], Deadly Nightmares)
Luke de Woolfson b. 1976 (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Tobias Menzies b. 1974 (Outlander [2014], Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, The Deep [TV], Fairy Tales [2008])
Jolie Jenkins b. 1974 (The X-Files, Psycho Beach Party)
Larry Bagby b. 1974 (Age of the Dragons, Buffy, Invasion Earth: The Aliens are Here)
Jenna Fischer b. 1974 (Apocalypse Slough, Slither [2006])
Peter Sarsgaard b. 1971 (Green Lantern)
Josh Stolberg b. 1971 (writer, Piranha 3D, Piranha 3DD, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show)
Matthew Vaughn b. 1971 (director, X-Men: First Class, Kick-Ass, Stardust)
Rachel Weisz b. 1970 (Oz the Great and Powerful, The Mummy, Chain Reaction, Death Machine)
Jonathan Del Arco b. 1966 (Dollhouse, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Wanda Sikes b. 1964 (My Super Ex-Girlfriend)
Donna Murphy b. 1959 (Resurrection, Spider-Man 2, The Astronaut’s Wife, Star Trek: Insurrection)
Nick Searcy b. 1959 (From the Earth to the Moon, American Gothic, Seven Days, Early Edition, Roswell [TV movie], Black Magic)
Rik Mayall b. 1958 died 9 June 2014 (Errors of the Human Body, Merlin: The Return, Drop Dead Fred, Whoops Apocalypse, Shock Treatment, An American Werewolf in London)
Bryan Cranston b. 1956 (Godzilla [2014], Total Recall [2012], John Carter, Contagion, Fallen, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, The X-Files, From the Earth to the Moon, Babylon 5, The Flash, The Return of the Six-Million Dollar Man and the Bionic Woman)
Donna Loren b. 1947 (Batman)
John Heard b. 1945 (Sharknado, Locusts, Battlestar Galactica, Big, C.H.U.D., Cat People)
Elizabeth Moon b. 1945 (won 2004 Nebula for The Speed of Dark)
Daniel J. Travanti b. 1940 (Poltergeist: The Legacy, The Wasp Woman [TV], Millennium [1989], Lost in Space, Captain Nice)
Gray Morrow b. 1934 died 6 November 2001 (illustrator)
James Broderick b. 1927 died 1 November 1982 (Twilight Zone)
Alan Sues b. 1926 died 1 December 2011 (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Time Express, Twilight Zone)
Eleanor Summerfield b. 1921 died 13 July 2001 (Hammer House of Horror, The Watcher in the Woods, UFO, A Christmas Carol [1951])

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. We have several actors who are TV stars, notably Daniel J. Travanti and Bryan Cranston, but I am hard pressed to say they have that iconic role in a genre production. In previous years, the Picture Slot was given to Donna Murphy from Star Trek: Insurrection and Rachel Weisz from Oz the Great and Powerful. This year, because I'm itching for more Game of Thrones, it's Tobias Menzies as Catelyn Stark's younger brother Edmure Tully. As a fan of the HBO show Rome, I always liked seeing actors from that show on Game of Thrones, but I have to say Menzies, Ciaran Hinds and Indira Varma had better roles on the earlier series. 

2. The hard to spot Canadians. Our youngest birthday boys, Justin Kelly and Mike Lobel, are both Canadians, but they did more work on the DeGrassi side of Canadian show business.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
 

Predictor: Shelby M. Cullom (1829-1914), Illinois politician

Prediction: In my judgment, government ownership of the railways and telegraphs would be the most serious blunder this country could make.

Reality: In the United States, we have some nationalization of the railroads with Amtrak, but the telegraphs stayed privately held and even the telephone system which overtook the telegraph in usefulness was held in private hands. In the 1890s, it was hard to see how the railroads' power would ever be usurped, but cars and trucks have done that for the most part and they have done it on a publicly owned highway system.
 

Never to be Forgotten: Lynn Borden 1939-2015 Lynn Borden, an attractive blonde who had her heyday in the 1960s and 1970s, has died at the age of 77 after a long illness. A runner-up in 1957 in the Miss America pageant, she was a regular on the sitcom Hazel for one season and had roles in Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice and Dirty Mary Crazy Larry. She is remembered here for her one role in a genre production in the 1972 movie Frogs, starring Ray Milland and Sam Elliott. I debated whether Ms. Borden's one role in a movie I never say merited inclusion, but looking it up online, her character was eaten by a snapping turtle. How can we possibly forget that?

Eagle eyed reader Ken Houghton also notes she was in The Fantastic Journey, which has a kraken and everything. Clearly, she belongs here.

Best wishes to the family and friends of Lynn Borden. She is never to be forgotten.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

It's our pal Heinlein's turn again to gaze into his crystal ball.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

 

28 February 2015

Birthdays (28 February)
Quinn Shephard b. 1995 (Believe, From Other Worlds)
Sarah Bolger b. 1991 (Once Upon a Time, The Lazarus Effect, The Spiderwick Chronicles)
Georgina Leonidas b. 1990 (Harry Potter, Wizards vs. Aliens)
Alex Arsenault b. 1985 (Caprica, Supernatural, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil)
Karolina Kurkova b. 1984 (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra)
Natalia Vodianova b. 1982 (Clash of the Titans)
Lena Carwell b. 1982 (Jeepers Creepers II, The Nightmare Room, Power Rangers Wild Force)
Ali Larter b. 1976 (Heroes, Resident Evil, Final Destination I and II, House on Haunted Hill [1999])
Amanda Abbington b. 1974 (Being Human)
Rory Cochrane b. 1972 (Oculus, A Scanner Darkly)
Lemony Snicket b. 1970 (author, Lemony Snicket’s Series of Unfortunate Events)
Robert Sean Leonard b. 1969 (Falling Skies, My Friend Is a Vampire, The Manhattan Project)
Cecelia Specht b. 1967 (No Ordinary Family, Star Trek: Enterprise)
Rae Dawn Chong b. 1961 (Pegasus vs. Chimera, Deadly Skies, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Highland [TV], Time Runner, Deadly Nightmares, Tales from the Darkside: The Movie, Quest for Fire)
Mark Ferguson b. 1961 (Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings, Xena, Hercules, Cleopatra 2525)
Dorothy Stratten b. 1960 died 14 August 1980 (Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Galaxina, Americathon)
John Turturro b. 1957 (Transformers)
Gilbert Gottfried b. 1955 (Jack and the Beanstalk [2010], Funky Monkey, Superboy)
Bernadette Peters b. 1948 (Cinderella [1997 TV], The Odyssey, Into the Woods [1991 TV], Faerie Tale Theatre, Heartbeeps, The Martian Chronicles)
Mercedes Ruehl b. 1948 (Last Action Hero, Big)
Bubba Smith b. 1945 died 3 August 2011 (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Escape from DS-3, Wonder Woman)
Gil Peterson b. 1936 (The Brain Machine)
Don Francks b. 1932 (Hemlock Grove, Puppets Who Kill, Zixx Level One, Earth: Final Conflict, Relic Hunter, Johnny Mnemonic, Eerie, Indiana: The Other Dimension, The Hidden Room, 984: Prisoner of the Future, Rock and Rule, The Star Wars Holiday Special. Mr. Scrooge)
Gavin MacLeod b. 1931 (Time Changer, Wonder Woman, My Favorite Martian, The Munsters, Men Into Space, World of Giants)
Walter Tevis b. 1928 died 8 August 1984 (author, The Man Who Fell to Earth)
Tom Aldredge b. 1928 died 22 July 2011 (The American Astronaut, *batteries not included, Into the Woods [1991 TV], The Mouse on the Moon)
John Carson b. 1927 (Doomsday, Doctor Who, 1990, Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter, Taste the Blood of Dracula, The Plague of the Zombies, Blood Beast from Outer Space)
Harry H. Corbett b. 1925 died 21 March 1982 (Jabberwocky)
Jean Carson b. 1923 died 2 November 2005 (Twilight Zone, I Married a Monster from Outer Space)
Charles Durning b. 1922 died 24 December 2012 (Fatal Sky, Solarbabies, Amazing Stories, The Fury, Twilight’s Last Gleaming)
Alfred Burke b. 1918 died 16 February 2011 (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Blood Beast from Outer Space, Children of the Damned)
Billie Bird b. 1908 died 27 November 2002 (Werewolf, The Charmings, Max Headroom, Starman [TV])
Sir John Tenniel b. 1820 died 1914 (illustrator, Alice in Wonderland)

Birthdays (29 February)
Peter Scanavino b. 1980 (The Leftovers)
Antonio Sabato Jr. b. 1972 (Charmed, Lois & Clark, Earth 2)
Eamonn Roche b. 1968 (The Event, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Babylon 5, The Mask)
Dallas Barnett b. 1964 (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug)
Ken Foree b. 1948 (Zone of the Dead, Halloween [2007], Dawn of the Dead [2004 and 1978], The Nightmare Room, The X-Files, Babylon 5, M.A.N.T.I.S., The Flash, Quantum leap, Beauty and the Beast [1989], From Beyond, Knight Rider)
Harvey Jason b. 1940 (The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Alien Nation [TV], Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Wizard, Knight Rider, Wonder Woman, Man From Atlantis, Genesis II, Necromancy)
Alex Rocco b. 1936 (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Small & Frye, The Entity, Slither, Batman)
Joss Ackland b. 1928 (Pinocchio [2010 TV], A Kid in King Arthur’s Court, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, One of Our Dinosaurs is Missing, The Little Prince)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. In previous years, I used an illustration by Sir John Tenniel in the Picture Slot - certainly iconic, and a still from Transformers with John Turturro, not so iconic. This year I go with Ali Larter from Heroes, arguably the most iconic person on the list other than Tenniel, and unarguably a fabulous babe. Funny how often that works out.

2. Leap day babies. Let me address the elephant in the room. Hello. Mr. Elephant, how are you? For me, the short resource in keeping this blog alive is predictions with dates assigned to them. I'm going to do everything I can to keep going until at least the end of 2015, but I can't be sure about stretching it into 2016, which is a leap year. Given that situation, I decided to list the folks born on leap day since I might not get the chance 366 days from now.

3. The Canadians and Nepotism. Looking at resumes, you might be able to suss out that Alex Arsenault and Don Franks were born in Canada. Poor Dorothy Stratten was killed before the Canadian sci-fi boom began. For me, the surprise was Rae Dawn Chong is Canadian, as well as being the daughter of Tommy Chong, who was also born in Canada.  I did not know their places of birth until this morning.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.


 

Predictor: William Jennings Bryan (1860-1925), Democratic politician and Secretary of State under Woodrow Wilson, predicting the future of the United States in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition in Chicago.

Prediction: The government may grow larger in scope, but it will grow more simple in purpose. Changed conditions will compel the government to guard the weak from the aggressions of the strong.

Much of the increasing inequality in wealth is due to laws absolutely unjust and to the absence of necessary restraining laws. We may not be able to destroy the natural disparity between men, but we must avoid exaggerating it by legislation.

General education among the masses and improved facilities for spreading information have prepared the people for more complete participation in the work of self-government. We have outgrown the present method of electing senators by legislatures.

Reality: Okay. Wow.

The Bryan we know today is best characterized by his Cross of Gold speech when he ran for president in 1896. (He was 36! The Constitution says he has to be at least 35, so he was definitely in a big damned hurry.) We also have his late in life defense of the state in the Scopes Monkey Trial, not his finest hour. But the "simpler government" line is often the preamble to libertarian principles that translate to Fuck the Poor, and he's 180 degrees away from that. For a while, the government did what it could to stem the tide of inequality with progressive taxation, but that's been taking a beating for a couple generations now. And he's completely on the money about direct election of senators. Good on ya, Mr. Bryan.

Never to be Forgotten: Maurice Hurley 1939-2015 The big news in Star Trek obits is of course Leonard Nimoy, but earlier this week writer and producer Maurice Hurley of the Next Generation era passed away. He is given credit for several story lines, including re-introducing the Romulans and having the general idea of an unbeatable foe which became the Borg. Moreover, he added the personal touches of Riker playing the trombone, Picard's favorite holodeck program being the private detective Dixon Hill and the introduction of Data's "brother" Lore. He is also given the blame for Gates McFadden leaving the show and her return when he left the show himself in season three.

Best wishes to the family and friends of Maurice Hurley, from a fan. He is never to be forgotten.


Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

More guesses from Heinlein about what gadgets will be made in the future, which for him is 1970 or 2000.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

21 February 2015

Birthdays
Sophie Turner b. 1996 (X-Men: Apocalypse, Mary Shelley’s Monster, Game of Thrones)
Corbin Bleu b. 1989 (Galaxy Quest, Mystery Men)
Scout Taylor-Compton b. 1989 (Halloween I & II [2007 & 2009], Charmed)
Ashley Greene b. 1987 (Twilight Saga, Radio Free Albemuth)
Ellen Page b. 1987 (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Inception, X-Men: The Last Stand, ReGenesis)
Burgess Abernethy b. 1987 (H2O: Just Add Water, BeastMaster)
Tuppence Middleton b. 198 7 (Jupiter Ascending, Sense8, Sinbad [TV])
Jennifer Love Hewitt b. 1979 (A Christmas Carol: A Musical, Munchie)
Travis Schiffner b. 1976 (Jeepers Creepers II)
Christopher Yost b. 1973 (writer, Thor: The Dark World, Max Steel)
William Baldwin b. 1963 (Virus, Flatliners)
Christopher Atkins b. 1961 (Dark Realm, Dracula Rising)
Kim Coates b. 1958 (Mutant World, Robosapien: Rebooted, Resident Evil: Afterlife, Smallville, The Dresden Files, Skinwalkers, Thoughtcrimes, Earth: Final Conflict, Battlefield Earth, NightMan, Total Recall 2070, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Waterworld, RoboCop [TV], Innocent Blood, Dracula: the Series, Red Blooded American Girl, War of the Worlds [TV])
Kelsey Grammer b. 1955 (Transformers: Age of Extinction, X-Men, A Christmas Carol: The Musical, Star Trek: The Next Generation)
William Petersen b. 1953 (Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, Twilight Zone [1986])
Christine Ebersole b. 1953 (American Horror Story, My Favorite Martian [1999], Ghost Dad, Mac and Me)
Mimi Kuzyk b. 1952 (The Day After Tomorrow, The Time Shifters, Total Recall 2070, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Seaquest 2032, The Ray Bradbury Theatre, Quantum Leap)
Larry Drake b. 1950 (Gryphon, Firefly, Stargate SG-1, Timequest, Star Trek: Voyager, Prey, Darkman I and II)
Frank Brunner b. 1949 (illustrator)
Anthony Daniels b. 1946 (Star Wars, I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle)
Alan Rickman b. 1946 (Harry Potter, Galaxy Quest, Alice in Wonderland [2010], The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Dogma, Truly Madly Deeply)
Kitty Winn b. 1944 (The Exorcist I and II)
Richard Beymer b. 1939 (The X-Files, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
Gary Lockwood b. 1937 (2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Trek, Dark Skies, Superboy, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Earth II, The Magic Sword)
Rue McClanahan b. 1934 died 3 June 2010 (Wonderfalls, Starship Troopers, The Wickedest Witch, Small & Frye, Topper [TV movie])
George Mitchell b. 1905 died 18 January 1972 (The Andromeda Strain, Land of the Giants, The Time Tunnel, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Twilight Zone, Invasion of the Animal People)
Celia Lovsky b. 1897 died 12 October 1979 (Soylent Green, Star Trek, Twilight Zone)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. This is a very good birthday list. I didn't know about that careers of everyone listed here before I did my morning research, but I did know a heck of a lot of them. Previous Picture Slotters are Celia Lovsky as T'Pau and Alan Rickman as Snape, though I might have used Rickman as Alexander Dane instead and it would still be iconic. That still leaves a bunch of great choices, including Gary Lockwood from 2001: A Space Odyssey, Ellen Page from X-Men and of course Anthony Daniels as C-3P0. I'm somewhat embarrassed for not choosing Mr. Daniels, but instead we have a picture of Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark because I am jonesing for new Game of Thrones this time of year and I am a huge sucker for tall redheads with high cheekbones.

Sue me. (Seriously, if Mr. Daniels wants to sue, I'm willing to come to a settlement.)

2. The Canadians amongst us. You might have been able to guess Kim Coates, a scary looking Oh That Guy, was Canadian, but there's a lot of work in movies and not all of them produced in Canada. The other two Canucks are much harder to spot. Mimi Kuzyk is mainly a TV actress and got her first big break on Hill Street Blues, though some might say her first big break was getting out of the frozen hellhole known as Winnipeg. Ellen Page is a movie star and good on her, so she's not waiting around for a guest shot on Supernatural.

3. Nepotism... not so much. Tuppence Middleton. Strange first name, oddly familiar last name. She is British, but not related to Kate Middleton. Corbin Bleu is a working actor, as is his dad David Reivers. I would venture to say he is not trading off his father's fame because his father isn't a household name.

4. The Guy at the Door and MST3K. Regular readers will know I feel a little awkward pointing it out when a list has an age cut-off between the living and the dead, but it just means that no one died particularly young or no one alive is remarkably old. Today, it means Gary Lockwood is The Guy at the Door, the oldest living person on this somewhat random list of artists and everyone younger than him is still with us. I feel bad when the person who has this designation is iconic and I don't use them, but yet again, let me point out a tall redhead with high cheekbones as my defense. Mr. Lockwood was also in The Magic Sword, which means we get to use the MST3K label today.

Many happy returns to all the living, most notably Gary Lockwood, on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
 

Predictor: Ignatius Donnelly (1831-1901), politician and author, making predictions about 1993 in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition in Chicago.

Prediction: It is very evident that the time is not far distant when the people will repossess themselves of the iron highways... If the state is justified in taking charge of the mails, it is equally justified in taking change of the this aerial communication carried on the wings of the lightning... Gold and silver will be overthrown by an international paper money which all the wealth of the world would back up and sustain legal tender among all nations. This paper money would be increased in precise ratio to the increase in population or wealth of the world. 

Reality: We have already been introduced to Mr. Donnelly through his novel Caesar's Column, a racist rip-off of Edward Bellamy's big speculative hit Looking Backward: 2000-1888. In that, Donnelly advances the picture of a future ruined by rich Jews and a revolution just as bad because Jews run that, too.

I just gleaned the predictions from Donnelly's very long four pages of puffery. Honestly, this guy takes five minutes to clear his throat. He is wrong about the government takeover of the railroads and telegraphs. They were allowed to grow, but they have been overtaken and their monopolies brought down to earth by other technologies that would have been very hard to guess in 1893. As for going off the gold and silver standards, he gets that right, but we don't truly have a single international money system just yet. As for his "increase by precise ratio", is it tied to wealth or population? This reminds me John Von Neumann's great quote "There is no point in being precise when you don't know what you are talking about."

Looking one day ahead...  INTO THE FUTURE!

Another futuristic guess from our pal Robert A. Heinlein.


Join us then...  IN THE FUTURE!

14 February 2015

Birthdays
Allie Grant b. 1994 (Zombie Basement)
Shane Harper b. 1993 (Wizards of Waverly Place, Re-Animated)
Freddie Highmore b. 1992 (Astro Boy, The Spiderwick Chronicles, The Golden Compass, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story, The Mists of Avalon)
Brett Dier b. 1990 (Mighty Mighty Monsters, Mega Cyclone, V, Supernatural, Goblin, Meteor Storm, Phantom Racer, Smallville)
Cody Deal b. 1986 (Almighty Thor)
Stephanie Leonidas b. 1984 (Defiance, Atlantis: End of the World, Birth of a Legend, Dracula [2006], MirrorMask)
Matt Barr b. 1984 (Sleepy Hollow [2015], The Big Bang Theory)
Sebastian Pigott b. 1983 (Darknet, Pacific Rim, Haven)
Erica Leerhsen b. 1976 (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre [2003], Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2)
Mark Lutz b. 1970 (Angel, Mutant X, Earth: Final Conflict, Specimen)
Simon Pegg b. 1970 (The World’s End, Star Trek, Paul, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Land of the Dead, Doctor Who, Shaun of the Dead, Dr. Terrible’s House of Horrible)
Zach Galligan b. 1964 (Nightbeasts, Infested, Star Trek: Voyager, Warlock: The Armageddon, Tales from the Crypt, Waxwork I & II, Deadly Nightmares, Gremlins)
Enrico Colantoni b. 1963 (Warehouse 13, Contagion, Stargate SG-1, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Galaxy Quest)
Meg Tilly b. 1960 (Caprica, Body Snatchers, Nightmare Classics)
Matthias Hues (Immortally Yours, Legion of the Dead, Power Rangers Lost Galaxy, Conan, Bloodsuckers, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Dark Angel [1990 Movie])
James Eckhouse b. 1955 (Futurestates, Marvel’s The Avengers, Jericho, Big)
Anton Lesser b. 1952 (Game of Thrones, Atlantis, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Primeval, Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story, Invasion: Earth, Guinevere)
Frank Collison b. 1950 (Runestone, Radio Free Albemuth, Ghosts/Aliens, The Happening, Stargate: Atlantis, Invasion, Carnivale, The Village, K-PAX, Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Lawnmower Man, Quantum Leap, Alien Nation, The Blob [1988])
Gregory Hines b. 1946 died 9 August 2003 (Eve of Destruction, Amazing Stories, Faerie Tale Theatre, Wolfen)
Alan Parker b. 1944 (director, Angel Heart)
Andrew Robinson b. 1942 (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The X Files, M.A.N.T.I.S., The Puppet Masters, Child’s Play 3, The Twilight Zone [1986], Hellraiser, The Greatest American Hero, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Incredible Hulk, Kolchak: The Night Stalker)
Andrew Prine b. 1936 (The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes, Weird Science [TV], Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Freddy’s Nightmares, V, Amityville II: The Possession, The Evil, The Bionic Woman, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Nightmare Circus, Wonder Woman, Hanna, Queen of the Vampires, Simon, King of the Witches, The Invaders )
Florence Henderson b. 1934 (Out of This World, Free Spirit)
Jonathan Adams b. 1931 died 13 June 2005 (Star Cops, 1990, The Invisible Man, The Rocky Horror Picture Show)
Vic Morrow b. 1929 died 23 July 1982 (Twilight Zone: The Movie, 1990: The Bronx Warriors, Humanoids from the Deep, Message from Space, The Immortal)
Edward Platt b. 1916 died 19 March 1974 (Bewitched, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Outer Limits, Atlantis, the Lost Continent, Twilight Zone)
Ray Corrigan b. 1902 died 10 August 1976 (It! The Terror from Beyond Space, Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla, The Monster and the Ape, The Monster Maker, Undersea Kingdom, Flash Gordon, Night Life of the Gods, The Phantom Empire)

Notes on the birthday list.
The Picture Slot. In previous years, there were pictures of Andrew Robinson from Deep Space Nine and Simon Pegg from Shaun of the Dead. If I wanted to skew toward the youth market, Freddie Highmore has starred in a lot movies, including the title role in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. There are other valid choices as well, but Enrico Colantoni from Galaxy Quest gets the nod because I still love that movie.

The Canadians. Colantoni is Canadian, though he usually works in Hollywood. We also have Brett Dier, Sebastian Pigott and Mark Lutz, of whom only Dier has the typically Canadian credit list.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Movie released 
Daredevil released, 2003

Predictor: David Swing (1830-1894), Chicago professor and preacher, predicting 1993 in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition.

Predictions: By 1993, Canada and Mexico will be in the greater American republic... the American President will have only one term of six or eight years and at the close of the next century, some rare and noble woman will have been elected president... Railways will travel at 130 miles an hour... Workers will become shareholders and will not strike, since they would be fighting against their own interests... balloons will travel from city to city along wires strung about 100 feet off the ground.


Reality: Swing wasn't shy, that's for sure. Except for predicting much faster railroad trains, nothing he predicted has happened. The next closest thing to a correct answer is the idea of much more air travel, though he gets the technology completely wrong. It would have been hard for a sane man to guess what aircraft would look like in the 20th Century.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Robert A. Heinlein returns with another prediction from The Door Into Summer.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
  

7 February 2015

Birthdays
Jerrad Vunovich b. 1994 (Fantastic Four [2015], American Horror Story, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Walking Dead)
Philip Wiegratz b. 1993 (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)
Deborah Ann Woll b. 1985 (Daredevil, True Blood)
Tina Majorino b. 1985 (True Blood, Alice in Wonderland [1999 TV], Waterworld)
Cerina Vincent b. 1979 (The Walking Dead, Zombie Family, Sasquatch Mountain, Power Rangers Lost Galaxy)
Ashton Kutcher b. 1978 (The Butterfly Effect, Dude, Where’s My Car?)
Brent Chalem b. 1975 died 9 December 1997 (Quantum Leap, The Monster Squad, Small Wonder)
Victor Webster b. 1973 (Continuum, Surrogates, Charmed, Mutant X)
Essence Atkins b. 1972 (A Haunted House, Nite Tales: The Series, Sabrina, the Teenage Witch)
Robyn Lively b. 1972 (The X Files, Early Edition, Quantum Leap, Teen Witch, Not Quite Human, Amazing Stories, Starman [TV], Knight Rider)
David Murray b. 1970 (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Batman Begins)
Chris Rock b. 1965 (A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Down to Earth, Dogma)
Jason Gedrick b. 1965 (Grimm, Supernatural, Strange Frequency, Deadly Nightmares, )
Dona Speir b. 1964 (Knight Rider, Automan)
Ash Adams b. 1963 (A Nightmare on Elm Street)
Eddie Izzard b. 1962 (Mockingbird Lane, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, The Shadow of the Vampire, The Day of the Triffids [2009], Mystery Men, Tales from the Crypt)
James Spader b. 1960 (The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Alien Hunter, Supernova, Stargate, Wolf, Mannequin)
Robert Smigel b. 1960 (writer, Hotel Transylvania, Superman 50th Anniversary)
John Posey b. 1956 (Teen Wolf [2014 TV], From the Earth to the Moon, Seven Days, RoboCop 3)
Bhasker Patel b. 1956 (Demon Baby, Doctor Who, Thunderbirds, Arabian Nights, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom)
Emo Phillips b. 1956 (Journey to the Center of the Earth [1998])
Miguel Ferrer b. 1955 (Iron Man 3, Bionic Woman [2007], 3rd Rock from the Sun, Brave New World, Project: ALF, Tales from the Crypt [TV], The Stand, DeepStar Six, RoboCop, Badlands 2005, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)
Michael McGreevey b. 1948 (The Invaders)
Pete Postlethwaite b. 1946 died 2 January 2011 (Inception, Clash of the Titans, Solomon Kane, The Omen [2006], Aeon Flux, Alice in Wonderland [1999], The Lost World: Jurassic Park, James and the Giant Peach, Alien³)
Alejandro Jodorowsky b. 1929 (Jodorowsky’s Dune)
Fiona Hale b. 1921 (Toxin, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Minority Report)
Jock Mahoney b. 1919 died 14 December 1989 (Batman, The Land Unknown)
Buster Crabbe b. 1908 died 23 April 1983 (The Alien Dead, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Flash Gordon)
Sinclair Lewis b. 1885 died 10 January 1951 (author, It Can’t Happen Here)
Charles Dickens b. 1812 died 9 June 1870 (author, A Christmas Carol)

Notes on the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. The only actor who got a Picture Slot before this on February 7th is Buster Crabbe from Flash Gordon. There are several actors here with well known faces in big budget genre movies - Miguel Ferrer, James Spader, Eddie Izzard, Chris Rock, Ashton Kutcher and the late Pete Postlethwaite -I decided to go with Deborah Ann Woll as Jessica on True Blood, for the reasons that this is her best known role - not true of the genre roles for the other actors mentioned - and she's a fabulous babe.

2. A Canadian stands alone. Victor Webster is Canadian, but it isn't competely clear from his credit list.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.


Movie released
The Lego Movie released 2014  

Predictor: Samuel Barton (1827-1895), financier


Prediction: It is my opinion that there is to be a wonderful development of the resources of the state of Florida in the next century. It will not only become a great sanitarium for the invalids of the East, but a rival with the Mediterranean districts for those who seek comfort in Winter travel. Transportation facilities will be so increased that the orange district, especially along the east coast, will practically furnish the United States all the oranges the market requires.

Reality: Sorry I couldn't find a picture of this Samuel Barton. His father was a politician and more famous in his day. His predictions for Florida are so close to exactly right, I only can quibble that California also has a large percentage of the orange market in the U.S.A. His is not the only prediction from the 1893 set that is a capitalist proclaiming his favorite investment will change the world - just a couple weeks ago, a guy was predicting Buffalo would be a huge metropolis - but as far as I can recall, his is the most accurate of that collection. Nice work, Mr. Barton.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

More guesses from Robert A. Heinlein in his 1956 book, The Door Into Summer.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
  

31 January 2015

 Birthdays
Lily Mo Sheen b. 1999 (Underworld: Evolution, Click)
Joel Courtney b. 1996 (Super 8)
Justin Timberlake b. 1981 (In Time, Shrek the Third, Southland Tales)
Bobby Moynihan b. 1978 (The Brass Teapot, The Invention of Lying)
Kerry Washington b. 1977 (Fantastic Four, Wonderfalls)
Kevin Christy b. 1977 (Race to Witch Mountain, Heroes, Knight Rider [2008], Neverland, Seven Days, Buffy, Dude, Where’s My Car?)
Paul Scheer b. 1976 (Piranha 3D)
Anna Silk b. 1974 (Lost Girl, Earth Storm, Anonymous Rex, Puppets Who Kill, Mutant X)
Portia de Rossi b. 1973 (Mockingbird Lane, Cursed)
Patricia Velasquez b. 1971 (Almighty Thor, Mindhunters, The Mummy, Beowulf)
Eric Walker b. 1970 (And You Thought Your Parents Were Weird, The Ewok Adventure)
Minnie Driver b. 1970 (Peter Pan Live!, The Deep [2010], Ella Enchanted, The X Files, Princess Mononoke)
Dexter Fletcher b. 1966 (The Coven [2015], Cockneys vs Zombies, Kick-Ass, Stardust, Doom)
Cindy Ambuehl b. 1965 (Meteor, Charmed, Dark Breed, Weird Science [TV], Strange Luck, Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead)
Grant Morrison b. 1960 (writer, All Star Superman, Batman R.I.P., New X-Men)
Anthony LaPaglia b. 1959 (Tales from the Crypt, The Twilight Zone [1986], Amazing Stories)
Robert Grubb b. 1950 (Salem’s Lot, Mad Max Beyond Thunder dome)
Carol Hawkins b. 1949 (Blakes 7, When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth, The Body Stealers)
Jonathan Banks b. 1947 (Millennium Man, Harvey [1996 TV], SeaQuest 2032, Tales from the Crypt, Highlander [TV], Deep Space Nine, Freejack, Otherworld, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, The Invisible Woman)
Glynn Turman b. 1947 (Revolution, Super 8, FlashForward, Millennium, Freddy’s Nightmares, Gremlins, Manimal, The Twilight Zone [1985], The Greatest American Hero)
Connie Booth b. 1944 (The Tomorrow People, High Spirits, Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
Jessica Walter b. 1941 (Big Bang Theory, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Babylon 5, Vampire, Dr. Strange [1978], Wonder Woman, The Sixth Sense [1972 TV], The Immortal)
Stuart Margolin b. 1940 (Strange Frequency, I Was a Teenage Faust, The Ray Bradbury Theatre, Futureworld, Land of the Giants, Bewitched, Women of the Prehistoric Planet)
Suzanne Pleshette b. 1937 died 19 January 2008 (Spirited Away, The Invaders, The Birds)
James Franciscus b. 1934 died 8 July 1991 (When Time Ran Out…, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Marooned, The Valley of Gwangi, Twilight Zone)
Jean Simmons b. 1929 died 22 January 2010 (Howl’s Moving Castle, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Dark Shadows [1991])
Jean Speegle Howard b. 1927 died 2 September 2000 (Buffy, Meego, Lois & Clark, Homeboys in Outer Space, Apollo 13, Scrooged, Cocoon)
William R. Sylvester b. 1922 died 25 January 1995 (Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, The Six Million Dollar Man, Gemini Man, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Devil Doll, Gorgo)
John Agar b. 1921 died 7 April 2002 (The Naked Monster, The Twilight Zone [1986], King Kong [1976], Zontar: The Thing from Venus, Women of the Prehistoric Planet, Journey to the Seventh Planet, Destination Space, Invisible Invaders, Attack of the Puppet People, Daughter of Dr. Jekyll, The Brain from Planet Arous, The Mole People, Tarantula, Revenge of the Creature, The Rocket Man, The Magic Carpet)
Eddie Byrne b. 1911 died 21 August 1981 (Star Wars: Episode IV, The Mummy [1959], Island of Terror)
Percy Helton b. 1894 died 11 September 1971 (Land of the Giants, Batman [TV], The Green Hornet, Twilight Zone, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Adventures of Superman)

 Notes from the birthday list.
The Picture Spot the Canadian! In previous years, the Picture Slot was handed to Justin Timberlake and Percy Helton, a great Oh That Guy. I thought about having a picture of John Agar, star of many 1950s sci-fi films, but I decided instead to use a publicity still of Anna Silk, star of the Canadian genre show Lost Girl, who happens to be both a fabulous babe and the only native-born Canadian on our list today.

Wait... they're dead? and The Guy at the Door.  The oldest living person on today's list is Stuart Margolin, best known as Angel from The Rockford Files, and everyone younger than him is also alive, which makes him The Guy at the Door. I'm embarrassed to write it, but I hadn't quite processed that any of the next four oldest people on the list - Suzanne Pleshette, James Franciscus, Jean Simmons and Jean Speegle Howard - had died. While the first three were genuine TV and movie stars, Ms. Howard was the mom of Ron Howard and did most of her acting work in small roles after she turned 60. Her husband Rance is still alive.


MST3K. There are a lot of movies that got the Two Robots and a Janitor treatment on today's list, including Women of the Prehistoric Planet, The Mole People and Marooned. There may be others I that don't recall, but Zombie Rotten McDonald stepped up and we add Gorgo, Revenge of the Creature and Devil Doll.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.

Predictor: Junius Henri Browne (1833-1902), journalist, predicting what 1993 will look like in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition in Chicago.

Prediction: Socialism will grow in the United States in a modified form... There will be more equality in education, position and fortune... There will be no attempt to enforce total abstinence... Criminals will less severely punished and their number will have materially diminished... The law will be simplified... Religion will be little taught and have little influence... The principles of medicine will be much better understood... businesses will be conducted harmoniously, with employers and workers sharing in the profits... Women will win the right to vote... American literature will stand at the head of English literature.

Reality: Well, this guy wasn't asking for much, was he? I would say he was right about socialism (Social Security), medicine and women getting the vote. Depending on the year in question, there was more equality of position than they knew in the 1890s, but that's heading in the opposite direction right now. Is American literature is ahead of the Brits? I think that is a debatable point, it's certainly advanced from what it was in the 19th Century. He was wrong about forced abstinence, though we got over it, universal profit sharing and the lessened influence of religion.

This guy looks like a milquetoast, right? Browne's most famous achievement was escaping from a Confederate prisoner of war camp and traveling 400 miles to re-join the fight. Are you more impressed with him now? Yeah, me too. 

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

We interrupt our regular schedule for a prediction of some computer mogul trying to take over the Internet.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

24 January 2014

Birthdays
Mischa Barton b. 1986 (Phatasmagoria: The Movie, Zombie Killers: Elephant’s Graveyard, The Sixth Sense)
Karis Page Bryant b. 1985 (Charmed, Universal Soldier: The Return)
Justin Baldoni b. 1984 (Heroes, Charmed, The Helix… Loaded)
Remy Ryan b. 1984 (Opious, The Lost Room, RoboCop 3, The Flash [1990], Beauty and the Beast)
Craig Horner b. 1983 (Legend of the Seeker, Cyber Girl)
Carrie Coon b. 1981 (The Leftovers)
Kristen Schaal b. 1978 (Last Man on Earth)
Ed Helms b. 1974 (Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian)
Matthew Lillard b. 1970 (Scooby-Doo, Area 57, Thir13n Ghosts, Wing Commander)
Stephanie Romanov b. 1969 (Angel, Seven Days)
Phil Lamarr b. 1967 (Futurama, Real Steel, Samurai Jack, Spider-Man 2, Evil Alien Conquerors, Invader ZIM)
Julie Dreyfus b. 1966 (The Crow: Stairway to Heaven)
Nastassja Kinski b. 1961 (Cat People, To the Devil a Daughter)
Peter Woodward b. 1956 (Dracula [2013 TV], Fringe, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Stargate: Atlantis, Charmed, Crusade, Babylon 5: A Call to Arms, Brimstone, )
William Allen Young b. 1954 (District 9, Babylon 5, The Twilight Zone [1985])
Michael Des Barres b. 1948 (Dead Like Me, Charmed, Sliders, Lois & Clark, Waxwork II: Lost in Time, Superboy, Super Force, ALF, Deadly Nightmares, Ghoulies, I, Monster)
Michael Ontkean b. 1946 (PSI Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal, The Stepford Husbands, Deadly Nightmares, Tales of the Unexpected, Necromancy)
David Gerrold b. 1944 (screenwriter, The Trouble With Tribbles)
Sharon Tate b. 1943 died 9 August 1969 (The Fearless Vampire Killers)
Barton Heyman b. 1937 died 15 May 1996 (The Exorcist, Twilight Zone)
John Hollis b. 1931 died 18 October 2005 (Superman I, II and IV, The Day of the Triffids [1981 TV], Flash Gordon, The Empire Strikes Back, Blakes 7, The Tomorrow People, Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter, Doctor Who, Creatures the World Forgot, A for Andromeda)
Jerry Maren b. 1920 (Frankenstein Rising, Twilight Zone [1986], Wizards and Warriors, Something Wicked This Way Comes, TRON, The Amazing Captain Nemo, Lidsville, Bigfoot, Planet of the Apes [1968], Bewitched, Superman and the Mole People, The Wizard of Oz)
William Hudson b. 1919 died 5 April 1974 (The Reluctant Astronaut, Batman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Moon Pilot, Men Into Space, Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, The Amazing Colossal Man, The She-Creature, Rocky Jones, Space Ranger)
John Hudson b. 1919 died 8 April 1996 (I Dream of Jeannie, Men Into Space, The Screaming Skull)
Ernest Borgnine b. 1917 died 8 July 2012 (Gattaca, Merlin’s Shop of Mystical Wonders, Laser Mission, Alice in Wonderland [1985], Escape From New York, The Black Hole, Future Cop, The Devil’s Rain, The Neptune Factor, Captain Video and his Video Rangers)
C. L. Moore b. 1911 died 4 April 1987 (author, Northwest Smith, Cthulhu Mythos)
Estelle Winwood b. 1883 died 20 June 1984 (Batman, Bewitched, The Cabinet of Caligari, Twilight Zone, Blithe Spirit)
E.T.A. Hoffmann b. 1776 died 25 June 1822 (author, The Sandman, The Tales of Hoffmann, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The surprising stuff. Usually I start with the Picture Slot decision when explaining stuff about our birthday boys and girls, and I will do so today as well, but the over-riding theme of today's list is how many things I didn't realize.

I did not realize there is someone still alive from the cast of The Wizard of Oz, a movie which celebrates its 76th anniversary this year. Jerry Maren, born in 1920, was the middle guy in The Lollipop Guild, is the last known survivor from the cast and good on ya, Mr. Maren.

I did not realize how many genre credits Ernest Borgnine had. I still think of him as Marty or Fatso or McHale, but showed up in a lot of fantasy and sci-fi, including Captain Video, a show that was well before my time.

I did not realize the actress Estelle Winwood lived to be 101.

I did not think Michael Ontkean was much older than I am and I did not know he was Canadian, the only one on today's list.


Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories. 

Predictor: Albert D. Shaw (1841-1901), politician, diplomat and president of the Canadian Niagara Power Company

Prediction: One of the greatest cities in the United States will be found to occupy the area between Buffalo and Niagara Falls. I think that, early in the 20th Century, there will be a city of 1,000,000 inhabitants there. It will be one of the greatest manufacturing cities in the world. Nature has done everything to favor its locality.

Reality: Yes, it's true, nature has blessed Buffalo in every way, especially if you like the MIND-NUMBINGLY FUCKING COLD WINTERS!

Buffalo is still a city of about 250,000. Across the border, its sister city of Hamilton is closer to 500,000. I'm going to cut Mr. Shaw some slack, not just because of the awesome soup strainer on his top lip, but also because the technology of electrical transformers was in its infancy. Even our new predictor George Sutherland writing in 1901 makes predictions that places nearest electrical generating plants would be developed earlier than other locales. Nowadays, the wires can easily carry power many hundreds of miles away from the source.
Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Sundays mean a visit from our pal, (usually) Ridiculous Bob, looking into his crystal ball at 1970 or 2000 from a 1956 vantage point.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

17 January 2015

Birthdays
Laura Surrich b. 1988 (The Cure, King Kong)
Ray J. b. 1981 (Mars Attacks!, Steel)
Diogo Morgado b. 1981 (The Messengers)
Zooey Deschanel b. 1980 (The Happening, Tin Man, Bridge to Terabithia, Once Upon a Mattress [2005 TV], The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Elf)
Leigh Whannell b. 1977 (Insidious, The Matrix Reloaded)
Keith Robinson b. 1976 (Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue)
Anne Stedman b. 1976 (Space Cowboys)
Freddy Rodriguez b. 1975 (Planet Terror, Lady in the Water)
Genndy Tartakovsky b. 1970 (Artist, Star Wars: Clone Wars, Samurai Jack, The Powerpuff Girls, Dexter’s Laboratory)
Naveen Andrews b. 1969 (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, Sinbad, Lost, Planet Terror, Rollerball [2002], Mighty Joe Young [1998])
Jeff Chase b. 1968 (Star Trek Into Darkness, Revolution, Looper, Swamp Shark, Star Trek [2009], Undead or Alive: A Zombedy, The Punisher, Black Knight)
Sofia Shinas b. 1968 (The Hunger [TV], The Crow)
Kang-ho Song b. 1967 (Snowpiercer, The Host)
Joshua Malina b. 1966 (Extant, Knights of Badassdom, The Big Bang Theory, American Horror Story, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Stargate SG-1, From the Earth to the Moon, Sliders)
D.J. Caruso b. 1965 (director, Tin Man [2014], I Am Number Four, Smallville, Dark Angel, VR.5)
Chris Casamassa b. 1963 (Sci-Fighter, Mortal Kombat)
Jim Carrey b. 1962 (Kick-Ass 2, A Christmas Carol [2009], Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, Bruce Almighty, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Truman Show, Batman Forever, Earth Girls are Easy, Once Bitten)
Denis O’Hare b. 1962 (American Horror Story, True Blood)
Brian Helgeland b. 1961(writer, Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant, 976-EVIL, Tales from the Crypt [1996], A Nightmare of Elm Street 4: The Dream Master)
Mitch Vogel b. 1956 (Wonder Woman, Ark II, Isis, The Immortal)
Sharon Duce b. 1950 (The Tomorrow People [1995 TV], Doctor Who, Outland)
Andy Kaufman b. 1949 died 16 May 1984 (Heartbeeps)
Todd Susman b. 1947 (Angel, The Burning Zone [TV], Weird Science, The Invaders [1995 TV], Lois & Clark, Coneheads, She-Wolf of London, ALF, Twilight Zone [1985], The Amazing Spider-Man [1978])
Randy Boone b. 1942 (Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Twilight Zone)
Tom Lowell b. 1941 (Escape from the Planet of the Apes, The Invaders, The Addams Family, The Twilight Zone)
Stuart Nisbet b. 1934 (They Came from Outer Space [1990 TV], Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Project U.F.O., The Six Million Dollar Man, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Bewitched, The Green Hornet, My Mother the Car, The Munsters, Twilight Zone)
Sheree North b. 1932 died 4 November 2005 (Freddy’s Nightmares, Future Cop, Destination Inner Space)
James Earl Jones b. 1931 (The Big Bang Theory, Star Wars, Stargate SG-1, Lois & Clark, The Meteor Man, Fairie Tale Theatre, City Limits, Conan the Barbarian, Exorcist II: The Heretic, The UFO Incident)
Eartha Kitt b. 1927 died 25 December 2008 ( Erik the Viking, Batman [1967])
Betty White b. 1922 (Lake Placid)
Nevil Shute b. 1899 died 12 January 1960 (Author, On the Beach)

Notes on the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. Previous years saw Naveen Andrews from Lost and James Earl Jones in the Picture Slot, and there are plenty of good choices in terms of household names on the list. As usual, iconic status in a genre role is also a major criterion and given that, it was a two-person contest and Eartha Kitt topped Jim Carrey because... reasons. Kitt got the role in the third season because Julie Newmar was filming something else, but Yvonne Craig brings up an interesting point. In the third season she played Batgirl and one of her duties was fisticuffs with Catwoman. Craig is quoted as saying she comes up to about Julie Newmar's navel and it would have been hard to make the fight convincing. Eartha Kitt is much shorter. As for ranking the Catwomen, my heart is with Newmar, but no matter how you rank Julie, Eartha, Lee Meriwether, Michelle Pfeiffer, Halle Berry and Anne Hathaway, the person in sixth place is crazy gorgeous.

2. Canadians incognito. Neither of our Canadian actors has a credit list that gives away their place of birth. Jim Carrey is a movie star and is not one to hang around Vancouver hoping the agent can swing a guest spot on Continuum. The lovely Sofia Shinas is also Canadian, but she only has 13 credits total on imdb.com and only two in genre.

3. MST3K. In a late addition, I completely forgot about City Limits! The cast list gives Dr. Forrester one of my favorite lines of his. "This week's experiment is City Limits, with James Earl Jones in one of the worst films he ever made and Kim Catrall in one of the best films she ever made."

That still makes me laugh.

Many happy returns to all the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
 

Predictor: Mary Elizabeth Lease, lawyer and columnist, asked to predict the world of 1993 in honor of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition.

Prediction: The railroads, channels of communication, light, water and all public improvements will be managed by the state and owned by the government. Gold will cease to be the basis of the monetary system. Temperance laws will be unnecessary, as every man will be a prohibitory law unto himself. Woman's dependence on man will be a thing of the past. The accumulation of great wealth will dwindle. Corporations will be controlled. Three hours will constitute a long day's work. Science will condense the nutrition found in plants into concentrated food, a small phial will furnish people with subsistence for days. Killing animals for food will be a horror of the past. We will communicate with beings from other planets and Sunday excursions to the moon will be commonplace. 

Reality: She might dress like a society dame, but it's obvious she's a Commie hippie, right? She gets full points for guessing the gold standard would vanish and giving the best reason why, and she gets partial credit for predicting women would be less dependent on men. I guess the concentrated food prediction is also close enough for some credit, but the rest... well, what do you expect from a Commie hippie?

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Another look into the exciting future of 1970, courtesy of Robert A. Heinlein.


Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!