25 March 2015

Birthdays
Elizabeth Lail b. 1992 (Once Upon a Time)
Seychelle Gabriel b. 1991 (Falling Skies, The Last Airbender, The Spirit)
Kiowa Gordon b. 1990 (Twilight Saga)
Aly Michalka b. 1989 (iZombie, Phil of the Future)
Erik Knudsen b. 1988 (Continuum, Beastly, Jericho, Saw II)
Sean Faris b. 1982 (Supernatural, Free Runner, The Vampire Diaries, Ghost Machine, Smallville)
Lee Pace b. 1979 (The Hobbit, Guardians of the Galaxy, Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, The Falls, Pushing Daisies, Wonderfalls)
Edgar Ramirez b. 1977 (Wrath of the Titans)
Lark Voorhies b. 1974 (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Small Wonder)
Laz Alonzo b. 1974 (Avatar, Constantine [2005])
Kari Matchett b. 1970 (Invasion, Plague City: SARS in Toronto, Wonderfalls, Cube, Cube2, Earth: Final Conflict, Poltergeist: The Legacy, PSI Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal, Forever Knight)
Chip Joslin b. 1967 (Humans vs Zombies)
Sarah Jessica Parker b. 1965 (Mars Attacks, Hocus Pocus)
Brenda Strong b. 1960 (Starship Troopers, 3rd Rock from the Sun, The Craft, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Spaceballs, Misfits of Science)
Peter O’Brien b. 1960 (Doctor Who, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Nightmares & Dreamscapes, Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America, Relic Hunter, The Lost World, Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord, Time Trax)
Mary Gross b. 1953 (Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, Lois & Clark)
Robert O’Reilly b. 1950 (Star Trek: Enterprise, Deep Space Nine, The Mask, The Flash [1991], Max Headroom, Knight Rider, Otherworld, Manimal. Voyagers!, The Incredible Hulk)
Bonnie Bedelia b. 1948 (Flowers for Algernon [2000], Needful Things, The Boy Who Could Fly, Salem’s Lot)
Richard O’Brien b. 1942 (Elvira’s Haunted Hills, Dungeons & Dragons, Dark City, Flash Gordon, Shock Treatment, The Rocky Horror Picture Show)
D.C. Fontana b. 1939 (writer, Star Trek, Babylon 5, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Logan’s Run [TV], The Six Million Dollar Man)
Hoyt Axton b. 1938 died 26 October 1999 (Space Case, Gremlins, Faerie Tale Theatre, The Bionic Woman, I Dream of Jeannie)
Sylvia Anderson b. 1937 (writer, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons from Mars, Space:1999, UFO, Joe 90, Stingray, Fireball XL5, Supercar)
James Lovell b. 1928 (astronaut, twice to the moon, never stood on it)
Roberts Blossom b. 1924 died 8 July 2011 (The Twilight Zone [1985 and 1987], Tales from the Darkside, Amazing Stories, Resurrection, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Slaughterhouse-Five)
Patrick Troughton b. 1920 died 28 March 1987 (Super Gran, The Omen, A Hitch in Time, Space: 1999, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell, Out of the Unknown, Scars of Dracula, The Gorgon, H.G. Wells’ Invisible Man)
Jean Rogers b. 1916 died 24 February 1991 (Flash Gordon [1936])
Dan White b. 1908 died 7 July 1980 (Jesse James Meets Frankenstein’s Daughter, Twilight Zone, Attack of the Giant Leeches, Adventures of Superman)
Ed Begley b. 1901 died 28 April 1970 (The Dunwich Horror, The Invaders, Out of the Unknown)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. In previous years, the Picture Slot went to Star Trek  writer D.C. Fontana and astronaut Jim Lovell. This year it was a toss-up between Robert O'Reilly as Gowron on Star Trek, Patrick Troughton as the second Doctor and the winner, Richard O'Brien as Riff-Raff from Rocky Horror, based on the play O'Brien wrote. Actor/singer/playwright is a hard triple threat to beat.

2. Canadians pre-spotted for your protection. Kari Matchett and Erik Knudsen were born north of the border. However, Sean Faris has the Supernatural/Smallville daily double and was born in the U.S. I could find no mention of his living in Canada.

3. MST3K. Dan White was in the Attack of the Giant Leeches and two features produced by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson also got the treatment, Invaders of the Deep and Cosmic Princess. The Mole People in Deep 13 were named Gerry and Sylvia, an obvious homage.

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

Predictor: George Sutherland in 20th Century Inventions, published in 1901

Prediction: The example of the cheap watch industry may be cited to convey an idea of the immensely important revolution which will take place in the production of both small and large prime-motors when all the possibilities of electrotyping, casting, and stamping the various wearing parts true to shape and size have been fully exploited. An accurate timekeeper is now practically within the reach of all; and in the twentieth century no one who requires a small prime motor to do the rough work about home or farm will be compelled to do without it by reason of poverty--unless, perhaps, he is absolutely destitute and a fit subject for public charity.

Reality: Henry Ford is credited with the big assembly line breakthroughs in 1908, so this counts as a generally correct prediction for Sutherland, though in general he thought the internal combustion engine had too many mechanical challenges to be the final big winner in the production of cheap energy.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

It's another one of those days when the Picture Slot choice seems obvious if iconic is our primary criterion. Will I mix it up this year? To find out... 

Join us tomorrow... IN THE FUTURE!

20 January 2015

Birthdays
Ciara Hanna b. 1991 (Power Rangers MegaForce, Blood Lake: The Attack of the Killer Lampreys)
Evan Peters b. 1987 (X-Men: Apocalypse, X-Men: Days of Future Past, American Horror Story, Kick-Ass, Invasion [TV], Phil of the Future)
Pete Ploszek b. 1987 (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles [2014])
Olivia Hallinan b. 1985 (Torchwood, Julia Jekyll and Harriet Hyde)
Rukiya Bernard b. 1983 (Witches of East End, Primeval: New World, The Cabin in the Woods, Supernatural, SGU Stargate Universe, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Eureka, Supervolcano, Relic Hunter)
Daniel Cudmore b. 1981 (Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, Fringe, Twilight, X-Men, Revolution [2009 TV movie], Merlin and the Book of Beasts, Stargate SG-1)
Crystal Lowe b. 1981 (Primeval: New World, Almost Human, A Little Bit Zombie, Smallville, Hot Tub Time Machine, Supernatural, Yeti: Curse of the Snow Demon, Stargate: Atlantis, Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Stargate: Sg-1)
Ray Panthaki b. 1979 (World War Dead: Rise of the Fallen, It’s a Wonderful Afterlife, 28 Days Later…)
Omar Sy b. 1978 (Jurassic World, X-Men: Days of Future Past)
Skeet Ulrich b. 1970 (Jericho, The Craft, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles [1990])
Reno Wilson b. 1969 (The Chronicle, FreakyLinks, Good vs Evil, Sliders, Mighty Joe Young, Fallen)
Rainn Wilson b. 1966 (Robodog, Transformer: Revenge of the Fallen, The Last Mimzy, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Dominion, Dark Angel, Charmed, Galaxy Quest)
Francesca Buller b. 1964 (Farscape)
James Denton b. 1963 (The Good Witch, Undead or Alive: A Zombedy, Dark Skies, Sliders)
R. A. Salvatore b. 1959 (author, Forgotten Realms series)
Lorenzo Lamas b. 1958 ( Atomic Eden, Ghost Ghirls, Raptor Ranch, Sci-Fighter, Raptor Island, Deep Evil, The Immortal [2001 TV])
Ken Page b. 1954 (Charmed, Adventures in Wonderland)
Paul Stanley b. 1952 (Millennium, KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park)
Daniel Benzali b. 1950 (Jericho, The X-Files, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Beauty and the Beast [1989], Whoops Apocalypse, Star Cops)
David Lynch b. 1946 (director, Dune, Eraserhead)
Dorothy Provine b. 1935 died 25 April 2010 (The 30 Foot Bride of Candy Rock)
Tom Baker b. 1934 (Doctor Who, The Wind in the Willows [2006 TV], Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased), Dungeons and Dragons, The Mutations, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Frankenstein: The True Story)
Buzz Aldrin b. 1930 (astronaut)
Peter Donat b. 1928 (The X-Files, Time Trax, Earth Star Voyager, Voyagers, Salvage 1, Future Cop, The Invisible Man [1975 TV)
Patricia Neal b. 1926 died 8 August 2010 (Ghost Story, The Day the Earth Stood Still)
DeForest Kelley b. 1920, died 11 June 1999 (Star Trek, Night of the Lepus)
Federico Fellini b. 1920 died 31 October 1993 (director, The Temptation of Dr. Antonio)
Michael Higgins b. 1920 died 5 November 2008 (Death Becomes Her, Angel Heart, The Stepford Wives, The Outer Limits)
Leon Ames b, 1902 died 12 October 1993 (Testament, Bewitched, The Misadventures of Merlin Jones, Son of Flubber, The Absent-Minded Professor)
Colin Clive b. 1900 died 25 June 1937 (Mad Love, Bride of Frankenstein, Frankenstein)
A. Merritt b. 1884 died 21 August 1943 (author, The Moon Pool, Burn Witch Burn!)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. I may be chided for being a geezer, but I am of the opinion that this list is chock full of truly iconic folk and all of them were born more than eighty years ago. In 2013, I used DeForest Kelley, in 2014 it was Buzz Aldrin. If they are out of contention, I'm happy to go to the other side of The Pond with Tom Baker, who wins the Favorite Doctor polls consistently if the competition is restricted to the 20th Century incarnations. If I were picking fourth place, I would go super geezer with Colin Clive, Dr. Frankenstein in the most famous 1930s versions of the story. If I was in a fabulous babe mood, Patricia Neal or (ahem) Dorothy Provine would get the Picture Slot, but even someone with my peculiar interests can't argue they are as iconic as the four guys mentioned first.

2. Spot the Canadians! Let's go opposite of geezer with our young Canuck friends. There are three of them, all born after 1980. Good luck! There is an older one, Peter Donat, who I thought of as American because he worked at ACT in San Francisco many decades ago. Thanks to James Marshall VI for pointing out Donat.

3. I love a good exact same day pair. Ignoring identical twins, I love to find out that two very famous people share a birthday on the exact same day and year. My personal favorite is 12 February 1809, when Lincoln and Darwin were both born. Our best pair today is DeForest Kelley and Federico Fellini, both born in 1920. A character actor named Michael Higgins was also born 95 years ago, but he's not quite an Oh That Guy for me. The role I know him in is as Doc Wilson in State and Main.

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

Movie released
Underworld Awakening released, 2012
 

Predictor: W. Warren Wagar in the 1991 edition of his book A Short History of the Future.

Prediction: By the turn of the millennium, everyone used the phrase “the world revolution of 1989”. Comparisons to the French Revolution of 1789 were commonplace.

Reality: Wagar's day job was as a history professor and the changes of 1989 really threw him for a loop. He published his first version just as communism fell and figured that he had to re-write the whole thing, so the predictions here are from his 1991 version, which has as its over-riding theme the complete victory of capitalism until a catastrophe in the 2040s. (The catastrophe itself is too far in the future to be a topic on this blog.) While it certainly made a difference in global politics, Americans don't generally lump together the Berlin Wall falling and the Tienanmen Square protests. I went online to find comparisons of 1989 to 1789 and found one paper by a Northeastern history professor named Patrick Manning. I would not call the comparisons "commonplace".

Looking one day ahead...  INTO THE FUTURE!

A new source of predictions joins the line-up tomorrow.


Join us then...  IN THE FUTURE!

18 November 2014

 Birthdays
Noah Ringer b. 1997 (The Last Airbender, Cowboys & Aliens)
Nick Bateman b. 1986 (Space Janitors, My Babysitter’s a Vampire)
Nathan Kress b. 1982 (Video Game High School)
Jake Abel b. 1987 (Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, The Host, I Am Number Four, Supernatural, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, Threshold)
Georgia King b. 1986 (Cockneys vs Zombies, Sinbad [TV], Merlin [TV])
Robert Kazinsky b. 1983 (True Blood, Pacific Rim)
Damon Wayans Jr. b. 1982 (Blankman)
Miranda Raison b. 1977 (Sinbad, Merlin, Doctor Who, Dark Realm)
Steven Pasquale b. 1976 (Coma [2012], Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem)
Chloe Sevigny b. 1974 (American Horror Story, Demonlover)
Goran Kostic b. 1971 (The Last Days on Mars, The Deep [TV 2010], Children of Men)
Peta Wilson b. 1970 (Superman Returns, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Highlander [TV])
Dan Bakkedahl b. 1969 (Gotham, Grimm)
Phil Buckman b. 1969 (An American Werewolf in Paris, Weird Science)
Romany Malco b. 1968 (No Ordinary Family, Gulliver’s Travels [2010], Level 9)
Owen Wilson b. 1968 (Night at the Museum 1 & 2, The Haunting, Breakfast of Champions, Armageddon, Anaconda)
John Campling b. 1966 (616, Narcopolis, The Zombie King, Apocalypse Z, Jack the Giant Killer, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows)
Tim Guinee b. 1962 (Revolution, Fringe, Iron Man 1 & 2, Smallville, Stargate SG-1, Strange World, Level 9, Blade, Brave New World, Vampires)
Nick Chinlund b. 1961 (666 Park Avenue, Grimm, Wyvern, The Chronicles of Riddick, Buffy, The X Files)
Steven Moffat b. 1961 (writer, Doctor Who, Jekyll)
Elizabeth Perkins b. 1960 (From the Earth to the Moon, Big)
John Shepherd b. 1960 (Quantum Leap, Friday the 13th, Part V: A New Beginning)
Shari Shattuck b. 1960 (Babylon 5, Goddess of Love, Freddy’s Nightmares, Knight Rider)
Kevin Nealon b. 1953 (Aliens in the Attic, Little Nicky, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Coneheads)
Alan Moore b. 1953 (author, Watchmen, V for Vendetta, From Hell)
Delroy Lindo b. 1952 (The Core, Devil’s Advocate, Congo, Beauty and the Beast [1987 TV])
Dennis Haskins b. 1950 (The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes, Twilight Zone [1987], Amazing Stories, The Greatest American Hero)
Michael Swanwick b. 1950 (won 1992 Nebula for Stations of the Tide)
Eric Pierpont b. 1950 (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Solar Flare, Surface, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Voyager, Sliders, Babylon 5, Alien Nation [TV]. Deep Space Nine, Children of the Dark, Star Trek: Next Generation, Time Trax, Beauty and the Beast, Invaders from Mars)
Andrea Marcovicci b. 1948 (Amazing Stories, The Canterville Ghost, The Stuff, Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone, Voyagers!, The Incredible Hulk, The Hand)
Alan Dean Foster b. 1946 (novelizations of Star Trek, Star Wars, Alien, Alien Nation and many more)
Susan Sullivan b. 1942 (Dead Like Me, The Incredible Hulk [1977], Dark Shadows [1967])
David Hemmings b. 1941 died 3 December 2003 (The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Tales from the Crypt, Nightmare Classic, Faerie Tale Theatre, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde [1980 TV], Barbarella)
Brenda Vaccaro b. 1939 (Supergirl, Capricorn One)
Ian McCulloch b. 1939 (Doctor Who, Hammer House of Horror, Zombie Holocaust, Zombie, The Ghoul, I, Monster, It!)
Margaret Atwood b. 1939 (author, The Handmaid’s Tale, Oryx and Crake)
Max Phipps b. 1939 died 6 August 2000 (Farscape, Sky Pirates, The Return of Captain Invincible, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, Thirst, The Cars That Eat People)
John McMartin b. 1929 (Beauty and the Beast [TV])
Alan Shepard b. 1923 died 21 July 1998 (astronaut)
Imogene Coca b. 1908 died 2 June 2001 (Alice in Wonderland [1985 TV], Bewitched, It’s About Time)

Notes on the Birthday List.
1. The Picture Slot. Last year it was Margaret Atwood and this year, when astronauts are trump, we have Alan Shepard, first American in space. There are plenty of choices for next year, though I would say the front runner is Eric Pierpont from the Alien Nation TV show, though I might go with MST3K.

2. What, no Canadians? Yes, it's surprisingly true. I didn't find a single Canadian in this very long list of artists. I'm surprised too.

3. They did genre? There are a lot of actors whose names I know that I didn't know did any genre, but I checked their imdb.com C.V. just in case. The biggest surprises for me were Brenda Vaccaro, Susan Sullivan, Andrea Marcovicci, Delroy Lindo and Kevin Nealon. People can get typecast, sometimes because of ethnicity or being comic actors or "soap opera actors" and never get roles in fantasy or sci-fi. I wasn't surprised by Imogene Coca, definitely a comic actress. I still remember the sitcom It's About Time, though I have made a valiant effort to forget it.

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

Movies released
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 released 2011
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire released 2005
Star Trek: Generations released 1994
Cherry 2000 released 1988

TV show premieres
Mystery Science Theater 3000 on Comedy Central, 1989 

Predictor: FM-2030 in his 1981 article Up-Wing Priorities


Prediction: 21st Century Values. Traditional values have issued from eons of scarcity - hardship -brief lifespans - insularity. Late 20th-century breakthroughs are formatting new environments which spawn new values and ideals. A 21st-century consciousness is surfacing increasingly free of Puritan guilt - shame - cynicism - self-denial.

What does the oldworld psychology of sacrifice mean in the new age of abundance? Entire generations are coming on line who have never known poverty and hardship -for whom abundance and comfort are the norm. The new consciousness views hardship as stunting - wealth as liberating.

What does age-old orientation to suffering mean at a time when medical breakthroughs are screening out physical and mental pain?

What does the work ethic mean in the age of intelligent technology which is taking over more and more of our work? The work ethic now slows down growth. The new Leisure ethic accelerates innovation and progress.

What does competitiveness mean in an age of plenty? Why do we need to know who is best at anything? Why contests? Why winners and losers? Why the Nobel prize the Pulitzer prize the Academy Awards? Systems that pit people against one another are oldworld and manipulative and must be boycotted. Competition saps everyone's energy. To hyperspeed ahead we need complementation of everyone's creativity.

What do religions and spiritualisms which demand child-like submission to deities and "higher authorities" mean at a time when vigorous new generations growing up in permissive open environments accept no authorities as final or absolute? At a time when out cosmic leaps are daily proving there are no permanent constraints - that we are free agents in the universe?

The greatest breakthrough of our age is unfolding in our self image. A new brand of revolutionary is fat emerging - fired up by entirely new dreams. Up-Wingers are not content with civil rights - equal rights - human rights. These freedoms are no longer enough. 


Reality: Let's start with what he gets right, since that is the much shorter list. This is a time of plenty compared to the past.

Now what he gets wrong. The idea that there are no permanent constraints is crap. When it comes to exploring the cosmos, the speed of light is a permanent constraint. Living creatures age and die, and the advances in medicine slow these processes down, but cannot stop them completely. When it comes to distances in space we can actually manage to travel, we have a limit to how much air and water there is.

I will agree with old Frozen Moron-2030 that competition at the levels we practice now is getting in the way of the progress of the species, but we can't just kill off all the billionaires, as iniviting a prospect as that is.

Next week, we get his final flourish, his complete vision of the utopia he thought he deserved. I don't know yet who will replace old FroMo as our Tuesday regular, but that person or persons will be hard pressed to be more entertaining with their mistakes.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

I try to start a new national day of memorial, though I will likely be less successful than even FroMo.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

31 October 2014

Birthdays
Willow Smith b. 2000 (I am Legend)
Jordan-Claire Green b. 1991 (Forgotten Pills, Wizards of Waverly Place, Power Rangers Time Force)
Justin Chatwin b. 1982 (Dragonball: Evolution, The Invisible, Lost, War of the Worlds, Taken, Mysterious Ways, Smallville)
Samaire Armstrong b. 1980 (Resurrection, Rise: Blood Hunter, The X-Files)
Eddie Kaye Thomas b. 1980 (Wonderfalls, The X-Files, The Rage: Carrie 2)
Erica Cerra b. 1979 (Eureka, Mega Cyclone, Rise of the Damned, Supernatural, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Blade:Trinity, Smallville, Warehouse 13, Reaper, Battlestar Galactica, The 4400, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Jake 2.0, Dead Like Me)
Brian Hallisay b. 1978 (Awakening, Eastwick, Bionic Woman)
Piper Perabo b. 1976 (Looper, Carriers, The Prestige, George and the Dragon)
Johnny Whitworth b. 1975 (Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Limitless, Gamer)
Keith Jardine b. 1975 (Gamer)
Nolan North b. 1970 (Star Trek Into Darkness, Haven)
Dermot Mulroney b. 1963 (Space Warriors)
Rob Schneider b. 1963 (Bedtime Stories, Click, The Animal, Little Nicky, The Adventures of Pinocchio, Judge Dredd, Demolition Man, Martians Go Home)
Peter Jackson b. 1961 (director, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, King Kong, The Frighteners)
Neal Stephenson b. 1959 (won the 1996 Hugo for The Diamond Age)
Michael J. Anderson b. 1953 (Charmed, Carnivale, Black Scorpion, This is How the World Ends, The Phantom Eye, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, The X-Files, Deep Space Nine, Mannequin: On the Move, The Great Land of Small)
John Candy b.1950 died 4 March 1994 (The Rocket Boy, Spaceballs, Little Shop of Horrors, Splash, Dr. Zonk and the Zunkins)
Stephen Rea b. 1946 (Ruby Strangelove Young Witch, V for Vendetta, Underworld: Awakening, In Dreams, Interview with the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles, The Company of Wolves, Cry of the Banshee)
Norman Lovett b. 1946 (Evil Aliens, Red Dwarf)
Brian Doyle-Murray b.1945 (Supernatural, Bedazzled [2000], Multiplicity, Lois & Clark, Groundhog Day, Ghostbusters II, Scrooged)
David Ogden Stiers b. 1942 (Stargate: Atlantis, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Ray Bradbury Theatre, ALF)
Sally Kirkland b. 1941 (The Visitor from Planet Omicron, The Hunger [TV], The Incredible Shrinking Woman, The Incredible Hulk)
Ron Rifkin b. 1939 (Touch, Dragonfly, Wolf, Faerie Tale Theatre, Salvage 1, Silent Running)
Michael Landon b. 1936 died 1 July 1991 (I was a Teenage Werewolf)
Charles Cioffi b. 1935 (The X Files, Lois & Clark, Tucker’s Witch, Time After Time, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Wonder Woman, Return to Earth)
Richard Gauthier b. 1931 (The Munsters Today, Freddy’s Nightmares, Knight Rider, Man from Atlantis, Wonder Woman, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Mr. Terrific, Bewitched)
Michael Collins b. 1930 (astronaut, orbited moon in Apollo 11)
Lee Grant b. 1925 (Defending Your Life, The Swarm, Damien: Omen II, Marooned)

Notes on the Birthday List.
1. The Picture Slot. Last year, I went with Erica Serra because she's pretty, not because she has a particularly iconic role, though some might count Eureka. This year, it's Michael Collins, the guy who was in orbiter when Armstrong and Aldrin were on the moon. As for next year, the early front runner is John Candy from Spaceballs.

2. Spot the Canadians! There are three today and I think it's possible to get them all with a little knowledge and spotting the correct tell-tale show.

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

And to my readers, Happy Halloween! 
 

Predictor: The baseball experts at ESPN

Predictions: At the beginning of the playoffs, only 1 of 70 experts had the Giants as World Series champs.

Reality: In fairness, you had to go out on a limb to pick a wild card team to win the whole thing. The Giants were without Angel Pagan, and his replacements in left field were good on defense but not Pagan's equal in the batter's box. The experts were fairly convinced the National League was superior this year, but they were in love with the Nationals, who got smacked around by the Giants, and the Dodgers, who lost to the Cards.

Long story short: Sports prediction is hard, but the final record of the experts of 18.1% correct is really awful.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Back to 1893 once again, this time with modest facial hair but bold prediction.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE! 

5 August 2014

Birthdays
Mars Curiosity landed 2012
Olivia Holt b. 1997 (Girl vs. Monster)
Ryan McDonald b. 1984 (Warehouse 13, Fringe, 2012)
Jesse Williams b. 1981 (The Cabin in the Woods)
Sophia Winkleman b. 1980 (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)
Victor Cruz b. 1980 (Gotham, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Fringe)
Paul Kasey b. 1973 (Doctor Who, Being Human, The Sarah Jane Chronicles, Inkheart, Torchwood, 28 Days Later…, Blade II)
James Gunn b. 1970 (director, Guardians of the Galaxy, Slither [2006])
Jonathan Silverman (Jekyll, 12:01)
Mark Strong b. 1963 (John Carter, Green Lantern, Kick-Ass, Babylon A.D., Stardust)
Tawny Kitaen b. 1961 (Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, They Came from Outer Space, Witchboard)
Maureen McCormick b. 1956 (I Dream of Jeannie, Bewitched)
Natalie Trundy b. 1940 (Battle for the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Twilight Zone)
Larry Elmore b. 1948 (artist)
Alan Howard b. 1937 (Lord of the Rings)
John Saxon b. 1935 (From Dusk Till Dawn, Hellmaster, My Mom’s a Werewolf, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Prisoners of the Lost Universe, Battle Beyond the Stars, Wonder Woman, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Strange New World, Planet Earth, The Time Tunnel, Queen of Blood, Blood Beast from Outer Space)
Zakes Mokae b. 1934 died 11 September 2009 (The X Files, Waterworld, Outbreak, Vampire in Brooklyn, Knight Rider)
Joan Weldon b. 1933 (Them!)
Neil Armstrong b. 1930 died 25 August 2012 (first man to walk on the moon)
Don Matheson b.1929 died 29 June 2014 (Dragonflight, Alice in Wonderland [1985], Land of the Giants, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Lost in Space)
Parley Baer b. 1914 died 22 November 2002 (Star Trek: Voyager, Roswell, Quantum Leap, Time Trackers, Twilight Zone [1986], The Incredible Hulk, Project U.F.O., Bewitched, Land of the Giants, I Dream of Jeannie, The Addams Family, My Favorite Martian, My Living Doll, The Outer Limits, The Brass Bottle)
Reginald Owen b. 1887 died 5 November 1972 (Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Bewitched, Mary Poppins, A Christmas Carol [1938])

Since astronauts are trump this year, the Picture Slot decision was easy. If Neil Armstrong is removed from contention, my idiosyncratic top four would be Mark Strong (the closest we have to a 21st Century movie star on the list), John Saxon (not quite a movie star in his day, more of a TV/b-movie star), Parley Baer (a TV Oh That Guy whose 271 credits span from I Love Lucy to Star Trek: Voyager) and Reginald Owen (still my favorite live action version of Scrooge).

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

Movies released
Rise of the Planet of the Apes released 2011
 

Predictor: Philip K. Dick in the 1958 short story Null-O

Prediction: As of August 5, 1969, the population of the world as been reduced to 3,000.

Reality: I'd say this is an odd little story by PKD, but almost all of his stuff is odd. The title is clearly a tweak of A.E. van Vogt's earlier novel The World of Null-A, a writer many people in sci-fi hated but Dick considered him an important influence. The basic plot is that people with no empathy make a concerted effort to locate others with no empathy and plan to make an improved world by wiping everybody else out.

This, of course, is nothing like the world we live in, unless you look at it through an odd lens, and then it does start to look like our world. This can be said of nearly all of the stories of PKD, a writer whose ideas linger in the brain long after the story is finished.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

More random guesses from Herman Kahn. 

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

18 July 2014

Birthdays
Brody Nicholas Lee b. 1997 (Cloud Atlas)
Cody Benjamin Lee b. 1997 (Cloud Atlas, The Shiftling, Invasion)
Chace Crawford b. 1985 (The Covenant)
Rosalind Halstead b. 1984 (Dominion, Rage of the Yeti, The Day of the Triffids [2009])
Michael Huisman b. 1981 (Orphan Black, Game of Thrones, World War Z)
Kristen Bell b. 1980 (Heroes)
Kelly Reilly b. 1977 (Puffball: The Devil’s Eyeball, A for Andromeda)
Valerie Cruz b. 1976 (Grimm, Alphas, True Blood, Dollhouse, The Dresden Files, Invasion)
Jed Whedon b. 1975 (writer, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog)
Sarah McLeod b. 1971 (The Lord of the Rings)
Grant Bowler b. 1968 (Defiance, True Blood, Lost, The Lost World, On the Beach [2000], Farscape)
Andre Royo b. 1968 (Fringe, Hellbenders, Heroes, The Sarah Connor Chronicles)
Vin Diesel b. 1967 (The Last Witch Hunter, Pitch Black, Babylon A.D.)
Elizabeth McGovern b. 1961 (Clash of the Titans, Kick-Ass, The Handmaid’s Tale, Faerie Tale Theatre)
Lee Arenberg b. 1962 (Once Upon a Time, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Trek: Enterprise, Charmed, Dungeons & Dragons, Angel, Star Trek: Voyager, The Apocalypse, Lois & Clark, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Freaked, RoboCop 3, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Wizard, Martians Go Home)
Travis McKenna b. 1960 (Meego, Batman Returns, Quantum Leap)
Anne-Marie Johnson b. 1960 (The X Files, Asteroid, Babylon 5, Robot Jox)
James Faulkner b. 1948 (X-Men: First Class, Relic Hunter, Highlander [TV], The Martian Chronicles)
Tony Azito b. 1948 died 26 May 1995 (Necronomicon: Book of Dead, The Addams Family [1991])
James Brolin b 1940 (Lost City Raiders, Category 7: The End of the World, Terminal Virus, The Amityville Horror, Capricorn One, Westworld, Batman, Fantastic Voyage, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea)
Hampton Fancher b. 1938 (writer, Blade Runner)
Britt Leach b. 1938 (Quantum Leap, Amazing Stories, Weird Science, Wonder Woman)
Paul Verhoeven b. 1938 (director, Hollow Man, Starship Troopers, Total Recall, RoboCop, Deadly Nightmares)
Burt Kwouk b. 1930 (Spirit Warriors, I Bought a Vampire Motorcycle, Doctor Who, The Tomorrow People, Rollerball, Curse of the Fly)
Syd Mead b. 1933 (artist)
John Glenn b. 1921 (astronaut)
Hume Cronyn b. 1911 died 15 June 2003 (Cocoon, *batteries not included)

This year, guys who walked on the moon are trump. While John Glenn did not make that trip, he was the big media darling of the original Mercury Seven. Last year, I had a Syd Mead illustration in the Picture Slot and I might do that again next year, Mead's contribution to the look of the future is so influential, but there are some other choices I might go with instead.

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

Movies released
The Dark Knight released, 2008
Jurassic Park III released , 2001

Predictor: Edgar Cayce

Prediction: The Great Lakes will empty into the Gulf of Mexico in the 1958-1998 era.

Reality: If you wonder why no one talks about Edgar Cayce anymore, crap predictions like this are a big part of it. Yes, he knew enough geography to know the Great Lakes flow to the ocean through the St. Lawrence River, but he predicted massive changes at the tectonic plate level in the second half of the 20th Century and simply put, none of them happened. But there. It's hard to believe now how many people took him seriously back in the day.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

It's the weekend already and time to hear from our futurist pals from 1893 again.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

3 July 2014

Birthdays
Dean Cook b. 1985 (Powers, The Little Vampire, Highlander [TV])
Corey Sevier b. 1984 (Supernatural, Immortals, Age of the Dragons, Smallville, Metamorphosis, The Dresden Files, 2030 CE)
Brandon Jay McLaren b. 1981 (Dead Before Dawn 3D, Falling Skies, Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, Kyle XY, Smallville, Blade: The Series, Power Rangers S.P.D., Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed)
Olivia Munn b. 1980 (Iron Man 2)
Kevin Hart b. 1980 (This is the End, Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Sword of Fire)
Ian Anthony Dale b. 1978 (American Horror Story, Mortal Kombat: Legacy, The Event, Tekken, Dollhouse, Charmed, Angel)
Patrick Wilson b. 1973 (Ant-Man, Space Station 76, Prometheus, Watchmen)
Shawnee Smith b. 1970 (The Island, Breakfast of Champions, Armageddon, The Shining [1997 TV], The X-Files, The Stand, The Blob [1988])
Connie Nielsen b. 1965 (Demonlover, Mission to Mars, Solider, The Devil’s Advocate)
Tommy Flanagan b. 1965 (Sin City, Alien vs. Predator)
Thomas Gibson b. 1962 (Category 6: Day of Destruction, The Lost Empire, Psycho Beach Party)
Tom Cruise b. 1962 (Edge of Tomorrow, Oblivion, War of the Worlds, Minority Report, Vanilla Sky, Interview with the Vampire, Legend)
Rick Ducommun b. 1956 (Brimstone, Ghost in the Machine, Groundhog Day, Encino Man, Gremlins 2, Little Monsters, Spaceballs, Max Headroom)
Cork Hubbert b. 1952 died 28 September 203 (Charmed, Sabrina, The Teenage Witch, Sinbad of the Seven Seas, The Charmings, The Twilight Zone [1986], Legend)
Betty Buckley b. 1947 (The Happening, Carrie)
Michael Cole b. 1945 (It, Beyond Westworld, Wonder Woman)
Kurtwood Smith b. 1943 (Resurrection, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Deep Impact, Star Trek: Voyager, Deep Space Nine, The X-Files, Star Trek VI, RoboCop)
Harrison Schmidt b. 1935 (walked on the moon)
Tom Stoppard b. 1937 (screenplay, Brazil)
Ken Russell b. 1927 died 27 November 2011 (The Lair of the White Worm, Altered States)
Tim O’Connor b. 1927 (The Burning Zone, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Wonder Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Sssssss, The Outer Limits, Twilight Zone, ‘Way Out)
Carol Ohmart b. 1927 (House on Haunted Hill, Men Into Space)
Rae Allen b. 1926 (Vampire Mob, Stargate, The Greatest American Hero)
George Sanders b. 1906 died 25 April 1972 (The Body Stealers, Batman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Village of the Damned, From the Earth to the Moon)
Franz Kakfa b. 1883 died 3 June 1924 (author, Metamorphosis)

This year, walking on the moon is trump, so Harrison Schmidt, the last guy to leave in 1972, gets the Picture Slot.

Walking on the moon! Yay!

Professor Schmidt is also a climate change denier associated with the Heartland Institute. Not so yay.

He's also appeared on the Alex Jones show. Shaking my head in sorrow and disgust.

Last year's picture slot was Tom Cruise (another shake of my head) and next year is wide open, though the front runners are several fabulous babes, Franz Kafka and Kurtwood Smith, who is at the "Hey, it's Red from That 70s Show!" level of fame.

You don't know him as Red from That 70s Show? Dumbass.

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

Movies released 
Despicable Me 2 released, 2013
The Amazing Spider-Man released, 2012
Transformers released, 2007
Men In Black released, 2002
Terminator 2 released, 1991
Back to the Future released, 1985

As you might surmise, July 3 is a very popular date to release what is often the last summer blockbuster.

In the Year 2000!
 
Predictor: Lee de Forest, "The Father of Radio", predicting the world of 2000 in the 17 January 1960 edition of the Sunday supplement American Weekly.

Prediction: Automation, electronic equipment, and other machines will make it possible to increase production per worker, creating more leisure time and a constantly rising living standard. (Atomic processing plants, oil refineries, and others now can be operated in large part from a control panel.)

Reality: Well, this is a three parter. Increased production per worker is absolutely true, but in the United States, leisure time hasn't increased much since and the living standard has stagnated because... FREEDOM!!!1!

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Our new Friday regular comes in with his first prediction.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

2 June 2014

 Birthdays
Sterling Beaumon b. 1995 (Lost, Heroes)
Stephan Bender b. 1989 (Superman Returns)
Amber Marshall b. 1988 (Fallout Asylum, Dark Oracle, Resident Evil: Apocalypse)
Jewel Staite b. 1982 (Supernatural, Warehouse 13, Mothman, Stargate: Atlantis, Serenity, Wonderfalls, Dead Like Me, Firefly, The Immortal, Honey I Shrunk the Kids: TV Show, Flash Forward, The X-Files, Sanctuary, Kyle XY, Supernatural, Thralls)
James Ransome b. 1979 (Jericho, The American Astronaut)
Morena Baccarin b. 1979 (V, Serenity, Firefly, Stargate SG-1, Sands of Oblivion)
Dominic Cooper b. 1978 (Dracula Untold, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Dead Man Down, Captain America: The First Avenger, The Devil’s Double, Jericho, From Hell)
Nikki Cox b. 1978 (Eerie, Indiana, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Justin Long b. 1978 (Idiocracy, The Sasquatch Gang, Galaxy Quest)
Zachary Quinto b. 1977 (Star Trek Into Darkness, Star Trek, American Horror Story, Heroes, Charmed)
Leah Cairns b. 1974 (Interstallar, The Tomorrow People, Mega Cyclone, Battlestar Galactica)
Wentworth Miller b. 1972 (Resident Evil, Underworld, Dinotopia, Buffy)
Anthony Montgomery b. 1971 (Enterprise, Charmed, Stargate SG-1)
Joel Tobeck b. 1971 (Power Rangers, 30 Days of Night, Mee-Shee: The Water Giant, The Lord of the Rings, Cleopatra 2525, Xena, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Mysterious Island, My Grandpa is a Vampire)
Sean Chapman b. 1961 (Hellraiser I and II)
Liam Cunningham b. 1961 (Game of Thrones, Doctor Who, Merlin, Clash of the Titans, Blood: The Last Vampire, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Police 2020)
Dennis Haysbert b. 1954 (Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, The Thirteenth Floor, K-9000, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Galactica 1980, The Incredible Hulk)
Kevork Malikyan b. 1943 (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, The Thief of Baghdad [TV], Doctor Who)
Charles Haid b. 1943 (The Dreamer of Oz, Nightbreed, Deadly Nightmares, The Twilight Zone, Wonder Woman, Altered States, The Amazing Spider-Man)
Stacy Keach b. 1941 (Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, Man with the Screaming Brain, Galaxy Hunter, Future Fear, Escape form L.A., Amanda & the Alien, Class of 1999, Project U.F.O.)
Sally Kellerman b. 1937 (Deadtime Stories, Faerie Tale Theatre, Slither, The Invaders, Star Trek, The Outer Limits, Twilight Zone)
Robert Tessier b. 1934 died 11 October 1990 (Future Force, Amazing Stories, Manimal, The Sword and the Sorcerer, The Incredible Hulk, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Star Crash, The Velvet Vampire)
Charles “Pete” Conrad b. 1930 died 8 July 1999 (Apollo 12 moonwalker)
Thomas Hill b. 1927 died 20 April 2009 (The NeverEnding Story I and II, V: The Final Battle, Wizards and Warriors, Firefox, World War III, Quintet)
Milo O’Shea b. 1926 died 2 April 2013 (Beauty and the Beast, Theatre of Blood, Barbarella)
Lester del Rey b. 1915 died 10 May 1993 (author, The Year After Tomorrow, Into Thy Hands)

Okay, let's start with the Picture Slot. Guys who walked on the moon are trump this year, no debate.

If not for Pete Conrad, I might have gone with Liam Cunningham from Game of Thrones, or one of the many fabulous babes, most notably Morena Baccarin, Jewel Staite or Sally Kellerman, or I don't know... how about Spock? There's also a passel of actors better known for non-genre roles Like Stacy Keach as Mike Hammer, Charles Quaid as Renko on Hill Street Blues, Justin Long as the Mac in the Mac & PC ads, and James Ransome as Ziggy Sobotka on The Wire.

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: In 2010, the first portable biochip interface computer model will be demonstrated. A high-speed biochip interface will be patented. The chip will be implanted near crucial nerve bundles in one side of the chest with a plug that lies on the skin surface. A thin wire will run from the chip to the computer, which can be kept in any convenient pocket. The chip will pick up, average and translate brain waves recorded through residual ganglia vibration.

Reality:  Um... once the brain waves are picked up, what are we going to do with them?

Being as generous as I can, this kinda sorta is like the FitBit stuff that records activity like heartbeat and respiration. But brain waves are still a foreign language to us in terms of practical use and translation into anything that makes sense.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Our British pal Geoffrey Hoyle will also take a look at 2010, probably predicting technology that is more in the ball park.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

25 March 2014

Birthdays
Seychelle Gabriel b. 1991 (Falling Skies, The Last Airbender, The Spirit)
Kiowa Gordon b. 1990 (Twilight Saga)
Aly Michalka b. 1989 (Phil of the Future)
Sean Faris b. 1982 (Supernatural, Free Runner, The Vampire Diaries, Ghost Machine, Smallville)
Lee Pace b. 1979 (The Hobbit, Guardians of the Galaxy, Twilight: Breaking Dawn – Part 2, Wonderfalls, Pushing Daisies)
Lark Voorhies b. 1974 (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Small Wonder)
Laz Alonzo b. 1974 (Avatar)
Kari Matchett b. 1970 (Invasion, Plague City: SARS in Toronto, Wonderfalls, Cube, Cube2, Earth: Final Conflict, Poltergeist: The Legacy, PSI Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal, Forever Knight)
Sarah Jessica Parker b. 1965 (Mars Attacks!, Hocus Pocus)
Brenda Strong b. 1960 (Starship Troopers, 3rd Rock from the Sun, The Craft, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Spaceballs)
Peter O’Brien b. 1960 (Doctor Who, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Nightmares & Dreamscapes, Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America, Relic Hunter, The Lost World, Spellbinder: Land of the Dragon Lord, Time Trax)
Bonnie Bedelia b. 1948 (Flowers for Algernon [2000], Needful Things, The Boy Who Could Fly, Salem’s Lot)
Richard O'Brien b. 1942 (Elvira’s Haunted Hills, Dungeons & Dragons, Dark City, Flash Gordon, Shock Treatment, The Rocky Horror Picture Show)
D.C. Fontana b. 1939 (writer, Star Trek, Babylon 5, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Logan’s Run [TV], The Six Million Dollar Man)
Sylvia Anderson b. 1937 (writer, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons from Mars, Space:1999, UFO, Joe 90, Stingray, Fireball XL5, Supercar)
James Lovell b. 1928 (astronaut, twice to the moon, never stood on it)
Roberts Blossom b. 1924 died 8 July 2011 (The Twilight Zone[1980s], Tales from the Darkside, Resurrection, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Slaughterhouse-Five)
Patrick Troughton b. 1920 died 28 March 1987 (The Omen, Space: 1999, Doctor Who, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell, Scars of Dracula, The Gorgon, H.G. Wells’ Invisible Man)

This year, if I get a birthday of an astronaut, the Picture Slot decision is easy. Last year, I had a picture of D.C. Fontana, true to my Star Trek nerd roots. (If you want a quick explanation of the difference in quality between Star Trek and Space:1999, looking at the work of our two birthday girls D.C. Fontana and Sylvia Anderson gives you a good idea of the lay of the land.) If I ignore the Pretty Girl = Picture Slot criterion, my top two choices for next year will be Richard O'Brien as Riff-Raff and Patrick Troughton as the second Doctor.

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

Predictor: Ray Kurzweil in his 1999 book The Age of the Spiritual Machines

Prediction: Computers can recognize their owner's face from a picture or video.

Reality: This prediction takes a little parsing. He writes this in 1999 and facial recognition software had already had some breakthroughs in the late 1990s and improved significantly in the first ten years of this century.

To be precise, the prediction is about computers recognizing their owner's face. This might be a security procedure in some very high tech place where secrecy is at a premium, but it's certainly not an everyday feature of the computers sitting on multiple millions of desks in people's homes and offices. So it is fair to say some computers were able to do this in 2009, but this technology already existing in 1999 when he wrote this. I'm going to say this prediction is about facial recognition becoming an everyday thing a lot of people us, so I call this one a failure.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

T. Baron Russell gets pre-empted by Nate Silver, predicting the outcome of the election in November. People who know me well know how much I love Nate Silver. People who don't know me will find out my true feelings tomorrow.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

14 March 2014

 Birthdays
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, 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)
Grace Park b. 1974 (Battlestar Galactica, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Andromeda, Jake 2.0, Stargate SG-1, Dark Angel, The Immortal)
James Frain b. 1968 (Sleepy Hollow, Grimm, Tron Legacy, True Blood, FlashForward, Fringe, Invasion, Threshold, Loch Ness)
Kevin Williamson b. 1965 (writer, The Vampire Diaries, The Faculty)
Season Hubley b. 1951 (Humanoids From the Deep, The Twilight Zone [1985], Escape form New York)
Billy Crystal b. 1948 (The Princess Bride, Monsters, Inc. Monster’s U., Howl’s Moving Castle)
Wolfgang Petersen b. 1941 (director, The Neverending Story, Enemy Mine, Outbreak)
Eugene Cernan b. 1934 (astronaut)
Michael Caine b. 1933 (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], Jekyll & Hyde [TV], The Swarm, The Magus)
Albert Einstein b. 1979 died 18 April 1955 (physicist)

My rule in 2014: Astronauts are trump when it comes to selection for the Picture Slot. Gene Cernan walked on the moon and left his daughter's initials there. The many pretty girls on the list and the one movie star - Michael Caine - will get a chance next year.

Another possible choice for next year is Einstein. To be clear, I don't consider his work or Cernan's to be "fiction" in any way, but astronauts get included because space travel is so essential to the genre and Einstein is on the list for his thought experiments that revealed the very strange nature of light. At least in the public's mind, he is also the father of The Atomic Age, another idea vital to the genre.

Here's wishing many happy returns to all the living on our list and to Albert Einstein, thank you for your contributions to the understanding of the universe and the place of the public intellectual and citizen/scientist.

Predictor: Dr. Paul R. Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb, published 1968

Prediction: The population growth from 2 billion to 4 billion will take 37 years.

Reality: Multiple online sources agree these on the 2 billion threshold being met in 1927 and passing 4 billion took place in 1974. That is a span of 47 years, not 37.

Some might argue I'm just being a nitpicking math professor about this, but if we recall that 1927+37 = 1964, being off by ten years means 4 billion people would have happened four years before his book was published.

If Einstein is a positive role model for citizen/scientists, Ehrlich is about as bad as a citizen/scientist can do in the public sphere. He is pathetically sloppy when it comes to numbers and by overstating problems, he makes concern about those problems look like foolishness. While our new Thursday regular Lee de Forest made some very accurate forecasts in 1960, Ehrlich in 1968 will continue the horrible track record he has started with his first two clunkers.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Back to 1893, a time of optimism and facial hair.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
 

6 March 2014

 Birthdays
Elise Eberle b. 1993 (Salem, The Astronaut Farmer)
Dwayne Boyd b. 1972 (Resurrection, Sleepy Hollow, The Walking Dead, The Hunger Games, Surface)
Connie Britton b. 1967 (American Horror Story, A Nightmare on Elm Street)
Shuler Hensley b. 1967 (Odd Thomas, After.Life, Van Helsing)
Jonathan Scott-Taylor b. 1962 (Damien: Omen II, 1990)
Richard Schenkman b. 1958 (director, Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies, The Man from Earth)
Larry Cedar b. 1955 (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Charmed, Stargate SG-1, Star Trek: Enterprise, Honey, I Shrunk the Kid [TV], Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, C.H.U.D. II, Dreamscape, Battlestar Galactica [1978])
Anna Maria Horsford b. 1948 (Minority Report, The Chronicle)
Rob Reiner b. 1947 (director, The Princess Bride)
Martin Kove b. 1946 (Alien Lockdown, The Black Scorpion, Timelock, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Future Shock, Hard Time on Planet Earth, Twilight Zone, Beyond Westworld, The Incredible Hulk, Death Race 2000)
Ben Murphy b. 1942 (The Genesis Code, The Twilight Zone, Time Walker, Gemini Man)
Allison Hayes b. 1930 died 27 Feb. 1977 (The Hypnotic Eye, Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, The Unearthly, The Undead, Zombies of Mora Tau)
William F. Nolan b. 1928 (author, Logan’s Run)
Gordon Cooper b. 1927 died 4 October 2004 (astronaut)
Will Eisner b. 1917 died 3 January 2005 (author and illustrator, The Spirit)
Virginia Gregg b. 1916 died 15 September 1986 (Project U.F.O., Man From Atlantis, The Six Million Dollar Man, Bewitched, The Addams Family, My Favorite Martian, Twilight Zone, Kiss of the Vampire)
Lou Costello b. 1906 died 3 March 1959 (The Thirty Foot Bride of Candy Rock, Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy, Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Jack and the Beanstalk, Abbott and Costello Go to Mars, Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man)
Frank Hoban b. 1870 died 12 June 1943 (illustrator)
Cyrano de Bergerac b. 1619 died 28 July 1655 (author, The Comical History of the States and Empires of the Moon and Sun)

Last year, when I hadn't done as much research, Allison Hayes from The Attack of the 50 Foot Woman was in the Picture Slot for several reasons, but as much as possible I try to mix things up. The illustrators Frank Hoban and Will Eisner are certainly iconic and so is Jonathan Scott-Taylor was Damien in the second installment of the Omen series. But this year I'm going to honor the astronauts when I can, so we get a publicity photo of Gordon Cooper, one of the original Mercury Seven. Space travel still exists but the newness has worn off long ago, which is a shame. There are still places to explore and challenging technical problems to be overcome.

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

Movies released
Watchmen released, 2009

I saw on Facebook that Zach Snyder and Terry Gilliam are in a pissing contest. That's too bad, I like them both.

Predictor: Lee de Forest, the self-proclaimed "father of radio", predicting the world of 2000 in the 17 January 1960 edition of the Sunday supplement American Weekly.

Prediction: You will have portable telephones no larger than a king-size cigarette pack (transistor radios of that size already are being built). Walking down a street in Boston, you can call your family at home, or phone a friend in Los Angeles or even abroad.

Reality: De Forest gets full marks for this one. While he mentions transistor radios, the big step forward in miniaturization comes in the 1970s with microprocessor chips. This means he is predicting something where basic technology necessary is still several advances away, both with phone size and worldwide wireless telecommunication.

No snark here. This is an extremely accurate description of the state of the art in 2000.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

The first prediction from Paul Ehrlich, author of The Population Bomb. 

You know all that snark I didn't use today? I'm storing it up for tomorrow. Ehrlich's stuff is pretty bad.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
  

20 January 2014

Birthdays
Evan Peters b. 1987 (X-Men: Days of Future Past, American Horror Story, Kick-Ass, Invasion [TV])
Daniel Cudmore b. 1981 (Twilight, X-Men)
Crystal Lowe b. 1981 (Primeval: New World, Almost Human, Smallville, Supernatural, Stargate[TV])
Skeet Ulrich b. 1970 (Jericho, The Craft)
Rainn Wilson b. 1966 (Super, Monsters vs. Aliens, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Galaxy Quest, Charmed, Dark Angel)
R. A. Salvatore b. 1959 (author, Forgotten Realms series)
Daniel Benzali b. 1950 (Jericho, The X-Files, Star Trek: The Next Generation)
David Lynch b. 1946 (director, Dune, Eraserhead)
Tom Baker b. 1934 (Doctor Who, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Frankenstein: The True Story)
Buzz Aldrin b. 1930 (astronaut)
Peter Donat b. 1928 (The X-Files)
Patricia Neal b. 1926 died 8 August 2010 (The Day the Earth Stood Still)
DeForest Kelley b. 1920, died 6/11/1999 (Star Trek)
Colin Clive b. 1900 died 25 June 1937 (Frankenstein, Bride of Frankenstein)
A. Merritt b. 1884 died 21 August 1943 (author, The Moon Pool, Burn Witch Burn!)

The birthdays on the list span slightly more than 100 years today, and for my money there are four people who deserve The Picture Slot in nearly equal measure. Last year on this date, I put up a picture of DeForest Kelley, and I promised to have Buzz Aldrin this year. But I've done more research now and if I keep this up for four years, Tom Baker, still the most popular Doctor after all these years, and Colin Clive, the original Dr. Frankenstein in the first two movies in the series, have to get a shot as well.

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

Movies released
Underworld Awakening released, 2012
 

Predictor: OMNI Future Almanac

Prediction: in 2005, the first commercially viable biochip "interface" will be demonstrated. A volunteer will be connected by wire to a device that averages human brain waves and recognizes the wave that is a command to the computer by means of a biofeedback-learned code. The user will be able to answer any difficult question within thirty seconds by accessing the computer's massive database.

Reality: Oh, OMNI Future Almanac, you're adorable. This prediction isn't that much goofier than some of the stuff from our current regular Tuesday predictor Ray Kurzweil, but seeing the word "biofeedback" brought on a wonderful wave of nostalgia for me.

And since this section is labeled Reality instead of Enjoying the Quaint, I should say that nothing like this existed in 2005 and still doesn't exist today.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Yes, tomorrow will be a Tuesday and we will hear from Ray Kurzweil with another prediction about 2009 from his 1999 book.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!