29 March 2015

Birthdays
Chris Massoglia b. 1992 (Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant, The Hole)
Hayley McFarland b. 1991 (The Conjuring, Pushing Daisies)
Luke Eberl b. 1986 (Eyeborgs, Planet of the Apes, Phantoms)
Caitlin Wehrle b. 1985 (The Initiation of Sarah [2006], Idiocracy)
Ed Skrein b. 1983 (Deadpool, Game of Thrones)
Chad Rook b. 1982 (The Flash, iZombie, Supernatural, Dreamcatcher)
Jeffrey Parazzo b. 1978 (Power Rangers)
Ed Vassallo b. 1972 died 25 February 2014 (Fringe, War of the Worlds)
Sam Hazeldine b. 1972 (Resurrection, The Wolfman [2010])
Ryan Lambert b. 1971 (The Monster Squad)
Frank Gilhooley b. 1971 (Outlander, Guardians of the Galaxy)
Krista Sutton b. 1970 (The Neighbors)
Lucy Lawless b. 1968 (Ash vs Evil Dead, Salem, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., No Ordinary Family, Angel of Death, Battlestar Galactica, Bedtime Stories, Vampire Bats, Locusts, Boogeyman, Spider-Man, The X-Files, Xena, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Hercules and the Amazon Women [1994], The Ray Bradbury Theater)
Elle Macpherson b. 1964 (Batman & Robin)
Amy Sedaris b. 1961 (Jennifer’s Body, Bewitched [2005], Elf)
Michael Winterbottom b. 1961 (director, Time Riders)
Annabella Sciorra b. 1960 (What Dreams May Come, Asteroid)
Victor Salva b. 1958 (director, Jeepers Creepers I, II & III)
Christopher Lambert b. 1957 (Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Blood Shot, Metamorphosis, Southland Tales, Highlander, Beowulf, Mortal Kombat)
Marina Sirtis b. 1955 (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Castlevania: Hymn of Blood, The Grudge 3, InAlienable, Grendel, Terminal Error, Stargate SG-1, Earth: Final Conflict, The Outer Limits, Gargoyles, Waxwork II: Lost in Time)
Brendan Gleeson b. 1955 (Edge of Tomorrow, Harry Potter, Beowulf, The Village, 28 Days Later…, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Lake Placid)
Christopher Lawford b. 1955 (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, The 6th Day, Blankman)
Bud Cort b. 1948 (Dogma, The Mask [TV], Theodore Rex, The Twilight Zone, Deadly Nightmares, Invaders From Mars, Tales from the Darkside, Faerie Tale Theatre, Brave New World, Brewster McCloud, Gas! –Or- It Became Necessary to Destroy the World in Order to Save It)
Eric Idle b. 1943 (Ella Enchanted, Casper, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Faerie Tale Theatre)
Scott Wilson b. 1942 (The Walking Dead, Radio Free Ablemuth, The Host [2006], The X-Files, Judge Dredd, Tall Tale, The Exorcist III, The Twilight Zone)
Terence Hill b. 1939 (Die Nibelungen 1 & 2)
Jackie Vernon b. 1924 died 10 November 1987 (Faerie Tale Theatre, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, The Monitors)
Phil Foster b. 1914 died 8 July 1985 (Conquest of Space)
Arthur O’Connell b. 1908 died 18 May 1981 (Ben, The Reluctant Astronaut, Fantastic Voyage, 7 Faces of Dr. Lao)
Philip Ahn b. 1905 died 28 February 1978 (Wonder Woman, The Time Tunnel)
Onslow Stevens b. 1902 died 5 January 1977 (Them!, Mark of the Gorilla, House of Dracula)

Notes on the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. Simply put, my earlier choices were the iconic fabulous babes, Lucy Lawless and Marina Sirtis. Avoiding repetition, I figured it was either Eric Idle in Munchausen or the winner, Brendan Gleeson in Harry Potter.

2. Spot the Canadians! There are three, not easy to spot: Chad Rook, Jeffrey Parazzo and Krista Sutton.

3. Nepotism FTW.  Christopher Lawford is the son of Peter Lawford and part of the Kennedy clan.

4. The Guy at the Door. Terence Hill, born in Italy, is best known to American audiences for his work in spaghetti westerns. He was also in a German filmed version of the Ring of the Nibelung epic, but without Wagner's music. He's also the oldest living person on the list, so he gets special birthday wishes today.

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

 

Predictor: Robert A. Heinlein in 1956 book The Door Into Summer

Prediction: Quite a lot can happen in thirty years (from 1970 to 2000). I wasn’t surprised the Great Asia Republic was crowding us out of the South American trade; that had been in the cards since the Formosan treaty. Nor was I surprised to find India more Balkanized than ever. The notion of England being a province of Canada stopped me for a moment.

Reality: Nothing here we can call a hit. There is no Great Asia Republic, but many Asian companies are our rivals throughout Latin America. India hasn't changed that much politically, even from 1956 and as for England being a province of Canada, I think the Canadians are just too polite to ask.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

The new week rolls around and we get another prediction from The OMNI Future Almanac.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
  

10 February 2015

 Birthdays
Tiffany Espensen b. 1999 (Earth to Echo, Repo Men)
Chloe Grace Moretz b. 1997 (The Fifth Wave, Carrie [2013], Dark Shadows, Hugo, Let Me in, Jack and the Beanstalk, Kick-Ass)
Makenzie Vega b. 1994 (X-Men: The Last Stand, Sin City)
Emma Roberts b. 1991 (American Horror Story, Scream 4, Aquamarine)
Jade and Nikita Ramsey b. 1988 (Chromeskull: Laid to Rest 2, All About Evil, Gamer, The Man Who Sold the World [2006], X-Men 2)
Emily Morris b. 1982 (The Vampire Diaries, I Kissed a Vampire)
Barry Sloane b. 1981 (Gotham [2012 TV Movie])
Max Brown b. 1981 (Sleepy Hollow [2015], Beauty and the Beast [2013])
Keeley Hawes b. 1976 (Doctor Who, The Adventurer: Curse of the Midas Box)
Meadow Williams b. 1976 (Raven [2010], Apollo 13, The Mask)
Elizabeth Banks b. 1974 (The Hunger Games, Spider-Man)
Rob Carpenter b. 1973 (iZombie, V [2010], Condition Human, Reaper, Flash Gordon [2007])
Laura Dern b. 1967 (Jurassic Park)
Paul Kersey b. 1970 (Hulk, Charmed, Lois & Clark)
Vince Gilligan b. 1967 (writer, Hancock, Night Stalker [2006], The X-Files, The Lone Gunmen, Wilder Napalm)
Philip Glenister b. 1963 (Demons)
Robert Addie b. 1960 died 30 November 2003 (Red Dwarf, Merlin, Excalibur)
Bess Motta b. 1958 (The Terminator)
Michael Apted b. 1941 (director, Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)
Peter Purves b. 1939 (Doctor Who)
Robert Wagner b. 1930 (Netherbeast Incorporated, Category 7: The End of the World, City Beneath the Sea)
Jerry Goldsmith b. 1929 died 21 July 2004 (composer, Star Trek, The Mummy, Small Soldiers, Congo, Omen IV, Alien Nation, Supergirl, Twilight Zone: The Movie, Coma, Logan’s Run, The Satan Bug)
John Ringham b. 1928 died 20 October 2008 (V for Vendetta, A Christmas Carol [1977], Doctor Who)
Hazel Court b. 1926 died 15 April 2008 (Omen III, Masque of the Red Death, Twilight Zone, The Raven, Premature Burial, The Curse of Frankenstein [1957], Devil Girl From Mars)
Walter Reed b. 1916 died 20 August 2001 (The Invaders, Batman, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Twilight Zone, World of Giants, How to Make a Monster, Adventures of Superman, Flying Disc Man from Mars)
Douglas Spencer b. 1910 died 6 October 1960 (Twilight Zone, This Island Earth, The Thing from Another World)
Lon Chaney Jr. b. 1906 died 12 July 1973 (Dracula vs. Frankenstein, House of the Black Death, The Alligator People, The Cyclops, Indestructible Man, Bride of the Gorilla, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, House of Dracula, The Mummy’s Curse, House of Frankenstein, The Mummy’s Ghost, Son of Dracula, The Mummy’s Tomb, The Ghost of Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, Man Made Monster, One Million B.C.)
Dame Judith Anderson b. 1897 died 3 January 1992 (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, The Borrowers)
Robert Keith b. 1890 died 22 December 1966 (Twilight Zone)

Notes from the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. In previous years, the Picture Slot was awarded to Lon Chaney Jr. and Laura Dern. This year, I could go with Elizabeth Banks from The Hunger Games or Hazel Court from Devil Girl From Mars, but instead I chose Chloe Grace Moretz as Hit-Girl from Kick-Ass. She's one of the most successful child actors of the 21st Century and I think she's got a good chance to transition into adult roles. I'm somewhat conflicted about giving the Fabulous Babe label to an 18 year old because there's a lot of creepiness around actresses becoming legal age, but she's a good actress and she's adorable, so there.

2. One Canadian, pre-spotted for your convenience. Rob Carpenter is Canadian, though he hasn't been on either Supernatural or Smallville. It happens.

3. Nepotism FTW. It isn't truly nepotism if a father's career isn't as successful as his son's, and that is the case with Robert Keith and his son Brian. Lon Chaney Jr. may not have been the star his father was in the silent movies, but he had a long career and is likely on a par with his father's fame now, though both are waning. Laura Dern has worked so much, I don't think most folks think of her as Bruce Dern's daughter anymore. On the other hand, Emma Roberts is most likely better known as Eric Roberts' daughter (or Julia Roberts' niece) than she is for her own accomplishments so far.

4. Lotsa Brits today. The American (and Canadian) film and TV industries produce a lot more genre than the British do, though there are exceptions like Doctor Who, Harry Potter and a lot of the cast of Game of Thrones. We have a few Doctor Who actors today, but there's also Dame Judith Anderson, The Ramsey Twins, Barry Sloane, Max Brown, Philip Glenister, Robert Addie, Michael Apted and Hazel Court. That is a lot more than usual.

5. MST3K. I almost forgot The Indestructible Man with Lon Cheney Jr. and This Island Earth with Douglas Spencer.

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

Movie released
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island released, 2012
  

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

Prediction: The Vienna Conference of 2001 split the world into “regions of influence” among the major powers. To Russia and its partners were assigned Central Asia and the Middle East, excluding Israel (under American influence) and North Africa, which was ceded to the European Community along with the rest of the continent.

Reality: Oh yeah, the Russians are going to be given "influence" over the region where most of the oil is produced.

Sorry, professor, never gonna fuckin' happen without a big damned war with a very surprising winner.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Another speculation from our New Sensible Friend George Sutherland.

Join us then... 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!

2 January 2015

Birthdays
Shelley Hennig b. 1987 (Teen Wolf)
Kristen Hager b. 1984 (Being Human, A Little Bit Zombie, The Dresden Files, Alien vs. Predator: Requiem)
Kate Bosworth b. 1983 (Superman Returns)
David Gyasi b. 1980 (Interstellar, Cloud Atlas, The Dark Knight Rises, Doctor Who, Torchwood)
Paz Vega b. 1976 (The Spirit, Talk to Her)
Dax Shepard b. 1975 (Idiocracy, Zathura: A Space Adventure)
Lucy Davis b. 1973 (Reaper, Shaun of the Dead, Belfry Witches)
Taye Diggs b. 1971 (Equilibrium, House on Haunted Hill)
Evan Parke b. 1968 (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, American Horror Story, King Kong, Charmed, Planet of the Apes [2001])
Cuba Gooding Jr. b. 1968 (Hardwired, The Devil’s Tomb, What Dreams May Come, Outbreak)
Tia Carrere b. 1967 (Asteroid vs. Earth, Warehouse 13, Supernova, Relic Hunter, Merlin: The Return, Tales from the Crypt, Kull the Conqueror, Quantum Leap, Zombie Nightmare)
James Marshall b. 1967 (Alien Lockdown, The Hunger [2000 TV])
Kate Hodge b. 1966 (Fringe, Level 9, Xena, The Hidden II, She-Wolf of London, Tales from the Crypt)
Joanna Pacula b. 1957 (Dinocroc, Virus, Timemaster, E.A.R.T.H. Force)
John Bedford Lloyd b. 1956 (Aliens in the Family, SeaQuest2032, The Abyss, C.H.U.D.)
Deborah Watling b. 1948 (Doctor Who, H.G. Wells Invisible Man [1959])
Charles Beaumont b. 1929 died 21 February 1967 (writer, Queen of Outer Space, Burn, Witch, Burn, Premature Burial, Twilight Zone, 7 Faces of Dr. Lao, The Masque of the Red Death)
Howard Caine b. 1928 died 28 December 1993 (My Favorite Martian, The Outer Limits, Twilight Zone)
Jason Evers b. 1922 died 13 March 2005 (The Bionic Woman, The Fantastic Journey, Escape for the Planet of the Apes, The Illustrated Man, Star Trek, The Invaders, The Brain That Wouldn’t Die)
Isaac Asimov b. 1920 (or not) died 6 March 1992 (definitely) (won 1973 Nebula and Hugo for The Gods Themselves, won 1983 Hugo for Foundation’s Edge)
Alvin Hammer b. 1915 died 31 October 1993 (Scrooged, Planet of the Apes [1974 TV])
Anna Lee b. 1913 died 14 May 2004 (Jack the Giant Killer, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir [1947 Film])
Charles P. Thompson b.1891 died 26 October 1979 (Twilight Zone, Teenage Cave Man)

Notes on the birthday list.
1. The Picture Slot. When it comes to importance in the genre, no one on the list compares to Isaac Asimov and I nearly repeated using his picture. But when I thought about iconic, Deborah Watling was a companion to the Second Doctor, so at least for the Brits, she certainly qualifies. As luck (or lack thereof) would have it, she is also The Gal at the Door, the oldest person living on the list with everyone younger than her still alive. 67 is a crazy low age for this particular situation, but this was one of those lists without anyone born in the 1930s. As always, the blog presents its special best wishes for many happy returns to Ms Watling.

2. Canadian, pre-spotted. Kristen Hager is the lone Canuck on the list today, and while Being Human and The Dresden Flies are Canadian productions, there is a British Being Human as well and these are not the best known shows.

3. Hey, no Star Trek! It's a somewhat show birthday list and the gap between Charles Beaumont and Deborah Watling is where we should expect to see the actors and guest stars from the original Star Trek, but no one is there today. I've only been keeping track since October, but a Star Trek free day happens about once every nine days on average.

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

Predictor: H.G. Wells in the 1902 book Anticipations

Prediction: [The combination of Canada, United States, Britain and its colonies] should be the first of the three powers of the world, and it should face the organizing syntheses of Europe and Eastern Asia with an intelligent sympathy.

Reality: While the three countries mentions are clearly allies, this is not a very good picture of the state of geopolitics. It is interesting to note how much it is like Orwell's view of the split in Nineteen Eighty-Four.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

This weekend, we will take a look at what the CIA in 2000 thought 2015 would look like, Saturday for what they got right and Sunday for what they got wrong.

 
Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!

20 August 2014

 Birthdays
Andrew Garfield b. 1983 (Amazing Spider-Man, Never Let Me Go, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Doctor Who)
Ben Barnes b. 1981 (The Chronicles of Narnia, Dorian Gray, Stardust)
Ali Liebert b. 1981 (Lost Girl, Apollo 18, Fringe, Kyle XY, Fallen [TV mini-series], The 4400, Dead Like Me)
Amy Adams b. 1974 (Man of Steel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, Enchanted, Smallville, Buffy, Charmed, Psycho Beach Party)
Chaney Kley b. 1972 died 24 July 2007 (Darkness Falls, Buffy)
Jonathan Ke Quan b. 1971 (Encino Man, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom)
David Walliams b. 1971 (Doctor Who, Stardust)
Colin Cunningham b. 1966 (Falling Skies, Impact, Stargate, The 4400, Stephen King’s Dead Zone, Elektra, Andromeda, Smallville, Dark Angel, Strange Frequency, The 6th Day, The X-Files)
James Marsters b. 1962 (Metal Hurlant Chronicles, Warehouse 13, Three Inches, Supernatural, Smallville, Caprica, Moonshot, Torchwood, Angel, Buffy, Strange Frequency)
Sophie Aldred b. 1962 (Doctor Who)
Geoffrey Blake b. 1962 (Beauty and the Beast [2014], The Event, Charmed, Mighty Joe Young, Contact, Apollo 13, Deep Space Nine, Critters 3, Alien Nation [TV], ALF, The Last Starfighter)
Joan Allen b. 1956 (Pleasantville, Twilight Zone [1986])
Jay Acavone b. 1955 (InAlienable, The Hills Have Eyes II, Stargate SG-1, Terminated 3, Charmed, The X Files, The Invisible Man, Sliders, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show, Dark Skies, Independence Day, Beauty and the Beast [1990], Werewolf [TV])
Peter Horton b. 1953 (Thoughtcrimes, Brimstone, From the Earth to the Moon, T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous, Children of the Corn)
Greg Bear b. 1951 (won 1995 Nebula for Moving Mars and 2001 Nebula for Darwin’s Radio)
Patrick Kilpatrick b. 1949 (The Zombinator, The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Minority Report, Roswell, Dark Angel, The X Files, Angel, Star Trek: Voyager, Charmed, Deep Space Nine, Timecop [TV mini-series], Beastmaster III, Babylon 5, The Stand, Lois & Clark, Time Trax, Class of 1999, The Toxic Avenger)
John Noble b. 1948 (Sleepy Hollow, Fringe, Stargate SG-1, Lord of the Rings, The Lost World, Time Trax)
Ray Wise b. 1947 (Big Ass Spider!, Nuclear Family, X-Men: First Class, Dollhouse, Pandemic, Reaper, Cyxork 7, Jeepers Creepers II, Charmed, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: The Next Generation, RoboCop, Cat People, Swamp Thing)
Sylvester McCoy b. 1943 (The Hobbit, Doctor Who. Leapin’ Leprechauns!, Starstrider, Dracula [1979], Roberts Robots)
Anthony Ainley b. 1932 died 3 May 2004 (Doctor Who, The Land Time Forgot, The Blood on Satan’s Claw, The Champions)
Bernard Archard b. 1916 died 1 May 2008 (Krull, Doctor Who, The Horror of Frankenstein, Village of the Damned)
H.P. Lovecraft b. 1890 died 15 March 1937 (author, The Call of Cthulhu, The Dunwich Horror)

This year, I decided to give special status to actors who starred in Doctor Who, which saves me from a very tough Picture Slot choice based solely on the merits. Last year it was H. P. Lovecraft and next year I have no idea who I'll choose, because there are a lot of actors with iconic roles on the list. Will it be Short Round or Spike or Dr. Bishop? Heck, I might choose a role from Ray Wise, just because he's one of my favorite Oh That Guy actors.

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

Predictor: Herman Kahn in the 1972 book Things to Come, published by the Hudson Institute.

Prediction: The chronic confrontations will continue at least through 1985.
1. US vs. USSR
2. USSR vs. China
3. China vs. US
4. The Germanies
5. China-Taiwan
6. Korea
7. Vietnam
8, Arab-Israeli
9. India-Pakistan
10. Japan-China


Reality: Kahn gets at least 8.5 of 10 on this one. He gets a complete whiff on Vietnam, missing that the United States would give up on that one, not such a hard prediction in 1972. In my opinion, Japan-China wasn't at the level of belligerence as the other nine in the early 1970s and the United Kingdom vs. IRA would have been a more apt replacement. East vs. West Germany vanished as well, but since that happened after Kahn's 1985 cut-off date, he gets full credit for listing them.

Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!

Thursday means Lee de Forest, the "father of radio" and a hit or miss predictor looks at the year 2000.

Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!