Arthur Bowen b. 1998 (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2)
Abigail Breslin b. 1996 (Ender’s Game, Zombieland)
Graham Phillips b. 1993 (Ben 10)
Jo Osmond b. 1987 (Jupiter Ascending, Maleficent, Snow White and the Huntsman, Doctor Who)
Sarah Michelle Gellar b. 1977 (Buffy, Angel, Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog, The Grudge, Southland Tales, Scooby-Doo)
Langley Kirkwood b. 1973 (Dredd, The Prisoner [2009], Dracula 3000, Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend)
Adrien Brody b. 1973 (Predators, King Kong, The Village)
Anthony Michael Hall b. 1968 (Zombie Night, Warehouse 13, The Dark Knight, Stephen King’s The Dead Zone, No Ordinary Family, Poltergeist: The Legacy, Edward Scissorhands, Weird Science)
Tim Holmes b. 1967 (Oz the Great and Powerful, Real Steel, Highlander)
Bob Clendenin b. 1964 (Star Trek [2009], Reaper, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, The Tick, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Charmed, Dude, Where’s My Car?, Roswell, Star Trek: Voyager)
Gina McKee b. 1964 (MirrorMask)
Robert Carlyle b. 1961 (Once Upon a Time, SGU Stargate Universe, 28 Weeks Later, Eragon)
Peter Capaldi b. 1958 (Doctor Who, World War Z, Torchwood, Smilla’s Feeling for Snow, The Cloning of Joanna May)
Chris Ellis b. 1956 (Warehouse 13, The Dark Knight Rises, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, The Island, Birds of Prey, Armageddon, Godzilla [1998], From the Earth to the Moon, The X-Files, Apollo 13, Addams Family Values)
Bruce Sterling b. 1954 (author, Islands in the Net, The Difference Engine [with William Gibson])
Dave Gibbons b. 1949 (artist, Watchmen, Breakthrough)
John Shea b. 1949 (Agent X, Mutant X, Lois & Clark, Honey I Blew Up the Kid, Freejack, Man From Atlantis)
Julie Christie b. 1941 (Red Riding Hood [2011], Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, DragonHeart, Fahrenheit 451, The Andromeda Breakthrough)
Erich von Daniken b. 1935 (author, Chariots of the Gods)
Jack Mc Devitt b. 1935(author, 2007 Nebula for Seeker)
Jay Robinson b. 1930 died 27 September 2013 (Dracula [1992], Transylvania Twist, The Sword and the Sorcerer, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Dr. Shrinker, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Planet of the Apes, Bewitched, Star Trek)
Gerry Anderson b. 1929 died 26 December 2012 (writer, Captain Scarlet, Thunderbirds, Lavender Castle, Space Precinct, Space; 1999, UFO, Joe 90, Stingray, Fireball XL5, Supercar)
Rod Steiger b. 1925 died 9 July 2002 (End of Days, Modern Vampires, Mars Attacks!, The Kindred, The Illustrated Man)
Joseph Ruskin b. 1924 died 28 December 2013 (The Scorpion King, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Insurrection, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Sword and the Sorcerer, Captain America [1979], Project U.F.O., Wonder Woman, The Bionic Woman, The Six Million Dollar Man, Planet of the Apes, Land of the Giants, Star Trek, The Time Tunnel, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Twilight Zone)
Philip Stone b. 1924 died 15 June 2003 (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Flash Gordon, The Medusa Touch, Star Maidens, A Clockwork Orange, Unearthly Stranger)
Sir John Gielgud b. 1904 died 21 May 2000 (Merlin, DragonHeart, Gulliver’s Travels, Frankenstein [1984], Frankenstein: The True Story [1973], Alice in Wonderland [1966])
Now that's a list. I've decided to give The Doctors priority this year, but last year I gave the Picture Slot to Sarah Michelle Gellar and she could easily have been given a repeat engagement. (I was also proud to know something imdb.com didn't know, her an uncredited cameo in Dr. Horrible, sitting next to the groups in the scene where Captain Hammer sings Everyone's a Hero in Their Own Way.) Other strong choices are Julie Christie from Fahrenheit 451, as fabulous as fabulous babes get, the late Joseph Ruskin, though he got a Never to be Forgotten already, or some of the marionettes from a Gerry Anderson show, though to tell the truth they disturb me almost as much as clowns do. While I'm proud of the Dr. Horrible trivia coup, I'm a little ashamed that I didn't give Jay Robinson a send-off last year. I'm usually good at noting the obits and actors from the original Star Trek are always worth a mention. (He was the ambassador in Elaan of Troyius.) And that ignores acting legends like Sir John Gielgud and Rod Steiger.
Many happy returns to the living on the list and to the dead, thanks for all the memories.
Prediction: (reality in parentheses) Timetable for gene-spliced drugs
1983 Human insulin (exists)
1984 Human Growth Hormone (exists)
1984 Interferon (exists, not the wonder drug that was hoped for)
1985 Urokinase, blood clot dissolver (papers sited on the drug for mice, not humans)
1985 Leutenizing hormone releasing hormone for contraceptive (Long acting reversible contraceptive gets widespread use in about 2007)
1985 Thymosin immune booster (the link I found looks like it belongs to a quack)
1986 Factor VIII clotting agent (A 2010 paper says there is some hope in new research)
1986 Somatostatin for high blood pressure (lanreotide approved by FDA in 2007)
1987 Beta endorphin analgesic (papers about usage appear in the early 2000s)
1987 Dinorphin analgesic (looks like a dead end)
1987 MSH/ACTH memory enhancer (no success seen here)
1988 Bombesin appetite suppressant (still in research)
1988 Cholecystokinin appetite suppressant (still in research)
1988 Factor S sleep promoter (nothing found on this)
OMNI loved them some biotech back in the day. They thought Genenetech would be as big as General Motors by now. There have been successes of course, but it's still a minor part of the economy.
Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!
We bid a fond farewell to Ray Kurzweil, with another prediction that didn't do so well.
Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
Glad you included Bruce Sterling, in my opinion a good cyberpunk author. The Difference Engine is more steampunk alternate history. I would recommend Islands in the Net for an interesting take on corporations taking over from world governments. A lot of it is already true.
ReplyDeleteI'll put it on the list. I just read The Space Merchants by Pohl for the first time and the book also has the corporations taking over from the government. Starts well, some good ideas, not a very convincing end, which happens a lot in sci-fi.
DeleteIslands in the Net is brilliant. With jokes, and an ending that feels like The Forever War was supposed to.
ReplyDelete"Genentech would be as big as General Motors by now." And here we thought they might be successful.