Good afternoon ... and Happy Sunday, gentle readers! Here's hoping that your weekend has shaped up to be all that you ever wanted it to be, and maybe even that you're got a few great hours left to make right what could ever has possibly gone wrong in these two days ... two days that seem faster than is humanly possible, am I right?
Not a whole lot to report as of today. It is the weekend, after all, and news travels fairly slowly over it as all of our attentions are focused elsewhere. The usual outlets where I gather materials are even a bit slow today, and here -- in the great American Southwest -- we experienced a bit of uncharacteristic rainfall through the morning ... so it's a bit wet out there.
For those who follow closely, I will have a review up tomorrow -- along with any other news developments -- but, otherwise Monday might be a bit slow as well. I have a few items on the household agenda that might keep me off the blog for a good portion of the day. Life is what life is, and the lady and I have some evening plans tomorrow that are a must.
But ... as for today? I do have two big mentions.
Not a whole lot to report as of today. It is the weekend, after all, and news travels fairly slowly over it as all of our attentions are focused elsewhere. The usual outlets where I gather materials are even a bit slow today, and here -- in the great American Southwest -- we experienced a bit of uncharacteristic rainfall through the morning ... so it's a bit wet out there.
For those who follow closely, I will have a review up tomorrow -- along with any other news developments -- but, otherwise Monday might be a bit slow as well. I have a few items on the household agenda that might keep me off the blog for a good portion of the day. Life is what life is, and the lady and I have some evening plans tomorrow that are a must.
But ... as for today? I do have two big mentions.
Woohoo! It was all the way back in the year 1929 that Buck Rogers went to sleep and woke up in the land of tomorrow. The comic strip -- as created by Philip Francis Nowlan -- first went into press for readers who rather enthusiastically reacted to its presence, welcoming in one of genre's very first action stars ever.
Buck's popularity grew, and he expanded his readership by launching a comic book series that ran from 1932-1947. A radio show followed as well, but he only found sporadic success in that medium. From what I've read, I believe it ran a few years and then faded away only to be resurrected a time or two across the next decade or so. Furthermore, I believe -- though I could be wrong on this part -- that the Buck Rogers radio serial was the very first Science Fiction themed program of its kind; and that certainly proves that folks were hungry for SciFi, indeed.
In 1939, Buck even went boldly where no man (well, kinda) had gone before with the theatrical debut of his very own silver screen serial. Buster Crabbe -- yes, the same Buster Crabbe who found mainstream success by playing Flash Gordon -- suited up once more but this time as the true spaceman original. While I believe this was the only serial for the I.P. (Flash had three), I'm guessing that audiences were once again giddy to see their hero up in the lights.
Of course, folks of a certain generation know that Buck came back to life -- and Earth -- again with a 1979 project. Buck Rogers In The 25th Century cast actor Gil Gerard as the astronaut who awakens from a cryogenic freeze to find himself in the distant future; and the telefilm enjoyed a bit of a limited run on big screens before morphing into a weekly serial for home audiences.
While Buck's prospects have dried up, there's always the chance that he'll get dusted off and delivered once more for a new generation. I, for one, would cheer his return to greatness.
Buck's popularity grew, and he expanded his readership by launching a comic book series that ran from 1932-1947. A radio show followed as well, but he only found sporadic success in that medium. From what I've read, I believe it ran a few years and then faded away only to be resurrected a time or two across the next decade or so. Furthermore, I believe -- though I could be wrong on this part -- that the Buck Rogers radio serial was the very first Science Fiction themed program of its kind; and that certainly proves that folks were hungry for SciFi, indeed.
In 1939, Buck even went boldly where no man (well, kinda) had gone before with the theatrical debut of his very own silver screen serial. Buster Crabbe -- yes, the same Buster Crabbe who found mainstream success by playing Flash Gordon -- suited up once more but this time as the true spaceman original. While I believe this was the only serial for the I.P. (Flash had three), I'm guessing that audiences were once again giddy to see their hero up in the lights.
Of course, folks of a certain generation know that Buck came back to life -- and Earth -- again with a 1979 project. Buck Rogers In The 25th Century cast actor Gil Gerard as the astronaut who awakens from a cryogenic freeze to find himself in the distant future; and the telefilm enjoyed a bit of a limited run on big screens before morphing into a weekly serial for home audiences.
While Buck's prospects have dried up, there's always the chance that he'll get dusted off and delivered once more for a new generation. I, for one, would cheer his return to greatness.
Five years later -- and on the same day -- Buck's pronounced popularity has been cited as one of the key reasons for the birth of his biggest competitor of the era: Alex Raymond created Flash Gordon -- an Earthman sent to the stars to defend our world against Ming the Merciless came to life as a Sunday feature for King Features Syndicate.
History reports that it wasn't long before Raymond's more colorful space saga surpassed Buck in popularity; and I suppose that's the biggest reason why this one was rushed so quickly to the silver screen. Buster Crabbe took on the central role in the 1936 serial, a job he returned for again in 1938 and 1940.
Because Flash was a bit more prominent in the eyes and mind of the general public, he's had a bit more exposure across the decades. Like Buck, Flash also had some broadcast time in a radio serial, along with a handful of live-action and animated series on television. Of course, no conversation about Gordon can take place without mentioning the 1980 cult film -- Flash Gordon -- starring Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, and Max Von Sydow. Though that incarnation was (depending upon whom you believe) a critical disaster for its day, it's grown in popularity over the years and continues to resonate with fans who discover its lunacy decades later.
Not all that long ago, I recall reading that the franchise was also being considered for an all new iteration on the big screen. (In fact, I think it was attached to Taika Waititi for some time.) However, I want to say that the rights were somehow in the Walt Disney Company's hands, and they shelved the adaptation chiefly because they didn't want to compete with their own Star Wars sequels heavily in development and production. Hopefully, someone can rectify that miscalculation and give Flash the chance to swashbuckle his way into our hearts once more.
History reports that it wasn't long before Raymond's more colorful space saga surpassed Buck in popularity; and I suppose that's the biggest reason why this one was rushed so quickly to the silver screen. Buster Crabbe took on the central role in the 1936 serial, a job he returned for again in 1938 and 1940.
Because Flash was a bit more prominent in the eyes and mind of the general public, he's had a bit more exposure across the decades. Like Buck, Flash also had some broadcast time in a radio serial, along with a handful of live-action and animated series on television. Of course, no conversation about Gordon can take place without mentioning the 1980 cult film -- Flash Gordon -- starring Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, and Max Von Sydow. Though that incarnation was (depending upon whom you believe) a critical disaster for its day, it's grown in popularity over the years and continues to resonate with fans who discover its lunacy decades later.
Not all that long ago, I recall reading that the franchise was also being considered for an all new iteration on the big screen. (In fact, I think it was attached to Taika Waititi for some time.) However, I want to say that the rights were somehow in the Walt Disney Company's hands, and they shelved the adaptation chiefly because they didn't want to compete with their own Star Wars sequels heavily in development and production. Hopefully, someone can rectify that miscalculation and give Flash the chance to swashbuckle his way into our hearts once more.
Naturally, there's more to January 7th than just these two citations, but I use this space only to draw attention to those owed a bit more exposure, often adding some greater context to the properties. Both of these are longtime favorites of mine and fandom in general, and here's hoping that continues in the days, weeks, months, years, and more ahead.
But ... if you're truly looking for more? Here you go ...
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing (always a personal favorite of mine, peeps) ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
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