Good afternoon, gentle readers, and welcome to 'On This Day In Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror History' for April 11, 2024!
Let the merriment begin!
I know, I know, I know: "where were you yesterday?!" Well, I was busy, folks, so apologies that I didn't get a post up. I should've -- I had time -- but I got sidetracked with a few things here and there, time got away from me, and there you have it. I really have no excuse other than I just didn't get around to it. Refunds will be issued ... assuming you ever paid.
Hahahahahaha.
But I'm here now, and I'm ready and raring to go. Sometimes, a day away from the blog can accomplish some incredible things. I did a slew of lesser research on some obscure titles, and I spent a bit of time fashioning the review for 1957's The Tin Star that I posted on the MainPage only moments ago. Check it out, if you're so inclined. Also, I had a thing in the evening that required a bit of attention, so we are where we are. As they say: "suck it."
As for today's history?
Let the merriment begin!
I know, I know, I know: "where were you yesterday?!" Well, I was busy, folks, so apologies that I didn't get a post up. I should've -- I had time -- but I got sidetracked with a few things here and there, time got away from me, and there you have it. I really have no excuse other than I just didn't get around to it. Refunds will be issued ... assuming you ever paid.
Hahahahahaha.
But I'm here now, and I'm ready and raring to go. Sometimes, a day away from the blog can accomplish some incredible things. I did a slew of lesser research on some obscure titles, and I spent a bit of time fashioning the review for 1957's The Tin Star that I posted on the MainPage only moments ago. Check it out, if you're so inclined. Also, I had a thing in the evening that required a bit of attention, so we are where we are. As they say: "suck it."
As for today's history?
You know, one of the reasons I ultimately began SciFiHistory.Net is that I grew tired of hearing from young(ish) folks that they didn't know what I was talking about.
Culturally, we tend to lose our history. We tend to forget things that we're either not encouraged to know or we make a serious attempt to acknowledge existed in some way, shape, or form. In my years of blathering incessantly about Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror on the World Wide Web or message boards or the like, I came across scads and scads and scads of people who "claimed" to be "hardcore" fans for "years and years" and yet they'd never heard of Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, or John Carter. So, yeah, I started to seriously question what being a "hardcore" fan truly meant, and I figured this was the best way I could (cough cough) help them be better at it.
So, yeah, if that offends you, so be it. But ... maybe don't call yourself a hardcore fan if you don't know the history?
That's what's really shameful about us as a people, that somehow we let properties like Buck Rogers go dormant for so many years, never quite calling attention to it or giving it the attention it might be owed for paving the way for so, so, so many other franchises. While the original comic strip began in January, 1929, it wasn't until a decade later that Hollywood got around to bringing it to life on the silver screen ... and, lo and behold, they cast the guy who has basically popularized Flash Gordon in serial format to inhabit the seminal hero.
Happy birthday to that incarnation ... one which pretty much lay in sleep mode for four decades before it came back on television as Buck Rogers In The 25th Century. Looking at the calendar, I think it's well past time for another update!
Culturally, we tend to lose our history. We tend to forget things that we're either not encouraged to know or we make a serious attempt to acknowledge existed in some way, shape, or form. In my years of blathering incessantly about Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror on the World Wide Web or message boards or the like, I came across scads and scads and scads of people who "claimed" to be "hardcore" fans for "years and years" and yet they'd never heard of Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, or John Carter. So, yeah, I started to seriously question what being a "hardcore" fan truly meant, and I figured this was the best way I could (cough cough) help them be better at it.
So, yeah, if that offends you, so be it. But ... maybe don't call yourself a hardcore fan if you don't know the history?
That's what's really shameful about us as a people, that somehow we let properties like Buck Rogers go dormant for so many years, never quite calling attention to it or giving it the attention it might be owed for paving the way for so, so, so many other franchises. While the original comic strip began in January, 1929, it wasn't until a decade later that Hollywood got around to bringing it to life on the silver screen ... and, lo and behold, they cast the guy who has basically popularized Flash Gordon in serial format to inhabit the seminal hero.
Happy birthday to that incarnation ... one which pretty much lay in sleep mode for four decades before it came back on television as Buck Rogers In The 25th Century. Looking at the calendar, I think it's well past time for another update!
Riddle me this: when is an Alien movie not an Alien movie?
Well, that would be when it looks a little something-something like Prometheus, a production that first premiered on this day back in 2012.
Now, I'm not interested in courting controversy here, but let me make my point about the above as simply as I can. Director Ridley Scott along with the entire production team -- at one point -- didn't act as if they knew what they were making. During this installment's assembly, I can recall reading stories about how it was another chapter in the Alien saga or how it wasn't or how it was intended to be a side-journey in the wider Alien franchise ... and, dare I say, I think they were as confused as perhaps audiences were with whether or not they should embrace the final cut. Yes, it winded up clearly incorporating many elements of that seminal space saga, but it never quite felt like another chapter in the expanding universe. In fact, I've agreed with many who suggest that Prometheus is a very, very, very good Science Fiction flick, but it's a downright awful Alien film, never quite emerging with enough of that intellectual DNA to make it a worthwhile addition.
As always, you all are entitled to think what you will of it. I'm just giving you my two cents.
In either case, enjoy it if you do. I enjoyed parts of it, less so when they tried to make it all Alien.
Well, that would be when it looks a little something-something like Prometheus, a production that first premiered on this day back in 2012.
Now, I'm not interested in courting controversy here, but let me make my point about the above as simply as I can. Director Ridley Scott along with the entire production team -- at one point -- didn't act as if they knew what they were making. During this installment's assembly, I can recall reading stories about how it was another chapter in the Alien saga or how it wasn't or how it was intended to be a side-journey in the wider Alien franchise ... and, dare I say, I think they were as confused as perhaps audiences were with whether or not they should embrace the final cut. Yes, it winded up clearly incorporating many elements of that seminal space saga, but it never quite felt like another chapter in the expanding universe. In fact, I've agreed with many who suggest that Prometheus is a very, very, very good Science Fiction flick, but it's a downright awful Alien film, never quite emerging with enough of that intellectual DNA to make it a worthwhile addition.
As always, you all are entitled to think what you will of it. I'm just giving you my two cents.
In either case, enjoy it if you do. I enjoyed parts of it, less so when they tried to make it all Alien.
Well, well, well ...
Once again, we've reached that point in the Daily Blog that I remind you that your journey needn't end here. There's more -- a great deal more -- and at 77 different genre trivia citations I think each of you can find a cause for celebrating something within the realms of the Fantasic. Here's the link to get you started on that journey:
As always, thank you for reading ... thank you for sharing ... thank you for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
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