Hailing Frequencies, Issue #295
5.27.05 - 6.3.05
HELLO
And here's the two hundred and ninety-fifth edition of "Hailing Frequencies."
If you want to be notified when this newsletter is updated, email me to be put on my "notification" list.
And on the seventh day, Revenge of the Sith awoke to find it had raked in $191,363,000. Please, people. Could I have just a little bit of that money?
BACK TO THE FUTURE DOCUMENTARY
Watch later in the year for a new documentary on the making of the sci-fi classic Back to the Future trilogy from Agenda Pictures. Directed by Darold Crotzer, there will be over twenty new interviews with cast and crew, who will all look back on the movie and on the twenty friggin' years since the things came out. Man, I am OLD.
Check out the trailer.
CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
Tim Burton told SCI FI Wire "I just loved the book...To me, he was one of the first people to do that kind of literature. Now, with the Harry Potter books, it's become much more of a [common] thing, but when I was growing [up]...[Dahl] was almost the only one who spoke to both children and adults and understood the danger and the political incorrectness of being a child, and with adult feelings. He was somebody who got that mixture of light and dark and emotion and humor. There weren't too many people, to me, like that."
Check out the latest trailer.
WB's movie open July 15.
LOST
The May 25 season finale not only totally rocked, it raked in 20.7 million viewers with a 7.8 rating in adults 18-49. Way to go! Unfortunately, we now have a very long wait to find out just what the hell happened.
HARRY POTTER
J.K. Rowling's site announces:
Well, here we go again! The gossip, the non-stories, the ever-wilder speculation...
Please remember that allegations of 'leaks' concerning deaths in 'Half-Blood Prince' are very easy to make. Any comment I make on such rumours would be a spoiler, so I'll just repeat: keep those barrels of salt handy. Speaking of which...
I have been alerted to the fact that I am supposed to have posted in the 'comments' section of a couple of different fan sites recently. I never post on fan sites and it is important that you all know this, because the last thing I would want is for any of you to be misled or otherwise manipulated by somebody posing as me online. JKRowling.com is the only place I ever post. Lest you think I'm protesting too much, please ask yourself whether I would really want to reveal my email address on a fan site. Love you all though I do, I don't really want to wake up tomorrow and have to download 21,956,038 new emails, all demanding the identity of the Half-Blood Prince.
Check out the trailer!
Goblet of Fire's coming to theatres November 18, and Half-Blood Prince
will be available July 16. German edition will be released on Oct. 1, 2005.
Amazon.de is selling it at 22.50 Euros.
Check out the deluxe cover here.
STAR TREK
The Las Vegas Creation Con this August is shaping up to be one of the most bloated Trek events ever. :) Check out the guest list.
Sorry, Trek news is still pretty low.
STAR WARS
One of my funniest personal memories of early Star Warsmania is 93 KHJ AM playing the soundtrack as a top-40s tune, and the DJ having trouble saying "London Symphony Orchestra," like it was sorta like Electric Light Orchestra, but not. Anyways, The London Symphony Orchestra shows up again in an unexpected medium by performing the Star Wars theme for your mobile phone. Read more here.
Cinescape reminds us that it might just be a good thing there isn't a seventh movie waiting in the wings with this "scoop" interview with Lindsay Lohan. Supposedly, she relayed a talk with George Lucas, in which he revealed:
He said, "'Star Wars' will never end. My involvement may, but the story will go on...."
I said what do you think would be more interesting.... telling a story prior to PHANTOM MENACE or after RETURN OF THE JEDI?
(Lucas) said, no question about it, prior to PHANTOM MENACE. He said, that if he did ever do another storyline.... that he would do when the Jedi regained control of the universe from the Dark Lords (there were many of them) 800 years before PHANTOM MENACE. And a young Jedi named Yoda was instrumental in the effort.
What is it about these guys and prequels?
Revenge of the Sith grossed $158.5 million domestic in four days -- the best four-day debut in movie history (in unadjusted dollars). The total worldwide at four days was $303 million.
TheForce.net has updated their parents' guide to Sith.
And two guys who maybe should have read that guide managed to burn themselves badly with mock lightsabers filled with...gasoline. Yup, read about it here.
Excellent! 70%
Good 17%
Okay 7%
Poor 1%
Horrid! 3%
STARGATE
Gateworld has an interview up with Christopher Judge about Season Nine. I didn't read it, as I hate spoilers, but I'm sure it's great.
NOT SCI-FI NEWS, BUT SOUNDS LIKE IT
Stallone is talking about...Rambo IV.
Oh, and an African lion savaged a team of fighting midgets in Cambodia, killing twenty-eight a horribly maiming the rest.
NEWS BITS
INSANE TREK TRIVIA
This Week's Question: What's depicted on the quilt in Star Trek Insurrection?
Send your answer to scifi@about.com. All correctly answering trivia maniacs will have their names mentioned in the next letter. The first winner gets to make a request, anything they like -- within reason -- for the next "Hailing Frequencies" Issue. Please let me know if you don't want me to post your email address if you win.
Last Week's Question: What gift did Miles O'Brien give Keiko to celebrate her first day as a teacher?
Answer: A school bell.
First winner
Lou
Second winner
J. C.
CAPTION CONTEST
Send in your best caption for the picture below. The best (as in, my favorite) entry will appear in next week's issue.
[Insert caption here.]
Honorable Mentions...
"And you want us to break dance on the emblem?" - Annie
"Uh, guys? What are we doing?" - BTCHONWHLS
"Color Me REALLLY BADDD!" - Perry
"I ain't frisking him. You frisk him." - sexualuniverse
"Just sit on the graffiti and smile till he goes away." - sexualuniverse
They really gotta make the badges smaller; it takes three cops just to carry
one!" - sexualuniverse
"Burgi, you were right, we ARE sitting on a coaster… Look at the
size of that glass!" - Raymond
"What are you looking at?" - sexualuniverse
"LETTERS TO THE EDITOR"
This week's topic: Sith? Anyone? Beuller? Anyone?
***
None this week. :-(
***
Next week's topic: Do you think the next Potter book and/or movie can possibly live up to all the hype?
***
Send me something if you've got something to say. It can be about anything that's on your mind! (Please let me know if you don't want your email address to accompany your name in either contest or for the LTE.)
TOP MOVIES FROM THE NUMBERS
1 Revenge of the Sith.......$191,363,000 (holy wow)
2 Monster-in-Law..............$48,312,000
3 Kicking and Screaming......$36,695,000
4 Crash (2005)..................$29,485,000
5 Unleashed......................$19,157,000
6 Kingdom of Heaven..........$42,432,000
7 House of Wax (2005).......$27,900,000
8 Interpreter, The..............$66,279,000
9 Hitchhiker's Guide............$47,571,000
10 Mindhunters...................$3,924,000
TOP SF/F NETWORK SHOWS, NGR, 5/2 - 5/8/05
1. Lost 10.3
2. Medium 8.5
3. Alias 5.7
4. Revelations 5.7
5. Smallville 2.8
6. Charmed 2.1
7. Enterprise 1.8
TOP SF/F SYNDICATED SHOWS, NGR, 5/2 - 5/8/05
1. Stargate SG-1 1.7
2. Andromeda 1.5
3. She Spies 1.5
4. Twilight Zone 1.3
5. Mutant X 1.2
6. The Outer Limits 1.2
7. The X-Files 1.2
8. Angel 1.1
9. Buffy 1.1
10. Ripley's 0.8
TOP SCI-FI/FANTASY BOOKS, Amazon - 5/20/05
1. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
2. Black Rose (In the Garden)
3. The Da Vinci Code
4. Eldest (Inheritance 2)
5. Star Wars: Episode III
6. The Opal Deception (Artemis Fowl 4)
7. Angels and Demons
8. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
9. The Time Traveler's Wife
10. The Five People You Meet in Heaven
TOP SCI-FI/FANTASY DVDS, Amazon - 5/13/05
1. Phantom of the Opera
2. Team America: World Police
3. The Incredibles
4. Star Wars trilogy
5. Star Wars: Episode I
6. Star Wars: Episode II
7. Joan of Arcadia season one
8. Lost season one
9. Star Wars: Clone Wars, vol. 1
10. The Return of the King
HAILING FREQUENCIES CLOSED
Visit the "Hailing Frequencies" Archive
http://scifi.about.com/blhailarchive.htm
Julia Houston
Sci-Fi/Fantasy Guide @ About.com
scifi@about.com
