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TV Log
Hailing Frequencies #387
2.11.08
HELLO
And here's the three hundred and eighty-seventh edition of "Hailing Frequencies."
If you want to be notified when this newsletter is updated, email me to be put on my "notification" list.
I has cold. sniff
NEW AT THE SITE
Updates at Ozzie's Corner Hut!
THE STRIKE
It's been about three months, and it may be over tomorrow! The WGA boards have voted to authorize a membership vote to halt the strike, and that will probably do it...except for the separate vote that may take up to two weeks, in which WGA members will actually ratify the deal. WGA has gained ground with residuals for shows put online and jurisdiction over content created for online.
4400
At fans' request, North Dakota company Giants Snacks has shipped nearly 6,000 bags of sunflower seeds to USA Network to try to save the canceled SF series The 4400, the AP reports.
The "protest" was modeled off the one by fans who sent peanuts to keep the CBS show Jericho alive, and has the support of 4400's Jeffrey Combs, whose character, Dr. Kevin Burkhoff, likes sunflower seeds. The network told the AP that it would be "very difficult logistically to bring the show back."
BARBIE AND FRIENDS
Mattel and Creative Artists Agency are going to make movies, TV shows, digital & video games, and merchandising galore based on Mattel's brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels, Fisher-Price, Max Steel, UNO and Polly Pocket, among others. This is in addition to make a movie out of He-Man Masters of the Universe and the films in progress or G.I. Joe and the Transformers (2).
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
Yes, it's coming back soon! SCI FI Channel's fourth and final season of Battlestar Galactica kicks off with retrospective angst aplenty March 28 with two back-to-back 30-minuteepisodes celebrating the series. At 10PM, Battlestar Galactica: Revisited will review what has happened so far, and at 1030PM, we'll get Battlestar Galactica: The Phenomenon, with celebrity interviews and featurettes will see later on the DVDs. The actual first episode will be on April 4 at 10PM.
FIREFLY
My Own Kind of Freedom: A Firefly Novel, by Steven Brust Check out the free novel in two formats, Adobe Acrobat and Microsoft Word.
HARRY POTTER
They're building a Hogwarts Castle for the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Theme Park at Universal Orlando, Florida. Jim Hill reports, “According to Universal insiders...in the weeks and months ahead, literally thousands of pieces of metal will be hoisted up & then bolted into place. As a full-sized recreation of Harry Potter’s alma mater is built at the southwestern border of IOA’s 'Jurassic Park' section.”- Leaky Cauldron
Jim Dale won the Grammy Award in the category best "Spoken Word Album for Children" for his audio recording of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is in production and has a tentative opening date of November 21, 2008.
HIGHLANDER
Highlander: The Source makes its DVD debut on February 26, with Adrian Paul as Duncan MacLeod. There will be the usual behind-the-scenes featurettes.
Sniff. In the old days, they would have sent me the DVD by now, so I could tell you if this is going to be any good. :-(
INDY IV
Paramount's first teaser trailer for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull will play before The Spiderwick Chronicles on February 14, and will show up on the Web after that.
The Official Pix Blog has posted a new image of Harrison Ford from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Rumors abound that the skull will turn out to be an alien artifact. ET, you have a call on the white courtesy phone.
The movie opens May 22.
KID'S CHOICE AWARDS
Hosted by Jack Black, Nickelodeon's 21st Annual Kids Choice Awards air live Saturday, March 29, 8-9:30PM, from UCLA's Pauley Pavilion (where I used to go! whee!). Some of the kids favorite categories and nominees include:
Voice from an Animated Movie
Cameron Diaz (Princess Fiona/Shrek the Third)
Mike Meyers (Shrek/Shrek the Third)
Eddie Murphy (Donkey/Shrek the Third)
Jerry Seinfeld, (Barry B. Benson/Bee Movie)
TV Show
Drake & Josh
Hannah Montana
iCarly
The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Video Game
Dance Dance Revolution
Guitar Hero
High School Musical: Sing It!
Madden NFL ‘08
Book
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, Volume One: The Long Way Home
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Harry Potter series
How to Eat Fried Worms
LORD OF THE RINGS
Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer, reports:
The estate of "Lord of the Rings" creator J.R.R. Tolkien is suing the film studio that released the trilogy based on his books, claiming the company hasn't paid it a penny from the estimated $6 billion the films have grossed worldwide.
The suit, filed Monday, claims New Line was required to pay 7.5 percent of gross receipts to Tolkien's estate and other plaintiffs, who contend they only received an upfront payment of $62,500 for the three movies before production began.
The writer's estate, a British charity dubbed The Tolkien Trust, and original "Lord of the Rings" publisher HarperCollins filed the lawsuit against New Line Cinema in Los Angeles Superior Court. If successful, it could block the long-awaited prequel to the films.
Robert Pini, a spokesman for Time Warner Inc.'s New Line, declined to comment.
Thanks, ozzie!
MISC...
- Hey, I thought Pushing Daisies was canceled, but it turns out it was just out of episodes. ABC has picked up its nine most successful scripted shows for the 2008-09 season, including Pushing Daisies, Private Practice, Samantha Who? and Dirty Sexy Money. Lost has been renewed as well.
- Bo Zenga (Scary Movie) is making his directorial debut with his own script for spoof Stan Helsing for Scott Steindorff's Stone Village Pictures. The story deals with video store clerk Stan Helsing who has to save a town from the six biggest monsters in cinema history. Principal photography starts in April.
- USA has paid ab out $50 million to air No Country for Old Men, Enchanted, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Bridge to Terabithia; Becoming Jane, Gone Baby Gone, and Dan in Real Life. All ABC-Disney movies go first to pay TV on Starz, which has an output deal with Disney.
- Joshua Jackson will play the lead in Fringe, about an FBI Agent who teams up with a card-carrying Mensa member/high school dropout to find and identify paranormal activity.
- Robert Zemeckis' lousy version of Beowulf debuts on DVD and HD DVD February 26 in a director's-cut version with behind-the-scenes material, deleted scenes and the rest.
- Bloody-Disgusting.com reports that Rob Zombie might direct a Conan movie for Lionsgate and Nu Image.
- Check out the trailer for Shamalamalingdong's The Happening.
- Nathan Fillion will voice Steve Trevor in the upcoming DC direct-to-DVD Wonder Woman animated film.
NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 2
Night at the Museum II is getting ready to go, and Amy Adams (Enchanted) may star as an historical figure in the Ben Stiller sequel. This time, the artifacts from the Museum of Natural History are boxed up and sent to the archives at the Smithsonian in Washington, and I'm assuming hilarity ensues.The current US release date is May 22, 2009.
NOT SCI-FI, BUT INTERESTNG
Sunday's Super Bowl XLII on Fox was the most-watched Super Bowl game in 42 years of Super Bowls and also ranks as the second most-watched program in TV history with 97.5 million viewers. It follows the final episode of M*A*S*H, which aired February 28, 1983 and drew in 106 million viewers (and kinda sucked).
NOT SCI-FI, BUT SOUNDS LIKE IT
Cartoon Network Enterprises and Future Kid & Real Estate Company are going to make a Cartoon Network branded indoor theme park in Kuwait City. Scheduled to open in 2008, the new park will be about two square miles and will feature games, rides, costume characters, merchandise, and promotions. I wonder if Meatwad's Wild Ride will be the breakout hit, or Robot Chicken Robot?
NOT SCI-FI, BUT JUST NEVER MIND THAT
Project Runway fans, Remember Malan Breton, the guy with the accent who liked in Hong Kong and around the world and seemed really interesting but got auf'ed right away? BravoTV.com has launched a Web spin-off of Project Runway following his life since the show.
Wow, life is really becoming more and more like sci-fi ever day! Even on "reality" shows, no one ever really dies!
RANDOM DIALOG QUIZ
Can you name the movie? "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. There's just not enough beer in the world. I'm sorry."
Highlight to read the answer: Mystery Men
RATINGS
- ABC: Lost [r] 4.3/7, Lost 8.8/14
- CW Smallville 2.7/4, Supernatural 1.9/3
- CBS: Ghost Whisperer [r] 4.3/8, Moonlight [r] 3.7/6
- FOX: Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles 5.5/8
SAD NEWS
Roy Scheider died February 10 at age 75 of complications from multiple myeloma.
SADLY INEVITABLE NEWS
Kirsten Dunst has checked into rehab, the high-end Cirque Lodge in Utah, the same place where Lindsay Lohan received treatment.
STAR WARS
Artist John Alvin has passed away.
Can a lightsaber pass through Superman?
STARGATE
MGM and SCI FI Channel have announced casting for season five includes (spoilers):
- Robert Picardo will join the cast as Richard Woolsey assumes command of the Atlantis expedition. (You know, I'm looking forward to the first real Woolsey/McKay conversation.)
- Paul McGillion will return appear in five episodes.
- Michael Shanks will guest star more than one episode,
- ...as will Amanda Tapping
- Jewel Staite will stay on with an upgrade to "regular character."
I'm sorry to say that news has come from Joe Mallozzi that Torri Higginson, who was going to be featured in a major story arc next season based on her brief maybe-replicator appearance, has now declined:
We had a story in place for one episode, the starting point of a potentially bigger arc. The script was written and we eventually contacted Torri who, after much consideration, turned down the offer to reprise the role of Elizabeth Weir for the episode. We are, of course, disappointed, but nevertheless respect Torri’s decision and wish her all the best in her future endeavors.
Higginson is evidently miffed at being let go from the show in the first place. Aw, Torri, won't you reconsider?
Ratings are doing well for SGA. "Harmony" (which I thought was a hoot) earned a 1.2 average household rating on January 25.
Gateworld has an interview up with Claire Rankin.
Check it out: SG1Props.com is dedicated to building a library of information on the props of Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis. From basic information and photos to in depth tutorials, you won't find more complete prop coverage anywhere! So whether you're a collector, a prop builder, or just a fan of the props and costumes seen in the SG universe, let the exploration begin!
STRANDED
"SCI FI Channel and Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Comics announce the January 23, 2008 release of The Stranded, the first comic book from their joint venture under the SCIFI/Virgin Comics banner. The Stranded, created and written by Mike Carey, is an epic adventure spanning two worlds as seen through the eyes of five ordinary people whose extraordinary abilities may ultimately spell doom or salvation for the entire universe."
I checked out the first issue, and it is pretty sweet!
SUPERNATURAL
TVwithoutP has a recap of "Dream a Little Dream of Me."
TRON
Disney Interactive Studios will release Discs of Tron, the second arcade game based Tron, Xbox Live Arcade for the Xbox 360. There's a 3D arena for fighting Sark, with classic and enhanced modes as well as multiplayer modes.
Weekend Box Office Estimates: Feb 8-10, 2008
Fool's Gold (Warner Bros.) $22.0 million - opening weekend
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (Universal) $17.1 million - opening weekend
Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus $10.5 million - 2 wk total $53.4m
The Eye (LGF) $6.6 million - 2 wk total $21.5m
Juno (Fox Searchlight) $5.7 million - 10 wk total $117.6m
27 Dresses (Fox) $5.7 million - 4 wk total $65.4m
The Bucket List (Warner Bros.) $5.3 million - 7 wk total $75.1m
Rambo (LGF) $4.1 million - 3 wk total $36.5m
Meet the Spartans (Fox) $4.1 million - 3 wk total $33.9m
There Will Be Blood (ParamountVantage) $4.1 million - 7 week total $26.8m
Source: Box Office Mojo
TOP BOOKS
SCI-FI/FANTASY @ Amazon, 2.11.08
1. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling
2. The Road (Oprah's Book Club),
3. Breaking Dawn (Twilight Saga, Book 4)
4. The Host: A Novel
5. His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass; The Subtle Knife; The Amber Spyglass)
6. Dream Chaser (A Dream-Hunter Novel, Book 3)
7. Dawn's Awakening (The Breeds, Book 4)
8. Confessor: Chainfire Trilogy, Part 3 (Sword Of Truth, Book 11)
9. Blasphemy
10. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War
TOP DVDs SCI-FI/FANTASY @ Amazon, 2.11.08
1. Battlestar Galactica - Season Three
2. Lost - The Complete Third Season
3. Stargate - The Ark of Truth
4. Cinderella (Two-Disc Special Edition)
5.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Widescreen Edition)
6. Battlestar Galactica - Razor (Unrated Extended Edition)
7. Lost - The Complete Second Season
8. Lost - The Complete First Season
9. Heroes - Season One
10. Blade Runner - The Final Cut (Two-Disc Special Edition)
INSANE TREK TRIVIA (no googling!)
This Week's Question: A certain someone once quoted the first two lines (almost) of a dirty limerick. Can you?
Send your answer to julia.houston@gmail.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: Complete this test question: Adjust the sine wave of this magnetic envelope so that anti-neutrons can pass through it but _______________."
Answer: ...anti-gravitons cannot.
First winner
Lou
Lou is looking for anyone who has the altered version of "Where No Man Has Gone Before." Anybody?
Second winner
Wayne
Third winner
Susan
Fourth winner
Neil
Fifth winner
Michael
Sisxth winner
Gemstone1952
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.]
THIS WEEK'S WINNER:
"I told you that that cheap tanning spray would turn me orange." - Motherpann
Honorable mentions
"Gee, Jack, only cold water running in the shower?" - Susan
"Can I help you? You look Lost." - Taylor
"You want me to pose how???" - Kat
"We knew you'd find some excuse to take your shirt off." - Debra
"Why, Sawyer. I...didn't see you standing there...Want to wash my back for me?" -- BTCHONWHLS
"NEVER play strip poker with Hurley!" - BrownRd226
"Is this where I audition for the Planet of the Apes remake?" - Elaine
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR"
Last week's topic: There are a lot of little things that make sci-fi and fantasy "universes" unreal to me. A big one, especially in sci-fi, is the almost total lack of handcrafts. We saw some badly knitted hats in Battlestar Galactica, and I think I saw some wood carvings in an episode of Firefly, but that's about it. So how about you? Is there something you tend to find lacking in sci-fi and fantasy universes?
***
A big one for me is alien planets with one monolithic culture. Humans are so incredibly diverse, but aliens never are. I'm sure Star Trek isn't the only offender, but, boy, is it a big one. Vulcans are all follow the dictates of logic, Klingons are all warriors, Ferengi are all capitalists and oppress women, Bajorans all worship the Prophets. Values and belief systems are held planet-wide, and any religious differences are not actual different religions, but factions split off from the main one. There's often uniformity in clothing styles, even when it's not a military uniform.
Then you've got Cardassians, who seem to have a whole system of planets without internal cultural differences.
Not to mention all the planets that have one uniform ecosystem. Which, I don't know a lot about it, but I've often wondered if that's even scientifically possible. Can you really have a planet-wide Seattle, as Ferenginar seems to be?
I understand all this when it's just a one-off episode of some planet the Enterprise crew visits or such. But when it's aliens we really get to know, as in the examples above, it starts to seem silly.
Teresa
***
What I find unrealistic about most Sci-Fi planets is the sheer homogeneity of them. They usually only have one race, one language, one culture, one religion. Even Star Trek usually fell into this trap. I was initially happy when the Xindi in Enterprise had 5 intelligent species, a really intriguing idea but then they dropped the ball on that. (Guess which species were evil? Yup, the reptiles and the insects!) I don't even remember the Xindi having radically different fashions, which you would expect if different species evolved. As a matter of fact, all of the Star Trek worlds have the same muted color schemes!
***
THINGS THAT MAKES SCI FI UNREALISTIC TO ME:
THE CLOTHES LOOK MORE LIKE CLOTHES OF THE PAST, THEY MAKE ALL THE HUMAN ALIENS WEAR BORING BROWN CLOTHES, LONG GRANNY DRESSES, SEVERAL LAYERS AND OR CAPES LIKE IT'S LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE, NOT FUTURISTIC CLOTHES MADE OF UNUSUAL FABRIC, COLORFUL, OR OUTRAGEOUS STYLES ( NO NOT NUDE CUTOUTS OR MICRO MINIS-GUYS!) TOO MUCH LEATHER AND ANIMAL SKIN, THOUGHT WE ALL WOULD KNOW KILLING ANIMALS FOR CLOTHING IS NOT THE WAY TO GO. THEY ARE ADVANCE PEOPLE AREN'T THEY?
ALSO DID YOU NOTICE THE BUILDINGS LOOK LIKE MUD AND CEMENT BLOCK HOMES BUT THEY HAVE FAR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY IN THESE HOMES, SELF OPENING DOORS, STATE OF THE ART KITCHEN APPLIANCES, HI TECH COMMUNICATION DEVICES, BUT THEY CAN'T BUILD A HOME THAT LOOKS IN TUNE WITH THEIR PROGRESS.
***
[On another topic]
As I suggested not so long back, I may have to actually eat my own hat!
Just saw the teaser trailer for Abrams new Star Trek film on the beginning of Cloverfield (which was pretty cool - it kept me hooked all the way through). In short, I liked the trailer. Ok, so you only see the Enterprise under construction but it looks really really good. If the plot and the acting is up to scratch, I'm beginning to think they might actually pull this off. I'll have to pick out a hat to eat in that case.
Next week's topic: Anybody else thinking the next Trek movie may actually not totally suck?
***
Send me something if you've got something to say. It can be about anything that's on your mind!
HAILING FREQUENCIES CLOSED
