What was your first exposure to science fiction? by TrainBandit

TALK STORY

What was your first exposure to science fiction?

POSTED BY: TRAINBANDIT
UPDATED: Friday, September 25, 2009 06:01
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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 8:06 PM

Hey all,

What was your first book, movie, tv show, cartoon strip, or even real world event that first got you interested in space and science? What IS it about this sub-culture we inhabit that is so compelling?

For me it was two things: one, the first moon landing in 1969. I was twelve, in camp fire girls camp, and we were called to an all-camp meeting in the courtyard where we had the flag raising and lowering ceremonies every day, right outside of the mess hall. We all crowded around a tiny black and white set they ran outside on an extension cord to watch these little figures actually walk on the moon. It was beyond description, we were so excited, it was so amazing.

The second thing was, my dad went through most of Robert A. Heinlein's adult books that fall, right after the moon landing. I read them all, and then went to my school library and burned through his juvenile books. For those of you who don't know Heinlein, he was (RIP Robert) one of the Grandmasters of science ficion, that is, one of the first, a trailblazer, along with other greats like Arthur C. Clark and Philip K. Dick and many, many more. He is one of the best, most prolific, and possibly the most perverted authors of sci-fi I've ever read. However, I was so enamored of his genius story-telling ability that I forgave him his weirdness completely. I owe him a debt: his books saved my life during 7th grade, and if you've ever been in 7th grade, or are there now, you know what I mean!

After that summer and fall, I was hooked like a little guppy on a line.

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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 8:28 PM

LINCOLNZ

Heinlein was a true master. Note my quote... I didn't just do that for this post.

My first exposure to scifi? I don't really know for sure. I've been a fan of the genre as long as I can remember. My dad is a Trek fan and I remember watching TNG and Seaquest DSV with him in the evenings. The first scifi I remember being truly hooked on was Star Wars, the original trilogy. I loved it and couldn't get enough of the franchise until the prequels came out. They soured me on the whole thing for a long time, as the recent Indy revisit did for that great film series. Ok not letting myself get sidetracked, I apologize to anyone who liked those films. The first Trek I ever remember really enjoying was the episode 'The Inner Light' of TNG.

I didn't get into reading science fiction until I was older(20's). I discovered Orson Scott Card and after that Heinlein and Douglas Adams and most recently Robert Charles Wilson. Clarke is next on my list.

So I suppose it was Trek and Star Wars that got me into the genre. Not a very unusual introduction, I'm sure.

<----<<{-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-}>>---->
"Progress doesn't come from early risers — progress is made by lazy men looking for easier ways to do things." Robert A. Heinlein

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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 9:08 PM

PHOENIXROSE

You think you know--what's to come, what you are. You haven't even begun.

My grandfather worked on the Apollo missions, and my mom was a fan of Star Trek, so I guess I was 'exposed' from the day I came cryin' until... well, now. I have hazy memories of Klingons, floaty blood, Kirk, and whales, but my first super-clear memory of sci-fi I could actually put an accurate name to is, unsurprisingly, Star Wars. Whenever I was home sick from school I would watch the trilogy, and when I discovered there were books I started to devour them. Then the horrific prequels happened and I haven't been much into that particular universe since. Fortunately, I found a better one

[/sig]

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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 9:12 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

Ooohh boy, my first experience with sci-fi. Let's see. My mom used to give my older sister and I $5 bucks to go to the matinee in the summertime (to get out of her hair and to keep cool) and we'd be gone for hours (usually 12:00 to 3:00 or 4:00 p.m.).

As far as I can remember it was Flash Gordon and Commander Cody movie serials. That's what first got me hooked on sci-fi. I liked the adventure and action. 2001: Space Odyssey sealed the deal, as did Star Trek, Star Wars, Aliens. I read Clarke's 2001 after seeing the movie. BTW, I was more into film than books (still that way i guess).

FYI: Here are Clarke's list of All-Time Fav Sci-fi films. He gave a Top 12 list. He wrote, "Here's the rough-cut of my best: I may change my mind on some, but not many..."
He went on to say, "No way can I make it ten... I'm still brooding over Jedi, Khan, E.T. Actually it would make more sense to have two lists: Most important, and Best."

1. Metropolis (1927)
2. Things to Come (1936)
3. Frankenstein (1931)
4. King Kong (original version) (1933)
5. Forbidden Planet (1956)
6. The Thing from Another World (original version) (1951)
7. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
8. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
9. Star Wars (1977)
10. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1980)
11. Alien (1979)
12. Blade Runner (1982)

Which category would FF/Serenity fall under? Most important or Best!
--------------------------------------------

SGG

Tawabawho?

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Tuesday, June 30, 2009 9:34 PM

TUJIAOZUO

I really can't say when because it happened between these two periods of my life....

Before I turned 3 my dad was taking me to comic book stores. Also around this time I saw the first Batman movie (Michael Keaton).

Before I turned five my dad taught me the vulcan salute and I had seen the Star Wars trilogy as well as all of the Star Trek movies.

He started his baby girl young.

Your Indian Pirate Lord,
Ash

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 1:24 AM

JONGSSTRAW

My first exposure to sci-fi was when I was seven years old and saw The Time Machine (1960) in the movie theater. I remember being there for a Saturday matinee with my friend and we were both awed and scared to death during the movie. Not even realizing what sci-fi was, I just knew there was something about the movie that was different, something magical. Sci-fi became permanently etched in my brain however, after watching Forbidden Planet on Channel 9's (NY) Million Dollar Movie for a week straight. They used to show the same movie every day for a week in those days, and Forbidden Planet had everything you could hope for as a kid who fell in love with spaceships, and monsters, and pretty girls, and ray guns, and robots. Ah, those were the days!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 2:02 AM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

For me, it was kind of a "perfect storm" of events in my childhood that conspired to make me a sci-fi nut.

Star Trek, the original series, aired on TV.
2001: A Space Odyssey showed at the theatre.
The Apollo missions and the Moon landing.
I stumbled across Heinlein in the junior high library as a 7th-grader.

It was Heinlein's "Have Space Suit, Will Travel" and "Orphans of the Sky" that got me hooked. Then I came across Andre Norton's "Star Rangers", and the hook was set.

I've still got copies of those three books, by the way. I picked them up when a local school held a thrift sale. Shame they decided to kick them out of the library; who knows how many others they might have influenced?

Mike

Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for a day...
Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 3:43 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

I suppose my first exposure (even though they are as much fantasy as SF) was the original Twilight Zone and Outer Limits, which I watched as a kid. TZ premiered about a week after my ninth birthday (yeah, I'm old). I read a lot back then too, although the only things remotely SF were Tom Swift, Danny Dunn, and things of that nature.

I tuned in to the original Lost in Space hoping for a thrilling space adventure, but was disappointed when it devolved into insipid juvenile crap. But the year after that came Star Trek, and I was in heaven.

However, I did not get into SF books until after that, when my best friend knew I was interested and he loaned me Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land. I know that is not the best place to start reading the Grand Master, or SF in general, but my friend deduced it was the right one for me at the time. I think Glory Road was the next one of his I found, then The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Starship Troopers, The Door Into Summer, and then I found the juveniles. Later I discovered Asimov and Clarke, Van Vogt and Simak, Pohl and Del Rey, Niven and Benford, and on and on. There was no turning back, and now I rarely read anything else but SF (and the occasional fantasy).

Almost all of my internet browsing is also related to SF books, movies and tv, and I was obsessed enough to create my own website to write about the stuff I love.

http://templetongate.net - I think that index page might look familiar.

Heinlein is the writer I have devoted the most space to on that site, and anyone interested should check out this page - http://templetongate.net/rahmain.htm

Bonus points for anyone who can identify the source of the name of my website.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 3:54 AM

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT

I remember ,from the year I was about 10, some bad sci-fi juveniles, the Danny Dunn series ( Danny Dunn and the Time Machine, Danny Dunn and the Rocket to the Moon, etc...); some British/ Australian SF by a guy named Wollheim, WaldHeim, Wollman, something like that; and Isaac Asimov's Lucky Star books. Heinlein's juveniles came later, and as soon as I graduated to the "grown-up" library upstairs, Heinlein's Glory Road.

I also remember Commando Cody and the Rocket Man serials at Saturday matinees at the movie theater.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 3:56 AM

SPACEANJL

My first Heinlein was 'Citizen of the Galaxy' I think I was 8 or so. But my dad had a load of Asimov and Wyndham. And I love the debatably sci-fi/fantasy/horror crossover stuff - Lovecraft, C L Moore.

Media-wise - Doctor Who. (Tom Baker is 'my' Doctor.) And the original 'Star Trek'.

I diverted off into crime/thrillers for some years, but have returned to the fold with Neal Asher.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 4:12 AM

CYBERSNARK

The oldest reliable memory I have is sitting with my dad watching a rented video of Return of the Jedi. I didn't even understand what was happening (looking back, I recognize the Battle of Endor), but I was hypnotized by the lightsabers and blaster bolts against the black bakgrounds of space and the Emperor's throne room.

But what really made me a fan was Robotech. Not the TV series (it never aired in my part of Canada), but the novelizations by Jack McKinney. Especially Sentinels (the spinoff that only existed in book form).

It had everything! Action, comedy, music, jet fighters, giant stompy robots, romance, passion, tragedy, redemption, corruption, betrayal, manipulations, heroism, sacrifice, god-like aliens, thousand-year epic mysteries, generational legacies, humans and aliens overcoming their fundamental differences to unite --creating something even more important than mere survival (we can survive alone, but we can only thrive together). . . It was like a distillation of every dream I'd ever had or ever would have.

I remember the first summer after I'd finally managed to track down the whole series --all 18 books (at that point). I read the whole saga in about a month. Things were never the same after that.

-----
We applied the cortical electrodes but were unable to get a neural reaction from either patient.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 5:01 AM

DEADLOCKVICTIM

ah, the delivery room...

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 5:33 AM

FARFLY

Not that I'm old or anything but my introduction to sci-fi was with Captain Video and His Video Rangers, and Tom Corbett,Space Cadet.

http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/C/htmlC/captainvideo/captainvideo.ht
m

http://www.solarguard.com/tchome.htm

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 6:42 AM

CHRISISALL

As a little kid sitting in front of our first black & white TV, I came across a movie called "The Incredible Shrinking Man" being broadcast one day- it mesmerized me. Around that same time I discovered Lost In Space, and liked it for the Robot, even though it was goofy. But Star Trek was really where it was at (using the appropriate 60's lingo), and my one beef with the show was that each episode was only half as long as a typical Lost In Space ep (that was how my seven-year-old mind saw it, I didn't understand back then that fascinating stuff just seems to be shorter in duration

).
So mainly I thank Roddenberry.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 6:52 AM

DEADLOCKVICTIM

and who can forget the incredible Planet of the Tapirs

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 6:57 AM

CHRISISALL

Planet of the Tapirs

A classic.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 7:34 AM

STOWEAWAY

My parents used to take my little sister and me to the movies almost every weekend. And in 1977 I fell in love with a guy named Han Solo. Dressed up as Princess Leia for Halloween -- won a kids costume contest & got my picture in the paper with my little hair buns. And so it began.
I'll never forgive my parents for letting me see Wrath of Khan at much too young an age. I had nightmares for weeks about slugs in my ears!
A few years later, I picked up one of my dad's Isaac Asimov non-fiction books. Not all of it made sense to me. But it really tickled my brain. So when Asimov came to town for a lecture, I convinced my parents to take me. Again, I couldn't follow all of his material. But I was electrified to see him in person!
I think it's really a matter of what grabs your imagination. Even though she was exposed to the same things as me, my sister has always been more of a fan of fantasy. She has devoured every shred from the world of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. And none of that ever appealed to me.
It's funny, but I don't consider Firefly to be primarily a work of sci-fi. I would first consider it a character study & then a sci-fi 2nd or maybe 3rd.

=============================================================
Check out http://www.americasfunniesttshirts.com for hilarious shirts at a great price.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 9:40 AM

COZEN

E. E. "Doc" Smith, The Skylark of Space, novelization of his first serialized magazine series. Followed by the Lensman series.

Some of us are readers.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 10:11 AM

THESOMNAMBULIST

When I was five, and the Six Million Dollar Man was on. Back then I lived in Paraguay so it was better known to me as: Hombre Nuclear! Friggin' Awesome!!!!

The 70's must have been an odd time for parents, watching they're energetic offspring spend half a morning crossing the front garden because they were immitating Lee Majors going full speed in slow-motion!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 10:14 AM

CHRISISALL

Quote:
Originally posted by TheSomnambulist:
When I was five, and the Six Million Dollar Man was on.

* resists the impulse to chant "baby, baby" to Som*

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 10:28 AM

AURAPTOR

America loves a winner!

Well, for starters, I was hooked on the topic of Dinosaurs from as long as I can remember. Naturally, that paved the road for an affinity to such creatures as Godzilla. One of my earliest memories related to sci-fi was going to see Godzilla vs The Smog Monster at a DRIVE -IN!

Also, my oldest brother was always ( and still is ) a NASA type geek, building models, like the Saturn V rocket and the SR 71 Blackbird. Between those two things, I've always been attracted to sci fi , space and the worlds viewed through imagination.

Which is sorta funny, because my other brother wasn't in the least bit influenced or interested much in sci fi at all.

The T.Rex they call JANE!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 10:44 AM

CHRISISALL

Quote:
Originally posted by AURaptor:
One of my earliest memories related to sci-fi was going to see Godzilla vs The Smog Monster at a DRIVE -IN!

When I was 12 I saw that on a double-feature with "Frogs" at the movies.

The laughing Chrisisall

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 11:37 AM

SIGNO060

First exposure definately was star wars my parents must have showed it to me when I was like three or four. There were a couple other things first was the TV show Power Rangers. I know its lame, but if you grew up in the 90's that show was like visual cocaine for kids. Shit was blown up, each guy had his own color and own weapon. They could talk to each other through their wrist watches. Then they had their Zords I think they were called and then they made a bigger one. My dad also took me to a early screening of the movie Contact with Jodie Foster when that came out I loved that movie.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 11:58 AM

NAVYSEILS

I can't say for certain what mine was, but it may well have been Thundercats. To this day I still live by the code of thundera; Truth, honour, loyalty and justice. Thundercats HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 12:32 PM

TRAINBANDIT

I'm getting reminded of so many things I've forgotten, books, films, tv. For instance, Danny Dunn. I know you will hoot, but I had a crush on Danny Dunn when I was in sixth grade. I wanted to Irene (Ilene?) Reading those books precedes my watching the moon landing by about six months, now that I think about it.

And I remember seeing the original Planet of the Apes in 1968, also at a drive-in. That wasn't exactly what got me interested in sci-fi though. It made me aware of MOVIES, how they're made, what goes into them. I was amazed at the alieness of the world of the apes, and the realism of the sets. Plus, my eleven-year old self got to see a pretty good shot of Charlton Heston's naked butt...good times.

The buzz about that movie back then was the "incredible" make-up. Now, these days the ape get-ups look a bit like really good Halloween masks, but then they were cutting edge. I heard my mom tell a story she may have heard on the news or somewhere: a guy was employed as a gorrilla extra, and he went home in his make-up, slept in it, and came back the next day. On a motorcycle. And the punchline was that nobody gave him a second glance as he drove each way. Who knows if that's true or not,but it makes me smile.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 7:54 PM

BORIS

Comics such as Ghost rider, and Thunderbolt and Lightfoot...Mum thought all comic books were for children and were therefore also tame. "Lost in Space", Startrek, and "My Uncle Martian" were my main childhood intros to sci fi. but I didn't become excited by it til Starwars and the original Battlestar Gallactica series aired. I would have been about 8 or so. We weren't allowed to see Star Wars when it came out, but I was obsessed with it anyway and read the books etc. The very first showbag I ever bought was a Starwars one from the Sydney Easter Show 1979. My brother and I defied our parents and snuck in to see The Empire Strikes Back when it came out instead of a Disney movie. It blew our minds.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009 10:23 PM

PEULSAR5

We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt.

Easy. Star Trek TOS and Batman. In '74 when I was six, I got the Enterprise playset with the Mego action figures and LOST MY MIND!! Batman came on at 3:30 and TOS at 4pm and I would act out the Trek episodes. On another note, my best friend had the Batcave, and it was AMAZING how many times the Joker took over the Enterprise and Mr. Spock had to beam down to the Batcave to get Batman and Robin's help.

Good times...

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 5:39 AM

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT

Quote:
Originally posted by Peulsar5:

On another note, my best friend had the Batcave, and it was AMAZING how many times the Joker took over the Enterprise and Mr. Spock had to beam down to the Batcave to get Batman and Robin's help.

Oh, now, THAT'S a crossover! Lessee, Firefly and Batman?

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 5:50 AM

STEAMER

Far back in the mists of memory, perhaps more than 26 years ago on the geologic time chart, my sister (inadvertently) got me hooked on my very first piece of sci-fi. What really drew me into it was the ship. A battleship, a huge one, a seemingly impervious one that could fly faster than light and either dodge or shake off everything that was thrown at it whilst still opening a can of whoop-ass on its many enemies. Oh yeah. Star Blazers ftw.

The following year, I had a friend who had a Death Star playset, even though I didn't really understand what it was or what it represented. All I knew was that we had hours of fun with the action figures and the little compartment with the converging walls. Not long thereafter, 'Star Wars' aired on TV, and my parents sat us down to watch it and I've been an on-and-off fan ever since. (More recently 'off', in the wake of the prequels and some of those Godawful novels come out in the past decade or so.)

Another couple of years went by, and my folks came upon Star Trek TOS reruns on one of the local TV stations. The first episode I ever saw was 'The Apple'. Forevermore, sci-fi geek, me. I don't like the later Trek series too well, but hey - these days I've got Firefly to make up for 'em.

Inara's client
Has no junk
Guess Jayne will be
In his bunk
FIREFLY

Captain of the New England Browncoats
http://www.myspace.com/nebrowncoats

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 6:35 AM

ZEEK

I don't know which I saw first but I'm thinking it was Flight of the Navigator, Back to the Future or E.T.

I remember Flight of the Navigator being very confusing as a kid.

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 8:13 AM

SAVEWASH

Now I am learning about scary.

Two words: Ray Bradbury

My parents had all kinds of books in their basement and I pulled one of them out one day that was called "The Illustrated Man." After that, I was hooked.

Other big influences would be 2001, Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

"We need to keep our heads so we can ... keep our heads."

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 11:34 PM

TRAINBANDIT

Quote:
Thundercats HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

So THAT'S what Juno was talking about!

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Thursday, July 2, 2009 11:45 PM

TRAINBANDIT

Another memory just came to me: sitting with my mom, my brother, and his girlfriend watching the original airing of the Star Trek TOS episode that featured the space hippies (spa-hippies?). You know, the ones with the horrific sounding disease, who were looking for Eden. Sorry, can't remember the title. My brother was a hippie and we - mostly he and his girlfriend - had a gas laughing at network tv's take on 60's counterculture.

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Friday, July 3, 2009 11:32 AM

STEAMER

Quote:
Originally posted by TrainBandit:
Another memory just came to me: sitting with my mom, my brother, and his girlfriend watching the original airing of the Star Trek TOS episode that featured the space hippies (spa-hippies?). You know, the ones with the horrific sounding disease, who were looking for Eden. Sorry, can't remember the title. My brother was a hippie and we - mostly he and his girlfriend - had a gas laughing at network tv's take on 60's counterculture.

'The Way to Eden'. Widely regarded as one of the worst TOS episodes, but then a lot of the third season was pretty below-average, between Shatner's antics, the poor writing and the lousy set design resulting from sharp budget cuts. Don't get me wrong, as Trek goes I'm forever faithful to TOS. There are just a couple of third-season episodes I cannot force myself to watch even with the DVD remaster.

River's fixing
Book is balking
Preacher man
Just keeps walking
FIREFLY

Captain of the New England Browncoats
http://www.myspace.com/nebrowncoats

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Friday, July 3, 2009 4:12 PM

OPTIMUS1998

first exposure??? god only knows, my first Clear memory however, is waking up in the movie theater and loudly asking "WHERE ARE WE??" ( i was 3), during Return of the Jedi.( the dialogue scene between Luke and Vader on the walkway bridge thingy under the shuttle pad @ the Endor shield projector base thing, "v: I see you have built a new lightsaber, etc...."
and as a kid i wasn't scared of the boogie man or some other weird monster coming to get me at night, it was ALWAYS Darth Vader that was going to get me.

now i have my 7 year old nephew hooked on star wars and Doctor Who. I guess there is just nerd in our family's DNA.

Make Cartoons, Not War
- Sue Blu
Once, while having sex in a tractor-trailer, part of Chuck Norris' sperm escaped and got into the engine. We now know this truck as Optimus Prime.

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Saturday, July 4, 2009 12:46 PM

TRAINBANDIT

thanks for the title. btw, funny poems

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Sunday, July 5, 2009 1:03 PM

SERYN

I have a bad memory (well, a good memory, but the date stamps fell off) so I think the first thing was the animated Ulysses (sp?) and other such kids cartoons, then either Buck Rodgers or the original Battlestar galactica, all re runs I should imagine. At all points there was an exposure to Star Trek and other big ones, but they were the ones I sat down to watch. My biggest love was fantasy though so all the books I read were fantasy based, until my teens at least.

Hm, no, i stand by the first statement - i have a bad memory.

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Wednesday, July 8, 2009 9:26 AM

FOLLOWMAL

Quote:
Originally posted by TrainBandit:
Hey all,

What was your first book, movie, tv show, cartoon strip, or even real world event that first got you interested in space and science? What IS it about this sub-culture we inhabit that is so compelling?

For me it was two things: one, the first moon landing in 1969. I was twelve, in camp fire girls camp, and we were called to an all-camp meeting in the courtyard where we had the flag raising and lowering ceremonies every day, right outside of the mess hall. We all crowded around a tiny black and white set they ran outside on an extension cord to watch these little figures actually walk on the moon. It was beyond description, we were so excited, it was so amazing.

The second thing was, my dad went through most of Robert A. Heinlein's adult books that fall, right after the moon landing. I read them all, and then went to my school library and burned through his juvenile books. For those of you who don't know Heinlein, he was (RIP Robert) one of the Grandmasters of science ficion, that is, one of the first, a trailblazer, along with other greats like Arthur C. Clark and Philip K. Dick and many, many more. He is one of the best, most prolific, and possibly the most perverted authors of sci-fi I've ever read. However, I was so enamored of his genius story-telling ability that I forgave him his weirdness completely. I owe him a debt: his books saved my life during 7th grade, and if you've ever been in 7th grade, or are there now, you know what I mean!

After that summer and fall, I was hooked like a little guppy on a line.

Goodness, our experiences are almost exactly the same. I watched the moon landing with my family, gathered around our tv. So excited, so proud. One of the highlights of my life to this day.

I also read Heinlein- Stranger in a Strange Land when I was in 5th grade. SciFi became my fiction of choice almost immediately. I went from Heinlein to Asimov, to Clarke to Herbert. I ate it up. ( Strangely I was unconcerned about Mr. Heinlein's and Mr. Herbert's R rated prose.

)

I was also a huge ST:TOS fan. I watched and rewatched over the years and never missed an ep of all the series nor the movies either. Star Wars captivated me until the prequels, then like PR above, I was so turned off I can't even watch the originals with the same love. :(

I get teased in my family a lot for being "weird/geeky/nerdy but I'm damned proud of it and credit my adventures in scifi land with making me a broader minded, better educated person. :)

http://www.kidsneedtoread.org/

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Wednesday, July 8, 2009 1:36 PM

TRAINBANDIT

Quote:
I get teased in my family a lot for being "weird/geeky/nerdy but I'm damned proud of it and credit my adventures in scifi land with making me a broader minded, better educated person. :)

yep, that's me. My brother, who is as different from me as, well, I can't even think of two things far apart enough to describe it, once told me "you believe in magic." Right. Anyway, I know what you mean.

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Wednesday, July 8, 2009 1:55 PM

MUTT999

Made a big impression on me, especially the ending.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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Friday, July 24, 2009 7:46 AM

GORRAMGROUPIE

Star Wars, saw it at a drive-in with my family when I was 5. I still remember how I felt when the blockade runner flew past, laser bolts flying past. I knew that this was what I wanted to be a part of. A couple of years later, I started reading Edgar Rice Burroughs's Mars series, then moved to Andre Norton, Asimov, Heinlein's Starman Jones, and haven't stopped since. My dad was a big ST:TOS fan, and we watched those all the time too. BSG original series made a big impression too.

'Who are you and how did you get in here?' 'I'm a locksmith. And, I'm a locksmith.'
Police Squad

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Friday, July 24, 2009 8:54 AM

WASHNWEAR

Quote:
Originally posted by Steamer:
Quote:

'The Way to Eden'. Widely regarded as one of the worst TOS episodes, but then a lot of the third season was pretty below-average, between Shatner's antics, the poor writing and the lousy set design resulting from sharp budget cuts. Don't get me wrong, as Trek goes I'm forever faithful to TOS. There are just a couple of third-season episodes I cannot force myself to watch even with the DVD remaster.

The Way to Eden is, IMO, far from the worst (maybe I just really dig getting to see Spock rock out with those kooky love children) - that's an "honor" I'm more used to seeing associated with another 3rd-season wonder, Turn-About Intruder, which I again think is far from the worst. Getting to see Kirk explore that particular end of his acting "range" was, to me, well worth the price of admission (it must be jambalaya, 'cause gumbo don't shake like that!).

My peronal, off-hand nom for Worst...I'm thinkin' maybe Paradise Syndrome (Kirk loses his memory and the scant remainder of his inhibitions in a genuine Native American setting)...but there are some great one-liners, and the H.E. (Hottie of the Episode) IS frightfully hot...

donttalkbackjustdrivethecarshutyourmouthiknowwhatyouaredontsaynothinkeepyourhandsonthewheeldontturnaroundthisisforreal

Still...what would Rorschach do?

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Wednesday, July 29, 2009 12:25 AM

SHINYGOODGUY

My first memory of Sci-fi was the serial Flash Gordon and Commando Cody: Sky Marshall of the Universe on Saturday afternoons on the Boob Tube.

Movies: The Day The Earth Stood Still, Forbidden Planet.

SGG

Tawabawho?

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Wednesday, July 29, 2009 4:00 AM

TRAINBANDIT

Reading your list of Clarke's favorite films, I'm moved to list my favorites, in no particular order and for no other reason than that I liked them:

Planet of the Apes (original, 1968, and NO SEQUELS!!)
Enemy Mine
Galaxy Quest
Starship Troopers (see my comments about Heinlein)
Contact
2001
Alien
Aliens
all of the TNG films
Lost in Space, the new film (for old times sake)
War of the Worlds (original)

There's more, but these are a few that really stayed with me.

"J-Jayne?! Are you talking about Jayne Cobb?!?"

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Saturday, August 22, 2009 1:09 PM

CRUITHNE3753

So long ago I can't remember if it was Star Trek or Doctor Who (towards the end of Jon Pertwee's run as the Doctor)

_______________________
CLICHED MEME IS CLICHED

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Tuesday, September 8, 2009 3:02 PM

TRAVELER

It has to be the Flash Gordon serials. I sure I was no more then five or six years old when they brought these 1930's serials to the television screen. This would be about 1956 or 57. I don't know what brings more laughs when I watch them today, Buster Crabbe's terrible acting or the spaceships bouncing in ever direction from the strings they hung from.

In truth, I have fond memories of these classic serials.

One of Emperor Ming's dreaded spaceships.
The sparklers they added to the exhaust manifolds added that touch of realism expected by us fans.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

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Wednesday, September 16, 2009 11:14 AM

PEULSAR5

We sniff the air, we don't kiss the dirt.

Quote:
Originally posted by gorramgroupie:
Star Wars, saw it at a drive-in with my family when I was 5.

Star Wars at a drive-in. That's just awesome!

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Wednesday, September 16, 2009 12:28 PM

TRAVELER

I don't think we had drive-ins in my neck of the woods when "Star Wars" came around. They had all closed. There are rumors that there are some still functioning, but I believe it is in a different reality. But "Star Wars" at a drive-in nust have been awesome. I will never forget seeing "Shane" at our local drive-in.

http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=28764731
Traveler

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Friday, September 18, 2009 3:08 PM

RAHLMACLAREN

"Damn yokels, can't even tell a transport ship ain't got no guns on it." - Jayne Cobb

My first exposure to sci/fi? I'm pretty sure it was....

"Hardware Wars"

My 2nd grade (1991-92) teacher filled the boards with work everyday. But every once in a while she would pull out her old film projector, and would play a short film. One of the films was "Hardware Wars". I hadn't even seen the Original Star Wars Trilogy 'till 1995 or '96, so I didn't know what the plot was. It felt like a parody of something (maybe a Sesame Street spoof), but I didn't really know any better at the time. I just thought it was supposed to be teaching about different kinds of hardware and appliances (but in an irresponsible fun way).

I finally watched it again today at the library. Laughed my ass off! When the toast popped out of the toaster and I lost it, I drew some attention to myself.

Hardware Wars - part 1
www,youtube,com/watch?v=I7p96aiE32k

Hardware Wars - part 2
www,youtube,com/watch?v=9UVVBctvylU

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardware_Wars
Starring:
Fluke Starbucker
Augie "Ben" Doggie
Princess Anne-Droid
Darph Nader
Ham Salad
Chewchilla the Wookiee Monster
The Drones: 4-Q-2 and Arty Deco

Edited links for performance

--------------------------------------------------
Find here the Serenity you seek. -Tara Maclay

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Thursday, September 24, 2009 4:49 AM

BLACKOUTNIGHTS

lol

I had almost completely forgotten about Hardware Wars. I remember watching that between major flicks on HBO.

My first sci-fi experience was also Star Wars. Was seven years old and saw it in a grand theater on the square in the little town I lived in called the Royal Theater. It was a big event. Spotlights shot up into the night sky as I waited in line with my parents to get tickets. The line went around the block. Before the movie, we ate in a nearby small diner and I had what to this day is still probably the best damn chocolate milkshake I've EVER had.

Delicious.

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