Misc News Archives


	Vader's Prowse Back In Hospital 05-08-01 British bodybuilder David Prowse, the hulking actor who inhabited Darth Vader's costume in the Star Wars movies, has been re-admitted to the hospital after suffering partial paralysis, the Popcorn U.K. Web site reported. Doctors have reportedly diagnosed Prowse's ailment as an abscess at the base of the spine. Prowse was initially admitted to the hospital at the end of February, after losing the use of his arm. At the time, doctors could not explain his illness, Popcorn reported. Prowse's spokesman, Phil Day, told Popcorn that doctors are working out how to remove the abscess. "It's all about the tests now, and he is going to be [in the] hospital for some time," Day said.

	Bonestell Nominees Named 05-07-01 The Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists announced nominees for the 2001 Chesley Awards, honoring works from the year before. The awards are named after astronomical artist Chesley Bonestell. Winners will be announced Aug. 31 at the 59th World Science Fiction Convention (Philcon) in Philadelphia. A full list of nominees follows. Contribution to ASFA •Todd Lockwood, Jon Schindehette and Wizards of the Coast •Morgana McGee •Mel White Best Monochrome Unpublished •The Secret Garden by Jill Bauman •Anubis by Charles Keegan •Enchanted Wood by Joel Keener •Baby Dragon by Stanley W. Morrison •A Wizard of Earthsea by Drew Willis Best Color Unpublished •Dance of the Dead by Ed Cox •Daybreak by Lubov •Appointment with Death by Omar Rayyan •The Berry Market by Stanley W. Morrison •Reach by Michael Whelan Best Three-Dimensional •The White Dragon by Robert Belgrad •Goth Faery by Wendy Froud •Bookstand by Johnna Klukas •Millennium Angel by Sandra Lira •Frazetta's Barbarian by Clayburn Moore Best Art Director •Jim Baen, Baen Books •Irene Gallo, Tor Books •Sheila Gilbert, DAW books •Jon Schindehette, TSR Books and Wizards of the Coast •Jamie Warren Youll, Bantam Books Best Interior Illustration •Kinuko Craft, Cinderella •Leo and Diane Dillon, 2000 Leagues Under the Sea •Omar Rayyan, "A Dear Gazelle" •Ruth Sanderson, Where Have the Unicorns Gone •William Stout, The New Dinosaurs Best Cover Illustration: Magazine •Brom, Dragon •Bob Eggleton, Sue Chicon Program Book •Frank Kelly Freas, Analog •Jael, Dreams of Decadence •Joe Jusko, Tomb Raider No. 6 •Todd Lockwood, Dragon •Luis Royo, Heavy Metal Best Gaming-Related Illustration •Tristan Elwell, Staunch Defenders •Todd Lockwood, Forge of Fury, Dungeons and Dragons Module •Ian Miller, Crucible: Conquest of the Final Realm •Drew Struzan, Star Wars Best Product Illustration •Braldt Bralds, Boucat •Kinuko Craft, Angel •Donato Giancola, Dracopaleontology •Todd Lockwood, Redgar •Keith Parkinson, Everquest: The Scars of Velious Best Cover Illustration: Paperback •Larry Elmore, The Chicks in the Mail •Donato Giancola, Carthage Ascendant, the Book of Ashe, Book 2 •Don Maitz, The Magic Dead •Jean Pierre Targete, Circle at Center •Mark Zug, Clandestine Circle Best Cover Illustration: Hardback •Kinuko Craft, The Tower at Stony Wood •Bob Eggleton , Darkness Descending •Donato Giancola, The Lord of the Rings •John Jude Palencar, Forests of the Heart •Michael Whelan, Tangled Up in Blue Award for Artistic Achievement •Frank Kelly Freas •Tom Kidd •Don Maitz •John Jude Palencar •Lisa Snellings

	Comic-Con Acquires WonderCon 05-04-01 Comic-Con International, which operates the nation's largest comic book convention, will acquire WonderCon, a Northern California comic convention currently owned by partners Mike Friedrich and Joe Field, Comic-Con announced. Friedrich and Field approached Comic-Con International to propose that the non-profit corporation acquire WonderCon. Terms were not disclosed. "WonderCon is a fine event and we look forward to the acquisition," John Rogers, president of Comic-Con International, said in a statement. "Not only will it help to further our mission, it will fit in well with our existing events: Comic-Con, Alternative Press Expo, Pro-Con and Comic Book Expo." Comic-Con International is a non-profit, educational corporation dedicated to creating awareness of and appreciation for comics and related popular art forms primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture. Comic-Con takes place July 19-21 in San Diego.

	Clarke Talks Space Travel 05-02-01 Author and space visionary Arthur C. Clarke said he was optimistic about manned exploration of other planets, the Associated Press reported. Speaking from his home in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Clarke made the remarks to commemorate Space Day 2001 on May 3. But Clarke admitted that his and director Stanley Kubrick's vision of manned space travel in their 1968 movie 2001: A Space Odyssey was a little premature. "It's true that Stanley and I were too optimistic about the time scale, but sooner or later in the new century, manned exploration of the planets will happen," Clarke said in a statement. Clarke added, "Many of our speculations in the movie have come true where information technologies were concerned, including the global Internet." Space Day is celebrated worldwide on the first Thursday in May and is dedicated to extraordinary achievements, benefits and opportunities in the exploration and use of space, the AP reported.

	Cameron Shoots For The Stars 05-01-01 James Cameron (Dark Angel) told the New York Post that he wants to ride a Russian rocket to the international space station and become the first moviemaker to shoot in space. "I think we need to keep the dream of exploration alive," Cameron told the newspaper. Last year, Cameron began talks with Russian rocket-builders RKK Energia and "was pronounced fit and capable of going into cosmonaut training," he said. "They were going to train me for 18 months." But negotiations stopped in January, and "we're in an indefinite holding pattern" until NASA and the Russian Space Agency develop training and other guidelines for non-professional space travelers, he said. "It has to be done with the blessing of the international partners," Cameron said. As for the California man who paid the Russians to travel into orbit, Cameron said, "While I applaud Dennis Tito's dream of going into space, I think that to do it unilaterally as a forced issue is maybe not the best choice." Tito paid $20 million to the Russians for his trip, over NASA's objections.

	Salem Special Comes To SCI FI 04-26-01 The SCI FI Channel announced that it is developing a one-hour special with mentalist Marc Salem entitled Mind Over Mind With Marc Salem. The special will be produced by Howard Schultz and Lighthearted Entertainment and will air some time in 2002, the network reported. Marc Salem has appeared internationally in lectures, on talk shows and in two Off-Broadway runs, demonstrating mind-reading, stunts and other abilities, the network reported.

	Nimoy Donates $1 Million 04-10-01 Star Trek legend Leonard Nimoy has donated $1,050,000 toward the refurbishment of the 66-year-old Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, the World Entertainment News Network (WENN) reported. Nimoy shot scenes for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home in Griffith Park and was quoted by WENN as saying, "By observing the sky and pondering our place in the universe people gain a new perspective on their daily lives. The observatory gives visitors that opportunity." Beyond supporting the Griffith Observatory, Nimoy--who turned 70 on March 26--is busy with several new projects. He and John de Lancie, Nimoy's partner in the audio troupe Alien Voices, recently released the second Spock Vs. Q audiotape and are performing the show live at several Star Trek conventions. Nimoy also guest starred on an episode of Becker, appearing as Professor Emmett Fowler opposite Ted Danson and former Star Trek: Deep Space Nine cast member Terry Farrell. And, finally, Nimoy will also be heard as the voice of the Atlantian King in new animated Disney feature Atlantis: The Lost Empire, set to open nationwide on June 15.

	Mummy Poster Wrapped For $115K 04-06-01 An anonymous telephone bidder recently paid 80,750 pounds ($115,000) during a London auction for a poster of Boris Karloff's 1932 version of The Mummy, according to various British news reports. The Karoly Grosz-designed poster is one of only three copies known to still exist and sold for twice pre-sale estimates despite extensive restoration. The sale, held at Christie's auction house, was part of a collection of 65 vintage film posters from Jerome, Ariz. The owner discovered that his father, who used to manage a movie theater, could not bring himself to throw the posters away and had stored them in his garage. Among the other rarities for sale was a one-sheet poster for the 1933 Paramount film Supernatural starring Carole Lombard.

	Horror's Chetwynd-Hayes Dead 04-04-01 Supernatural fiction writer R. Chetwynd-Hayes, described by one of his publishers as "Britain's Prince of Chill," died of bronchial pneumonia on March 20. He was 81. Chetwynd-Hayes had been living since early 2000 in a care home in Teddington, South London. Ronald Henry Glynn Chetwynd-Hayes was born in Isleworth, West London, on May 30, 1919. Over more than 30 years, Chetwynd-Hayes steadily turned out more than 200 short stories and more than a dozen novels. At one time his collections of ghost stories and humorous horror occupied the shelves of nearly every public library in the United Kingdom. In 1989, R. Chetwynd-Hayes received the Life Achievement Awards of both the British Fantasy Society and the Horror Writers of America. He was also a guest of honor at FantasyCon XVII in 1992 and at the 1997 World Fantasy Convention in London. Chetwynd-Hayes' correspondence and surviving manuscripts will be archived in the collection of the Science Fiction Foundation held at The University of Liverpool, where the material will be made available to researchers.

	Many Krofft Projects Underway 04-02-01 The WB's upcoming revival of Sid and Marty Krofft's 1970s television show Electra Woman and Dyna Girl is only one of several Krofft projects under development, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Markie Post and Anne Stedman will star in the pilot for Electra, which was developed by writers Jeff Kline and Elisa Bell, the trade paper reported. Meanwhile, Nickelodeon and Paramount are in talks to revive a feature-film version of the 1969 TV show H.R. Pufnstuf, which was on hold at Sony. Mike Mitchell would direct, from a script by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer. A list of other projects follows, as reported by the trade paper. •The Bugaloos, a movie based on the 1970-'72 Saturday morning series. Kerry Brown and Russell Scott are writing the screenplay. •Land of the Lost, a movie based on the mid-'70s live-action and puppet television series about a family transported to a parallel universe, where dinosaurs never became extinct. •A Rat's Tail, a film retelling the Cinderella story from the point of view of the rat who becomes a coachman. Dan Rosen is writing the script. •Black Alice in Underland, a fairy tale anthology that will be produced as a television movie or series pilot.

	Excelsior Effort Evolves 03-29-01 The International Federation of Trekkers fan group is redefining its campaign to persuade Paramount to base a film or television series on the Star Trek character of Hikaru Sulu and the crew of the U.S.S. Excelsior. The group is apparently acknowledging its failure to affect the upcoming fifth Trek series and is now focusing on keeping alive what it sees as Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future. The group's Excelsior Campaign has been renamed the Guardians of the Dream campaign. The campaign's Web site will offer addresses for fans who wish to write to Paramount to suggest an Excelsior-based online fiction series, an original art gallery and other initiatives.

	Clarke Presenting At Oscars 03-23-01 Sir Arthur C. Clarke will present the nominees for and winner of the Oscar for best screenplay at the upcoming 2001 Academy Awards ceremony on March 25, the official Sri Lanka government Web site reported. Clarke--who shared a 1969 Oscar nomination with Stanley Kubrick for their SF classic movie 2001: A Space Odyssey--is a permanent resident of Sri Lanka. Clarke's presentation was filmed earlier this month in the capital of Colombo and will be shown during the Oscar telecast. But that doesn't mean Clarke was privy to the winner. "I quite enjoyed recording my presentation," Clarke told the Web site. "But even I don't know who the winner will be. I had to record five video clips presenting each nominee as the winner. I hope they'll play the right one that night." The 2001 nominees for best screenplay are Chocolat; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; O Brother Where Art Thou; Traffic; and Wonder Boys.

	Animator Hanna Dead At 90 03-23-01 Animator William Hanna--who with partner Joseph Barbera created Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear and the Flintstones--died March 22 at his home in North Hollywood, Calif., a spokesman for Warner Brothers told the Reuters wire service. He was 90. Hanna, the co-chairman and co-founder of Hanna-Barbera Studios, produced as many as 11 half-hour shows on television a week at the peak of his career. Hannah and his partner produced 3,000 half-hour shows featuring such characters as Scooby-Doo, the Jetsons, Atom Ant, Jonny Quest, Quick Draw McGraw, Top Cat, Magilla Gorilla, Pixie and Dixie and Josie and the Pussycats, Reuters reported. Hanna and Barbera met at MGM in 1937, where they created the Tom and Jerry cartoon series. They formed their own animation company, Hanna-Barbera, in 1957 after they were told that the animation division at MGM was being shut down.

	Queen Meets Potter Author 03-23-01 Queen Elizabeth told Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling that the best-selling children's novels are popular with her granddaughter, the Reuters news service reported. The queen's granddaughter is Princess Eugenie, daughter of Prince Andrew and his former wife, Sarah Ferguson; she celebrated her 11th birthday March 16, the wire service reported. "I am told that children have started to read them," the queen reportedly told Rowling. "They are certainly popular with one of my grandchildren." The queen met Rowling in her British publisher's London offices on a theme day with the British publishing industry.

	Trek MP3s Offered 03-12-01 EMusic.com announced that it will offer users a free album of authorized Star Trek music in MP3 format for a week, starting March 12. Visitors to the site will be able to download up to 15 tracks of Trek music at no cost. EMusic.com has been authorized to distribute original Star Trek music, including scores from the original series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine and Voyager, plus many of the film soundtracks. The site also contains original sound effects from the original series.

	Vader's Prowse On Mend 03-09-01 David Prowse--the former bodybuilder who filled out Darth Vader's black robes in Star Wars--has begun to recover from a mystery illness that partially paralyzed him, the SFX Network Web site reported. Prowse lost feeling in his arm and back after being struck down earlier this month. Prowse's spokesman told SFX that he is now eager to get home and return to his normal activities after doctors discovered the paralysis was clearing up.

	Lightsaber, Indy Whip Win Big 03-07-01 Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones bullwhip sold for $74,000 and Liam Neeson's Star Wars: Episode I lightsaber fetched $54,000 in an auction of movie memorabilia to benefit children at risk for AIDS in Africa, the Reuters news service reported. The props were part of a 15-lot auction by Sotheby's that raised a total of $406,850 so far, with another 77 items still on the block, the news service reported. Neeson and his wife, actress Natasha Richardson, worked on the project, called "Movie Action for Children," to raise money to provide drugs to prevent mother-to-fetus transmission of AIDS in African countries.

	Shatner Relates Desert Escape 03-05-01 Star Trek star William Shatner told The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn that he once used his image as Capt. James T. Kirk to evade a traffic ticket, the official Star Trek Web site reported. During production of the original series, "we had an early morning out in the desert at Vasquez Rocks," near Los Angeles, Shatner told Kilborn. "I said to wardrobe, 'Instead of me getting there at 4:00 in the morning, I'll get there at 4:30. I'll take the wardrobe home and I'll get into it in the morning.'" The next morning, Shatner said he put on the costume, got in his car and raced toward the desert at a high rate of speed. On the way, he heard a siren behind him. "A cop pulls me over at 4:00 in the morning, it's dead dark. ... And I got out of my car in my Star Trek uniform. And I turned around, and I said, 'What is this? I've got 400 people to command! I'm on my way to the spaceship! Now what exactly do you want, sir?'" Shatner said. The officer was stunned. "He said, 'Well, I-I, uh ... I, uh ... Well, get along.' The only thing was, I walked back to my car, and then I began to wilt. And as I turned around to see what he was doing, he said, 'Beam me up, Scotty.'"

	Genre Props Auctioned For Charity 03-05-01 Harrison Ford's Indiana Jones bullwhip and Liam Neeson's Star Wars: Episode I lightsaber are among items on display at Sotheby's auction house in New York through March 7; they will be auctioned to benefit African children fighting AIDS, the Associated Press reported. The items were donated by Hollywood celebrities, Neeson told the AP. Neeson started "Movie Action for Children" through the United Nations Children's Fund. Proceeds will go to UNICEF efforts to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Ivory Coast. Sotheby's is waiving its commissions for the sale, the AP reported.

	Vader Actor Prowse Paralyzed 03-01-01 David Prowse--the actor who inhabited Darth Vader's costume in three Star Wars films--has suffered a mysterious paralysis, the SFX Network reported. Prowse was admitted to a London hospital last week after suddenly suffering paralysis in his arm while on an overseas visit, the site reported. "The paralysis he had has now spread to his back, so it is not looking good at the moment," Prowse spokesman Phil Day told the site. "They don't think it is a stroke, and it might be something to do with the blood. He said to me, 'I've no idea what is wrong with me--people haven't been able to tell me.' He can still move his legs, but he has not been able to walk, because he can't apply any pressure on the walking stick. He is still a very sick man. He's been very touched by everyone's thoughts."

	KC SF Club Fetes 30th Anniversary 02-28-01 The Kansas City Science Fiction and Fantasy Society will celebrate its 30th anniversary with a banquet at the Bishop Miege High School in Roeland Park, Kan., on March 24. The event will recognize Susan Satterfield, Becky Rickert and Sally Osgood for services to the club. The banquet and presentation will be followed with a public meeting and a dance.

	Arnold Eyeing Governor's Role? 02-07-01 Genre star Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Sixth Day) told the Los Angeles Times that he may consider political office, particularly if Calif. Gov. Gray Davis can't solve the state's electricity crisis, the Reuters wire service reported. In a conversation with Times political columnist George Skelton, Schwarzenegger, a Republican, said that more decisive leadership was needed in California. "It's upsetting to everyone right now," the actor said. "People are taking their companies out of state because they're worried [about electricity]. ... And then someone cannot make up their mind what they really want to do. ... You cannot make great decisions if you're just worried about your re-election." Schwarzenegger added that if Davis couldn't turn things around, he could see himself following in the footsteps of former President Ronald Reagan, who left a film acting career for politics when he was elected governor of California in 1966.