Quark and Project U.F.O.

I am posting this article because of  the "Quark" material, the Star Trek/SF spoof by Buck Henry, but it also includes info about the program "Project U.F.O." I caught the second show only once, the pilot episode, and found its dull "Dragnet" pseudo-documentary style unappealing. But the article mainly focuses on "Quark," which was a really fun show that did a good job of spoofing Trek. The writeup comes from the August 1978 issue of the lower-shelf "Space Wars" magazine. The bottom color photo is from the back cover. Nice!

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Space:1999 article from Starlog #2

From issue #2 of Starlog, from November 1976 when that awesome mag was in its infancy, comes this article on "Space:1999," looking back on the problems of the first season, and what was planned for the second. Bringing on Fred Frieburger as producer may have at first seemed like a great choice to punch up the action and drama, having the third season of "Star Trek" on his resume; but they should have noted that he was more responsible than anyone else for that show's drastic decline in intelligence during the third year.

First, a great cover painting...

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From the same issue, a short writeup on Space actor Nick Tate, as he talks at a convention about the changes coming in the new season.

And, here is the back cover of the issue, advertising the soundtrack for the series.

It's still hard for me to believe that we have passed the year that the show was set in, by 13 years now. Back in the mid-70's it seemed so futuristic and far off! And we still have no moonbase.

As a bonus, here is an article from the prior issue of Starlog, #1, that also talks about the upcoming changes from an earier perspective.

1991 "The Flash" Comics Scene article

"The Flash" was, in my opinion, one of the better live-action superhero series to ever be on television. Much inspiration from the 1989 "Batman" film was evident, from the costume with the sculpted musculature, to the retro-noirish sets, to the music (the rousing and bombastic theme was composed by Batman's Danny Elfman). Below is a cover story from issue #18 of the Comics Scene magazine, (from the same publishers as Starlog) published in April of 1991, on the Scarlet Speedster as played by John Wesley Shipp.

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Below, a couple of TV Guide ads for episodes of the show, along with an "Editor's Choice" clipping.

The Big Bang Theory Promo

No, this entry is not about Sheldon's popular show; rather, it's a 1988 cable trade magazine dual ad for both the "War Of The Worlds" series and "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Although the ad touts the high numbers for the new "WOTW" series, you may remember that it only lasted for two seasons before being cancelled, whereas "ST:TNG" went for all seven before the studio voluntarily ended it. The magazine was an over-sized publication, and it took six page scans to get the entire two-page spread (the painting for which is quite spectacular), which I then pieced back together. Most of the time the scans here are larger than the actual item featured; but this one is close to the actual size of the original. By the way, I did post this in one of my other blogs awhile back, here, since it spans ST also.

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Bonus: A full-page ad from my 1967 issue #2 of Charlton's "Blue Beetle" comic, advertising their various superheroes. Cool!

1989 John Haymes Newton interview

From the 1989 issue #6 of "Comics Scene," (a magazine from the same publishers as "Starlog"), comes this interview with the first actor to portray Superboy in the 1988 TV series, John Haymes Newton. Although a little wooden, Newton did a good job of wearing the suit, and portraying both facets of the Kryptonian, with his young Clark less nerdy than in Reeve's portrayal. Of course, he ended up not continuing in the role past the first season, to be replaced by Gerard Christopher, who enthusiastically took up the cape and ran with it (or should I say flew with it).

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Bonus: Below, from the same issue, is a short piece on the "Swamp Thing" sequel with the waterlogged Dick Durock, who went on to portray the plant man in the TV series. Say what you will about the campiness of the movie, the costume was a significant improvement over the visible-seam-and-zippered first version.

1978 "Incredible Hulk" TV Series Article

From July 1978 comes this "Us" magazine cover article on "The Incredible Hulk" TV series. After it is a small feature on Stan Lee. Enjoy!

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1967 Promotional Art for Jonny Quest

From the 1967 Castle of Frankenstein yearbook (or "Fearbook" as it was called) comes this full-page image of some promotional artwork for the then-new animated series "Jonny Quest." The inset review, although somewhat negative, did manage to deliver some backhanded compliments. Today, we recognize just how groundbreaking the show was. I have great memories of summer evenings at my Grandma's house hurrying inside to catch the show.

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Superboy TV show ad

From a 1991 cable TV trade magazine comes this large format ad for the third season of "The Adventures of Superboy" TV series, starring Gerard Christopher who replaced John Haymes Newton in season two. Sadly, the second and third seasons have not been officially released on DVD, and considering the ongoing legal battles over the character, are not likely to in the near future.

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1978 TV Sci-Fi Schedule

From the collection cabinet comes an article from the first issue of the low-class magazine "Space Trek," one of many genre exploitation rags ground out by publishing mogul Myron Fass. It's significant that this magazine, along with all the other generically-named versions (which cropped up overnight and expired just as quickly) all occupy the bottom shelf of my cabinet. The paper was the lowest-grade pulp, one step below the toilet paper at the corner service station, and the photos were washed out and spotty. But, sometimes these mags, too, offer up interesting articles, like this one with serves as a snapshot of the sci-fi/fantasy programs coming up that fall and winter of 1978. If you were a kid or teen during that time, reading about all these shows when they were new will bring back some (hopefully fond) memories. The article concentrates on the biggest, "Battlestar Galactica," but features info on many others you will remember, and some you might have missed. Nanu, nanu!

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"V - The Final Battle" 1984 TV Guide article

Back in 1984, one of the most anticipated events on TV (at least for me) was the sequel to the highly-rated "V" saga. The article featured this time is from the May 7, 1984 edition of TV Guide, revealing the makeup technique used on the memorable scene where the Visitor is revealed to the rest of the world.

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It was then that "John" realised he should have disguised himself as someone more beloved than TV's Karl Maldan.

Below, the TV Guide Close-Up on the return of the popular V epic.

Below are some splash ads for the miniseries.