ISSUE 191

MARCH 1983

4 FANG MAIL Our readers write in to condemn us for the latest mistakes waive model

5 THE REPORTER The latest movie and book news from the Horrorworld Film Scene!

11 GREAT MOMENTS FM's El Rauncho Award is given to the worst films ever made!

12 THE DARK CRYSTAL Who are the Gelflings? Find out in this exciting FM preview!

20 HOW TO SHOOT A BEAST Lisa Morton demon.strates her photographic talents!

25 THE VIDEOCCULT Our Rovin Reporter lists more games than you can shake a joystick at!

26 THE MONSTERRIFIC ANGEL A tribute to Forrest J Ackerman-ake Mr. Monster!

30 TIME MACHINE PART II our filmbook continues as the Eloi bottle the Morlocks!

38 REVIEWS FM buys the tickets; you read our reviews, then decide for yourself which pix to see!

40 FANTASTIC TV 1983 A sampling of whet the major networks are offering this season!

47 FASCINATING FACTS is truth stranger then fantasy? Sometimes! Here's e sample!

49 THE SENDER Dreams turn to nightmares that kill in this recent shocker from Paramount!

52 MOLDY MUMMIES PART II Most of the modern mummies are dustier than ever!

58 ALL ABOUT XTRO Abducted by aliens, a men returns to Earth horribly changed!

71 FANTASY ROLE-PLAYING You can learn strategies of today's SF & Fantasy Games!

FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND Number 191 Published monthly except February & December by Warren Publishing Company Editorial, Business & Subscription offices located at 145 East 32nd Street New York NY 10018 Second Class mall privileges authorized a New York NY and at additional mailing offices.

FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND is registered US Patent Office Marca Registrada Marquee Deposee

Printed in USA Entire contents Copyrighted 1982 by Warren Publishing Co Nothing may be reprinted in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher.

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SHADOWLAND

Thanks for the recent retrospective on the life, death, and rebirth of that classic horror-soap, DARK - SHADOWS. Rest assured it was much appreciated by the series' many fans.

Michael Kanterovich

Hollis, NH

OLD TYME READER

I love your magazine. I was 7 years old when your first issue came out in 1958. I remember finding it at the newsstand next to the comic-book selection. I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought it was great that somebody would come out with a magazine devoted entirely to monsters. Ever since, in my eyes, you have been the first word on monsters. FAMOUS MONSTERS has a special feel all its own. As I look back over my collection, I am reminded of almost a quarter-century (in 1983) of good feelings for monsters found in the pages of FM.

Michael Roden

Milford, OH

GREAT 188

Thank you for publishing one of the best publications of all time. After reading FM #188, I had to write. I've been reading FM since #126, but this was the best issue yet? There was coverage of two of the first horror movies I ever saw: HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and THE MUMMY'S GHOST. And the cover! This was worth five times the cover price!

    Would you please do a story on FRIDAY THE 13TH. PART 3? I don't usually like these kinds of films, but I liked this one! It was the best 3D movie I have ever seen!

In all the years that I have been reading FM, I have never seen a filmbook on HORROR OF DRACULA, How about it?

Steve Phillips

Moline, IL

We did publish a “photobook” on the Hammer classic, Steve (Famous Films #3), some years ago. However, now that we have brought back the FM Filmbook as a regular feature, you're sure to see it.

FRIDAY FREAK

Is it possible that in the future you can do a special article on all the FRIDAY THE 13TH movies? I saw Parts 1 & 2. Personally I preferred Part One because Tom Savini did the astounding effects. I wondered how the drowned kid could live in the lake or rise from the dead. (Through the magic of something called "artistic license")

    I have some questions.

(1) What is the goriest movie you've seen? (For sheer quantity of blood, it's gotta be BLOOD FEAST.)

(2) What is your favorite movie? (Tim likes THE TIME MACHINE, Bill & Randy prefer CURSE OF THE DEMON.)

(3) What is the best gore effect you've seen? (The cutting off the thumb & arm in TWO THOUSAND MANIACS, and the disembowelment in ANDY WARHOL'S FRANKENSTEIN.)

(4) Who is your favorite actor? (Jerry Lewis. Who else?)

(5) Which FAMOUS MONSTERS issue is your favorite? (The next one.)

Johnny Brodsky

Benton, KY

WANTED! More Readers Like

John Sluder

Farewell FJA

Forrest J Ackerman, editor of FAMOUS MONSTERS for nearly 25 years, has relinquished his staff position as Editor-in-Chief." Ferry and publisher Jim Warren created the magazine in 1957. The first issue (currently valued between $300 and $500 among collectors) went on sale in the midst of a snowstorm in New York City the first week of February 1958. No one was more surprised than Ferry and Jim when the magazine sold out its entire press run FM became the source of inspiration for such similar publications as CASTLE OF FRANKENSTEIN, WORLD OF HORROR, MONSTER MANIA, FANTASTIC MONSTERS OF THE FILMS. WORLD FAMOUS CREATURES. and dozens of others. Warren brought out SPACEMEN, SCREEN THRILLS ILLUSTRATED, MONSTER WORLD, FAMOUS FILMS, and of course EERIE, CREEPY, VAMPIRELLA, and 1994-all made possible by the success of FM. As the decade of the 1960's progressed, Ferry found himself more & more in demand, as a lecturer, film historian, writer, and TV personality. He appeared on such shows as To Tell the Truth, Mery Griffin, You Asked For It. and others. In 1974 and '75, Warren and Ackerman staged the FAMOUS MONSTERS Conventions, which boasted such fantasy film personalities as Peter Cushing and Ingrid Pitt. Now, after 190 issues of FM, Ferry has decided it is time to move on to other things. His presence will be missed; but the Ackerman spirit will continue to live in our pages! We at Warren join the thousands of fans and readers in wishing FJA continued success in the fantasy field. May the Force be with you, Forry!

    Beginning this issue, FAMOUS MONSTERS will be bringing its readers more detailed and comprehensive news items than ever before on the current goings-on in the fantasy field.

    Not only will we be covering the film scene, we will also provide information on new film studies, major book releases, science-fiction convention information, and other items of interest.

    While the big flap over "Q" has abated in the U.S., our friends overseas are only just now getting their feathers ruffled by the mythical bird-god. The film, written and directed by Larry Cohen (director of the beastly baby bonanza, IT'S ALIVE), is the first presentation from ex-AIP alumnus, Samuel Z. Arkoff. In typical Arkoff/AIP fashion, the American premiere of "Q" (in early October in New York City) was pumped weeks in advance through a series of enticing "teaser ads” announcing “Q IS COMING!”

    The monster itself, Quetzalcoatl (KWET-zal-coh-AHT-el), is a stop-motion model animated for the film by David Allen & associates. The legend of Quetzalcoatl--a mythical giant flying Aztec serpent god-- was filmed once before, in 1945 by Producers' Releasing Corp. George Zucco starred in the first version, known as THE FLYING SERPENT.

    Interestingly, "Q" was originally slated to be released as THE FLYING SERPENT, also. The title was changed during production to SERPENT--THE ULTIMATE THRILLER, and finally to "Q".

Filming was halted on Warner Brothers' TWILIGHT ZONE pic-

ture for a total of 9 weeks when, during production of Part One of the 4-part picture, a helicopter crash killed actor Vic Morrow and 2 child actors. John Landis (AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON) was director of the segment, which involved a sequence where Morrow and the two children were fleeing through a wooded area, ducking gunfire and firebomb explosions.

    The tragedy occurred in late July when the hovering helicopter was caught in the explosion of one of the special effect firebombs. The charge splintered parts of the 'copter's frame and sent it plummeting to the ground. Morrow and the children were unable to get out of the way in time and were killed by the impact of the helicopter.

    Landis, Warner Brothers, and producer/director Steven Spielberg are among the parties charged in the incident. Ongoing investigations contend that “the helicopter pilot was receiving instructions or signals from more than one person during the movie flight scenes," that "the hovering sites for a helicopter were not carefully chosen related to fire-bomb locations," and that "there was no detailed briefing conducted prior to conducting a movie to minimize the possible hazards."

    More "serious" citations state that “blasts were fired without definite assurance that a helicopter and all persons were at a safe distance," that a "welding hood was worn by a special effects man firing firebombs (which) restricted his visibility," and that "the pilot was not informed in a detailed manner the exact location of firebombs to be exploded in the area of the helicopter."

    Nevertheless, filming finally resumed on THE TWILIGHT ZONE, which is scripted by veteran sf and fantasy author, Richard Matheson, in October. Landis' segment is completed, and the second episode, directed by Joe Dante (THE HOWLING), stars Kevin McCarthy and Kathleen Quinlan.

    Universal's PSYCHO II, starring Anthony Perkins and Vera Miles, has been filming under a tight security. Perkins reprises his

role as the psychotic Norman Bates. In this continuation of the 1960 Alfred Hitchcock classic, the audience learns that Norman was committed to a mental institution for the murders he committed in the original picture. Twenty years

later, a psychiatrist deems him sane enough to return to society...and that sets the scene for the violence that follows.

    Sources close to the studio set, however, hint that the PSYCHO II storyline parallels aspects of the John Hinckley case. In fact, the picture went into production only weeks after Hinckley was declared "not guilty by reason of insanity" in the shooting of President Reagan. The film's producer, Hilton Green, insists the similarity between PSYCHO II and the Hinckley case is merely coincidence, and that the outline of the film was developed at least a month prior to Hinckley's attempt on the President's life.

    Robert Loggia, who plays the psychiatrist who sets Norman free, says that the production was shrouded in such secrecy, when he asked to see the final 8 pages of the script a studio man came in with the script, locked inside a briefcase, and led him to a secluded area where he watched Loggia read it.

    ADVENTURES IN THE CREEP ZONE is the title of a $6 million production from Zone Productions which will lens in Utah and Vancouver, British Columbia. Formerly entitled ROAD GANGS, the science-fiction film with an eight-week shooting schedule will topline Peter Strauss and Molly Ringwald. Jean Lafleur will direct.

  Robert Hays, Peter Graves, Chuck Connors, Lloyd Bridges and other top Hollywood stars line up for an all-star cast in Paramount's AIRPLANE II: THE SEQUEL. This extension of the super-successful 1979 hit comedy takes place in outer space as the world's first commercial lunar space shuttle reaches to the stars. Sonny Bono plays a mad bomber on board the shuttle, Rip Torn is the head of the space center, and surprise! -William Shatner is Buck Murdock, commander of the Alpha Beta Lunar Base.

Death comes to warn the crew they're piloting the ship into the sun in AIRPLANE II.

William Shatner as the rough & tumble Buck Murdock in AIR-PLANE II: THE SEQUEL.

Robert Hays as the lunar shuttle test pilot is sure something's gone wrong with AIRPLANE II.

The number "10" burned into the back of a military school student in LORDS OF DISCIPLINE

SHORT TAKES

    Following REVENGE OF THE JEDI, slated for a May release, the next picture to be filmed in the 9-part ADVENTURES OF LUKE SKYWALKER series, will be Episode No. 3-a prequel to the original STAR WARS Numbers One and Two will backtrack sequentially to the beginning of the story. After the history of the rebellion against the Empire is committed to celluloid, the final sequels, Seven through Nine, will be filmed and released in chronological order.

    INSEMINOID has been picked up for American distribution by Howard Levine. The science-fiction-horror thriller, starring Jennifer Ashley, has been retitled HORROR PLANET.

    Although the FIRESTARTER project, to have been directed by John Carpenter at Universal Studios, has been momentarily shelved, Carpenter will be directing a film version of Stephen King's forthcoming novel, "Christine." It appears the project may not be up Carpenter's alley, however; in fact, it's even a bit off King's beaten path. Preliminary reports suggest the novel's plotline concerns a 1958 Chevy which plays nothing but Buddy Holly music on its radio!

    King's "Dead Zone" novel has been optioned for filming, also. Russian director Andrei Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky is working on the film script, which Dino De Laurentiis will direct this winter.

    Bo Derek and husband John have approached George (LOVE AT FIRST BITE) Hamilton to play the Devil in their latest pic-

ture, ADAM AND EVE. John Derek will essay the role of God!

    Walt Disney is preparing THE BLACK CAULDRON, a $20 million animated feature which will be shooting over an extended period of time.

    Producer/director Ron Harris is set to produce a new version of H.G. Wells' THINGS TO COME.

    Steven Spielberg has hired set-designer John Napier to design his next movie, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK II.

    Ian McKellan, the esteemed British actor who won a Tony Award last year for his performance on Broadway in "Amadeus," has been signed for a starring role in THE KEEP. Michael Mann is directing the new Paramount production, an enchanting and horrifying fable set in Rumania during World War II. The film is being shot at Shepperton Studios in London and on location in Eastern Europe.

    DUNE will be helmed by David Lynch, director of THE ELEPHANT MAN and ERASERHEAD. The Dino De

Laurentiis production will be filmed in Mexico.

    NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN, the “alternate' James Bond thriller with Sean Connery reprising his role as 007, will feature Bernie Casey as a CIA agent.

    Anny Duperey and Jean-Claude Beialy star in DEMON OF THE ISLAND, now filming in Brittany.

    Veteran Hammer Film director Don Sharp (KISS OF THE VAMPIRE) will direct RED ALERT WEST, a futuristic western due to roll by the New Year.

    The world's first animated 3-D movie, now in preproduction, will utilize a special dimensional photography process, enabling audiences to view the finished feature without the aid of stereo-image separation glasses. A breakthrough in modern 3-D film! The title: ABRA-CADABRA!

    A new "Conan"-type movie is now filming in Madrid. Laurene Landon stars in HUNDRA, directed by Matt Cimber.

    And Telly Savalas will head an all-star cast in a new version of ALI BABA & THE 40 THIEVES.

Investigating the belfry of New York's Chrysler Building, where "Q" has built it's nest is risky business

IN PRINT

    Two recent studies of motion picture film of interest to FM readers are The Movie World of Roger Cor man and Dark Dreams.

    Both books make for entertaining and enlightening reading. Corman, whose career in horror and fantasy film stretches back to the

early 1950s, produced and/or directed quite a few of the genre's most popular films, including THE PIT & THE PENDULUM, LITTLE SHOPPE OF HORRORS, and others. The Movie World of Roger Corman is filled with informative insights and anecdotes about the “King of the B-Films.” Unfortunately, many of the photos are miscaptioned (e.g., a photo of the 3-eyed mutant from DAY THE WORLD ENDED is mistakenly referred to as from ATTACK OF THE CRAB MONSTERS). However, there is a nice color section of movie posters from some of Corman's pictures. If you know your subject matter and can overlook the obvious errors, this book makes a fine addition to another recent book on Corman's films, Brilliance on a Budget.

    Dark Dreams, by Charles Derry, is a scholarly study of the terror film, from 1960's PSYCHO to 1975's JAWS. The author probes deep into the psychological terror films which followed Hitchcock's PSYCHO, moves into a study of

the "Armageddon" horror, which includes a lengthy look at the Japanese monster films like GODZILLA and RODAN, and concludes with a long look at the demon-possession films which were born in the late '60s and early '70s with pictures like ROSEMARY'S BABY and THE EXORCIST.

HORROR AND FANTASY FILM BOOKS

GREAT MOMENTS

They said it couldn't be done, and they were right! Not only did producer Dino De Laurentils elbow out more responsible competition tor the right to remake KING KONG...not only did he demean the bittersweet saga and cynically exploit worthwhile issues such as ecology and women's rights("'Put me down, you chauvinist pig ape!'')...not only did he torge stop-motion for a man in a monkey suit...eliminate the dinosaurs in favor of a limp snake...but he spent two million dollars on the torty-toot robot depicted below, easily one of the worst special effects over, a stiff, clumsy, unconvincing travesty that, for all its cost, appeared on screen tor only a tow seconds. Yes, Dino, our very first El Raunche Award goes to you for providing we, the tans, with this Great Moment in Fantasy.

SECRET STRANGE..

SORCERY-RIDDLED.

This is the World of the Dark Crystal.

A Land Outside Time.

A Place Beyond...Places,

Beautiful yet bewildering.

A fairyland sometimes frightening.

    An imagination "peopled" by creepy creatures, outre beyond mortal experience: "things" that hop...that crawl...that skitter...all the while singing sweetly in some unknown language or shrieking wildly in some alien tongue.

    In the World of the Dark Crystal everything is alive. Plants speak, Trees have tongues. Brooklets babble of forgotten yesteryears. Pebble, stone, boulder & mountain become moving beings.

    The very atmosphere is alive with the scent of fear and the macabre magic of arcane mysteries.

    And dominating all is the Supreme Mystery: the power of...THE DARK CRYSTAL.

THE STORY

    OUR FABULOUS TALE opens in a land unplaced in time or space, unknown in our commonplace Dimensions 3.

    It is a world dominated by an evil breed called-

    The Skeksis.

    Once, from the dizzy heights of a sparkling castle in whose heart glowed a great Crystal with energy absorbed from the world's 3

Suns;-once from this exalted eyrie a tribe of supernal thinkers & incredible creators ruled the land.

Catastrophe

    But a thousand years ago a terrible convulsion mysteriously shook that land.

The Crystal cracked.

Its heart darkened.

Its surface grew gray & lifeless.

The Reign of the Skeksis had begun!

And gradually the Castle degenerated.

The people & the rulers degenerated until all was drear & drab decay, dominated by one unworthy ruling motivation: Greed.

Corruption

    The Skeksis controlled the impure Crystal and it became the center of their weird rituals and the source of their power.

    Now, a tremendous astronomical occurrence is forecast. If it is allowed to come to pass, the Rule of the Skeksis will be entrenched forever, beyond hope of revolution or overthrow.

The Elfin Menace

    There is only one thing the Skeksis secretly tremble at: the fear that an ancient prophecy may one day be fulfilled concerning a noble race of elfin creatures; that these Gelfling will somehow undermine & destroy their power.

    In an effort to preserve their evil Dynasty, the cruel Skeksis rulers have done their wicked best

The Skeksis Ritual-Master and Garthim-Master plot the succession of the emperor's throne

to eradicate the Gelfling race. In fact they believe they have succeeded. But -

The Gelfling Named Jen

    The Skeksis Castle is guarded by fierce warriors known as Garthim. They are encased in shell-like armor and enforce the Skeksis' rule without pause or pity. But unbeknownst to the Skeksis, one Gelfling boy-Jen-has been saved from the Garthims' claws. Snatched from the very grasp of Prince Sirki, he has been raised by a clan of strange, unworldly & impractical mystics called the urRu.

    Jen's mission upon reaching maturity: to discover the secret of the Crystal's darkness and restore its inner brilliance...and with the return of the light, true balance to his world.

Wisdom of the Master

    UrSu the Master, most wise of all the urRu, brings up Jen with all the tender loving care of an exotic orchid, convinced the elf-boy is the last of his kind.

    Jen's sheltered life is shattered when his Master dies. But with the guru's last breath he breathes a task for Jen. He shows him the image of a small shard of crystal and, expiring, whispers: "You must find this...and return it...to its rightful place...before the Great Conjunction..."

To a gnome, there's no place like home, as this urSu master would be glad to tell you

The shifting sands of fate are weighed by the urSu

A kindly Podperson enjoys a lusty nighttime revel

A helpless Podperson trembles under intense interrogation by the blood hungry Skeksis

The Great Conjunction

    It is the astronomical hour when the world's 3 Suns will converge as one.

    If Jen fails, all things whole & good will be destroyed forever!

    Ironically, even as Jen's urRu Master lies dying, so too does the Emperor of the Skeksis, as if to confirm the delicate balance of the world implied in the prophecy of the Great Conjunction.

    An ugly and bitter power struggle ensues between the Chamberlain, the strongest of the Skeksis faction, and the Garthim Master. Using all the evil power at his command, the Garthim Master triumphs. The Chamberlain is stripped of his power and is banished from the castle.

The Seeing Crystal

Meanwhile, Jen sets out on his lonely journey.

He is saddened by the loss of his urRu Master.

He is frightened to be leaving the peace and tranquility of the urRu valley.

But his destiny beckons him.

    As he sets out across the wild landscape, Jen becomes aware that the very earth seems to be watching him, threatening him, that flora can become fauna, and that the forests and marshes are alive with chattering, gibbering creatures.

    Hidden among this generally harmless gallery of grotesques is one creature that is not so harmless...

    A bat with a seeing crystal,

    A tool of the evil Skeksis.

Aughra the Astronomer

    The bat betrays the existence of Jen, a Gelfling, to the Skeksis. A Gelfling! Alive! The race they so fear! The race that they have worked so hard to obliterate in order to preserve their own reign.

    Fearful that the ancient prophecy will be fulfilled, they send their Garthim warriors to track Jen down and destroy him.

    Meantime, Jen has reached the mysterious and astonishing observatory of Aughra the astronomer, the Keeper of Secrets. Under Aughra's gruff direction, Jen finds the crystal shard, and learns something of its meaning.

    Suddenly, hordes of the terrible Garthim attack the observatory.

    Aughra urges Jen to flee...flee!

Kira

    Frantically, Jen plunges into the bordering swamp to escape the Garthim's wrath.

    But no comfort is to be found in the wild swampland. It is crawling, creeping, and slithering with creatures of bizarre, horrible countenance and figure.

    Just as Jen fears he will go out of his mind with terror he comes upon -

    Kira.

    A Gelfling!

    Jen had no idea that there were any other living members of his elfen race! Even in that darksome swamp, he is quietly overjoyed.

Aughra the astronomer, the keeper of secrets, holds one vital link to the destiny of Jen the Gelfling

The Pod People

    Kira guides Jen to the village of the Pod People, a gentle and simple folk who sheltered Kira during the genocidal obliteration of the Gelflings at the hands of the Skeksis.

    The Pod People welcome Jen with a merry feast of song and Pod People cuisine...and Jen's cares begin to melt away.

    Jen entertains thoughts of abandoning his quest.

    Why not spend the rest of his life with lovely Kira amid the simple comforts of the Pod People culture?

    But Jen will never have the chance to confront these vexing temptations.

For lurking in the darkness outside the village is a hulking horde of bloodthirsty Garthim.

Garthim…only too eager to enslave the gentle Pod People and kill the last of the Gefling.

Will they succeed?

Open Jim Henson’s Christmas present to fantasy fans, and find out!

To a Skeksis, preserving their decadent way of life is all-important, no matter how many others must die!

More Than Muppetry

    Master puppeteers Jim Henson and Frank Oz, and producer Gary Kurtz, are eager to point out that* THE DARK CRYSTAL is not a puppet movie. They like to distinguish between the Muppets seen on TV and the characters of THE DARK CRYSTAL. The Muppets are performing, but the characters of THE DARK CRYSTAL, with their intricate detail and more sophisticated interplay...are acting.

    Jim Henson is always seeking ways to expand the boundaries of puppetry. He created the Muppets while still in college, and received a local Washington D.C. Emmy for a five minute show featuring them. After graduating from the University of Maryland, Henson moved to New York City. His Muppets began making appearances on The Tonight Show, The Today Show, and Saturday Night Live, among others. The Muppets have been a mainstay of Sesame Street since its inception, Gracefully riding a seemingly endless crest of success, Henson created The Muppet Show, which is now seen in over a hundred countries across the world. The TV success gave birth to THE MUPPET MOVIE, and THE GREAT MUPPET CAPER.

    Frank Oz has been with Jim Henson since 1963, and has gone on to become an invaluable member of le muppet-monde. It is Frank Oz who

brings life to the passionate Miss Piggy. Frank was the voice and guiding force behind Yoda in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Also an actor, Frank can be seen, among other performances, as the weird fellow from the American Consulate who visits the werewolf-boy's bedside in AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON. As a performer and creator, Frank Oz's contribution to the field of fantasy cannot be overestimated.

    Gary Kurtz, producer of THE DARK CRYSTAL, also produced STAR WARS and THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. What more need be said? Plenty. No overnight success, Kurtz toiled for years on countless low budget films and television documentaries, learning virtually every technical craft related to filmmaking. A graduate of the film school at USC, Kurtz brings expertise as well as imagination to every project he develops.

    As the conceptual designer, Brian Froud was responsible for the look of the world of THE DARK CRYSTAL...the settings, props, and characters. Uniquely equipped for the task, Froud has illustrated countless books and magazines for children and adults. “The Land of Froud” is an anthology of his work. “Faeries" which he co-illustrated with Alan Lee, was a bestseller of a few years back.

Kira, Jen's much-loved companion, aboard her Landstrider

Jen enters the fantastic observatory of Aughra in search of further clues to his desperate mission

field. It was then that he began to conceive the project that would become THE DARK CRYSTAL.

    When Gary Kurtz came to Jim Henson for ad. vice on how to bring Yoda to life for THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, a rapport developed, and Kurtz became the producer of Henson's grand new project.

Brian Froud spent a year designing the sets, characters, and props for the film. His designs were turned over to Harry Lange, the production designer, who was responsible for bringing them to life.

    The development, creation, and maintenance of the DARK CRYSTAL characters cost $5 million, and another $5 million was spent on props, sets, and environment.

    The entire movie was filmed live-action. There was no stop-motion effects. Small people were used in some of the characters to animate them some of the time, mimes were used in one or two characters all of the time, but such methods were employed a mere 5% of the screen time The great majority of the action was brought to life via the most sophisticated puppetry techniques known...and Jim Henson knows them all!

    Facets of hydraulics. radio-controlled mechanics, and mechanical linkage were all employed at some time during the production in addition to traditional puppetry techniques, Henson and his people prefer mechanical manipulation to radio-controlled, because character reaction can be made more subtle mechanically. The most preferred method, though, is employing a team of performers, the word used for the puppeteer, a person manipulating a figure by hand or wire.

    For group scenes, such as the Pod People feast or the gathering of the Skeksis, as many as 45 performers might be squeezed in and around the set, anywhere from three to five people animating one character. Some of the performers would be under the stage, moving arms or feet. Others would be just out of camera range on the set, creating facial expressions or moving hands. Performers under the stage would have video monitors so that they could follow the action. Monitors were so prevalent that some of the mimes had them inside the character costumes!

    Jim Henson performed the movie's hero, Jen, while Frank Oz performed the Chamberlain of the Skeksis. Neither man used his own voice, however, fearing that their voices had become too familiar from the TV Muppet Show.

    Their voices may be familiar, but Jim Henson, Frank Oz, and the rest of their creative crew seem determined that their work never become predictable. The leap from Muppet-style vaudeville routines to the mystic workings of fate and destiny in an imaginary realm is a great one. But no step is too big for a man who stands as tall as Jim Henson.

    THE DARK CRYSTAL promises to be a gem.

HOW

    What's it like to photograph a beast, you might well ask. Bet you thought they don't even show up on film?

    Well, freelance photographer Lisa Morton got the chance to find out when she got the opportunity to cover in stills all the special makeups for THE BEAST WITHIN.

    Fortunately it wasn't her first exposure to monstrous fotos. She explains: "From the time I was about 8 or 9, I spent every available cent I had-and I went without quite a few of those school lunches I'd been given money for-on FAMOUS MONSTERS. I figure it's only natural now that I should be seeing my photographs on those same pages!"

A Syngenour pod from Robert Short and Bill Malone's SCARRED TO DEATH

The little girl corpse (Eloise) from Tom McLoughlin’s REST IN PEACE, sculpted and finished by Lisa Morton and Tom Burman.

"so there!"

    Although not always what she expected, Lisa nevertheless was ecstatic. "I think one of the greatest things that can happen to anyone who wants to work in the film industry is that first job-it's the realization of a life-time dream. In my case, it may also have been admittedly a bit vindictive. I'm sure a lot of fans can probably identify when I say that people often found a little girl who would rather have played with Aurora monster models than dolls to be a bit odd. Now, I finally felt that I could justifiably say, 'Oh yeah? Well, now I'm making a living doing it, so there!"

This close-up shot reveals the massive amount of detailing in V'Ger that went virtually unseen

Another corpse from REST IN PIECE. This one was actually conetructed from a real skeleton

One of many tiny in-jokes in the detailing of the mothership interior; several membere of the crew claimed to have an imaginary company called "Flying Cow Productions", so Lisa incorporated their logo in the model

Although many people through the Spock Space Walk wae completely animated, it was, in fact, made up moetly of model work, euch as thie piece, the Space Web

a model maiden

    After STAR TREK, Lisa stayed with Greg Jein's crew for the special edition of CLOSE ENCOUNTERS. She once again found the crew confronted with a situation she had encountered on the previous project-namely, they were given mainly what amounted to abstract paintings to construct models from. "Actually, we did have one beautiful pre-production painting by Ron Cobb of the interior of the mothership but even that concept was changed almost I soon discovered, however, that this was not only normal but expected of the director, Steven Spielberg, and eventually I started to enjoy the sort of continual challenge these changes created." This time, the crew installed merely 2000 or so fiber optic lights but the detailing on the models got a little more creative-in tiny niches of the 12-foot tall, 20-foot in diameter model, crewmembers constructed homages to THE EXORCIST. ALIEN & 1941, as well as a variety of personal in jokes-and none taller or wider than one inch!

small budget, big "grosser"

    Lisa's first opportunity to see a horror film in action came when she got to assist on a small-budget picture called SCARED TO DEATH, working with the film's co-creator Robert Short. Lisa says it was everything she had hoped for-well, sort of. "One scene involved the hero & heroine stumbling into a sewer filled with bodies & hideous parasitical mutant 'pods' that were supposed to be attached to the bodies. The action called for the intrepid detective hero to approach a body, pull the pod's attachment away and the victim would convulse & die. The pods were readied, gruesome 'victim' makeups applied, a blood pump attached to the stunt victim and lastly Bob Short injected a grotesque green goo into the unfortunate fellow's mouth, Finally the cameras started to roll, and as the entire crew held their breaths--they didn't seem to think this scene could really work—the protagonist yanked at the fateful pod attachment, and like true movie magic the victim convulsed, blood gushed from his open wound and green bile bubbled up out of his mouth. When the director yelled "Cut!', the crew burst into applause, yelling things like 'Boy, that was the grossest thing I've ever seen! It was great!"

"my darling clemen(s)tine"

    A variety of small photography jobs followed until monsters once again reared their ugly heads when THE BEAST WITHIN came along. Lisa's long-time boyfriend and fellow FM reader) Paul Clemens was signed to star in the film and, never one to miss an opportunity, Lisa grabbed her camera and started snapping. She managed to do what few photographers have been able to accomplish and that was to capture in stills a complicated, multi-stage makeup in every stage of creation, from body casts to finished film.

    "It was a dream come true, to be able to work with one of the greatest makeup artists in the world, Tom Burman, on what I felt would be a new, classic monster. Of course, on the other hand, seeing all the sculptures & tests was one

The Sygnenor pods on the set of SCARED TO DEATH, hooked up to their respective corpses. At right, another shot of the mothership interior which shows the intricate detailing and use of fiber-optic lights.

thing but standing in a set in Mississippi and seeing your boyfriend transformed into a hideous beast right in front of your eyes was-let's say indescribable." Lisa also got an unexpected chance to assist on the makeup when an extra hand was needed to help control one of 2 full-size mechanical dummies used in the transformation sequence. Remember the shots where that 8-inch-long segmented tongue rolls up out of Michael's mouth? Yep-that was Lisa on, uh, tongue. "Try explaining that one to the relatives!” she adds.

restless pieces

    Lisa & Paul once again worked with Tom Burman when, later in'81, he offered them both the chance to join him as sculptors on the new film REST IN PEACE (directed by yet another FAMOUS MONSTERS alumnus, Tom McLoughlin). Altho neither makeup nor sculpting were exactly new to Lisa, using these arts to construct corpses was. She tells of horrified visitors to the Burman studios who would walk in during lunch only to discover the technicians studying color pictures of real pathology labs while casually munching a sandwich. "In

any other circumstances a lot of the research material we looked at probably would have made me somewhat ill but it's different when you're thinking in terms of, 'Would this look creepy on film and can we duplicate it?'”' Lisa is particularly proud of the little girl corpses (nicknamed "Eloise' by the crew after a cartoon character) and it receives stand-out attention in the film.

secret project

    For now, she is concentrating on another of her talents-writing-and is currently putting the finishing touches on her second screenplay (her first was a sequel to ALIEN which executive producer Ron Shusett was very interested in but unfortunately at this time there are no plans for a sequel). She won't give away details of the new project yet, except to say that it is far-future science fiction with the intriguing title of FAR THOUGHT.

    Advice for would-be future alumni? "Just don't ever get discouraged. Believe in yourself & your own abilities but on the other hand don't be afraid to ask other people for help. And I'll look forward to working with some of you!"

“Simulated Stereo Sound From Your TV, So Real, You Will Think You Are There”

TELEDAPTER

The Teledapter is an interface device that connects in between the TV and stereo. However to do this, the Teledapter performs three important functions, first, it provides chassis isolation, for protection of the stereo, when used with TV's that have hot chassis Second, Teledapter matches the impedance mismatch between a TV's output and that of a stereo input Thirdly, but hardly the least, it gives a simulated stereo effect, not just mono out both stereo speakers, but actually simulated stereo, a different signal for both the right and left inputs on the stereo.

    Works on all TV's, every TV program, even video tape's, and pay TV channels Since it works with your TV, all channel switching and volume changes are made automatically when you use your remote control or regular TV controls.

    This is all done with quality electronics combined and angineared into the unique circuit board.

HOW IT CONNECTS

The Teledapter will work with any TV and any stereo system that has auxillary, tuner, or tape inputs The Teledapter itself should be located near your stereo A cable supplied with the unit plugs into the input of the Teledapter and goas to the TV or VCR where it is plugged into an earphone jack, an audio output, or can be alligator clipped directly on the TV's speaker terminals The outputs of the Teledapter (left and right) plug directly into your stereo amp or receiver, with cables also supplied.

    If you have a stereo, then the Teledapter is all you need. Order model TE•200 $39 95 plus 300 shipping.

THE SOUND

Words are hard pressed to describe the sound of a car on TV squealing around a corner, appearing to move from one side of the living room to the other. Or the crowd at a ball game, the crack of the bat, the whistles, as though you were on the playing field And musicals, the pounding of the drums, the tingling of the cymbals, all coming from different locations

WORTHY COMMENTS

TV GUIDE “The Rhoades TELEDAPTER is a steal at $39.95. the results are excellent" HOME VIDEO MAGAZINE "you immediately get a sense of spaciousness-just what stereo's all about It works!" "If we had to pick a single winner, we'd have to choose the TELEDAPTER. It's inexpensive, its flexible and it works."

TELE AMP

The Tele Amp has all the same circuity as the Teledapter plus a stereo power amplifier built right into one neat little package (size 2"H x 34"W x 6"D) It connects to your TV or VCR just like the Teledapter, and then to any pair of speakers you might have or our recommended speakers below Completely eliminates the need for a separate stereo system. Order model TA.400 $99 95 plus $5 00 shipping

Speakers

Speakers measure 20” H x 9” D x 11”W rated at 20 watts each, two way system, 8" woofers, super tweeter, beautiful simulated walnut cabinets There are less expensive speakers. but none that perform and look like these at this price Order Model T8•6000 pair $119.00 plus $5 00 shipping

GUARANTEE & WARRANTY*

Try any of our products in your home for 30 days. If you are not completely satisfied, return it for an immediate refund.

*Two years parts and labor

TO ORDER

SEND CHECK OR MONEY ORDER, NAME, ADDRESS AND MODEL NUMBERS TO:

RHOADES

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145 E. 32nd STREET

NEW YORK, N.Y. 10016

(WRITE FOR COMPLETE CATALOG)

The videogame revolution snuck up on us like a stealthy invader from one of its own programs.

    The movement's first converts were the pinball freaks, compulsive arcadegoers who were drawn to the novelty of a TV playing field and compelled to return by the games' smooth handling and alluring glow-like electronic gold. Simultaneously, homes were infiltrated by the likes of Atari Pong and Odyssey, units that gave skills and personality to your television, replaced the passive thrill of watching TV with the real thrill of competing against the TV.

    Following their debut in the early 1970s, home and arcade fixtures became increasingly sophisticated until, by the end of the decade, what had entered the marketplace as an amusing diversion became nothing less than wish fulfillment: You could defend a castle, fly with the pilots of Star Wars, ski in the summer, go fishing in the winter, quarterback a football team, and even doff glasses and business suit to become Superman himself. All tor two bits or the one-time cost of a home arcade.

    Today each of us is a soldier in the video game revolution. Through our patronage staid Victorian games are being replaced by computer-generated adventures among exploding suns and the lairs of dragons. Especially remarkable is that we enlisted without the stirring words of a Thomas Paine or Patrick Henry, driven only by the narcotic plinks, beeps, booms, and raspberries of the video games described in this column.

    And driven we have been, spending in excess of a quarter-billion dollars in 1981 for recreation that boosts the imagination and hones the reflexes, is cathartic, lively, and uplifting. Critics decry the games as dehumanizing, but their arguments are the weeping of nostalgia and not the voice of common sense Video-games are helping to expand the parameters of personal entertainment, proving that much-beleaguered technology can be tun, exciting, even an art form, as the new Bally home units are proving with their Scribble program. And withal, they are damned moral: Despite the extirpation and merciless aggression of Space Invaders, Astrosmash, Boxing, Air-Sea Battle, et al., video gaming is the only medium in which Armageddon can be erased with the touch of a button.

    As Patrick Henry did say apropos another rebellion, "It this be treason, make the most of it!" We hope this column helps you to do just that.

    in the midst of all this video business, numerous monsters have been brought to home videogames, and in issues to come we will keep you posted on all the latest developments.

    For the present, let's take a look at a home videogame based on what is one of the most famous monsters of all-time-KING KONG.

    The new KING KONG videogame from Tiger Electronics is a cartridge you can play on your Atari VCS (Video Computer System), the small unit which most of us have. At the present time, the Atari unit is the only one which can

play this game. When Coleco-Vision introduces their adaptor module, then their console too will accept this game There is no Odyssey or Intellivision version.

    The object in KING KONG is to send "Jack Driscoll" from the bottom of a building to the top-where Kong is holding "Fay Wray'" captive.
    As the hero climbs staircase after staircase, Kong is busy chucking lighted bombs at him. It Jack is clobbered, then you have to start all over again, climbing the building from the bottom floor. You get three Jacks during the course of any game. After that, it's Mrs. Kong forever.

    Unlike the movie, however, jack can never really rescue Fay. He can climb to the top of the structure-but as soon as he gets there, he's suddenly back at the bottom of the building, faced with the prospect of climbing it all over again...with bombs falling faster than before.

    And so it goes, until all the Jacks are dead or the player's hand cramps.

    It the truth be known, this is a tun game but It really isn't KING KONG.

    Don't believe what the package says. There are no bi-planes, there is no Empire State Building-only a box-like structure with the barest hint of art deco design across the top--and Kong looks like a teddy bear which has been run over by a steamroller rather than the ferocious gorilla we all know and love.

    Besides, as any FM reader will tell you, it was Carl Denham who pitched bombs at Kong. not vice versa.

    A better game would have been to let Jack chase Kong to his lair, fighting dinosaurs, bridging pits, and so on, finally spiriting Fay away by vine, as he does in the movie.

    Withal, you'll have tun with the game-as long as you don't mind this latest corruption of the King's name One supposes that after being murdered by Dino De Laurentils six years ago, Kong can stand this lesser pasting at the claws of Tiger Electronics.

THE ANGEL AMONG

Forry’s a Jolly good Ackermonster!

    Twenty-five years ago James Warren met Forest James Ackerman and created two new creature-comforts for fans who appreciated all that was gory and gruesome in the wonderous world of fantasy. One was FAMOUS MONSTERS.

    The other was “The Ackermonster;” Forrest J Ackerman, Editor-in-Chief of FM for a quarter of a century.

    Curator of the "Ackermansion."

    Creator of VAMPIRELLA.

    Film historian. Literary agent.

Archivist. Researcher. Anthologist.

    Guest speaker.

    Winner of the first "Hugo" award.

    Friend to the fiends who read his "crazy magazine."

    Possessor of the world's greatest collection of things fantastic, things horrific.

    FJA was all these things--and more. Much more.

amazing forries

    "I started collecting fantasy memorabilia at the age of 9 with my purchase for 25 of a copy of Amazing Stories," Forry recalls. "Approximately 3 years later my mother was alarmed to discover I had accumulated a pile of something like 27 magazines. 'What on Earth, son,' she said, 'do you intend to do with all these magazines? Can you imagine how many you'd have if you continued collecting at this rate till you've grown up?"

    By his own admission, Forry never has "grown up." He owns so many magazines, books, "pulps" and other goodies by now that, in a garage with room for 3 cars, "there's not even room to park a pogo-stick!"

monster menagerie

    Forry has over 300,000 "things" in the "Fantasy Foundation," or the "Ackermansion" as it's known to FM's readers. There are floor-to-ceiling books, fanzines, paintings, manuscripts, movie props, stills, posters, pressbooks, autographs...everything pertinent to the field of imagination.

    The Imagi-Nation, as Forry puts it.

    He has derived his greatest pleasure from the collection not by simply owning it, or hoarding it, but by sharing it with others-like the readers of FM, who've thrilled to countless Rare Treats from Forry's immense file of fascinating film photos-over 100,000 strong!

    "I got my first movie stills in 1930," Forry reveals. "About 10 of them were from JUST IMAGINE. And I've been collecting ever since.

and Lovecraft; the brontosaurus that got loose in London in the original, silent LOST WORLD; the robotrix from METROPOLIS; Peter Lorre's wristwatch; Lon Chaney Sr.'s makeup kit; and on & on & on!

farewell, fja

    Unfortunately, after nearly 25 years of writing and editing the world's first monster fan magazine, FJA has decided it's time to move on to other things, to pursue other interests.

He has left behind a powerful legacy: 190 fun-filled issues of FAMOUS MONSTERS. Millions of words and thousands of pictures of Worlds of Wonder. Worlds of the Imagi-Nation which fueled and fired the imaginations of persons like Stephen King, John Carpenter, Tom Savini, George Lucas...and you and me.

    Our imaginations need to be stimulated--to be fueled and fired-by the Forry Ackermans of this world.

    Can you imagine where we might be if the likes of Albert Einstein or Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell hadn't had the imagination to come up with new and original ideas?

    We all need our imaginations stoked once in a while. That's what the future is all about.

    Thanks, FJA. You've given us a lot to think about.

    We're gonna miss you.

Filmbook Classic from FM

The Time

Machine

Part 2

IV. "The Talking Rings"

    In the gathering darkness, George saw shadows. From the nearby wooded area, hulking silouettes peered at him with glowing eyes. The shapes darted away at his approach. George stepped cautiously forward, stalking. He reached out quickly and grabbed-Weena.

“Weena, my machine is gone,” said George urgently. “Who lives in the sphinx?”

    “Morlocks,” replied Weena, looking fearfully around.

    “Morlocks? What are they?”

    “They give us the clothes we wear and the food we eat.”

    “How can I get into the sphinx? How can I contact the morlocks?”

    “You cannot,” she answered simply.

    George saw that the girl was deathly afraid of these morlocks, and yet she had come out, at night, to warn him of them. He was gladdened. He wondered if perhaps the spirit of man, the spirit of self-sacrifice, was not dead and forgotten in this time after all.

    With the matches he had brought from the 19th century, George and Weena built a fire. It would warm them, and it would keep the morlocks away. It seemed that the night-dwelling creatures feared the light. They passed a peaceful night.

    The next morning, at George's request, Weena took him to a field of craters, openings which led straight down to the subterranean lair of the morlocks.

    George heard, distantly, insistently, the low pounding of machinery!

    “They run machines!” exclaimed George. “How?”

    “No one knows,” answered Weena. “Only the rings know.”

    “The rings?”

    “Talking rings.”

    “Take me to these rings.”

    Weena led George to the ruins of a museum, where, on a smooth pedestal, sat a series of metallic rings. Weena spun a series of rings in succession, and a long-ago, mournful voice told this story:

    “The war between the east and the west is now in its 132nd year. There is no more food, no more weapons to fight with. The air is poisoned by the bombs, many are dead or dying. My name is not important. What is im

portant is that those of us left must make a choice... to go underground and hide from the death in the air, or to take our chances in the light, slim as those chances might be.”

    With shocking suddenness, George saw how man had evolved since the war ages ago. Some men had gone underground, lived like animals in the darkness. These became the morlocks, the masters, who cared for and bred the Eloi like cattle, taking them underground when they matured. This explained why there were no older people among the Eloi...and why they were so indifferent to death.

Rod taylor as George, the intrepid time traveler.

Wielding his torch, George frees Weena from the morlocks and attempts a desperate flight to freedom.

Outnumbered, George siezes a Morlock whip to try to free the helpless Eloi... and save himself as well

The descendants of radiation-scarred and mutated survivors of an apocalyptic war, Morlocks, rule the underworld

V. "The Morlocks"

    As the rhythmic pounding of the machinery grew louder below, George climbed carefully down the shale layers that served as his footholds.

    Once at the bottom, George allowed his eyes to adjust to the gloom. The narrow passageway up to the surface gave way to a huge complex of caverns, flanked by bubbling pools and vats and coiling machines giving off steam to the blue-lit gloom.

    As proof against the darkness, George constructed a torch, winding dried undergrowth around the tip of a wooden club. But he did not yet light it, for he did not want to announce his presence to the morlocks.

    As George edged cautiously forward in the cavern, shapes flitted out of the corner of his eye. He pressed on. The shapes ventured closer at his back. A four-fingered green hand reached for him...and suddenly withdrew.

    Venturing deeper into the cavern, the time traveler came upon a sight that wrenched his heart, a sight that

sickened him. It was a pile of bones... Eloi bones. The morlocks had sunk to the lowest form of human life... cannibalism. This was the destiny of the Eloi, the destiny of Weena, unless he could find her.

    K-krakkk!

    George ducked in hiding. Above, winding down the narrow rocky path, a troop of whip-wielding morlocks were heading the docile Eloi deeper into the cavern lair. Among them was Weena, who seemed numb with fright. Numb, and resigned to her fate.

    The Morlocks were terrifying to behold. Green of skin, their white hair streaming down their skulls along their arms and legs, their faces mangled and de monic, their eyes glowing with unnatural light.

    George swallowed his own fear, and took a deep breath. As Weena passed by, he scurried from his hiding place, scooped her up, and retreated...

    K-krak! All at once a morlock's whip was wrapped around his throat. Grimacing, George yanked at the whip and the off-balance morlock fell forward. Uncoil-

As the docile Eloi are herded into the pen from which they will be selected, slaughtered, and then devoured! ...George's mind is a turmoil of plans and counter-plans. But every plan must inevitably lead him into a pitched battle with the horrible morlocks!

ing the whip, George flailed it as a dozen morlocks closed in around him. The air whistled and jumped with the ships at battle. But there were so many morlocks! One growling monster jumped George from behind, knocking him to the ground. The morlocks closed in on him.

George battled them off, but was forced to retreat, and suddenly he found himself with the Eloi in a small enclosure. There was no escape possible. It was a pen, from which they would be selected... slaughtered... devoured.

    The morlocks lumbered forward, a mob of the growling creatures, their eyes glowing like hell's embers.

    The Eloi cried out. Weena hugged George, and he felt something sharp press against him.

    His matchbox! Yes! The morlocks feared the light!

    Hastily, his fingers trembling, George ignited a match.

    Blinded, the morlocks mewled, screeched, held their claws before their eyes, and retreated.

    The match blinked out. Darkness descended. The morlocks advanced.

    George realized with a buck of his heart that he had but two matches left. He spied his torch several yards distant.

    Just as the morlock's claws were reaching into the pen, George lit his second last match. The morlocks again retreated.

    Holding the match carefully, George sidled out of the pen toward his torch. The match died. George ran to the torch.

    The morlocks demon eyes adjusted to their accustomed gloom just as George lit his final match and applied it to his torch. The brittle grasses resisted the flame. "Burn. Burn!" George pleaded. The torch ignited. Renewed, and wrathful, George wielded the torch like a club, battering the blinded morlocks while calling to the Eloi to run...run!

    While George was distracted with the Eloi, a morlock sailed through the air from his rocky perch above and landed on George, knocking his torch aside. With a bloodcurdling howl, the morlock horde swarmed over George.

    But suddenly the Eloi came alive, inspired by this stranger's willingness to risk his own life. Coming to George's aid, they fought off the morlocks, set fire to the underground growths, and, as the caverns erupted in flame, began their flight upward to the surface.

    Leaping from boulder to boulder, kicking and punching oncoming morlocks left and right, bashing them bloody with rock and fist, George led the Eloi to the crater passage...and to safety.

    As thick smoke curled up from the morlock domain, George and the Eloi emerged from the crater into the sunlight. George urged the Eloi to throw dead wood down into the crater, and the surrounding craters, to feed the fire.

    Abruptly, there came a deafening explosion from below. The crater field buckled and collapsed, burying forever the morlocks and their machines.

    From that day forward, the Eloi would have to work for their food, shelter, and clothing. They would have to work to build a culture. Their days of leisure were at an end. But so too was their nightmare.

    But not for the time traveler. George was still lost in

 a world in which he did not belong.

    George, with Weena by his side, was brooding over this fate, when a number of Eloi came running to him, pointing excitedly at the sphinx.

    It was burning. The doors were ajar. And the machine was there... intact.

    Calling for Weena to join him, George ran inside the sphinx to his machine. Taking the control levers from his pocket he began to affix them to the panel. “Weena!” he urged her. Frightened, she was hesitating outside the sphinx.

    And then the doors closed with a resounding crash, locking George in darkness, locking him in with morlocks!

    George heard the familiar growling, he felt them rush him. He fought them off, desperate now to fit the control lever inside its sprocket. A morlock had a

stranglehold on him as he at last attached the lever. He bashed the creature aside, scrambled into the saddle and yanked backwards on the control lever. The morlocks disappeared.

    Back! Back in time he hurtled. Weary, bruised, and filthy, he watched the sun strobe across the sky. Back inside the mountain...cold...hot... the public park in his honor... his house build up around him... slow... slow...

    He stopped on January 7, one week after he'd left, the night that he had invited his guests to dinner once again.

    Now, rather than inside his laboratory, the machine stood in the garden. Snow fell gently on his machine.

    His back door was locked. With a fire log he broke the window and let himself inside... to startle his guests with his ragged appearance...and to tell his tale.

VI. "All The Time In The World"

    Only the ticking and chiming of George's many timepieces greet his story. His friends sit in silence. Finally, one man responds. "Preposterous!" he says.

    "George, you always could spin a good yarn," says another.

    George is disconsolate. No one believes him! He turns to Philby. "You believe me, don't you, Philby?"

    Philby suggests that George take some rest.

    George brightens. From out of his pocket he pulls the flower that Weena gave him. “For you, Philby," he says. "Try and match that with any species known today."

    "I don't think I can!" sputters Philby as he examines it. A flower blooming in January?

    The others remain unconvinced, and leave George's home. “Thank you," says George to Philby at the door.

He thinks of the unsold house, the park in his honor that will, in years to come, be erected. “Thank you for being a friend...always."

    Frowning at George's cryptic remark, Philby sets out for home, but he hesitates as the snow falls silently around him.

    Meanwhile, George is dragging his machine from his back yard back into his laboratory.

    Philby considers, and runs back into George's house. With the housekeeper, he dashes into George's laboratory, just as the rushing whoop of the time machine sighs and diminishes.

    The lab is empty. George and his machine are gone. Philby examines the skid marks running from the back yard into the laboratory.

    "I think I understand," says Philby. "The time machine originally stood here, in the lab. But the morlocks, stealing it inside the sphinx, moved it into what is now George's yard. George moved it back just now." Philby fanned the air in the lab. "Back to where he last saw her. He's going back to help the Eloi build a new world, to build a new world for himself. And he has all the time in the world."

    Reflectively, Philby and the housekeeper walked back into the house. “Did he take anything with him, I wonder?” said Philby.

    The housekeeper noticed that three books were missing from the shelves. "Which three?" asked Philby.

    "I don't know, sir. Is it important?" “No. It's just... which three would you have taken?

    With that to consider, Philby departed the house, even now suspecting that he would never see his friend again.

FANTASTIC TV IN 1983

by Matt Cobb

David Hasslehoff with the computerized talking car KITT in NBC's "Knight Rider"

    So you say your Batman cape has gotten all moth eaten hanging up in the closet?

    You say your Space:1999 decoder ring has gotten all rusty?

    You say your Star Blasters space cruiser toy was broken by your sister?

    You say your Star Trek Mr. Spock ears are all bent out of shape?

    Is it that you can't find any science fiction in this new season of television series, no matter how hard you try?

    Well, the awe and wonder of fantasy TV is still there-only this time it's disguised a bit more than usual. It's there...you only have to look harder for it.

    The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is the main proponent of fantasy fare this time around, having three whole sci-fi shows in prime time. And out of the trio, one almost didn't make it.

matthew the tv star

    This was The Powers of Matthew Star, a show originally set to premiere in the 1981-1982 season. Instead, Matthew found himself powerless against one real-life tragedy after another.

    First, there was the writer's strike-where Hollywood ground to a standstill when the scriptwriters stopped supplying the dialogue and action.

    Once that was settled, the Starset was further rocked by the death of Allan Balter, a producer of the series, from a heart attack. Balter was an experienced hand at fantasy, having been one of the men tapped by Universal Studios to develop super hero TV Movies in the mid-seventies.

    Suddenly, the show was no longer on firm conceptual ground. Matthew was originally conceived as a nice alien given powers to visit Earth. Then he became a fugitive spaceman on

KITT itself. The initials stand for Knight Industries Two Thousand

the run from outer space villains, with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men.

The last straw came with the burning accident of Peter Barton, the actor chosen to play the nearly omnipotent space teen. During the filming of a seemingly easy fight scene, Barton fell on top of an exploding flare. His flesh was literally roasted by the brutal flames. If his clothes had not been cut off and his skin soothed with ice, he probably would have died.

    But both he and the series survived, in spite of the odds against it. After all of that came the real test: would people watch it? The plot, after all, was no great shakes. The way it was initially promoted gave the impression that the producers were asking: what if CARRIE were a benign alien boy?

    Matthew Star is a high school student who can make things move with his mind. But there is more to his life than dance hops, gym jocks, and bobby socks. He is being chased by other worldly baddies from the planet Quadris hot for his dead body.

    The only other thing between him and the evil aliens (beside his bad case of the teles—telekineses and telepathy) is legal guardian Walt Shepherd, played by Louis Gossett Jr., the great actor who lit up the screen in such movies as SKIN GAME and AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN.

    The third member of the cast is as much a survivor as is Barton, Only while he survived his

Michael Knight and Devon Miles (Edward Mulhare) with KITT in a scene from "Knight Rider".

disastrous accident, she survived the FRIDAY THE 13TH trilogy. Amy Steele is her name and she played the lucky camp counselor who fought off a psychotic killer's advances in the second part of the homocidally inclined movie series. Now she's going to school with Matthew as Pam Elliot, Star's long suffering blonde gal friday.

    While she avoided mongoloid Jason's clutches and made it out of FRIDAY THE 13TH PART TWO, the NBC network seems to be unaware of that fact. They also seem to be ignoring the contribution of Gossett. All they seem willing to promote is Barton's handsome mug.

    First, they trumpeted that he was the new teen hearthrob. Then, when E.T. blasted movie box office coffers, they started advertising Matthew Star as “the extraterrestrial who's having too much fun to phone home.” What results is

Roman slave (Dan Pastoroni) vs time traveler in the Created Equal episode of "Voyagers"!

mass audience confusion. No one seems to know what the show's about or where it is going.

put up your dukes (of hazzard)

    The same cannot be said of Knight Rider. It's going on right after The Powers of Matthew Star on Friday nights as of this writing. And it's going, going, gone...at speeds far exceeding the fifty-five mile an hour speed limit. Because the Knight of Knight Rider is a super powered car—the Knight 2000; a customized Pontiac Trans-Am that can do everything but shine your shoes (and it's working on that).

    The rider of Knight Rider is Michael Knight, a knight-errant policeman renamed and rebuilt by a terminally ill millionaire after being mortally wounded in an underworld shootout. David Hasselhoff plays the tall, dark and handsome

hunk; coming from jobs on soap operas and the role of a robot in STARCRASH.

    Knight Rider is also a patch job...made up of a bit from The Six Million Dollar Man, a piece of The Dukes of Hazzard, a dash of Magnum P.I., and a hunk of My Mother the car. The dash is embodied by Michael's urbane aide-de-camp, the millionaire's representative, and the car's number one mechanic Devon Shire.

    Edward Mulhare plays Shire with an aplomb based on his years enacting Captain Gregg in the TV version of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. But neither he nor Hasselhoff are the real stars of the show. That position is held firmly by the mighty automobile itself-nicknamed Kitt (not to be confused with the car wax of the same name).

    Kitt is quite a hunk, being the most lucid pair of wheels since Ann Southern gave voice to Jerry Van Dyke's Mother the Car. Because Kitt can talk. More than that, it can think...thanks to the most complex microcircuitry this side of HAL 2000. It's got two TV screens, a phone, loads of flashing colored lights, and oodles of other nifty dashboard extras.

    William Daniels is the actor who has the thankless job of speaking through Kitt, following a terrific career featuring the leading role in the Broadway and feature film version of the musical 1776. It is he who gives the car its verbal flair with Hasselhoff, reminding listeners of the relationship between Thomas Magnum and Higgins, the supercilious butler.

    But it is not the acting or interrelationships which are attracting viewers. It is the DUKE like car gymnastics that highlight every week's episodes. Kitt soars, flies, leaps, wheelies, screeches, skids, balances, and rams its way through all sorts of obstacles. But it may not be able to clear its greatest opposition.

    NBC has scheduled the show opposite number one rated Dallas. It looks like the only way Knight Rider can survive is if he season ends with a mystery called “Who Ran Over J.R.?"  Michael Knight might just have to hitch a ride out of Texas.

the time bandits bandits

    He might just get a lift by two travelers who can put even Kitt 2000 to shame. These are the Voyagers! They might feel a kinship for Michael Knight as well, since they too are scheduled against brutal opposition. But instead of fighting fictional power games in Dallas, they are head to head against the real life exposes of Sixty Minutes on CBS.

    To counter that top ten program, this fantasy also dips its hand into past successes hoping to mirror their winning formulas. The mixture for this menu includes a pinch of Jules Verne; since the hero-a somewhat addled time traveler-is named "Phineas Bogg." Verne's hero from AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS

was named "Phineas Fogg." Maybe NBC executives thought that no one in their audience, read classics.

    Perhaps they themselves had never heard of the famous fantasy artist Jeff Jones, who did the famous IDYLL comic strip for HEAVY METAL, because that is what they named Bogg's twelve year old puerto rican orphan companion. Bogg, a tall muscular young man with boots, tight pants and blow dried hair played by Jon-Erik Hexum, met Jones, a small toothy boy played by Meeno Peluce, after crashing through his window between time zones.

    It is uncertain if NBC thought most of their audience did or didn't see THE TIME BANDITS movie directed and co-written by Monty Python member Terry Gilliam, because-whether they admit it or not-Voyagers is based mostly on that, with touches of the TV show Time Tunnel and scraps of the Jay Ward cartoon Mr. Peabody and Sherman thrown in for good measure.

    In the animated series, Mr. Peabody was a talking, brilliant dog with a "wayback machine" which would place him and his boy Sherman throughout history where they would do things like help Da Vinci paint the Mona Lisi and aid Ponce De Leon in finding Florida, etc.

    In Voyagers, Bogg has an "Omni Chronometer" which he uses to "kinda help history along" (in his words). In other words, the program is a wildly derivative concept borrowed from the good ideas of several others. Thankfully, the actual episodes aren't satisfied to ape the adventures of the scholarly cartoon pooch. They are fairly clever pastiches of several famous events each hour.

    In one, they can find themselves at the Boston tea Party by way of World War One. In another they can introduce Cleopatra to Lucky Luciano before hob-nobbing with Babe Ruth. The writers have all of recorded history to chhoose from...and then some. They can even have stories before recorded history and in the far future.

    It is just too bad that so many others had to have the good idea before they could get on the air. And if Phineas can't move the whole show to another time slot, away from Sixty Minutes, the whole project might be for naught.

bewitched, bothered and bewildered

    Although Voyagers! might have trouble staying on the air, at least they didn't have more than the usual trouble getting on the air. Over on CBS, Tucker's Witch had nothing but trouble!

    At first, it was just a fetching concept by William Bast and Paul Huson. What if a small town private detective had a witch for a wife? CBS found it so fetching they gave a go-ahead for a pilot film to be made. So Hill/Mandelker

Phineas Bogg tries to convince the Wright Bros not to open a fly by night company in "Voyagers"

Meeno Peluce as Jeffrey Jones travels back in time to give Babe Ruth some baseball tips. From "Voyagers"

Phineas Bogg learns the Allies are losing World War I because the airplane doesn't exist yet!

Time is on their side as Phineas and Jeff Jones journey back to 73 B.C. in Created Equal episode

Bogg tries to convince Red Sox manager Barrow, left, to let Babe Ruth bat instead of pitch in "Voyagers"

Time traveler Bogg protests Faye Grant from danger in the season premiere of "Voyagers"

productions made a one hour opening episode of the series they called The Good Witch of Laurel Canyon.

    CBS liked that enough to give it the go-ahead for a series except for two things. Namely the stars and the title. The word came down from on high: both had to go. Suddenly the characters of Rick and Amanda Tucker-two young marrieds who also happened to be private investigators-had a network berth, but no one to play them.

    Rick had been played by Art Hindle, a square-jawed fellow who had starred in a television movie about clones as well as the feature film THE BROOD. His psychically powered wife was played by Kim Cattrall, one of the co-stars of the film PORKY'S. Somehow, they just didn't work wonders for the CBS brass. So the public never saw them.

    Instead Tim Matheson took over as Rick. He is a younger, more engaging fellow, who proved his charm quotient playing the womanizing "Otter" in ANIMAL HOUSE. His wife was embodied by Catherine Hicks, who hit the small screen in a big way starring as Marilyn Monroe in "The Untold Story"-another made for television flick.

    Thus did The Good Witch of Laurel Canyon become Tucker's Witch, and, in the process, the "witch” aspect was toned down somewhat. Rather than being a magic-making "Samantha" type witch on the sitcom Bewitched, Amanda is a less powerful version of Matthew Star. She too has ESP and telekinesis-only it isn't as controlled and certain as the alien student's abilities.

    While the extraterrestrial can move mountains every time, Amanda is lucky if she can open a car door. Otherwise, the series is more sinister than sci-fi, and if it succeeds, it will be on the strength of its mystery plots: being just the latest in a long line of married TV detectives like MacMillan and Wife as well as Hart to Hart.

    It's a long haul from here to great sci-fi series of yesteryear, but it's all we've got. Hopefully they will lead back to the thought-provoking, exciting entertainments in outer space and the far flung future. Hopefully, television will soon become a haven for great science fiction adventure again.

that's not all, folks!

    While the pickings are pretty paltry for sci-fi fans during the evening hours, fantasy is alive and well on Saturday mornings. Cartoon creators like Hanna-Barbera, Filmation, Ruby. Spears, and many others are loading the schedules with a colorful collection of creeps, crazies, and creatures, hoping to delight a rabid legion of cartoon fans.

    The biggest stars of last year, those blue skinned Smurfs, are joined by the only other character who has had as much of an effect as the Danish-borne elf-like race in other mediums.

And that is Pac-Man. Those other mediums are toys and video games.

    While the Smurfs seem to be taking over gift shops and toy stores, the gobbling yellow ball-named after an Oriental god of gluttony-has captured the arcades along with the rest of his family. There's Ms. Pac Man as well as Mr. and Mrs. Pac Man Pinball now, in addition to the famous original, which was created by Japanese technicians.

    On ABC television, Pac-Man gets eyes, arms, legs, a nose and a hat in order to become the security guard for the "Power Pellet Forest." His main adversaries, of course, are the goblins named Pinky, Inky, Blinky, and Clyde; but now they've taken a back seat to the main villain-the human shaped Mezmaron.

    Giving voice to the munching orb is Marty In-gels, famous for his portrayl of Art Fenster on the I'm Dickens, He's Fenster sitcom (Harry Dickens was John "Addams Family" Astin, of course) as well as his commercial company which supply’s major stars to advertisers. It is he who has taken credit for coming up with Pac Man's famous saying-his version of Fred Flintstone's "Yabba Dabba Doo!"

    Whenever he feels like venting his spleen or giving pause to his adversaries, he lets out a raspy "Paca, paca wow wee!" It's not exactly Shakespeare, but Pac-Man never claimed a desire for playing Hamlet.

    Over on NBC are the Smurfs, whose own show has been expanded from an hour to ninety minutes by popular demand. Swelling the ranks are The Amazing Spider Man and The Incredible Hulk-back on TV again, only this time as cartoon characters sharing the same show. Many of their Marvel Comics friends visit the web-slinger and green-skinned brute's series, including the likes of the mutant X-Men. It makes for a very crowded hour.

    Finally, CBS has the last word in sci-fi insanity. There's been Lost in Space, there's been The Far Out Space Nuts, there even will be The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy coming up on the PBS network sometime this season. But they all have nothing on Gilligan's Planet.

Yes, sir, Gilligan is back, promoted to being a cartoon character and moving from an island to another planet in outer space. And he's brought the rest of the lovable castaways along with him: the Skipper, Mary Ann, the Professor, Ginger, and Mr. and Mrs. Thurston Howell III.

    Most of the original cast is back as well, supplying the voices, including Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr. and Jim Backus (who is no slouch at this sort of thing-remember, he was also the voice of Mr. Magoo!).

    The three networks are seeing to it that there is something for everyone on Saturday morning. Now if only they would take care of prime time...!

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COMPUTER ANIMATION

    There is a revolution going on. Behind the scenes, behind the screen you're watching, there is a fully pitched battle between film, makers of the past-desperate to maintain the status quo-and moviemakers of the present, anxious to push their technology into the future

    The cinematic conflict is not being fought with guns and bombs. On one side there is all the equipment that has been making movies since the turn of the century: celluloid, splicers, and laboratories for developing the film. On the other are the two greatest advancements produced during this "golden age" of motion pictures: videotape and computers.

    So far, videotape has been kept out of the theatres, but George Lucas has already vowed that THE REVENGE OF THE JEOI will be the last STAR WARS saga preserved on film. When the first Installment of the second STAR WARS trilogy is about to be made, Lucas has gone on record saying it will be done on videotape.

    Helping it maintain the wondrous special effects will be computers. More specifically, computer animation. Already examples of this spectacular, burgeoning art have burst out of the experimenters' workshops and onto the screen.

    You can see it in the 'Death Star briefing sequence'' in STAR WARS...in the "replication sequence'' of FUTUREWORLD.. in a similar replication scene in LOOKER...on the viewscreens of the mining ship "Nostromo" during ALIEN... In the entire "Genesis Project'' explanation in STAR TREK: THE WRATH OF KHAN...and, of course, during fifty-one minutes of eye dancing imagery in TRON.

    Computer Animation-It is a technique whose time has come. And the time has come to fell you what it is.

    First things first. To understand the process requires an understanding of the tools. In other words, you'll have to know what a computer is before you can draw with it, One way to do that is to look the word up in a dictionary. There you'd find something like this: "a machine that automatically processes information in a programmable way."

    That means a computer will keep whatever information you feed it until the programmer

asks for it back. The computer also has the - capability to reshape. rethink, and reprogram

what you fell it in whatever way its designer made it capable.

    Computers come in all shapes and sizes. It used to be that, the bigger it was, the stronger It was. With the advent of the microchip-which can store loads of information in a tiny space—that is no longer true. Now, the more powerful a machine is, the more it can do. A machine's power is based on how much electricity it can handle and how much it can hold onto.

    That all seems simple enough. The complications come in when the two kinds of computers are introduced. The first kind of computer made was called an ANALOG computer which used this electricity directly. Therefore, the first kind of artwork was Analog Computer Animation.

    Electrical currents can be seen. A television set is a good example. It is powered by electricity to change invisible rays into moving Pictures. That is remarkably similar to electrical waves being shown on a computer monitor screen.

    When a technician changes the power of the electricity. the shape on the screen changes-just like the image on a TV changes when a plane flies over head or a strong wind buffets the antennae. That, in a nutshell, is analog computer animation. You inject a signal into a television set and then distort It. By distorting it, you get movement.

    This was the start of something big. Some good examples of analog animation was the opening of the CBS EVENING NEWS WITH WALTER CRONKITE and the ELECTRIC COMPANY letters twisting from odd shapes into the colorful words. With analog animation equipment, a picture is taken of an object. It can be seen on a screen next to the analog computer.

    With various controls, the computer affects the voltage which powers the image so that the object seems to be twisting, weaving, or whatever the desired effect may be the actual object, of course, never changes: it just looks like it is changing on the computer console.

    The second, more modern kind of computer is called OIGITAL. That means "of a digit." And that, in turn, means "of a number." Instead of reading information as electricity, this machine can store information as numbers. This was the start of something bigger Because, unlike Analog. Digital computers can use the same bit of information over and over and over again.

    Once warping is achieved on an Analog computer, the machine has no record of the event. The Digital does-everything that gets fed in can be saved and the right combinations of the proper instructions can get a Digital computer to animate almost anything.

    The most important result is that Digital computers can create. Analog can only distort that which is already created. But Digital can make something out of nothing. And do it with photographic clarity and realism. The possibilities inherent in this technique can not only boggle the mind, it can explode it.

    But don't make the mistake of thinking that all of this is easy. Presently, It takes, on the average, half a million dollars just to get started doing sophisticated computer animation. First, one has to buy the basic hardware (the computer itself) and then either buy very expensive software (programs that make the machine do what you want if to) or write a

computer program that does exactly what you want it to. And no one knows how much money that will run.

    The fact of the matter is that without NASA, who use computer animation to picture space flights, and people like George Lucas-who is Independently wealthy-computer animation would never have gotten beyond the underground. Those who are doing it now, Including the military and major corporations, are doing it because they see the revolution coming in three or four years.

    And what exactly is that revolution? If has many forms. Hanna-Barbera, the giant of, Saturday Morning TV cartoons, is toying with a computer which will color in all its animation cels, Ralph Bakshi used a computer "inking" process on his LORO OF THE RINGS movie to trace all his art lines. And, of course, special effects people have been using computers to guide their cameras for years.

    But if there is any high watermark in recent years, it has to be TRON—the state of the art in digital animation. If you watch that movie just as a sfx extravaganza, it is impressive. But if you watch to see how far computer animation has come in so short a time, it is incredible.

    The first digital animation was done by E.E. Zajac in 1963. It was called "Two Gyro Gravity Gradient Altitude Control System." If showed just a few shapes moving around. Less than twenty years later, the Master Control Program was showing light cycles hurtle hell-for-leather.

    The most amazing aspect of all this is that the developments are growing so rapidly that all the work of TRON may be rendered obsolete in just a few short years.

    Already work is progressing on the first completely computer animated movie (THE WORKS by the New York Institute of Technology) and Walf Disney Productions aren't resting on their TRONS. Their next computer animated effort may be the fantasy/murder mystery WHO CENSOREO ROGER RABBIT-a detective story set on a planet of cartoon characters.

    Computer animation can do more...a lot more. So much more that it is nearly frightening. In the words of Jim Lindner, a New York computer expert: "'The lack of limitations are so mind boggling, we haven't figured them out yet."

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Fog. Deep. Thick. It rolled across the countryside, pressed insubstantial fingers of misty white through the trees, choking the forest.

    The fog tickled the nostrils of a lone figure asleep in the woods. The roar of a horn from a passing truck stole oblivion from him.

    The Sender awoke. He shuffled to the roadside and dusted himself off. Before long a friendly woman driving an old Plymouth offered him a ride. Without knowing exactly why, the Sender asked her to let him off at a public beach.

    Then he walked slowly, silently in the ocean, breathing in deep lungsful of the salt water...choking...gagging...trying to drown himself...trying to drown away the terrifying images burning in his brain.

    Screenplay author Thomas Baum is the man responsible for conjuring up the idea for THE SENDER, a new thriller from Paramount Pictures starring Kathryn Harrold, Shirley Knight & newcomer Zeljko Ivanek in the title role.

    American producer Edward S. Feldman commissioned the screenplay after Baum told him about the idea he had developed about a *Sender"--a young man whose uncanny ability to transpose his thoughts and dreams to the minds of other human beings catapults him into a dark abyss of attempted suicide and murder when he tries to break the involuntary communication pattern. Feldman liked the idea. which he felt could be presented as a sort of Hitchcockian psychological horror thriller.

    "We made a decision not to go after major stars," Feldman says about his cast. “It's difficult to accept actors in a fantasy situation or

get audiences to believe in the storyline when they are household names. We tried to get the best possible cast using actors without international recognition."

    The role of the “Sender" required a young man with highly developed acting skills. 

The severed head of Sean Hewitt gushes blood in this closeup from THE SENDERS final print