Just Like Earth

I've been watching a quite a bit of Star Trek (The Original Series) recently on Netflix and I've noticed something.  The USS Enterprise sure does visit a lot of planets that are "just like Earth".  The producers of the show did this for a number of reasons but mainly because it was cheap.  Why spend a ton of money creating an alien landscape or city when you can just film on the studio backlot or on a location in sunny southern California?  All you have to do is throw in some lines where the crew marvels at finding a planet that's just like Earth.  Something like this scene from The Paradise Syndrome...

MCCOY: Look at those pine trees.
KIRK: And that lake.
MCCOY: I swear that's honeysuckle I smell.
KIRK: I swear that's a little orange blossom thrown in. It's unbelievable. Growth exactly like that of Earth on a planet half a galaxy away. What are the odds on such duplication?
SPOCK: Astronomical, Captain. The relative size, age and composition of this planet makes it highly improbable that it would evolve similarly to Earth in any way.

And there you have it.  We can then film our alien planet scenes near the Franklin Reservoir just north of Los Angeles.  Just hope you don't bump into Andy and Opie going fishing.  That reservoir also served as the filming location for the lake near Mayberry in the Andy Griffith show.  The episodes Miri & City of the Edge of Forever were actually shot on the same backlot as the Andy Griffith show!  You can see Kirk and crew walk right past Andy's courthouse, Floyd's Barber Shop, etc.  Here's a whole web site dedicated to this fact.

Convenience isn't the only reason the writer's used Earth like planets in Star Trek.  Roddenberry wanted to use Star Trek to tell morality stories.  He felt that science fiction is at its best when it holds a mirror up to society and teaches us a lesson. So whenever he wanted to make a political statement about the world we live in-- the Enterprise would just go visit a world like ours to tell the story.

But it seems silly to think that there could be so many other Earth like planets in the universe, right?  Apparently not!  According to a recent article on io9.com,  There might be 2 million planets similar to Earth in our galaxy alone!  Here is a quick excerpt from the article:

 Based on the data from [NASA's Kepler probe], the JPL scientists estimated that 1.4 to 2.7 percent of all stars with the same basic properties as our Sun are home to Earth-like planets. That means a planet between 0.8 and two times the mass of Earth that lies within the habitable zone of its star. When you total up the amount of sun-like stars in the galaxy, that gives you two billion stars. And, of the hundred or so sun-like stars within a few dozen light-years of Earth, at least two of them should be home to habitable worlds.

JPL researcher Joseph Catanzarite points out just how many Earth-like planets there might really be:

"This means there are a lot of Earth analogs out there - two billion in the Milky Way galaxy. With that large a number, there's a good chance life and maybe even intelligent life might exist on some of those planets. And that's just our galaxy alone - there are 50 billion other galaxies."

So there!  The fact that the Enterprise bumps into Earth like planets all the time is suddenly not so far fetched!  As Spock would say, that's fascinating. :)

Welcome, Foolish Mortals...

The Haunted Mansion is by far my favorite ride at Walt Disney World so I thought I'd blog about it!  A grand haunted mansion stands in both  Disneyland in California and in Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom Park in Florida.  One day we'll make the trek out to California and visit Disneyland--- but until then the only Haunted Mansion memories I have are from the park in Florida.

A big part of my fascination with the Haunted Mansion goes back to my childhood. Halloween was pretty much tied with Christmas for the "favorite holiday" award back then.  It wasn't just the candy either-- it was the fantasy of it touching a world beyond our own.  While my sister and I were out trick-or-treating I'd look up to the sky to see if I could catch a glimpse a witch on her broom-- or of a passing specter.  This fascination didn't wain after October was over.  When I was in the 2nd grade I bought a haunted house activity book at the Scholastic Book Fair that became my favorite book!  I spent hours working the puzzles and coloring in the images of goblins and ghouls.   I think it's that same little boy inside me who can't stop smiling whenever I ride the Haunted Mansion.

Let me share some cool Haunted Mansion stuff from the internet.  First up, anyone looking for a hitchhiking ghost should go checkout www.doombuggies.com.  This fan created and operatred website has just about everything you ever wanted to know about my favorite ride!  You can download desktop wallpapers there-- or you can click below and download the desktop wallpaper that I made. I took this photo from the Liberty Square River Boat and then photoshopped it a bit to make it into a cool wallpaper. :)

There are many legends surrounding the haunted mansion.  One of the most interesting is that of The Hatbox Ghost-- a one time resident of the original Haunted Mansion in California.  Check out the video below about this happy haunt. :)  I wish he would come back to the mansion.

Museum of the Moving Image (Muppets, Star Trek, & Silence, Oh My!)

Tim and I went to the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, NY yesterday to see their exhibit on Jim Henson.  They were also showing The Muppets Go To The Movies-- a 1981 TV special which was originally produced to promote the feature film The Great Muppet Caper.  Both the exhibit and the movie were a lot of fun!  I highly recommend going to see the exhibit before it closes on March 4th.  If you grew up on Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, or the Muppet Show you'll get a great insider's look at workings behind the Muppet world.

For fans of my current show, Silence! The Musical, might enjoy a visit to the Museum as well.  They have a rather extensive display on the scenic elements built for The Silence of the Lambs film.  The collection includes research materials, drawings, and even full model of the asylum in Baltimore and Buffalo Bill's basement from the climax of the film.  Speaking of Silence!-- make sure you come see the show soon!  I'm only working on it thru the end of February.  We've added a 10:30pm show THIS SATURDAY.  :)  There's also a CD signing event with the cast of Silence The Musical THIS THURSDAY at Barnes and Noble at 86th & Lex!  Come check it out.


Of course Museum of the Moving Image has a section dedicated entirely to Star Trek!  Well, not really... but there is some cool Trek stuff to see.  There is a section of the museum dedicated to the the moving image's influence on pop culture.  They have toys, lunch boxes, models, magazines, etc-- all sorts merchandising that has been released to promote movies and TV shows.  This list of items includes Star Trek action figures from the original series and the first movie, a model of the USS Enterprise (pictured here), a phaser water pistol, a cereal bowl and cup with Kirk & Spock on them, a Star Trek happy meal box from 1979, examples of Star Trek jewelry, several fan produced magazines, etc.  Outside of the world of Star Trek they fun stuff like a C3P0 scotch tape dispenser, a Batman lunch box and many more cool merchandising tie-in items.

There's also a display on Stop Motion animation where you can make your own little movie with paper cut outs.  They have it all set up so that you can make your own animated movie and then have it e-mailed to yourself.  Check out mine below!

I Saw William Shatner on Broadway!

I mentioned a while back that William Shatner was bringing his one man show: Shanter's World to Broadway.  It started previews on Tuesday and opens officially tonight.  The 90 minute (or so) show takes "audiences on a voyage through Shatner's life and career, from Shakespearean stage actor to internationally known icon and raconteur, known as much for his unique persona as for his expansive body of work on television and film." (playbill.com)

Tim and I went to see the show in its second preview last night.  I LOVED IT!  Now I will say-- I'm a pretty biased judge here.  As a Trekkie and as a fan of William Shatner it's hard for me to not love sitting in the same room as the man and listening to him tell stories.  It was really a huge treat.  Shatner seemed at home on the stage.  He was so calm and casual about the whole thing.  I felt like I was sitting in his living room sipping an iced tea while he entertained me with stories of his life.  He talked about his early life in the theatre working with some of the great men of our industry-- men I've read about and studied in college like Tyone Guthrie (founder of the Stratford Festival and the Guthrie Theatre) and Anthony Quayle (one of the founders of the Clarence Brown Theatre Company at my undergrad).  He talked about Gene Roddenberry asking him to do pilot for a space show-- a moment that changed his life.  He talked Star Trek's connection with NASA and described how he felt when he watched man land on the moon. He told us about his horses, talked about his family and briefly about the tragic death of his 3rd wife.  My emotions ran the gamut while I watched this living legend be so honest and human.  True, he rambled a little.  Sometimes the stories didn't really connect with each other-- he didn't tell a cohesive story with an arc from beginning to end. But that didn't really matter to me.  It was a great evening and I recommend that you go see his show too.

After the show we decided to go to the stage door for a glimpse of him up close.  We waiting with a small crowd of fans in the cold for about 20 minutes.  Finally, he stepped thru the door onto the sidewalk. The crowd erupted in cheers.  There was a barrage camera flashes.  Mr. Shatner paused for a moment, raised his hands and thanked us for coming.  I'm sure my face was beaming.  I had my iPhone in my hand and was unconsciously clicking pictures with it (mainly of the back of the head in front of me).  The others were cheering but I couldn't make a sound.  Time slowed down.  I was kind of frozen.  He looked great.  He was right there--- just a few feet from me.  I'm sure he said more, but I'm not sure what it was.  Before I knew it he was in his car and being driven away.   "Goodbye Bill!" I thought.  "See you again one day!"

Shatner's World runs on Broadway thru March 4th.  After which, Mr. Shatner will take his show on the road to cities all across the country.  Check out this video from Playbill.com in which Bill talks about his return to Broadway! :)

[I had trouble embedding the video-- but you view it by clicking THIS LINK.]

I Enlisted in Starfleet!

I have been a Star Trek fan (otherwise knows as a Trekkie or Trekker) for most of my life. I remember very vividly when Star Trek The Next Generation premiered in 1987-- I was hooked.   The local Fox affiliate started showing re-runs of the original Star Trek too.  I fell in love with both!   A pretty crafty kid, I was soon converting a flashlight into a phaser, making my own flip top communicator and turning my cassette player into a tricorder.  I even went to great lengths to convert my roll-top desk into a close replica of Lt. Uhura's communications station from the bridge using poster board & construction paper.  My room was the bridge of the enterprise.  The back yard was a wild unexplored planetary surface with danger at every turn.

As time went on and I grew into an adult, that imaginative boy inside me never died.  Today, Star Trek is my main hobby.  I blog about Star Trek, read Star Trek novels, comics, & biographies.  I often attend Star Trek conventions and events.  And, of course, I enjoy watching my DVD & Bluray collection of Trek TV & movies in my spare time. I usually find that re-runs of Star Trek are more entertaining and engaging than the barrage of reality television we have today.

I recently decided to take my Star Trek fandom to the next level, and join STARFLEET - The International Star Trek Fan Association, Inc. According to their website "STARFLEET is the oldest continuously operating Star Trek Fan Organization in the world. Founded back in 1974, when there were only 79 original live-action Star Trek episodes and no movies yet, STARFLEET has grown over the years to thousands of members. We’re all about having fun, making friends, and keeping the ideals of Star Trek alive and healthy into the future."  

Here is quick primer-- STARFLEET is organized into geographic regions.  For example, Region 1 consists of Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, &  West Virginia.  Each region has a number of individual chapters.  Region 1 currently has 49 chapters.  Each chapter is comprised of at least 5 STARFLEET members (I think that's the minimum - but I'm not sure).   There is both a "real world" element and a "fictional" side to each chapter.  Fictionally each chapter is designed around a ship (or sometimes a space station).  The leader of the chapter is the ship's Captain.  Each member has a rank and position in the chapter (with both fictional and real duties).  Some chapters are also active in the roleplaying video game world Star Trek Online-- where they can play as their fictional ship and an interactive environment.  Some chapters have monthly meetings where they conduct club business, organize charity work like clothing drives, go on outings-- or they just get together and have fun.  Other chapters (like the one I joined) are called correspondence chapters.  These ships don't actually have real meetings but communicate online via e-mail and forums.  I decided to go with an correspondence chapter because I travel so much for work and am rarely in the same place enough to regularly go to meetings.

Did I say that I am already the member of a chapter?  Well, that's almost true.  I am currently applying to be join the crew of the USS Columbia.  According to their website "The USS Columbia is arguably the most active internet-based chapter of STARFLEET. We are a correspondence chapter which draws members from two continents and a half dozen countries. The chapter was launched on ‘Shakedown cruise’ in January 2010 and is currently working towards full commissioning."  The chapter is based out of Kentucky, so it is in Region 1 (just like my home state of Tennessee).  Fictionaly, the Columbia is "an Excelsior class heavy cruiser launched in the year 2295."  

The web site goes on to describe more about this era in Star Trek chronology.  "Though the Kitomer accords were signed a year before her launch peace with the Klingons is still a fragile one at best. The Romulans have been quiet for a while and noone knows what is happening across the Neutral Zone.  New technology is being developed such as holodecks and replicators but they are still in their early stages.  As one of the newesr vessels in the fleet Columbia will take advantage of some of these new technologies while making extensive use of proven ones. Soon she will set out from space dock on her mission of exploration."  (quoted from www.usscolumbia.net)

That's super exciting, right? On the Columbia, it's the year 2297. That might seem pretty specific to you, but that's how Trekkies role -or roleplay rather.  So ship's story is set during the span of time inbetween the Classic Star Trek Movies and the first episode of  The Next Generation.   That's like a gold mine for a fan fiction writer!

So, what about me?   How do I fit into this fictional world?  Well, some Starfleet fan club members create elaborate character biographies for their fictional counterparts.  Others focus on the real world social activities.  I think the fantasy is fun though, so while I still haven't worked out my complete character bio, I do have some strong ideas about my fictional life.  I know that I want to be stationed in the Communications division of the Operations Department.  Basically, it all goes back to that construction paper communications console I made for my roll top desk when I was a kid. And I've always idolized Uhura-- the communications officer inthe original Star Trek tvseries. I actually got to meet her last summer!  Nichelle Nichols is a fascinating woman.  She used the fame Star Trek gave her to be a spokesperson for NASA and actively recruited for them in colleges all over the country. Astronaut Mae Jemison (the first African American woman in space) credites Nichelle as her inspiration.   There is other reason I've chosen to be a Communications Officer.  It's actually a similar job to what I do in real life.  A Stage Manager is the hub of communication for the entire production. We have to keep all the production departments on the same page and give all official notices about the production to the cast and crew. We make paging announcements backstage and even into the audience if there's any kind of emergency.  I think I'd be well equipped to be a Comm Officer!   In the Star Trek universe, the Communications Officer position is eventually disolved and merged into the Operations Officer position.  The Ops Officer is even more of a Stage Manager though.  They do things like overseeing internal systems control, communications and sensor system usages, coordinate the scheduling of resources, hardware and system usage for the entire starship.  Now doesn't that sound a lot like what a Production Stage Manager does on a large production? I think so!

The way Starfleet works, I have a very low rank as a new member (thus the crewman uniform above).  I earn more rank by be active, participating in my chapter, and doing STARFLEET Academy training!  Soon enough I'll be able to photoshop myself into an officer's uniform (haha).  *pause*  Ok, I've actually already done that.  But I won't post it yet because I haven't earned it!

I'm really looking forward to my STARFLEET membership helping me to connect with other geeks out there, have some fun, share some ideas, and basically relax.  Hey, some people have sports-- I have Star Trek.  I think I'm attracted to the optimism of Gene Roddenberry's creation.  In the Star Trek future all of people on planet Earth are united.  There is no war, no arguments over religion or politics.  As a race, we have evolved and are exploring the vast galaxy in which we live.  It's really a hope for the future that I find refreshing.

For more about what set's Star Trek apart- check out this article.

Come See Silence! The Musical

My time with Silence! The Musical is nearing an end!  I've been subbing in as the Assistant Stage Manager on this Off-Broadway hit for the last few weeks.  It has been a BLAST and I want EVERYONE to come see the show before I leave it!   I'm only with the show for the rest of February-- so get your tickets now!

If you sit house right you can probably catch a glimpse of me in the stage right wings doing things like catching a head in a jar when it's thrown offstage.   :)  Oh--- I do recommend watching the original 1991 movie (The Silence of the Lambs) before coming.  If the film is fresh in your memory, I think it makes the show all the funnier.   Our show is a raunchy & hilarious parody that don't pull any punches when mimicking the classic film.  You're really gonna love it!

So, what are you waiting for?  CLICK HERE and buy a ticket!!!

UPDATE-- Check out our new commercial!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGvL2hkTUJw]