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retro futurism
Posts Tagged “
astronaut
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retro futurism
Blame It On Sci-Fi
Aldrin Blames Lack of Interest in Space Program on Science Fiction
Forget shifting priorities or a de-emphasis on science education; this week, Buzz Aldrin told the Sci Fi Channel that the real culprit behind youth disinterest in space exploration is none other than science fiction. Et tu, Buzz? After the jump, find out why Aldrin is taking the genre to task. More »
fellow lady astronaut trainees
RIP Janet Dietrich, One of the “Mercury 13” Women Astronaut Trainees
Janet Christine Dietrich has died. In 1961, along with her twin sister, Marion, and eleven other women, Dietrich passed the same battery of physical tests as the men chosen by NASA to become America’s first astronauts. But Dietrich, and the rest of the so-called “Mercury 13” never flew in space—indeed, they were never allowed to complete their training. More »
found footage
Charlize Theron's Demon Pregnancy Terminates Johnny Depp
Here's the final showdown betwen Johnny Depp and Charlize Theron, from 1999's The Astronaut's Wife, when the slow-boiling thriller suddenly turns into a bodacious monster movie. I love Johnny Depp's weird slurred-voice alien-monster acting. It's actually a super disturbing scene, as Depp's ownership of Theron's body suddenly goes from subtle creepitude to full-on monster creepitude. More »
buck rogers
Satellite Goes Down, Buck Rogers Not Reporting In
It looks like the U.S. Navy was able to pull off a real-life game of missile command last night, and successfully shot down our ailing superspy satellite while everyone was busy gawping at the lunar eclipse. Hey, that's exactly how the script for the failed reboot of Buck Rogers began... does that mean we just sent a frozen astronaut into deep orbit somewhere? Strangely, the military lackey in this video doesn't address that issue. More »
meteor
Long before there was Armageddon or Deep Impact, or even the fear of our own falling spy satellites, there was Meteor. Sean Connery goes into full science mode as he tries to stop a huge meteor named Orpheus from crashing into the Earth. The good news: he's partially successful. The bad news: Oops, sorry about that Hong Kong and New York. The opening scene, where astronauts watch the cosmic ballet of a comet striking an asteroid just before it obliterates them and their ship, is worth the price of admission alone.
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James Bond Fails To Stop New York From Getting Atomized
Long before there was Armageddon or Deep Impact, or even the fear of our own falling spy satellites, there was Meteor. Sean Connery goes into full science mode as he tries to stop a huge meteor named Orpheus from crashing into the Earth. The good news: he's partially successful. The bad news: Oops, sorry about that Hong Kong and New York. The opening scene, where astronauts watch the cosmic ballet of a comet striking an asteroid just before it obliterates them and their ship, is worth the price of admission alone.
More »
repurposed spaceships
The Greatest Spaceships Made From Scrap
With the space shuttle program about to be retired, we need a new class of crewed ships for space exploration. But Congress may never cough up the money to build them. Luckily, science fiction teaches us that anything can be a spaceship: an old airplane, a World War II battleship, a fairground ride... or even some junkyard debris, as Andy Griffith shows in this clip. Click through for our roundup of the best repurposed and recycled spaceships. More »
nasa workout
New Reality TV Workout Show with Astronauts
Cashing in on the world's New Year's Resolutioning, NASA has decided to start broadcasting the exercise routines of their astronauts in an attempt to help America get in better shape. Watching the workouts on their television network, NASA TV, will give Earthbound viewers the motivation and example to try and get more in shape, the space agency hopes. Not that it's all tight asses and toned abs in space, mind you. More »
this week in comics
Gail Simone Cuts Loose In "Tranquility"
Murder shatters the peace in a retirement community for old superheroes, in Gail Simone's awesome Welcome To Tranquility Vol. 1, out this week. The collection of the first six issues of Tranquility comes too late to win new fans and save the series from cancellation, but it's still worth picking up for bizarre characters like Emoticon, the gangsta with a mask that displays his feelings, and Zeke the rockabilly zombie gravedigger. Freed from working on corporate-owned characters, Simone cranks her inventiveness up to 11. What other comics might help get you through Hump Day? Glad you asked. More »
planet 51
New Line Cinema announced today that it will be distributing Planet 51, Europe's biggest CGI film ever, in 2009. The $60 million dollar film features astronaut Captain Chuck Baker landing on a planet filled with 1950s-era aliens who live in complete fear of aliens, namely Chuck himself. Gallery of cute aliens after the jump. More »
A Planet of Cute, Human-Hating Aliens
New Line Cinema announced today that it will be distributing Planet 51, Europe's biggest CGI film ever, in 2009. The $60 million dollar film features astronaut Captain Chuck Baker landing on a planet filled with 1950s-era aliens who live in complete fear of aliens, namely Chuck himself. Gallery of cute aliens after the jump. More »
six million dollar man
Must See: The Six Million Dollar Man
Must-see TV shows are futuristic classics that shouldn't be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That's why we've rated them 1-5 on the patented "crunchy goodness" scale.Title: The Six Million Dollar Man
Date: 1973-1978
Vitals: As the opening credits explain: "Steve Austin, astronaut. A man barely alive. Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to make the world's first bionic man. Steve Austin will be that man. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster." More »
buck rogers
Must See: Buck Rogers In The 25th Century
Must-see TV shows are futuristic classics that shouldn't be missed. Of course, not every must-see is perfect. That's why we've rated them 1-5 on the patented "crunchy goodness" scale.
Title: Buck Rogers In The 25th Century
Date: 1979-1981
Vitals: A twentieth-century astronaut gets caught in a swirly thingy and goes into suspended animation, only to wake up 500 years later, surrounded by people in white jumpsuits with rainbow armbands. Somehow, after just a few weeks in the future, he masters their advanced technology and becomes one of the top space-fighter pilots More »
