Know it All

***

"Blade Runner,” the 1982 movie directed by Ridley Scott (born 1937), was based on the 1968 book "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by science fiction novelist Phillip K. Dick (1928-1982).

***

We are not alone. That was the tagline for the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind” (1977).

***

Australian actor Mel Gibson (born 1956) was unknown in America when the 1979 movie "Mad Max” came to theaters, so the trailer for the movie featured car crashes and action scenes rather than the movie’s star.

***

Originally, the name of Luke Skywalker in "Star Wars” was going to be Luke Starkiller.

***

Peter Mayhew (born 1944) stands 7 feet 2 inches tall. That’s why he was hired to play Chewbacca, the faithful Wookiee in the original "Star Wars” movies. Mayhew currently makes a living by attending science fiction conventions, where he charges $20 for an autograph.

***

C-3PO is fluent in more than six million languages.

***

Dr. Victor Frankenstein brings a creature to life in the book "Frankenstein,” published in 1818. Do you know what the creature was called in the novel? Remember the author of the book? See answer at end.

***

A 20th anniversary edition of the movie "E.T” was released in 2002. In the original movie, there is scene where FBI agents aim guns at a group of kids. Director Steven Spielberg (born 1946) digitally changed the guns to walkie-talkies for the re-released version of the movie.

***

Rod Serling (1924-1975) from "The Twilight Zone” (1959-1964) invited viewers to submit scripts to be considered for the show. He was swamped with more than 14,000 scripts. He read 500 of them, but did not use any for the television series.

***

The Guinness Book of World Records lists "Star Trek” (1966-1969) as the show with the most spin-off productions, including television series and movies.

***

The PeopleMover was a ride at Disneyland’s Tomorrowland from 1967 to 1995. The relaxing ride traveled 2 mph.

***

The "Buck Rogers” comic strip ran for 38 years, (1929-1967). It was the first science fiction themed comic strip. The Buck Rogers radio program ran for 15 years (1932-1947).

***

Daffy Duck starred in the 1953 cartoon "Duck Dodgers in the 241⁄2th Century.” Marvin the Martian battles with Dodgers when they both try to lay claim to "Planet X.”

***

The Robinson family was on a five-year exploratory mission of the Alpha Centauri star system in their spaceship, the Jupiter II, when they went off course and became "Lost In Space” (1965-1968).

***

When the video game "Space Invaders” was in the works in the late 1970s, the object of the game was going to be to shoot at enemy human soldiers. Afraid that it would seem too violent, the enemies were changed to aliens. Space Invaders was released in 1978.

***

Orson Welles (1915-1985) presented a radio program of H.G. (Herbert George) Wells (1866-1946) science fiction novel "War of the Worlds” in 1938. The radio program announced an alien invasion in a real location — Grover’s Mill, N.J. So many panicked people arrived at Grover’s Mill that police had to be called to control the crowd.

***

Answer: Dr. Frankenstein’s creature, made from parts of human cadavers, did not have a name. He was called "the monster.” English writer Mary Shelley (1797-1851) wrote the book.

Know It All is by Kerry McArdle. It runs in the weekend and Wednesday editions of the Daily Journal. Questions? Comments? E-mail knowitall@smdailyjournal.com or call 344-5200 x114.