Where has James Bond been?

Not sure why exactly but James Bond wasn't even a blip on my radar screen this year. It got squeezed between The Dark Knight Rises and next year's Star Trek into Darkness. And there's more than enough time to watch the Star Trek sequel next May.

I'm big into genre movies especially action and science fiction. In fact if there were any two movie franchises that have been long time favorites over the years it's Bond and Star Trek. It's even more puzzling to me that not a lot of focus on my part was put into the latest Bond effort entitled Skyfall.

I went to see Skyfall recently at River East near Navy Pier. It was pretty good and it almost seemed like a classic bond film with an old school sounding theme song and of course there's the Ashton Martin that was a fixture in the Bond films of the 1960s. It was certainly a nice touch at the end where the offices Bond enters into near the end of the movie simply went retro!

I've been a Bond fan for a long time and it's very regretful that no trailers were shown here on this blog prior to its release. Besides trailers for Star Trek and The A-Team had been shown here in the past on this blog for example. Why was I too slow for Skyfall?

James Bond will return in the near future and I promise to do much better in the future.

Benicio Del Toro in the next Star Trek flick...

I haven't been following the developments of the next film other than knowing that they're behind schedule in filming the movie. Benicio is to play a villain but as of yet even he doesn't know who the villain is. We'll see eventually, but for right now here's the news about his possible casting from TrekMovie.com

VIDEO: "Battle of Maxia" - Picard Manoeuvre

This CGI animation is of the unseen Battle of Maxia and it's aftermath. This was an engagement of Capt. Jean Luc Picard's previous assignment, USS Stargazer against an unknown adversary. In the Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG) epsiode "The Battle" we found out that Capt. Picard - who later became Captain of the USS Enterprise - had actually fought a Ferengi vessel. As it turns out this Ferengi commander who's son had actually commanded that destroyed ship Picard had fought has designs of revenge and years late gave Picard a gift...the Stargazer.

Why am I typing this out? Because The "Battle" was an awesome episode!

NASA's mission to bomb the Moon

Scientific American:

NASA will tomorrow launch a spectacular mission to bomb the Moon. Their LCROSS mission will blast off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying a missile that will blast a hole in the lunar surface at twice the speed of a bullet. The missile, a Centaur rocket, will be steered by a shepherding spacecraft that will guide it towards its target - a crater close to the Moon's south pole. Scientists expect the blast to be so powerful that a huge plume of debris will be ejected.

Heh, worst case scenario, NASA has discovered "red matter" that moon would destroy itself. Oh and "red matter" would be a reference to the new Star Trek movie!

Star Trek Left the '60s Behind, but NASA's Still Trapped in the '70s

Read this article. NASA trapped in the 70s, lost it's bold vision that sent men to land on the moon! Today's bold vision might include a return to the moon or a trip to Mars. Hopefully do it cheaply and innovatively. Even better driven not by taxpayer dollars, but by private money willing to invest in exploratory ventures.

It would be so cool if I had the money, but yet I can build my own spaceship. Perhaps I'll even be Captain of that ship, be my own version of Capt. Kirk. Of course we won't have too many places to go since, well we haven't figured out how to go beyond the speed of light with "warp drive". It would still be sooo cool!

BTW, since I saw Star Trek the weekend it was released I never looked at Star Trek the same. This is what new thinking and plenty of money can do with a franchise that could very well use an update. Even production values that could match the rebooted Battlestar Galactica.

Via TrekMovie!

Saw Star Trek

I'll just be brief and say that I enjoyed it. They played fast and loose with Star Trek continuity and it was even acknowledged in the film. I took pictures at the theater, posted on my Twitter, of the trailers and the end credits. The movie was fun and some surprises as well. Go see it!

Star Trek is coming soon on May 8th!

It's almost time

That time is near. There is a whole lot going on right now that I'm anticipating and one of them is the new Star Trek movie coming out next week. I've seen clips, trailers, TV spots, toys (merchandising), and even had a glimpse of the film sound track. I'm more excited about it than ever. I may not even wait until I get home to see it.

BTW, I was unsure how to take the redesign of the original starship Enterprise. Now I like it and I suppose I had to see how it would be rendered as a model. I'm OK with it now. Check out this page from the Star Trek movie website called The Enterprise Project showing different takes on the model of the Enterprise.

You know, I've talked to other Trekkies that took issue with the recasting of the original cast. Perhaps there were concern that liberties would be taken with the original characters now that different actors are playing those very familiar roles. Some may not like the new production team imparting their vision of the Star Trek universe.

As far as actors go, I took an open mind. The original players were getting old and two of them have since passed away. If I could see familiar characters again with new faces, there's no problem in my book. What's wrong with a fresh take on new characters although they should remain familiar. Don't turn my hero, Captain Kirk into an evil character who has delusions of grandeur or indeed have him act like he's in the alternate universe depicted in "Mirror, Mirror" an episode of the original series.

Perhaps the Enterprise need an update from the 1960s to look different for audiences in 2009. The technology of the original series certainly can use an update as while it may well have influenced current technology our tech has certainly even advanced further than the supposed technology of the 23rd Century (that is considered the canonical time period of the original Star Trek series). While some aspects of Star Trek technology will be similar there are some minor changes, perhaps there must be otherwise it may not be believeable.

Beyond the fact that there are some differences between the 1960s Star Trek and the new film from which it is based, it's enough for me to be absolutely curious and willing to see the new film come out next week! I can hardly wait.

Majel Barrett-Roddenberry Passes Away

I have fond memories of discovering the original Star Trek (ST) when I was about 12 or 13 years old. It was something new and probably more interesting that those eps of one of the orignal series' spin-off The Next Generation (TNG) which I also discovered at that time. In fact I discovered TNG first before the original series.

I just found out last night that the lady who played Nurse Christine Chapel on the original series has passed away. When I started watching both incarnations of Star Trek I had no idea that Majel Barrett-Roddenberry was the wife of the man who created Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry. My only thoughts about her revolved around the two main characters she playes on the series Nurse Chapel and Lwaxanna Troi (who's the eccentric mother of USS Enterprise counselor Deanna Troi). Also she was the voice of the computers you might hear on both the Original series and the spin-offs up until Enterprise. She's even the voice of the ship's computer in the new Star Trek film coming out next summer.

Mrs. Roddenberry was a beautiful lady especially in her youth as during the course of the original series she seemed to care for Mr. Spock. There was an episode, "The Naked Time", where it seemed as if things could become serious between the two of them. Spock seemed to be a man, in fact he was a Vulcan man devoid of emotions seemingly and very alien, who probably has no use for romance. Still he contracted a virus from Chapel that seemed to have caused his emotionless veil to become more than lifted and was running around the corridors of Enterprise sobbing just after Chapel expressed her feelings for Enterprise's first officer.

Another memorable episode, "Amok Time", was when Spock was experiencing pon-far. Vulcans aren't much different than salmon they have to return home to mate and this has a lot of ritual to it. Of course what this means is that ST fans will see a lot of emotinal outbursts that are generally not expected from Vulcans. At the very beginning of the episode Chapel attempted to give Spock some soup and was thorougly rejected with Spock throwing the soup out of his quarters. Unfortunately both Dr. McCoy and Capt. Kirk were right outside in the corridor when it happened because McCoy was increasingly concerned about Spock.

These two scene illustrated how I feel about Nurse Chapel and it was unfortunate that no other episodes addressed anything between the characters. Perhaps the writers never intended to go there, but I saw the possibility of a storyline where Spock might have a relationship with the nurse. It never materialized and I must say that I never thought much about it until I saw the news of Mrs. Roddenberry's passing.

Memories of her other famed character Lwaxanna Troi well they aren't as fond. Perhaps it's because I grown to not care for The Next Generation as much as I grew to care for the original series. Still her character has yeilded some memorable moments. She often embarrassed Capt. Picard, especially by constantly hitting on him or forcing Picard to carry some heavy luggage when it turns out that her helper can move it with ease.

Also she made an appearance in a Roddenberry series that was produced posthumously, Earth: Final Conflict. I grew to loathe that show, but her appearance was a connection to the man who created that program. Plus she was also an executive producer for not only Earth: Final Conflict but also Andromeda which was another series produced postumously that was created by Gene Roddenberry.

Anyway to me Nurse Chapel will always be the Majel Roddenberry I would recognize. Especially the one that appeared in the original series. That character was a favorite and I think that Mrs. Roddenbery has done well as not only Chapel, Lawaxana, but also as the First Lady of Star Trek. May she rest in peace!

Replica Mark IX tricorder too good to be kept on Twitter

I just posted a video of a replica Mark IX Tricorder on Twitter. This is an instrument you would see in such programs as Star Trek: The Next Generation and probably thru to Star Trek Voyager. Man for some reason I long for those sounds that was normal for me as a regular viewer of Star Trek.

BTW, this is old news, but I'm lil disappointed in the new design of the original USS Enterprise. I don't mind some tinkering but they should have left it alone. Well I'll still go see the new Star Trek film anyway.

What is a Tricoder you may ask? Click here!

You have got to be kidding me!!!!

Tyler Perry is slated to be in the new Star Trek movie. This is according to TrekMovie.com. Tyler Perry is a movie producer playright that is famous for these plays that you might have seen advertised on TV late night at times that I would describe as gospel plays. His films are Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Madea's Family Reunion, Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls, and Why Did I Get Married? He also has a TV series, House of Payne that airs on TBS but will air on FOX in Sept. 2008!

This'll be interesting. Let's see how this works out!

Entertainment items...

When the new Star Trek movie comes out in 2008, we might have a brand new Mr. Spock. This is according to a report from Maureen Ryan's Chicago Tribune blog...

In an development sure to send nerd brains nationwide into overdrive, E!Online reporter Korbi Ghosh is reporting that Zachary Quinto, best known as the evil genius Sylar on "Heroes," is close to signing on the bottom line to be Spock in the upcoming "Star Trek" feature film.

"A source confirmed that the contract is with the business affairs team at Paramount, which is generally considered the last stop on the deal-negotiation train," according to a Monday press release from E!Online.com.

Wait! An actor from “Heroes” on “Star Trek”? The geek mind reels. Surely those eagerly awaiting Comic-Con, the giant sci-fi, film and comics convention this weekend, are all in a tizzy over the news.

Lucky for me, I’m going to Comic-Con (for the first time, and I’m already geeking out in anticipation) and you can be sure I’ll try to shove myself into the room where the “Heroes” cast will be talking about the second season of the show. Perhaps Quinto will discuss his new gig as well, you never know.

Also in other entertainment news, Drew Carey (man I'm glad Rosie O'Donnell isn't going to get the job as it was rumored that she was in the running) is going to be the new host of The Price is Right...

Genial comic Drew Carey was tapped Monday to replace silver-haired host Bob Barker on the CBS daytime game show "The Price Is Right."

The deal was set Monday afternoon shortly before a taping of CBS' "Late Show" with David Letterman, where Carey confirmed it.

"I realize what a big responsibility this is," he said. "It's only a game show, but it's the longest-running game show in American television and I plan to keep it that way."

Barker, 83, retired last month after 35 years following taping of his 6,586th episode.

Carey, 49, spent a decade on his own ABC sitcom and was host of the improv game show "Whose Line Is It Anyway?"

He will also be host of a new CBS prime-time game show, "Power of 10," that will debut next month.

Asked if he found the prospect of replacing such a TV icon daunting, Carey recalled talking to a friend who knows the game show business who told him, "As long as Bob Barker is cool with it, the fans will be cool with it."

"I'm cool with it," Barker said after hearing Carey's remarks.

For you Star Trek fans out there...

Been a while since I've seen episodes of Star Trek: New Voyages. I chronicled them a few months ago here. They are basically making a series of fan films about their favorite TV program. And the episode that I have seen, I have enjoyed though their portrayals of the pivotal characters (I would liken it to a pale imitation of the actors of originated these roles) left a lot to be desired.

Anyway here's some news from TrekMovie.com...

The next episode of Star Trek New Voyages "World Enough And Time" starring George Takei finally has a premiere date: August 23rd. It will be seen in a live streaming event timed to coincide with the gala premiere at a theater in Beverly Hills to be attended by Takei, director Marc Zicree as well as show creator/star James Cawley. This will be the first STNV episode that will use live streaming (the episode will be streamed again, but will not be available for download like previous episodes).

Mark your calendars and be that. Hopefully I'll be able to make it as well.

Star Trek will return

In Christmas of 2008 with producation to start in Fall of 07. It is official check out TrekMovie.com. There's an actual press release on that post and we know that JJ Abrams who was involved with last summer's M:I:3 and ABC's Lost will be producing and directing the film. In addition to that though take the rumors of plot and characters with a grain of salt.

Officially we don't know who they are yet. Rumors are that we will see the troika of Captain James T. Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. Leonard McCoy to be played respectively by Matt Damon, Adrian Brody, and Gary Sinise (yeah Lt. Dan is a dead ringer for DeForrest Kelly LOL). Let it be known though that the new Star Trek movie will respect Star Trek canon so the new creative team won't just throw in too much new stuff into the mix.

EDIT: In the comments of the casting rumors, Beyonce as Uhura, that made me a smile. I'd be intrigued by that.

Trek Invades US Politics

From The Trek Movie Report Blog. Two items actually. One involved a congressman who is a big Star Trek fan and a Blogger who is in conflict with another radio station.

First up Rep. David Wu (D-Oregon)...

Whether or not you agree with his politics, you got to admit he knows his Trek. The Oregonian has more on the controversey and suggests Wu may have a second career speaking at Trek conventions.

There is a video with this too...

The second item is...

Also making news is a Star Trek fan and blogger who goes under the name ‘Spocko’ who runs a site called ‘Spocko’s Brain‘ (referencing TOS episodes "A Piece Of The Action" and "Spock’s Brain"). Spocko is a San Francisco resident named P. McNash (see blogger profile here) who blogged about Star Trek, sci-fi and politics. What got him notice was his bloggings on conservative radio station KSFO which is owned by Disney/ABC. From a report at MediaPost

Spocko’s Brain had posted dozens of examples of KSFO right-wing talkshow hosts spewing vitriol at a variety of politicians, journalists, minorities, and Muslims. At one point, the hosts enact a mock electrocution of New York Times editor Bill Keller in a faulty electric chair, the victim shrieking extensively. Several times they call for the execution of journalists.They demand callers mock Islam. They call themselves "pro torture."

For advertisers, the context can prove jarring. In a surreal moment, the hosts immediately switch from talking about "crushing" an adversarial e-mailer’s "cajones" to promoting Brite Smile toothpaste.

Spocko’s crusade got the notice of ABC/Disney who promptly got his site shut down, turning him into a bit of a martyr. Many of the big left wing blogs came to his defense including the biggest blog on the net DailyKos. His site was up again earlier this week, but is now down again (could be due to traffic). Of course what could be most egregious is that KSFO hosts have now started to attack and mock Star Trek fans. Where are some Klingons when you need them.

TrekMovie.com

You want news and rumors regarding the next Star Trek movie to be released in 2008, please visit TrekMovie.com. There's not only news about the eleventh Star Trek movie but Star Trek remastered or even any other future Trek project.

I really can't wait for this new movie. It's really time for some new Star Trek. And indeed I like to see what Star Trek's new creative team is going to do with this next movie.

It was really time for some new energy anyway, which is one reason why Star Trek was put on the shelf for the time being. As disappointing as the cancellation of Star Trek Enterprise was it may have been about time and hopefully we'll see something different.

Star Trek fan films...

Well I got turned onto this with the fan film, Starship Exter. There are now to be three episodes with the second one in only it's second act with the conclusion coming soon (hopefully). I was pretty impressed with it.

Then I got turned on the Star Trek: The New Voyages. A new take on the original series. I like it but to be honest I can do without the embellishments of the original series characters. They seem to do imitations rather than a fresh take on these characters. I can honest do without that bad wig on the man who plays Captain James T. Kirk.

Rest assured though these are the only criticisms that I offer. If you thirst for Star Trek beyond what is produced from Paramount Pictures. The next film is to be released in 2008 and who knows when the next series might be launched. There are always DVDs of Star Trek films and TV episodes but for something original you've got Starship Exeter and New Voyages.

I haven't seen them all but I would recomment the episode from New Voyages, In Harm's Way. With this episode we see Kirk's predecessor Capt. Christopher Pike take on a fight with Kirk but on two different episdoes. See how.

High definition Star Trek on Chicago TV...

Back in about 1993 when I first started watching Star Trek I was originally hooked on The Next Generation and I figured there had to have been a first generation. Well on WPWR channel 50 I found the first generation. At some point the original series aired on Saturday afternoons but eventually it settled in after a rerun of a first run Next Generation episode at 11:30PM.

Well after being seen only on the Sci-Fi channel since the late 1990s, Star Trek is coming back to local TV. This time on ME-TV which airs on channel 23 WWME-TV. ME-TV is already home to such shows as Perry Mason, Hawaii Five-0, Starsky & Hutch, Batman, The A-Team, The Wild-Wild West, The Blacksheep Squadron, and Mission:Impossible to name a few. Here's a little something from the Sun-Times article...

September 8 marked the 40th anniversary of the original "Star Trek" series (you know, the real "Star Trek").

This weekend, WWME -Channel 23 (check your cable/satellite provider for their listings), will begin airing digitally remastered and enhanced episodes of the classic series starting at 6 p.m. Saturday. It will be the first time in 16 years that the series has aired on broadcast television.
...
"Star Trek" will air on Saturday nights at 6 .pm. and on Sunday nights at 11 p.m. on ME-TV.

Oh yeah I forgot to mention that this is the digitally remastered version that you might have been hearing about if you've been following the Star Trek scene. Especially if you're looking at the Star Trek website. This is just in time for the 40 anniversary.

This article also contains a brief interview with Mr. Spock, Leonard Nimoy...

Q. Did you ever imagine the series would still be popular 40 years after its premiere?

A. Not at all. It doesn't seem like 40 years because some of the memories of that time are so brilliantly fresh and clear in my mind. It's amazing because people think it was on for years and years and we were only on for three seasons.

Q. What did you think of the "Star Trek" feature films?

A. All through the '70s there was talk from the studio about putting the series back on the air. And then "Star Wars" opened in theaters. I just knew I'd be getting a call from Paramount Studios very soon. [Laughing] And I did. George Lucas was a genius. He put science fiction on the map in a form that was pure mass entertainment. It made it possible for us ["Star Trek"] to come back in a new form.

Too bad I won't be able to enjoy this with you guys in Chicago, but I hope you guys have fun. Perhaps you should share this with those you love. :)

Star Trek news...

JJ Abrams who directed Mission:Impossible 3 is set to produce the next Star Trek movie. Check this out...

Abrams Confirms 'Star Trek' Movie

Mission: Impossible III director JJ Abrams has confirmed he's set to save the Star Trek franchise after signing on to produce the next film in the sci-fi series. The 40-year-old Lost and Alias creator, who is a longtime fan of the cult TV show and subsequent movies, is considering directing the new Trek movie too. In an exclusive interview with America's TV Guide magazine, Abrams says, "It's sort of surreal but wonderful. I'm producing and may direct. I have every DVD of every Star Trek episode from every series. I haven't seen every episode from every series but I certainly know it well enough to be working on the movie." Abrams, who will team up with fellow Star Trek buff and Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof on the new project, initially fumed when his involvement in the new film was announced before he'd committed to it. He admits he took his time to sign up for the project: "There have been 10 films and all these different (TV) series, so it was a question of finding out what they (movie executives at Paramount) were anticipating." Abrams insists the cult following Lost has found will help him make decisions about where to take the secret storyline for the latest Star Trek film. He explains, "Fans of Lost don't compare to fans of Star Trek, but working on Lost gives us a view into how important it is to respect the fans."

If the rumors about a movie based on young Starfleet Cadet James T. Kirk is true here's a possibility...

Will MATT DAMON get beamed up? Could happen. I'm told J.J. ABRAMS is very interested in casting the Oscar-winning Damon as a young Captain Kirk in the upcoming 'Star Trek' movie that he's directing and producing. He's so interested that he's apparently already sought support from the original Kirk, WILLIAM SHATNER. "Shatner gave his blessing," my source says. "J.J. got his approval." Damon first popped up in Trekkie circles as soon as the Abrams-'Star Trek' deal was announced. Rumor had it that the new movie would center on Kirk and Spock's early days at a space academy. "J.J. wants Damon as Capt. Kirk," my source reports. "He really loves the idea."

When this news was making the rounds it was Ben Affleck as James T. Kirk. I joked that I'd rather see Affleck as Mr. Spock.

In other news. What might you be thinking about the new look It's My Mind? I thought it was about time to brighten things up around here. Let me know what you think.

Star Trek 11

My photoblog has at least two videos of Star Trek spoofs. One was horrible and I'm willing to bet was something of an amusement for the people involved. It obviously involved a family in front of a blue screen with the original Enterprise crew consisting of McCoy, Uhura, Sulu, Checkov, & Scotty. In other words this family became a part of the Star Trek action. The other was titled Scottish Star Trek and I'm not going to elaborate further you just should watch the video.

The next Star Trek movie is going to be released in 2008 according to StarTrek.com. I've even hear rumors that Captain Kirk might be played by Ben Affleck. The Star Trek franchise normally doesn't seem to spent a lot of money on talent. Thank the Great Bird of the Galaxy for that.

But Ben Affleck as James T. Kirk? I think he'd be a better choice to play Mr. Spock if this Starfleet Academy adventure ever gets off the ground. Though some would say that would be so wrong.

Oh yeah I didn't mention that part. The next movie might be a prequel showing how Kirk and Spock met at Starfleet Academy. I can only hope that they can do this concept some justice when it is finally released to theaters almost two years from now.