HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: "dale clayton" <dale.clayton@canrem.com>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: new series: time trax
Date: 25 Jul 92 10:58:35 EST
Reply-To: "dale clayton" <dale.clayton@canrem.com>
Distribution: rec
Organization: Canada Remote Systems

-> 200 years in future Dr Sahmbi has developed a time machine, but
-> people can only make one round trip.  Unable to get standard funding,
-> Dr Sahmbi offers an escape route for criminals, sending them back 200
-> years.  THe hero, Darien Lambert (played by Dale Midkiff) is a future
-> cop who goes back to our time period to round up the good guys.  His
-> companion is a female computerized hologram.

-> Broadcasting suggests that the show sounds like Quantum Leap meets
-> the Terminator.

 Much broader than that. More like Doctor Who meets Quantum Leap,
Terminator, Mann & Machine and Botany Bay. There's probably more we
could add, too. Is it the "in" thing in unoriginal concepts to take as
many other concepts as possible so that nobody would notice its lack of
new ideas?

Regards,
Dale Clayton
-----------------------
dale.clayton@canrem.com
--
Canada Remote Systems  - Toronto, Ontario/Detroit, MI
World's Largest PCBOARD System - 416-629-7000/629-7044
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
From: vjmurphy@carina.unm.edu (Phred T. Platypus)
Subject: Re: Human Target
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 92 17:23:07 GMT
Organization: University of New Mexico, Albuquerque

In article <9207210359.AB01040@rutgers.edu> IQTI400@INDYCMS.IUPUI.EDU (MacPhil) writes:
>For the longterm comix [sic] readers, what do you think of the
>latest incarnation from the 70s (Human Target) compared to
>the print version ?
>
    Well, from the bit I saw, I thought that this was an okay version.
The disguise bits reminded me too much of the latest Mission:Impossible 
series, but were done well.  I am surprised how much I liked it really:
it had some interesting scenes that I didn't expect, like the wife in the
hot tub bit.  The comic tended to skip things like that in favor of
more action.  Too bad it's on opposite of Northern Exposure, though.

-- 
"You ask me if sex is one of the most  _\_\    _/_/     Phred Platypus
 important things in life?  Absolutely. _\_\  _/_/  Grammarian of Vengeance
 But the lack of it is even likelier     _\_\_/_/ [ vjmurphy@carina.unm.edu ]
 to drive you nuts." -- Harlan Ellison    _\_/       Vincent J. Murphy
From: eric_gorr@coglab_psych.uoregon.edu (Eric Gorr)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Quantum Leap (was: Human Target)
Date: 21 Jul 92 23:12:36 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: University of Oregon Network Services

> Oh, I don't know...Quantum Leap has been doing pretty much the same
> thing for many seasons now.  What will be the deciding factor for
> Human Target is if they can make the stories about the people he's
> replacing interesting enough to keep the viewers tuning in.


They still do a few unique episodes...and you must admit that the basic 
premis was much more broad then for Human Target.

What will a basic plot of human target look like?

1.  opening:  he battles and defeats 5-6 people.
2.  Get hired by someone else
3.  Runs into trouble, but not so much that his life is really in danger
4.  battles and defeats 5-6.
5.  people he helped are grateful.

They really can't expand much...unlike quantum leap which can do nearly any
plot line they want so long as they are correcting history in some
way...the
trouble is that the writers are running out of creative thoughts...
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
From: boyajian@ruby.enet.dec.com (The Man from Another Place)
Subject: Re: Asimov / Heinlein
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation
Date: Fri, 24 Jul 1992 06:46:54 GMT

In article <l6tlfnINNpsp@male.EBay.Sun.COM>, jimj@cleanplate.EBay.Sun.COM (James D. Jones) writes...

} Asimov was also involved with the movie "Fantastic Voyage,"

No he wasn't. That's like saying that Alan Dean Foster was "involved"
with every movie he wrote novelizations for.

} and indeed wrote a book by that name. But I don't remember if the movie
} was based on the book, or if the book was based on the movie.  

The book was based on the movie. Asimov was hired to write the novelization
and that was the entire extent of his "involvement" with the film.

} "Fantastic Voyage..."  pretty lame now, but pretty good if you were 10
} in 1965. I still remember watching the antibodies eat Donald Pleasance.

I saw it again within the last couple of years. As an interesting (if
somewhat outrageous) bit of science fiction, it holds up pretty well.
As an example of striking visuals (and I'm not just referring to Raquel
Welch in a wetsuit), it definitely holds up well. As strictly a piece
of entertainment, it's booooooorrrrrrrriiiiiiing.

-- 

	"She's my radiation baby.
	 She's my teenage fallout girl."

--- jayembee (Jerry Boyajian, DEC, "The Mill", Maynard, MA)

    boyajian@ruby.enet.dec.com
From: baylor@force.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Never seen QL - What's the big deal?
Date: 22 Jul 92 16:33:22 GMT
Reply-To: baylor@force.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com
Distribution: na
Organization: LMSC, Sunnyvale, California

In article <BD.92Jul22084549@fluent.UUCP>, bd@fluent@dartmouth.EDU (Brice Dowaliby) writes:
>
>I'm one of those poor souls whose TV only gets one station (a PBS station
>where the only SF is Dr. Who), cable is not available in my area, and
>I can't afford a satellite dish, so I haven't seen any of the newer shows
>like Quantum Leap or Mann & Machine.
>
>While I understand the basic premise of QL, it sounds a little silly.  And
>yet the people who net about it seem really impressed.  Given the general
>level of conversation about it (most of the fans seem like reasonably
>intelligent folks), I wonder what the attraction is.
>
>Can someone explain to me, please, what it is about QL that inspires
>such loyalty?  The basic concept seems pretty straight-forward and not
>all that exciting.  Is it the acting, the plots, the characterizations,
>or what?
>
It IS silly. It's also well done and a lot of fun. (The producer is
Don Bellsario, who used to do Magnum PI). If I had to specify, I'd
say it's probably primarilly the acting & characterisation. For me, I've
also always had a soft spot for time-travel stories. And this is better
than a lot of them.  There's also a secondary theme running through the 
thing about alienation that I find very compelling. And the "walk a mile
in the other man's shoes." Also, there is an admitted "drool" factor
 -- Bakkula is CUTE! 
(I don't know how many male fans there are. I havn't met any.)

As SCIENCE FICTION it isn't really much. Alien Nation was much better.
From: jimj@cleanplate.EBay.Sun.COM (James D. Jones)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Asimov / Heinlein
Date: 23 Jul 92 15:48:20 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca.
NNTP-Posting-Host: cleanplate.ebay.sun.com

In article <5000@transfer.stratus.com> hship@sw.stratus.com (Howard Ship) writes:
<The Museum of Science (Boston, MA, USA) put on a special planeterium (!)
<show several years ago of "The Last Command" (? on title).  A computer is
<asked "Can Entropy be Reversed?", i.e., can the inevitable heat death of
<the universe be avoided.  Of thousands of the millenia, evermore powerful
<computers are asked the same question.  Finally, the universe is dead, except
<for a last, computer, which ponders the question.  Finally, it answers the
<question: yes.  And demonstrates it by creating a new universe.

The story is "the last question," and I, too, saw it -- at the University
of Nevada/Reno planetarium in the mid '70s.  I assume that it's the
same show (although it might not be) and that it was shared between
one or more planetariums.  After all, a planetarium show merely consists of
a script for the planetarium equipment, some slides, and a soundtrack.
From: rubinoff@linc.cis.upenn.edu (Robert Rubinoff)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Asimov / Heinlein
Date: 21 Jul 92 20:07:01 GMT
Organization: University of Pennsylvania

The planetarium show is based on the story "The Last Question", one of Asimov's
most popular stories.
   Robert

Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
From: thomasp@paramount.nikhefk.nikhef.nl (Thomas Payerle)
Subject: Star Cops
Keywords: Star Cops, Boucher ,BBC
Organization: NIKHEFK
Date: Mon, 27 Jul 1992 16:55:30 GMT


A while back I caught some episodes of a British series entitled "Star Cops"
on WLIW.  As I was only in the NY area for a visit, I didn't get a chance to
see many episodes, but I was impressed by what I saw, despite the rather bland
title.  I was wondering if anyone knows any details about when and how long 
it was on.  I suspect the series was short lived -- the good ones often are.

I believe the series was created by Chris Boucher (script editor for B7)-- he
was definitely involved with it if not its creator.  It took place on a lunar
colony in the not-too-far-distant future; the technology was roughly on a par
with what could be done today.  The colony was a colony, not a resort- the 
inhabitants seemed for the most part to be involved in various industries that 
were exploiting the resources, etc. available on the moon, and the workers 
probably qualified for some sort of hazard pay.  The stories centered around 
the members of a multi-national police force that kept the lunar peace.  As 
such, the plots I saw tended to have a mystery as the basic plot line, but 
this was fleshed out with a rather realistic sf setting (sort of on par with 
Space 1999 if the moon hadn't left earth orbit), and the sort of well developed 
characters that one would expect from a former writer for B7.

As I have said previously, I only managed to see about three or four episodes,
and I was wondering if anyone is familiar with the series and knows for how
long it ran (or anything else about it).


				Tom Payerle

"Circular reasoning will just make you dizzy"
From: lskinner@emr.ca (Lauren Skinner)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Quantum Leap - Magnum Crossover
Date: 22 Jul 92 17:30:53 GMT
Organization: IMB, Energy Mines & Resources, Canada

I had heard that there was going to be a crossover episode where
Sam leaps into Magnum PI.

Is this a go?  Will we get to see it next year?
From: jimj@cleanplate.EBay.Sun.COM (James D. Jones)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Asimov / Heinlein
Date: 23 Jul 92 15:43:19 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Mt. View, Ca.
NNTP-Posting-Host: cleanplate.ebay.sun.com

In article <1992Jul11.100033.24731@engage.pko.dec.com> boyajian@ruby.enet.dec.com (The Man from Another Place) writes:
<
<And a number of people claim that THE BRAIN EATERS (1958) is based on
<Heinlein's THE PUPPET MASTERS. It certainly rips off the basic ideas,
<but I don't think it can quite be said to be an adaptation.

I heard that Heinlein sued the producers for plagiarism, and won.
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
From: mholtz@sactoh0.sac.ca.us (Mark A. Holtz)
Subject: Re: Never seen QL - What's the big deal?
Organization: Sacramento Public Access Unix
Distribution: na
Date: Sat, 25 Jul 92 00:17:23 GMT

In <BD.92Jul22084549@fluent.UUCP> bd@fluent@dartmouth.EDU (Brice Dowaliby) writes:
>I'm one of those poor souls whose TV only gets one station (a PBS station
>where the only SF is Dr. Who), cable is not available in my area, and
>I can't afford a satellite dish, so I haven't seen any of the newer shows
>like Quantum Leap or Mann & Machine.

Dr. Who is good, although I can't say much about the rest of PBS
fare.

>Can someone explain to me, please, what it is about QL that inspires
>such loyalty?  The basic concept seems pretty straight-forward and not
>all that exciting.  Is it the acting, the plots, the characterizations,
>or what?

Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell are both excellent actors, the
scripts are pretty good, and the show is filled with both good
drama and some great moments of humor.
-- 
President: ___ George Bush            <:> UUCP: PacBell.COM! -> mholtz!sactoh0
           ___ Bill Clinton/Al Gore   <:>     ucbvax!csusac! /
                                      <:>
           _X_ None of the Above      <:> Internet: mholtz@sactoh0.sac.ca.us
From: scottg@amiganet.chi.il.us (Scott Gittlitz)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re:  Shada video out now
Date: 29 Jul 92 03:50:32 GMT
Organization: Amiga Network Information Systems

In article <1992Jul22.032527.460@intacc.uucp>, jmacd@intacc.uucp (Jason
MacDermott) writes:
>
>In article <9207171331.14056.0@win.icl.co.uk> lcc@win.icl.co.UK (Kerr Avon) 
wri
>tes:
>>>it is being sold together with original scripts for the story.
>>
>>To make the package more attractive?  Perhaps.
>>
>>To make the package ridiculously expensive?  Certainly!
>>
>>I would probably have bought _Shada_ too (since it was by Douglas Adams,
>>and for curiousity value), if it had been reasonably priced.
>>
>>I can see no justification for charging such a high price.
>>
>  For Doctor Who fans (such as myself), this tape is a blessing!  And there
>are several justifications for the price hike, although I will admit the BBC
>tend to overprice things anyway.
> 
>  First off, more material was shot for this video, and special effects were
>added.  It wasn't just a television story slapped onto video tape.  
> 
>  Second, I'm sure any fan of the series (and many fans of Douglas Adams) will
>appreciate the scripts, as they have never been seen before.  The story hasn't
>been novelised either, unlike most of the Doctor Who stories.  Plus it will
>assist in filling-in the unrecorded parts of the story.  
> 
>  Third, if they didn't raise the price, how would they pay Douglas Adams?
> 
>  Hey, at least it's being released in the U.K.  Here in Canada and the U.S.
>we will probably have to wait a year or so - IF it's released at all over
>here!  I'd be happy to pay my $40 for it.
> 
>  Jason MacDermott
>jmacd@intacc.uucp
> 
>the Chronicles of a Time Lord BBS
>(416)823-7186 / 24 hrs / 2400 bps
>Dr. Who Support in Toronto, Ont.
  I don't understand the people in the UK, even DW Magazine feel the price is
too high.  I see it as reasonable considering films are released in the US for
$90+.  I ordered the video from the UK and had it converted, I loved it. I was
surprised to see the story in episodic format, and less narration from Baker.

BTW - A label on the case states that all Douglas Adams royalties from the sale
of the video goes to COMIC RELIEF.  From what I hear talks are going with DA
for a novalization of the story.
From: bd@fluent@dartmouth.EDU (Brice Dowaliby)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Trouble with Trekkies (was: Ranking of Star Trek Episodes)
Date: 31 Jul 92 17:13:59 GMT
Reply-To: bd%fluent@dartmouth.EDU
Distribution: na
Organization: Fluent Inc., Lebanon NH


in a recent post, a195722%etd.DECnet@MDCGWY.MDC.COM posted a Star Trek
Episode Guide, with rankings from 1 to 10, with 4 being an "average"
episode, those with numbers lower than 4 being below average and those with 
numbers above four being above average.

Only problem is there were 45 episodes ranked above average, 16 ranked
average, and only 18 episodes below average.  Sounds a little
skewed, to me.

And according to the original post:

>The various classifications of the Star System were assigned between
>stardates 1974.3 and 1975.5 by a general consensus among members of the
>Bridge Crew, the regular Trek-watchers of Stevenson Hall, at Princeton
>University.

Sounds like Princeton ought to move back to a core curriculum type
of program.  Even literature types (I'm not anti liberal arts - I
was a religion major, myself) ought to know some math.   8-)
-- 
    Brice Dowaliby         |    I may speak fluently, but 
(bd%fluent@dartmouth.edu)  |    I don't speak for Fluent
From: dave@cs.arizona.edu (Dave Schaumann)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Never seen QL - What's the big deal?
Date: 23 Jul 92 16:38:32 GMT
Reply-To: dave@cs.arizona.edu (Dave Schaumann)
Distribution: na
Organization: University of Arizona

In article <1992Jul22.163322.24279@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com>, baylor@force writes:
>In article <BD.92Jul22084549@fluent.UUCP>, bd@fluent@dartmouth.EDU (Brice Dowaliby) writes:

>>[What's the big deal about Quantum Leap?]

>It IS silly.  It's also well done and a lot of fun.

Yah.


>(I don't know how many male fans there are. I havn't met any.)

Well, as a male fan... when QL first started, I checked it out, because
(as you might have guessed :-) I have an interest in sf.  So I watched
it, and saw that the SF elements were minimal, and more or less gave it
a pass.

Through circumstance, I ended up watching it several more times.  What
I like about it is the plots are usually original and compelling (at least
by network TV standards), and the actors that play Sam and Al (the two
recurring roles in the show) are very compelling in their respective roles.

Despite the premise, the show isn't very SFnal, so if you're looking for that
sort of thing, you'll probably be disappointed.  OTOH, if you're just looking
for a show that's different and reasonably well done, QL is a good choice.

-- 
Mary had a swingin' lamb/he followed her to
	school

She hocked his wool for a bongo drum and man that lamb was
	cool.

		-Mr. Know-it-all
From: ccocsme@prism.gatech.EDU (StatMan)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Asimov / Heinlein
Date: 21 Jul 92 15:23:15 GMT
Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology

In article <1992Jul9.162942.13949@auto-trol.com> mattel@auto-trol.com (Matt Telles) writes:
>In article <Br4GM4.Eqv@newcastle.ac.uk> S.A.McIntyre@durham.ac.uk writes:
>>Have there ever been any films made of Robert Heinlein's books?  How about for any of
>>Asimov's Robot series or Foundation?  If not films, even short stories
>>on TV would do....
>>
>
  Hopefully this has not already been said yet...

  Asimov's 'Nightfall' was made into a movie about 4-5 years ago. Dont remember
much about it, except that is was not very good and it had a lot of sex in
it for some reason.

  Also, in the introduction to his story 'C-Chute' (in Nightfall & other
stories) Asimov mentions that 'C-Chute' was made into a radio program.

Marty
-- 
"Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore..."  ---  Dorothy Gale
                         -------------------------------------------------
Marty Esterman           | It is not computers that I fear. It is the lack
ccocsme@prism.gatech.edu | of them that I fear. -- Isaac Asimov  1920-1992
From: jrs@zippy.unet.com (John Switzer Frame 3.0)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Human Target
Date: 22 Jul 92 16:01:27 GMT
Organization: Network Equipment Technologies, Redwood City

In article <1992Jul22.070120.23548@engage.pko.dec.com> boyajian@ruby.enet.dec.com (The Man from Another Place) writes:
>In article <1992Jul21.155525.1861@wkuvx1.bitnet>, charyma@wkuvx1.bitnet writes...
>
>} Does anyone know if the producers for this show used to work for
>} Donald Bellisario?  Some ideas seemed taken from QL and Magnum, P. I.
>
>The names I recognized (De Meo, Bilson, Hattman, and some of the actors)
>worked on THE FLASH.

A LOT of those who were listed in the credits were from the Flash TV
show, which is not suprising since the show is done by Pet Fly Productions.
From: jmf@abacus.harvard.edu ( ghost )
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Never seen QL - What's the big deal?
Date: 22 Jul 92 22:42:17 GMT
Organization: DAS Purchasing, Harvard University

In article <BD.92Jul22084549@fluent.UUCP> bd%fluent@dartmouth.EDU writes:
>
>I'm one of those poor souls whose TV only gets one station (a PBS station
>where the only SF is Dr. Who), cable is not available in my area, and
>I can't afford a satellite dish, so I haven't seen any of the newer shows
>like Quantum Leap or Mann & Machine.
>
>Can someone explain to me, please, what it is about QL that inspires
>such loyalty?  The basic concept seems pretty straight-forward and not
>all that exciting.  Is it the acting, the plots, the characterizations,
>or what?
>
>    Brice Dowaliby         |    I may speak fluently, but 
>(bd%fluent@dartmouth.edu)  |    I don't speak for Fluent


If you're pulling in PBS on Channel 11 out of Durham NH,
you can get Red Dwarf at 10:30pm Sunday nights.  That makes it 2 SF programs...
shameless plug for new favorite show.

About QL:

The argument "2 cute guys" works for some people, often not people named 
Brice, though.

Way back in its first few years, and not very often lately (not at all this
year, when there have been too few good & many dreadful episodes) there were 
a few episodes that came together in the remarkable way that only a few
memorable tv shows ever do, & that live-performance plays are said to 
sometimes do (I don't see many plays, so can't say). 

Despite the often silly premise & preposterous situations, or maybe because
the lead characters galvanized to overcome them, some shows really clicked in. 
Perhaps we're all remembering that, & waiting for it to happen again.

Scott Bakula can be a remarkably empathic actor, and various episodes where
his character strongly identifies with the person whose persona he's
temporarily taken over, or the situation he finds himself in, are always the
best ones.

The episodes where it is written-in that he can't wait to leap out,
or where for some reason not written-in he can't wait to leap out
are always terribly uncomfortable to watch.  Nevertheless, they keep on
filming them. 

I missed the 1st half of all too many shows from the 1st 2 years, & both
halves of even more, & would dearly like to be able to see them without
having to subscribe to cable, but NBC doesn't seem willing to comply.
From: mae@aplpy.jhuapl.edu (Mary Anne Espenshade)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Never seen QL - What's the big deal?
Date: 22 Jul 92 21:10:48 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab

Brice Dowaliby (bd@fluent@dartmouth.EDU), who must live in a truly out-
of-the-way place to get only PBS and no network stations, and who has
never watched QL, asks:
>Can someone explain to me, please, what it is about QL that inspires
>such loyalty?  The basic concept seems pretty straight-forward and not
>all that exciting.  Is it the acting, the plots, the characterizations,
>or what?
In a word - Yes.
Wonderful acting, wonderful characterization, mostly wonderful plots
(no series can avoid a few clunkers) and the 'what' is lots of fun.
It's an intelligent show among the masses of unwatchable sitcoms.

Don't think of it in terms of an SF/Time Travel concept ( the producers
certainly don't :-) ).  Think of it as a drama anthology that can
include any topic over the past 40 years, with a few SF/occult elements
thrown in.  (Some fans really don't like the paranormal episodes, but I
do.)
--
Mary Anne Espenshade
ARPA: mae@aplexus.jhuapl.edu
UUCP: ...!allegra!mimsy!aplcen!aplexus!mae
From: rsopicki@pro-amber.cts.com (Randy Sopicki)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
Subject: Re: Quantum Leap - Magnum Crossover
Date: 27 Jul 92 05:16:23 GMT
Organization: Crash TimeSharing, El Cajon, CA

In <lskinner.35@emr.ca> lskinner@emr.ca (Lauren Skinner) writes:

>I had heard that there was going to be a crossover episode where
>Sam leaps into Magnum PI.
>
>Is this a go?  Will we get to see it next year?

I believe Tom Selleck said "No Way!" to the project so it was tossed out.
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv
From: dcpiii@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (pawlak dan)
Subject: Re: Shada video out now
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1992 21:14:13 GMT

jmacd@intacc.uucp (Jason MacDermott) writes:


>In article <9207171331.14056.0@win.icl.co.uk> lcc@win.icl.co.UK (Kerr Avon)  writes:
> 
>  Hey, at least it's being released in the U.K.  Here in Canada and the U.S.
>we will probably have to wait a year or so - IF it's released at all over
>here!  I'd be happy to pay my $40 for it.
> 
>  Jason MacDermott
>jmacd@intacc.uucp
> 
>the Chronicles of a Time Lord BBS
>(416)823-7186 / 24 hrs / 2400 bps
>Dr. Who Support in Toronto, Ont.

If anyone does know of a relatively inexpensive way of ordering this tape
without any danger of it being lost as so many of my ordered tapes from bbc
have been...please post or drop me a line...thanks

"...what do ya think sirs?"
Dan Pawlak send all hate mail to dcpiii@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu