THE MT VOID
Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society
04/04/14 -- Vol. 32, No. 40, Whole Number 1800
Co-Editor: Mark Leeper, mleeper@optonline.net
Co-Editor: Evelyn Leeper, eleeper@optonline.net
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Topics:
Notes on ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS (comments by Mark R. Leeper)
THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH (1959) (film review
by Mark R. Leeper)
TOO SANE FOR THIS WORLD (film review by Mark R. Leeper)
Numbers of Things (letters of comment by Neil Ostrove
and Peter Rubinstein)
Ealing Comedies (letter of comment by Kevin Robinson)
This Week's Reading (DIMENSION OF MIRACLES) (book comments
by Evelyn C. Leeper)
==================================================================
TOPIC: Notes on ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS (comments by Mark
R. Leeper)
Back when I was a young teen in 1964 I lived in Longmeadow,
Massachusetts, and I would go into Springfield to see the newly
released science fiction films. One Saturday morning I was making
plans to go in and see the then-new film playing at the Paramount.
My mother asked me what I was going to see. "ROBINSON CRUSOE ON
MARS." My mother gave a derisive laugh. "You're kidding," she
said. "It's not about Robinson Crusoe. It is about someone
similarly cast away who has to survive on Mars." She did not
respond. I never looked at the title as being so ridiculous. It
was clear to me from the beginning that this was not a sequel to
the Daniel Defoe book. I knew what the title meant and thought it
was just obstinacy of people to note the ambiguity and choose to
interpret this as further adventures of Robinson Crusoe in space.
But apparently the film was frequently the butt of jokes because
the title could be so easily misinterpreted. This is a film that
very roughly follows the plotting of ROBINSON CRUSOE, but the main
character is a castaway astronaut struggling to survive on Mars.
The plot is very much like that of the Defoe film. Commander
Christopher Draper (played by Paul Mantee) and Colonel Dan McReady
(Adam West) are two American astronauts on Mars Gravity Probe 1,
orbiting Mars. A near collision with an unexpected meteor causes
them to use up their fuel. They find they have to escape down to
the planet in life pods. They come down separately and the film
goes to the point of view of Draper. From there the film just
follows Draper's attempts to stay alive.
When science fiction fans hear the name Byron Haskin, director of
ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS, they are most likely to associate it with
George Pal's 1953 film THE WAR OF THE WORLDS. For that film Haskin
acted as director. That was his first film directing for Pal
productions. He would go on to direct THE NAKED JUNGLE (1954), THE
CONQUEST OF SPACE (1955), and THE POWER (1968). He came to Pal
having directed films before, going back to the last years of
silent film. But he also had long experience with cinematography
since 1922 and visual effects going back to 1925. THE WAR OF THE
WORLDS was his first science fiction film, but it would not be his
last.
Besides Haskin's cooperation with Pal he directed the lamentable
FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON in 1958 and in 1964 he directed ROBINSON
CRUSOE ON MARS. Nominally this film was not to have any connection
with Pal, but in the second half of the film we see the alien
slavers improbably wearing the same or similar space suits to those
the Earth astronauts wore in Pal's DESTINATION MOON (1950). The
alien spacecraft, which zipped around in non-inertial jumps that
would have made jelly of anything human-like inside, were clearly
inspired by the manta-ray-shaped war machines in THE WAR OF THE
WORLDS. Hal Pereira served as art director on both films and
several people worked on the art of both films. It is reasonable
to assume that there was a fair amount of artistic cross-
pollination between the two films in addition to the films having
the same director. Wikipedia goes so far as to claim "the same
blueprints were used" for the models of each alien craft.
The production was underfunded, according to the participants. The
film was at one time intended to be a major cinematic event and was
expected to have a road show tour. Instead when it got a release
that was only on the level of a B-picture. It played as the bottom
half of a double feature with LAW OF THE LAWLESS (1964), a second-
string Western. The movie was filmed in Death Valley, the setting
mostly for inexpensive Westerns. Aside from the expense of making
Death Valley habitable for the cast and crew--and reportedly there
was little enough of that--the film required only simple and
rudimentary special effect so Paramount was able to get a science
fiction man in space story at what was probably a very reasonable
budget. Rather than do model work to show the spaceships, they
seem to be just use flat drawn images. The viewer is not given
time to look at the images to be sure as they flash by too fast to
really see.
The film does have a sort of nostalgic feel for what the filmmakers
did not know was inaccurate. This was well before electronics
transformed so much. We see mechanical devices for a clock rather
than electronic implementations. And pieces of equipment are
marked with labeling tape.
It is interesting to see Adam West as the secondary lead as another
astronaut, Dan McReady. This was two years before West would
become associated with the role of Batman on television. He would,
however, already be familiar with young audiences as the comic book
hero type Captain Q in Nestles Quik TV ads, a role that was very
much a stepping-stone to his being cast as Batman. West may have
been a bad choice since he has a certain screen presence that allow
him to steal all his scenes with Mantee until he disappears early
in the plot.
The titles of the film could have been given a very modernist look
with an art deco font for the opening titles. Instead it seems
that Haskin was going for more of a classical look. The font that
was chosen for the titles looks like it came from the 19th century.
When the film was released it was claimed that Byron Haskin had
taken great pains to make sure the film was scientifically
accurate. The science of this film deserves a column all by
itself, so that will be the subject of my column next week.
Incidentally Paul Mantee died just four months before the writing
of this article, November 7, 2013. [-mrl]
==================================================================
TOPIC: THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH (1959) (film review by Mark
R. Leeper)
CAPSULE: From the heady, early days of Hammer Films' most
successful period comes this now rarely seen horror film. It is a
remake of THE MAN IN HALF MOON STREET (1945), in which Anton
Diffring has found a way to never die, but only at the expense of
the living. Made very much in the mold that elsewhere was doing
wonders for Hammer Films. You do not need to be a fan of Hammer
Films to like this movie, but it certainly helps. Rating: low +1
(-4 to +4) or 5/10
In the late 1950s the Hammer Films production studio had recently
had great success with films like CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1957),
DRACULA (1958), THE REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN (1958), THE HOUND OF
THE BASKERVILLES (1959), and THE MUMMY (1959). The formula was 1)
have Jimmy Sangster write the screenplay, 2) have Terence Fisher
direct, 3) have the film star a) Peter Cushing and b) Christopher
Lee, and 4) give the whole affair a Gothic atmosphere and flavor.
With the exceptions that Lee was not in THE REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN
and Sangster did not write THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES they stuck
close to that formula. One film is missing from this list, THE MAN
WHO COULD CHEAT DEATH, made just prior to THE MUMMY. (The lead
role was given to Peter Cushing, but he backed out just shortly
before the film was scheduled to start.)
Hammer had chosen to remake a film that was not a horror classic.
It was more a remake of a gentle fantasy, THE MAN IN HALF MOON
STREET (1945), based on a play of that title by Barre Lyndon. When
Cushing backed out of the film he was replaced by Anton Diffring,
whose sharp Germanic features made him a natural as a screen
villain. But the rest of the classic team, Lee, Sangster, and
Fisher and atmosphere were all there.
The story involved a brilliant doctor who had found a way to extend
his life greatly. It required materials that could be taken only
from a living human subject and that operation was always fatal.
This became a fairly common plot for horror films of the 1950s and
1960s: YEUX SANS VISAGE, ATOM AGE VAMPIRE, THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T
DIE, and several others. Later the plot would be brought back to
life once again for THE NIGHT STRANGLER, the second TV-movie about
Carl Kolchak.
Barre Lyndon's name may be unfamiliar to many fans of fantastic
films. He scripted an odd assortment of films, in addition this
play this movie was based on he also wrote the screenplay for THE
LODGER, HANGOVER SQUARE, THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH, THE WAR OF THE
WORLDS, CONQUEST OF SPACE, three episodes of "Thriller", three
horror episodes of "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour", and the terrific
little horror film DARK INTRUDER. He was involved in many genres
of fantasy film.
It would be a weak criticism to say that the film was not that good
compared to the other films Hammer was making at the time. But the
film had definite problems of its own. Perhaps because it came
from a stage play the film is talky and little slow and set bound.
These are problems that other Hammer films of this time avoided.
The year is 1890 and sculptor Georges Bonnet (Anton Diffring) is
much admired by Paris high society. What his friends do not know
is that he had had plenty of time to hone his skills. Though he
appears to be a man in his prime, he is really 104 years old. It
seems that he had discovered a formula to keep himself young. His
body does not age as long as he periodically has a secret elixir
and has an operation that together stop his aging process. Sadly
the process requires the acquiring of certain glands from a living
donor, and the taking of these glands is immediately fatal. From
there the film follows a very predictable course.
Certain touches are added to the story that are never explained.
Bonnet is in the habit of murdering his best models after he
sculpts them. Perhaps they are involuntary organ donors, but the
few lines that could have been added to the dialog to explain this
are just not there. Also Bonnet has hands that burn normal flesh.
The scene showing this to us is there, but also never explained.
The corrosive hands are especially strange since Bonnet has
romantic designs on his model Janine (Hazel Court) and the burning
touch could be a definite obstacle.
This is one of the rare films in which Christopher Lee plays the
romantic lead. And as good an actor as he is he seems a little
stiff and dignified to play the role with any softness. Hazel
Court is not a whole lot more human. Director Fisher is unable to
romanticize the couple. Between Lee and Court there seems to be
not enough warmth to melt a Hershey Bar.
This was not a film that called for a lot of visual effects. Only
during Bonnet's states of decomposition is there anything much out
of the ordinary to see. While he is decomposing, Diffring has caps
over his eyes and bags under them. They give him a sort of Droopy
Dog look. A little better is a whole-head makeup to make him look
like an old man, but it is too obviously a mask, particularly
around the eyes.
Hammer completists should certainly give THE MAN WHO COULD CHEAT
DEATH a look. Otherwise the film is undistinguished. I rate it a
low +1 on the -4 to +4 scale or 5/10.
Film Credits: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053041/
What others are saying:
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/man_who_could_cheat_death/
[-mrl]
==================================================================
TOPIC: TOO SANE FOR THIS WORLD (film review by Mark R. Leeper)
CAPSULE: Director William Davenport introduces us to twelve
autistic but high-functioning adults. He profiles the world of
these people who have the condition and has them talk about
themselves: who they are, the challenges they face, and how the
condition affects their families and co-workers. We are introduced
to a culture of the autistic: a culture we may not have known
existed. The film has a by-the-numbers documentary style and
presents its information in a straightforward manner. TOO SANE FOR
THIS WORLD is the first film in a projected three-film series.
Rating: +1 (-4 to +4) or 6/10
Most people know that there is a brain development condition called
autism. But ask them whether it is a mental condition, a
developmental condition, or an illness, and few will know.
Director William Davenport demonstrates this to us by asking
passersby on the street. He then gives us the product of extensive
interviews with twelve high-functioning adults on the autism
spectrum. Few people whom autism has not personally touched really
have much of a grasp on what it is and how it affects the people
who have it and the people who know them. Until recently one heard
about autistic children, but rarely about adults. Many people
learned about autism first by seeing the film TEMPLE GRANDIN.
Temple Grandin herself introduces TOO SANE FOR THIS WORLD to give
us a perspective on the comments of twelve autistic adults.
What is autism? Autism and autism spectrum disorder constitute a
set of complex disorders of brain development. No two people
handle this condition the same way. Generally people who know
about autism know that many people are autistic but still are
"high-functioning." Davenport introduces us to a diverse set of
autistic people and lets them talk about themselves and their
relation to the people in their lives, and what they want the
public to know.
Among the interviewees is Greg Yates. As a boy Greg was always
more excited by science and electronics than in meeting people and
being socially active. Years later Greg's wife read a book about
an autistic French scientist/artist who had a personality much like
Greg's. It was Greg's wife who first suggested to Greg that he
might be autistic. He found that indeed he had the symptoms of a
form of autism, Asperger syndrome, and realized that he himself was
autistic. Like Greg, there are many people who are autistic and
just never realized that they fall into the spectrum.
Frequently the interviewees just knew that there was something
different about themselves but never associated their behavior with
autism. Typically they may not know how to interpret other
people's facial expressions. These people go through life feeling
that they just do not fit in. Many feel they are marginalized and
discriminated against. They have to decide if they want to act
like the "neurotypical" (non-autistic) people around them or to
accept their differences. They must decide if they want to try to
fit in or are they happy as they are? As they discuss their
backgrounds these common themes come out.
One by one we meet the twelve subjects of this film and find out
about their past, their insights into their condition, the way they
have been treated by others, etc. There are many commonalities in
their past. Autistic children tend to be bullied by other
children. Bullies recognize that the autistic children are
different and somehow feel that these odd children do not belong in
the community or are easy marks.
The film spends much of its time profiling Robyn Steward who had
been a close friend of the director. They each had collaborated on
the other's work. Robyn is a fast talking artist and musician who
often writes about her experiences.
Twelve subjects in all give a composite picture of the situation
for the autistic adult fitting into society. The film is short,
just over an hour, but it opens up to the world a subculture to
which few people have given much thought. I rate TOO SANE FOR THIS
WORLD a +1 on the -4 to +4 scale or 6/10. It will be released on
DVD on April 8 and will be On Demand for Amazon Instant, Hulu, and
Cinema Libre on May 8.
Film Credits: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2081405/combined
[-mrl]
==================================================================
TOPIC: Numbers of Things (letters of comment by Neil Ostrove and
Peter Rubinstein)
In response to Mark's comments on the numbers of things in the
03/28/14 issue of the MT VOID, Neil Ostrove writes:
Thanks. I had tried to punt that by using "binary fraction
representations" rather than numbers but I did slip in the first
paragraph. Note that the "equal" numbers map to distinct elements
of the powerset. The "number" of such dual representation numbers
is countable (as they are all rational) so they do not affect the
cardinality of binary fraction representations. [-no]
Mark replies:
I admit what I brought up was a little niggling. You were giving
the idea of the proof. I have to say that dealing with levels of
infinity stretches the mind like good science fiction does. I
find that interest in mathematics seems to correlate with being a
science fiction fan. [-mrl]
And Peter Rubinstein asks:
[You said,] "This is because some numbers have two different
decimal expressions. .1000... is the same number as .0111..."
Don't you mean .0999... ? [-pr]
Mark responds:
I should have used the word "binary" not "decimal". I believe in
this example the person I was responding to had been working in
binary. You hear people refer to the fractional part as "the
decimal" even when they are working in binary. I have never heard
the fractional part called "the binary," but that is what it is.
[-mrl]
==================================================================
TOPIC: Ealing Comedies (letter of comment by Kevin Robinson)
In response to Mark's comments on the Ealing comedies in his
article on Turner Classic Movies in the 03/28/14 issue of the MT
VOID, Kevin Robinson writes:
Don't forget the wonderful PASSPORT TO PIMLICO:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0041737/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
I love Ealing comedies. [-kr]
==================================================================
TOPIC: This Week's Reading (book comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
DIMENSION OF MIRACLES by Robert Sheckley (no ISBN, available in
DIMENSIONS OF SHECKLEY, ISBN 978-1-8867-7829-0) was this month's
discussion book. A summary (to give my comments context) with
comments follows:
Part I: The Departure from Earth
Chapter 1: Tom Carmody is a schlub who suddenly has a being
materialize in his apartment and tell him he has just won the
Intergalactic Sweepstakes. (When this book was written in 1968,
the only sweepstakes anyone had ever heard of was the Irish
Sweepstakes, so is it coincidence that the initial trumpet music to
announce the messenger is replaced by a "skirling of bagpipes", as
if that is the only way Carmody could relate to it?) Carmody is
transported to the Galactic Center to claim his price.
Chapter 2: The architecture here is "Neo-Cyclopean" (an allusion to
Lovecraft?) and based on the rectangle, which it turns out the
Messenger invented. Carmody is delivered to the Office of the
Sweepstakes.
Chapter 3: Or at least he is after he is accidently sent to the
Office of Petty Crime, with which it has been combined. As soon as
he finishes the paperwork and claims his prize, though, Karmod (for
whom the prize *was* intended) shows up.
Chapter 4: The Computer explains that since a perfect machine would
be impossible and immoral, he must spontaneously create errors.
(This reminds me of the rug-weavers who always put some mistake or
imperfection in their rugs to avoid challenging the perfection of
God. It is also similar to the rule (or perhaps just custom or
tradition) that someone who is converting to Judaism, but has not
completed the process, must break each Sabbath at least once until
the conversion is complete.) The Computer convinces Karmod to
renounce his claim.
Part II: Where Is Earth?
Chapter 5: Now Carmody wants to go home. But because he comes from
a backward, primitive planet (which up until now did not even know
about interstellar travel), he does not know Earth's coordinates
(where, when, and which). The coordinates the Messenger used are
useless, because Earth has moved considerably in the interim.
(This is usually just ignored in teleportation and interstellar
travel stories.)
Chapter 6: So they take him to Lursis, planet of Melichrone, and
the Prize (which appears to be sentient and talkative, explains
that Carmody needs to get help from Melichrone. After giving
Carmody a couple of cryptic warnings, the Prize vanishes.
Chapter 7: Melichrone turns out to be God (or perhaps just a god,
though one with all the characteristics of God). But now he is
bored because, as he says, "I am doubtless as vain as the next God;
but the endless fulsome praise finally bored me to distraction.
Why in God's name should a God be praised if he is only performing
his Godly function? You might as well praise an ant for doing his
blind antly duties." So Melichrone wants Carmody to explain what
his function should be.
Chapter 8: Carmody tells Melichrone that he has to find within
himself "an indwelling functionalism which will have reference to
an exterior reality," even though he tells Melichrone, "you
yourself are reality and therefore cannot posit yourself exterior
to reality." He elaborates on this well enough to convince
Melichrone to help him.
Chapter 9: Melichrone explains the Law of Predation to Carmody, and
then sends him to Maudsley for help.
Chapter 10: The Prize takes a break to turn into a cauldron in
order to eat some orithi, which he says are like giant mushrooms,
delicious poached in their own juices, and oh, by the way, they are
also very good poets. There is some discussion of how everyone has
a somewhat solipsistic view of alien races, never thinking of them
needing food, rest, exercise, bowel movements, and so on, but more
as "solid all through and bowelless." The Prize tells Carmody to
"be sure to get [Maudsley's] his attention and impress him with
your humanity--and then Maudsley shows up and Carmody fails at
both.
Chapter 11: Maudsley berates his assistents on the poor job they
have done constructing the planet they are all on, mostly because
of their extravagance in materials. This reminds me of parts of
"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe", where Slartibartfast talks
about the "little fiddly bits" that are the Norwegian fjords.
Carmody finally gets his attention.
Chapter 12: Maudsley relates his invention of science, which sounds
less like science and more like gobbledygook (especially the part
about entropy).
Chapter 13: Maudsley describes his building of Earth for God, and
then he and Carmody have a discussion of free will. The closing
lines ("Why should I go to a place [any church] that a God would
not enter?") sound like Groucho Marx's comment that he would not
join any club that would have him as a member.
Chapter 14: Carmody tours an atom-making factory, but feels the way
he does in a museum: it's impressive for about five minutes, but
then it just gets repetitive and boring. Later he sees a forest
being constructed and it in discovers two Earth people who have
apparently come to rescue him, but talk like people out of a low-
budget 1950s science-fiction movie.
Chapter 15: There is more 1950s-style dialogue, including a
description of one character who ancestors all were irradiated.
(Actually, Sheckley seems to make a slip here. Aelill Maddoxe
(described as Maddox's great-grandfather) worked in a coal mine
right next to rich uranium deposits until 1739. In 1801 Thomas
Madoxxe was one of the two survivors of the strike of a radioactive
meteorite on his ranch. Ernest Maddox (described as Maddox's
grandfather) demonstrated an X-ray machine twice weekly for ten
years in the 1930s. Ernest's son went to Japan and became a Zen
monk living eight miles from the Hiroshima epicenter. Overlooking
the extremely long time spans for the first two generational gaps
(61 years and 120 years), it is not clear how Thomas fits between a
great-grandfather and a grandfather. All this distracts Carmody
for a while, but suddenly he realizes that what he has been seeing
has been an illusion, e.g. "[He] saw that Aviva's lovely eyes were
stylized and suggestive rather than functional--like the design of
eyes on the wings of a moth." The description of the
transformation that Carmody sees--from illusion to reality--makes
it very easy to visualize. As Carmody is about to be eaten by the
Predator, he loses consciousness ...
Chapter 16: ... and wakes up to discover that the Prize has gotten
a doctor, who first goes through a discussion of medical ethics,
which he admits is irrelevant to Carmody's condition, but hopes
might help justify his high fees. He then describes what he plans
to do to cure Carmody, which involves completely dissecting him
into his constituent parts and then re-assembling him. At this
point, Carmody screams, "No operation!" and the doctor observes
that the verbal description of the operating procedure is often
enough to cure the patient.
Chapter 17: After a long discussion of predators, and of eating and
being eaten, Maudsley says he can send Carmody to Earth, but only
the correct spatial coordinates ("Where"); the "When" and "Which"
will still need to be addressed.
Part III: When Is Earth?
Chapter 18: Carmody and the Prize land in a swamp. The prize
figures out which geologic eon, era, and period they are (Late
Cretaceous) in by observing the flora and fauna. This fits in so
perfectly with the last Teaching Company lecture we listened to
(one which described the geologic time scale in "Major Transitions
in Evolution") that it cannot be pure coincidence; there must be an
intelligence behind it all. (That's a joke, folks.) Anyway,
Sheckley has the Prize mention the brontosaurus. But what was
originally dubbed a Brontosaurus was an Apatosaurus skeleton with a
Camarasaurus head. The current status of the word "Brontosaurus"
is somewhere being considered a synonym for Apatosaurus, and being
just plain wrong. (Sheckley also writes it in lower-case, when
technically it should be capitalized.) Just as the Prize finishes
his determination of when they are, a Tyrannosaurus heads for them.
Chapter 19: It turns out the Tyrannosaurus can talk (English,
presumably, though that makes even less sense than just talking),
and wonders what they are. It talks about the various species it
has met. Now, Tyrannosaurus was from the Late Cretaceous (75-66
MYA), as was Stutiomimus and Scolosaurus, but dimetrodons were from
the Early Permian (295-272 MYA), so his meeting with a dimetrodon
seems like another error. The Tyrannosaur (a juvenile named Emie)
takes them to "Dinosaurville".
Chapter 20: Carmody has a difficult time answering the dinosaurs'
questions about their role in the future, resorting to such
ambiguities as "everybody likes a dinosaur" and that the dinosaurs
are "doing every bit as well as could be expected." Then Borg
(Emie's father) explains that the only other intelligent species on
the planet, besides Tyrannosaurus, are the Hadrosaurs. But he goes
on to say:
"They're lazy. Also sullen and surly. I know what I'm talking
about: I've employed hadrosaurs as servants. They have no
ambition, no drive, no stick-to-it-iveness. Half the time they
don't know who hatched them, and they don't seem to care. They
don't look you forthrightly in the eye when they speak to you. ...
They [do] sing well. Some of our best entertainers are hadrosaurs.
They also do well at heavy construction, if given supervision.
Their appearance works against them, of course, that duckbilled
look."
And when he hears that the hadrosaurs are extinct in the future,
his response is, "Perhaps it's best that way. Yes, I really think
it's best."
Sheckley is not exactly subtle here.
Then someone from the Bureau of Internal Revenue shows up and
insists Carmody accompany him. But Carmody recognizes him as the
Predator again, and refuses to go.
Chapter 21: Carmody finds himself in the Galactic Placement Bureau,
where he gets yet more advice. For example:
- "[The] better and more informed the search, the more fraught
it is with dangers,"
- "Everything that helps you does so openly. Everything that
seeks to harm you does so covertly, by the use of delusions,
disguises, and dreams."
- "Predation is a necessary circumstance. Even the Gods are
eventually eaten by Fate."
Then Carmody is sent off to Earth, or rather to an Earth. If it is
not the right Earth, he just needs to ask to skip to the next one,
and so on, until he finds his own. This sounds like the seven
wishes in the film BEDAZZLED (at least in the 1967 version):
Stanley Moon wishes for a particular scenario (e.g., he is a pop
star) and George Spigot (the Devil) whisks him into it. If Stanley
becomes dissatisfied with it, he just has to blow a raspberry and
George whisks him out again, and Stanley can make a new wish.
Chapter 22: Carmody finds himself in a city that is a combination
of many different architectural styles, with "an Italian piazza, a
couple Greek-type statues, a row of Tudor houses, an old-style New
York tenement, a California hot dog stand shaped like a tugboat,
and God knows what else." (Also a Gay Nineties saloon and a Gothic
cathedral.) This immediately reminded me of Thomas Cole's painting
in the Toledo Museum, "The Architect's Dream"--except I think Cole
intended the juxtaposition to be a good thing, while here (and
frankly in the painting as well) it just seems jarring and garish.
Chapter 23: The city also has a voice and talks to Carmody and,
just as the description of the hadrosaurs has a fairly obvious
stereotypical origin, so does the city. Eventually Carmody "blows
his raspberry."
Chapter 24: Carmody ends up in a fairly familiar-looking New York,
but when he enters the subway, he realizes that it is really just
the disguised mouth of the Predator and escapes just in time.
Chapter 25: Here Carmody finds himself in what I think of as
"Advertworld"--everyone talks in advertising slogans and uses brand
names whenever possible. DIMENSION OF MIRACLES was written in
1968. Frederik Pohl's THE SPACE MERCHANTS was written in 1952, and
"The Midas Plague" in 1954, so it is not inconceivable that
Sheckley was familiar with those two works. (Actually, I would say
it was inconceivable that he was *not* familiar with them.) Hence
his "Advertworld" probably drew on them for inspiration.
(Conversely, though, Douglas Adams has said that he never read
DIMENSION OF MIRACLES before he wrote the "Hitchhikers Guide to the
Universe" series in the 1970s.) It also reminds me of THE TRUMAN
SHOW, where everyone inserts commercials into their conversation
because while they all know they are on television, Truman does no-
-hence they cannot just cut to a commercial. (Television shows
used to do this back in the beginning, e.g. Maxwell House was
plugged in dialogue "The Goldbergs", "Mama", and "Father Knows
Best". Later, product placement switched to relying primarily on
merely being visibly present in a scene.)
Chapter 26: Carmody jumps to another Earth, but before we find out
what this one is, he and the Prize have a discussion about the
Prize's eating habits. The Prize claims that his principal diet is
himself. Carmody tries to explain this violates some physical law
of conservation but eventually gives up.
Chapter 27: The Prize's greeting of "How now, voyager?" at the
beginning of the previous chapter was not accidental--on this
Earth, Maplewood, New Jersey, is really a movie set as reality.
Lana Turner is sipping a soda in a luncheonette (a nod to how she
was "discovered" when she was drinking a Coke at the Top Hat Malt
Shop), Clifton Webb is the high school principal, Burt Lancaster
was the high school's most famous fullback, and so on. But Carmody
does not realize there is anything odd about this until the Prize
pointed out that their was symphonic music being played that was
not coming from anywhere. So Carmody jumps again.
Part V: The Return to Earth
Chapter 28: Carmody finds himself on an Earth of war,
commercialism, and bizarre pop art. He leaves, and then admits to
the Prize that it had been his own Earth, but he did not want to
stay there. "I have simply given up a longevity which I never
possessed anyhow," he says. "I have turned away from the con game
which the Gods run in their heavenly sideshow. I no longer care
under which shell the pea of immortality might be found. I don't
need it. I have my moment, which is quite enough."
[-ecl]
==================================================================
Mark Leeper
mleeper@optonline.net
Let us be grateful to the mirror for revealing
to us our appearance only.
--Samuel Butler