Friday, May 22, 2020

Episode 51: Well, Isn't that Special - Effects

our guest Webster Colcord with "friends" at Tippett Studios
All of the amazing fantasy and science fiction films that we love, with their spaceships and ray guns, monsters and aliens, couldn't exist without the talents and hard work of special effects artists. For this episode, the Planet 8 crew is joined by special effects artist and animator Webster Colcord! Webster is an industry veteran, getting his start at the Vinton Studios, doing claymation on the California Raisins. He has gone on to work on a wide range of projects, including James and the Giant Peach, Deadpool, Ted, Superman Returns, The Host, and many other genre films. Webster currently works with legendary effects artist Phil Tippett at Tippett Studios. 


We'll talk with Webster about his career, and learn about what it was like to do claymation, hear about the early days of CG effects, the beginnings of Pixar, and more! We had a lot of fun just talking with Webster and getting a lot of behind the scenes stories about different films and how some amazing effects were done -and what went wrong with a few movies! (We're looking at you Scorpion King...)



If you've ever wondered about how some of the special effects you've seen in films were made, or what it's like working in the special effects field, this is the episode for you!


For this episode, Recon Officer Karen has the Sensor Sweep and looks at a new book from author Marc Cushman. It's a continuation of his excellent These are The Voyages series, the first three volumes of which covered the first three seasons of the original Star Trek. This volume, entitled These are the Voyages: Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek in the 1970s  Volume 1 (1970 -1975). Cushman covers the years between the end of the original series up through the animated series (but prior to the first film). It includes info on the sci-fi TV films Roddenberry made, like Questor Tapes and Genesis II as well. One big surprise -Roddenberry was working on the script for a Tarzan film which never materialized! If you're a Star Trek buff, you'll want this book.

That's all for this go-round. We hope you enjoyed our look at special effects with our friend Webster. As always, we want to hear your thoughts. Leave them below in the comments, or hit us up in our social media spots:
Thanks for listening!


Friday, May 8, 2020

Episode 50: Giant-Sized Spider-Man 50th Episode Spectacular!


It's our big 50th episode, and have we got a show for you! This one is a Giant-Sized fun-filled tribute to one of our favorite heroes, the amazing, spectacular Spider-Man! The web-slinger has been around now for over six decades and is one of the most popular characters on the planet. Why does everyone (except J. Jonah Jameson) love Spider-Man? The Planet 8 crew, plus a couple of special guests, will explore Spider-Man through comics, TV, and film incarnations, celebrating what makes him so special compared to all the other costumed crusaders.



If you want to hear about Spidey's origins, our favorite artists, Spidey's rogues gallery, the Spider-buggy, Japanese Spider-Man, and so much more, you're in the right place!

Amazing animator Tim Eldred!
Did I mention special guests? That's right, we have two for this 50th episode spectacular! Looking at Spidey in the world of animation, artist/animator/director Tim Eldred, who has worked on five different Spider-Man animated shows, shares his thoughts and experiences. Tim's segment begins at 51:24  minutes into the episode. You can check out Tim's multimedia science fiction graphic novel Pitsberg at  Pitsberg.com, and also take a look at Greasemonkeybook.com.

The spectacular spider-writer, Gerry Conway!
Taking the place of our usual Sensor Sweep, we have a special treat: comics legend Gerry Conway! Gerry has written tons of comics, both at Marvel and DC, including Fantastic Four, Thor, Justice League, Batman, and created characters like the Punisher, Firestorm, Steel, Vixen, and many others. But he may be best known as the man who killed Spider-Man's girlfriend, Gwen Stacy! Gerry had a renowned run of Amazing Spider-Man, taking over the scripting reins from Stan Lee. It was a real thrill to have a conversation with Gerry about comics and Spider-Man in particular. The conversation begins at 2 hours and 10 minutes into the show (we saved the best for last).



Finally, thanks to all of you who have listened to and supported this happy little show for the last two years! We are having a blast putting it together twice a month, and hope to continue it for a long time. It wouldn't be nearly so much fun without hearing from you. Your comments here, and on Twitter and Facebook, have really taken this from three friends just goofing off to a whole community of like-minded friends. It's been especially important to us during these current difficult days. We hope all of you are doing well, and that our show can take your mind off things and entertain you, however briefly.

That's it, this big ol' beast is done! As always, we want to hear from you! Leave your comments here on the blog, or send them swinging our way at our other hangouts:

Thanks for listening!