Ah, the 70s...it was a time of contradictions, mixing the free love of the 60s with the pessimism from Viet Nam and Watergate. A number of dystopian sci-fi films came out of the decade, and one of our favorites was Logan's Run, an MGM movie from 1976. Starring Michael York and Jenny Agutter, the movie takes place in the 23rd century, where everyone lives in domes and all their needs are provided for, and they lead lives of complete pleasure and decadence. The catch is, everyone has to die at the age of 30 to maintain the balance. To enforce this balance, there are officers known as Sandmen, who hunt down any citizens who try to live past 30 -they are known as "runners." The main character, Logan, is one of these Sandmen. He winds up becoming a runner himself, and discovers what lies outside the dome.
It might seem a little cheesy today, but your Planet 8 crew loves Logan's Run! Please join us as we explore not only this classic sci fi film, but what was going on in the world at the time that influenced it - ecological disaster, overpopulation, and energy crises. In some ways, Logan's Run was one of the last science fiction films that actually dealt with real issues - before the juggernaut of Star Wars and its imitators showed up the next year, ushering in the era of sci fi shoot 'em ups.
Of course, we have to discuss Box, one of Commander Larry's favorite characters in all of science fiction! "Fish! Plankton! Seagreens! Protein from the sea!" Box so inspired Larry that this podcast was almost called "Plankton from the Sea" instead of Planet 8! Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed.
And we'll pay tribute to Michael York and Jenny Agutter, who seems to have earned a place in many a fan's heart from her role as Jessica. And who can forget that Farrah Fawcett also had a small role in the film?
Karen actually went back and re-read the 1967 novel that the film was based on, and so we'll look at the differences between the film and the book. If you thought dying at 30 was bad, try kicking off at 21!
Beyond the film, we'll also look at the peripheral material - the very short-lived TV show and the Marvel comics adaptation. And -what is the connection between Logan's Run and Thanos? Tune in and find out!
For our Sensor Sweep, Karen shares her original 1976 edition of the Logan's Run novel that was issued as a tie-in with the film, complete with photos from the movie. This was something that was done a lot back in the 70s - another great example of this was the original Star Wars adaptation. Before the internet, this was one of the best ways to see high quality pictures from a film!
So where are you at with your life clock? Are you going to try to renew on Carousel, or will you run? Tell us your plans here, or find us at our other locations:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Planet8Cast
- Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Planet8Podcast
Thanks for Listening!
