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Krel Guest
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Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2021 2:01 pm Post subject: |
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Round 2/MPC is releasing a model kit set of the LASER pistol and Comlock. The LASER pistol can be made three ways. The stun gun with no selector switch, or the LASER pistol with the stun/kill switch. The kit will include both types of selector switch. The kits will be hollow for those that wish to include electronics.
David. |
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Pow Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 27 Sep 2014 Posts: 3439 Location: New York
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Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2022 2:41 pm Post subject: |
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Moonbase Alpha Technical Operations Manual.
Writers: Chris Thompson & Andrew Clements.
Illustrations: Chris Thompson.
The Comlock is the primary IDX device used on Moonbase Alpha and other off-world installations. It will serve as your pass key, communicator, log recorder and personal organizer, all rolled into one device that fits on your belt.
Upon arrival, your comlock will be programmed with a unique key tone which will allow you to open certain doors and access areas of the base equivalent to your clearance level.
To open doors simply point the sensor end of the comlock at the door panel you wish to open and press the door key. Doing this when visiting another crew member's quarters will automatically call the occupant.
Command-level comlocks have full unrestricted access to the base.
Off-Base. While on excursions away from base, your comlock will automatically sync with the X5 computer on your Eagle or Surface Explorer vehicle. This will use the communications array on the vehicle to greatly increase the range of the device and allow direct communication with Main Mission and nearby surface structures.
Other Functions. The comlock can be used as your personal access to Main Computer, allowing you to send or receive data between terminals or display data readouts directly to your comlock's screen.
In a similar way it can be used to display data from many of the handheld sensors.
A typical power cell can last up to four days. It is recommended that you plug your comlock into its Main Computer interface terminal for recharging and database updating during your sleep cycle.
During your stay on Alpha, your comlock will be required to be on your person at all times.
Sidebar: As I've noted previously, the comlock was a terrifically designed piece of hardware. It was, in a sense, the Alphan's tricorder in one of its many purposes.
My only critique would that the screen was too small, a similar critique for Star Trek's tricorder.
There's no mention that it also could serve as an emergency beacon at all. Shouldn't it have that kind of function?
Anyone else have any other ideas regarding what functions the comlock should have if the concept was updated? |
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Pow Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 27 Sep 2014 Posts: 3439 Location: New York
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Posted: Wed Mar 23, 2022 2:52 pm Post subject: |
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Moonbase Alpha Technical Operations Manual
Stun Guns: By design, Moonbase Alpha is a civilian installation and while certain heavy weapons are tested and developed on-site, it was deemed necessary that the base's primary means of defense should follow the core values on which Alpha was based.
The stun gun is a discreet personal protection weapon which in many ways serves equally as a tool as well as a firearm.
The stun gun is a medium-powered laser which allows it to be used safely within the confines of a pressurized spacecraft or structure.
Its four separate firing points mean that it can provide solutions for many unforeseen situations that may arise when exploring the Solar System.
Emitter 1: The standard laser discharge point. This emitter prioritizes power and range to make the stun gun an effective energy weapon.
This setting fires a bolt of energy which temporarily overwhelms the targets nervous system causing immediate unconsciousness.
Less than a second of contact is required to incapacitate a target, with prolonged exposure causing damage to the nervous system, and eventually death.
The color of the beam can vary in intensity depending on the power and dispersion; low-powered energy beams often have an orange hue, while higher powered beams have a bluer color.
Emitter 2: A highly concentrated micron-thick cutting beam used for precision cutting.
Emitter 3: A wider, more powerful beam that can be used to cut through larger obstacles like a blowtorch.
Emitter 4: An extremely short-range beam with a wide effective area, used for cutting through more substantial obstacles or on a low setting, can act as a wide dispersion stunning agent.
Connected Beams: In dire situations, it is possible to activate all four beams simultaneously. This should be considered only as a last resort as it will most likely drain the cell and potentially overload the weapon.
For this reason this feature does not come as standard and requires the weapon to be internally modified.
Sidebar: The stun gun was never as sharply designed as the Star Trek:TOS phaser. Yet, I did admire it and give the prop designers kudos for attempting to create a different looking kind of ray gun for the series.
The fact that it could also be utilized as multiple tools was impressive as well as practical. |
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mach7 Quantum Engineer
Joined: 23 Apr 2015 Posts: 349
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Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2022 8:02 pm Post subject: |
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September 13, 2022
23 years since we lost the Moon. |
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Bud Brewster Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013 Posts: 17160 Location: North Carolina
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Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2022 8:24 pm Post subject: |
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__________________________________________________
Let us proclaim this National Moon Day!
Go out, my brothers, and remind our nation of this momentous occasion. I urge all loyal Americans to "moon" your fell citizens whereever you go! _________________ ____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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ralfy Mission Specialist
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Joined: 23 Sep 2014 Posts: 488
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Bud Brewster Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013 Posts: 17160 Location: North Carolina
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Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2022 1:31 pm Post subject: |
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ralfy wrote: | Sorry, I forgot how to embed videos! Feel free to edit this. |
Glad to help, Ralfy! Great post. ![Cool](images/smiles/icon_cool.gif) _________________ ____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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Pow Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 27 Sep 2014 Posts: 3439 Location: New York
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2023 5:17 pm Post subject: |
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For fun & giggles, how about some excepts from Cleveland Amory's February 1976 TV Guide review for Space: 1999?
"In the first episode there was practically no dialogue for quite awhile, which, in view of what was to come, was a terrific idea."
" 'We're sitting on the biggest bomb ever made!' shouts Martin Landau as Commander Koenig in one scene. In a show like this, that's one line they should have avoided at any price."
"The special effects are good, but the actors are awful, even Martin Landau (Mission: Impossible), Barbara Bain (Mission: Impossible), and Barry Morse (The Fugitive). Bain's part is the zombiest."
Sidebar: Amory was a big fan of Mission: Impossible & the Landaus when they were on the first 3 seasons of the series.
"In one episode we see the Moonbase Alpha survivors discover the planet Ultima Thule where they encounter a previous expedition by humans. These people had been stuck there for 800 years, and frankly, they too were fed up with television not getting any better."
Sidebar: Gotta agree with cranky Cleveland on his review here. I think the special effects and production values for the series deserved a better rating by him then "good." I think they were superlative. The sets and so forth looked like they were out of a feature film. The show was one of the most expensive series ever produced in the U.K. up until that time. There were few American science fiction TV shows that looked as splendid or had such a lavish budget back then.
However, as always, it all comes down to the scripting as to the overall quality of any TV show, and Space: 1999 just didn't have it in its two seasons. |
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Bud Brewster Galactic Fleet Admiral (site admin)
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013 Posts: 17160 Location: North Carolina
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:47 pm Post subject: |
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__________________________________________________
Yep, this is another example of how hard it is to work in Hollywood —the Ego Capitol of the world. ![Rolling Eyes](images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif) _________________ ____________
Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958) |
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Gord Green Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 06 Oct 2014 Posts: 2948 Location: Buffalo, NY
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Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2023 2:51 pm Post subject: |
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EXCLUSIVE:
Actress Barbara Bain, star of the British sci-fi series Space: 1999, is preparing to board an upcoming documentary about the Eagle, the famed spacecraft at the heart of the show that ran from 1975-1977.
Bain will appear in The Eagle Has Landed alongside several other notable figures: Apollo XVI astronaut Charles Duke Jr., Academy Award-winning visual effects artist Bill George (Blade Runner, Star Trek), and Brian Johnson, the VFX artist on Space: 1999 whose work is said to have influenced Star Wars. The film is being directed and produced by Jeffrey Morris, who also hosts the documentary.
The Eagle Has Landed “explores the cross-generational impact of the iconic vessel” in the series that also starred Martin Landau. According to a press release, the film “showcases never-before-seen archival footage” and will be released in time for the 50th anniversary of Space: 1999’s debut, in 2025.
“Space: 1999 appeared on TV a few short years after the world watched Neil Armstrong take the first steps on the moon,” Morris noted in a statement. “The show’s unforgettable Eagle inspired a generation to envision a future in space and is still doing so decades later.
The question we explore is ‘why?’ What is it about this imaginary craft that has captured and held imaginations for nearly 50 years?
Morris’s FutureDude Entertainment is producing the documentary in partnership with Zero Point Zero Production Inc. Marie Gillen is a producer on the project, along with Morris. The film is written by Morris and Fredrick Haugen. Morris is represented by Espada Entertainment.
Space: 1999 ran for a total of 48 episodes, with Bain and Landau in all of them as, respectively, Dr. Helena Russell and Commander John Koenig (the actors were married to each other at the time; they had previously co-starred together in Mission: Impossible).
The show revolved around the denizens of Moonbase Alpha, scientific researchers living on the moon whose existence was threatened by a nuclear explosion, which rocketed the moon out of Earth’s orbit. Ian McShane, Joan Collins, and Leo McKern appeared in single episodes.
Best of Deadline
On Yahoo...
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/space-1999-star-barbara-bain-160000820.html
_________________ There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child. |
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orzel-w Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 19 Sep 2014 Posts: 1876
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Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2023 3:18 pm Post subject: |
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Gord Green wrote: | "What is it about this imaginary craft that has captured and held imaginations for nearly 50 years?" |
I'll have to be sure and watch this. That's a question I've been pondering ever since the series was running. ![Confused](images/smiles/icon_confused.gif) _________________ ...or not...
WayneO
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Gord Green Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 06 Oct 2014 Posts: 2948 Location: Buffalo, NY
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Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2023 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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I think the modular design of the Eagle was interesting, but I think its' sister craft the Hawk was an even better design. _________________ There comes a time, thief, when gold loses its lustre, and the gems cease to sparkle, and the throne room becomes a prison; and all that is left is a father's love for his child. |
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Pow Galactic Ambassador
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Joined: 27 Sep 2014 Posts: 3439 Location: New York
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Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2024 4:48 pm Post subject: |
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Catherine Schell said in an interview that she and Barbara Bain had a "very civilized relationship" on the series.
However, she also mentions that there were a few items in Bain's contract which she was told about. At no time could Catherine ever appear as herself, she was always to be in her Maya makeup. There was a script where Maya morphs into a human that would have been Catherine without her alien makeup. She said that scene was deleted.
On the second season, the episodes always ended with a freeze frame of various cast members of the show. Never Catherine as her Maya character.
Sylvia Anderson did not think that Martin Landau or Barbara Bain were right for the lead characters at all. She felt that while Martin was a very fine actor, he was not a leading man. The Andersons were forced to take the Landaus due to US investments in Space: 1999. They found Martin wanted his Commander John Koenig character to be front & center in everything, pushing supporting cast members into the background. Martin could be very jealous & competitive regarding getting the best dialogue and scenes. If another actor on the series had a good scene with good dialogue, Landau would pitch a fit and demand that it become his scene.
I was surprised to hear about this regarding the Landaus. According to Patrick J. White's excellent & in-depth book about the making of Mission: Impossible, Martin & Barbara were very well liked & respected by the cast and crew of that espionage series. On Space: 1999 they seem to have become petty and tyrannical actors. Sad to say.
I've read that the general attitude with British actors is that of a sports team. Everyone is in the production together and that it's a true group effort. They are all supportive of one another, be it the cast or crew.
Unfortunately, they are wary whenever American actors come into a British productions. They find that many U.S. actors (but not all) are quite egotistical & want to hog the spotlight. Very much a me, myself and I attitude among American actors. One person said that there are two kinds of performers in stage, film and television. Those who ask how they can best serve the script, and those who ask how does the script serve me? |
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Maurice Mission Specialist
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Joined: 14 Dec 2013 Posts: 485 Location: 3rd Rock
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Posted: Sat Apr 13, 2024 7:44 pm Post subject: |
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Only series one aired where I grew up. I've seen only a couple three episodes of series two since.
Shout! Factory ran a Space: 1999 marathon on YouTube last week and I watched a few of the first series episodes back to back. I was reminded that a big problem with the show was that so many things happened to the Alphans, and they were often just reacting instead of taking action. In short, too often they were passive and didn't propel the stories. They were also weirdly incurious about things sometimes, waiting around for things to play out instead of actively searching for causes and solutions.
Landau and Bain were so not right for the lead roles. Sylvia Anderson wanted Robert Culp for the commander:
Quote: | "We were interviewing lots of actors to play the leads when we got a call from Lew Grade saying we really needed someone that was very well known, like Mission: Impossible people. I wanted Robert Culp. We met him. He was quite outrageous, but he would have given the series a very interesting angle, He would not have been the stereotyped hero; he would have been scared at tines, he would have made the wrong decisions. But we had to cast Barbara Bain and Martin Landau, whom I freely admit I did not want. I battled very hard and stood up to Lew Grade and said "1 don't think they're right. They were okay in <garbled text> but having seen then, I don't think we're going to get what we should get. But he said that they were very popular in Mission: Impossible, and that they were a good commercial bet, and that was that."
—The Catacombs Catacombs Reference Library
Sylvia Anderson Living in the future
Time Screen 18 (1992), p15-19. Extract of an interview with Steven Turner. |
_________________ * * *
"The absence of limitations is the enemy of art."
― Orson Welles |
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mach7 Quantum Engineer
Joined: 23 Apr 2015 Posts: 349
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Posted: Sat Apr 13, 2024 8:07 pm Post subject: |
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I agree that Landau and Bain were not correct for the show.
Landau was an excellent supporting player, but was not convincing as the Alpha's commander.
And Bain was just too flat, painfully so.
These might be controversial choices, Burt Reynolds and Diane Keaton would be good choices. |
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