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Index to our previous shows
Shows from April, 2002
Shows from March, 2002
Shows from February, 2002
Shows from January, 2002
Shows from December, 2001
Shows from November, 2001
Shows from October, 2001
Shows from September, 2001
Shows from August, 2001
Shows from July, 2001
Shows from June, 2001
May 25, 2001 - Joe Haldeman and John Lester
May 18, 2001 - Connie Willis
May 11, 2001 - Tad Williams
May 4, 2001 - Tananarive Due
Shows from April, 2001
Shows from March, 2001
Shows from February, 2001
Shows from January, 2001
Shows from November - December, 2000
Shows from September - October, 2000
Shows from July - August, 2000
Please note : At the end of June major changes were made to the "Previous Shows" pages. This may have caused a problem if you had previously bookmarked one of those modified pages. If you are looking for a specific interview and can't find it on this page, then please check the Audio Index Page where you will be able to find links to all of the shows sorted by show date and interview guest.
Joe Haldeman and John Lester
On Friday - May 25, 2001 - we had two guests; author Joe Haldeman and John Lester - the proprietor of the Starship Modeler web site. We talked with Joe about his books, writing and how his experiences in Vietnam influenced his life. And we be chatted with John about science fiction modeling and the 2001: The Future That Should Have Been contest that he's running at his web site.
Joe Haldeman's first story appeared in 1969 but it was three years later when the first part of The Forever War appeared in Analog that he exploded into the consciousness of the SF world. Here was a war story that portrayed soldiers as people trapped in a situation they hadn't created, not as heroes out to conquer the galaxy. And adding to their frustration, and even horror, is that the longer the war goes on the more the soldiers are separated from their society by relativistic time dilation. Eventually the soldiers come to realize that as much as they hate the Army, its the only semblance of 'normal life' left to them.
You cannot underestimate the importance of
The Forever War. Here was a science fiction novel with a realistic background and believable multi-faceted characters where the story depended on science for creating and resolving its conflicts. This was one of the first novels to combine the scientific world view of classic SF with the artistic sentiments put forward by the New Wave. But unlike so much New Wave SF this was an actual story not just artistic word play.
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Cover copyright ©1974 by Ballantine Books
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Covers copyright ©1997-2000 by Ace Books
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Like many people in science fiction, Joe Haldeman started out planning on a career in science and thought he might do 'a bit of writing on the side for beer money'. But that changed during the 60's when Joe was drafted during a window of misopportunity when he didn't have a student deferment. His experiences in Vietnam and back in the states once he got home, changed the course of his life. The sales of his first stories and the rapid acceptance of his first novel convinced him that he could be a full time writer. So he dropped out of graduate school and never looked back. The world of SF is a richer place for his making that choice as his stories have a richness and realism that is seldom matched.
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Picture copyright ©2001 by Suzanne Gibson
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| The 'net has created a whole new venue for people to share their interests. The economy and broad distribution of web based publications is hard to beat. We are seeing an explosion of web sites dedicated to all sorts of special interests. Fortunately for people like me, a number of them encompass my interests. |
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Picture copyright ©2001 by Linda Lester
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One of my favorite web sites is Starship Modeler created by John Lester. Here is a web site devoted to the hobby of making models of science fiction subjects. And more than that, the emphasis of his site is on making models of spaceships, as opposed to models of monsters and related subjects. John Lester joins us tonight to talk about his site and science fiction modeling.
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Listen to the show
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- Click here to listen to the entire show. {2:12:56}
or
- Click here for the show's introduction.{0:41}
- Click here for the show's opening and news.{13:40}
- Click here for the Joe Haldeman interview. {1:06:45}
- Click here for my comments about Joe's new book The Coming. {7:46}
- Click here for the John Lester interview. {42:09}
- Click here for the show's closing.{1:55}
or
- Click here to listen our previous interview with Phil Lublin of Lunar Models.
- Click here for an index of all Shows on our site.
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Links for more information relating to this show
Joe Haldeman
You can find out more about Joe Haldeman by going to his web site - be sure not to miss his Autobiographical Ramble, it's a great look at how he works - and you can find a complete bibliography of his writing here.
You can read a good over view of Joe's writing in an article by Henry Jenkins found here and find additional essays by the same author at this site.
Some interesting thoughts about writing can be found in Joe's Counsel to an Aspiring Writer.
To discover more about Joe Haldeman and his writing you can read this Locus interview or this interview from Albedo One.
If you'd like to meet Joe Haldeman in person, then check out our Authors on Tour page where you will find some information about conventions and writing workshops that Joe will be attending.
Science Fiction Modeling
John Lester's Starship Modeler web site is one of my favorite haunts on the web. It contains news about science fiction modeling, reference information and pictures for various science fiction subjects and pictures of numerous models covering a diverse range of science fictional subjects. Most Highly recommended. Click here to learn more about their 2001: The Future That Should Have Been contest.
Another great science fiction modeling site is the CultTVman web site. Like Starship Modeler this site contains lots of news, information about modeling and pictures showing examples of some fine modeling work. Also highly recommended.
A wondrous reference site for space models is Ninfinger Productions - Scale Models:
Spacecraft, Rockets, Missiles, and X-Planes!
. Here you can find information about just about every space model that's ever been produced. They don't cover science fiction per se since their emphasis is on models of real, experimental and never produced spacecraft along with experimental aircraft. High recommended. My only complaint is that this site does not get updated very often.
Captain Cardboard's Atomic City produces some exquisite models of subjects from 2001:A Space Odyssey, such as the Space Pod and the Aries-1B and will soon be releasing a model of the Moon Bus. They are even doing reproductions of the studio models used for 2001 and these are being used in museum displays as well as being available for purchase. Seriously cool.
Lunar Models is one of the largest makers of science fiction and space models. Their kits include subjects from various Irwin Allen TV shows, classic science fiction movies - such as 2001:A Space Odyssey, Destination Moon and First Spaceship on Venus, to name a few - actual space subjects like the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle, Dinosaurs and other things to numerous to mention.
RealSpace Models specializes in models of, like their name implies, real spacecraft. They have models of all of the world's manned spacecraft and launch vehicles, including some hard to find items like the Soviet N-1 Moon Rocket, and parts to improve the accuracy of kits made by other manufacturers.
Extra-Vehicular Activity Models specializes in models of space suits and related subjects. They have models of various real space suits and also have a series of kits coming out soon based on the space suits used in 2001:A Space Odyssey.
Anderson Models is a small garage kit maker who specializes in models of launch vehicles and who will soon be releasing models of the HOTOL, a UK SSTO vehicle that was never produced, and Soviet spaceplanes that were designed, and in some cases tested, but never put into production.
Rho Models produces some very fine models of Russian and American launch vehicles and spacecraft.
CollectAire Models is mainly a manufacturer of aircraft models, but they also have kits of experimental aircraft, spacecraft - such as the X-20 Dynasoar spaceplane - and a few science fiction subjects - such as the Space Pod and Orion Shuttle from 2001:A Space Odyssey.
For more information about stores that carry Science Fiction models, check out our Bookstores, Hobby Shops and More page.
If you're looking for ideas for a subject for the 2001: The Future That Should Have Been contest then you might want to check out these two web sites. Mark Wade's Encyclopedia Astronautica is an amazing compendium of information about various American and Russian space programs - including many that never advanced beyond the stage of design studies - and is profusely illustrated. David Portree's Romance to Reality: Moon and Mars Plans web site contains information about more than 280 different 'Mission to Mars' design studies done over the last 50 years. Both of these sites are way cool and highly recommended, both for reference data for modeling and as seriously wonderful archives of information about the real and 'might have been' space program.
If you're looking for more information about the history of the space program and the way it might have developed, here's three more web sites. The Deep Cold site has CGI images and movies of various spacecraft that were under development during the Space Race but which were never fielded. The Aerospace Projects Review is a journal that presents information about various historical projects and design concepts. Finally, the Man Conquers Space web site presents CGI images and movies produced by a group of people who are creating a documentary about the space program from a world where the programs described by von Braun and others actually happened. All of these sites are way cool and very interesting.
And finally, here's a link to a web page showing you the Polar Light's C57D plastic coffee table...er... model.
ISS News
Click here to view the press kits for various ISS missions.
Check out the NASA International Space Station web page or the Boeing web page to learn more about this project.
A great source of news about Russian space activities, including their work on the ISS, can be found at the Russian Space Web.
Do you wonder where the Space Station is right now? You can use your browser to view real time maps showing the location of the ISS by going to this link at the NASA Space Link web site or here at the Johnson Spacecraft Center. Please note that your browser must support Java to make use of this satellite tracking software.
You can find out when the ISS - or many other spacecraft - can be seen from your location by going to this NASA web page. Please note; your browser must support Java for this application to work.
Galileo - Background and Updates
More information about the Galileo mission to Jupiter can be found at the Project's web site.
Here is some additional information about Galileo's Probe that entered Jupiter's atmosphere.
Scientific American has published a great on-line article about Galileo.
For On-Going Updates on Space News
The Spaceflight Now web site carries real time information about current space missions and presents a lot of space and astronomy news. This is the place I go to when I want up to the minute information about current space missions. Do I need to say more?
The NASA Watch web site is another great place for getting information about current space missions. Check there also for news about other 'goings on' within NASA. Highly recommended.
Dinosaurs and Museums - Background Info
You can learn more about dinosaurs by visiting this On-Line DinoDatabase.
There are several on-line exhibits concerning dinosaurs. You can check out the exhibits at the UC Berkley Museum of Paaleontology or at the University of Washington Burke Museum or the Dr. Ken Hooper Virtual Natural History Museum. This last site is especially interesting since it started as an exercise for students taking a geology class Carleton University in Ontario, Canada and grew from there.
Many museums have web sites devoted to their activities. You might be interested in visiting the sites created by the Natural History Museum in London - this is one of my very favorite museums in the world and you should go there if you have the chance, the Smithsonian Museum of Naural History or the Field Museum of Naural History in Chicago.
Click here for information about the audio files used for Hour 25 and for information about configuring your browser and downloading audio players.
Please note web pages from external sites will open in a separate browser window and that Hour 25 Productions are not responsible for the content of any external Web Sites.
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Connie Willis
On Friday - May 18, 2001 - our guest was author Connie Willis. We chated with her about her new novel Passage and the art and craft of writing.
In Passage Connie Willis takes us into the world Dr. Joanna Lander, a psychologist investigating Near Death Experiences (NDE). Her work is made more difficult by other, less reputable, persons who have created a climate wherein people describe their NDE in terms of things they have read from books and not from what they actually experienced. Her work gets a boost when another Doctor comes up with a way to induce NDE by using psychoactive drugs. But when the key volunteer for this new study drops out, Joanna offers to become the subject for this test. Her experiences with this drug take her to the very bounds of human experience. And beyond.
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Cover copyright ©2001 by Bantam Books
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Connie Willis picture copyright ©2001 by One Hour Photo Studios
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Connie Willis is one of the best and most popular science fiction writers of our time. She is equally at home in short fiction as well as in novels, having won Hugos and Nebulas in every category of writing. She has won more Hugo and Nebula awards than just about anyone and five times has had stories win both awards for that year. Her stories combine well drawn characters, carefully researched historical backgrounds with plots spun from issues drawn from today's world and leavened by her delicious wit and sense of irony.
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Listen to this show
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- Click here to listen to the entire show. {1:24:56}
or
- Click here for the show's introduction.{0:41}
- Click here for the show's opening and news.{20:53}
- Click here for the Connie Willis interview. {1:01:39}
- Click here for the show's closing.{1:43}
or
- Click here for an index of all Shows on our site.
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Links for more information relating to this week's show
Connie Willis
A short introduction to Connie Willis can be found at this web site and you can find a complete bibliography of her works here.
More information about Connie can be found in the Boskone 36 Program or in this article about her.
You can read comments about Connie's books made by various people at this web site.
There are a number of interviews with Connie to be found out on the 'net. Here's one, here's another and here's another one.
Douglas Adams
The DouglasAdams.com web site has a collection of tributes celebrating his life and what he meant to people from all over the world.
The BBC has more information about the life of Douglas Adams.
The Earth Edition of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is available on-line. Enjoy.
You can listen to what Douglas had to say about the Internet by going here. You can also go here to read an interview with Douglas Adams called The Surfer's Guide to the Galaxy. {I think he appreciated the irony of using the Internet to discuss the meaning of the Internet.}
You can find out more about Douglas Adams and his books - in his own words and in the words of other people - at this web site.
There are many other places on the 'net where you can explore the works of Douglas Adams. You might try this web site which has numerous links to other information on the 'net or you might go to the Douglas Adams Quote Directory or you might care to look at this interview with Douglas from 1987.
Death has taken Douglas Adams from us but his wit will live on in his books. So long and thanks for all the fish.
Astronomical News
The American Association of Variable Star Observers has a web site that is filled with information about their activities. Information about the transit of GLIESE 876
by its planets can be found here, just be sure to scroll down past the information about Supernova 2001bg in NGC 2608.
To learn more about the Very Large Telescope (VLT) Project go to this site and to see some of the results coming out of this project go here.
Information about the discovery that the star HD 82943 may have swallowed one of its planets can be found here.
Space News
Like its name implies, The Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee {CONSTAC} advises the FAA on issues relating to Commercial Space Transportation. You can find out more about their activities by going to their web site. Their 2001 Commercial Space Transportation Forecasts report can be found here.
More information about the mission of the DS-1 spacecraft can be found at this JPL web site.
You can read more about the Pioneer Project - which has sent spacecraft to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and beyond - at the Project's web site.
For Updates on Space News
The Spaceflight Now web site carries real time information about current space missions and presents a lot of space and astronomy news. This is the place I go to when I want up to the minute information about current space missions. Do I need to say more?
The NASA Watch web site is another great place for getting information about current space missions. Check there also for news about other 'goings on' within NASA. Highly recommended.
Dracula and the X-Files
You can learn more about Bram Stoker and Dracula by going to this web site.
The complete text of Dracula is available on-line and can be read here.
Another good source of information about Dracula can be found at the web site for The Transylvanian Society of Dracula .
You can find out more about the X-Files by going to their official web site.
Go here to view a collection of X-Files in-jokes and obscure references. Or go here to see a timeline of events in the X-Files Universe.
You might also be interested in this link to a site that discusses the science behind the X-Files. Please note, this particular site has not been updated since early in 2000 and does not cover episodes past season 6.
If you want to view some unofficial web pages about the X-Files then try this site, this one or this one. There's lots more. The truth, or at least a lot of stuff on the web, is out there.
Click here for information about the audio files used for Hour 25 and for information about configuring your browser and downloading audio players.
Please note web pages from external sites will open in a separate browser window and that Hour 25 Productions are not responsible for the content of any external Web Sites.
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Tad Williams
On Friday - May 11, 2001 - our guest was author Tad Williams. We chated with him about his recently completed science fiction quadrilogy Otherland, the art and craft of writing and his new Internet venture Shadowmarch.
Tad's Otherland series combines science fiction with elements and images of fantasy - and lots of other cool stuff - to create a story that is uniquely his. As a locale within the series, Otherland, is a vast VR universe filled with landscapes draw from any fantasy a user can imagine. But children have been vanishing into this realm and becoming lost to the 'real world'. A band of adventurers tries to solve this problem and become trapped in Otherland as the line between fantasy and reality becomes blurred, with deadly consequences. Way cool and highly recommended.
Tad's recent book tour did not take him to Los Angeles so I interviewed him over the phone. And while the audio quality isn't as good as it might be, the things Tad had to say were - as always - interesting and entertaining.
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cover copyright ©2001 by DAW Books, Painting by Michael Whelan
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The Otherland Series
City of Golden Shadow
River of Blue Fire
Mountain of Black Glass
Sea of Silver Light
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Tad Williams picture by Patti Perret
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Late Breaking News
Douglas Adams, the well loved author of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, died suddenly on Friday of a heart attack at his home in Santa Barbara. He was 49 and is survived by his wife Jane and daughter Polly. We at Hour 25 are pained by his sudden death and offer our sympathies to his family and friends. We will have more information next week. Until then you can find more information at the BBC web site.
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Listen to this show
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- Click here to listen to the entire show. {56:06}
or
- Click here for the show's introduction.{0:41}
- Click here for the show's opening and news.{7:00}
- Click here for the Tad Williams interview. {46:41}
- Click here for the show's closing.{1:44}
or
- Click here for an index of all Shows on our site.
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Links for more information relating to this week's show
Tad Williams
You can find out more about Tad Williams and his Otherland series of books by going to his official web site.
The Shadowmarch web site is up and will soon be presenting Tad's newest fiction. This looks like a really cool experiment in 'net publishing. I wish Tad every success in this venture.
The Tad Williams page at sffworld.com has information about Tad and his books.
ISS News
You can learn more about Space Adventures - the people who arranged for Dennis Tito to go to the ISS - by going to their web site.
A great source of news about Russian space activities, including the flight of Dennis Tito, can be found at the Russian Space Web.
Click here to view the press kits for various ISS missions.
Check out the NASA International Space Station web page or the Boeing web page to learn more about this project.
Do you wonder where the Space Station is right now? You can use your browser to view real time maps showing the location of the ISS by going to this link at the NASA Space Link web site or here at the Johnson Spacecraft Center. Please note that your browser must support Java to make use of this satellite tracking software.
You can find out when the ISS - or many other spacecraft - can be seen from your location by going to this NASA web page. Please note; your browser must support Java for this application to work.
Space News
You can view pictures of the X-43A at this web site or view movies of it at this web site or read more about this project by going here.
The Spaceflight Now web site carries real time information about current space missions and presents a lot of space and astronomy news. They also have on-going coverage of the flight of Dennis Tito to the ISS. This is the place I go to when I want up to the minute information about current space missions. Do I need to say more?
The NASA Watch web site is another great place for getting information about current space missions. Check there also for news about other 'goings on' within NASA. Highly recommended.
Click here for information about the audio files used for Hour 25 and for information about configuring your browser and downloading audio players.
Please note web pages from external sites will open in a separate browser window and that Hour 25 Productions are not responsible for the content of any external Web Sites.
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Tananarive Due
On Friday - May 4, 2001 - our guest was author Tananarive Due, chatting with us about her new book The Living Blood and her approach to the art of writing.
I first encountered Tananarive Due when I read her book My Soul to Keep. I was really impressed. Her writing was clear and crisp and her story was filled with well rounded characters. She was able to show me the world through the eyes of another person and by doing that she gave me new eyes to see my world.
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Picture by Robert Werth
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cover copyright ©2001 by Pocket Books
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The Living Blood starts four years after My Soul to Keep and in it Jessica must try and put her life back together after her husband has killed her daughter Kira and disappeared. Jessica must come to terms with the fact that not only is her husband a member of a group of immortals, but that she and their second daughter Fana have the gift of his healing blood. And Fana has inherited powers that make her more than human.
Together they travel to Africa where they use their healing blood to cure ill children but this only causes more trouble for them. She and her daughter are pulled into a conflict between mortals and immortals that will decide the ultimate fate of humanity.
Like all of Tananarive's works, this book is well written, way cool and highly recommended.
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Listen to this show
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- Click here to listen to the entire show. {1:21:17}
or
- Click here to listen to the show start.{0:41}
- Click here for the show's opening and news.{15:37}
- Click here for our interview with Tananarive Due. {1:03:05}
- Click here for the show's closing.{1:54}
or
- Click here for an index of all Shows on our site.
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Links for more information relating to this week's show
Tananarive Due
You can find out more about Tananarive Due and her books by checking out her web site. And while you're out there surfing around, don't forget to check out the web site of her husband Steven Barnes.
There are several web sites that have information about Tananarive Due. Go here to listen to other interviews she has done or go here or here to read interviews with her.
The SciFi Noir web site has a list of other black writers who do science fiction/horror/fantasy. Its a great place to go when you are looking to find authors to broaden your reading universe.
If you want to find out more at the Clarion Writers Workshops then you should check out their web site
ISS News
You can learn more about Space Adventures - the people who arranged for Dennis Tito to go to the ISS - by going to their web site.
A great source of news about Russian space activities, including the flight of Dennis Tito, can be found at the Russian Space Web.
Click here to view the press kits for various ISS missions.
Check out the NASA International Space Station web page or the Boeing web page to learn more about this project.
Do you wonder where the Space Station is right now? You can use your browser to view real time maps showing the location of the ISS by going to this link at the NASA Space Link web site or here at the Johnson Spacecraft Center. Please note that your browser must support Java to make use of this satellite tracking software.
You can find out when the ISS - or many other spacecraft - can be seen from your location by going to this NASA web page. Please note; your browser must support Java for this application to work.
Space News
You can view pictures of the X-43A at this web site or view movies of it at this web site or read more about theis project by going here.
The Spaceflight Now web site carries real time information about current space missions and presents a lot of space and astronomy news. They also have on-going coverage of the flight of Dennis Tito to the ISS. This is the place I go to when I want up to the minute information about current space missions. Do I need to say more?
The NASA Watch web site is another great place for getting information about current space missions. Check there also for news about other 'goings on' within NASA. Highly recommended.
Click here for information about the audio files used for Hour 25 and for information about configuring your browser and downloading audio players.
Please note web pages from external sites will open in a separate browser window and that Hour 25 Productions are not responsible for the content of any external Web Sites.
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Unless otherwise noted the entire content of this web site is Copyright © Warren W. James, 2000-2002.
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