Watchtower Database plugs BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS!
Watchtower Database, purveyor of all things DCAU, has mentioned The Unofficial Batman: The Animated Interviews on their YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/post/UgkxGN1S2ot-_y3muGJiK0iYKx6bFKYOA-Ut
I mention Watchtower Database in the “Recommended Media” section of Volume Five. With the kind permission of their webmaster, James Strecker, I quoted from select interviews for inclusion of B:TAI.
Check ’em out for updated info about the DCAU.
Over 30 Years in the Making! Now Available: The Unofficial BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS
Today’s the day! The culmination of researching a span of over 30 years! BearManor Media has published BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS, five volumes, hardbound editions in color! Who made BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES and its spinoffs? How was it made? Why did it become pivotal in the animation industry, and what accounts for its popularity decades later?
We find out from Michael Uslan, the Man Who Saved Batman; network executives Margaret Loesch, Sidney Iwanter, Linda Simensky; Warner Bros. executives Jean MacCurdy and Tom Ruegger; DC executives Paul Levitz and Mike Carlin, producers Bruce Timm, Eric Radomski, Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, Randy Rogel, Shaun McLaughlin; directors Kevin Altieri, Boyd Kirkland, Dan Riba; voice director Andrea Romano; actors Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Loren Lester, Diane Pershing, Will Friedle; writers Mitch Brian, Stan Berkowitz, Robert Goodman, Joe R. Lansdale, Rich Fogel; Shirley Walker and the Dynamic Music Partners (composers) Michael McCuistion, Lolita Ritmanis, Kristopher Carter; animator-director Greg Duffell; painters Ted Blackman, Gary Montalbano and John Calmette; designers Shayne Poindexter and Jon Fisher, and more!
This project is my tribute to the many talents responsible for crafting such a groundbreaking series. They deserve recognition!
Volume One: 852 pages. Batman: The Animated Series, Season One. Foreword by Robert Greenberger.
Volume Two: 820 pages. Batman: The Animated Series, Season Two, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero. With episode guides. Foreword by Robert Greenberger.
Volume Three: 632 pages. Spotlight on the cast. The New Batman Adventures. Episode guide. Foreword by voice director Andrea Romano.
Volume Four: 638 pages. Batman Beyond. With episode guide. Foreword by Joe R. Lansdale.
Volume Five: 742 pages. Batman’s appearances in Justice League, Zeta Project, Static Shock and home videos. Overview of Batman: The Animated Series. Foreword by Jerry Beck.
Note the page count. Each volume has enough material for three or four 200-page books!
Dan Riba, director, Annie Award nominee and three-time Emmy Award winner:
“Bob Miller has done the impossible … he has managed to document the creation of the entire DCAU. I just can’t believe how extensive it is. I was there, but I learned so much I wasn’t aware of. This is now the definitive book on the creation of the DCAU.”
Alan Burnett, Writer/Producer, Warner Bros. Animation, 1991-2017. Winner, three Daytime Emmys, one Primetime Emmy, two Humanitas Prizes, and the Animation Writers Caucus Animation Award.
“I know of no one more dedicated to the history of animation than W.R. Miller, and the work he has done here on Batman is truly encyclopedic.”
Randy Rogel, Emmy-winning writer on Batman: The Animated Series.
“A definitive account detailing the creation and development of Batman: The Animated Series, its history and legacy, brilliantly compiled by Robert Miller. Entertaining, informative, and absolutely riveting, a must-read for all Batman fans and Animation historians. Bravo Robert, you’ve earned your place in the Batcave!”
For more details please visit here: wrmilleronline.com/batman/
Individual purchases, online reviews and requests to librarians to buy this set for their collection are most welcome, and appreciated.
The Bat-Signal shines!
The End of the DCAU
For years fans of Batman: The Animated Series have clamored for a return to the DC Animated Universe, for more episodes of B:TAS or Batman Beyond or Justice League Unlimited. At conventions, the casts have appeared on panels, attempting to spur interest. Surely Warner Bros. would be encouraged by home video sales, merchandise, and the numbers viewing the series on streaming services. In fact, it was due to streaming that Warners renewed Young Justice after years from the previous season. And Disney, after acquiring the rights to X-Men, recognized the value of that property enough to continue its story decades later, but from its original time frame, 1997. So why didn’t Warners do the same with Batman?
It turns out, the studio wanted to. But Bruce Timm didn’t. He wanted to revamp the franchise. In the August 2, 2024 online edition of The Wrap,[1] Drew Taylor found out what happened.
It was around the spring of 2020. According to Timm, “They said, ‘Hey, how would you feel about going back and making some more ‘B:TAS’ episodes?’ And I’m like, ‘Nah, we’d been there, we’d done that.’ I wasn’t interested in just revisiting that world,”
Though he and James Tucker did consider a new Justice League series. But both wanted to do Gotham City stories that they weren’t able to do in the original Batman: TAS. Instead, they rebooted the concept with directors J. J. Abrams and Matt Reeves involved as executive producers. This would be Batman: Caped Crusader, Initially, it would be streamed for HBO Max (later renamed “Max”), but Warners and Discovery merged, and they instead licensed the property to Amazon Prime. The show’s first ten episodes premiered August 1, 2024.
A week prior, on Saturday, July 27, Comic-Con International: San Diego screened the first episode in Room 6BCF at 2:45 p.m. This was prefaced by a video from Bruce Timm explaining the new show complements the original B:TAS.
Still, it’s a reboot.
Timm told The Wrap that his Zoom pitch to Abrams and Reeves was, “I wanted to blend the atmospherics of Universal horror movies and the drama of Warner Bros. gangster movies and the action of Republic serials and mix it all together with a lot of film noir on top.”
On “X”, Chieze Noma commented, “Um, perhaps I’m missing something here, but the OG Batman:TAS already did that. And it was done better.”
What’s really different is gender-swapping, race-swapping, character redefinition, cast changes, a score not done by Shirley Walker or her proteges, The Dynamic Music Partners, the addition of profanity and a higher degree of violence. Not for family viewing. Pandering. Change for the sake of change.
Alas, Bruce Timm’s revelation came too late to include in Batman: The Animated Interviews, which details the making and legacy of the original Batman: The Animated Series and its DCAU spinoffs. But it is noted here, for possible inclusion in updated volumes.
Aside from Bruce Timm, the only crew from the B:TAS days are background/color designer David Karoll and supervising dialogue director Mark Keatts. (James Tucker joined the DCAU in The New Batman Adventures.) Why not hire the rest of the available crew? No answer has been publicly forthcoming.
But the DCAU could continue with more episodes of Batman Beyond, or Justice League Unlimited, or even a spinoff with Nightwing or a future Justice League Unlimited. And the available talents could be hired for those projects. And they would be produced by DCAU alumni while Timm is involved in his own show.
One can hope.
[1] “Why ‘Batman: The Animated Series’ Creator Bruce Timm Finally Returned to Gotham City With ‘Caped Crusader’; The animator tells TheWrap about developing the show for Max before getting saved by Prime Video.”
BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS–The BearManor Media Interview
July 6, 2024.
To promote their books, BearManor Media asks its authors to talk about their work in the form of an interview. Here’s what I said about Batman: The Animated Interviews:
Batman: The Animated Series proved to be a resounding success, and still enjoys popularity three decades later. What qualifies you to write its history?
I began working in the animation industry in the late 1980s, first as a layout artist on Kricfalusi’s Beany & Cecil, then as a writer/story editor for Hahnfilm in Germany, then as an assistant animator at Don Bluth’s studio in Burbank, then as a storyboard revisionist on Garfield & Friends. During that time I networked with various industry professionals. This experience helped formulate the questions I would later ask in interviews.
Industry scuttlebutt spread about an exciting new animated project at Warner Bros., a ground-breaking series that didn’t talk down to the audience, that allowed for high-stakes action-adventure and angst at levels rarely done in American cartoons. And its dark dynamic style was visually captivating. This was Batman: The Animated Series.
At the time, I was also freelancing as a writer for Starlog and Comics Scene. The editor, David McDonnell, assigned me to interview some of Batman’s key creatives: producers Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski, writer Paul Dini, director Kevin Altieri, and the voice of Batman/Bruce Wayne himself, Kevin Conroy. They provided first-hand accounts of the show while it was in production. These talks became the foundation of Batman: The Animated Interviews, in which, years later, I spoke with executives, directors, writers, directors, designers, actors and composers to add their perspective, which had the benefit of hindsight. David McDonnell helped as a first-pass editor for the project.
Batman: The Animated Interviews is a tribute to those involved with B:TAS and its spinoffs, collectively known as the DCAU. People need to know what it takes to make such a high-quality show, and who made it, and why, and the reasons for its success.
What was the most interesting thing you discovered?
During my research, I discovered a DVD video commentary in which Bruce Timm, while crewing up for Batman Beyond, disclosed that some of the new talent had never heard of Jack Kirby. Jack Kirby! “The King of Comics”! The man who designed and drew Captain America, The Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Ant-Man, the mighty Thor, X-Men, the Silver Surfer, the Inhumans, Dr. Doom, and many more for Marvel and DC Comics. The artist who inspired Bruce Timm and many artists of his generation. Well, if the public can forget about Jack Kirby, the same could happen with the makers of Batman:TAS. Hopefully this project will help sustain their memory. Their work will last, but the makers themselves should never be forgotten.
What pitfalls or rewards did you find along the way?
One reward was the opportunity to meet with the people whose work I admired, most of whom were movers-and-shakers in the television, animation, and comics industries. They were generous with their time and willingness to share their experience, for which I’m grateful. Sometimes, an interviewee revealed an anecdote that merited exploring—such as Jean McCurdy, president of Warner Bros. Animation, mentioning that Randy Rogel, the Emmy Award-winning writer, composer and musician—wrote a Batman stage musical. I spoke with Randy about it, during which he performed a wonderful selection from it. Further details about that project in Volume Three.
John Cerio shared his collection of images autographed by the cast and crew, and Shayne Poindexter shared his many caricatures from the studio’s “Wall of Shayne.”
Batman: The Animated Interviews is presented in Q&A format, with the people speaking for themselves. Sometimes a person doesn’t remember, or “mis-remembers” specific cases. Other times there are differences of opinion, like the testimonies in Rashomon.
And yes, there are claims that may elicit controversy.
What will readers enjoy about your book?
Readers will learn from amazingly-talented people on how to achieve success—that the principles they followed can also be applied to the reader’s own life.
Fans of Batman: The Animated Series will enjoy the insightful interviews, as well as the episode guides with copious cross-referencing, collections of sample reviews from each series or movie, listings of otherwise-uncredited musicians, and indexes to help zero in on topics.
Why five volumes?
The more people I interviewed, the more referrals they gave for others to be included. Sometimes I would find a new source of eye-opening information. Plus, news about the DCAU needed to be added, with Alan Burnett and Paul Dini writing Batman: The Adventures Continue, DC issuing omnibus editions of its DCAU comics, and the passing of Kevin Conroy, Arleen Sorkin and Richard Moll. I had to keep the project up-to-date as much as possible.
Other reporters gave permission to publish their articles in this project; they’re included for the sake of completeness, and historical preservation.
What is featured in each volume?
Volume One: The origins and production of Batman: The Animated Series. Testimonies from the executives and creatives involved. The challenges in its production. The breakthroughs it achieved as an animated cartoon.
Volume Two: Continued coverage of Batman: The Animated Series, plus Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and Batman & Mr. Freeze: Subzero. Retrospectives from the cast and crew. Comprehensive episode guides and review samplers. Exploring the fate of Mr. Freeze. A list of uncredited musicians.
Volume Three: A focus on The New Batman Adventures with its controversial design changes, Batman’s appearances in Superman: The Animated Series, and spinoffs Gotham Girls, Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman and Batman and Harley Quinn. Interviews with the cast and voice director, Andrea Romano. A memorial section is dedicated to the late Kevin Conroy, with commemorative artwork by directors Dan Riba, Kevin Altieri, and Brazilian artist Gonzalo Guastavino. Plus episode guides and review samplers.
Volume Four: Spotlighting Batman Beyond—why it was made, the challenges of its production, how it impacted the DCAU, and the controversy surrounding the home video, Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. Also covered: Future Batman’s appearances in The Zeta Project, Static Shock, Justice League Unlimited and Darwyn Cooke’s Batman Beyond: The Batman 75th Anniversary short. Producers and executives discuss who Batman’s heir should be. Plus, episode guides and review samplers are included.
Volume Five: Features Batman in the expanding DCAU with his appearances in Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, and in select home videos. Producer Bob Goodman talks about Batman Beyond’s spinoff, The Zeta Project, its creation, production, cancellation and fate of its characters. Select episode guides and review samplers are provided. Batman’s animated legacy is explored by the cast, crew, and various comics and animation industry celebrities. Also, there’s a Recommended Media listing.
For further details visit https://wrmilleronline.com/batman/.
What do you hope to achieve with your book?
Recognition for those who made Batman: The Animated Series and its spinoffs. Executive producer Tom Ruegger expressed it best, that the show’s success is due to the people who made it.
Batman: The Animated Interviews is unauthorized by Warner Bros. or DC Entertainment, meaning, it’s unexpurgated. The testimonies come directly from the talents involved, freely expressed. It is an editorial, educational, scholarly work presented for historical posterity, for the express purpose of honoring those who made B:TAS and its DCAU spinoffs.
Warners executive Jean MacCurdy, writer-producer Randy Rogel, writer Joe R. Lansdale, director Dan Riba have called this project the definitive history of the DCAU. Compiling it has been a great pleasure.
What other endorsements have you received?
I’m honored, and grateful, that the project received praise from Sir Richard Taylor of Weta Workshop, Fox Kids executive Margaret Loesch, Dragon Prince creators Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond, Fast Company technology editor Harry McCracken, writer-producer Alan Burnett, British news anchor and filmmaker David Whiteley, composers Michael McCuistion, Lolita Ritmanis and Kristopher Carter, voice director Andrea Romano, animation historians Jerry Beck and Mark Mayerson, network executive Linda Simensky, and more.
A full list is available at https://wrmilleronline.com/batman/.
Who’s faster, Superman or the Flash?
Yes, even though these books are about Batman, this is an all-important question. So I asked such industry notables as DC Comics publisher Paul Levitz, DC Comics executive Mike Carlin, writer-producer Rich Fogel, writer Stan Berkowitz, writer-producer Bob Goodman, associate producer Shaun McLaughlin, Dan Riba and Joe R. Lansdale. Their answers may surprise you.
Update on BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS
June 5, 2024. I have received one more endorsement for Batman: The Animated Interviews from Linda Simensky, currently head of animation and scripted content for Duolingo.
“Batman: The Animated Interviews brings together five volumes that include every bit of information about these animated series that you could imagine. I am in awe of Bob Miller’s meticulous attention to detail, his thorough research, and his ability to ask all the right questions of the insiders who created and produced the series. Bob continues to be one of the most important chroniclers of animation history today and he has produced a series of important and compelling interviews. His knowledge of Warner Bros. Animation and the Batman cartoons is astounding and these books are a gift to the fans.”
–Linda Simensky, network executive, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, PBS Kids. June Foray Award honoree.
Her recommendation is now added to the accolades found here.
Now the back covers for all five volumes are finished, and an announcement for their publication will be made soon.
Praise for BATMAN: THE ANIMATED INTERVIEWS
Prior to a book’s release, it’s helpful for an author to gather endorsements from prominent individuals, who are given advance reader copies for their review. These are the accolades I’ve received for Batman: The Animated Interviews. I’m grateful for all of them:
“Bob Miller’s highly researched and thoroughly engaging history, Batman: The Animated Interviews, is a testament to a terrific writer who clearly loves storytelling and animation as he chronicles the gargantuan efforts to develop, produce and showcase the multi-Emmy award-winning Batman: The Animated Series. These books should be part of the curriculum of any school or university teaching writing, production and animation. Bob’s books describe the perseverance, passions and unfettered commitment to quality from all those engaged to deliver a truly great series, from the ‘upstart’ network, FOX Kids, to the remarkable creative output of the teams at Warner Animation. We all truly believed this Batman series would be great and Bob’s penetrating questions, which rendered thoughtful answers, help the readers and fans understand how the series was made, and why it worked so well. It was like a perfect storm. Everything came together … not easily, but magnificently.”
—Margaret Loesch, President & CEO/Vice-Chairman, Fox Kids Networks Worldwide, 1990-1998. Winner of five Daytime Emmy Awards. Responsible for bringing Batman: The Animated Series, X-Men, and the Power Rangers franchise to Fox Kids television.
“Holy-hairdo – Bob Miller has compiled an incredible collation of factual knowledge and an extraordinary thesis that fully captures the depth and breadth of this groundbreaking series. Bob has skillfully allowed the reader to share in the wonderful creative process that the show creators went to in the production of this show – and he has opened up a greater understanding for all fans of the Batman animated series of why it has entered the pantheon of television production and animated series. Congratulations to Bob for another stellar publication, and for keeping the flame burning so brightly for the craft of TV animation.”
— Richard Taylor, CEO/Creative Director, Wētā Workshop (Wellington, NZ).
“Bob Miller is a true fan and a true insider who knows how great things are made, and his creator interviews uncover deep and real insights. The perspectives contained in these volumes are fascinating and delightful!”
—Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond, Emmy Award-winning producers and co-creators, The Dragon Prince.
“For decades, I’ve known Bob as one of animation scholarship’s most ambitious, meticulous historians. So I knew that when he compiled his Batman interviews in book form, he’d do the job right. What he’s produced exceeds even my expectations. Every legendary TV series deserves a tribute as loving, wide-ranging, and authoritative as what he’s created.”
—Harry McCracken, technology editor, Fast Company and former editor, Animato
“You didn’t know how much you didn’t know. The ultimate definitive guide to Batman: The Animated Series.”
—Jean MacCurdy, President, Warner Bros. Animation, 1989-2001. Winner, two Daytime Emmys, one Primetime Emmy, Lifetime Achievement Award from the Burbank International Children’s Film Festival.
“I know of no one more dedicated to the history of animation than W.R. Miller, and the work he has done here on Batman is truly encyclopedic.”
—Alan Burnett, Writer/Producer, Warner Bros. Animation, 1991-2017. Winner, three Daytime Emmys, one Primetime Emmy, two Humanitas Prizes, and the Animation Writers Caucus Animation Award.
“Bob Miller paints an incredibly vivid picture of the creation of Batman: The Animated Series, skillfully using the voices of those who worked on the groundbreaking series as his brush. Digging far deeper than one would expect, here Miller creates an illuminating depiction of one of the best cartoons ever made that’s impossible to put down.”
—James Harvey, Webmaster, The World’s Finest and Toonzone
“This collection is a treasure. While a handful of bits of commentary make their way in from our videos at the Watchtower Database YouTube channel, there is just so much I’ve yet to read that I’ll be flipping through here for weeks … and that’s a good thing! For all our research through interviews old and new, to try and stay as objective as possible for our DC Animated Universe-themed videos and other projects, Bob has done the unthinkable: put the vast majority of it in one place. I know I’ll be referencing these essays for years to come!”
—James Strecker, Producer/Editor, Watchtower Database
“What a terrific read this is. There are so many great stories and such great insights into the making of that show that it’s astonishing. I can’t wait to read the next volume.”
—Craig Miller, Producer, Publicist, Writer, and first Director of Fan Relations at Lucasfilm.
“A definitive account detailing the creation and development of Batman: The Animated Series, its history and legacy, brilliantly compiled by Robert Miller. Entertaining, informative, and absolutely riveting, a must-read for all Batman fans and Animation historians. Bravo Robert, you’ve earned your place in the Batcave!”
—Randy Rogel, Emmy-winning writer on Batman: The Animated Series.
“You want to know about this classic series, this is the definitive source.”
—Joe R. Lansdale, Champion Mojo Storyteller. Inductee, The Texas Literary Hall of Fame, and winner of many honors including the British Fantasy Award, the American Horror Award, the Edgar Allen Poe Award, and eleven Bram Stoker Awards.
“I know Bob Miller to be a multi-faceted artist with a curiosity for and knowledge of pop culture matched only by his impressive skills and talents as a writer and artist. Bob is a creative soul to the core with a finely tuned microscope aimed keenly on the details. From my experience, Bob is an artist’s interviewer; he asks the questions of his subjects that demand thoughtfulness and truthful expression. It’s always a pleasure to be in conversation with him – he listens closely and reports truthfully.”
—Jason Simpson, actor, Leo and UBCP/ACTRA Award honoree, voice of Lord Viren and Barius on The Dragon Prince.
“On rare occasions, the right people come together at the right time for the right opportunity. That was the case for Batman: The Animated Series and its successors. Thanks to W.R. Miller, those people tell their stories about how this ground-breaking work was made, changing the face of TV animation forever.
“I have to say that I am extremely impressed with the thoroughness. Lots of animation-related interviews stick to the artists, but Miller has gone way beyond that and he’s given people a comprehensive idea of how an animated series comes together. Obviously, the fans will love this, but I think that the books have value for historians and for students. Anyone who aspires to get into the business will get a better picture of all that’s involved from these books than from anything else I’m aware of.”
—Mark Mayerson, animator, historian, and educator. Creator of Monster by Mistake and Tripp to the Stars.
“Bob Miller’s extensive research results in an incredibly comprehensive set of volumes about all things Animated Batman portrayed by Warner Bros. Animation. We’re thrilled these interviews and history are finally available to the general public and particularly to fans of the shows. We’re pleased to be a part of such a monumental work.”
—Michael McCuistion, Lolita Ritmanis, Kristopher Carter—The Dynamic Music Partners, composers. Daytime Emmy Award winners for Batman Beyond and many nominations for the Emmy, Annie and Jerry Goldsmith Awards.
“Bob Miller has done the impossible … he has managed to document the creation of the entire DCAU. I just can’t believe how extensive it is. I was there, but I learned so much I wasn’t aware of. This is now the definitive book on the creation of the DCAU.”
—Dan Riba, director, Annie Award nominee and three-time Emmy Award winner.
“He’s done it again! What a delight for any Batman fan, or indeed, lovers of the evolution of pop culture. From the very start you’re taken on a journey of discovery. Just like the caped crusader himself, no stone is left unturned. From ‘Pow’ to ‘Wow.’
“W.R. Miller emulates Batman himself with his very own forensic tenacity and attention to detail, charting the history of our hero’s animated life! This really has to be the most definitive timeline you can imagine. It’s like the Batman bible!”
—David Whiteley – British TV Anchor and Filmmaker
“These interviews are like a debriefing … and offer great insight into what we were thinking and doing in our combined effort to create something new from something existing … something comic book fans had very strong opinions about. This book delves into how we accomplished that goal. I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I did!”
—Andrea Romano, casting and voice director, eight-time Emmy Award winner.
“Bob Miller’s superb books on the various Warner Batman animated series produced since 1992 shine a well-deserved spotlight (or should I say Bat-Signal) on the creatives behind these game-changing shows.”
—Jerry Beck, animation historian, June Foray and Inkpot Award winner.
The May the Fourth Hoax
In July 1980 Del Rey Books published Once Upon a Galaxy: A Journal of The Making of The Empire Strikes Back, by Alan Arnold. In his diary entry for May 4, 1979, Arnold noted the election victory of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister of England. He said her party took out a half-page ad in the London Evening News stating, “May the Fourth Be With You, Maggie. Congratulations.”
Naturally, I had to check this ad for myself, since I’ve been involved with acquiring, and cataloguing, published information about the original Star Wars trilogy since 1977, for the Star Wars Historical Sourcebook.
I’ve visited the UK four times in doing research, combing the British National Library at St. Pancreas, the British Newspaper Library in Colindale (since relocated), the British Film Institute and the main library at Cambridge. I unspooled the microfilm record of the Evening News, only to discover … that the ad was published May 3. Not May 4. Not May 5. And the words were different. They were:
“Dear Maggie, May the Fourth Be With You. Your Party Workers.”
There was no statement of congratulations. Why would there be? The election was that day, May 3. There was no guarantee Thatcher would win. The ad was placed by well-wishers—that is, her party.
But she was victorious and she became England’s first woman Prime Minister. The next day. May 4.
No ad expressing congratulations in the British press, at least, that I could find.
Eventually “May the Fourth” caught on with Star Wars fandom and has become an annual day of celebration worldwide: Star Wars Day. It’s been acknowledged as such in California by Assemblyman Tom Daly, in 2019.
Somewhere along the way, a fan produced an ad with Thatcher’s picture, echoing the sentiment that Alan Arnold claimed in Once Upon a Galaxy. It is purported to be genuine.
Is it? I engaged the reference librarians at the British National Library and they found nothing other than the ad in the London Evening News on May 3. Neither did I find it in my own research.
Meanwhile, the bogus ad has been cited not only on the internet, but in various media news outlets, such as ABC affiliate WFAA-TV in Dallas. Starwars.com spokesman Lucas Seastrom perpetuated the myth in his article about the fan holiday, “May the 4th Be With You: A Cultural History,” May 2, 2022. He claimed the ad was “full page” placed by “another clever newspaper writer” and published May 4.
Not so. The May 3, 1979 ad is prima facie primary source documentation. The other ad is unsubstantiated.
Regardless, “May the Fourth” is a good excuse for fans to celebrate their favorite franchise.
Enjoy.
More Entertaining Than STAR TREK: DISCOVERY!
April 27, 2024.
What’s more entertaining that Star Trek: Discovery?
The comments about Star Trek: Discovery!
A month ago Paramount Plus posted a trailer heralding the fifth and final season. Here are the reactions:
@paweldurczok
2 weeks ago
I can’t believe this got more seasons than Enterprise.
127
@Akkbar21
13 days ago
corny streaming service decisions
5
@mothgirlx6707
10 days ago
Of course it has, it’s way more futuristic
7
@justdog5506
9 days ago
Only because paramount didn’t want to cancel it earlier and admit it was a failure
11
@DaBlackSheep75
3 days ago
If you knew anything about Star Trek you’d know that they never had any intentions on going beyond 3 seasons and Patrick Stewart did not want more seasons.
@nusku74
3 days ago (edited)
@DaBlackSheep75 What has the Discovery/Enterprise shows got to do with Patrick Stewart?
4
@danielsmit11
1 day ago
No doubt. Should’ve been canned after first couple episodes
@danielsmit11
1 day ago
@DaBlackSheep75 he said enterprise not star trek Picard.
@user-bt4ks1hf3p
1 day ago
Because this is the woke star trak.
@Marconius6
1 month ago
Between the number of explosions and times family is mentioned, I’m beginning to think this is secretly a Fast & Furious sequel.
710
@gnryushi
1 month ago
Cry, cry, cry, laugh, whisper, whisper, whisper, cry, laugh, hug, hug, hug. Basically the whole season.
253
@FrostUK
1 month ago
Loved it when Burnham said “it’s warpin’ time” and they warped more than ever before
180
@mungabba
1 month ago
Oh man, this trailer has me SO PUMPED to watch TNG, VOY or DS9 for the nth time. I miss Star Trek.
181
@eriquedobson7523
4 weeks ago
Yeah, but DS9 doesn’t have space motorcycles! Sure, it’s superbly written space opera about a cast of characters questioning their commitment to Federation Ideals in the face of impending war set against efforts to help a planet after decades of occupation… But DS9 doesn’t have space motorcycles.
9
@kaicreech7336
4 weeks ago
Prodigy, lower decks, and strange new worlds are all really good.
12
@TheAmazingFlyingCat2
3 weeks ago
@kaicreech7336 but not Discovery…
5
@seangrowsthings7396
3 weeks ago
Me too! The wait for this season was grueling!
@memyselfandi593
2 days ago
Absolutely rubbish show…. the worst ST ever. @TheAmazingFlyingCat2
2
@danielsmit11
1 day ago
@kaicreech7336 all of star Trek after Enterprise blows chunks.
1
@danielsmit11
1 day ago
@kaicreech7336 including the movie reboots
1
@kaicreech7336
1 day ago
@danielsmit11 so not only are you flat-out lying about the most recent shows, but you’re counting the first two seasons of Enterprise is good? Never heard a worse take in my life
@danielsmit11
1 day ago
@kaicreech7336 anyone who thinks the reboot jj movies were good has no authority to say what classifies as good writing.
@bookergrimm
2 weeks ago
Can we have more teary-eyed, breathless whispery dialogue? And lets have Burnham doing evertthing and no backstory given to any of the other bridgecrew? WE CAN! AWESOME!
25
@nusku74
3 days ago
This was the biggest problem with the show. No real space given to the crew to grow. Star Trek: Burnham & her boyfriend.
@memyselfandi593
2 days ago
It’s a guaranteed.
@robthomas2330
1 month ago
I see they’re freshening up the format with a McGuffin-focused season for a change.
155
@guyvizard549
1 month ago (edited)
“He was with my mother on Romulus, researching Star Trekking, right before she died.”
143
@eriquedobson7523
4 weeks ago
Oh my God! SPACE MOTORCYCLES! What a clever idea! I clapped for space motorcycles!
43
@matrix128500
1 month ago
I really hope the final moments of this series results in the loss of all hands as the Discovery is destroyed because Tilly has overloaded the power systems that run the replicators.
28
@John-sd7wj
1 month ago
She is even crying in the trailer. Captain let’s cry.
40
@anthonystuartjones
1 month ago (edited)
Love the bit where they’re been fired at and they shout “woooo” because that’s a totally natural thing to say when there’s a giant explosion 3 feet from your head!
118
@venicebeachsportsnetwork6677
1 month ago
These trailers always get me in the mood to rewatch tng
293
@ChrisOnStage2
1 month ago
Hold up widget “We have to keep it safe!” Me: “Yeah, it’ll get stolen by the bad guys. Guaranteed.”
239
@shanwen88
1 month ago
The Michael Burnham show
53
@user-sg2fw6ze7n
1 month ago
어릴때 스타트렉 너무 재밌게 본 기억이 남. 최고의 SF 우주 영화 드라마 아닐까? 절대 이걸 빼놓으면 안돼.
[I remember watching Star Trek with so much fun when I was young. Isn’t this the best science fiction space movie drama? You can never forget this.]
24
@jamesm568
1 month ago
Some of the Short Treks episodes need to be answered or closed out, especially Calypso.
193
@thegreenbean5891
1 month ago
I hope we get more affirming conversations in hallways and crying tears of acceptance and tolerance in every episode
41
@kevesdancey
1 month ago (edited)
To quote Yoda “End your rule is, Not short enough it was!”
10
@alexanderhummel3917
1 month ago
Quite happy with rewatching Berman’s Trek together with my kids. Modern Trek is unbearable on so many levels.
24
@adamcarroll5427
1 month ago
My favorite part was when they said “get busy trekking or get busy dying”
47
@michaelcristel3060
1 month ago
Jett Reno is back! Thank the Maker. Time to bring out the salsa.
11
@Kaname1981
4 weeks ago
“Oh dear, how sad, never mind” is the only thing I can think of with regards to STD. The only good thing to come out of it was Pike and the Enterprise with Strange New Worlds
7
@thegreatburt9005
3 weeks ago
I’ve just watched the South Park ‘panderverse’ episode – it all makes sense now
15
@brentcooper4345
2 weeks ago
I love it when they change the Prime Directive to enforcing all civilizations must whisper at all times.
3
@bayushiteishiru6291
3 weeks ago
“My crew was in the Amazon with my mom when she was researching spiders right before she died”
4
@Opusss
1 month ago
Still trying to make “lets fly”….In space… A thing.
11
@akiru300
4 days ago
I like how it’s balanced between feeling , the need to connect, the need of each other while facing all the dangers the galaxy has to offer.
1
@OptimusMonk01
1 month ago
never has a starfleet officer failed upwards so many times
79
@bigjimfrom1976
1 month ago
Well, I was pretty pumped for this 1 minute 31 seconds ago. Let’s hope the trailer isn’t representative of the actual season.
17
@crumpetsbuttered
5 days ago
The best thing that could EVER happen to this series is Burnham wakes up in the shower and realises its all a Dream.
2
@garethjax
1 month ago
a new epic level of silliness, from the crew who says “ni!”.
58
@SelfieQueenGeorgina
1 month ago
My favourite Discovery episode is the one where Burnham does that sad, dramatic, whisper-talking.
179
@jakedel1711
1 month ago
I cant wait for the final episode of this series so it can finally be over!
30
@brianhughes701
4 days ago
“Let’s cry”
3
@Tokiofritz
1 month ago
Amazed that Star Trek: Burnham made it to 5 seasons.
87
@iamantiwar2003
1 month ago
I bet they still don’t focus on the crew. Nobody even knows their names yet.
173
@epone3488
1 month ago
Its amazing that your could put everything I dislike about Discovery in one clip
12
@ah7910
5 days ago
I stupidly keep waiting for ‘Star Trek’ every time Discovery drops a trailer. Glad it’s their last season, I truly want to forget this ever happened to Trek.
2
@phatster88
1 month ago
Last season thank god
10
@Patrick-qed
1 month ago
Something like an Iconian library???
5
@Marvolo14
1 month ago
This show is so melodramatic. Every season is apocalyptic, every episode someone is crying.
58
@Geeksmithing
12 days ago
Remember when Star Trek wasn’t just about the pursuit of Macguffins?
1
@magicmulder
1 month ago
Is it a good sign how much Burnham’s whispering in the trailer already? At least Trig is in it, she should get all the scenes.
23
@guycalgary7800
1 month ago
Over/under on number of times a character cries or hugs per episode?
6
@adamjohnson3239
1 month ago
“The fifth and final season” Yes! It’s ending! No more!
26
@kozodoev
6 days ago
As someone who doesn’t have that cbs streaming thing I feel like I dodged a bullet by having never seen it.
1
@MRDARRENGER
1 month ago
How did this make it to 5 seasons?! Good job Paramount!
29
@durchhalter
1 month ago
Is there anything to this new season beyond bombastic effects, action sequences after action sequences, and another McGuffin? Anyone? Hello?!
3
@MeneM2Mateo
1 month ago
When will we see more Strange New Worlds? That show is fun!
86
@raddestnerd
1 month ago
They need to stop pointing at the thing and going “It’s the thing!” In previous iterations you had no one saying “we are family” or “this is starfleet.” They showed. Didn’t tell. Ugh. Terry Matalas needs to be the Kevin feige of Trek
17
@Tiago88Alves
1 month ago
0:58 “Sun God” Nika!
23
@renatus6883
2 weeks ago
So glad this era is coming to a close
1
@eduardoestrada4545
2 days ago
I’m a new star trek fan currently watching the next generation , I’m enjoying it
1
@jc478
2 weeks ago
Very sad to see the last season of this show. It was one of my favorites out of all of them. I am going to miss it.
3
@victor________
1 month ago
The only trek series that made me wish I was a Red Shirt
60
@2manysidehoes85
2 weeks ago
How do they not understand this is not the star trek people want after 2 seasons.
1
@Katthewm
1 month ago (edited)
Why couldn’t they just have the final season being rebuilding the federation in the distant future. Checking in on well known races and showing off “new” members from other quadrants. No need for a big story arc, they already had like 5, take a season to chillax and just have fun adventures.
1
@tomeco832
12 days ago
Please, promise to us, that there will be no season 6th of this profanation. Please?
3
@sageakporherhe783
1 month ago
This is still in production?
12
@TheViatovao
1 month ago
Spoiler: last episode Michael goes back to the past and takes over kirk as captain of the enterprise. Take that Roddenberry
2
@MrFreesearcher
3 weeks ago
I need to watch season 4
1
@CyberSQUID9000
1 month ago
So they are looking for the hellraiser box / omega hadron / energy infinite stone ? Ok cool wondering if Pin head / Captain spencer and the other Cenobites will make it into the startrek discovery list of second hand ideas….
3
@carlos_oliviera
1 month ago
Só posso ver na Paramount plus?
4
@DaBlackSheep75
2 days ago
Watched season 5 and I loved it, I can’t wait till next Thursday to see another episode.
@axn2021
1 month ago
I like how at least they skip forward in the timeline (instead of having multiple overlaps like TNG, DS9, and VOY) into something new. But the writing just doesn’t jive with me.
7
@Dib40K
1 month ago
Best thing about this trailer: It`s the FINAL season!
37
@synapticflow
1 month ago
Season 5? Goodness! thought this garbage was cancelled!
10
@NemanjaPantos
4 days ago
The only good thing that we got from Discovery was Strange New World.
2
@confuseatronica
1 month ago
the more action sequences this show has, the worse it gets. It’s not impossible to have both action and actual story and drama in a tv show but this production doesnt know how. (and ST:SNW has the same problem but solves it by having fewer action sequences. And, somehow, doesn’t drag like STD does)
28
@crossmr
1 month ago
I’ve got some kind of combination of stockholm syndrom and ptsd from this show. 2 seconds in and I can see it’s a trainwreck and I can’t look away at the same time.
5
@OldManPaxusYT
2 days ago
If they bring back you-know-who, if she doesn’t have to do a Starfleet physical exam before being reinstated to flight-status, i won’t be watching…
2
@calvinpatton6853
1 month ago
This show needed to end a long time ago. This is the best that they can do, Star Trek like star wars need to go far away.
12
@AphexTwin-ml8jg
1 month ago
Nothing of value has been produced or lost. STD is not Star Trek and congratulations to the people who managed to continue watching it after season 1, I do not know how you made it but you are truly exceptional.
5
@alextrujillo8611
1 month ago
Mmm not my favorite Trek show but I’m glad people get more Trek which is good. Lower Decks for me
60
@ToneSherpa
2 days ago
Don’t worry.. they most certainly have something way worse cooking to replace it.
2
@khymaaren
3 weeks ago
If they replaced Anthony Rapp with Kevin Spacey, I’d watch it.
2
@OldManPaxusYT
2 days ago
nope nope nope, i remember now, it’s a whole ship of dysfunctional ppl trying to be each other’s therapists all day long, instead of healthy, fit, professional, scientists EXPLORING THE GALAXY!
3
@GordonSeal
1 month ago
STD should really be renamed into STMB – Star Trek Michael Burnham.
13
@Truth12345
2 days ago (edited)
Even in the trailer she is whispering. Why cant ‘t she talk normal?
2
@TheNN
4 weeks ago
I can’t wait to watch this. Really, I mean that without any sarcasm. I’m gonna watch this fully and completely, this last season of Discovery, and then never think about it ever again, while waiting for better Star Trek to come back.
2
@polla2256
11 days ago
Proof that in the end most STD’s can be got rid of.
3
@Perfect_Dark_77
1 month ago
I’m so excited for this That’s it’s finally canned!
8
@dirtysolarremix
1 month ago
Love ‘Discovery’
9
@PaulaCastroRecife
1 month ago
Tipo de filme que amo. Maravilhoso!
@uglygiantbagsofmostlywater
1 month ago
Maybe Alex Kurtzman will now finally have time to write his memoirs: Failing Upwards.
12
@bleedinfloor
1 month ago
Discovery has its issues but it’s what got me into trek so it’ll always have a special place in my heart. Excited for one last adventure.
98
@worfsonofmogh1
2 weeks ago (edited)
Oh, look, a season of Nu-Trek centered on the search for something that’s the mostest important thing ever while everyone cries and hugs each other over and over! Glad to see them trying something new.
@dwaynerudkavitch5307
1 month ago
I was hoping this was DONE already.
2
@claytonjackson603
1 month ago
Should have been called Star Trek: Crying. I swear that’s all they do.
12
@danyurr5304
2 weeks ago
why didn’t they cancel this after S4
3
@ahuachapan2
2 days ago
Startrek needs an intervention.
1
@jacobhydes2653
1 month ago
That trailer shows the entire action sequences from Season 5. The rest of the season will be everyone sitting around talking about their feelings.
1
@adsheff
13 days ago
Is this still on? Anyone planning on making some actual Star Trek anytime soon?
4
@jrherita
1 month ago
Michael saves the galaxy again… again.. again
32
And so on.
The Music of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
On May 17, 1980, BBC2 aired a documentary, STAR WARS: THE MUSIC BY JOHN WILLIAMS, which focused on the scoring of THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. It has since been uploaded to YouTube for your viewing pleasure, here:
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro / Production crew / A New Hope
06:05 – EMPIRE: spotting sessions
07:15 – “How to Steal a Million” (1966)
11:45 – “A Guide for the Married Man” (1967)
13:08 – EMPIRE: spotting sessions (cont.)
15:40 – EMPIRE: kiss scene comparison
18:48 – “Images” (1972)
21:40 – “Jane Eyre” (1970)
24:59 – EMPIRE: sound fx (with Ben Burtt)
29:00 – “The Towering Inferno” (1974)
31:32 – John Williams personal views
34:05 – Steven Spielberg interview
35:45 – “Jaws” (1975)
38:15 – “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” (1977)
42:41 – “Superman” (1978)
45:45 – EMPIRE: music writing and editing
52:00 – EMPIRE: recording sessions
56:28 – EMPIRE: final cut with music / End Credits
VHS recording. Source: myspleen. Upscaled to HD.
Copyright Lucasfilm Ltd and BBC, 1980.