Ancient Geeks episode 65: Harlan Ellison, part 1, the writer

And so begins our multi-part look at Harlan Ellison, one of the most influential writers, editors, and personalities in the realm of "speculative fiction." In this first episode, we look at Harlan Ellison the public persona: the guy we knew from TV and radio interviews, convention appearances, writings about himself, and other avenues. Force of nature, pugnacious champion for a more serious take on the genre, nemesis of TV producers, editor of groundbreaking SF anthologies, champion of fellow writers, vocal critic of everything that he deemed wrong about the world — call him what you will, he left a deep imprint on science fiction and fantasy. He won dozens of awards, and earned the respect and affection of his fellow SF&F writers. Most of them.

As Robert Bloch said about him, "He is the only living organism I know whose natural habitat is hot water."

In later episodes, we'll cover Ellison's writing, as well as adaptations of his works to the screen.

Typewriters! The Southern California SF scene! Dead gophers! Tom Snyder! Creative writing professors! Beloved TV scripts! Fights with TV executives! Fights with editors! Fights with other writers! Fights with fans! It's all here.

Ancient Geeks is a podcast about two geeks of a certain age re-visiting their youth. We were there when things like science fiction, fantasy, Tolkien, Star Trek, Star Wars, D&D, Marvel and DC comics, Doctor Who, and many, many other threads of modern geek culture were still on the fringes of popular culture. We were geeks before it was chic!

For feedback, contact someancientgeeks@gmail.com. You can also find us on Facebook, Reddit, and Bluesky. Also, check out the Ancient Geeks blog on Substack! And if you like what you hear, please tell a friend. Also, we always appreciate a review on the podcast platform of your choice.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(87)

Ancient Geeks episode 85: The Farthest Shore

We finish our discussion of the first three Earthsea novels by Ursula Le Guin with The Farthest Shore. We see Ged, the magician, as an older man, risen to Archmage. There's something terrible happenin...

21 Syys 1h 1min

Ancient Geeks episode 84: The Tombs Of Atuan by Ursula Le Guin

Continuing our coverage of Ursula K. Le Guin's first three Earthsea books, we turn to The Tombs Of Atuan. This time, the focus is on a female protagonist, Tenar, and her very dark coming-of-age story....

14 Syys 1h 9min

Ancient Geeks episode 83: A Wizard Of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin

We begin our three-part coverage of Ursula K. Le Guin's classic fantasy series, starting with A Wizard Of Earthsea. It starts with a story arc that may sound familiar, a young magician finding his way...

7 Syys 1h 3min

Ancient Geeks episode 82: Planet of the Apes TV, cartoons, comics, and wrap-up

The popularity of the original series of five Planet of the Apes movies meant there would be more than just a chain of sequels. In this episode, we talk about the POTA spin-offs of the 70s, including ...

31 Elo 1h 9min

Ancient Geeks episode 81: Battle for the Planet of the Apes

The fifth and final movie of the original Planet of the Apes raised expectations. It's going to be the last movie...and the title says that there will be a battle for the entire planet...and there are...

24 Elo 1h 11min

Ancient Geeks episode 80: Conquest of the Planet of the Apes

Ever wonder how we went from the swinging Sixties and Seventies to the brutal oppression of apes over humans? Conquest of the Planet of the Apes tells that story. The child of Cornelius and Zira, whom...

17 Elo 1h 31min

Ancient Geeks episode 79: Escape From The Planet Of The Apes

Of course there would be more sequels after Beneath The Planet Of The Apes, even though it was designed to be the last. In fact, the chief purpose of Escape From The Planet Of The Apes was to make mor...

10 Elo 1h 2min

Ancient Geeks episode 78: John Carpenter's Dark Star

We wrap up our series in which we look at the first movies of directors who later made the classics of geek cinema. In this episode, we discuss John Carpenter's student film, later expanded for theatr...

3 Elo 1h 10min