Writers Made the Difference!: Land of the Lost (1974 - 1976) [Thanks IMDb]

"Land of the Lost" [LotL] is a movie due to be released on June 5, 2009, based on the Saturday morning children's program of the same name that ran from 1974 through 1976, produced by Sid & Marty Krofft, who also produced "H.R. Puf-N-Stuf", "Sigmund & the Sea Monsters", "The Bugaloos", "Lidsville", and many other popular kids shows of questionable quality and controversial content. The original LotL was popular enough that Krofft Entertainment made a new version in 1991 & 1992. The show has had a lasting impression on most everyone who enjoyed it as a child, primarily, comedian Will Ferrell who's interest and efforts helped bring the new movie into being.

In conjunction with the movie release, the Sci-Fi Channel ran a Memorial Day marathon of the original LotL. Despite ridiculously low production values, effects are used in interesting ways and the stories always managed to be strangely intriguing, regardless of being crammed into a 1/2 hour time slot. This curiously compelling cocktail of crap seemed worthy of further investigation. That's the idea that led me to IMDb to look up the writing credits for the original "Land of the Lost". I was pleasantly surprised to find good reason for the lasting effect this show has had on so many of it's viewers. Below is a listing of some of the more interesting things I found in my search. This is not a complete list, just things of interest to me at the moment I found them. Enjoy!


David Gerrold

• LotL: Cha-Ka (pilot episode), The Sleestak God, The Possession, Hurricane, Circle
• Star Trek [TOS]: The Trouble with Tribbles, The Cloud Minders
• Star Trek [TAS]: More Tribbles, More Troubles, Bem
• Star Trek [DS9]: Trials and Tribble-ations
• Logan's Run: Man Out of Time
• Tales from the Dark Side: Levitation
• The Real Ghostbusters: The Hole in the Wall Gang, Adventures in Slime and Space
• Babylon 5: Believers
• Sliders: New Gods for Old

Margaret Armen

• LotL: Dopey, Tar Pit
• Star Trek [TOS]: The Gamesters of Triskelion, The Paradise Syndrome, The Cloud Minders
• Star Trek [TAS]: The Lorelei Signal, The Ambergris Element
• The Mod Squad: A Time of Hyacinths, My Name is Manolete
• Wonder Woman: (made for TV movie), (episode) Wonder Woman Meets Baroness Von Gunther
• The Six Million Dollar Man: Taneha
• The Bionic Woman: The Pyramid

Larry Niven

• LotL: Downstream, Hurricane, Circle
• Star Trek [TAS]: The Slaver Weapon
• The Outer Limits (1996): Inconstant Moon

Norman Spinrad

• LotL: Tag Team
• Star Trek [TOS]: The Doomsday Machine
• Werewolf: Gray Wolf

Walter Koenig (Ensign Pavel Chekov - Star Trek [TOS])

• LotL: The Stranger
• Star Trek [TAS]: The Infinite Vulcan
• Family: Just Friends
• The Powers of Matthew Star: Mother

Barry E. Blitzer

• LotL: The Paku Who Came to Dinner
• McHale's Navy: The Balloon Goes Up, Urulu's Paradise West, Fuji's Big Romance, The Late Captain Binghamton, Pumpkin Takes Over, A Star Falls on Taratupa
• The Flintstones: The Flintstone Canaries, Kleptomaniac Pebbles, Peek-A-Boo Camera, Reel Trouble, Son of Rockzilla, Adobe Dick, No Biz Like Show Biz, Shinrock-A-Go-Go
• The Andy Griffith Show: A New Doctor in Town
• Get Smart: Where-What-How-Who Am I?
• Good Times: The Nude
• The Jetsons: The Space Car, Uniblab, G.I. Jetson, Fugitive Fleas, S.M.A.S.H., S'No Relative, The Wrong Stuff
• Small Wonder: Crazy Like a Fox

Ben Bova

• LotL: The Search

D.C. Fontana

• LotL: Elsewhen
• Star Trek [TOS]: Charlie X, Tomorrow is Yesterday, This Side of Paradise, Journey to Babel, Friday's Child, By Any Other Name, the Ultimate Computer, The Enterprise Incident, That Which Survives, The Way to Eden
• Star Trek [TAS]: Yesteryear
• Star Trek [TNG]: Encounter at Farpoint (pilot), The Naked Now, Lonely Among Us, Too Short a Season, Heart of Glory
• Star Trek [DS9]: Dax
• Ghost Story: Earth, Air, Fire and Water, Alter-Ego
• The ABC Afternoon Playbreak: A Special Act of Love
• The Six Million Dollar Man: Straight on 'till Morning, Rescue of Athena One
• Kung Fu: Battle Hymn
• The Streets of San Francisco: The Cat's Paw, Solitaire, Ten Dollar Murder, Shield of Honor
• The Fantastic Journey: Turnabout
• Logan's Run: The Innocent, Carousel
• The Runaways: Throwaway Child
• The Waltons: The Revelation, The Beau, The Starlet
• Dallas: Survival, The Dove Hunt
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: Planet of the Amazon Women
• He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Battlecat
• War of the Worlds: The Meek Shall Inherit the Earth
• Babylon 5: The War Prayer, Legacies, A Distant Star
• ReBoot: Where No Sprite Has Gone Before
• Earth: Final Conflict: Miracle
• Silver Surfer: The Forever War
• Transformers: Beast Wars: Crossing the Rubicon

William J. Keenan

• LotL: Fair Trade, One of Our Pylons is Missing, Baby Sitter
• The ABC Saturday Superstar Movie: The Mad, Mad, Mad Monsters
• The Partridge Family: Maid in San Pueblo
• Laverne & Shirley: Frank's Fling
• Mr. Merlin: A Moment in Camelot

Theodore Sturgeon

• LotL: The Pylon Express
• Star Trek [TOS]: Shore Leave, Amok Time
• Out There: Ordeal in Space, Mewhu's Jet
• Tales of Tomorrow: Verdict from Space, Enemy Unknown, The Miraculous Serum
• Schlitz Playhouse of Stars: No Answer
• The Invaders: The Betrayed
• Killdozer

Donald F. Glut

• LotL: Blackout
• Spider-Man (1981): Wrath of the Sub-Mariner, The Hunter and the Hunted, The Capture of Captain America, Arsenic and Aunt May
• Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends: Origin of the Spider-Friends, Along Came Spidey, The Origin of Iceman, Pawns of the Kingpin, Knights & Demons, The Vengeance of Loki, The Prison Plot, The Crime of All Centuries
• G.I. Joe: Primordial Plot
• Transformers: Divide and Conquer, S.O.S. Dinobots, War of the Dinobots, Heavy Metal War, Autobot Spike, Dinobot Island I, Dinobot Island II, Megatron's Master Plan: Part 1, Megatron's Master Plan: Part 2, The Autobot Run, Maquerade, Call of the Primitives
• Jonny Quest (1986): The Scourge of Skyborg
• Masters of the Universe
• X-Men (1993): Deadly Reunions
• The Erotic Rites of Countess Dracula
• Countess Dracula's Orgy of Blood
• The Mummy's Kiss
• The Mummy's Kiss: 2nd Dynasty

Jon Kubichan

• LotL: After Shock, The Orb, Repairman, Hot Air Artist, Medicine Man (final episode)
• M Squad: The Platter Pirates
• Eight is Enough: Is There a Doctor in the House?

Samuel Roeca

• LotL: Survival Kit (featuring Richard Kiel), Cornered, Abominable Snowman
• Annie Oakley: Sharpshooting Annie
• Sabu and the Magic Ring
• Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok: The Bold Raven Rodeo, The Rainmaker, Jingles Wins a Friend, The Steam Wagon, The Sheriff of Buckeye
• Sugarfoot: The Canary Kid, Inc.
• The Roaring 20's: Vendetta on Bleecker Street
• The Runaway
• Angel Baby
• When the Girls Take Over
• Rawhide: Incident at Two Graves, Incident of the Prophecy, Incident of the Midnight Cave, Incident of the Dowry Dundee, Incident at Gila Flats, Incident of the Pied Piper, Incident of the Odyssey
• Daniel Boone: The Sisters O'Hannrahan
• The Outer Limits (1965): The Premonition
• Tarzan (1966): The Figurehead
• The Night Visitor
• Mission: Impossible: Blast, Invasion, Image, Trapped, Break!, Kidnap
• Hawaii Five-O: Secret Witness, Sign of the Ram, Use a Gun, Go to Hell, A Bird in Hand

Greg Strangis

• LotL: Medusa
• Room 222: Elizabeth Brown is Failing, Rights of Others, Someone Special, Here's to the Boy Most Likely
• Happy Days: Big Money, Richie's Flip Side
• Laverne & Shirley: It's the Water
• Electra Woman & Dyna Girl: The Pharoah: Part 1, The Pharoah: Part 2, Return of the Pharoah: Part 1, Returns of the Pharoah: Part 2
• Eight is Enough: Pieces of Eight, I Quit, Much Ado About Garbage, Hard Hats and Hard Heads, Long Night's Journey Into Day, The Lost Weekend, Fast and Loose, (movie) An Eight is Enough Wedding
• Harper Valley P.T.A.: The Return of Charlie Chow's Palace
• Dark Justice: 2nd Story, Crash Course
• JAG: High Ground, Black Ops
• Soldier of Fortune, Inc.: Hide and Seek, Critical List, Welcome to Bent Copper, Reasonable Doubts

John Cutts

• LotL: Flying Dutchman (featuring Richard Kiel)

Peter Germano

• LotL: Ancient Guardian
• Maverick: The Ice Man, The Art Lovers
• The Rifleman: Jealous Man
• The Fugitive: Terror at High Point, The Homecoming
• The Time Tunnel: End of the World
• Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: Doomsday Island
• The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams: Survival

TOS'n' 'bout my generation

OK, fresh banner here at BonK! because my son gave me an action figure of Captain Kirk in his chair. The new figure is Kirk at his captainy best, shiny ankle boots and all. My other Kirk figure is the 'battle damaged' Kirk with scratches on his face and a dirty shirt.

My first idea for the banner was something based on "The Enemy Within", an episode of Star Trek in which Kirk is split into two caricatures of himself. One is caring, peaceful, quiet, and timid; the other is angry, boistrous, and aggressive. As the story goes, neither of these two half-Kirks is worthy or able to command a starship... Only someone who has balanced these factors can be a strong and compassionate leader.

I'll try my original idea later. I just couldn't resist including Vena in this trial. It's still a good Kirk/bad Kirk idea, but this Orion slave girl is keeping them apart and breaking the 4th wall, gazing directly at us. I was unable to find words to put in her mouth. Any ideas for a quote or caption?

Oh, the background is the board from a limited edition Star Trek board game I've never had opportunity to play. If I'm going to teach myself to shoot miniatures I should probably put a bit more effort into their settings.This is a pretty terrible photo... I know it. At least the colors are nice. ;-)

Star Trek post on Bonnett's Book Store blog

This post serves as a cross-link to a photo I placed on the Bonnett's Book Store blog.
"May your way be as pleasant."

Lotus Elise - A Picture Every Now & Then # 34

A Picture Every Now & Then 034 - Lotus Elise

What is there to say? Enjoy!

Photographic notes:
Normally, I snap a few photos, move them to my computer, and use Picasa for some simple editing. I've found it completely satisfactory for my needs.

My philosophy has been: If Picasa can't fix it, it isn't worth fixing. To me, that's my way of accepting the fact that I've taken a bad photo and using that knowledge to try and avoid making the same mistake again... however...
I've recently started experimenting with the GIMP photo-editing software because I've heard of something called HDR imagery. HDR stands for High Dynamic Range. What it means is that an image will display nearly the full range of light that our eyes can see... here's an rough example: You're on a tree-lined city street with the sun low enough to cause you to squint when looking at the people or buildings down the road. You can look down the street and your eyes can adjust to make out details, colors, and textures because they automatically adjust to the light. You're camera isn't so good at that. If you take a photo of that scene you're likely to get a blindingly bright sun and everything else in the image will be in silhouette. Now, look down the street away from the sun... a photo taken in this direction will be well lit, perhaps too much so, losing definition and detail. HDR imagery allows you to combine multiple exposures of the same shot to bring out much of the detail that the human eye would see.

Typically, three exposures of an identical scene are used. It's possible to use more exposures, or only two. I've read that a single image in RAW format can be used to create an HDR as well, but I'm not so sure ( Please forgive any mistakes I may make, and feel free to correct me. I'm a novice, especially in the software side of photography). Getting three (or more) exposures of the same shot is quite easy these days. Many cameras have an auto-bracketing feature built-in. 'Bracketing' is when you take a picture, then take an under-exposed version of the same picture, and and over-exposed version. These images can be composited to make an HDR image of the scene.

What I've posted above was composited using exposure masking. Some folks think exposure masking is HDR, but I'm not so sure that's right. I took three bracketed shots, layer masked them together in The GIMP, and finalized it with some Picasa tweaks. I can barely do this process, let alone explain it. Search for the terms I've used above and you'll find the same info I found.

Here are three links I've found helpful:

• HDR tutorial: how to create HDR photos with free Qtpfsgui and GIMP | Design live
• Your first HDR image!
• Gimp HDR how to - Google Search

A nice collection of Star Trek randomosity

These are not your father's 'Star Trek geek' links! Check out Gizmodo's amazing collection of Trek-osity on parade. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll laugh 'til you cry, and you'll go back for more.

• http://gizmodo.com/tag/star-trek/
• Starfleet's Vulcan Bettie by Jesus Diaz