Pod Stallions Episode 24: Starlog

[RSS]

Our November podcast has Jason and Brian waxing nostalgic (which technically is our job) about the glory days of Starlog magazine.


Starlog magazine was how both of us first cut our nerdy teeth, a wonderful window into the world of SF and fantasy that gave us that connection. It's safe to say, this podcast owes a lot to this publication. Even if we often times asked for a brown paper bag so as to not get beat up on the way home.

We review landmark issues and of course, talk about the wonderful ads that appeared over the decades.

Along the way we discuss SF of the 70s and 80s, Mego toys, Blade Runner, model kits, Flash Gordon, Shatner, Jim Sterenko and most importantly Harlan Ellison's hat.




Download the Show Here

Listen here









Show Links:

• [*=left]The Official Starlog website is operational again.
  [*=left]The majority of issues are available for viewing at this website.
• Photos of the Starlog stores in Japan in the late 1970s.
  [*=left]A great Huffington Post article about some of the movie rumours that were found in the magazine over the years.
• The Harlan Ellison trucker hat is calling to you, don't resist, YOU MUST BUY IT NOW!

Plenty more content on the PodStallions Facebook page!
PODSTALLIONS ON ITUNES
PODSTALLIONS RSS FEED

For more Fashion Mockery and 70's toy love visit us at Plaid Stallions.com


More...

[Hedji]

BRILLIANT choice for a topic. Oh, I can't wait to listen. Loved the shows from October!

[FETT1]

Brian ..you and Jason are Awesome ...I can not wait for the next episode....I never knew about the podcast til Jason me ntioned it over at Geeks shall inherit.
These are right up my alley...Many bring me back to the days of early collecting here in FREEZING COLD SNOW COVERED EDMONTON,ALBERTA...Brrrrrrrrr...atleast I can listen to the show and sip a Hot Chocolate !

Battle of the Planets was aweSssssssome episode .

Sir ...Thank you,

JasOn

[Earth 2 Chris]

Fun show as always. I wasn't a regular Starlog buyer, but I had s good stack of 'em accumulate over the years. I was really into those movie specials and poster books they'd do. In fact, one of the posters from their Superman III special still hangs in my son's room...the one where a triumphant Clark Kent performs a shirt rip in the junkyard.

If Hamil really did say that, he was kind of the pot calling the kettle black, huh? He's long been known to be a diehard comic geek.

Jason calling Ellison a D-bag almost made me laugh out loud at work. Nice one.

Chris

[Mr.Marion]

I enjoyed this one even though Starlog was never on my radar. I like that the Avengers (TV) got mentioned. Hopefully that is a future episode all on its own.

[Falstaff13]

Yet another great episode, where I found myself, once again, nodding repeatedly and thinking of things I would add. I, too, loved Starlog and found it an excellent resource as I was growing up, particularly for the very fact they covered any and all science-fiction/fantasy. For the completist in me, there was something awesome about an interview with an older actor that got information on all genre appearances, no matter how trivial or awful a film. I used to read articles about shows I'd never heard of and come away with great info (I know I read & reread the episode guide to One Step Beyond enough times I feel like I watched it--and I've still never seen it, but that Starlog article caused me to consider the DVDs).

I did get frustrated with the magazine as it shifted into more and more Star Trek coverage at the expense of other shows (though the "Guests of Trek" feature was kind of fun). I remember a letter asking for a Doctor Who issue for its 25th Anniversary, and they said they didn't want to devote entire issues to single series, and the very next month was an all-Klingon issue. By the end of my reading, I was picking up Comics Scene a little more regularly, but I was very happy back then to get each issue.

I was glad to hear a reference to Star Tech. That company had some good catalogs along the way in the pre-internet days, and I remember them offering many shows on tape at one point. They also published a journal called Epi-Log that had some thorough episode guides.

[johnmiic]

Brian, the Anime Co. that you might be thinking of may have been Arsenal Of Fantasy. I think they operated on the east coast and I bought some Star Blazers/Yamato kits from them. They sometimes showed up at East Coast Creation Con's. The guy who ran it wrote an independent comic titled The Photon Effect, (I think). New Eye was bought out by Intergalactic Trading a few years ago.

Kerry O'Quinn is on FB now-a-days and came out of the closet, (He is gay). Not sure what happened to his publishing partner Norm Jacobs, (probably deceased). At some point O'Quinn left the magazine, (in the early `90's), long after it's most interesting contributors left in the mid `80's. Editor at the time Howard Zimmerman stated he wanted to head to Hollywood to try and write film scripts. The mag was mostly watched over by the ever-boring Dave McDonnell who was a master of self-hype and uninteresting minute` of how Starlog worked behind the scenes, (mostly how he worked behind the scenes). I did attend the Starlog Festival in 1985 and saw the wacky Starlog Birthday short film.

Strangely enough it was never explained why the cancellation of Doctor Who was never covered in the U.K. as fandom ripped itself apart, (D.W.B. did that very effectively). Nor the lawsuit between Haralan Ellison and James Cameron over the ownership of the Terminator, nor was the lawsuit their own David Gerrold filed against ST-TNG ever covered. Always wanting to milk the good-will of the Rodenberrys` they kissed major azz to get rights to many Trek tie in publications, (too many probably), while looking the other way. As time went on I grew really disappointed with them.

[Neutron X]

I too was nodding along agreeing with all the great Starlog memories! I had a lot f fun listening THANKS!

[VintageMike]

The remember the Starlog stores. In my area they had three different locations over time I remember, one a free standing location in Ridgewood, NJ (where I made my first attempt MOC Star Wars collectiing) and a small mall location in the Paramus Park Mall and a larger one in the Garden State Plaza. I'm guessing that's the one mentioned in the show. The Ridgewood location also had a start wars pinball machine in the back.

[palitoy]

The remember the Starlog stores. In my area they had three different locations over time I remember, one a free standing location in Ridgewood, NJ (where I made my first attempt MOC Star Wars collectiing) and a small mall location in the Paramus Park Mall and a larger one in the Garden State Plaza. I'm guessing that's the one mentioned in the show. The Ridgewood location also had a start wars pinball machine in the back.

I was always REALLY messed up when we went there, after driving 12 hours, the whole store always felt dream like.

[Falstaff13]

The mall in Cary, NC had a Starlog store in the mid-1990s for a very brief time. I managed to get there just once. I bought a Dapol Fourth Doctor figure that was dirt cheap (it had already started creeping up in price in mail-order ads), and I was excited about getting to return, but I went back just a month or so after that, and it was already gone.