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Showing posts with the label Skeptics Guide

An Alternative History of Close Encounters

Time for a new podcast episode! Steven Spielberg's classic UFO movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind could have been very different. In today's episode of the podcast we dig into the rejected early script for the film, which was written by Paul Schrader (famed screenwriter of Raging Bull and Taxi Driver). As well as reviewing this film-that-never-was, we have a sci-fi quiz, plus our usual run through of recommendations of past/present/future science fiction.   We hope you enjoy the episode!   Items discussed include:   Kingdom Come , the original draft script by Paul Schrader for the Close Encounters project (click here for PDF download) The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast The forthcoming new edition of Ray Bradbury's Dark Carnival   Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities The new edition of Nigel ( Quatermass ) Kneale's long out-of-print Tomato Cain Updates to the Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction School Library Journal on updating sch...

Shark Jumps (episode 18 of the podcast)

In this new episode of Science Fiction 101 , Phil and Colin review three short stories - the only three stories to make the Hugo, Nebula and Locus shortlists this time round. Our quizzing reaches new heights - or should that be depths - with a Chronology- inspired challenge for Phil. And we round off with our usual dash through past/present/future science fiction. We hope you enjoy the show. The stories we review are: " Mr. Death " by Alix E. Harrow (from Apex #2, 2021) " Proof by Induction " by José Pablo Iriarte (from Uncanny #5-6, 2021) " Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather ", Sarah Pinsker (from Uncanny #3-4, 2021)   Other items we mention: The Nebula award winners , Netflix series Sweet Tooth , Paramount Plus' Obi Wan Kenobi , film director Byron Haskin , author Patricia McKillip , podcasts and books from The Skeptics Guide to the Universe .         Other podcast platf...