News of the Week

Gibson scores first with Playboy

arlier this month William Gibson kicked off a promotional tour for his new novel, Idoru, which included signings in 10 major U.S. and Canadian cities as well as a special promotion on the Playboy Web site. According to publisher G.P. Putnam's Sons, the Playboy promotional is the first time a novel excerpt has appeared on the Playboy site, which receives nearly 5 million hits per day.

"Gibson is a futurist," said Eileen Kent, Playboy's vice president of new media, "and this is the technology of the future. He's a compelling author who now takes his place in the Playboy pantheon along with Bradbury, Ellison, Le Guin, Vonnegut, Clark, King, Pohl, Sturgeon...."

The Playboy site also includes a RealAudio interview with Gibson. Readers without Web access can receive a text version of the novel excerpt by sending e-mail to ips@olympus.net with the subject line "Send IDORU".

For more information, see our review of Idoru this issue. Pictured is Gibson during a book signing earlier this month in New York.

SF proves big winner at the Emmys

peculative fiction television shows took the 48th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards by storm on September 8, as both The X-Files and Gulliver's Travels lead all other television shows by taking home five Emmys apiece.

NBC's Gulliver's Travels won for Best Miniseries and for Writing in a Miniseries or Special. The X-Files scored wins for the episode "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," for Peter Boyle as Guest Actor in a Drama and Darin Morgan for Best Writing in a Drama Series.

Other big wins included: John Lithgow as Best Actor in a Comedy Series for NBC's 3rd Rock from the Sun and Amanda Plummer as Best Guest Actress in a Drama Series for The Outer Limits.

Fox gears up for second ID4 assault

wentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has allocated a staggering $30 million to advertise the Nov. 22 video release of its hit summer film, Independence Day. Fox has said the advertising campaign, which will be waged over a mere six weeks, may be the largest industry campaign ever undertaken for a single title.

Advertising for the video will create an estimated 6.5 billion consumer impressions, and Fox said it expects every consumer in its target demographics to see promotions 25 times by the end of the year. The video version of ID4 will retail for $22.98, and videos bought by Dec. 31 will include a 3-D box cover detailing the explosion of the White House.

Meanwhile, at the real White House President Clinton suggested the United States has a pressing reason to land research missions on Mars to investigate the possibility of extraterrestrial life: "We thought we'd go visit them first and try to get around that blowing up the Capitol and the White House business."

Acclaimed Star Trek actor dies

ibi Besch, best known to science fiction fans for her portrayal of Dr. Carol Marcus in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, died on Sept. 7 after a prolonged battle with cancer. Besch was an accomplished character actor who appeared in numerous stage, television and film productions ranging from soap operas to motion pictures.

Besch was nominated for an Emmy for her role in Doing Time on Maple Drive, a story about a mother dealing with her gay son. She most recently had a recurring role on the Jeff Foxworthy Show.

Chris Carter named in sexual harassment suit

udith A. Fairly, a former script coordinator for The X-Files, has filed a sexual harassment suit against the show's creator and executive producer Chris Carter, and Howard Gordon, the shows co-executive producer. Fairly alleges that the two men engaged in "continuous, pervasive and ongoing offensive and unwelcome sexual conduct" during her three-year tenure with The X-Files.

Fairly has also named Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. and Twentieth Century Fox TV in the suit. Fox officials have called the suit "frivolous" and Carter said "this claim appears to be emblematic of a climate where disgruntled employees are manipulating the intent behind well-meaning laws for nothing more than undeserved personal financial gain."

UPN launches Star Trek gala

n Oct. 6 UPN will broadcast Star Trek: 30 Years and Beyond, a live tribute to the 30-year history of the Star Trek franchise, which first aired on Sept. 8, 1966. The two-hour special will include appearances by many stars from both the new and old shows, although no specific names have been released.

The Permanent Charities of the Entertainment Industries is selling tickets to the black-tie gala to raise funds and bring recognition to the charity's mission and to The American Oceans Campaign, Cities in Schools and The Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights.

The special will air from 8 - 10 p.m. EDT with a tape-delay broadcast to the West Coast.

David Duchnovy pairs on screen and off with Winona Ryder

V Guide reported that X-File's star David Duchovny and Winona Ryder are -- almost -- officially a pair. While neither star has commented on their relationship, they have apparently been quite the talk in Vancouver, B.C., where The X-Files is filmed.

Reportedly the pair had decided to go public at the Emmy Awards earlier this month but opted not to following publicity about their dating. When TV Guide asked Duchovny about Ryder, all he would say is, "I'm happy and I'm in love. I can't really talk about who it is because it's my personal life."

Meanwhile, X-Files executive producer Chris Carter has been talking to Ryder's representatives about having the young movie star make an appearance on The X-Files later this year. It may be difficult for Ryder to find the time, however, as she is reportedly working out six hours a day to buff up for her upcoming role in Alien4.

New Line finds promise in Lost in Space

ew Line is set to start production early next year on a $60 million adaptation of the 1960s television series Lost in Space, according to Variety. Akiva Goldsman, who scripted Batman Forever and the upcoming Batman and Robin, will write the screenplay.

Speculation is that New Line will go with an ensemble cast, bucking the current trend of signing big-name movie stars for name recognition. The film has a projected release date of October 1997.

McAuley, Baxter, de Camp win first Sidewise Awards

he first annual Sidewise Awards for Alternate History were given to P.J. McAuley, Stephen Baxter and L. Sprague de Camp. McAuley earned the Sidewise Award for best long form alternate history for his novel, Pasquale's Angel. Baxter was honored in the best short form category for his story, "Brigantia's Angels," while de Camp was given a special award for achievement in alternate history.

The Sidewise Awards were created by Evelyn Leeper, Robert Schmunk and Steven Silver to honor the best publications in the alternate history "genre." The awards take their name from the 1934 short story "Sidewise in Time," which was written by Murray Leinster.

The 1996 Sidewise Awards were announced at the World Science Fiction Convention, held Aug. 31 - Sept. 2 in Anaheim, Calif.

MacLeod, Heinlein earn Prometheus Awards

en MacLeod received the 1996 Prometheus Award for best libertarian science fiction novel of 1995 during a short ceremony held Aug. 31 at the World Science Fiction Convention in Anaheim, Calif. MacLeod earned the award for his novel, The Star Fraction.

Robert A. Heinlein also received a posthumous Hall of Fame Award for best classic science fiction novel for his novel, Red Planet. The awards were presented by author James P. Hogan, himself a two-time winner of the Prometheus.

Beaulieu announces latest "event"

race Beaulieu, who recently left the cast of Mystery Science Theater 3000 after an eight-year stint as Dr. Clayton Forrester, has moved into the comic book industry. Beaulieu has signed on with Event Comics to work on the upcoming illustrated project, Here Come the Big People.

Event, which publishes the popular comic book series Ash, said in a press release that they "can't wait to see what Trace can do with nurturing alien caregivers and a hundred pounds of silly putty." No further details about the project were available.

Capella to film Santiago

ike Resnick has completed a deal with Capella Films, Inc., for Santiago, a script written by Resnick and his wife Carol and based on his popular novel of the same name. Resnick said the film is being produced by Ed Elbert and directed by Marsh Douglas.

According to Resnick, the film is currently scheduled to begin shooting sometime in the first half of 1997. Resnick said he hopes to announce another film deal later this month.

Worldcon hosts successful blood drive

he Robert A. Heinlein Memorial Blood Drive held earlier this month at the World Science Fiction Convention received a total of 71 usable donations, according to an announcement posted to the L.A.con III mailing list. The news was posted by Dennis and Kristine Cherry, the American Red Cross Blood Drive Coordinators for L.A.con III.

Eighty-five people went through donation process, although 10 were deferred for medical reasons while some of the donations were unusable. According to a Red Cross representative, the 71 donations will help save 285 lives.

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