SFSurplus-2008-02-10 #018 [26:11m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Topics: love, romance, Dark Angel, WGA Strike, Val Kilmer, Joshua Jackson, Doctor Who

Thank you for spending time with us. This is show number 18 and there’s lot’s today. Because it’s Valentine’s Week, I got talked into discussing romance and love stories in speculative fiction in the Council of Great Relevance. I’m also going to give you my 5 favorite moments from Dark Angel. In the news is the writer’s strike, Val Kilmer, Joshua Jackson, and Doctor Who. There’s no time to waste so let’s get our geek on!

Anti-witness News

Strike Winds Down
http://www.variety.com/VR1117980626.html

Casey: The writer’s appear to have reached an agreement with the big production companies and the strike may soon come to an end. The Writer’s Guild of America has sent out a 48 hour vote to it’s membership to decide whether or not to end the picketing. If the writer’s vote to end the strike, they will likely be back to work on Wednesday, February 13th. The main issue the writer’s had with the studios is how much they get paid for digital downloads of programs.

Kilmer Replaces Arnett As K.I.T.T.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117980382.html?categoryid=14&cs=1

Vince: Val Kilmer has been chosen to replace Will Arnett as the voice of KITT in the upcoming T-V movie Knight Rider. Arnett was best known for his role of GOB on the show, Arrested Development. He has also been the prominent voice talent for GMC Trucks for several years. Because the new KITT is a Ford Mustang and Ford has a large marketing deal with the show, General Motors asked Arnett to back out of the role because of a contractual conflict of interest. Knight Rider airs on NBC Sunday, February 17th.

Doctor Who Season 4 Coming to SciFi Channel
http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=0&id=47970

Casey: The fourth season of the new Doctor Who incarnation will make its way to the SciFi Channel. Also making it’s U-S debut on the channel is the Doctor Who spin-off series, “The Sarah Jane Adventures.” Sarah Jane Smith is a former companion of the Doctor and seeks out mysteries with some news friends. Both “Doctor Who Season Four” and “The Sarah Jane Adventures” air in the U-S this April.

Joshua Jackson in Fringe
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i09f751dd163aa411d1999a0c1d254619

Vince: J.J. Abrams’ television pilot, “Fringe,” has cast a male lead. Joshua Jackson will play the role of Peter Bishop, a high-school dropout with a one-hundred and ninety I-Q. He will team up with F-B-I agent, Olivia Warren to investigate unexplained phenomena and work off a gambling debt.

Anna Friel in “Land of the Lost”
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i282efa25a99dbc221331905c639ab115

Casey: Anna Friel, “Chuck” from the show Pushing Daisies, is the female lead in the Will Farrell, “Land of the Lost” movie. The film is a re-imagining of a 19-70s kids show where a paleontologist finds himself in a strange prehistoric world. This film is scheduled for a 2009 release.

Earth: Final Conflict 1 and 2 on DVD
http://tvshowsondvd.com/news/Earth-Final-Conflict-DVDs-Planned/8919

Vince: The first two seasons of “Gene Roddenberry’s Earth: Final Conflict” are set to be released on D-V-D by Universal Studios. Seasons three, four and five, were released back in 2003 by Vision, the company that owns the rights to those seasons. Universal was expected to release the first two seasons back then but never followed through. The release date is July 15th but it’s not clear if that’s just for season one or both seasons.

Artificial Heart Inventor Stunt Double
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/business/media/08jarvik.html?ref=health

Casey: Doctor Robert Jarvik, inventor of the artificial heart, is coming under fire from a U-S House of Representatives committee. The topic of investigation is the use of a stunt double in the television commercials for the cholesterol-lowering drug, Lipitor. It was asserted by the drug-maker that Jarvik was taking part in the highly physical activity of “sculling.” The committee is trying to determine if the drug company is using false and misleading statements in the use of celebrity endorsements to sell prescription medications.