Doctor Who immitates art
Skreslet
I spotted two Doctor Who refferences just recently. The first
was the Herman Melville, the author of Moby Dick, his wife was named
Elizabeth Shaw. Is that wierd or what?
The other I noticed during a visit yesterday to the National
Gallery in Washington D.C. where they were holding an M. C. Etcher (sp?)
exhibit. One of his famous prints was called Castrovalva. In fact it
depicted a castle on a hill very similar to the one that appeared in the
Fifth Doctor episode of the same name. Also much of the
production design and recursion effects in the story were very
reminiscent of Etcher's work. I have the sneaking suspicion that this is
intentional.
Nathan A. Skreslet
Keith Topping
Skreslet <skre...@erols.com> writes
>I spotted two Doctor Who refferences just recently. The first
>was the Herman Melville, the author of Moby Dick, his wife was named
>Elizabeth Shaw. Is that wierd or what?
> The other I noticed during a visit yesterday to the National
>Gallery in Washington D.C. where they were holding an M. C. Etcher (sp?)
Escher
>exhibit. One of his famous prints was called Castrovalva. In fact it
>depicted a castle on a hill very similar to the one that appeared in the
>Fifth Doctor episode of the same name. Also much of the
>production design and recursion effects in the story were very
>reminiscent of Etcher's work. I have the sneaking suspicion that this is
>intentional.
It was. Chris Bidmead wrote the story with Escher's prints in mind (one
hung in the office of one of the 6th floor BBC bosses whom JNT and
Bidmead often visited for script meetings; it used to drive JNT to
distraction because, when you start looking at some of Escher's more
complex work, like fractals, they plays tricks with your mind. JNT made
sure that he always sat with his back to the print meaning Chris had to
sit facing it). Bidmead based a lot of the ideas (recursion, etc) on
three (extremely famous) Escher lithographs, 'Relativity', 'Ascending
and Descending', and 'Belvedere' which was taken one step further by
Fiona Cummings and her team of designers. As you spotted, the episode
title (and the design of the city) also come from this, more obscure,
and much earlier (1930) lithograph.
A recommended source for escher's art is Miranda Fellow's Parragon
book 'The Life and Works of Escher' which you can often pick up quite
cheaply in second hand book shops (I got mine for three pounds).
Keith --- Net Day 869/Post US Day 45
my therapist said I shouldn't see her no more,
she said "you're like a disease, without any cure",
she said I'm so obsessed that I'm becoming a bore...
you think you're so pretty
Laid
Mark Stevens
>three (extremely famous) Escher lithographs, 'Relativity', 'Ascending
>and Descending', and 'Belvedere' which was taken one step further by
>Fiona Cummings and her team of designers. As you spotted, the episode
>title (and the design of the city) also come from this, more obscure,
>and much earlier (1930) lithograph.
>A recommended source for escher's art is Miranda Fellow's Parragon
>book 'The Life and Works of Escher' which you can often pick up quite
>cheaply in second hand book shops (I got mine for three pounds).
There's also some useful resources on the web. Try:
http://lonestar.texas.net/~escher/
http://www.etropolis.com/escher/
/\/)ark
Cystell O. Dywod
Keith Topping wrote:
>< snip ><
Do you recall a program on Thames TV in the early 70's that starts out
with a man in an Art Museum staring at a painting of three women dressed
in long flowing diaphanous gowns sitting beneath a tree -- perhaps
having a picnic? As the program evolved, he ended up "teleported" into
the picture. They all ended up "nekkid" and running around doing
"nekkid stuff" only to have it end with evil armoured guys on horse
riding over the hill. They chase him (still "nekkid") and spear him
against the tree with one of their lances. Of my brief bout with the
British Telly, that show (for some strange reason) is not far down from
Doctor Who and Fawlty Towers on the "Episodes I Remember" scale.
;^} dave
Simon Cooke
Skreslet wrote in message <35268D...@erols.com>...
>I spotted two Doctor Who refferences just recently. The first
>was the Herman Melville, the author of Moby Dick, his wife was named
>Elizabeth Shaw. Is that wierd or what?
> The other I noticed during a visit yesterday to the National
>Gallery in Washington D.C. where they were holding an M. C. Etcher (sp?)
>exhibit. One of his famous prints was called Castrovalva. In fact it
>depicted a castle on a hill very similar to the one that appeared in the
>Fifth Doctor episode of the same name. Also much of the
>production design and recursion effects in the story were very
>reminiscent of Etcher's work. I have the sneaking suspicion that this is
>intentional.
Yep. Right after he saw that episode, ol' MC rushed off and said "By jove!
What a jolly spiffing idea!"
Sorry, it's late, and I'm in a particularly sarcastic mood ;)
BTW: Nathan... do you know of any Dr. Who fan clubs around here? I've been
in DC[1] for six months now, having difficulty making friends as I work with
1 other person, and my only other friends in the US live in Cleveland and
Tampa Bay, FL.
Simon
[1] Well, Centreville, Virginia, but DC sounds *so* much better.
Keith Topping
"Cystell O. Dywod" <wil...@erols.com> writes
>Do you recall a program on Thames TV in the early 70's that starts out
>with a man in an Art Museum staring at a painting of three women dressed
>in long flowing diaphanous gowns sitting beneath a tree -- perhaps
>having a picnic? As the program evolved, he ended up "teleported" into
>the picture. They all ended up "nekkid" and running around doing
>"nekkid stuff" only to have it end with evil armoured guys on horse
>riding over the hill. They chase him (still "nekkid") and spear him
>against the tree with one of their lances.
That's the benny Hill Show you're describing...
Skreslet
I'm in Richmond, VA and have been very unsuccessful in finding
any fans near here. I think Will Cameron who posts to radw often, lives
in Virginia somewhere. There are only about 3 or 4 people who know about
Doctor Who because I introduced them to it. Pretty slim pickings. Sorry.
:(
Nathan A. Skreslet
Iain Murray
Simon Cooke wrote
>BTW: Nathan... do you know of any Dr. Who fan clubs around here? I've been
>in DC[1] for six months now, having difficulty making friends as I work
with
>1 other person, and my only other friends in the US live in Cleveland and
>Tampa Bay, FL.
>
Well, there's me in Richmond, Va, as well. There could be some at the
British Embassy in DC (civil servants are particularly prone to liking Who,
I've found) but I don't know any off the top of my head. Try a British pub
(the main one in Richmond is a good centre for meeting fellow ex-pats) -
there may be the odd person fond enough of Who to convert into a proper
fan...
And I'm sure I came across a DC/Md fan club web site somewhere.
Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
Sincere Good Wishes
Iain
-----------------
iain...@prodigy.net.EXTERMINATESPAM
http://pages.profigy.net/iainkris/home.htm includes some Who stuff
DAVROS LIVES!
BFElliott
"Iain Murray" <iain...@prodigy.net> writes:
>Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
>
(Raises hand.)
I'm not involved in any clubs, though.
Benjamin F. Elliott
only known RADW poster in Manassas, Virginia
Simon Cooke
BFElliott wrote in message
<199804052243...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
>Benjamin F. Elliott
>only known RADW poster in Manassas, Virginia
Simon Cooke
(only known RADW poster just down the road from Benjamin)
Dangermouse
BFElliott <bfel...@aol.com> wrote in article
<199804052243...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
> "Iain Murray" <iain...@prodigy.net> writes:
>
> >Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
> >
> (Raises hand.)
>
> I'm not involved in any clubs, though.
Come down to Rising Star in October then - I'll be there... You can always
try to convince me to settle in VA instead of Julian, CA.
Greg McElhatton
bfel...@aol.com (BFElliott) wrote:
>"Iain Murray" <iain...@prodigy.net> writes:
>
>>Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
>>
>(Raises hand.)
>
>I'm not involved in any clubs, though.
I'm in NoVA as well but haven't been in clubs for ages... I think
Missy Abend still runs The Leisure Hive up in Maryland, though.
--
Greg McElhatton ** icedrake at erols.com
http://icedrake.simplenet.com/index.html
"The basic notion underlying USENET is the flame."
--Chuq Von Rospach
Grey
>Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
>
There's me in Hampton. If there was a club around here, I'd join,
but the only other Who fan(s) in my area that I am aware of is the
individual(s) I've come to think of as "The Mysterious Other". This is
the person(s) who every once in a while buys the latest books and
videos before I can. I keep thinking that someday we'll show up at the
same Suncoast at the same time, meet and decide to join forces, but
alas...
It's probably for the best anyway, as our occupying the same space
at the same time would most likely result in an explosion that would
shatter the space/time continuem. That, or cause all copies of
_Mawdryn Undead_ within a 500 mile radius to burst into flame.
/Tony
gr...@mindspring.com
Skreslet
Well, guys we've got to organize something! Anyone have any
ideas? I'm not an organizer. :(
Nathan A. Skreslet
Jim Lancaster
Grey <gr...@mindspring.com> wrote in article
<35287feb...@news.mindspring.com>...
> On Sun, 5 Apr 1998 17:26:01 -0400, "Iain Murray"
> <iain...@prodigy.net> wrote:
>
> >Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
> >
>
There's me in Strasburg, which is about half an hour away from Winchester.
TPwannabe
Jim wrote:
And me in Radford, also formerly of the Hampton Roads area.
Be seeing you,
Darryl
"She made me feel like a human being. That's not something that you just
forgive."
Angel, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Innocence"
gill...@citynet.net
In article <199804081743...@ladder03.news.aol.com>,
tpwa...@aol.com (TPwannabe) wrote:
>
> Jim wrote:
>
> >Grey <gr...@mindspring.com> wrote in article
> ><35287feb...@news.mindspring.com>...
> >> On Sun, 5 Apr 1998 17:26:01 -0400, "Iain Murray"
> >> <iain...@prodigy.net> wrote:
> >>
> >> >Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
> >> >
> >>
> >There's me in Strasburg, which is about half an hour away from Winchester.
>
> And me in Radford, also formerly of the Hampton Roads area.
>
Radford and Strasburg were never, ever part of the Hampton Roads area. :-)
-Donald
-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
http://www.dejanews.com/ Now offering spam-free web-based newsreading
gill...@citynet.net
In article <35287feb...@news.mindspring.com>,
gr...@mindspring.com (Grey) wrote:
>
> On Sun, 5 Apr 1998 17:26:01 -0400, "Iain Murray"
> <iain...@prodigy.net> wrote:
>
> >Any other Virginian who-ites out there?
> >
>
> but the only other Who fan(s) in my area that I am aware of is the
> individual(s) I've come to think of as "The Mysterious Other". This is
> the person(s) who every once in a while buys the latest books and
> videos before I can. I keep thinking that someday we'll show up at the
> same Suncoast at the same time, meet and decide to join forces, but
> alas...
The one at Patrick Henry Mall, I take it. There used to be a general
science fiction club in the Tidewater area - the Hampton Roads Science
Fiction Association. In the mid-late eighties, HaRoSFA used to try
unsuccessfully to lobby WHRO to carrying DOCTOR WHO, but the then-program
director and then-general manager were resistant. WHRO subscribed to a
narrowcasting" philosophy and one of the above-stated bigwigs was alleged
to hate science fiction in general.
Grey
On Thu, 09 Apr 1998 07:43:06 -0600, gill...@citynet.net wrote:
>The one at Patrick Henry Mall, I take it. There used to be a general
>science fiction club in the Tidewater area - the Hampton Roads Science
>Fiction Association. In the mid-late eighties, HaRoSFA used to try
>unsuccessfully to lobby WHRO to carrying DOCTOR WHO, but the then-program
>director and then-general manager were resistant. WHRO subscribed to a
>narrowcasting" philosophy and one of the above-stated bigwigs was alleged
>to hate science fiction in general.
>
>-Donald
>
Doctor Who did air here for a little while in the early eighties.
That's how I first discovered it as a child. I seem to recall tuning
in to channel 13 at around 7:00 pm. I've always assumed I was wrong
about the channel and that it must have been 15 (WHRO). I can't recall
if there were commercials or not, but I still can't imagine WVEC would
have shown Who, and certainly not at that time slot.
The only Doctor I was familiar with at that time was Tom Baker.
The only stories I can vividly recall seeing back then are Revenge of
the Cybermen, Terror of the Zygons, Invasion of Time and Android
Invasion. My cousin claims to have seen a few Pertwee stories back
then, and that must be true or else he probably wouldn't know there
were ever any other Doctors, as he never "rediscovered" the series
later in life as I did.
Can you shed any light on my foggy memory, Donald?
/Tony
gr...@mindspring.com
TPwannabe
Tony wrote:
>On Thu, 09 Apr 1998 07:43:06 -0600, gill...@citynet.net wrote:
>
>>The one at Patrick Henry Mall, I take it. There used to be a general
>>science fiction club in the Tidewater area - the Hampton Roads Science
>>Fiction Association. In the mid-late eighties, HaRoSFA used to try
>>unsuccessfully to lobby WHRO to carrying DOCTOR WHO, but the then-program
>>director and then-general manager were resistant. WHRO subscribed to a
>>narrowcasting" philosophy and one of the above-stated bigwigs was alleged
>>to hate science fiction in general.
>>
>>-Donald
>>
>
> Doctor Who did air here for a little while in the early eighties.
Indeed it did. 1983, to be exact.
>That's how I first discovered it as a child. I seem to recall tuning
>in to channel 13 at around 7:00 pm. I've always assumed I was wrong
>about the channel and that it must have been 15 (WHRO). I can't recall
>if there were commercials or not, but I still can't imagine WVEC would
>have shown Who, and certainly not at that time slot.
Heh heh.
Doctor Who was the LAST program to be aired in the weeknights at 7 and 7:30
timeslots on WVEC prior to the arrival of "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy".
Even though I don't live there anymore, I still haven't forgiven them for that.
:) WVEC would air two episodes a night, edited together, with commercial
breaks inserted. I still have somewhere a copy of "The Deadly Assassin" Donald
and I audiotaped, and you can tell in some cases where they stuck commercials.
(I remember one right after Hildred's line, "Dangers intruder at large.")
> The only Doctor I was familiar with at that time was Tom Baker.
>The only stories I can vividly recall seeing back then are Revenge of
>the Cybermen, Terror of the Zygons, Invasion of Time and Android
>Invasion. My cousin claims to have seen a few Pertwee stories back
>then, and that must be true or else he probably wouldn't know there
>were ever any other Doctors, as he never "rediscovered" the series
>later in life as I did.
No. WVEC only ran "Robot" through "The Invasion of Time". Channel 2 (WUND) on
the Outer Banks, however, did carry the show from Pertwee on, but WVEC never
did.
> Can you shed any light on my foggy memory, Donald?
I hope I provided some answers in his place. :)
gill...@citynet.net
In article <352dba8f...@news.mindspring.com>,
gr...@mindspring.com (Grey) wrote:
>
> On Thu, 09 Apr 1998 07:43:06 -0600, gill...@citynet.net wrote:
>
> >The one at Patrick Henry Mall, I take it. There used to be a general
> >science fiction club in the Tidewater area - the Hampton Roads Science
> >Fiction Association. In the mid-late eighties, HaRoSFA used to try
> >unsuccessfully to lobby WHRO to carrying DOCTOR WHO, but the then-program
> >director and then-general manager were resistant. WHRO subscribed to a
> >narrowcasting" philosophy and one of the above-stated bigwigs was alleged
> >to hate science fiction in general.
> >
> >-Donald
> >
>
> Doctor Who did air here for a little while in the early eighties.
> in to channel 13 at around 7:00 pm. I've always assumed I was wrong
> about the channel and that it must have been 15 (WHRO). I can't recall
> if there were commercials or not, but I still can't imagine WVEC would
> have shown Who, and certainly not at that time slot.
> The only stories I can vividly recall seeing back then are Revenge of
> the Cybermen, Terror of the Zygons, Invasion of Time and Android
> Invasion. My cousin claims to have seen a few Pertwee stories back
> then, and that must be true or else he probably wouldn't know there
> were ever any other Doctors, as he never "rediscovered" the series
> later in life as I did.
Yes.
WVEC (the ABC affiliate for anyone kibitzing on the thread and unfamiliar
with the Southeastern Virginia area) Channel 13 first aired DOCTOR WHO in
the Winter/Spring of 1978 at 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday for several months.
They started with the early Tom Baker package that Time-Life made available
for stateside syndication in January 1978. Shortly thereafter, WVEC briefly
went to a 24 hour/day broadcasting schedule and DOCTOR WHO was moved to the
wee hours (something like 4:00 am). At the time, the LEDGER-STAR (the local
newspaper) had an anonymous sound-off/complaint column called "Confidential"
and I remember reading several complaints about WVEC airing individual
episodes out of order. Shortly thereafter, DOCTOR WHO disappeared from the
local broadcast schedule.
In the Spring of 1983, DOCTOR WHO briefly returned to fill in the
7:00-8:00 pm timeslot when an attempt at a local news magazine tanked
in the ratings. Ironically the first story aired was "The Invasion of Time".
From there they cycled back to "Robot". We went through a couple of runs
from "Robot" through "The Invasion of Time" until late summer, when the
evening versions of "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy" were given the slot,
and that was it for DOCTOR WHO in Tidewater.
We only got Tom Baker - no Pertwee, no Davison.
However, around the same time, DOCTOR WHO was airing on WUND Channel 2, a
North Carolina PBS station, which could - on Summer nights in the
mid-eighties when the climactic conditions were right - be picked up with
varying degrees of snow on our little black and white set and occasionally
we'd pick up a DC station and once, even a New Jersey station. It was under
those conditions that Darryl and I saw part one of "The Time Meddler", bits
of "The Green Death" and "Planet of the Daleks"
We'd also spend occasional spring and summer weekend on the Outer Banks,
where WUND was brought in via cable, where we got to see more Pertwee
and Davison in "Earthshock".
If your cousin and his family spent any time in DC or Carolina, it's possible
that he may have seen Pertwee then. Or he read TV GUIDE in 1983 which had a
"Grapevine" article (which came out while WVEC was airing the program) on the
then-upcoming "Five Doctors" 20th anniversary episode which was illustrated
with publicity photos of Pertwee, Baker and Davison) or an actual article on
"The Five Doctors" months later (after WVEC had taken off the program). Or
he could've stumbled over the Haining books at Waldenbooks.
Hope this helps.
Regards,