Historical dictionary of science fiction cinema

369 Pages·2010·1.313 MB·English

by  Booker, M. Keith

Historical Dictionaries of Literature and the Arts
Jon Woronoff, Series Editor
1. S cience Fiction Literature, by Brian Stableford, 2004.
2. H ong Kong Cinema, by Lisa Odham Stokes, 2007.
3. A merican Radio Soap Operas, by Jim Cox, 2005.
4. J apanese Traditional Theatre, by Samuel L. Leiter, 2006.
5. F antasy Literature, by Brian Stableford, 2005.
6. A ustralian and New Zealand Cinema, by Albert Moran and Errol
Vieth, 2006.
7. A frican-American Television, by Kathleen Fearn-Banks, 2006.
8. L esbian Literature, by Meredith Miller, 2006.
9. S candinavian Literature and Theater, by Jan Sjåvik, 2006.
10. B ritish Radio, by Seán Street, 2006.
11. G erman Theater, by William Grange, 2006.
12. A frican American Cinema, by S. Torriano Berry and Venise
Berry, 2006.
13. S acred Music, by Joseph P. Swain, 2006.
14. R ussian Theater, by Laurence Senelick, 2007.
15. F rench Cinema, by Dayna Oscherwitz and MaryEllen Higgins,
2007.
16. P ostmodernist Literature and Theater, by Fran Mason, 2007.
17. I rish Cinema, by Roderick Flynn and Pat Brereton, 2007.
18. A ustralian Radio and Television, by Albert Moran and Chris
Keating, 2007.
19. P olish Cinema, by Marek Haltof, 2007.
20. O ld Time Radio, by Robert C. Reinehr and Jon D. Swartz, 2008.
21. R enaissance Art, by Lilian H. Zirpolo, 2008.
22. B roadway Musical, by William A. Everett and Paul R. Laird,
2008.
23. A merican Theater: Modernism, by James Fisher and Felicia
Hardison Londré, 2008.
24. G erman Cinema, by Robert C. Reimer and Carol J. Reimer, 2008.
25. H orror Cinema, by Peter Hutchings, 2008.
26. W esterns in Cinema, by Paul Varner, 2008.
27. C hinese Theater, by Tan Ye, 2008.
28. I talian Cinema, by Gino Moliterno, 2008.
29. A rchitecture, by Allison Lee Palmer, 2008.
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd ii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
30. R ussian and Soviet Cinema, by Peter Rollberg, 2008.
31. A frican American Theater, by Anthony D. Hill, 2009.
32. P ostwar German Literature, by William Grange, 2009.
33. M odern Japanese Literature and Theater, by J. Scott Miller,
2009.
34. A nimation and Cartoons, by Nichola Dobson, 2009.
35. M odern Chinese Literature, by Li-hua Ying, 2010.
36. M iddle Eastern Cinema, by Terri Ginsberg and Chris Lippard,
2010.
37. S panish Cinema, by Alberto Mira, 2010.
38. F ilm Noir, by Andrew Spicer, 2010.
39. F rench Theater, by Edward Forman, 2010.
40. C horal Music, by Melvin P. Unger, 2010.
41. W esterns in Literature, by Paul Varner, 2010.
42. B aroque Art and Architecture, by Lilian H. Zirpolo, 2010.
43. S urrealism, by Keith Aspley, 2010.
44. S cience Fiction Cinema, by M. Keith Booker, 2010.
45. L atin American Literature and Theater, by Richard A. Young
and Odile Cisneros, 2010.
46. C hildren’s Literature, by Emer O’Sullivan, 2010.
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd iiii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
Historical Dictionary of
Science Fiction Cinema
M. Keith Booker
Historical Dictionaries of
Literature and the Arts, No. 44
The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Lanham (cid:129) Toronto (cid:129) Plymouth, UK
2010
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd iiiiii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
Published by Scarecrow Press, Inc.
A wholly owned subsidiary of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706
http://www.scarecrowpress.com
Estover Road, Plymouth PL6 7PY, United Kingdom
Copyright © 2010 by M. Keith Booker
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by
any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval
systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who
may quote passages in a review.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Booker, M. Keith.
Historical dictionary of science fiction cinema / M. Keith Booker.
p. cm. — (Historical dictionaries of literature and the arts)
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 978-0-8108-5570-0 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-8108-7462-6
(ebook)
1. Science fiction films—Dictionaries. I. Title.
PN1995.9.S26B566 2010
791.43'615—dc22 2010016612
(cid:2) ™
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Printed in the United States of America
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd iivv 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
For Benjamin Booker, Skylor Booker,
and Adam Booker.
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd vv 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd vvii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
Contents
Editor’s Foreword Jon Woronoff ix
Preface xi
Reader’s Note xiii
Chronology xv
Introduction 1
THE DICTIONARY 21
Bibliography 309
About the Author 333
vii
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd vviiii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd vviiiiii 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM
Editor’s Foreword
Although it has actually been around since the early days of filmmak-
ing, science fiction cinema is a contemporary and futuristic genre. It
deals with events that usually take place at a far-off time and often far-
off place; thus it appeals to the human desire to understand and perhaps
predict the future. It also helps to explain science and technology and
where they could be leading us. Science fiction cinema tackles prickly
problems, often in a context that make them more real than reality—
problems such as environmental degradation; overpopulation and pres-
sure on space and goods; friction between the sexes, races, and nations;
and the coming and substantially greater difficulties in dealing with
rogue computers, robots, clones, and possibly even aliens (if we can
believe what we see in the movies). Although science fiction cinema
is often termed escapism, it is also an attempt to come to terms with
a rapidly changing world. Consider the words of the great science fic-
tion author Arthur C. Clarke: “We all want to escape occasionally. But
science fiction is often very far from escapism, in fact you might say
that science fiction is escape into reality. . . . It’s a fiction which does
concern itself with real issues: the origin of man; our future. In fact I
can’t think of any form of literature which is more concerned with real
issues, reality.”
This Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction Cinema is an excellent
guide to the field. The chronology illustrates how long the movies have
been around and charts some of the major advances—and films—over
the years. The introduction then provides an overview, reminding us
that science fiction cinema is hardly monolithic; rather, it consists of
different genres, produced in an increasing range of countries, and using
varying techniques. The bulk of the information, as usual, appears in
the dictionary, with entries on directors, actors, and films. Other entries
deal with topics such as monsters, alien invasions, utopia, and dystopia,
ix
1100__338888__0000__FFrroonntt..iinndddd iixx 77//2288//1100 1111::3300 AAMM