Titan A.E. Books

Back when there was little else written about Star Trek, before David Gerrold's great "World of Star Trek" analysis or Franz Joseph's blueprints, "The Making of Star Trek" was the ultimate. I devoured it as a boy in the early '70s. To this day I don't think anyone can consider themselves a true original series die-hard without having read this book. It really does take you inside the making of the show, but keeps it on a professional level, without salaciousness. That's because the book wasn't written as something for the few Star Trek fans that were known of then, but as a book about how to write for TV, as older printings stated on the cover. That does leave some things out, but those details have been covered since by other books and memoirs.

Since this was written while the series was in production, it's a good view into how people felt then, even refreshing because Trek had yet to become a pop culture colossus, so the book doesn't have any of that built-in reverence. They were making a good TV show that aspired to be something better than most everything else on then, but in the end it was considered just another TV job, certainly not anything that would become legendary.

For instance, "The Defenders," one of the highest praised, most thoughtful and well-written dramas of the '60s, is scarecely remembered by anyone not old enough to have seen it. Part of the issue with that series had to do with rerun-rights issues, but another part had to do with the times then, when TV was still rather young, and shows were thought of as rather disposable, coming and going without much of an afterlife except for "Lucy" and "Honeymooners" reruns. When you think of it in that context, it's easy to see why Gene Roddenberry bailed on Star Trek after it became clear NBC was out to kill it, even though the letter campaign forced them to bring it back for a third year.

The pics and blueprints within the book are cool but may not be as impressive today. At least the blueprints, while not "accurate" by today's standards, were drawn by Matt Jefferies himself. Remember, though, for a long time this was all the reference stuff available. However, if you want what is still a good insider's look into the making of the show, plus Gene Roddenberry's take before even he got sucked into the myth, this is a must-read.

hey Spouk

the capitalization of quotes from Roddenberry (aka the Great Bird of the Galazy) give one "the bizarre impression that he is a god" because for the series, he was :-)

i have a copy of the original publication, read it then and howled, still think it is a great read.

BTW Terry Pratchett uses the same literary device of all caps for Death, in the Discworld series.

Harlan Ellison's memories of the show are fascinating reading as well. As are David Gerrold's.

I read this in the Seventies and thoroughly enjoyed it. Now I've bought it again and enjoyed it all over again. Fascinating behind-the-scenes look at TOS. You have to read this book to understand what a groundbreaking series Star Trek was. You also learn how grueling a TV series is to work on. This book is fascinating, and sometimes hilarious!

This is a classic. It is the first book of its kind, and probably the first book about Star Trek at all. But The Making of Star Trek is much more than any of the later books with similar names. This book doesn't idealize or simplify the making of the series. It doesn't enthusiastically praise everything and everyone involved in its production. It is an authentic and meticulous report on how TOS in particular and a TV series in general comes to life. It shows that it is a process of try and error, that aspects have to be taken into account the viewers wouldn't think of, and that the responsible persons don't always know exactly what they want ("I need some device that does something...").

The story how Stephen E. Whitfield (aka Stephen E. Poe) asked Gene Roddenberry if he could write a book about the series sounds like a fairy tale, but is true. The Great Bird was very forthcoming, and Whitfield was granted access to everything behind the scenes of the still running show, seemingly without any restriction. The book shows production schedules, budgets, private notes, script drafts, production sketches, all things that are usually kept secret or simplified for a larger public. I don't think that something like this would be still possible today. Compared to The Making of Star Trek, Whitfield's last book (he passed away in 2000) on Voyager seems rather superficial.

The Making of Star Trek may be over 30 years old, but it is of more than only historical value. It demonstrates that TV is a business that sometimes doesn't allow technical or artistic perfection. It also shows how many things we may take for granted and that are essential parts of the Star Trek Universe today have taken a rather surprising course change. Who would like Vulcans with names like "Spook, Spork, Splak, ..." as frequently suggested in the early days, or who would think that one race was originally described with the words, "Honor is a despicable trait.", namely the Klingons?

There are probably loads of 'Making of Star Trek' books out there, but this is particularly interesting as it was written in 1968, between the second and third series, before the show had become a phenomenon. Which is odd at first - everything is in the present tense, and there's nothing about the cultural impact of the show because that was all in the future. Doubly odd is the fact that all of the many quotes from Gene Roddenberry are reported IN BLOCK CAPITALS, giving the bizarre impression that he is not a television producer, but God Himself.

It's extremely detailed, and is as much about the making of any TV late-60s series as it is 'Star Trek'. There are bits from shooting scripts, set plans, photographs of noted theatre actor William Shatner in old-age makeup (looking nothing like he looks in genuine old age), profiles of production staff, and programme budgets which, translated dollar-for-dollar, would just about cover the catering bill on 'Star Trek : The Next Generation'. It's worth it for the stream of memos about Vulcan names alone.

This is an excellent read. I was appreciative of the profiles and will look forward to being included in the next issue! LOL!

Titans should be required reading for African Americans that doubt the promise. In spite of our nation's ills, some of these individuals made millions in the 40's. Think about that! Given the current state of affairs (The Don Imus incident) it's clearly evident that race is still an extremely sensitive issue in this nation. Consider current racial disparities then consider the concept of dark-skinned African American male millionaires in the 40's. It's an unbelievable achievement! If they were able to do it and create dynasties for their families in their time, what's stopping present day African Americans from reaching their financial goals and dreams today? This book is yet another small piece of evidence that determination, dedication and delayed gratification are the true components of realizing a dream. It helps prove that good luck is created by hard work; more importantly, it ensures, through the cohesiveness of the family unit, that those characteristics be past on to the next generation creating traditions of success and a grounded since of identity; which is a quality noticeably missing from the present day African American male image repertoire . It's important to note the African American family unit, before the onslaught of the welfare referendum of the 60's, as a pinnacle source of support. I'm usually hesitant about grading generously but I think this book, brief though it may be, with it's little life snippets of successful African Americans lives, reinforces the ethos of hard work and just rewards based on merit. But not a form of merit preached to you by a skeptical public or more acceptable form forced upon you through legislative pity, but a personal merit earned through hard work and family pride.

This is a book of African American business success stories. Until now, the eleven self-made black business leaders featured-The Titans of the Black Enterprise 100s-were virtually unknown, even to American business students. Yet, they run America's largest black-owned companies and have been the vanguard of an entrepreneurial revolution. Achieving success despite lack of capital, diminished access, and outright racism, they used inspiration and drive to seize opportunities and break barriers. They are black America's wealthiest and most powerful players, providing employment, training, and advancement for large numbers of African Americans.

They represent, in many ways, the economic evolution of post-war African Americans. The first step in the effort for black equality was driven largely by the Civil Rights Movement, which led to the social and legal reforms of the 1950s and 1960s. Next, the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which eliminated such barriers to political activity as the poll tax and illiteracy test, gave rise to the increase in black political strength with the election of blacks to Congress in the late 1960s and 1970s. Those events were followed by the propulsion of black economic power in which African Americans gained an opportunity to amass wealth and achieve the American Dream that had been elusive for so long. In the 1980s and 1990s, blacks, who gained access to the nation's leading universities and major corporations, leveraged their education and experience to acquire and finance new companies as well as develop enterprises through emerging technologies.

The eleven chapters of this book each tell the untold story of these titans and the contributions they and their companies have made to American industry and life. Their stories and ideas will instruct, inspire, illuminate and motivate the reader to build on their success. This book is a source of inspiration and motivation to the next generation of captains of industry of all races and both genders the world over.

Derek T. Dingle is an editor-at-large for Black Enterprise magazine. For more than a decade, he has covered the B.E. 100s, which profile the 100 largest black-owned businesses, and he recently served as writer for B.E. 100s Exclusive, a newsletter for CEOs of these companies. In addition to his role as the managing editor of BE several years ago, he served as president and CEO of Milestone Media, Inc., which was America's largest black-owned comic book company.

This is a book of African American business success stories. Until now, the eleven self-made black business leaders featured-The Titans of the Black Enterprise 100s-were virtually unknown outside the United States, and even to American business students. Yet, they run America's largest black-owned companies and have been the vanguard of an entrepreneurial revolution. Achieving success despite lack of capital, diminished access, and outright racism, they used inspiration and drive to seize opportunities and break barriers. They are black America's wealthiest and most powerful players, providing employment, training, and advancement for large numbers of African Americans.

The eleven chapters of this book each tell the untold story of these titans and the contributions they and their companies have made to American industry and life.

Their stories and ideas will instruct, inspire, illuminate and motivate the reader to build on their success. This book is a source of inspiration and motivation to the next generation of captains of industry of all races and both genders the world over.

Derek T. Dingle is an editor-at-large for Black Enterprise magazine. For more than a decade, he has covered the B.E. 100s, which profile the 100 largest black-owned businesses, and he recently served as writer for B.E. 100s Exclusive, a newsletter for CEOs of these companies. In addition to his role as the managing editor of BE several years ago, he served as president and CEO of Milestone Media, Inc., which was America's largest black-owned comic book company.

Reviewed by Azlan Adnan. Formerly Business Development Manager with KPMG, Azlan is currently managing partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu. He holds a Master's degree in International Business and Management.

Earth is destroyed by the Drej (aliens composed of energy). On a 3rd rate asteroid, Tau-14, Cale Tucker, a rebellious teenager, is in a hostile, alien-dominated galaxy. Cale learns the ring his father gave him contains a map to a legendary spacecraft, the Titan, which could hold the secret of salvation for the human race. Cale embarks on an adventure through space in search of the Titan, with Captain Joe Korso, Pilot Akima and a crew of space aliens. The Drej discovers Cale's ring's power and will stop at nothing to prevent Cale from completing his mission.

This Book will make you feel like you just finished seeing the movie again.It'll make you want to keep reading this book.It explains the whole story very detailed.While you read this book you get pictures in you mind from the movie! Once you pick it up you can't put down.Take my advice and try it out!

Cale's Story is a rather grand book which extends the reader's knowledge further into the world (or universe) which has been created by the many makers of Titan A.E. There is an element of suspense at several key parts of the book which is sure to get the reader excited! I recommend this book to any science-fiction lover along with the 2 other books written to tie-in with the movie.

Seperated from his father, whose fate he never learned, just before Earth was destroyed by the hostile Drej species, Cale Tucker was raised by one of his father's friends, Tek, a member of a peaceful alien race. Taken to Tek's desolate homeland, he grew up longing for his father's return, and eventually accepting that he'd never see him again. Tek is determined that Cale, now fifteen, learn something of Earth and Humanity, so, along with an orphan alien girl, they begin a journey that takes them throughout the galaxy. This book explained a lot of how Cale became the person he was in the movie - why he resented his father, why he looked down on drifter colonies, etc. I highly reccomend this companion novel to science fiction fans who are looking forward to seeing Titan A. E.

The one substantive complaint about these reprints of the "Conan the Barbarian" comic books that Dark Horse has been reprinting has been that the original covers drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith for Marvel Comics have been omitted. That omission is mitigated somewhat by Volume 4 of "The Chronicles of Conan," which has the splash page from "Red Nails" as the cover. I have a strong affection for this particular piece of Windsor-Smith art because my college debate partner took the original black & white drawing from "Savage Tales" and blew it up on a 6-foot board that I have colored in and which has dominated my "office" for about half my life, to the dismay of my family and amusement of my friends.

This collection has issues #23-26 of Marvel's "Conan the Barbarian" and the acclaimed "Red Nails" (For those concerned with continuity #22 is omitted because it was a reprint of #1) Of those two issues, all of which were written by Roy Thomas, Windsor-Smith drew the first two and John Buscema, who would be Conan's artist for most of the rest of its original run, took over as penciler on the last two. The second of those was inked by Ernie Chua (later Ernie Chan), who would be Buscema's primary inker on the comic book (the way Alfredo P. Alcala tended to do the inking over Buscema's pencils in the black & white magazine "The Savage Sword of Conan"). However, the chief attraction here is Windsor-Smith's final work on Conan.

Issue #22 "The Shadow of the Vulture," freely adapted from a Howard short story, is inked by Sal Buscema, Dan Adkins, and Chic Stone. The Vulture is Prince Yezdigerd's right-hand sword, who is sent to dispatch Conan. However, the story is more noted because this is the first Conan adventure with Red Sonja. This sets up #23 "The Song of Red Sonja," which Windsor-Smith inked himself (be sure to read Thomas' reflections in the back of the volume that cover some of the changes the Comics Code forced them to make with the artwork). When you compare how far Windsor-Smith came from the first issue of "Conan," let alone the infamous "X-Men" #53 that he drew on a New York City park bench, it is amazing how far he came as an artist. "Red Nails" has more scope and Thomas and Windsor-Smith are unfettered by the Comics Code, but all things considered "The Song of Red Sonja" is the best of their joint efforts. This explains why it gets to be the title for this final volume.

The Buscema issues are included, rather than whatever odds and ends Smith ever did of Conan and Howard related stories, because they finish the siege of Makkalet story line. Issue #25 "The Mirrors of Kharam Akkad," inked by Sal Buscema and John Severin (the latter does the King Kull flashback pages in a nice touch), is inspired in part by Howard's "The Mirrors of Tuzun Thune" story, another one of those stories where a sorcerer tries to get the better of Conan. In #26 "The Hour of the Griffin" the city finally falls and Conan tries to save Queen Melissandra. Conan's big fight is with a giant rat, which is not exactly a big thrill, but he does get to see the face of the one true Tarim, the reason for the war.

Buscema's Conan is a larger, more muscular version of the barbarian than what we saw with Windsor-Smith's art, which I always read as representing the fact he was a more mature character at that point. One of the interesting aspects of this final collection of early Conan stories is that the remastered color better suits the Windsor-Smith artwork. I know that part of why this works is that these stories are reprinted on much better quality paper in these volumes and that another key part is that this sort of thing is now done with computers, but Windsor-Smith's attention to detail in his drawings really gives the colorist something with which to work. Just look at the intricate lines on the shield on that great cover. Besides, now that we have this four-volume set of "The Chronicles of Conan" we can enjoy these classic comic books without having to take them out of the plastic that is keeping them safe for posterity.

It is a shame that in reprinting the seminal run of artist Barry Windsor-Smith on Marvel's "Conan the Barbarian" Dark Horse Comics has neglected to include the cover art as well. But that is the only major complaint a fan can have against "Rouges in the House & Other Stories," the second of four books in the Chronicles of Conan series. The minor complaint would be that in covering these six particular issues--which includes the two "big" comics when Marvel had its two month experiment of increasing the price from 15 cents to 25 cents while also increasing the size so that the monthly comics were suddenly the same size as an annual--Book 2 ends in the middle of the 2-part saga where Roy Thomas has Michael Moorcock's Elric show up to cross swords with Robert E. Howard's Conan. However, these trifles are outweighed by the fact that these comics are being reprinted so that I can enjoy them without taking my originals out of their sacred plastic bags and by the gorgeous job of re-coloring each comic that makes them look much better than ever before. The coloring alone makes these worth having, it is that stunning.

Included in this collection are the following issues of "Conan the Barbarian": #9 "The Garden of Fear," based on Howard's story of that name, where Conan encounters a winged demon in a tower; #10 "Beware the Wrath of Anu" where Conan joins forces with another thief in a Corithian city. When his partner is betrayed (and executed by hanging on a memorable page drawn by Windsor-Smith), Conan goes after the Red Priest himself for revenge and ends up taking on a giant bull; #11 "Rouges in the House" is also based on a Howard short story, is a 34-page epic in which Conan is betrayed by Jenna and released from prison to help with a little intrigue and ends up taking on a giant ape (notice a theme developing here?); #12 "The Dweller in Dark" is only 16-pages long and has Conan taking on a giant octopus (really); #13 "Web of the Spider-God" was plotted by John Jakes, the creator of "Brak the Barbarian," and has Conan taking on a giant spider; #14 "A Sword Called Stormbringer" was plotted by Elric of Melibone creator Michael Moorcock and James Cawthorn, and has Conan hooking up with Zukala's daughter (from issue #5) before clashing with Elric. The two band together to fight a common foe, setting up their encounter in the next issue with the Green Empress. Most of these issues are inked by Sal Buscema, although he is not listed for #12, which may or may not indicate that Windsor-Smith did the inking as well on that one.

"Rogues in the House" is indeed the best of the bunch and the overall focus is on Conan as primarily a thief at this point in his career, who keeps finding new monsters to fight each issue. But you can see why "Conan the Barbarian" was such a critical success and you can also see how Windsor-Smith's art improves with ever issue as he becomes more and more stylized. While Thomas is inviting other noted sword & sorcery writers to provide plots, he is also continuing to mine the Howard oeuvre for stories and embellishing what he finds with much more of a sense of character than in the original pulp fiction yards from the 1930s. The next two tradepaperback in this series are "Chronicles of Conan Volume 3: The Monster of the Monoliths and Other Stories," which reprints #14-#15 and #17-#21 of "Conan the Barbarian," and "Chronicles of Conan Volume 4: Red Nails and Other Stories," with issues #23-#26, and material from the second and third issues of Savage Tales, including the Thomas and Windsor-Smith masterpiece "Red Nails."

A group of old men gathers on an estate in Poland for a hunting party. It's the early 1980s...the Warsaw Pact is still in existence, but cracks are starting to appear. The men in the hunting party are highly influential members of each of the various countries' communist parties. A young French communist acts as translator, and he slowly discovers the story of each of these men, how their idealism eroded, how the Soviet Union loomed over them and their countries...
It's a fantastic story, outstanding writing by Pierre Christin and Enki Bilal's artwork is just extraordinary. Bilal uses color schemes as symbols, it took me awhile to catch on. See of you can figure out what his use of the colors red and yellow symbolizes.
Buy this wonderful, tragic story that ends on a strangely prophetic optimistic note, and get a painless education in how the countries in Eastern Europe after WW2 learned to hate/love
the Soviet Union.

takes your brain on a trip if you're not pressured into reading it...helps to have some interest in god and morals.

I've read this book over and over before and after I saw Titan A.E.This book had lots of action in it.It explains a lot about the whole story of Titan A.E.And this is a book that when you pick it up you can't put it down until you finished reading it.

Picked this book out totally expecting exactly what I got, which is a trip down the proverbial "memory lane". I'd read this series, off and on, in it's original run way back in the 80's, and got interested in it again after reading the current title in trade paperback, and (a little ashamed to admit it) watching the animated series with my son. I wasn't at all disappointed. The writing is absolutely dated, and a college age Robin was almost painful to see in his original uniform, but the story lines were good and early character development was very much there.

An entertaining read, especially for an old guy who can remember when all this was going on the first time around.

I read and loved the series as a kid and liked the archive edition even more. It brings back all the excitement of collecting books again.

I've always been a George Perez fan. His art is really awasome. He made with the teen titans a new beginning. Quite an era.
This first book is a must in anyone fan collection. The "new Teen Titans" are So necessary as "The Justice League archives" to understand the DC Universe.Excellent

I've never been a huge fan of George Perez, tho his current take on the "Brave and the Bold" is proving to be quite fun. Yeah, he's the guy that put the Scarlet Witch in that silly gypsy costume and doomed Supergirl to die wearing a headband. That said, I do have a fondness for the New Teen Titans. I never really read the title when it first hit, so much of these stories are new to me. This volume is a nicely entertaining read, and the plotting by Wolfman is well done.

I followed the New Teen Titans only because I was a Batman fan, and therefore was interested in Robin leading the team. My first issue was the Annual #2. I only picked up the New Teen Titans during the run of the Judas Contract. This is a great introduction to the new team beginning with the 16 page "throwaway" story which was really quite good. You couldn't buy the individual issues, nor would you want to. This is a great buy for anyone who even is remotely interested in any one character, such as Robin. You will come to enjoy the others. You can't beat the storytelling team of Wolfman and Perez!