Book Vs Movie: “Logan’s Run”

The Cult Classic Novel & Film That Inspired Generations of SciFi Fans 

Imagine living in a world where you can live as free as you please, but you have to allow yourself to be killed at 21 (or 30?) This dystopian tale comes from two science fiction authors, William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johson in 1976 with Logan’s Run. Logan is a “Sandman” who chases “runners” who wish to escape their creepy fate. 

The original story was inspired by the turbulent campus life in the 1960s and caught the imagination of SciFi fans everywhere. The setting is 2116, and from the “Little War,” it was decided that in order for earth to survive, the population needed to be kept artificially down. People live with a “palm flower” that changes color as they age. When they hit 21, it is called their ‘last day” and to report to “Sleepshop.” It is there they are killed using a pleasure-increasing toxic gas. 

Logan being a Deep Sleep Operative, he can tell when people are trying to escape their fate and run to a free land called “Sanctuary.” He uses a gun called a “homer” because it can “home” their body heat and evaporate them. Sandmen also use martial arts and generally have no sympathy for runners. 

Logan’s love interest in “Jessica 6” distrusts him at first but eventually along with Logan’s friend Francis they off to the Sanctuary. Francis, it turns out, is an oldster of 42 whose palm flower malfunctioned and he got by with plastic surgery to change his appearance Jessica and Logan are then sent off on a rocket outside of Mars to start their lives over. 

The 1976 movie stars Michael York as Logan 5 and Jenny Agutter as Jessica 6. The movie changes the maximum age to 30 and this time the “last dayers” end their lives in a game called the “Carrousel” which causes them to evaporate in front of an audience. 

In 2274, every person is implanted with a “life clock” that shows their age. Logan 5 and his friend Francis 7 are both Sandmen who one day kill a runner who had an “ankh” jewelry symbol. Turns out this symbol is for people who are looking for “Sanctuary” and that is how he identifies Jessica 6. 

They go on the run together and there is quite a bit of wackiness with a robot named Box who wants to freeze and eat them, Washington DC mossed over and an old man with cats who wants to help them. There are also sexy costumes and special effects which were considered a big deal at the time. (Wow!) 

So, between the original novel and the movie--which did we prefer? Have a listen and find out! 

In this ep the Margos discuss:

• The journey of the 1967 story to the 1976 movie
• Biggest changes between book & movie
• The 1977 TV series that surprisingly did not take off
• The special effects of the time
• The cast: Michael York (Logan 5,) Jenny Agutter (Jessica 6,) Richard Jordan (Francis 7,) Roscoe Lee Browne (Box voice), Farrah Fawcett-Majors (Holly 13), and Peter Ustinov as the Old Man. 

Clips used:

• Logan decides to run
• Logan’s Run trailer
• “The Carousel” 
• Logan procures Jessica 6 
• Jessica and Logan meet “The Box”
• Music by Jerry Goldsmith

Book Vs Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts

Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie 

Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/

Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com

Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com

Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R

Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com

Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ 

Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine 

Book Vs Movie: “Legally Blonde”

The Amanda Brown Story Vs the Reese Witherspoon Movie 

The Margos are donning their pink outfits and getting our nails done in preparation for one of our most fun episodes--Legally Blonde. The original writer is Amanda Brown who based some of the stories about Elle Woods on her experience as a  law student at Stanford University. As she said at the time ‘I wrote it all on pink paper with my furry pink pen.” It has an unusual publishing history as it was rejected by every major publishing house but became a bidding war with the movie studios. MGM won the bid and Reese Witherspoon was set to star. 

Screenwriters Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith spent two weeks at Stanford Law School in 2000 to get a flavor of what campus life is like. Reese Witherspoon spent hundreds of dollars on a bar tab for a group of sorority girls to pick up their lingo and a movie was created. 

The original story is missing a few things from the beloved film including the character of Emmett Richmond (played by Luke Wilson) and Elle actually working hard to get into law school. 

At first, in the age of raunchy films like American Pie being popular with audiences, the movie had an edgier quality. But writers McCullah Lutz & Smith decided to add more romance (and NOT with her law professor,) give her favorite manicurist her own backstory and change the plot of the murder trials. 

The film was a massive hit when released and its feminist slant and fashions inspired generations of women to become lawyers. There was a sequel in 2003 and a musical that appeared on both Broadway and the London stage. 

So, between the novel and the movie--which did we prefer? Have a listen and find out! 

In this ep the Margos discuss:

• The journey of the novel to screenplay
• Biggest changes between book & movie
• The casting process and how the wardrobe is the main factor of the film’s popularity
• The cast: Reese Witherspoon (Elle Woods,) Moonie (Bruiser Woods,) Selma Blair (Vivian,) Luke Wilson (Emmett Richmond,) Matthew Davis (Warner,) Victor Garber (Professor Callahan,) Jennifer Coolidge (Paulette,) Holland Taylor (Professor Stromwell,) Ali Larter (Brooke,) Jessica Cauffiel (Margot,) and Linda Cardellini (Chutney Windham.) 

Clips used:

• Elle’s entrance video
• Legally Blonde trailer
• First day of school
• Elle meets Emmett 
• Bend and Snap!
• Perfect Day by Hoku 

Book Vs Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts

. 

Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie 

Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/

Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com

Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com

Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R

Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com

Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ 

Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine 

Book Vs Movie: “The War of the Worlds”

The H.G. Wells Science Fiction Classic Vs the 2005 Steven Spielberg Movie

The Margos go back to both the world of science fiction and the film work of Steven Spielberg talking about the H.G. Wells classic novel The War of the Worlds (1898) which has been adapted as a successful radio program, films, and a TV series. 

The novel is about a martian invasion that hits London and an unnamed narrator who escapes, is separated from his wife, and then has up close and traumatic interactions with the Martians who are taking over England. They use heat rays as a weapon and depend on human blood to feed themselves. The narrator meets with people underground on his way back home who want to fight the invaders. He eventually gets home (after being taken care of by a kindly family) and reunites with his wife who somehow survives the alien attacks. In the end, the Martians were killed by “earthly pathogens.” 

Considered one of the first novels that supposed that otherworldly creatures could be smarter than humans--the story is a classic and the basis/inspiration for science fiction work for decades afterward. 

In 1938, Orson Welles’s radio program, created a one-hour play based on the story (which Welles most likely never read) and included some of his favorite writers and produces for The Mercury Theatre on the Air including John Houseman and Howard Koch. The setting was central New Jersey and the resulting panic was caused by an unsuspecting audience who thought the drama was real. Welles had to perform a mea culpa for the press (which he loved!) and it is considered one of the best radio dramas ever produced. 

In this episode, we focus more on 2005’s The War of the Worlds directed by Spielberg which stars Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, and Tim Robbins and is set in New Jersey and New England. Two other members of the cast were in the 1953 adaptation--Ann Robinson and Gene Barry. 

So, between the novel, radio program, and the movie--which did we prefer? Have a listen and find out! 

In this ep the Margos discuss:

• The life of author H.G. Wells and how he changed science fiction
• Orson Welles’s influence on the storytelling of the 1938 radio play
• The major differences between the novel and the movie
• The cast: Tom Cruise (Ray Ferrier,) Dakota Fanning (Rachel Ferrier,) Justin Chatwin (Robbie Ferrier,) Mirando Otto (Mary Ann Ferrier,) Tim Robbins (Harlan Ogilvy,) Ann Robinson (Grandmother,) and Gene Barry (Grandfather) 

Clips used:

• The Mercury Theatre 1938 production
• The War of the Worlds trailer
• “Ferry Disaster”
• “Fight on the Hill”
•  “No Shield”
• Music by John Williams

Book Vs Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts

Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie 

Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/

Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com

Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com

Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R

Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com

Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ 

Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine 

Book Vs Movie: “The Fast and the Furious”

The 1998 Kenneth Li article from Vibe Vs the 2001 Film 

Since the Pandemic started in Mach 2020, we gave committed to bringing a weekly show and that means we often use shorter literary sources as the basis for the episode. Novellas, songs, plays, and yes--magazine articles which is happening in this show.  

In 1998, Daily News writer Kenneth Li was writing tech and feature stories when he heard about a racing circuit happening late at night in New York City. Instead of muscle cars of yore, these new riders used brands like Mitsubishi and Nissan and take off at top speeds to evade the police and have some bragging rights. “Racer X” appeared in the May 1998 Vibe magazine and caught the eye of producer Neal H. Moritz who moved the action to the West Coast and the next thing you know--a franchise is born! 

The first to sign up was hunky young actor Paul Walker (RIP) and the rest of the cast featured a variety of races and attitudes which appealed to a larger audience. The first movie (which we discuss in this episode) was directed by Rob Cohen and went on to make over $200 million worldwide box office. 

F9: The First Saga was just released at the time we are recording this episode. 

So, between the article and the movie--which did we prefer? Have a listen and find out! 

In this ep the Margos discuss:

• The background on Kenneth Li’s article (and that he interviewed one of the Margos in 1999 for a tech story!) 
• The legacy the sequels have on the movie industry and its fans
• The special effects and stunt work. 
• The cast: Paul Walker (Brian O’Conner,) Vin Diesel (Dominic Toretto,) Michelle Rodriguez (Letty Ortiz,) Jordana Brewster (Mia Toretto,) Rick Yune (Johnny Tran,) Chad Lindberg (Jesse,) and Ja Rule.  

Clips used:

• Brian joins the race
• The Fast and the Furious  trailer
• Example of music on top of the music 
• Vin Diesel yelling 
• Music by BT

Book Vs Movie is part of the Frolic Podcast Network. Find more podcasts you will love Frolic.Media/podcasts

. 

Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie 

Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/

Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com

Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com

Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R

Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com

Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/ 

Our logo was designed by Madeleine Gainey/Studio 39 Marketing Follow on Instagram @Studio39Marketing & @musicalmadeleine