John Calvin Batchelor: the Birth of the People’s Republic of Antarctica (The Dial Press, 1983) This is one of the strangest Antarctic novels I’ve yet to read. It’s about the son of an American draft dodger and a Swedish witch, called Grim Fiddle. It begins in Sweden, soon the stage Continue Reading
Antarctica
Abandoned Antarctica
The web publication Dark Roasted Blend has an article about photos of abandoned places in Antarctica. These are from Deception Island: These are from the island of South Georgia, long a base for whaling operations: via Ectoplasmosis!
Antarctic Research Blog #82 – Retrograde
Film: Christopher Kulikowski: Retrograde (Luxembourg, Italy, U.K. U.S.A. 2004) Ed Wood’s Plan 9 From Outer Space is not the worst movie in the world. The worst movies are like this Dolph Lundgren late career vehicle, cheap, pointless and soulless things with no personality whatsoever. Retrograde’s Antarctic elements are surprisingly accurate, Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #81 – Alone
Non-fiction: Richard E. Byrd: Alone (Island Press, 1938/2003) This was one of the last Antarctic classics I had yet to read, an account of Admiral Byrd’s stay alone in 1934 at the Advance Base weather station. Staying alone through the Antarctic winter proved to be hazardous, and most of the Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #80 – At the Mountains of Madness radio play
Audio play: Sean Branney with Andrew Leman: Dark Adventure Radio Theatre presents H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness (The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, 2006) Last entry was my first Antarctic video game, and now’s the first Antarctic audio play. This is a radio version of Lovecraft’s story At the Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #79 – LittleBigPlanet
Video game: LittleBigPlanet (Media Molecule, 2008) LittleBigPlanet is a game in which a little critter (pictured above) runs around complex levels. The selling point of the game is that users can create their own levels, which are then shared on the game’s network. A number of these user-created levels are Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #78 – The Lost Zeppelin
Movie: Edward Sloman: The Lost Zeppelin (U.S.A. 1929) An early talkie, this is a simple story about an American Navy explorer who leads a zeppelin expedition to the South Pole. On the night before he departs, he discovers his wife kissing with his second in command. They leave for South Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #77 – Mind Over Matter
Non-fiction: Ranulph Fiennes: Mind Over Matter (Delacorte Press, 1993) Ranulph Fiennes and Mike Stroud attempted to cross the Antarctic continent manhauling unsupported in the 1992-93 season. Unsupported means that they pulled all of their food and equipment all the way from coast to coast, breaking the record for the longest Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #76 – Ice Bound (the book)
Non-fiction: Jerri Nielsen with Maryanne Vollers: Ice Bound (Ebury Press, 2001) I’ve already talked about Ice Bound the movie here, based on this very book. The book is Dr Jerri Nielsen’s own account of her time as the winter-over doctor at the U.S. South Pole station. She was stricken with Continue Reading
Antarctic Research Blog #75 – 90 South
Documentary: Herbert G. Ponting: 90 South (U.K. 1933) This is the sound version of Herbert Ponting’s earlier documentary of the final Scott expedition, The Great White South. Apparently, the images are quite the same, but there’s a voiceover narration by Ponting himself. The pictures are interesting, but I suspect only Continue Reading