Today In Alternate History

June 10, 2004 11:59 PM

Today In Alternate History, blogging the what if: "In 1984, John Lennon, an obscure musician who had once been in a band with international sensation Pete Best, writes a tell-all book about Best, detailing their crazy life in Hamburg, Germany, and their rough-and-tumble beginnings in Liverpool, England. The book, I Want To Tell You, is an international best-seller."
posted by feelinglistless (11 comments total)

i really wish there were an option to view the whole thing in chronological order. i guess it's kind of more fun this way, even if it means reading the whole thing to understand any part.
posted by magikeye at 2:26 AM on June 11, 2004

Interesting idea but one of those things which seems to work better offline - Nial Ferguson did it better
posted by dmt at 2:47 AM on June 11, 2004

Superb! Nice mix of amusing and thought-provoking stuff.

"in 1954, the bestselling car of all time, the Edsel, is introduced in Detroit."

"In 1976, former Governor Ronald Reagan secures the Republican presidential nomination from President Gerald Ford, and goes on to win in the general election against another former governor, Jimmy Carter of Georgia. His presidency is only one term long, due in large part to a hostage crisis in Iran at the end of his presidency."

Another good alternate history compiliation is What If. Plus there are more altenate history SF novels than I can count...
posted by TheophileEscargot at 3:02 AM on June 11, 2004

If you're in the mood for a "What If?" story that spans a good 700 years about a world without the influence of Europe might I suggest The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson.
posted by PenDevil at 4:06 AM on June 11, 2004

Similar but in the other direction
posted by Robot Johnny at 6:14 AM on June 11, 2004

in 1994, Elvis Presley is shot by a deranged lunatic at his home in Graceland. The man claimed that Elvis should have died in 1977.

I like it! Thanks for the link.
posted by ashbury at 7:07 AM on June 11, 2004

in 1900, nothing happened. Fnord.

This is even better! Funny stuff.
posted by ashbury at 7:08 AM on June 11, 2004

in 2002, obscure New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson releases the first film in what becomes the best-selling series ever released - The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.

Oh yes, very Meta ...
posted by feelinglistless at 10:29 AM on June 11, 2004

in 2002, obscure New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson releases the first film in what becomes the best-selling series ever released - The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.

Wasn't TLTWatW the second book in the Narnia series?
posted by jpoulos at 10:40 AM on June 11, 2004

Wasn't TLTWatW the second book in the Narnia series?

Yes but don't forget that important prequel potential. Ironically I believe Weta Workshop are doing the SFX for the new film version of TLTWatW which is also being film in New Zealand ...
posted by feelinglistless at 3:52 PM on June 11, 2004

Wasn't TLTWatW the second book in the Narnia series?

It was written/released as the first; later he wrote a prequel (I think the fourth actual book was supposed to be the first etc...). But I don't know anyone who actually read them in CSLewis' preferred order, and the little box set always put the lion, witch, & wardrobe as #1.

I was disappointed by "What If" - I loved the idea, but the execution was not fantastic. I mean that kind of literally - the writers didn't really seem to believe their alternate realities (fantasies), and spent most of their sections concentrated on the importance of certain events which did happen (ie, "if it hadn't been for this, this never would have come about, or even this...). I think the problem was they were historians - they were focused on why history was so important, not on what a different world would have been like.
posted by mdn at 4:15 PM on June 11, 2004