In August-September 1965, India and Pakistan
went to war for the second time since their independence in 1947. On September 19, a civilian aircraft (Beechcraft Model 18) carrying the Chief Minister of the Indian state of Gujarat (bordering Pakistan) was
shot down by a Pakistani Air Force pilot (flying an F-86F). Now, 46 years later, the Pakistani pilot has written
a condolence letter to the daughter of the pilot of the Indian civilian aircraft.
posted by vidur
on Aug 8, 2011 -
8 comments
One day in 1984 character actor
Stephen Tobolowsky (
Groundhog Day, the original, unaired pilot of
Buffy The Vampire Slayer) was walking down the street when
Jonathan Demme pulled up and asked if he wanted to see a movie he was finishing. Tobolowsky accepted: taking his girlfriend
Beth Henley, they went to the
Academy Linwood Dunn Theatre to watch the rough cut of the movie,
Stop Making Sense. The audience in the otherwise empty theatre consisted of
Tobolowsky, Henley, and Demme, along with members of
Talking Heads, including
David Byrne and
Tina Weymouth. Later,
Byrne passed
Tobolowsky on his
bike and asked if he wanted to work on a
new movie. Interest sparked again, and during the ensuing collaboration Tobolowsky shared his past experience of psychic phenomena. Inspired, Byrne went on to write
Radio Head. The song was heard by
Thom Yorke and became the name of his
band. All of this is a true story, based on
puzzling evidence.
[more inside]
posted by Bora Horza Gobuchul
on Jul 17, 2011 -
46 comments
This is by far the coolest collection of TV pilots, pitches, scripts, and supplementary documents I have ever seen.
[more inside]
posted by cthuljew
on Jan 30, 2011 -
33 comments
Once, there was a boy named Yves. He lived in the mountainous country of Switzerland, and he dreamed of flying. He loved the idea of being free to soar through the air so much that he became a
pilot. Later, he went on to fly
bigger planes. Perhaps he's even been your pilot.
But being a pilot was never quite enough. Yves still dreamed of soaring through the air, like a bird. And now, he does.
Meet Jetman.
Previously
posted by anigbrowl
on Nov 7, 2010 -
6 comments
"
The TV Wheel was a television experiment created by and starring
Joel Hodgson, of
Mystery Science Theater 3000 fame. Cable network HBO ordered a pilot, but ultimately passed on picking up the show. The pilot episode eventually aired once on Comedy Central as a special presentation following the last new episode of MST3K to be broadcast on that network."
*
The pilot, bookended by introduction segments, is right through this door:
[more inside]
posted by item
on Aug 11, 2010 -
41 comments
Star Trek fans know that there was a second, unaired pilot episode of
Where No Man has Gone Before. That version
has been found by a collector in Germany, and is going to be released.
posted by pjern
on Nov 15, 2009 -
30 comments
The complete and until today unaired
pilot of South Park for Comedy Central, with an additional creator's commentary track. About 90% was recut into the first episode, "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe," but with a few slightly altered scenes and characters. After gaining underground popularity with two shorts that
you've all probably seen already at this point, Trey Parker and Matt Stone were contracted by Comedy Central to produce a full pilot episode for a potential show based on the shorts. This pilot episode is what would ultimately lead to a series that is now 12 years old, spans over 180 episodes, and is one of the most successful shows in the history of cable television both in ratings and revenue. The pilot is also the only episode in the series that, like the original shorts, uses stop-motion animation of paper cutouts instead of computer software.
posted by XQUZYPHYR
on Aug 14, 2009 -
24 comments
Flawless Aircraft Emergency Landings (QLYTP). Breatheless reporting aside, it looks like when a pilot can control the landing, these aircraft are tough enough that no one need be hurt. Many more excellent videos in the post-video links, too.
posted by five fresh fish
on Oct 21, 2008 -
40 comments
In the years after leaving MST, Joel Hodgson of Mystery Science Theater, and his "smarter brother" Jim Hodgson, worked on a new movie-repurposing concept for USA Networks. The introduction for the test clip read:
"
The Jolly Filter segment is a proof of concept test for a new film process. You will first view 2 minutes of the original film 'Rollercoaster' and then the same 2 minutes utilizing the JollyFilter technique.
"Note: If you find yourself getting bored during the original 'Rollercoaster' footage, don't worry, this is normal."
(SLYT, but an awesome one.) [more inside]
posted by JHarris
on Jul 27, 2008 -
50 comments
Three Strikes is a TV pilot from the writers of
Frasier, Larry Sanders and
King of the Hill and executive produced by Jon Stewart for Comedy Central. It was turned down by the network but like
Nobody's Watching the makers have turned to YouTube to revive its chances [Parts
1,
2,
3].
[via TVtattle]
posted by meech
on Mar 27, 2007 -
24 comments
All things
737: aircraft
systems, pilots'
notes, deliveries and fleet
movements, production
methods, technical
photographs, blended
winglets, rudder
news, illustrated
history, accident
reports, Q's and
A's. Know it all? Take the
quiz.
posted by breezeway
on Apr 27, 2005 -
19 comments
you worry me This American Airlines pilot hits the nail on the head for me! Thus far the Muslim voices I hear in America--and they are precious few--always seem to get half way through condemniong this or that and then insert a "BUT" or "HOWEVER." This guy asks for a simple, straight-forward response.
posted by Postroad
on Jul 3, 2002 -
105 comments
"Writer William Langewiesche, a pilot in his own right,
explains why a jet packed with 217 passengers plunged 33,000 feet into the Atlantic Ocean in the dead of night--and why it took so long for the U.S. and Egyptian governments to issue an explanation. Using
black-box transcripts and radar records, Langewiesche
meticulously reconstructs the last minutes of the so-called
suicide flight. In a feat of storytelling, he reveals the nasty
combination of politics and culture clashes that delayed the
official investigation."
posted by semmi
on May 3, 2002 -
25 comments
