Slowly
rotating at the edge of deep space, 1,000 kilometers beyond
the atmosphere of 21st-century Earth, is the Arthur C. Clarke
Astronomical Observatory: Starlab. Here Starlab Research
Director Maura Cassidy, along with the scientists and technicians
of the International Space Authority, watch over the countless
stars and planets that fill the silent distances beyond the
giant space station. This week the men and women of Starlab
encounter the terrifying dissonance of "Deathsong."
So
begins another episode of Alien Worlds, a series of action
adventure audio cd's. It is an epic saga of future man,
with continuing characters and inventive storylines that
combine the standard elements of science fiction and effective
audio production know how. The result is a fast-paced half-hour
that is stimulating to the ear as well as the mind. Worlds
is the brainchild of longtime radio man Lee Hansen, who
was given the chance to create it while working for Watermark,
Inc., the company that originally syndicated the programs.
At the time, he recalls, "they had one studio and
a show called American Top 40, with Casey Kasum, which
was beginning to break ground and become very successful.
Since they had a recording studio, they wanted to put it
to use making commercials and developing programming. With
that in mind, I was hired as Creative Director at Watermark—in
terms of locating potential business and doing creative
commercials as well as radio syndication program development."
Hansen
proposed his idea for an action adventure series and Watermark
jumped at the chance to syndicate it. Hansen decided to
produce a "science-fiction, imagination-theater." Hansen
came to Watermark with an impressive list of radio credits
and 14 years of experience. His radio career started when
he was a junior in high school, at a station in Colfax,
Washington, KCLX. "From there,'' he says, "I
went into the military where I became a staff announcer
for Armed Forces Radio and Television in Saigon, during
the early part of the Vietnam War." When I came home,
I went to work at KASH in Eugene, Oregon. While Hansen
enjoyed his involvement with radio announcing for ten years,
he later decided to pursue his interests in the production
side of the medium." When I came to Los Angeles, in
1972," he relates, "I was introduced to Mel Blanc
and was hired as his creative director. I also became associate
producer for the Gary Owens Special Report. Owens was hot
at that time on TV's Laugh-In. I produced all 260 shows
of his Special Report. I later became director for the
Mel Blanc School of Voice and Commercials and was more
or less the personal recording engineer for Blanc for The
Flintstones, and most of the commercials that he was doing
at the time."
Very
Human, Very Real
In
developing the concept for Alien Worlds, Hansen decided
that he "wanted it in a sort of documentary style,
like it was actually happening; it was to be very believable." Hansen
felt that one element that would help achieve this was
a set of continuing characters who could be related to
as very human and very real. Through their experiences
and interrelations, Hansen hoped to create a fully rounded
world for his listeners to enjoy and sink in to." The
basic concept of Alien Worlds," Hansen says, "is
to explore the unknown and the possibilities of what might
exist in space; how people would relate to it spiritually
as well as from a trained, scientific point of view; and
how, as representatives of Earth, they would deal with
alien beings. l proposed that it would be in a positive
way rather than with hostility. That's why the International
Space Authority was created. The ISA is the governing entity
of space development. It represents a worldwide effort
to try to advance us into space. The other thing I wanted
to do was support the growing movement for space migration;
I've talked about the L-5 Society on the air." Hansen
has done more than just give his governing space body a
name and objective; he's provided it with a fully fleshed
out history. We quote from the l.S.A. Project Report—Starlab: "March
2, 2018: President Lorraine Keach introduces the Starlab
Referendum during a special session of the United Nations
General Assembly. The referendum calls for the creation
and orbital insertion of Earth's first scientific/commercial
space station. Cost of the project and the benefits derived
from it to be equally shared by all nations. July 19, 2018:
The General Assembly passes the Starlab Referendum. August
3, 2018: The United Nations authorizes the expenditure
of 25 billion World Bank dollars for Starlab's design,
development and construction. The International Space Agency
(ISA) is created to coordinate the project. Retired Air
Force Chief of Staff, General Northrop Hughes, is named
ISA Commissioner and Starlab Project Director. Hughes appoints
as Vice Commissioner former NASA research analyst Matthew
White. February 10, 2019: Construction begins. By the end
of April 2021, Starlab's first level is complete and semi-operational.
We now skip to Phase 3, two years hence: April 18, 2023:
Five extraterrestrial spacecraft appear and enter a parking
orbit 700 meters beyond Starlab. Work on the space station
ceases as attempts are made to communicate with the mysterious
ships via a random series of light signals. The ships return
the signals for two hours at 10-minute intervals. Three
days later, they abandon their orbit and move off into
deep space. April 24, 2023: The United Nations General
Assembly calls an emergency session and votes to announce
the sighting. Commissioner White makes the announcement
four days later via satellite television. April 27,2023:
Two million people crowd into Vatican Square, listening
calmly and silently as Pope John XXIV urges a broadening
of fundamental beliefs so as to ' . . . make room in our
hearts and minds for our brothers and sisters from beyond
the stars. May 1, 2024: Starlab becomes 100 percent operational,
14 months ahead of schedule. Space Science Analyst, Dr.
Maura Cassidy, arrives to begin her duties as Starlab Research
Director. May 3, 2024: Earth watches on satellite television
as Starlab is officially christened: The Arthur C. Clarke
Astronomical Observatory—humanity's hope for the
future, slowly orbiting at the edge of deep space, on the
threshold of. . . Alien Worlds."
Creating
Believable FX
Much
of Alien Worlds attraction is the air of verisimilitude
that Hansen and his writers have given to the show. Creating
space sound effects is one of the challenges inherent in
such a production and one that has been well met by the
Alien Worlds crew. Hansen recalls one particular sound
effects mission: "We needed to get the hollow sounds
of movement inside the metallic Starlab. Our crew and as
many actors as could make it went to San Pedro Harbor,
to a 300 million gallon oil tanker, Atlantic Trader. The
tanker was empty and in dry dock. We were allowed to board
the ship and go running around the steel ladders and rampways
to record the sounds we would be using for the ambient,
echoing footstep effects on Alien Worlds. We had a wonderful
time doing this; it was a hoot!" Hansen later adds
that he and his crew spent two whole days running up and
down inside the tanker, recording all the different sounds
they could generate. On other "missions," Hansen
has "gone to places like metal shops to record the
hissing sound of a blowtorch and the explosive pop of the
torch being ignited;" he has recorded metal lathes
being started up and various electronic devices in use.
Another time he recorded the "simple click of a 35mm
camera at high speed and then re-recorded it at one-quarter
speed. The result was the unique clunk of a hatch closing
aboard a spaceship." And, Hansen confesses, "many
of our electronic effects are created on a variety of synthesizers. "Getting
writers knowledgeable in the areas of both science fiction
and radio drama was one of Hansen's more difficult tasks
but one in which he claims success. Many of the plots and
subplots are often designed to offer the opportunity for "sound" to
be used as an effective storytelling instrument. A good
example is the plot of "Deathsong," in Series
II: "Two benevolent alien elves, with a hostile alien
ship in hot pursuit, are given asylum aboard Starlab. They
have with them an instrument devoted to the healing of
living organisms by 'tuning' them. The hostile vessel controls
Deathsong, the direct musical antithesis of the elves'
music. We become witness to the ultimate struggle between
the alien music forms."
Now
that Alien Worlds has achieved national recognition and
wide exposure, would Hansen consider adapting it to other
media? "The main reason for having Alien Worlds as
an audio adventure series," Hansen says, "was
that I felt that I could do much more with imagination
there than on film." Hansen strongly feels that audio
offers an opportunity that the visual media do not: creative
memory. "To me, creative memory means that images
rise from an individual's own imagination. These images
are more vivid and longer lasting than if someone else
has created the picture for you." But don't just take
our word for it—tune in on Alien Worlds; in this
case, hearing is believing.
Return
To Reviews |
