Radio Drama Revival: 2000X – Karel Čapek, Robert A. Heinlein, Yuri Rasovsky

SFFaudio Online Audio

2000X Tales Of The Next Millenia

Radio Drama RevivalFred Greenhalgh, or Radio Drama Revival, writes:

Hey Jesse,

Wanted to point you to what should be some pretty appealing Radio Drama Revival episodes for SFF Audio listeners. I’ve gotten permission from Yuri Rasovsky to broadcast a few stories produced for the Beyond 2000 series… If you’re not familiar with it, it was a series commissioned by NPR back in the day and featured a startlingly great compilation of writers no less than Kurt Vonnegut, Robert Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, Ursula K LeGuin… http://www.irasov.com/faves.htm

Wow! Thanks Fred!

I agree with Fred, this is truly exciting audio. And there IS a whole lot to love in these professional productions from 2000X series (aka Beyond 2000). Check out the top shelf actors in these productions. And, then check out the sound quality! As Fred mentions in the podcast, it is all in an absolutely pristine stereo goodness.

Rossum’s Universal Robots asks a question, which has haunted the Science Fiction since: What does the creation of an artificial life form mean for the fate of humankind?

2000X - Rossum's Universal Robots2000X – R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots)
Based on the play by Karel Čapek; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 1 Hour 11 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcaster: Radio Drama Revival
Podcast: June 4, 2010
Helena, the daughter of the president of a major industrial power, arrives at the island factory for a tour of Rossum’s Universal Robots. The original stage play premiered, in Czech, in 1921.

Robert A. Heinlein’s By His Bootstraps deals in some of the inherent paradoxes that would be caused by recursive time travel.

2000X - By His Bootstraps2000X – By His Bootstraps
Based on the short story by Robert A. Heinlein; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 57 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcaster: Radio Drama Revival
Podcast: June 11, 2010
Bob Wilson locks himself in his room to finish his doctoral thesis on time travel. Suddenly a stranger appears in his dorm room and tells him to stop writing and start listening. The interloper, who looks strangely familiar, calls himself “Joe” and explains that he has come from the future through a Time Gate. First published in the October 1941 issue of Astounding Science Fiction under the pen name Anson MacDonald.
Starring:
Richard Dreyfuss
Cordis Heard
Kascia Marciniak
Ira Burton
Crew:
Adapted, Produced and Directed by Yuri Rasovsky
Sound Fesign by Richard Fairbanks

Posted by Jesse Willis

The SFFaudio Podcast #044 – TALK TO: Professor Eric S. Rabkin

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #044 – Jesse and Scott are joined by Professor Eric S. Rabkin of the University Of Michigan to discuss fairy tales, fantastic literature and Science Fiction.

Talked about on today’s show:
Department Of English Language And Literature @ the University Of Michigan, the Winter 2010 semester: English 342 Science Fiction, English 418/549 Graphic Narrative, hey sign us up!, The Teaching Company, Science Fiction: The Literature Of The Technological Imagination |READ OUR REVIEW|, Masterpieces of the Imaginative Mind: Literature’s Most Fantastic Works, Franz Kafka, H.G. Wells, Edgar Allan Poe, Science Fiction (the most important literature for adults), I, Robot by Isaac Asimov |READ OUR REVIEW|, Brothers Grimm, fairy tales, Neuromancer by William Gibson |READ OUR REVIEW|, Asimov’s three laws of robotics, the conversation that is Science Fiction, humans are pattern seeking animals, Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein |READ OUR REVIEW|, The Forever War by Joe Haldeman |READ OUR REVIEW|, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card |READ OUR REVIEW|, the ansible, Armor by John Steakley, Old Man’s War by John Scalzi |READ OUR REVIEW|, Gundam, The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey, Science Fiction as a form of children’s literature, Thomas Disch, Camp Concentration, 334, Kurt Vonnegut, The Plot Against America by Philip Roth, alternate history, Hugo Gernsback, pulp literature, paperback originals, adolescent power fantasies, Frank Reade and His Steam Man of the Plains by Noname, Ralph 124C 41+ by Hugo Gernsback, pushing science education through Science Fiction, The Time Machine by H.G. Wells |READ OUR REVIEW|, The Facts In The Case Of M. Valdemar by Edgar Allan Poe, From The Earth To The Moon by Jules Verne, Henry James and H.G. Wells in conversation over the future of fiction, The Portrait Of A Lady by Henry James, WWII, the societal effect of the G.I. Bill, tracking an author’s intentions, powerful fiction becomes classic?, Ted Chiang, Blankets by Craig Thompson, has Science Fiction crossed a certain cultural Rubicon?, Momento, Blindness by José Saramago, Briefing for a Descent into Hell by Doris Lessig, Galatea 2.2 by Richard Powers, has our culture become “fully Science Fictionized”?, does SF history begin with Frankenstein and end with Neuromancer?, Alan Moore, Watchmen, The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen, pattern recognition, allusion (and literary allusion).

Posted by Jesse Willis

The SFFaudio Podcast #033

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #033 – Jesse and Scott are burning bright this podcast. We’re talking new releases, recent arrivals, and future audiobook releases. We also briefly discuss the 2009 Hugo Awards. Around the middle we talk about BBC radio drama, specifically those based on the writings of Iain M. Banks and Alfred Bester. Feeling tenser? Perhaps you know the answer to this question…

“How can you get away with murder when everyone knows your thoughts?”

Talked about on today’s show:
New Releases, Recent Arrivals, Infinivox, Aliens Rule edited by Alan Kaster, How Music Begins by James Van Pelt, Okanaggan Falls by Carolyn Ives Gilman, Laws Of Survival by Nancy Kress, Full Cast Audio, Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce, Red Planet by Robert A. Heinlein, William Dufris, Have Space Suit Will Travel by Robert A. Heinlein |READ OUR REVIEW|, Tantor Media, The White Plague by Frank Herbert, Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert, The Road To Dune |READ OUR REVIEW|, Ireland, Whipping Star by Frank Herbert, The Coming Of Conan The Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard, Todd McLaren, METAtroplis The Dawn Of Uncivilization |READ OUR REVIEW|, Brilliance Audio, Audible.com, Brilliance Audio is releasing hardcopy DRM free versions of the Audible Frontiers audiobooks, Kurt Vonnegut, Audible Modern Vanguard, Dennis Boutsikaris, A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving, Fear Nothing by Dean Koontz, Keith Szarabajka, Sfsignal.com story on Iain M. Banks’ next novel Transition (podcast or audiobook?), RadioArchive.cc, State Of The Art (BBC Radio Drama) based on the story by Iain M. Banks, BoingBoing story on Geoff Ryman’s novel The Child Garden to be podcast (with music), Simon Bloom: The Octopus Effect by Michael Reisman, Simon Bloom: The Gravity Keeper by Michael Reisman |READ OUR REVIEW|, The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester or Tiger Tiger by Alfred Bester, there is no audiobook version of The Stars My Destination, the 1991 BBC Radio Drama version of Alfred Bester’s Tiger Tiger, telepathy, teleportation (jaunting), The Demolished Man would make an amazing audio drama, Fondly Fahrenheit by Alfred Bester, the 2009 Hugo award winners, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman |READ OUR REVIEW|, Shoggoths In Bloom by Elizabeth Bear (SSS Aural Delights version), Exhalation by Ted Chiang, The Erdman Nexus by Nancy Kress (is not available in audio), Inside Job by Connie Willis (is), Drive by James Sallis (a novella, is too), Wii Sports Resort, Wii Motion Plus, Bowman, turning off cable TV, X-Box 360, Wii Fit, Netflix, watching soccer/football without TV, Free:The Future Of A Radical Price by Chris Anderson, YouTube Star Wars fan Lego animation vs. Lucas Star Wars on DVD.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Barnes & Noble: Try 9 FREE Short Stories

SFFaudio Online Audio

Here’s a “FREE” deal (for Mac and PC users) that, despite some convoluted wrangling with OverDrive, is still worth it…

Barnes & Noble - Try 9 FREE Short Stories

HERE is the offer. From the notes:

“This offer may be redeemed once per customer and entitles customer to free copies of eligible Audiobook MP3 titles at bn.com or its mirror sites. Offer ends May 16, 2009 at 2:59 a.m. Eastern Time”

It also says:

“Please Note:you must have a valid credit card on file with bn.com or enter one during checkout in order to obtain the free eligible Audiobook MP3 titles, even if these free items are the only items in your order. However, your credit card will not be charged for the free Audiobook MP3 titles.”

But, payment methods of PayPal or “telephone order” are also offered as options. Be also aware you must also enter a USA shipping address (even though these are digital downloads). After the checkout process you’ll also need to install OverDrive’s “Media Console” software in order to download the files. That’s annoying, but more annoying is the 2,000 word essay on which rights you are giving up to use the stupid software. After that you’ll get an email linking you to a B&N download page, where you can one-click a download for each story – which in turn will allow you to two-click your actual MP3 downloads. Then after the actual download of the actual MP3 a search of your hard drive for the title of the story will reveal where the files were hidden on your computer.

So like I said, the offer WAS WORTH IT, at least for me. It took about 25 minutes all told to get the two stories that interested me. For that time invested I’ve got myself a novel, Blackstone Audio’s The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain (read by the incomparable Grover Gardner), and a Harper Audio short story called Best New Horror by Joe Hill (read by David Ledoux). It’s a cool horror tale from the collection called 20th Century Ghosts. The other 7 titles may be good too, I’m not sure its worth the wrangling and searching – I couldn’t tell who wrote some of them, or what they were about. So, if you do give this offer a shot please let me know if you find something else worthwhile in the 9 freebies. I’ll delete OverDrive’s “media console” within the next couple of days. I’ll give you 48 hours to convince me to use it again.

[via SFsignal]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Recent Arrivals from Blackstone Audio

SFFaudio Recent Arrivals

A Stir of Echoes by Scott BrickA Stir of Echoes
By Richard Matheson; Read by Scott Brick
6 CDs – 6.5 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781433267451

Blackstone Audio is building a very nice collection of Richard Matheson’s fiction. Jesse recently reviewed I Am Legend and Other Stories, and forthcoming is another collection: Nightmare at 20,000 Feet: Horror Stories by Richard Matheson. Can’t wait!

Tom Wallace lived an ordinary life, until a chance event awakened psychic abilities he never knew he possessed. Now, he’s hearing the private thoughts of the people around him—and learning shocking secrets he never wanted to know. But as Tom’s existence becomes a waking nightmare, even greater jolts are in store, as he becomes the unwilling recipient of a compelling message from beyond the grave!

This eerie ghost story inspired the acclaimed 1999 film starring Kevin Bacon.
 
 
Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt VonnegutSlaughterhouse Five
By Kurt Vonnegut; Read by Ethan Hawke
5 CDs – 6 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781433269691

In this powerful contemporary classic, Kurt Vonnegut exposes the insanity and inhumanity of war through the lens of absurdism. Billy Pilgrim, a traumatized American POW who survived the Dresden bombing during World War II, becomes unstuck in time after he is abducted by aliens. Under their watchful gaze, he must relive his life over and over again, coming at last to some understanding of the human comedy.

Both deeply funny and deadly serious, Slaughterhouse-Five became perhaps the signature antiwar novel of the 1960s, a cry of protest against brutality in the service of authority. Billy Pilgrim’s odyssey through time reflects the mythic journey of our own fractured lives as we search for meaning in what we are afraid to know.
 
 
Escape from Hell by Larry Niven and Jerry PournelleEscape From Hell
By Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle; Read by Tom Weiner
8 CDs – 9.5 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2009
ISBN: 9781433258961

A sequel to Inferno, also by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. It’s also available on audio from Blackstone, and we have a review |HERE|.

Allan Carpentier escaped from hell once but remained haunted by what he saw and endured. He has now returned, on a mission to liberate those souls unfairly tortured and confined.

Partnering with the legendary poet and suicide, Sylvia Plath, Carpentier is a modern-day Christ who intends to harrow hell and free the damned. But now that he’s returned to this Dantesque inferno, can he ever again leave?
 
 
Posted by Scott D. Danielson

LibriVox: Short Science Fiction Collection Vol. 009

SFFaudio Online Audio

LibriVoxWith 9 volumes of short stories now out there’s no doubt there’s a plethora of SF listening available over on LibriVox.org. I love these collections, they have a good variety and not too much repetition …. oh wait, I take that last part back. It’s the constant repetition that is impairing these collections. LibriVoxateers, please stop recording Kurt Vonnegut’s 2BR02B. Otherwise, keep up the great work!

Sounding good in this collection are Jerome Lawson’s reading of The Cosmic Express and the quick humor of Frederic Brown’s Earthmen Bearing Gifts. The standout though is Irving E. Cox’s Impact. It is a tale about a deserter from an interstellar trading ship who causes the ship’s captain no end of troubles. It’s a cool old story despite the wretchedly old-fashioned woman teacher character (she’s jealous, blackmailing and shrewish).

LibriVox - Short Science Fiction Collection Vol. 009Short Science Fiction Collection Vol. 009
By various; Read by various
10 Zipped MP3s or Podcast – Approx. 4 Hours 25 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20th 2009
Science fiction (abbreviated SF or sci-fi with varying punctuation and case) is a broad genre of fiction that often involves sociological and technical speculations based on current or future science and technology. This is a reader-selected collection of short stories that entered the US public domain when their copyright was not renewed.

LibriVox - 2BR02B by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 2BR02B
By Kurt Vonnegut; Read by smokemonkey
1 |MP3| – Approx. 17 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Previous FREE MP3 versions of this story are HERE, HERE, and HERE and HERE. You can stop recording this very mediocre story now people.

LibriVox Science Fiction - The Cosmic Express by Jack WilliamsonThe Cosmic Express
By Jack Williamson; Read by Jerome Lawsen
1 |MP3| – Approx. 26 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20, 2009
Originally published in Amazing Stories in November 1930, later reprinted in the December 1961 Amazing Stories. Unfortunately this reading excludes the 1961 introduction to the tale by Sam Moskowitz. You can read that HERE.

The Day Time Stopped Moving
By Bradner Buckner; Read by Tom Weiss
1 |MP3| – Approx. 43 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]

LIBRIVOX Science Fiction - Earthmen Bearing Gifts by Frederic BrownEarthmen Bearing Gifts
By Fredric Brown; Read by Alan Winterrowd
1 |MP3| – Approx. 6 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20, 2009
First published in the June 1960 issue of Galaxy magazine. “Mars had gifts to offer and Earth had much in return—if delivery could be arranged!” Another reading is available HERE.

LibriVox Science Fiction - Impact by Irving E. CoxImpact
By Irving E. Cox; Read by Tom Weiss
1 |MP3| – Approx. 54 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20, 2009
From Amazing Science Fiction Stories, January 1960. They were languorous, anarchic, shameless in their pleasures . . . were they lower than man . . . or higher?

Longevity
By Therese Windser; Read by Betsie Bush
1 |MP3| – Approx. 4 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
From Amazing Science Fiction Stories May 1960. A morality tale—1960 style.

LibriVox Science Fiction Short Story - The Measure Of A Man by Randall Garrett The Measure of a Man
By Randall Garrett; Read by Barbara King Gardner
1 |MP3| – Approx. 25 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20, 2009
From April 1960 Astounding Science Fiction magazine. “What is desirable is not always necessary, while that which is necessary may be most undesirable. Perhaps the measure of a man is the ability to tell one from the other … and act on it.” Another version is available HERE.

LibriVox Science Fiction - No Moving Parts by Murray F. YacoNo Moving Parts
By Murray F. Yaco; Read by Tom Weiss
1 |MP3| – Approx. 45 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20th 2009
From Amazing Stories May 1960. We call them trouble-shooters. They called ’em Gypsies. Either way, they were hep to that whole bit about….

LibriVox Science Fiction - The Nothing Equation by Tom GodwinThe Nothing Equation
By Tom Godwin; Read by Daniele F.
1 |MP3| – Approx. 22 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20th 2009
From Amazing Stories December 1957. The space ships were miracles of power and precision; the men who manned them, rich in endurance and courage. Every detail had been checked and double checked; every detail except—

LibriVox Science Fiction - The Stoker And The Stars by Algis BudrysThe Stoker and the Stars
By Algis Budrys; Read by Jason Mills
1 |MP3| – Approx. 25 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: LibriVox.org
Published: January 20th 2009
From Astounding Science Fiction February 1959. When you’ve had your ears pinned back in a bowknot, it’s sometimes hard to remember that an intelligent people has no respect for a whipped enemy … but does for a fairly beaten enemy.

Podcast feed:

http://librivox.org/bookfeeds/short-science-fiction-collection-vol-009.xml

Posted by Jesse Willis