I am E.E. "Doc" Smiths great grandson, and I have always wanted to read the books...funny I was never exposed to it as a kid. I remember my family including my grandmother, E.E.'s daughter, always watching Star Trek, and Star Wars. Verna (grandma) was also a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes. E.E. also wrote crime stories and a book was published much later, called Have Trench coat: Will Travel. I have finally ordered some of his books and plan on starting to read through all of them...eventually. Starting with the lensman series, next is either the Skylark series or Have Trench Coat: Will Travel. Hope I enjoy it as much as everyone on here has. I did start to read Second Stage Lensman many years ago, but wanted to read through the whole series in the order they were written. I asked my dad if he could get me all the books, but he never did, and when he passes, I will be the executor to the estate, so I've got to play catch up on all his writings.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
6 ай бұрын
It's wonderful to hear from you Kenneth, thank you for watching the video and for leaving your comment. Your great grandad was a wonderful writer, his books were hugely influential on me, and of course on the development of science fiction overall. Let me know what you feel after you have read some of them!
@OmegaRockman
5 ай бұрын
Has any of the family ever talked about the Japanese anime adaptations of the books? I heard your great grandmother (E.E.'s wife) wasn't a fan, but there are a lot of anime fans who think the movie was a neat sci-fi thing of its own even if it wasn't an ultra-faithful adaptation of the novels (from what I hear). I haven't seen the movie myself outside of snippets, but I did read Galactic Patrol and Gray Lensman. They're definitely interesting reads, especially knowing that they inspired so much of modern sci-fi!
@kennethtrestrail7049
4 ай бұрын
@@OmegaRockman Yes, my grandmother (Verna, his daughter) was fighting Japanese publishers in court for a while. I was too young and am not sure how it turned out.
@ah2347
Жыл бұрын
Lensman is a very epic story. Kind of amazing to me that it is so unknown.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
I think the passage of time has led it to be overlooked by modern readers who stylistically see it as rather dated, but it really was a seminal work of space opera.
@TenNoZeorymer72
9 ай бұрын
It's a Boskone plot! lol
@brandonwallach2821
2 жыл бұрын
I am sad that not many people today have read these or even heard about it. I first read 3 of the 6 books at a local library when I was around 12 years old and I was hooked. I then found the whole series of books and bought them all and read the whole thing through. And I can say that Star Wars doesn't come close to this series. It did have a few issues but I just say it was about it's time in history but overall I've never read a series with such wild imagination and that is what makes it great. I love how it starts out using mechanics and slowly transforms into a mental war as time goes on in the story.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
Great comments Brandon and you had a similar introduction to the series as I did. I wanted to shine a light on this wonderful, ground breaking series as it is too often acknowledged as historic, but not actually read in the current day.
@malcolmbiddle2681
2 ай бұрын
I have read this series 4 times over 50 years firstly when I was about 16. Loved sci fi eversince ...Classic stuff and this series plus the Foundation series probably my favourites.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching. I must have read the series five or 6 times too, it's like visiting an old friend.
@zemxxi2765
2 жыл бұрын
Its not so much that a live action Lensman film would be expensive. Its more the fact that Lensman has been crowded out by everything that it ever inspired. Everything that Lensman did has been endlessly imitated. And all of the Lensman saga's flaws and dated aspects have been addressed in more modern space operas. Most studio execs would just say "We already have Star Wars/Star Trek/Marvel/Riddick, ect. Everyone knows those and we already got them hooked." I fear that the 1980s anime might be all we ever get.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
Excellent points indeed!
@eliezerrodriguez5863
5 ай бұрын
I read these too, but if they can make of mars movie, they can make this!
@dugrodger142
9 ай бұрын
It is really hard to tell newer generations that Doc Smith really did start the "modern sfi-fi" worlds... Movies and series. Inspired proll'y a better word. So, so much started with him. Good ideas catch like a virus or plague even. He lit the fires for so many. The technology was just not there, he got the ideas rolling. In one of his stories their ship was damaged, Space Hounds I think, he ripped the circuit out of the "console". Stepped out into the vacum of space and fixed a vacum tube, then came back in and plugged it in... This is going back to the dawn. He really deserves a Nobel Peace prize or something better. Truely. I really miss him. Thanx for this 'SRF...
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
9 ай бұрын
Thank you for watching and commenting! That's a great little snippet from Space Hounds, a fabulous example of his narrative bravado. There is so much that science fiction owes to Doc Smith. I just wanted to do my little bit to acknowledge that.
@WendyP76
5 ай бұрын
Love this series, have read it over and over again
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
5 ай бұрын
Me too! Thanks for watching!
@Mythologos
Жыл бұрын
E.E. Doc Smith invented the powdered sugar that sticks to donuts!
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
I did not know that! Thanks and thanks for watching!
@therealdonglover
8 ай бұрын
I first read these books in the 70's as a highschool student. I have reread them many times since. I have even collected some of the first serializations of the stories. Are they dated? Yes. Are the prose great? No. But in scope and imagination and world building they are tremendous and well worth the read for anyone.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
8 ай бұрын
Well put indeed. The scope was incredibly ambitious.
@Mythologos
Жыл бұрын
I first read these in the 80's and was crazy about them until my interest fell off around 2005, probably just from reading them too many times. Interesting note: The Phantom Menace recycles a lot of Triplanetary and that's also where Lucas got the Death Star - it's called Roger's Plenatoid, among other things pilfered from the series - not to mention the Jedi Order! Frank Herbert also borrowed liberally from Lensman. My favorite bit that I remember is when a starship captain consults the "Ship's Computer" - and it turns out to be a guy below-decks sitting at a desk with a pencil and slide-rule doing manual computations!
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Thank you for the fascinating facts! I think virtually all space opera owes a lot to the Lensman series, it really was seminal.
@vilstef6988
4 ай бұрын
Heinlien and Asimov were among Smith's admirers
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
4 ай бұрын
I can imagine they were indeed.
@vilstef6988
4 ай бұрын
The term space opera was coined by SF fan and author Wilson Tucker.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
4 ай бұрын
Thanks for that info. And many thanks for watching.
@TenNoZeorymer72
9 ай бұрын
A wonderful series, a fun read and, as many have stated, an overlooked property. The few that may know of it either heard of it from more recent sci-fi greats or the less-than-accurate anime adaptation (they didn't even have Chris' eye and hair color correct) or maybe know it as the conception behind the Green Lantern Corps and inspired Lanterns Arisia and Eddore. Heck, I've played a crime boss Wookie named "Zwilnik" and currently play a character named Roderick Kinnison in Starfield with ships named Boise, Chicago and Dauntless. Sadly, no one ever notices (or at least let me know they get it). Also, I am always skiddish about movie adaptations of books I love as many of the things that make it special tend to be left out. Just look up Gene Roddenberry's polite response to Ike Asimov's critique of SF visual media (including Trek) in an article for TV guide. Or, a more recent heated discussion of the color of "streamers" in Potter books vs Potter movies or if Asimov would recognize the current "Foundation" series. Plus, some of the culture in the books is now considered dated and improper. Even by the end, not everybody gets the underlying subtext of some older material (look up modern reaction videos of, say, "Blazing Saddles"). But, part of me would love to see and hear it on an IMAX screen. It would take the combined budget of the Jackson Tolkien movies and the MCU movies combined and would be a multi-generational endeavor and there is the worry of burnout and producers shy of long term commitments. Maybe one of us few "true" members of Civilization (lol) may discover why others have failed (I think Ron would have to turn the project over to Bryce) and maybe we could get a "pretty good" adaptation. I just hope I have enough days left in me to see it.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
9 ай бұрын
Thanks for this great comment. I don't think this will ever make it to the big screen and perhaps that's for the best. I always loved Zwilnik as a baddie name too!
@ManuelDornbusch
Жыл бұрын
My dad had back in the 80s the almost complete set (in German). In the early 2000s, I set out to find on used book resellers and ebay to complete the last books he needs. 2, if I remember correctly The Lensmen books have been the foundation of much of my scifi admiration and that it was how I wanted to say thank you In my try to get what I need, I big on several auctions at the same time, with the "risk" to have duplicates The best possible outcome was the end. My dad's collection was complete And I have my own complete collection
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Many thanks for watching Manuel! I am glad you enjoyed the video.
@ManuelDornbusch
Жыл бұрын
@@ThatSeventiesRockFan it was a real pleasure... might have to rewatch, because I am not sure, did you mention Star Wars? It is clear upfront that George Lucas must be/have been a huge Lensmen fan. The Jedi are as much scifi samurai as they are Lensmen. DC's Green Lantern Corps are Lensmen too
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
@@ManuelDornbusch I will have to rewatch it too as I can't remember either.
@janet91973gm
Жыл бұрын
I have re-read this series more times then I remember! Like you, Werzel is my favorite character in the series. Would love to meet him! My favorite series, though, is Ann McCaffrey's Dragons of Pern books which I've also have read multiple times.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
I will give those a read too Janet, thanks for the tip and thanks for watching!
@VRtechman
Жыл бұрын
The only advantage Story tellers have now is A. I. Rendered Art. With the weight of Lions Gate like studio this effort would be easy! 🎉
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
I'd love to see someone give it a go for sure.
@rockoutvideography91
11 ай бұрын
Great video. I started with my dad's paperback copy of Grey Lens man in the 1980's I eventually got my hands on the entire series in hardback.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
11 ай бұрын
Nice! They are still such an engaging read.
@DariusM
Жыл бұрын
Green Lantern Corps meets Halo, meets Zordon from Power Rangers!
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
All of those things are true!
@CanadianSpiderMan
2 жыл бұрын
Hey thanks for that! Yet another fantastic Space Opera that I had no idea about! Cheers!
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching my friend!
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
A decent review and short jog down memory lane. Thanks much for that. Looking forward to your next one. I think I was six or seven when I read these books. They were like mental taffy, requiring a great deal of dictionary cross-referencing, parental interrogations and consideration to chew through and digest. My father dropped the first of the Dune novels into my lap after that. I think he was trying to frustrate me into reading (and bugging him) less. He failed. The animated film was just a shaving compared to the full series but it does serve to cover the basic ideas.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
I was about ten when I read them and I was gripped. Really broadened my understanding of adjectives
@BJGvideos
2 жыл бұрын
Your dad wanted you to read LESS? But why?
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
@@BJGvideos Upon reflection, I believe I asked too many questions he couldn't answer. He gave up trying.
@BJGvideos
2 жыл бұрын
@@OneManShow1964 So he tried to make that your problem? Jeez.
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
@@BJGvideos My father was not parent of the year, but I like to believe he did the best he could to raise an overly-curious son.
@brianfury9790
Жыл бұрын
i frist saw the Lensman Anime i loved as a kid, later found out about the books, i have only heard the frist 2 books on audio. i love the universe
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching! It is a marvelous universe indeed.
@summerkagan6049
3 күн бұрын
Do you think that the Lensesmen series influenced the DC comic Green Lantern corps?
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
3 күн бұрын
I'm not deeply immersed in the world of Green Lantern but I would not be surprised at all. I think the Lensman series has influenced many properties deeply.
@jericotorres9139
10 ай бұрын
green lantern
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
10 ай бұрын
Indeed.
@StephenBoothUK
2 жыл бұрын
I’ve loved this series since I found a copy of First Lensman in a charity shop when I was about 13. I’d love to see a proper film version but I doubt it could be made, certainly not currently where Science Fiction in the minds of studio execs seems to mostly mean “Superheros smashing up cities” with the odd small cast more thoughtful film. I think that the books would lend themselves to audio drama quite well if you could get a decent cast. The gender politics would need updating due to being ‘of their time’ but should be possible without destroying the charm of the setting.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
That's roughly the age I discovered them too Stephen. Made a huge impression on me. I don't think we'll ever see a film version now. Even a high quality television show would be fantastic but I suspect too many changes would be made to suit present day sensibilities, as you say it's all superheroes now. Many thanks for watching Stephen.
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
It is sad to think that every entity with the means to produce a live action movie/series would ruin it utterly.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
2 жыл бұрын
I think you are correct in that.
@zemxxi2765
2 жыл бұрын
Its even sadder that many modern viewers would mistake Lensman for a Star Wars ripoff, not knowing its vintage. This is probably why studios will probably not bother with Lensman preferring to continue to push the space opera "brand" that they already invested in getting audiences hooked on.
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
@@zemxxi2765 Indeed
@patinho5589
2 жыл бұрын
They ruined star wars so .. imagine!
@OneManShow1964
2 жыл бұрын
@@patinho5589 I prefer to think of what could be, instead of imagining what would be.
@macrosense
Жыл бұрын
Masters of Space has a more concise story arc. The protagonists are also somewhat wary of giving the rest of the human race too much knowledge and technology at once.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Many thanks for your comment Ryan. It's time I re-read Masters of Space.
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
*Wurzel*
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
He's my favourite.
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
@@ThatSeventiesRockFan Which do you prefer: the Japanese anime reinterpretation or Wayne Barlowe's depiction?
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Wayne Barlow all the way for me.
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
@@ThatSeventiesRockFan Wayne Barlowe's depiction of Wurzel is probably closer to description from the source material and it's fascinating to behold and is an intriguing contrast to the Japanese reconstitution version which is startling in itself.
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
I keep hearing DUNE is a masterpiece sci-fi literary. Bullshit.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
Despite being a huge science fiction literature fan all my life, I've never warmed to the Dune novels for some reason.
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
@@ThatSeventiesRockFan I watched David Lynch's adaptation of Dune on a VCR and I'm thinking to myself why did they bother? My standards are high after 1977's Star Wars and then seeing the aesthetic connection to director Stanley Kubrick's 2001: a space odyssey.
@ThatSeventiesRockFan
Жыл бұрын
I like a lot of David Lynch movies but I don't think he was the right director at all for that movie
@Khultan
Жыл бұрын
@@ThatSeventiesRockFan Well, the hype around him and Dune certainly serve to further dim my feelings to numb and left me bewildered about that author and his works.
Пікірлер: 76