In the first half of the program, writer Marc Zicree and actor/musician Bill Mumy shared details about their new sci-fi movie, Space Command, as well as talked about television classics Lost in Space and The Twilight Zone. Space Command was funded entirely via Kickstarter, which allowed fans to contribute a staggering $221,000 to the project, Zicree revealed. The second of six planned films is currently in pre-production, as editing and special effects work nears completion on the first, he added. "Since I was thirteen and was a big Star Trek fan, I've wanted to grow up to be Gene Rodenberry and that's exactly what I'm doing right now," Zicree said, noting how Rodenberry and Twilight Zone's Rod Serling would likely have embraced a similar model of filmmaking if they were alive today.
Space Command tells the story of three families over 150 years and their efforts to colonize the solar system and jump to the stars. Mumy described his character (the patriarch of the family) as a brilliant inventor who stumbles upon a rare element which leads to a breakthrough in artificial intelligence. He compared the movie's efficient production to Babylon 5 and spoke of the fun he had reuniting with fellow show alum Mira Furlan and Bruce Boxleitner, as well as noted genre actors Robert Picardo and Doug Jones. Mumy gave an update on his forthcoming album, work on a comic book series, and his other acting projects. He also commented on space travel and humanity's need to eventually find a new world to inhabit. "I'm sure that once we get to Mars we're going to find the footprints of those before us," he speculated.
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George hosted Open Lines during the last two hours of the show. Mary in Queens, NYC, told George about a strange experience she had when she was eight years old. To make it easier for her to turn the bedroom light on and off her mother had placed a ribbon on the switch, Mary explained. One night the ribbon began moving back and forth on its own, abruptly stopped, then curled up and came down straight, she recalled. "I never forgot it and I'm sure it wasn't a dream," Mary said. Dennis from Philadelphia claimed paranormal experiences have once again started up in his home. According to Dennis, some batteries and his wallet mysteriously disappeared and have remained missing for more than a week. Items have gone missing before buy usually reappeared where they were originally left, he added. "We have tore the house up... this is driving me nuts," he said.
Several callers phoned in to chat about police stories in the news. Brian, an officer in Pennsylvania, blamed recent law enforcement issues on the litigious environment in which cops must operate. "The lawyers are running the entire show and the fear of litigation is running the police services in this country," he suggested. Brian commented on the tragic death of Eric Garner, who died due to compression of the neck and chest by officers attempting to arrest him for selling black market cigarettes. The order to stop independent sales of cigarettes comes down to the police from the mayor and other politicians concerned about the significant impact illegal sales have on cigarette tax revenues, he revealed. "That cop didn't wake up that morning and say, 'I'm going to go out there and catch some cigarette sellers.' He probably walked into a roll call and was told you need to go out and get these guys," Brian added.
News segment guests: Lauren Weinstein / Richard C. Hoagland / Peter Davenport