The world has gone ape. Yes, in more ways than one. I'll stick with the non-political one.
My childhood crossed the 1970s-80s. I was a child in the 70s, teenager in the early 80s.
In hindsight, my first fandom was PLANET OF THE APES. I was an ApeHead.
What also surprised me, in hindsight, is how much of the fandom marketing machine I missed. It's also a bit of a shock to remember how much merchandise was available. It really was the first franchise merchandise blitz out of Hollywood. Sure other movies and shows had toys and a few coloring books, but POTA really went ape.
I watched the movies, the short-lived television show, and the short-lived cartoon. I had the action figures. I had activity books. I had the Topps trading cards of the t.v. series.
But I never knew about the novelizations. I spotted one in the library during junior-high years later. I never knew a thing about the comics, either, surprisingly enough.
Now, Titan Books are allowing me to relive my childhood and then some.
First, they've released an anthology of new stories set in all three universes - movies, t.v., cartoon.
Two omnibuses collecting the original movie novelizations are coming, too.
Wait. Not done. They are also publishing an omnibus of the original television episode novelizations.
Nope. Still not done. Not yet available but listed in Tales from the Forbidden Zone (and personally confirmed for me) a fourth omnibus with the original novelizations of the cartoon series.
Stop the presses.
Nope, can't.
Also rumored - perhaps a collection of the comics.
Tangent to Titan Books - The Topps Trading Cards book.
I knew the t.v. cards, I had those. I didn't know there had been cards from the original movie, too.
Last night, I picked up the new #1 of the PLANET OF THE APES / GREEN LANTERN cross-over comic.
Yeah. Combining the Apes with Green Lantern with the old Mego action figures packaging for the artwork.
Talk about weaponized nostalgia!
If nothing else, it will be a great year to be an ApeHead!
But what about the Planet of the Apes musical from that episode of The Simpsons?
ReplyDeleteAll together now, everybody sing, "Dr. Zaius! Dr. Zaius!"
Oh, almost forgot. Back during the days of the late, lamented Conestoga, the local fan group there in Tulsa would do a parody of one of the sf movies of that summer. (Conestoga was a late July convention for most of its run.) So of course they spoofed the Wahlberg version of PotA the summer it came out.
ReplyDeleteThere was one scene where the actor playing Dr. Zaius loudly states, "That would be... HERESY!" Somehow that line became incorporated into every production I saw them do after that. It became like the Rocky Horror Picture Show. When the audience heard the phrase "That would be", they all screamed "HERESY!"
I miss those days and that convention.
That's great! :)
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