The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons

Haven't we been here before?

So here we go: Question of the Week #2. And it's a big one.

Imagine that this fall, at the Horror Marathon, we announce that next year's 33rd Annual Ohio Science Fiction Marathon will be the final one. The Horror Marathon will probably continue, but there will be no SF34, SF35, etc. etc. Done. Finito. For good.

In this nightmare scenario, if you were given the power to organize the final Sci-Fi Marathon, how would you program the whole thing? What films would you book? What special events would you arrange? Would SPACEBOY appear one last time?

Be as specific as you like. One caveat: you have to work within realistic boundaries. So no, you can't choose to fly in George Lucas, JJ Abrams, Ridley Scott, Harlan Ellison, and Sigourney Weaver all at once. And you can't just create a magical financial benefactor to allow you to indulge your ultimate fantasies You have to work within reasonable boundaries.

So with that being said, what would you do?

1. You let the audience vote on what to show.

2. Of course, yes, on SPACEBOY.

3. If it's the theater that has decided to boot out the Marathon and that's the reason it cannot go on - said theater is blown to bits at the end of said last marathon.

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Long Live the Orson Welles Cinemas

I'd like it to be an ultra marathon (48 hrs).

For purely selfish reasons, I'd want to include some gems from the past, most of which are campy.

Battle In Outer Space
Stingray Sam
The Time Machine
Thunderbirds Are Go
The Time Travelers
The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra

Good idea in a perfect world, but based on Joe's repeated notes about the process of booking films, a lot of the films people voted for would end up being shown from Blu-Ray/DVD/streaming, because it would be impossible to get a 35mm or DCP for just any old film. That, or the audience would have to vote on choices which the organizers already knew could be obtained in a theater-oriented format...and then everyone would just complain about the list of choices they had to vote on.



:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

I would make sure everything that was booked was exclusively 35MM prints, then I would spool every single film through the projector upside-down and backwards.

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Aliens? Us?
Is this one of your Earth "jokes?"

I would probably lean towards a "Greatest Hits" of some of the most frequently shown and infamous films from all Marathons past. So, for example:

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL
EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS
IT CAME FROM OUTER SPACE
BLADE RUNNER
INFRA-MAN
ALIEN
FORBIDDEN PLANET
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
THE TERMINATOR
A GODZILLA movie
Whatever classic, cult classic, or well-known film for which we could get a special guest
Reserve one movie slot for a TRAILERTHON

And then, of course, make sure to fit in DUCK DODGERS, SPACEBOY, GRAVITY, those disgusting BBQ ads, YOGORILLA, etc.

I second the idea of a greatest hits marathon in such a case. Of course, keep all the interstitials that have made the event so great over the years, like the classic trailers, YoGorilla, SpaceBoy, Gravity, Duck Dodgers, etc.

For the line-up, I'd refer to Question of the Week #1 and try to book the movies that have gone over like gangbusters in the past. Movies that are marathoid favorites like FLASH GORDON, INFR-MAN, LADY TERMINATOR, CHOPPING MALL, THE APPLE, TERMINATOR 2, THE THING and DEATH RACE 2000.

Then, for a final bit of nostalgia, I'd arrange for another performance of Gravity: Live, featuring Joe Neff's triumphant return as Jiminy Gravity. I'd also show PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE and have a special contest to see who can throw a can of Sprite with the greatest distance and accuracy.

I'd also book a classic guest like Stuart Gordon, since he has been such a friend of the marathons in the past.

Sorry. You presented an obvious JOKE question, so I assumed you wanted joke answers.

If you want a serious answer, I would make sure the last film shown was the first one shown 28 years ago: The Day the Earth Stood Still. A fitting end and tribute, especially considering it is also an all-time favorite of the esteemed Host Organism, Mr. Bartoo.

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Aliens? Us?
Is this one of your Earth "jokes?"

I don't claim to know how to program the perfect (final) marathon. There are good ideas throughout this page.

However, my idea of a great marathon would be to simply have a marathon. In other words, keep doing what you do so well, and if it happens to be the final blowout, so be it. Show some great classics, premieres and obscurities, and the audience will be happy and the event should be memorable. Planning something out to be "the final marathon" would only lead to disappointment in people's eyes because their favorites didn't show.

A final marathon isn't something I really want to think about, however... I hope this question is purely hypothetical.