Star Trek The Wrath of Khan Book Club

[Tallguy]

Greetings, Programs! Last year for the 45th anniversary of Star Trek: The Motion Picture I "hosted" a daily book club for Gene Roddenberry's novel of the film. It was fun! (I thought it was fun.)

Here we are a year later. Let's do it again! Logic suggests (Logic! The man's talking about logic!) that this year we should do Vonda N. Mcintyre's novelization of The Wrath of Khan!

I saw The Wrath of Khan on opening day, June 4th 1982. I saw it at General Cinema's Cinema I-II-III at Metrocenter in Phoenix, Arizona. You can see the mall in Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure but not the cinema. There are a couple of shots where they had to be filming right outside the doors though. (It was across from and above the skating rink.) I think this might have been the only Star Trek film that showed there. I know it's the only one I saw there.

I actually started reading the novel when a kind-hearted soul loaned it to me on the flight home from my grandmother's funeral in mid July. Then I bought it when we got home. What did I think of the book vs. the movie? We shall see!

Anyway, let's start on December 7th (Star Trek Movie Day) with the Prologue. It's been a few years since I've read this. But if memory serves, the chapters of this book are a little beefier than The Great Bird's book. (I might also be thinking of The Search for Spock.) So this year I'm going to do a chapter every other day rather than daily. Let's just say after the Prologue we'll do Monday-Wednesday-Friday.

See you then, I hope!

 

[JD]

They filmed Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure in Phoenix? I've lived in Arizona for most of my life, and I'm a huge fan of the movies and I had no idea they filmed it here. I've actually been to Metrocenter a few times.

 

[Desert Kris]

They filmed Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure in Phoenix? I've lived in Arizona for most of my life, and I'm a huge fan of the movies and I had no idea they filmed it here. I've actually been to Metrocenter a few times.

I don't know about the parts that take place in a mall, but the "Waterloo" water park sequence was filmed at Golfland/Sunsplash.

 

[Tallguy]

Not the tangent I was expecting. Yep, filmed in the Valley of the Sun. The Circle K was (I believe) in Tempe. Recently torn down. I think the bowling alley was in Scottsdale but don't quote me on that. The mini golf place was in Mesa (As @Desert Kris mentioned). The high school was Arcadia? I bet this is all actually documented someplace now.

I just remember I had a friend who was working at the hot dog on a stick place. His boss took over his shift because she knew they were filming that day. He was pissed.

Of all the BIG movies of my childhood and teenage years I think the only two that were there were Wrath of Khan and Return of the Jedi. Lots more int the other two theaters outside the mall proper. 16 years later I waited in line in front of where that theater had been for The Phantom Menace but it had been totally remodeled into a different theater and the entrance was moved outside.

Although if we count that, I had my first date with my future wife there.

Go read!

 

[JD]

OK, sorry this will be my last post on this tangent, but I just looked on Wikipedia, and holy crap a lot more movies than I realized filmed out here in AZ. I knew they filmed old westerns out here, but I thought once the westerns stopped so did most filming in Arizona, with a few rare exceptions like Star Wars: A New Hope & Return of the Jedi.

 

[Tallguy]

OK, sorry this will be my last post on this tangent, but I just looked on Wikipedia, and holy crap a lot more movies than I realized filmed out here in AZ. I knew they filmed old westerns out here, but I thought once the westerns stopped so did most filming in Arizona, with a few rare exceptions like Star Wars: A New Hope & Return of the Jedi.

The Getaway (1994) was filmed in parts of Phoenix (I think) and Prescott (I know). That was when I tripped over Kim Bassinger and Alec Baldwin on my way to breakfast.