What tomorrow looked like yesterday

theLogBook.com is a chronicle of how we used to imagine the future - an ever-expanding logbook of what our entertainment, our culture, and even our brightest minds thought would happen. It's nostalgia - and some real history - that always looks to the future.

Created & curated by Earl Green

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Latest podcasts

Gene-ology 53 – Beyond Atlas Gene-ology: A Roddenberry Podcast

Welcome to Gene-ology, where we explore the earliest TV writing works of Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek! Gene-ology examines "Beyond Atlas", a one-off script for an unmade series might have been "West Point, but for the Air Force Academy" – except that, as written by Gene Roddenberry, it reads like a pitch for Starfleet Academy, which is impressive considering it was written mere weeks after Sputnik changed the world. Join us as we dig into the Roddenberry archives and discuss how Gene’s early writing shaped the groundbreaking worlds he would later bring to our screens. Hosted by Earl Green and Ashley Thomas Guest starring Geoff Gottlieb as Lt. Col. Caulfield and Michael Richards as Jim Highland 🌟 About Gene-ology: Gene-ology is a Roddenberry Entertainment podcast dedicated to exploring the formative years of Gene Roddenberry’s career before Star Trek. We explore his early TV scripts—including unproduced works—and examine the evolution of his storytelling. Buckle in and get ready for Gene-ology! 🔍 In This Episode: A breakdown of key moments and themes from Threshold, “Beyond Atlas”. Insight into Gene Roddenberry’s early career and how this episode fits into his body of work. How the themes in this episode connect to the larger Roddenberry universe. 💬 Join the Conversation: What do you think of Threshold, “Beyond Atlas”? Share your thoughts and theories in the comments! 🔔 Subscribe and Stay Tuned: Make sure to subscribe for more deep dives into Gene Roddenberry’s earliest TV writing. We release new episodes every other week! Follow us on Social Media: INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/MissionLogPod X: https://x.com/MissionLogPod THREADS: https://www.threads.net/@roddenberrypodcasts FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/MissionLogPod Gene-ology is produced by Roddenberry Entertainment. Executive producer Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry. Visit https://Podcasts.Roddenberry.Com for more great content. 💖 Support the Show: Join our Patreon for exclusive content, and connect with fellow fans in our Discord community. Every contribution helps us continue our mission to explore the early works of Gene Roddenberry. https://www.Patreon.com/MissionLogPod
  1. Gene-ology 53 – Beyond Atlas
  2. Gene-ology 52 – The Rescue of the Strangers
  3. Gene-ology Mailbag #2
  4. Gene-ology 51 – The Marquis of Donnybrook
  5. Gene-ology 50 – The Prussian Farmer

Retrogram #7718: B.S.W. Retrogram – theLogBook.com

The week of May 2, 1977: Before the Dark Times, before the Empire – well, approximately three weeks before the Dark Times and before the Empire – television sci-fi is just doing its thing on both sides of the Atlantic, unaware that audience expectations are about to change drastically. Retrogram examines five shows that were on the air during one of the last few weeks before a little movie called Star Wars took the world by storm. (1:06:06) Right-click here and “save as” to download the podcast – trust me, it sounds better this way than it does on 8-track. Links: Feel free to help support the show at Patreon or Ko-Fi! November 1983 in theLogBook’s History Timeline Special thanks to Ashley Thomas – The Nerdy Blogger (and all of our other Patreon supporters) Support Retrogram by purchasing through links and search boxes in theLogBook.com Store. The #1 song of that week… Music (in order): “Great Dark Spot” by Jahzzar (betterwithmusic.com) CC BY-SA “O Crebro do Morto” by Dr. Frankenstein (freemusicarchive.org) CC BY-SA “Queen” by Soft and Furious (freemusicarchive.org) CC BY-SA (break music) “League Of Mice” by Dee Zee (freemusicarchive.org) CC BY-SA “Nine Stones” by Andrew Howes (freemusicarchive.org) CC BY-SA “Theme from Man From Atlantis” by Fred Karlin “AVV Revisited” by Hermelin (freemusicarchive.org) CC BY-SA
  1. Retrogram #7718: B.S.W.
  2. Retrogram #9060: What Did You Do During The Syndication Wars?
  3. Retrogram #8347: The Day After The Day Of The Doctor
  4. Retrogram #7152: 72 @ 50, Part 1
  5. Retrogram #2214: The Little Black Bags

 

It happened on this date…

(You can also manually look up any other date, browse a year, or go through the whole timeline.)
Published On: November 6, 2017

Richard GordonGemini and Apollo astronaut Richard “Dick” Gordon dies at the age of 88. A veteran of the record-setting Gemini 11 mission (during which he undertook a spacewalk at the unprecedented altitude of 850 miles above Earth’s surface) and the Apollo 12 mission (during which he manned the command module Yankee Clipper while crewmates Pete Conrad and Alan Bean walked on the moon), Gordon was a naval aviator who eventually graduated to test pilot duties, eventually specializing in the F4H Phantom II fighter and teaching other pilots how to fly it. After his Apollo flight and retirement from NASA, Gordon kept working in the technology and engineering industries, but also diversified, becoming Executive VP of the New Orleans Saints football team.

The Apollo 12 mission is dramatized in the That’s All There Is episode of HBO’s 1998 series From The Earth To The Moon.

Published On: November 6, 2013

ArrowThe 28th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Caity Lotz (Mad Men, Legends Of Tomorrow) and Dylan Neal (Babylon 5: The Legend Of The Rangers) guest star.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 2002

Birds Of PreyThe fifth episode of the superhero series Birds Of Prey, based on characters from the DC Comics universe, airs on the WB. Lori Loughlin (Full House) guest stars.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 2001

Buffy The Vampire SlayerThe 107th episode of Joss Whedon’s supernatural series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, airs on UPN. James Marsters, Anthony Stewart Head, and Alyson Hannigan also star in a heavily-publicized musical episode. Hinton Battle guest stars.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 1995

Babylon 5The week-long national syndication window opens for the 45th episode of Babylon 5, the first of the series’ third season. Jason Carter joins the cast as Marcus Cole. Tucker Smallwood and Kitty Swink guest star. With parent network PTEN reduced to a syndication service for Babylon 5 and Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, the “week of” syndication window is adjusted to the beginning of each week.

More about Babylon 5 in the LogBook and theLogBook.com Store
Babylon 5 now streaming on Amazon Prime

Published On: November 6, 1994

Earth 2The first episode of the science fiction series Earth 2 premieres on NBC, starring Debrah Farentino, Clancy Brown, and Antonio Sabato Jr.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 1990

She-Wolf Of LondonThe fifth episode of She-Wolf Of London is broadcast in syndication in North America, a co-production between Universal Studios and British broadcaster HTV, and starring Kate Hodge and Neil Dickson.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 1989

Freddy's NightmaresThe 28th episode of the horror anthology series Freddy’s Nightmares is broadcast in syndication in North America, hosted by Robert Englund in character as Freddy Krueger. Mary Crosby guest stars.

This series is not yet chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 1976

Star HustlerThe premiere installment of the five-minute astronomy series Jack Horkheimer: Star Hustler marks the beginning of the show’s four-decade run on PBS. Hosted by Jack Horkheimer, director of the Miami Space Transit Planetarium, the show initially airs only on Florida’s PBS channel, and will not enter national syndication to other PBS outlets until 1985. It is often the last thing to air before sign-off, as Horkheimer encourages viewers to step outside and stargaze after the show is over. Horkheimer will host the series until his death in 2010.

Published On: November 6, 1976

BeastsITV broadcasts the fourth episode of horror anthology Beasts, created and written by Nigel Kneale (Quatermass). Jane Wymark (Midsomer Murders), Simon MacCorkindale (Manimal), and Shelagh Frasier (Star Wars Aunt Beru) star.

This series is not yet fully chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.

Published On: November 6, 1976

Doctor WhoThe 438th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. For the first time in the series’ history, the Doctor is seen to be traveling without a companion, and this story marks his second visit to the Time Lords’ planet Gallifrey since the beginning of the series. Much of the Time Lord mythology is derived from this story. Peter Pratt guest stars as the Master.

More about Doctor Who in the LogBook
Order VWORP!1 from theLogBook.com Store

Published On: November 6, 1973

NOAA / ESSA satellite seriesNASA and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration launch NOAA-3, a weather satellite intended to operate in a near-polar low Earth orbit. NOAA-3 is based on the already-flown ITOS satellite design, and will wait in orbit until March 1974, when the failure of an instrument aboard its predecessor, NOAA-2, requires putting NOAA-3 on full weather-watching duty, where it will remain without any major malfunctions through August 1976.

Published On: November 6, 1966

Lunar OrbiterThe second in NASA’s series of Lunar Orbiter satellites lifts off from Earth on a course for the moon. Lunar Orbiter 2 spends a full week examining the surface of the moon from orbit, sending back high-resolution TV images for mapping purposes, and to help NASA scientists and engineers select suitable landing sites for the upcoming Apollo program. Lunar Orbiter 2’s orbital path allows it to image a particularly promising plain in the Sea of Tranquility…

Published On: November 6, 1959

13 Demon StreetThe third episode of the syndicated horror anthology series 13 Demon Street airs on stations across the U.S. Hosted by Lon Chaney Jr. (The Wolf Man), and created (and frequently written and directed) by Curt Siodmak (The Wolf Man, The Invisible Man Returns), the series was filmed in Sweden with a motley mixture of American, British, and Swedish actors, with mostly Swedish talent behind the scenes. Michael Hinn (The Reivers) guest stars.

This series is not yet fully chronicled in the LogBook. You could help change that.