Mr. Sci-Fi
Given that you folks--again, all 16 of you--responded well to my remarks for the Quotidian Writer YouTube Channel, I thought I'd turn you on to another good channel you should check out, and that is the Mr. Sci-Fi YouTube Channel.
I spend an obnoxious amount of time
on YouTube. As it is for most people, the site is one of my major places to
procrastinate. Why? Because I subscribe to lots of channels (since those
subscriptions are free, and writers are poor). One of my favorites is a channel called Mr. Sci-Fi, curated by Marc Scott
Zicree.
Now, you might not know who Zicree is, but I’m certain you’ll know some of the projects with which he’s affiliated. Zicree is a writer of science fiction, with a considerable career in film and television. As a college student, he attended the Clarion Writer’s Workshop, after which, the late Damon Knight--one of the program’s founders--bought his first short story for the grand sum of $50.
The next piece of writing he produced was a little book called The Twilight Zone Companion, the seminal work on the making of the original Twilight Zone series hosted by Rod Serling.
Finally, as a writer for television, he penned several episodes of post-TOS Star Trek series, Babylon 5, the 80s revival of Twilight Zone, and episodes of children’s shows like Animorphs, Liberty’s Kids, The Real Ghostbusters, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and The Smurfs. (Impressive, no?)
Over the years, as his immersion into the fandom of SF has grown, Zicree has amassed not only a massive collection of rare science fiction books (which he proudly displays in the background of many of his videos), but he's also become acquainted with many of the greats of 20th Century Science Fiction.
He's a man who boasted Harlan Ellison and Ray Bradbury (two writers I've discussed at length here and elsewhere), as friendly acquaintances. Richard Matheson and George Clayton Johnson were sources for his book on Twilight Zone, and in turn, became good friends as well. Also, given his knowledge and admiration for SF's masters and its history, he acts as a veritable Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, and he puts his extensive knowledge to use in making videos on the history of genre, thus making his channel a virtual survey course on Science Fiction itself. (Below is the first part of his History of Science Fiction Novels. Check it out, if you're interested):
All of this love and passion for this once considered nerdy genre (which, let's face it, has taken over American Culture, whether the Cultural Gatekeepers in their Ivory Towers wish to admit it or not), make the Mr. Sci-Fi channel a "must-subscribe" corner of YouTube.
Approaching this channel however might seem a tad daunting, given the amount of content presently available. So here's a shorthand idea of what's there. As of late, Zicree's videos on the channel have been focused in several areas. He presently has an ongoing series on the subject of writing (no surprise there). Below is his video (featuring him talking into a portable camera), on script writing:
He regularly critiques and reviews most of the recent SF films and TV projects that appear (if you value your life, don't ask him about the HBO version of Fahrenheit 451). Below is such an example, which is a video of him reviewing Jordan Peele's new Twilight Zone reboot:
He shares memories and insights in to SF history and the many writers he's known (obviously). Again, here's such an example, which his extended video tribute to the writer Harlan Ellison, released shortly after the writer's death last summer:
But his biggest and most at-length project he discusses is his new TV show Space Command. He hopes to sell the project to one of the big streaming services in the near future, which may indeed be the next great science fiction series if the general public eventually get their hands on it. (The first hour of this show has been available to view since January, which you can watch below. I have viewed it and have a few thoughts on it, but I'll save those for another time):
If you are a Science Fiction fan or writer, Mr. Sci-Fi is an indelible resource for knowledge about the genre and its history from one of its great historians and creators. Zicree's knowledge of the field is so extensive that nearly any question you have about the genre's past can be answered by him, and that he generously shares it on a public forum, like YouTube, just shows the quality of character of this man. He loves his subject, and he simply wants everyone to know it and share in his passion. Consider taking a look. I guarantee you won't be bored.
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| Mr. Sci-Fi himself, Marc Zicree |
Now, you might not know who Zicree is, but I’m certain you’ll know some of the projects with which he’s affiliated. Zicree is a writer of science fiction, with a considerable career in film and television. As a college student, he attended the Clarion Writer’s Workshop, after which, the late Damon Knight--one of the program’s founders--bought his first short story for the grand sum of $50.
The next piece of writing he produced was a little book called The Twilight Zone Companion, the seminal work on the making of the original Twilight Zone series hosted by Rod Serling.
Finally, as a writer for television, he penned several episodes of post-TOS Star Trek series, Babylon 5, the 80s revival of Twilight Zone, and episodes of children’s shows like Animorphs, Liberty’s Kids, The Real Ghostbusters, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and The Smurfs. (Impressive, no?)
Over the years, as his immersion into the fandom of SF has grown, Zicree has amassed not only a massive collection of rare science fiction books (which he proudly displays in the background of many of his videos), but he's also become acquainted with many of the greats of 20th Century Science Fiction.
He's a man who boasted Harlan Ellison and Ray Bradbury (two writers I've discussed at length here and elsewhere), as friendly acquaintances. Richard Matheson and George Clayton Johnson were sources for his book on Twilight Zone, and in turn, became good friends as well. Also, given his knowledge and admiration for SF's masters and its history, he acts as a veritable Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, and he puts his extensive knowledge to use in making videos on the history of genre, thus making his channel a virtual survey course on Science Fiction itself. (Below is the first part of his History of Science Fiction Novels. Check it out, if you're interested):
All of this love and passion for this once considered nerdy genre (which, let's face it, has taken over American Culture, whether the Cultural Gatekeepers in their Ivory Towers wish to admit it or not), make the Mr. Sci-Fi channel a "must-subscribe" corner of YouTube.
Approaching this channel however might seem a tad daunting, given the amount of content presently available. So here's a shorthand idea of what's there. As of late, Zicree's videos on the channel have been focused in several areas. He presently has an ongoing series on the subject of writing (no surprise there). Below is his video (featuring him talking into a portable camera), on script writing:
He regularly critiques and reviews most of the recent SF films and TV projects that appear (if you value your life, don't ask him about the HBO version of Fahrenheit 451). Below is such an example, which is a video of him reviewing Jordan Peele's new Twilight Zone reboot:
He shares memories and insights in to SF history and the many writers he's known (obviously). Again, here's such an example, which his extended video tribute to the writer Harlan Ellison, released shortly after the writer's death last summer:
But his biggest and most at-length project he discusses is his new TV show Space Command. He hopes to sell the project to one of the big streaming services in the near future, which may indeed be the next great science fiction series if the general public eventually get their hands on it. (The first hour of this show has been available to view since January, which you can watch below. I have viewed it and have a few thoughts on it, but I'll save those for another time):
If you are a Science Fiction fan or writer, Mr. Sci-Fi is an indelible resource for knowledge about the genre and its history from one of its great historians and creators. Zicree's knowledge of the field is so extensive that nearly any question you have about the genre's past can be answered by him, and that he generously shares it on a public forum, like YouTube, just shows the quality of character of this man. He loves his subject, and he simply wants everyone to know it and share in his passion. Consider taking a look. I guarantee you won't be bored.
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