Review Classic Who Companions!

chainsaw_metal1

Member: Rank 8
That's trying to force your existing consumers to update their collections because you want to make some more money out of them!
JB
I said the exact same thing with two words. :emoji_wink:

It's true, that's why every time a company releases a new DVD package, or the Blu-Ray, you get a slew of all new material to entice you to spend even more money on it. Same reason why I still want to get the entire Star Wars saga on Blu-Ray, even though I have them on DVD (I can't get my wife to accept that it's important, but she keeps saying we can't afford it - women).
 

johnnybear

Member: Rank 6
Yes, Doctor Who and Star Trek were not things to be spoken of when I was in school unless you wanted a reputation as a nerd or something! But none of the women I've been involved with have had any interest in sci-fi, horror sometimes, but definitely not sci-fi!
JB
 

ant-mac

Member: Rank 9
Yes, Doctor Who and Star Trek were not things to be spoken of when I was in school unless you wanted a reputation as a nerd or something! But none of the women I've been involved with have had any interest in sci-fi, horror sometimes, but definitely not sci-fi!
JB
A few of the kids at the high school I attended as a teenager would tease me about my DW passion.

And yet those same kids could ask me detailed questions about what had happened on the previous night's episode.

During my childhood, an episode of DW was shown on ABC TV at teatime, Mondays to Thursdays throughout most of the year.
 

johnnybear

Member: Rank 6
Lucky you! Here in the UK we got one episode a week for six months of the year with an occasional repeat in the summer but usually those episodes were never seen again! Miss it and it's gone forever!
JB
 

chainsaw_metal1

Member: Rank 8
I agree with @ant-mac. My mom was the one who cultivated my love of sci-fi. I just made the mistake of marrying a non-geek. Mind you, she does love sitting and watching Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter with me, so I have that going for me. And she loves the Marvel movies, and is an X-Men fan. However, she did drag me to see one of the Twilight movies in the theatre, so she still owes me for that shit.
 

Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
Michael Craze




Early life and career




Craze was born in Newquay, Cornwall. He got into acting by chance as, at the age of twelve, he discovered through Boy Scout Gang Shows that he had a perfect boy soprano voice. This led him to win parts in The King and I and Plain and Fancy, both at Drury Lane, and Damn Yankees at the Coliseum. Once he had left school, he went into repertory and got into TV through his agent. His first television was a show called Family Solicitor for Granada, which was followed, amongst others, by a part in ABC TV's 1960 series Target Luna (written by Malcolm Hulke and Eric Paice and produced by Sydney Newman).







Before Doctor Who, Craze founded a film company, Mantic, and produced an award-winning short film entitled Fragment directed by Norman J Warren. It was exhibited at the Commonwealth Film Festival. He worked on several ITV productions, including one episode (The Last Visitor) of Hammer Films' first TV series Journey to the Unknown in 1968. Other television roles include parts in Dixon of Dock Green and Z-Cars.






In the 1970s Craze appeared in two cult Norman J. Warren horror films: Satan's Slave(1976) and Terror (1978). He also appeared in the horror/fantasy/romance film Neither the Sea Nor the Sand (1972).





In the 1980s, Craze acted only occasionally and also managed a pub. According to his brother, the actor Peter Craze, who also appeared in Doctor Who, much of Craze's later life was occupied by attending Doctor Who fan conventions.


Personal life
Craze was married to Edwina Craze, a television producer and previously a floor manager, whom Craze met while working on Doctor Who. They had a son, Ben. Craze enjoyed fishing in his spare time.


Death

Craze died of a heart attack on 8 December 1998. He had fallen down some steps the previous day while picking up his neighbour's paper for her, and owing to a heart condition, was unable to be operated on. Craze's funeral was attended by hundreds of Doctor Who fans, who had become devoted to him through his regular appearances at Doctor Who conventions, as well as series stars such as Anneke Wills, Deborah Watling and Wendy Padbury. The Doctor Who theme music accompanied his coffin at the funeral. Craze was cremated and his ashes were scattered on the river Thames.

He was survived by his wife and son.
 

Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
So sad that he did not live a longer life....

Just found this on which he makes an all too rare recorded appearance......


The Time, The Place - Doctor Who Special 1996

Featuring Carole Ann Ford, Michael Craze, and Jessica Carney (William Hartnell's granddaughter), as well as Richard Bignell, Andrew Beech, Tony Harding, and others.



 
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Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
The Story of Susan Foreman | The Women Who Lived | Doctor Who


This is the story of the Doctor's granddaughter and first travelling companion, Susan Foreman. Read more about her story in The Women Who Lived, an illustrated collection of inspiring tales of the women of Doctor Who: http://po.st/WomenWhoLived

ARTISTS:
1. Lara Pickle (0:00)
2. Dani Jones (0:33)
3. Caz Zhu (1:01)
4. Mogamoka (1:26)
5. Rachael Smith (1:48)
6. Kate Holden (2:18)
7. Sonia Leong (2:43)
8. Gwen Burns (3:10)

WATCH MORE:
The First Doctor: http://bit.ly/TheFirstDoctor Regenerations: http://bit.ly/DWRegeneration
Title Sequence: http://bit.ly/ALLTitleSequences

Subscribe to Doctor Who for more exclusive videos: http://bit.ly/SubscribeToDoctorWho



 

Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
A fascinating man, but he always seems to me to be on the edge of a breakdown. And I think he has totally lost perspective - in an egocentric way - if he thinks that the core of the UNIT family was himself, Jon and Katie. And not Nick.

He refused to come back for THE FIVE DOCTORS because it was an insultingly small part, even though that paid off for Fraser Hines when he was asked back again for THE TWO DOCTORS. I heard that his one and only BIG FINISH went awry when he complained about dirty microphones and will have nothing more to do with them. And when I was at a Comic-con he declined to go on the stage with Katy Manning, Richard Franklin and Debbie Watling, preferring to lurk in one of the corridors out of their way, selling signed photos; the only WHO personality there who didn't join the party.

He just seems to be his own worst enemy, sadly, from a career perspective.

But I have to give him credit for not being afraid to speak his mind.

He reminds me a little of the actor from PLAN NINE FROM OUTER SPACE, who played one of the policemen - and lived his life celebrating his character, being his own biggest fan. Funny, sweet, but also a little sad. having somewhat lost perspective of the bigger picture and his actual contributions becoming a little overblown in his mind.

The scene of Jon giving Benton the Venusian Oojah does remain a classic moment, however. So sweet and well done. As is "Your actual Pterodacty- l". Nothing can take moments like that away from him - or Benton.


Horrifying to think that he almost accidentally beheaded everyone, including Jon with a helicopter rotor-blade though. :emoji_head_bandage:
 
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johnnybear

Member: Rank 6
Although I've had my moments with my kids spilling tea or food upon my new costumes (as my wife calls my clothes) I think it was bad of him to have a right old go at the lady that spilled something or other over him at one of the conventions! I mean if not for Telly Savalas who would he be? His greatest and really only contribution to the show was as Sgt.Benton, a character that didn't do or say much and was never really vital to the story and an odd Cyberman and Yeti perhaps? That and the odd part in a long forgotten episode of UFO! A Mandela effect here perhaps too...I remember Levene as a pilot in The Dalotek Affair but last time I watched the series he turned up in Close-up wasn't it?
JB
 

Doctor Omega

Member: Rank 10
"Do You Know Julian Ovenden? He's the New Up and Coming One...."

11:20......


While John is enthusiastically waxing lyrical to the sweet old lady, about himself and his legendary character, Benton, she is much more interested to know if he knows one "Julian Ovenden"......

So here he is......

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1099188/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

To my knowledge she has never mentioned John Levene while bumping into Julian Ovenden..... :emoji_disappointed:
 
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