New to The Genre Traveler? Then you'll want to subscribe using the box to your right. That way you'll never miss an issue. Thanks for visiting!

Welcome to The Genre Traveler! Please sign up using the form to the right so that you'll get all the latest updates to the site. You also might want to sign up for the RSS feed, which you can do via email or your favorite RSS Reader.

The touring Marvel Super Heroes Science Exhibition will be at the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto from Oct. 18, 2006 through March 25, 2007. The exhibition allows visitors to explore and experience the real-life science of heroes from the Marvel Universe. Thanks to partnering with Mazda Canada and Yellowbrick-Holman Exhibitions, highlights at the Ontario exhibition include the opportunity to don Iron Man's superpower-enabling "exo-suit" and really pick up a Mazda CX-7 vehicle.

For more information, visit www.marvelscienceexhibition.com.

Ready for a little chicken skin? That would be goosebumps to some of you, and you can experience them at any of three Outrigger properties in Hawaii during the last week of October.

"Spooky Tales," the hotelier's award-winning annual event features ghost stories and other hair-raising tales presented by master island storytellers. Sponsored in part by Bess Press, publishers of the Spooky Tales books, the event will take place on Friday, October 27, at the Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort on Hawaii's Big Island; Monday, October 30, at the Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach; and Tuesday, October 31, at the Outrigger Reef on the Beach. Admission is free.

Featured storytellers at the two Oahu properties include Woody Fern, who has been acknowledged as one of Hawaii's most accomplished storytellers. His specialties include tales of Hawaiian ali`i (royalty), local legends, and stories passed down through families. Noted Hawaiian educator and cultural authority Keala Ching will share tales of Pele goddess of the volcano,  and of the Keauhou area at the property on the Big Island.

Spooky Tales is part of the Kalakaua Experience, a year-round series of educational guest programs about Hawaii's rich cultural heritage, both contemporary and traditional, held at the three properties. Programs include special events and workshops covering a broad range of topics such as Hawaiian history, music and dance, healing, ocean voyaging, warrior arts, crafts and fine artwork, island cuisine, the environment, lei-making and more. Many of the programs feature hands-on learning, and are free to registered guests of the hotels.

DETAILS
What:	Spooky Tales
Where:	When:	For more Information:
Outrigger Keauhou Beach Resort	October 27, 2006 6:30 to 8pm	808-324-2553
Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach	October 30, 2006 6:30 to 8pm	809-921-9731
Outrigger Reef on the Beach	October 31, 2006 6:30 to 8pm	808-924-6007

---

Amanda Tapping, who plays Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter on Stargate: SG-1, will host FMA Vancouver 2006, benefiting Sea Shepherd, a conservation society committed to protecting marine wildlife under the United Nations World Charter for Nature, reports SciFi Wire. Richard Dean Anderson, former star of the show, will also appear.

FMA Vancouver brings fashion, music and art together for an annual gala benefiting local charities. Anderson, who has been described as a "champion of environmental concerns," is acting as an ambassador for Sea Shepherd at the event.

DETAILS
What: FMA Vancouver 2006
Where: The Center in Vancouver for the Performing Arts
When: Sept. 29, 2006
For more information: www.fmavancouver.com

Wow. I opened up my e-mail this morning to find all sorts of genre-travel news to share with you. So, here it goes.

Maglev Train Crash Kills 23
On Friday, a maglev train in Germany crashed into a maintenance car on an elevated test track, killing 23 people and injuring 10. These are the first fatalities on a maglev train.

"At this time, the accident was not caused by a technical failure," said Rudolf Schwarz, a spokesman for Munich-based IABG, the train's operators. "It is the result of human error."

Ekkehard Schulz, the chief executive of ThyssenKrupp, part owner of the Transrapid train, told a broadcaster ZDF that he remains "convinced that this is a safe travel technology."

Maglev – short for magnetic levitation – trains skim across their guideway held up by magnetic force generated by powerful magnets. This reduces friction, allowing for greater speeds. When the crash occurred, the train was moving at 125 mph, although it is capable of reaching up to 270 mph. The crash did not cause the train to derail, as a traditional train would have.

The Transrapid train is used mostly to show off Germany's maglev technology. Those aboard at the time of the crash included Transrapid employees, workers from a nursing care company and people from local utility RWE. Currently, the only commercially operating maglev train is in Shanghai, China.

For more information on the crash, visit abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2481445.

A Force of Roses
The Force is with the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade this year. George Lucas has been named Grand Marshal of the 118th Tournament of Roses Parade, which will take place New Year’s Day, 2007. The theme will be "Our Good Nature."

"While my mission has been to entertain others," said Lucas, "the Rose Parade has entertained me all of my life. It is such a joy to be part of this historical parade, especially as it is the same year that marks the 30th anniversary of Star Wars."

For more information, visit www.tournamentofroses.com.

Another Disney Ride Makes Its Way to the Movies
Disney's motion picture division has hired Al Gough and Miles Millar, the creators of CW's Smallville, to write a screenplay based on the Jungle Cruise ride, reports IF Magazine.

This 51-year old water-based ride takes guests through a jungle river where they get to encounter "wild" animatronic hippos, gorillas and crocodiles.

Stage of the Living Dead
According to IF Magazine, a Los Angeles-based theatre company has announced that it will produce a stage version of George Romero's 1968 classic cult film, Night of the Living Dead, opening late next month.

"The play is a direct translation of the film," says a spokesperson for the Gangbusters theatre company, the producers of the production. "Cult horror film fans will love how closely we stick to the original script, while at the same time incorporating the blood and thunder typical of a Gangbusters production."

The play will not be interactive like the Rocky Horror Picture Show, but will follow a more traditional theatre presentation.

Leon Shanglebee translated the script for stage. There will be two preview performances on Oct. 21 and 22, followed by the opening night on Oct. 26. Showtimes will be Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm. It will play at the Stella Adler Theatre through Dec. 3.

Details:
What: Night of the Living Dead stage play
When: Oct. 26 through Dec. 3, 2006
Where: Stella Adler Theatre, 6673 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Calif.
For more information: www.plays411.com/livingdead or www.gangbusterstheatre.com

One of the scariest movies I’ve ever watched was John Carpenter’s The Thing. In fact, I’ve never been able to see it all in one sitting. I usually watch for awhile and when the tension gets too much for me, I go do something else and finish watching it later. Also, I can’t watch it alone.

The Thing from Another World, which came out in 1952, was the first film adaptation of “Who Goes There?”, the short story by John Campbell. My father once told me that the movie gave him nightmares.

Last year, I read Campbell's story myself. Although there are differences, the story is very chilling and I highly recommend it. First published in 1934, it still reads well and I admit to feeling quite anxious for a while after reading it.

Why am I bringing all this up, you ask? Because I recently read in SciFi Wire that a prequel is possibly in the works. Fangoria.com has reported that Strike Entertainment, the company behind Dawn of the Dead, is looking for writers to draft the script.

If this prequel is anything like Campbell’s story or Carpenter’s movie, I’ll probably have to sleep with the lights on after watching it.