Oct
When Science Fiction was Nerdless
Science fiction was a very different thing in the days before nerds. It was more fun. The movies of the 1950s and 1960s ranged from speculative fiction to pure amusement. “Forbidden Planet” represented the more intellectual end of the spectrum, while “Godzilla” personified its opposite. One made us think, and the other entertained us.
They used to rerun movies on a Television program entitled Million Dollar Movie. Back then, it was a big deal to spend a million dollars on a movie. Many science fiction movies made it to Million Dollar Movie. I liked one entitled “The Giant Behemoth.” It was a British film about a brontosaurus type creature that had radioactive powers. Of course, most little boys liked dinosaurs whether they were radioactive or not.
Back when those films were made, flight to outer space was a goal that was becoming more and more probable. On the other hand, the “Atomic Age” had people concerned over the future ramifications of radiation and scientific inventions. Cloning was not a common term then, but the fear of scientific meddling in nature was common. So it was that we had space stories and we had monster tales. These were not the stuff of classic horror. They were monsters created by science. It could be rampaging robots, giant ants, dinosaur-like reptiles with radioactive powers, or common creatures mutated into monsters. That was Space 1955.
Science fiction was nerdless.
In the days before Nasa’s Apollo program, the future of space and science were highly speculative. Science fiction reflected our hopes and fears. It showed us two kinds of futures: the ones we wished for, and the ones we feared. Some of it speculated on the distant future, and some on what is now the present day or recent past. We can see how close or far science fiction speculation has come to reality.
What are our hopes and fears for the future? Science fiction has changed. Most of the science fiction that gets to the popular media is pure entertainment. It is fodder for nerds rather than speculation on the future. Perhaps these questions must be asked through another genre. They need to be asked. We are entering an entirely new experience for humanity. Things like instantaneous worldwide communication, high speed travel and overpopulation are entirely new phenomenon. Our ethics are having a hard time catching up with social and technological changes. Popular science fiction may have changed, but our need to consider the future continues.
