CBC: Nightfall: Assassin Game by John G. Fisher

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

One of the very few legitimately Science Fiction stories in the CBC Nightfall series was this one, Assassin Game by John G. Fisher. It’s set in a then future in which all university students, in the top fifth percentile, are required to play an assassination game. Exceptional players are recruited by all the best transnational mega-corporations which offer free, but illegal, training in the summers. Chris Wiggins, a great voice actor best known perhaps for his role on Friday The 13th: The Series, plays the school’s president. And a very young sounding Saul Rubinek plays the protagonist, a student, and star player, who is unwilling to pick a sponsor. There’s a whole lot going on in this half hour show – with a big back-story, a vintage future sound design (Star Trek and Pac-Man), and a noirish plot.

Devoted readers may note some strong similarities to Robert Sheckley’s Seventh Victim and derivative tales.

CBC - NightfallNightfall #74 – Assassin Game
By John G. Fisher; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 28 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: CBC
Broadcast: November 5, 1982
Source: Archive.org
In the future, your career will be determined by now many students you eliminate at university. Assassin was just a game at first, then it got real.

Cast:
Saul Rubinek … Joel Unson (a computer science student)
Nicky Guadagni … Wendy Hirsch?
David Ferry … Martin (a political science student)
Ralph McPherson … Alex (Joel’s AI)
Peter Jobin … the computer and the man
Chris Wiggins … university president
Barbara Kyle … Miss and the PA announcer

Posted by Jesse Willis

Hypnobobs: The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

I’m becoming convinced that Mr Jim Moon, of the Hypnobobs podcast, is wholly made of pure running awesome.

His wonderful narration and his podcast sound design (with it’s elegant clockwork logic), he delivers great fiction with incredibly well researched audio essays – and does all this on a regular basis.

He’s like a marvelous homemade fruit jelly that you just want to spread all over everything – okay maybe that sounds a little strange but his podcast is truly that wonderful. I just love it to bits.

Take last week’s podcast. From his great “Library of Dreams” Mr Jim Moon performed Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Horror Of The Heights. I’d never heard of it, it’s terrific, and Jim Moon’s reading of it is perfect.

The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Illustration by Virgil Finlay for The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (from Famous Fantastic Mysteries, December 1947)

Hypnobobs - The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan DoyleThe Horror Of The Heights
By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; Read by Jim Moon
1 |MP3| – Approx. 57 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: Hypnobobs
Podcast: May 12, 2012
“There are jungles in the upper air, and there are worse things than tigers which inhabit them….” First published in The Strand Magazine, November 1913.

Podcast feed:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/Hypnobobs

iTunes 1-Click |SUBSCRIBE|

Here’s a |PDF| assembled from the publication in the December 1947 issue of Famous Fantastic Mysteries.

The Horror Of The Heights

And here’s a |PDF| made from the original publication in The Strand Magazine, November 1913.

The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Horror Of The Heights by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Posted by Jesse Willis

Adjustment Team by Philip K. Dick

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Below you’ll find Gregg Margarite’s reading of Philip K. Dick’s Adjustment Team (courtesy of The Drama Pod) – but first here’s the printable |PDF| I made for it from it’s original publication in Orbit SF.

The Drama PodAdjustment Team
By Philip K Dick; Read by Gregg Margarite
1 |MP3| – Approx. 59 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: The Drama Pod
Published: November 14, 2011
Something went wrong … and Ed Fletcher ended up in the biggest thing in his life. First published in Orbit Science Fiction, No.4 (Sept.-Oct., 1954).

Illustrations by Faragasso:

Adjustment Team by Philip K. Dick

Adjustment Team by Philip K. Dick

Posted by Jesse Willis

The SFFaudio Podcast #161 – READALONG: Among Others by Jo Walton

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #161 – Jesse, Scott, Tamahome, and Jenny (of Reading Envy) talk about the Nebula-winning novel Among Others by Jo Walton.

Talked about on today’s show:
What does ‘Among Others’ mean?, “the most meta book ever”, Jo on Coode Street, what’s your favorite book?, Interlibrary Loan, the Welsh accent of the audiobook, is there a plot?, “it’s post-fantasy”, list of sf books referenced, how many have you read?, books in The Canon, Jo’s Tor blog, no cyberpunk, The Litany of Fear from Dune, learning about Judaism, Roger Zelazny, Luke’s review of Lord Of Light (not Amber), 1960’s – 1980’s only, getting book recommendations, no internet!, Harlan Ellison in The Comics Journal, used bookstores, “I’d rather have a Heinlein than a headmistress!”, non-fiction too, Plato (The Socratic Method), the fairy world, Virgil, acupuncture, were the fairies ‘real’?, Among Others on The Writer And The Critic with Cat Valente, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, The Tempest, grief, did Mor steal her sister’s identity?, The Wizard Of Earthsea, do the book choices reflect themes?, we want an index, karass (see Cat’s Cradle), I, Claudius, Chi, other Nebula nominees, God’s War has bugs, Embassytown, Jo Walton on series, Jo on the Hugos, we’re waiting for the hugo novella blog series, The Paper Menagerie (online audio), how well read do you have to be to appreciate Among Others?, Hyperion, “it’s a book-love book”, which books from the list will you read next?, The Wind’s Twelve Quarters is the best, old Delany, Sturgeon’s A Touch Of Strange, what’s that Sturgeon novel with three brains in a jello mold on Mars internet??, James Tiptree Jr., The Dispossessed (Luke’s review), Stand On Zanzibar is on audio, length of books, Jo’s Small Change series is on audio, Tor is drm-free, don’t forget Baen and Angry Robot and Nightshade, the kindle hit Wool is optioned for a movie, “umm…no”

I happened to have this old paperback:

James Tiptree Jr. - Out Of The Everywhere (cover)

Posted by Tamahome

CBC: Nightfall: Late Special by Clint Bomphray

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Early last morning I played a Nightfall episode expecting it to be an adaptation of a William Hope Hodgson story – but it turns out I had selected the wrong one – what I got instead was a surprisingly surprising story – I kept expecting a stone ship to turn up, but it never did – instead there was a horrific car accident, some truly terrific voice acting, and a set of uniquely creepy circumstances – all of it optimized for the audio medium – this episode typifies the entire Nightfall series – it’s great audio drama – it’s truly frightening and it’s highly recommended!

CBC - NightfallNightfall #06 – Late Special
By Clint Bomphray; Performed by a full cast
1 |MP3| – Approx. 26 Minutes [RADIO DRAMA]
Broadcaster: CBC Radio
Broadcast: August 8, 1980
Source: Archive.org
A car crash during a late season blizzard strands a young woman in an abandoned train station, where she meets a mysterious stranger who obliges her to make a singularly existential choice.

Cast:
Terry Tweed … Claire Acton
Chris Wiggins … Tom Parker, the Conductor
David Hughes … Vic
Trisha Allen … the Telephone Operator
Judy Sinclair … Claire’s Mother
Richard Donat & Frank Perry … Dick & Frank, the Police Officers

Recording Engineer:
John Jessop

Sound Effects:
Bill Robinson

Production Assistant:
Nina Callaghan

Story Editor:
John Douglas

Producer:
Bill Howell

[via, in part, Nightfall-25.com]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Think: The Lives Of Jack London (an interview with biographer James L. Haley)

Jesse Willis

SFFaudio Online Audio

Think with Krys BoydThink, a “topic-driven interview and call-in program hosted by Krys Boyd” from KERA (in Texas), covers many topics. But back on July 22, 2010 it broadcast an episode entitled The Lives Of Jack London. Here’s the official description:

He prospected for gold, hunted seals and wrote some of the most popular adventure novels of the early 20th Century. But what was Jack London really like? We’ll talk this hour with biographer, historian and novelist James L. Haley whose new book is “Wolf: The Lives Of Jack London” (Basic Books, 2010).

|MP3|

In many ways this is a surprising interview – well worth hearing. There are a few facts I’d never heard before and a few fascinating interpretations. The strangest part, at least for me though, were about London’s socialism and the lengths Hayley goes to apologize for it.

Very good news, by the way, the audiobook of Wolf: The Lives Of Jack London is available from Blackstone Audio and it’s read by Bronson Pinchot!

Posted by Jesse Willis