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Featured Articles

Gene-ology 96 – Queen Anne Killer Unidentified – Gene-ology: A Mission Log Look into Gene Roddenberry's Works

Welcome to Gene-ology, a podcast by Roddenberry Entertainment that dives deep into the early TV writing works of Gene Roddenberry. It features Lee Marvin in front of a high-tech viewscreen, but this is no starship – Gene-ology opens its investigation into a very unusual foray into "true crime" with Gene Roddenberry adapting the particulars of a notorious Seattle murder case into dramatic form.  It's also a career milestone for Gene: the last script he would write for a show that he didn't also create. Hosted by Earl Green & Ashley Thomas About Gene-ology Gene-ology explores Gene Roddenberry's early television scripts, including his lesser-known works before Star Trek using the Mission Log format popularized by Roddenberry Podcasts. We analyze the themes, writing style, and cultural impact of his scripts, and we even unearth stories from the Roddenberry archives that were never produced. Join us as we trace the roots of Gene's creative genius. In This Episode A breakdown of key moments and themes in "Queen Anne Killer Unidentified: The Michael Olds Story". Exploring Gene Roddenberry's evolving style and storytelling. How this episode ties into the broader TV landscape of the time and reflects the early seeds of Roddenberry's visionary work. Guest stars and unique production elements that bring this episode to life. Join the Conversation What did you think of this episode? Share your thoughts, theories, and favorite moments in the comments or reach out to us on social media or email us at missionlog@roddenberry.com Did you know Roddenberry Podcasts is on YouTube? Find the video versions of your favorite shows like Mission Log: Prodigy, Mission Log: The Orville, as well as exclusive content only available on YouTube. Subscribe now! https://www.youtube.com/@RoddenberryEntertainment?sub_confirmation=1 Follow us on Social Media: INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/roddenberrypodcasts BLUESKY https://bsky.app/profile/roddenberrypod.bsky.social THREADS https://www.threads.net/@roddenberrypodcasts FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/MissionLogPod Our shows are part of the Roddenberry Entertainment family. For more great shows and to learn how we live the legacy of Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, follow us here: RODDENBERRY PODCASTS https://www.instagram.com/RoddenberryPodcasts RODDENBERRY ENTERTAINMENT https://www.instagram.com/RoddenberryOfficial RODDENBERRY FOUNDATION https://www.instagram.com/TheRoddenberryFoundation Support the Show For as little as $1 a month, you can gain access to our Mission Log Discord Community! There, we continue the discussion with dedicated channels and a weekly video chat with the hosts. Become a member of our Patreon today! https://www.Patreon.com/MissionLog Subscribe and Stay Tuned Be sure to subscribe to Gene-ology for more deep dives into Gene Roddenberry's early works. New episodes are released regularly as we uncover more of Gene's television legacy. – Gene-ology is produced by Roddenberry Entertainment. Executive producer Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry. Visit https://Podcasts.Roddenberry.com for more great content. Edited by Earl Green.
  1. Gene-ology 96 – Queen Anne Killer Unidentified
  2. Gene-ology 95 – Run Away Home
  3. Gene-ology 94 – V Victor 5
  4. Gene-ology 93 – The Rydecker Case
  5. Gene-ology 92 – A Distant Thunder
Any home version of an arcade classic has quite a climb ahead of it to convince players it's the same game, but that works better if the game itself isn't changed. Atarisoft's Donkey Kong port for the #Commodore64 is the latest addition to Phosphor Dot Fossils. Phosphor Dot Fossils at theLogBook.com is one of the web's oldest archives of vintage console, computer, and arcade games; there was also a 2-DVD documentary of the same name, covering the early history of video games, produced in 2008 and 2009. And these days? PDF aims to bring a more laid-back, less-caffeinated, less-profanity-spewing experience to the retro video game longplay video. There's a complete updated list of videos at https://www.thelogbook.com/pdf-on-youtube/ Check out my other projects and podcasts: Select Game: Expanded Memories of the Odyssey2 podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/selectgame/​ Retrogram podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/retrogram/​ And you can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc And, of course, the site that started it all, combining sci-fi, retro video games, book, music and toy reviews, and all sorts of retro-futurist fun: https://www.thelogbook.com Help support the site, the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours! The theme music is the "Phosphor Dot Fossils Theme" by Earl Green.
Phosphor Dot Fossils: Donkey Kong (Commodore 64, 1983)
If there was ever a textbook example of a game that couldn't be done justice on the #Atari2600, this is it - and yet somehow this new homebrew port more than gets it right. We take Champ Games' Zaxxon Arcade demo for the Phosphor Dot Fossils test flight. #retrogaming Zaxxon Arcade is coming later this year from Champ Games, where you can also try out this demo ROM for yourself: https://champ.games/zaxxon-arcade Phosphor Dot Fossils at theLogBook.com is one of the web's oldest archives of vintage console, computer, and arcade games; there was also a 2-DVD documentary of the same name, covering the early history of video games, produced in 2008 and 2009. And these days? PDF aims to bring a more laid-back, less-caffeinated, less-profanity-spewing experience to the retro video game longplay video. There's a complete updated list of videos at https://www.thelogbook.com/pdf-on-youtube/ Check out my other projects and podcasts: Select Game: Expanded Memories of the Odyssey2 podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/selectgame/​ Retrogram podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/retrogram/​ And you can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc And, of course, the site that started it all, combining sci-fi, retro video games, book, music and toy reviews, and all sorts of retro-futurist fun: https://www.thelogbook.com Help support the site, the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours! The theme music is the "Phosphor Dot Fossils Theme" by Earl Green.
Phosphor Dot Fossils: Zaxxon Arcade (demo version) (Atari 2600, 2026)
Aim for the [insert hue here] of their pixels! It's a game that not only asks you to dodge incoming fire (while dishing out plenty of firepower of your own), it helps you get out of the way - if you want it too. Phosphor Dot Fossils takes aim at the #Atari2600 homebrew Oh Shoot! #retrograming Oh Shoot! is available now from the AtariAge store: https://store.atariage.com/products/oh-shoot-atari-2600 Phosphor Dot Fossils at theLogBook.com is one of the web's oldest archives of vintage console, computer, and arcade games; there was also a 2-DVD documentary of the same name, covering the early history of video games, produced in 2008 and 2009. And these days? PDF aims to bring a more laid-back, less-caffeinated, less-profanity-spewing experience to the retro video game longplay video. There's a complete updated list of videos at https://www.thelogbook.com/pdf-on-youtube/ Check out my other projects and podcasts: Select Game: Expanded Memories of the Odyssey2 podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/selectgame/​ Retrogram podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/retrogram/​ And you can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc And, of course, the site that started it all, combining sci-fi, retro video games, book, music and toy reviews, and all sorts of retro-futurist fun: https://www.thelogbook.com Help support the site, the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours! The theme music is the "Phosphor Dot Fossils Theme" by Earl Green.
Phosphor Dot Fossils: Oh Shoot! (Atari 2600, 2025)
Do you know how you learn to make more effective show opens? By making less effective ones early on in your #localtv career when no one's looking. Get ready to witness some embarrassing baby steps. Infinite Sheep is a series of reminiscences (usually short) of life in the last days of analog, locally-owned broadcast TV and radio. You can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc And, of course, the site that started it all, combining sci-fi, retro video games, book, music and toy reviews, and all sorts of retro-futurist fun: https://www.thelogbook.com Help support the site, the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours! The theme music is "Please Listen Carefully" by Jahzzar (betterwithmusic.com), licensed under Creative Commons CC-BY-SA.
Infinite Sheep: The art of the show/segment open (the early and not-so-good years)
An arcade classic crawled onto the Colecovision courtesy of a competitor, but does Centipede have any bugs (aside from the ones trying to gang up on you in the game)? Time for some Phosphor Dot Fossils pest control. #retrogaming Phosphor Dot Fossils at theLogBook.com is one of the web's oldest archives of vintage console, computer, and arcade games; there was also a 2-DVD documentary of the same name, covering the early history of video games, produced in 2008 and 2009. And these days? PDF aims to bring a more laid-back, less-caffeinated, less-profanity-spewing experience to the retro video game longplay video. There's a complete updated list of videos at https://www.thelogbook.com/pdf-on-youtube/ Check out my other projects and podcasts: Select Game: Expanded Memories of the Odyssey2 podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/selectgame/​ Retrogram podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/retrogram/​ And you can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc And, of course, the site that started it all, combining sci-fi, retro video games, book, music and toy reviews, and all sorts of retro-futurist fun: https://www.thelogbook.com Help support the site, the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours! The theme music is the "Phosphor Dot Fossils Theme" by Earl Green.
Phosphor Dot Fossils: Centipede (Colecovision, 1983)
It looks like the TARDIS is going to be parked for a while - at least on TV - giving us a moment to reflect (in a level-headed way) on the state of this and other long-running franchises, and on streaming TV as a whole, while also recognizing that there's still a lot of new Doctor Who happening. Chapters 0:00 Introduction 2:56 The Showrunner's Job 4:49 The End of the Universe! 8:35 Nostalgia 9:54 Wokeness is not the problem 11:01 Social media and fandom 12:38 It's not just Doctor Who 15:45 Streaming is the worst thing ever to happen to TV 18:56 Doctor Who is still there 20:24 The reboot question 23:53 Fandom vs. Showrunners 25:20 Disclaimer & credits Doctor Who stuff aplenty in theLogBook.com Store: https://www.thelogbook.com/store/category/popular-creations/doctor-who/ (Items bought via our affiliate links help keep the site running. Thanks!) Also! I've written a couple of books on Doctor Who. Find them here: https://www.thelogbook.com/store/ (They're also on Amazon.) theLogBook.com is one of the web's oldest repositories of geeky-cult-following goodness, chronicling the obscure, the overlooked, and the forgotten alongside the obvious for more than a quarter century. Check out my other projects and podcasts: Select Game: Expanded Memories of the Odyssey2 podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/selectgame/​ Retrogram podcast - http://www.thelogbook.com/retrogram/​ And you can also find me at Roddenberry Podcasts co-hosting Mission Log: Gene-ology - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLjXp3_SMi9LSg2rcgIayf30A0bVUb2yGc Help support the site(s), the videos, and the podcasts at https://www.patreon.com/thelogbook/​ or https://www.ko-fi.com/thelogbook/​ - many many thanks to everyone who has supported theLogBook.com's podcasting and videocasting endeavours!
theLogBook: Doctor in distress – are we ready for new #DoctorWho wilderness years?
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Published On: June 26, 2001

WitchbladeThe third episode of Witchblade airs on cable channel TNT, based on the Top Cow comic book of the same name, starring Yancy Butler and David Chokachi. John Hensley (Nip/Tuck) guest stars. Read more

Published On: June 26, 1997

LucasGeorge Lucas films the first footage for the hotly-anticipated Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace at England’s Leavesden Film Studios, a facility that Lucasfilm has rented out for the duration of the movie’s expected long production period. By this point, even details of minor cast members have been leaked to the public, possibly making the production of Episode I the beginning of the modern age of internet spoilers. The cast includes Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Nataline Portman and Jake Lloyd, with veteran cast members such as Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker and Ian McDiarmid reprising their roles from the original trilogy. Cameras are expected to roll through September, with a 1999 release date already set.
Published On: June 26, 1992

PathfinderA tech demonstration at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory leads to a rethink of the upcoming Mars Environmental Survey mission (MESUR). A self-contained “rover” named Rocky IV convinces mission planners to include a similar rover on an upcoming Mars mission; although the rest of MESUR is eventually scrapped due to budget cuts, the one portion of it to be salvaged is the Mars Pathfinder lander, which will deliver the rover (later to be named Sojourner in a nationwide contest) to the Martian surface sometime in the late ’90s.
Published On: June 26, 1983

Commando Raid by US GamesA latecomer to the glut of companies trying to provide software for the Atari 2600 video game system, US Games is closed down by its parent companies, Quaker Oats and Fisher-Price. Barely a year old, and with only 14 titles released, US Games is dubbed “an experiment” – but apparently not an experiment capable of surviving in the rapidly contracting video game market.
Published On: June 26, 1978

BasketballAtari releases the Basketball cartridge for the Atari VCS, one of the earliest home video games to show a vaguely 3-D perspective, and probably the best-known early sports game in the console’s library. Read more

Published On: June 26, 1971

N1Though the race to the moon has already been lost, the Soviet space program continues to refine its giant N1 rocket, conducting extensive modifications to nearly all of its systems. The third N1 to lift off almost immediately loses directional control, forcing ground controllers to signal it to self-destruct less than a mile off the ground. Its cargo is an unmanned Soyuz/Korabl combo – the Soviet answer to the Apollo command/service module and landing module – though this time there is no launch escape system, so the vehicle is destroyed along with its booster.
Published On: June 26, 1965

Doctor WhoThe 77th episode of Doctor Who airs on the BBC. This is part six of the story now collectively known as The Chase, featuring the Doctor’s third struggle against the Daleks. This is the last episode to feature Ian and Barbara, who return to Earth; stranded space pilot Steven Taylor joins the TARDIS crew.

This timeline entry leads to an entry covering this entire Doctor Who serial; there are plans to write new episodic entries in the future. You can support this effort!
Order Earl Green’s book VWORP!1 from theLogBook.com Store
Published On: June 26, 1959

WRS-57 consoleThe U.S. Weather Bureau installs the first WSR-57 weather radar in what in intended to eventually be a network of weather radars spanning the entire country. Derived from World War II radars, the WSR-57 is first installed at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida, where it offers as much as two days’ advance notice of storms approaching the Florida coast in the years before weather satellites. This radar remains in service until 1992, when it is literally ripped off the NHC’s roof by the winds of Hurricane Andrew. It is later replaced by a WSR-88 NEXRAD radar, though by that time satellite imagery has become the primary means of remotely detecting major tropical weather events.

Absolutely no generative AI was used in the creation of the content on this website.
It’s mostly just some guy named Earl.

EG