In a couple of weeks, there'll be millions of us flocking to the local theater to watch Keanu Reeves star in the remake of 1951's The Day the Earth Stood Still. Chances are, that film will bear even less resemblance to the the Harry Bates short story, "Farewell to the Master" (published in the October, 1940, issue of Astounding) than the original film.
In 1973, Roy Thomas read the original Bates short story, located the author to get permission to adapt the story into comicbook form, then teamed with penciller Ross Andru and inker Wayne Howard to create a more faithful adaptation of "Farewell to the Master" for Worlds Unknown #3 (June, 1973). Here's the behind-the-scenes skinny from writer/editor Thomas, himself:
Did Thomas and company accomplish their lofty goal of doing the story right? It's up to you to decide, Groove-ophile!
Thanks for posting this. I wonder if the new movie will integrate any material the classic movie left out.
ReplyDeleteThe graphic depicting "the behind-the-scenes skinny from writer/editor Thomas, himself" needs to be scanned larger. It's impossible read Roy's words. The story pages are scanned perfectly, so this shouldn't be a problem. Oh, thanks for posting all this in the first place.
ReplyDeleteDavid Marshall
Comic Book Artist + Writer
Comic Book Teacher