The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc. - November 12, 1992- Page 3
Thumb in air
by Darcy Lockman
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I
believe that a trilogy consists of three.
books. Okay, just wanted to clarify.
Don't tell Douglas Adams though, as
his fifth book in the "Hitchhiker's
uide to the Galaxy" trilogy was just
published.
The original book (the beginning
of what was later to become a series
with a cult-like following), "A
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,"
was first a glimmer in Adams' eye as
he lay drunkenly in a field under a
starry sky in Innsbruck, Austria circa
1971. The "Hitchhiker's Guide to
Europe" lay beside him, and he
thought that if someone were to write
a similar guide to the galaxy, he would
buy it and take off.
But, as traveler's guides are usu-
ally written by people who have
trekked through, or at least seen slide
shows of, the places they write about,
no one came out with a traveler's
handbook to the galaxy. So Adams
lid it himself.
Thirteen years and four books later
(notincludingafew books that arenot
part of the Hitchhiker's series) Adams
is still getting around on that drunken
idea from the Austrian field. He is
currently touring the U.S. promoting
the fifth book in the (ahem) trilogy,
"Mostly Harmless."
Adams, who is stopping in over
wenty cities in the course of one
month, says,"It's a major exhausting
tour. Tours tend to be a lot of running
from one city to another, jumping in
and out of airplanes and signing a lot
of books It's not a sort of glamorous
thing really."
Not only does Adams tour
America, but England and Australia
as well. Does he find that audiences
on separate land masses have differ-
entreactions to his books? "Oddly, no
actually, even though England and
America are very, very different
places, and are becoming even more
different. Nonetheless, I suppose be-
cause the books kind of select their
own audiences so to speak, you tend
to get similar kinds of people reading
them."
For those who are looking for a
sixth book in the collection, Adams
gives no guarantees, but most defi-
nitely is not ruling out the possibility.
"I've never had any sort of agenda in
regards to adding on to the series," he
said. His fans will wait with bated
breath.
With such a following why hasn't
Hollywood put "Hitchhiker" onto the
, Dougla
big screen yet ? Actually, they're try-
ing to, sort of. Adams expects the film
based on his first book to go into
production "any decade now." I-Ie said,
"I sold the film rights in '82 (to Ivan
Reitman, of"Ghostbusters" fame) and
,' ''B. i n 1
worked on the screenplay in '83, but
it just didn't happen. It's sat in limbo
ever since."
When, or if, this film is made,
Monty Python fans should be the first
to go Out and see it, as Adams' British
humor and style are strongly reminis-
cent of the Python troupe. People of-
ten compare the two, and Adams ad-
mits that "Monty Python was a strong
influence." Adams has also, to his
dismay, been compared to the French
writer and philosopher Voltaire and
his book "Candide."
"I finally read 'Candide,' and it
reads more like a plot suimnary than
a novel. I'm glad I wrote 'Hitchhiker'
and not 'Candide,"' he said.
His fans are glad of this, as well, as
is evident in the fourteen million plus
books he has sold worldwide, and the
many weeks his semi-sci-fi novels
have spent on best seller lists.
Not bad for a guy who doesn't
Adams brings in #5
know what a trilogy is.
DOUGLAS ADAMS, author of "A
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"
and the recently released "Mostly
Harmless," will be reading from his
latest book tonight at 7:3OattheMichi-
gan Theater. Videos of "Hitchhiker"
will also be shown. Admission is $5.
For info call 668-7652.
Adams
Ancient
Formula
Health Conscious
Foods
" Health foods
" Herbs
. Vitamins
. -"Sports
nutritonc
_ _ " Cosmetics
1677 Plymouth Rd. - 665-7688
Located in the Courtyard Shops at
North Campus Plaza
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I:J ft's
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; 5 i .,;G'u
Announces
A Fall Student-Faculty Mixer
* Registration for Colloquiums 396/397*
For Winter 1993
* Meet Faculty in Informal Setting *
Thursday, November 12, 2-5p.m.
History Dept. Conference Room
4th Floor Haven Hall
HI FI STUDiO
215 S. Ashy
1/2 block N. of Libcny'
Downtown
769-0342
pick-up and dciv3ry availabl3
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