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6 Pop Culture Visionaries Who Get Too Much Credit
We all know that our favorite games, comics, movies and TV shows are probably collaborative affairs. There are dozens if not hundreds of people involved in bringing a successful franchise to life. But we as a culture just love the story of the creative genius so much -- one brilliant madman spawning ideas fully grown from his forehead, with no help or support from anybody -- that we heap tremendous praise on the rare few who manage to do it.
These ... are not those people.
#6. Star Trek: Gene Roddenberry
Gene Roddenberry is world renowned for creating the original 1966 Star Trek series, which grew over the years to spawn 11 (soon to be 12) feature films, more than 700 episodes of television, dozens of video games and countless books. Star Trek itself also gave birth to both the modern fan convention phenomenon and the concept of slash fan-fic. So ... thanks, we think?
We can't help but feel a little abused.
Roddenberry was the first human whose ashes were taken into space, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and even has an asteroid named after him.
We basically gave the guy dominion over space for making a sweet TV show, is the long and short of it. We assume he rules it with an iron fist.
© 1976 Larry D. Moore
And, apparently, a plastic shirt.
Who Actually Deserves the Credit:
It's a sad fact of life: There's only enough room in the human heart for one Gene at a time. That's why you probably haven't heard of Gene Coon. He served as producer for the original Star Trek in its first and second seasons, wrote eight of those episodes, and then wrote another four for the third season. Among his contributions to the franchise are the Klingons, the Federation, Starfleet Command and the Prime Directive. He also wrote the episodes with Gorn (the lizard man), Khan, those half-black/half-white aliens who taught us that space racism is bad (again) and the inventor of the warp drive. Basically, if there's something you remember from old Star Trek that's not Uhura's miniskirt or Kirk's dropkick, Coon did it.
Memory Alpha
"But the two-handed punch? That was all Shatner."
William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy have both called Coon the unsung hero of Star Trek. And without his over-arching structure and influence, Star Trek probably would've just been a show about unitard-wearing swingers screwing aliens across the galaxy. Which is ... kind of awesome, actually. We call dibs on the rights.
We shall call it: Sexual Predators Lost in Space.
We wouldn't even have to change the leading man.
#5. Star Wars: George Lucas
Here's the general pop culture consensus on George Lucas: He sucks now, but he once wrote and directed the first Star Wars trilogy, which makes him another innovative, rebellious filmmaker whose creative fire has tragically guttered out.
But here's the truth: Lucas couldn't lose it because he never had it.
Making prequel Anakin an autobiographical character.
Who Actually Deserves the Credit:
First things first: Lucas absolutely was the brilliant mastermind behind the Star Wars movie ... prequels. I through III? That was all Lucas. But IV through VI? The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi were directed by Irv Kershner and Richard Marquand, respectively, and both screenplays were written by Lawrence Kasdan. But that still leaves Lucas as the writer/director of Episode IV, right? That's the big one: The Star Wars that put the "Star Wars" in Star Wars.
But A New Hope wasn't entirely Lucas, either: A fellow USC film grad, Gary Kurtz, who first collaborated with Lucas on his breakthrough film, American Graffiti, was producer for both Star Wars and Empire. Kurtz did more than an ordinary producer, however: Beyond running the day-to-day operations of the films, Kurtz also ended up coaching the actors (which is, technically speaking, the director's job).
The Chive
Pictured: Gary Kurtz (left). Not pictured: George Lucas.
Even minor characters like C-3PO weren't the juice of Lucas' mindgrapes. Lucas originally wanted 3PO to be an "oily, car salesman type" rather than our lovably gay robot butler friend. If that character archetype sounds familiar, that's because Lucas would later get his sleazy salesman in The Phantom Menace, in the shape of the flying anti-Semitic stereotype, Watto. The actually likeable, not-racist version of C-3PO that we know today was largely thanks to Anthony Daniels. Daniels was originally hired as just a mime inside the gold suit, with someone else providing the voice-over. But actor Stan Freberg convinced Lucas to not use a different voice and stick with Daniels -- which is particularly remarkable since Freberg was one of the actors considered to replace Daniels' voice. That's right: A struggling actor actually had to step up and sacrifice his own livelihood just to kill one of Lucas' terrible ideas.
If all these men had committed ritual suicide, we might have been able to avoid Jar Jar.
The man is like the original sin of filmmakers.
#4. X-Men: Stan Lee Invented the X-Men, But Only Kind Of
Stan Lee hasn't written much since the early '70s, so it's easy to say that he gets too much credit for modern classics like the X-Men. And easy stuff is great, so let's do that:
Stan Lee gets way too much credit for the X-Men.
"That's fine, Cracked. My VD has a higher net worth than your whole damn magazine."
Who Actually Deserves the Credit:
While Stan Lee and Jack Kirby did create the core concept in 1963 -- teenage mutant superheroes living in a mansion helping Professor X fight Magneto -- their vision of the team was so unsuccessful that Marvel stopped creating new X-Men stories in 1969. They ran in reprints for a while, until the book was finally given to unknown writer Chris Claremont, who "transformed a single underachieving comic into the best-selling superhero franchise of its time." He did this with a host of new and reimagined characters, long, complex story lines, a fundamental shift in the book's focus on wish-fulfillment and so, so, so much mutant boning.
What does mutant healing do for his refractory period?
And Claremont did that for 17 straight years (Lee, by contrast, wrote X-Men for less than four). Before Claremont left the franchise in 1991, he started a second monthly X-Men series, and #1 of that series holds the Guinness World Record as the top-selling comic book of all time.
... is a thing that Chris Claremont doesn't say, which also puts him one up on Stan Lee.
© Luigi Novi / Wikimedia Commons
We'll give Stan the edge in facial hair, though.


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CNN cited the American Immigration Council's recent report ...
U.S. Latinos Slammed by Immigration Debate Gone Ugly
A new 2008 National Survey of Latinos by the Pew Hispanic Center reveals disturbing new evidence that Latinos – U.S. citizens as well as legal immigrants and undocumented immigrants—are feeling the effects of the immigration debate gone ugly. Regardless of immigration status, Latinos are feeling anxious and discriminated against amid sanctioned public immigrant-bashing and stepped-up immigration enforcement measures.
Survey of U.S. Born and Foreign-Born Latinos Paints Grim Picture
The Latinos surveyed by Pew have reason to be concerned. In the last few years, particularly after the failure of the immigration bill in June, 2007, anti-immigrant rhetoric in politics and the media has become nastier, and extremist factions have become more prominent. At the same time, the Administration has ramped up its policy of "attrition through enforcement:" an immigration enforcement strategy aimed at wearing down the will of immigrants to live and work in the United States. Meanwhile states and localities have passed policies intended to discourage undocumented immigrants from settling in their neighborhoods, but these have had negative consequences for the entire community.
- General pessimism has increased. Half of all Latinos surveyed said the situation of Latinos in the U.S. is worse off now than it was a year ago. Foreign-born Hispanics were even more downbeat – 63% of Latino immigrants say the situation of Latinos is worse than a year ago. That's up from 33% in 2007.
- One in Ten Latinos Asked for Papers for LWL: Living While Latino. Nearly one-in-ten Latino adults (9%) – U.S. citizens and immigrants alike -- reported that in the past year the police or other authorities have stopped them to ask about their immigration status. 10% of foreign-born Hispanics reported they had been asked to show their documents, and 8% of native-born U.S. citizens reported they were asked for proof of legal status.
Extremism Bleeding Into the Mainstream
Vicious public denunciations of undocumented, brown-skinned immigrants—once limited to hard-core white supremacists and a handful of border-state extremists—are increasingly common among supposedly mainstream anti-immigration activists, media pundits, and politicians and are surely fueling the problems that Latinos are facing.
- Immigration extremist nominated to public office. Robert Duecaster, secretary of a local anti-immigrant group and one of the authors of the county's anti-immigrant ordinance was recently nominated to Prince William County, Virginia's human services task force. Duecaster has already suggested spending tax dollars to look into whether "illegal aliens have a preferred breeding season."
- Local sheriff engages in public Latino bashing. North Carolina's Johnston County Sheriff Steve Bizzell recently gave an interview to a reporter in which he accused undocumented immigrants of being "trashy," "breeding like rabbits" and spreading a culture of drunkenness and violence.
- The media adds to anti-immigrant sentiment by perpetuating myths and misinformation. In 2007 alone, inaccurate information about the alleged connection between illegal immigration and crime was discussed on 94 episodes of Lou Dobbs Tonight, 66 episodes of The O'Reilly Factor, and 29 episodes of Glenn Beck. All three programs presented as fact the "reconquista" myth stating that there is a movement for Mexico to take over the American Southwest. And Lou Dobbs reported on a "mythical explosion of leprosy cases" caused by undocumented immigrants.
Anti-immigrant and White Supremacist Extremists Gathering Power
Experts have found that the number of hate groups in the U.S. has increased, and much of the growth is in anti-immigrant activity.
- Anti-immigrant groups proliferate. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has been tracking anti-immigrant rhetoric and activities for several years and has noted a marked upswing in violence against Latinos coinciding with the national debate over immigration policy. The SPLC found that the number of hate groups operating in the U.S. has increased by 48% since 2000, an increase that SPLC analysts attribute to the anti-immigrant fervor that is sweeping the country. Approximately 300 anti-immigrant groups have formed in the last four years.
- Extremist hate groups see immigration as growth area. A 2007 report by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) examines "how white supremacists, racist skinheads, and others are using the national debate over immigration reform as a means to encourage likeminded racists to speak out, or even commit violent acts against immigrants." The ADL cites examples of virulent anti-immigrant rhetoric including an ethnic cleansing manual that details how white people can use force and violence to ethnically cleanse the U.S., and graphic video games that encourage players to shoot stereotypes of Mexicans crossing the border.
- The FBI Findings: According to annual hate crimes statistics published by the FBI, anti-Latino hate crimes rose by almost 35% between 2003 and 2006. Of the 1,305 victims of hate crimes motivated by ethnicity or national origin reported to the FBI in 2006, 62.8% were targeted because of anti-Latino bias.
Living in fear of deportation and discrimination and worrying about your livelihood and safety is no way to live and it's certainly not how Americans expect to live. In fact, it's the sort of life that our forefathers sought to protect us from. Debate, discussion, and disagreement around the pressing immigration issue are natural, legitimate, and necessary. Hate, fear and vitriol rhetoric are not.
Published On: Thu, Oct 09, 2008 | Download File
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subset: commoncrawl


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Journalists from 26 news agencies have chosen three-time Formula 1 champion Sebastian Vettel as the European Sportsperson of the Year
Vettel won the poll with a total of 137 points - seven more than Britain's first ever Tour de France winner, Bradley Wiggins.
Mohamed Farah, gold medalist winner in the 5 000m and 10 000m at the London Olympics this year, finished third with 126 points.
The 55th poll was organised by the Polish newsagency PAP. On its website, the agency said the winner was selected from 73 athletes in 31 disciplines representing 28 countries. There were 47 men and 26 women among the choices.


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Easy + healthy + delish = A Keeper. I added black olives, used red onions instead of white and Hunt's fire roasted diced toms, added a splash of balsamic (totally addicted to that stuff), and after boiling my gnocchi finished it off in the saute pan (EVOO + ital seasonings + minced garlic). Harry's had bunches of rainbow swiss chard - great color combo. We had this as a main course. You could easily serve it along side a grilled chicken breast for your meat loving friends.
Skillet Gnocchi with Chard & White Beans
From EatingWell: January/February 2009
In this one-skillet supper, we toss dark leafy greens, diced tomatoes and white beans with gnocchi and top it all with gooey mozzarella. Serve with a mixed green salad with vinaigrette.
419 Reviews for Skillet Gnocchi with Chard & White Beans
I used spinach, and I took some of the readers' suggestions: I boiled the gnocchi, did half red wine and half water, and added a spash of Worchestire. It was a very flavorful dish, and it was super easy to make. I will definitely be making it again.
Love this recipe--very comforting and yummy. I use spinach instead of swiss chard and Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes for more flavor.
This was very good and very filling. As some other readers suggest, I would also boil the gnocchi next time and might try the Muir Glen fire roasted tomatos as well ... it could have used a little zip.
I thought this was fabulous! I decided (halfway through sauteing) to boil the gnocchi instead, so it would be softer and fluffier. I also used some of the chard stem, as I had already sliced it up and didn't realize it was only supposed to be leaves. Thought it gave it a nice texture. Tested on my Italian friend who loved it and wanted the recipe!


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In an article by George Johnson in the New York Times back in 1999, it says that an amateur mathematician from India once sent Ian Stewart a proof of the Ramanujan-Nagell theorem that the Diophantine equation $x^2 + 7 = 2^n$ is solvable if and only if $n = 3, 4, 5, 7, 15$. The proof "was badly typed on strange paper and cast in an idiosyncratic style that would have given any journal editor the impression that the writer was a crank." However, it was correct, and after getting some help cleaning it up, the man published the proof.
To me, this is an inspiring story, and I would like to know the name of this man and to see the paper. I asked Ian Stewart but he said that he remembers the incident but not the identity of the man in question. I would try asking George Johnson but I am not sure how to contact him. I searched MathSciNet but was not able to guess which paper it was.
Does anyone know more details?