Hey, you, yeah, you! Wanna make friends? Wanna hang out with cool froods? Have free time on Thursdays or Sundays? Follow up the link below to have a good time!
Intergalactic tee sale at Qwertee!
Now, I know what you saying: These are not Galactic Hitchhikers tees and we don’t get profit out of hit, so what the hell? But here I am saying: support artists and buy creations. We will have plenty of time to advertise our product prior the festivities, but for now, I want you to have some goodies at reduced prices!
QWERTEE HAS A HUGE SALE, FULL OF HITCHHIKERS GUIDE TO THE GALAXY OUTFITS, ALL UNDER 8 QUID!
Here is their selection:
1. About 42:
2. SPLAT!
3. Forty Two:
4. The Answer to the Question:
Grab them while you can!
Not My President: 45 is Not Zaphod Beeblebrox
Special Addendum Number 1.0- Regarding the comparison of the 45th President of the United States of America to Galactic President and Worst Dressed Sentient Being in the Known Universe, Zaphod Beeblebrox:
While it is known to the editors that it is easy to think “they voted in an idiot,” and draw
Trump’s hair before harvest
comparison the current Cheeto in Chief and the Big Z, Galactic Hitchhikers would like to point out that Zaphod Beeblebrox has at least a few likeable qualities. Although Trump’s hair may be a semi- sentient creature from a distant world, only Earth can produce an asshole like him.
Zaphod is just this guy, you know? Beeblebrox is, as we know, an adventurer, ex-hippy, good timer (crook? quite possibly), manic self-publicist, terrible bad at personal relationships, and is often thought to be completely out to lunch. Donald Trump has never been an adventurer, ex-hippy, or a good timer. Yes Zaphod is an idiot of a Galactic President, but his actions never come from malice, rather they start an end in plain stupidity, often in ego, and always with ten out of ten points for style.
This Trump fellow on the other hand has as much sex appeal as a road accident. Not actually evil but he is bad-tempered, bureaucratic, officious and callous. Draining the swamp by overfilling it with greasier corporate elements which displace the even the greasiest paid for partisan politicians of Washington DC. He wouldn’t even lift a finger to save his own grandmother from the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal without orders – signed in triplicate by the Kremlin, sent in, called fake news, sent back, queried, lost, found, denied, accused of being Hillary Clinton’s emails, subjected to public inquiry, lost again, and finally buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters. The best firelighters, everyone tells him so.
Despite having a self-professed big brain and his claims to have all the best words, Donald’s speeches and public appearances are more often than not far worse than even 
the poetry of Paula Nancy Millstone Jennings; only having appeal to slug like creatures whom wave their firearms in the air and have no large intestines to reach up and throttle their brains. His approach to providing health care to the citizens of the country he leads is to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with all out nuclear war. Less people to cover does equate to more affordable providence of care, it is supposed. If the great nation of Canada was smart they would help Mexico build the wall Donny wants so badly, and then build their own wall between the US and themselves as it will help keep out the inevitable hordes of US citizens seeking to escape America as refugees.
Donald J Trump is a Vogon, and not even a very good one. His father got him deferments from having to take Bureaucracy classes, and he failed all his other subjects, 
but he is a Vogon nevertheless.
Let’s give the Big Z a break guys. We are all so very tired of winning, but signing for the destruction of Earth is nothing compared to the Tangerine Menace disassembling all that is good about it and selling it off to the highest bidder. “Love and Kisses” to make way for a hyperspace bypass would be an act of compassion in contrast to divide and conquer. Stealing a starship is a lot less concerning to us than stealing the integrity of the office of the Presidency of the United States. At least Zaphod offered to show his spaceship to the girl, rather than grabbing her right by the……you know where we are going with this.
Remember, we only have just under three and a half more years to endure. Meanwhile, we should not allow ourselves to be divided. We cannot fall for the callousness and hate. Find something to do for the unity of all those living on this planet we share. Stay vigilant, stay hoopy, RESIST, and most of all:
If all else fails the Frood has left us some great advice:
Douglas Adams Fan Anthology You & 42 Update: Prepare for the Whooshing
Howdy Hoopy Froods!
If you are shaking your head as to the meaning of my subtitle, “Prepare for the Whooshing,” then shake no more. It is not a tribal rite of Arcturus Grefa, nor the sound of flying mattresses out of the swamps of Sqornshellous Zeta, however it is the distinct noise a deadline makes as it goes by. Deadline? Deadline? DEADLINE?!
What Deadline?!
I am afraid yes indeed we are imposing a deadline for anyone wishing to still contribute to You and 42: A Douglas Adams Fan Anthology. Wait? What?! There’s a forthcoming anthology dedicated to Douglas Adams? How come I didn’t hear about it you ask….Well…the answer to that is….I do not know, why haven’t you heard of it?
Well the first answer is personal to a degree and it was placed on hiatus a bit.
Firstly, my wife Jessica and I are the You and 42 editors, which will be published by Watching Books and see secondly….
Secondly, for most of this year we have dealt with a family matter, which had all of our time and attention. Our family is still our priority, and we will not get into the matter here, but this unfortunate time in our lives placed all of our projects, career and various matters on hold. Therefore, this project, You and 42 was subsequently on hiatus for sometime.
But Gallifrey Falls No More…Ummmm I mean You and 42 Whooshes Once Again!
What is You and 42?
Well….
“If you hadn’t guessed it, YOU AND 42 is going to be a volume of essays about the life and work of Douglas Adams. The format, as per usual (meaning of you are familiar with the other “You and Who book series by Watching Books), will be a series of essays each focussing on a particular area or production, through which the authors can talk about their personal experiences of Adams and his work. We are not looking for reviews, rather the kind of essays we prefer are those that take a more autobiographical or anecdotal slant; this book is about the “YOU” as much as it is the “42”. Having said that, we appreciate that Adams is a popular and complex author, and this time we’ll be happy to mix it up a bit, by including essays of all kinds as long as they encompass the theme of Douglas Adams touching our lives in some way.”
If I may now direct your attention to the full set of project details over on the You and Who website, which also has a list of topics with authors having been listed alongside some. If you do not see topics that apply to how you may have read the work of Douglas Adams, or how you subjectively feel about his work, then please by all means email me a pitch to youandfortytwo@gmail.com. Please read all of the particulars on the project website and if you do not see your question answered, then by all means email me. Lastly, if you did not know all proceeds from sales of this books will be donated to charity. If you visit the Watching Books website, please peruse their collection of very splendid and worthwhile titles for sale, all benefiting charity.
Now the Rub…
This project began in March of 2016–and of course for every kind of book it takes sometime to come together. It can be 6 months, a year or more before a volume is fully actualized and transmitted across the galaxy. We have a significant amount of contributions but I would really like to bulk it up a bit more. If you have contributed to You and 42, THANK YOU! If you would like to contribute anymore, then I would be wholeheartedly grateful.
If you have promised to send in an essay I completely understand if life, the universe and everything has gotten in the way…however, I shall be emailing everyone who has inquired, regardless of a contribution or not, within 48 hours. If you receive said email then please read further details of this overall message within and reply accordingly.
Now the great whooshing….
We have never had a deadline for this project, but there comes time when we must push it forward so the reading public can enjoy your contributions, therefore anyone who wishes to contribute the imposed deadline is Weds, September 20th 2017. This is just one day under the 2 month mark from now and I hope more than enough time for you to complete any contributiuon you wish to send in. Whether you wish your own personal memory, Douglas Adams fan organization, event, or significant occasion represented there will be no extensions beyond this deadline. If we can stick to the aforementioned deadline then You and 42 can be sent into Watching Books before the end of the year and published around the new year. So prepare for the great whooshing for if you wish for your thoughts to be heard within this volume then time will not wait for you.
“I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.”
― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt
Peace and Towels,
Anthony S Burdge
Editor, You and 42
Sub Etha Channel 42 needs YOU to do live reading!
Dear All,
Last year, We successfully recorded the entire Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Many of you took part and it was great fun, going on for over a day! It was a great opportunity to make new friends and connections all across the Universe. The editing and last finishing touches are still upon us but it will be available at your local planning department in Alpha Centauri in approximately 50 Earth years.
Now, this year some of you were out and about so the turn up was a bit less than expected. I attended a special Towel Day Stand up Comedy event, while our Towel Day Ambassador, Hillary organised an amazing Towel Day Karaoke Night. Many of you probably attended the amazing Towel Day Douglas Adams Tour. You lucky, lucky humans.
Now, some of our members stayed online to record the next upcoming book, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. Thanks to Cris and Joel, the Channel has been running for 36 hours and during this time there were 20 chapters recorded for sure.
So far, the following chapters have been confirmed: Chapter 1-11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 25-29, 31-34
If you read a chapter on while the channel was running and it was not listed above, please hit us up in the comments with your chapter number and your name.
This means we still have a few chapters to go to complete the book. The following chapters are available to read:
Chapter 13, 20-24, and 30
We are waiting to receive chapter 18 from Max and 12 from Tim!
Thanks to Lisa, Rani, Kevin, Stefan and Heather for contributing! 😉
If you would like to read a chapter for us, please feel free to comment below to reserve it and then go ahead, record and send it to us. 😉
We are looking forward to receive your contribution to The Restaurant at the End of the Universe.
So long and thanks for all the fish!
Demi
The Original Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 1978 Radio Show
As we approach Towel Day, we are coming up with some sweet treats for our followers. One of these treats is the original Radio Show. It is full stereo and very hoopy. Most of you probably encountered with it previously, but for those of you, who didn’t: You are in for a treat. Noted for its amazing use of special sound effects, this little Show made H2G2 as popular as it is now.
Now, I can ramble on, but we both know that you just want to get on with it, so here it goes:
First Contact Day
(Note: The event description has been edited as to include those temporally located before and after the day of First Contact. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy says that one of the major problems encountered in time travel is not that of becoming your own father or mother. There is no problem in becoming your own father or mother that a broad-minded and well-adjusted family can’t cope with. There is no problem with changing the course of history—the course of history does not change because it all fits together like a jigsaw. All the important changes have happened before the things they were supposed to change and it all sorts itself out in the end.
The major problem is simply one of grammar, and the main work to consult in this matter is Dr. Dan Streetmentioner’s Time Traveler’s Handbook of 1001 Tense Formations. It will tell you, for instance, how to describe something that was about to happen to you in the past before you avoided it by time-jumping forward two days in order to avoid it. The event will be described differently according to whether you are talking about it from the standpoint of your own natural time, from a time in the further future, or a time in the further past and is further complicated by the possibility of conducting conversations while you are actually traveling from one time to another with the intention of becoming your own mother or father.)
Join in the festivities as we celebrate First Contact with the Vulcans, only 46 years and a nuclear war started by genetic supermen away!
In 2063 the famed Zefram Cochrane (will have) launched the first warp one flight, in (what will be) Earth’s legendary starship, the Phoenix. This of course (will have) attracted the attention of the Vulcan ship T’Plana-Hath passing near Earth, who visited (will visit) Zefram on April 5th, in Bozeman Montana, initiating Earth’s First Contact with another sentient race.
Join us as we celebrate Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations!
First Contact Day traditions include (will include):
- Eating Cheese Pierogis, Zefram Cochrane’s favorite food
- Rock and roll music, Zefram’s favored fare
- Put on the pointed ears and post pics!
- Go to your local Observatory or Planetarium, dream of space, dream of a better future!
- Do something for world peace, reach out to a neighbor or someone in need. To get to a brighter tomorrow we have to pave the way!
- Have your own traditions for First Contact Day? Post them in the comments!
Zaphod Speaks! Galactic Hitchhikers Interview Mark Wing-Davey
Zaphod Speaks! Galactic Hitchhikers Interview Mark Wing-Davey
by Anthony S Burdge
Greetings Hoopy Froods!
It is with great pleasure that I introduce to you all our faithful froods the 1st in a new Galactic Hitchhiker’s feature: Hoopy Frood Interviews!
The idea for this feature began in March 2016 as I was formulating content ideas for You and 42: A Douglas Adams Fan Anthology. I felt it would be great to get something in the book direct from folks involved in HG2G productions. I wrote to Mark Wing-Davey aka Zaphod Beeblebrox and received a very nice reply from him and his assistant. For those who may or may not know Mark Wing-Davey is the Chairperson, and Arts Professor, of Graduate Acting at NYU Tisch School of the Arts (Read up on his career here) In 2015 I wrote to him to see if we could meet up for Towel Day and to buy him a pint, but our schedules didn’t allow it. Since then Mark and his assistant have been kind enough to write with concern to new productions such as “The Double Man.” I wrote of The Double Man on a past incarnation of the Galactic Hitchhikers website, but unfortunately the article was lost due to the server switch.
In correspondence with Mark we arranged an interview with him, which I would then transcribe into a cohesive narrative for You and 42. We met with Mark via Skype where the interview was recorded. It is just about an hour long and has lots of great material about Mark’s career, time working on the Hg2g radio and television series, thoughts on Douglas Adams and much more!
CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON BELOW to hear the interview in its entirety. Unfortunately Jared had a few microphone issues on his end so he had to ask Mark his questions via Skype text chat. This means you will hear a bit of dead air and then Mark answering the question, or Zaxley and I asking the question for Jared.
Mark Wing-Davey CHAIRPERSON; ARTS PROFESSOR NYU TISCH SCHOOL OF THE ARTS
Interview Conducted July 2016 with GH Founder Zaxley Nash, Audio Engineer Jared McLaughlin, and GH Writer/Field Researcher Anthony S Burdge
We had such as great time chatting with Mark and are humbled, honored, and grateful to have had the opportunity to do so. The discussion was alot of fun, full of laughs and very informative.
Thank you Mark for your time and the chance to speak with you!
In discussion with Galactic Hitchhiker’s Founder Zaxley Nash, our Sub-Etha Channel 42 Engineer Jared McLaughlin and myself, we felt this was something we wanted to continue and be a GH feature. Our next interview to be posted soon was with Kevin Jon Davies who has had a long fan and professional career associated with The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Davies worked on graphics for the television series, interviewed Douglas Adams on numerous occasions, is a highly regarded documentarian, for example “The Making of ‘The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ which used archive footage and new specially shot material. The forthcoming interview with Kevin, we speak with him about his career, which shall also be transcribed for You and 42.
We are honored to have Kevin as a part of our Galactic Hitchhikers Facebook Community, which can be found here
Click here to read more of Kevin’s career from his bio on the website for Lazlar Lyricon 3 Plus I reviewed his book The Illustrated Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Additionally we interviewed author Keith DeCandido, which shall be added to our featured interview section soon!
We now have 3 interviews in the can and are currently working toward additional shows. We hope you enjoy these interviews and look forward to your thoughts.
Friends and Fans Remember Douglas Adams in You and 42
Photo Credit:
Christina Franco (Courtesy of William Todd-Jones)
(given to Douglas Adams mum)
Many thanks to James Thrift (Douglas’s brother) and to the family of Douglas Adams.
Friends and Fans Remember Douglas Adams in You and 42
by Anthony S Burdge
On this date the first of Froods, Douglas Adams, was born. Our Douglas Adams fan community here at Galactic Hitchhikers are noting the occasion of his 65th birthday with our own special Thumb Toast to the Frood. Whether you are a member here, or a part of another fan community, we are all brought together by our shared love in the life and work of Douglas Adams. I am truly humbled to be a part of the global fan community celebrating the life and work of one of my literary and intellectual heroes. In addition, my wife and I have been entrusted by Watching Books to compile and edit You and 42: A Douglas Adams Fan Anthology. It is about this project I wish to update you with news of new authors I am incredibly happy to have aboard.
For several years now my wife and I have contributed to a few volumes in the “You and Who,” line from Watching Books. What I have enjoyed in reading the finished work is the personal nature of each essay. The format of each volume is a series of essays each focusing on a particular area or production, through which the authors can talk about their personal experiences. In the case of previous works the topic has been Doctor Who, sci-fi, Blakes 7, Target Books or the forthcoming David Bowie collection Me and the Starman. The content are not reviews, but rather essays that take a more autobiographical or anecdotal slant. This is the case for You and 42, which I have been quite emotionally moved by each piece submitted. There are a few authors who have contributed more than one essay and for that I am incredibly grateful. There are a few who had the chance to meet Douglas Adams at an event such as a convention or book signing who relay how that experience positively affected them. There are other authors who were so inspired by various works by Douglas Adams that it affected their career choices and creativity.
Max Landis (left) and Arvind Ethan David on the set of Dirk Gently. Photo credit, Drama Quarterly
In recent weeks I received contributions by two authors who were friends with Adams and write of events, moments and memories with Douglas Adams. It has been an incredible pleasure corresponding with these gentlemen about their essays. The essays submitted cover periods in their life with Douglas Adams, which have been a joy and humbling read. It is my hope that you have watched and enjoyed the recent BBC America “Dirk Gently,” series and/or read the IDW Dirk Gently comic. The Writer/Executive Producer of BBC America’s Dirk Gently and Writer of the comicbook, Arvind Ethan David, has joined our growing list of authors for You and 42. In addition we have William Todd-Jones aboard who is a Creature FX Consultant, British puppet designer, performer, director, movement consultant and writer for film, television and theatre in the UK and abroad.
In 1994 William Todd-Jones joined Douglas Adams and several other friends, who took up the challenge to trek from the coast at Mombassa to the top of Kilimanjaro to raise money for rhino conservation. If this wasn’t enough of a challenge, they decided to do it in rhino costume!
Photo Courtesy of W.T. Jones, photo credit Christina Franco
“Douglas was determined to share the difficulty and spent hours taking a turn in the costume – which he suggests, had him looking like a giant prawn tempura – but it was easier than completing the manuscript he was meant to be writing, he said.”
In Walking with Douglas/How Doug helped the 1994 African Rhino Climb to save endangered species, William Todd-Jones discusses how he and Douglas Adams got involved in the now infamous Rhino Climb. Additionally, William has contributed Waking with Douglas, which discusses the passing of Douglas Adams.
We are also quite grateful to William’s daughter Lillian who has contributed her own essay entitled “The Four Ages of Douglas.” Lillian met Douglas a couple of times when she was quite young, his influence has coloured her life and I felt that further words for You & 42 could best be offered by the next generation. (William Todd-Jones)
Photo Courtesy of WIlliam Todd Jones, Daddy Rhino and Daughter Lillian photo credit Christina Franco
“When I was 5, my dad left. He didn’t leave with another woman, or to have a crisis with a bald patch and BMW. No, he left – temporarily- to dress up as a rhino, and walk up Africa’s highest mountain. In other words, to wear a herbivore suit and travel to a continent crawling with lions, which was impossibly far away, for an unacceptable amount of time, with a bunch of other grown-ups; including someone called Douglas Adams.
I wasn’t very happy about it.”
Around this time Arvind Ethan David was in his second term at Oxford and had adapted for stage Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency with James Goss.
Everything is Connected.
The adaptation began at their British boarding school, and was revised for their adaption as undergraduates at Oxford. In 1995 Arvind Ethan David had dinner with Douglas Adams to discuss the play, which Adams had attended. “We talked about the show – with ridiculous generosity he decided that in changing it, we had in fact “fixed” his plot. He also said we had now got him thinking about Dirk as a TV series or movie…” The play went on to win Best Adaptation for Dirk at the 28th LA Weekly Theater Awards (2007). In Me and 42…Or how Douglas Adams taught me that the meaning of life can be found in the fundamental interconnectedness of all things, Arvind Ethan David discusses The Story of How Douglas Adams Changed My Life. Arvind’s very moving essay highlights his education, the beginning of his career, and how Douglas Adams mentored him and their lives becoming intertwined. Bringing Dirk Gently to the world has been a 20 year singular dream for Arvind Ethan David. 
“He decided to make our version the “official” version and gave us perpetual rights in it. We came to an arrangement whereby a proportion of the royalties would always go to charity – in fact to his beloved Rhinoceros (he was a founding patron of Save the Rhino International, and famously once climbed part way up Kilimanjaro in a rhino suit for the charity).”
EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED
As a big Dirk Gently fan, whether book, audio dramatization, now television and comic, I have quite enjoyed Arvind’s brilliant vision and am very humbled and grateful that Arvind has shared his story with us.
We cannot thank these two gentleman, and lady, enough for their contributions to You and 42. It is our hope to have the content wrapped up and begin editing the manuscript before the summer. With luck on our side You and 42 will be available for purchase before the end of the summer. As is the case with varied titles offered at Watching Books, the proceeds from You and 42 will be donated to charity.
If you would like to contribute to You and 42, there is still time before we hear any whooshing sounds, please visit the following page for all the details.
Click here for the You and 42 Project Page
Click here to send me an inquiry via email
The 1st Annual Thumb Toast to The Frood: No fire or bread heater required.
On Saturday, March 11th in honor of the birthday of Douglas Adams Thumb Toast to The Frood will be the annual Douglas Adams Birthday Tribute event hosted by Galactic Hitchhikers. A pre-cursor to the Towel Day festivities if you will.
STORY SO FAR…
A few of our inter-dimensional members thought it would be a pretty neat idea, something in league with digital watches, to honor the first of Froods, Douglas Adams, on his birthday. There are a number of authors who have their birthday honored by fans via a Toast or visit to a location associated with said author. For example J.R.R Tolkien has had an annual birthday toast for decades hosted by The Tolkien Society and fans around the globe. In addition H.P. Lovecraft fans visit his grave and read from his work. Therefore, Galactic Hitchhikers would like to honor Douglas Adams in a similar fashion, but on a more Galactic scale.
A few of our inter-dimensional members thought it would be a pretty neat idea, something in league with digital watches, to honor the first of Froods, Douglas Adams, on his birthday. There are a number of authors who have their birthday honored by fans via a Toast or visit to a location associated with said author. For example J.R.R Tolkien has had an annual birthday toast for decades hosted by The Tolkien Society and fans around the globe. In addition H.P. Lovecraft fans visit his grave and read from his work. Therefore, Galactic Hitchhikers would like to honor Douglas Adams in a similar fashion, but on a more Galactic scale.
THE TOAST We encourage everyone to gather at their home, favorite pub, restaurant or venue of their choice to raise a thumb, and glass to Douglas Adams.
When everyone is gathered, at 8 PM local time stand, raise your thumb in salute and state together: “TO THE FROOD!” and afterward take a glass of your choice of beverage (not necessarily alcoholic), take a swig, sit and enjoy the rest of your drink.
“TO THE FROOD!”We highly encourage everyone to gather for local events, bring your towel and copies of your favorite Douglas Adams book, read selections from them and have fun. Please take pictures and post them here in the comments section or submit them to the Galactic Hitchhikers page.
LASTLY,
Please check out our official Galactic Hitchhiker’s Page to add your toasting location and libation of choice. This is a global event, more galactic actually, and we would like to add everyone to the page who have participated. Additionally you can click here to visit our facebook event page.
