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Google Doodle Celebrates Birthday of Douglas Adams

Posted by samzenpus on from the bring-a-towel dept.

mikejuk writes "Today's Google Doodle celebrates the fact that today would have been Douglas Adam's 61st birthday. For any fans of Adam's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy this isn't to be missed. The interactive doodle takes us aboard the Heart of Gold spaceship where the towel — the essential travel item for any intergalactic voyager sits on the console besides the, also very necessary cup of tea, which is also a reference to a Dirk Gently novel, The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul. There are lots more tributes hidden including Marvin — the real one not the one in the film, a Babel Fish and more. Have fun exploring but make sure you click on the search symbol to find out more about Douglas Adams and his work."

8 of 104 comments (clear)

  1. Film? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I'm glad no one has ever made a HGTTG film. They would have screwed it up.

    1. Re:Film? by pezpunk · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Although uneven, the movie was not bad, with a few brilliant parts. it's not like it's "blasphemous" -- Adams himself wildly changed the story every time it switched mediums. It's got most of the best bits from the book, plus a new ending that does more than just stop (as the book does), and as a bonus it does a great job of capturing Adams' absolute love and fascination with life itself.

      not saying it's great beginning to end, but acting like it's any more uneven than a lot of his books is silly.

      --
      i could live a little longer in this prison
    2. Re:Film? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I didn't care for the film on first watch, but warmed up to it after 2 or 3 more viewings. I think the biggest thing they screwed up was "Hollywoodizing" it. It's too American - what I loved about the BBC series and books was their British. Arthur Dent and our window into his world are quintessentially British.

      That said, the movie had some nice new bits, such as cutting back to the pub just before the Earth is destroyed to see everyone lying on the floor with bags on their heads!

      One thing that bothered me was casting Mos Def as Ford. And not because he's black; he's just wrong for the part. I came out of the movie feeling like Ford wasn't in it.

      (captcha: rescind)

    3. Re:Film? by geminidomino · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I honestly didn't have a problem with Ford, but that may well be because I had no idea there was a Mos Def before I saw the movie. Zaphod, on the other hand, had me grinding out my own fillings.

      And the less said about the iMarvin, the better...

    4. Re:Film? by Simon+Brooke · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The original radio series is by far the best and funniest version. As people so often say, the pictures are better on the radio. If you haven't heard it, buy yourself a present.

      --
      I'm old enough to remember when discussions on Slashdot were well informed.
  2. Douglas Adams... by SternisheFan · · Score: 4, Funny
    It is no coincidence that in no known language does the phrase 'As pretty as an Airport' appear. - Douglas Adams

    http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Douglas_Adams/

  3. I was so upset at the reminder of his death... by Dexter+Herbivore · · Score: 4, Funny

    that I threw myself at the ground and missed. On the bright side, I now know how to fly.

  4. Re:No, he's 49 by Dexter+Herbivore · · Score: 4, Funny

    By using Google to find it.