The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I'm sure I'm not alone in my declaration that the late Douglas Adams and his 5-book trilogy The The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was easily the single greatest influence in my own writing and sense of humor. I remember reading it for the first time in jr. high school and wondering why no one else in my clique of friends knew why I was carrying a towel around and laughing in class whenever the teacher said the word "Belgium". It turns out that there are great deals of people who have read the book, it's just that I only had 2 people in my clique of friends and the odds were stacked against me.

I had the great privelege of meeting Mr. Adams 10 years ago in Charlotte (wow, has it been that long?). Back then he was discussing a new book he was working on (which, due to his untimely death, has never seen the light of day) and the screenplay for the film version of the book. I was so excited that a theatrical release was in the works. There was a BBC mini-series version that was produced back in the early 80s, but this was to be a big Hollywood flick with all the trimmings. I was giddy and ecstatic.

Cut to 10 years later. Mr. Adams is dead, but the film he began will be released next month. Please enjoy the trailer to the film.

To be honest, the trailer doesn't seem to do justice to the intelligent humor of the book. We shall have to wait and see, I suppose. In the meantime, carry that towel, don't panic, and watch out for invading microscopic space fleets.