Outpost Parallax is a weekly Saturday night musing of all things science fiction.
I managed to rewatch the 1998 film Free Enterprise, the scifi-geek infused romcom that I discovered in a video store sometime in 1999 or 2000. The protagonists were several years older than me at the time, but I was proud to get all of the scifi references back then, including Logan’s Run. The film has become a cult classic, and I feel it was somewhat ahead of its time. When I first saw The Big Bang Theory, I immediately thought to myself “Free Enterprise did it better.”
Free Enterprise is about scifi-obsessed best friends who are balancing the craziness of life and love while maintaining careers in the film industry. The script is heavily peppered with scifi references both mainstream and obscure. Their most beloved obsession is classic Star Trek. The main characters have idolized William Shatner’s Captain Kirk since they were boys. They spot William Shatner in a bookstore by chance, and decide to approach him. It’s a disastrous first-time meeting, but they manage to hit it off and go for drinks. What they discover is… Shatner is as screwed up and flawed as they are.
The man they’ve idolized since they were pre-teens, who had adventures in space, was a babe-magnet, and fought aliens bare-handed, was just a middle-aged man with writer’s block, pitching them a very bad idea for a film.
This got me thinking about the phrase “Never meet your heroes.” I decided a while back that I shouldn’t have heroes. I have people I admire and revere for various reasons (contributions to art, science fiction writing, music, comedy, etc), but I’m not sure if I’d want to meet them. I wouldn’t want to be disappointed with what I find. There’s no reason to think that way, but its my own hangup.
About 20 years ago, I went to a design conference where some local design studios held open houses and tours. One in particular was a highly regarded design firm. I was surprised to see their workspaces resembled mine: messy, papers everywhere, typography and color books piled up, and art on the walls.
I always had this notion that these high-end, high performing studios had pristine workspaces and the latest technology. Maybe some of them do? It was humbling to see that organic similarity.
So, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to meet a few of the creative people I admire. If I had a choice, I think I’d like to meet one or two of my favorite science fiction writers. In Free Enterprise, it worked out for the main characters, as they became friends with Shatner at the conclusion of the film.
