TOASTED T.V.

I have a certain philosophy. Those of you who know me may have even heard me say it. It goes... If I can't be informative, I should at least be entertaining. It is my approach to writing these wonky little articles as well as my approach to life itself. I enjoy being that humble jester dancing my little fingers across the Amiga keyboard for your enjoyment. Always informative? Good heavens no, I'm only here to entertain you.

Recently I've unearthed a little gem of a television show that seems to have adopted this very same idea. With all the murmurings and mumblings in the Amiga community about Babylon 5, yet another Amiga/Toaster generated television show has all but gone unnoticed. I'm of course referring to...the one, the only, Mysteries From Beyond The Other Dominion. (Those of you who have seen it, please stop rolling your eyes like that.)

Mysteries is a half hour "news from the world of the strange and unusual" show, and although it doesn't have the staggering Toaster effects that Babylon 5 has, it does use the Amiga/Toaster for some nice morphing, titles and special effects. The show is created and hosted by Dr. Franklin Ruehl, an unusual (understatement) man who looks like a cross between Issac Asimov and the cast of "Revenge of the Nerds". Every week, Dr. Ruehl takes a look at odd tidbits of unexplainable phenomena in the world. From the biggies (Atlantis, Bigfoot, etc ), to other, less known bits of strangeness ( Crop circles, The mystery of Green Briar Swamp, etc), to the downright bizarre (How to create a Zombie, How to levitate one's body, etc). The show has an "Unsolved Mysteries" feel to it without all the "True Detective/True Crime Stories" rubbish. Not always informative (unless you truly believe the stuff), but very, very entertaining. Dr. Ruehl's unique (understatement) personality makes the show certainly worth a look or two. There is even a toll-free number to call (1-800-45-RUEHL), if you witness an unexplainable event, or if you just like talking to strange men with thick glasses.

Mysteries is currently on at 9 am Saturdays, and at 8 pm Sundays on The Sci/Fi Channel. The show lists NewTek and Commodore Business Machines in it's credits, which really made me do a double-take when I saw it. I had watched the show roughly five times before I noticed it (Hey, so I'm a wee-bit dense at times). The Sci/Fi Channel and the Amiga seem to be progressing hand in hand. Those of you who read Amiga World may have noticed a full page ad for the Sci/fi Channel in the July'93 issue (page 6), and there is a full page ad for Amiga World magazine in the lesser known, Sci/Fi Channel Magazine.

Mysteries From Beyond The Other Dominion is an extremely twisted half-hour of television. If you want informative, stick to 60 Minutes, if you want an odd, entertaining alternative, check out Dr. Ruehl. After all, If he uses an Amiga to produce his show, just how crazy can the man be.

Dr. Torgo

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