It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Monday, January 08, 2024
Laser-powered spacecraft swarm to search for interstellar life
Sarah Knapton Fri, 5 January 2024 a An artist's impression shows the planet Proxima b orbiting the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the Solar System - European Southern Observatory
A swarm of tiny spacecraft could travel through interstellar space to reach our nearest star beyond the Sun, under plans being funded by Nasa.
Florida-based Space Initiatives is proposing sending thousands of miniature probes to Proxima B, a potentially habitable planet in the Proxima Centauri star system which is nearly 4.3 light years (or 25 trillion miles) from Earth.
With current technology, it would take around 30,000 years to reach the system, but scientists believe the nano-craft could be fitted with tiny sails and pushed by laser beams.
Professor Stephen Hawking proposed a similar idea before his death, who suggested that a 100 gigawatt beam of light could accelerate the tiny craft to speeds of 100 million miles per hour.
It would cut the journey time to around 20 years, and once there, the swarm could sweep over Proxima B, looking for signs of alien life, or even civilisations.
The idea has been picked out for funding by Nasa’s Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) programme which fosters pioneering ideas, and in the past, has led to developments like the Ingenuity helicopter, currently being flown on Mars. Nasa’s Innovative Advanced Concepts programme has led to developments such as the Ingenuity helicopter, which currently being flown on Mars - Joel Kowsky/NASA
Thomas Eubanks, of Space Initiatives Inc, said: “Tiny gram-scale interstellar probes pushed by laser light are likely to be the only technology capable of reaching another star this century.
“We presuppose availability by mid-century of a laser beamer powerful enough to boost a few grams to relativistic speed, lasersails robust enough to survive launch, and terrestrial light buckets big enough to catch our optical signals.
“Then our proposed mission is to fly by our nearest neighbour, the potentially habitable world Proxima b, with a large autonomous swarm of 1000s of tiny probes.”
Although Voyager One has ventured outside the Solar System and is currently in interstellar space, no spaceship has ever reached another star system.
However, even if the swarm reached Proxima B and found signs of life, the huge distances mean it would take at least eight years for a signal to return to Earth.
The team hopes to begin testing swarms of laser-powered nanobots closer to home, such as around the Moon and in the Solar System.
Other projects selected for funding were an electric plane that could take off and land on Mars and a sample return mission to Venus using a solar aircraft. ‘NIAC inspires space-tech ideas’
Fauna Bio, a Californian company, has also been given a grant to study hibernating animals on board the International Space Station (ISS) to see if astronauts could be placed in torpor for long journeys without suffering health problems.
“The daring missions NASA undertakes for the benefit of humanity all begin as just an idea, and NIAC is responsible for inspiring many of those ideas,” said Jim Free, Nasa Associate Administrator.
“The Ingenuity helicopter flying on Mars and instruments on the MarCO deep space CubeSats can trace their lineage back to NIAC, proving there is a path from creative idea to mission success.
“And, while not all these concepts will fly, NASA and our partners worldwide can learn from fresh approaches and may eventually use technologies advanced by NIAC.”
Sunday, January 07, 2024
Deforestation in Brazilian Amazon halved in 2023
AFP Fri, 5 January 2024 Burnt trees are seen after illegal fires were lit by farmers in Manaquiri, Amazonas state in September 2023 (MICHAEL DANTAS)
Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell by half last year, according to figures released Friday, as President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government bolstered environmental policing to crack down on surging destruction.
However, the news was far less bright from the crucial Cerrado savanna below the rainforest, where clear-cutting hit a new annual record last year, rising by 43 percent from 2022, according to the national space research agency's DETER surveillance program.
Satellite monitoring detected 5,152 square kilometers (nearly 2,000 square miles) of forest cover destroyed in the Brazilian Amazon last year, down 50 percent from 2022.
That still represented a loss 29 times the size of Washington DC in Brazil's share of the world's biggest rainforest, whose carbon-absorbing trees play a vital role in curbing climate change.
Meanwhile, the Cerrado, a biodiversity hotspot whose ecosystems are intricately linked with the Amazon's, lost over 7,800 square kilometers of native vegetation last year, the highest since monitoring began in 2018.
"We saw some important victories on the environment in 2023. The significant reduction in deforestation in the Amazon was a highlight," said Mariana Napolitano of environmental group WWF-Brasil.
"But unfortunately we aren't seeing the same trend in the Cerrado... That is harming the biome and the extremely important ecosystem services it provides. And we saw the impact at the end of the year, with extremely high temperatures."
Environmental groups have accused the Lula government of turning a blind eye to the destruction of the lesser-known Cerrado to appease the powerful agribusiness lobby.
The figures for both the Amazon and Cerrado were updated through December 29.
Taken together, the total area razed in the two regions was 12,980 square kilometers in 2023, down 18 percent from 2022.
After beating far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro in a divisive election in 2022, veteran leftist Lula returned to office on January 1, 2023, vowing "Brazil is back" as a partner in the fight against climate change.
Agribusiness ally Bolsonaro (2019-2022) had drawn international criticism for presiding over a 75-percent increase in average annual deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon versus the previous decade.
Experts say the destruction in both the Amazon and Cerrado is driven mainly by farming and cattle ranching in Brazil, the world's top exporter of soybeans and beef.
jhb/md
Greece revives 2,300 year-old palace where Alexander The Great was crowned
AFP Fri, 5 January 2024 The ancient palace of Macedonian King Philip II and site of Alexander the Great's coronation was inaugurated by Greek officials Friday after a 16-year restoration (Sakis MITROLIDIS)
An ancient palace where Alexander The Great was crowned King of Macedonia will reopen to the public on Sunday after a 16-year 20 million euro renovation aiming to restore its past glory.
At a ceremony on Friday, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called the Palace of Aigai a "monument of global importance."
The 4th century BC site spreads over 15,000 square meters was one of the most important in classical Greece alongside the Parthenon in Athens.
Aigai was capital of the Macedonian kingdom, the dominant military power of the time, and archeologists say the palace was the kingdom's spiritual centre.
Built by Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great, the tombs of Philip and other Macedonian kings are nearby.
After the assassination of his father, Alexander was crowned at the palace in 336 BC before launching a military campaign that created an empire stretching into modern-day India.
The palace "has a cultural and national character, because it confirms the Greek identity of Macedonia throughout the centuries," Mitsotakis said.
The site includes the royal palace and a colonnade that surrounded the palace and the agora, where ancient Macedonians debated important matters.
It was in the courtyard, with an 8,000 capacity, that Alexander was proclaimed king.
The Romans destroyed the palace in 148 BC. Excavations to uncover the site started in 1865 and continued into the 20th century.
The restoration project began in 2007 with help from the European Union.
Situated near the modern day Greek village of Vergina, the palace and the nearby tombs are listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Greece has boosted investment in its many antique sites which have become an important source of tourist revenue.
For the past three decades, it has been demanding the return of sculptures taken from the Parthenon that are in the British Museum, saying they were looted in the 19th century when Greece was under Ottoman rule.
mr-hec/yap/gv/pvh
BMA allows one junior doctor to cross picket line after hospital request
Michael Searles Fri, 5 January 2024 The British Medical Association has allowed one junior doctor to work in neonatal care for a single shift on Friday - Andy Rain/Shutterstock
A single striking junior doctor has been allowed to cross the picket line after around 30 requests by NHS medical directors were turned down.
The British Medical Association (BMA) said it had allowed one junior doctor to work in neonatal care for a single shift on Friday Jan 5, after University Hospital Lewisham, in south-east London, put in its second request for help to the union in two days.
Under strike protocols, hospital trusts can ask unions to allow doctors to return to work and cover shifts if patient safety is compromised. However, all other known requests have so far been rejected by the BMA.
Health authorities were also privately bracing for an increase in vulnerable patients arriving at hospitals this weekend, with cold weather alerts across England and temperatures set to plummet to sub-zero in some parts of the country.
The UK Health Security Agency has issued a yellow alert for cold weather across the whole of England, coming into effect on Saturday morning and lasting until Tuesday.
The health agency said the elderly, very young and other vulnerable people were “likely to struggle to cope in these conditions” and warned of an increase in hospital admissions and risk of death during the cold snap.
A surge in winter viruses ahead of the strikes resulted in more than 5,000 patients in hospital with Covid or flu as of the start of the week, according to NHS data published today.
“We have granted a derogation for one junior doctor for the neonatal unit at University Hospital Lewisham for the day shift on 5th January,” the BMA confirmed. “The trust has informed us that alternative sources of staffing have been exhausted. Our priority is patient safety.”
A spokesman for the trust said it would “do what is necessary to keep our hospitals safe” and was “pleased this had been recognised”.
But every other request to the union to allow junior doctors to return to work has been refused, with some hospitals having more than one plea turned down. Senior NHS sources said around 30 requests have been submitted as pressures mount.
Great Western Hospitals Foundation Trust, which declared an “internal incident” even before strikes were under way, was among the trusts making pleas for junior doctors to be allowed to cross the picket line.
The trust, in Swindon, Wiltshire, requested that junior doctors be allowed to work in surgery and in its outpatients’ appointments departments, in order to deal with the most urgent cases. Both requests were rejected.
A spokesman said the trust was focusing all efforts on generating bed capacity and maintaining safe staffing amid “extremely high demand for our services”.
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation trust in London is also understood to be among those to have had requests rejected. Other hospitals have issued pleas for the public to help “free up beds” by collecting relatives who can safely go home.
Junior doctors on a picket line at St Thomas’ Hospital, central London - Justin Tallis/AFP
South Warwickshire NHS Trust and Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust were among those asking for relatives to take loved ones home, and were among the four hospitals in England at full capacity ahead of the strikes.
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust, which asked family members to “collect relatives who are ready to go home to free up beds” on Thursday, declared a critical incident on Friday afternoon and urged the public to only seek help with a life-threatening emergency.
The head of the trust was among those hauled in by Victoria Atkins, the Health Secretary, just before Christmas when average delays for ambulances outside A&E had reached five hours.
A row over safety protocols broke out on Wednesday night with the BMA claiming hospital medical directors and NHS officials were bowing to “political pressures” to undermine the strikes without evidence to justify their appeals.
But senior officials at NHS England responded on Thursday by setting out steps to strengthen safety protocols and log evidence of all harm occurring when such requests are rejected.
Hospitals have been told to specifically record all safety incidents during strikes “so that we can evidence harm and near misses that might have been avoided”.
Rebels take key Myanmar city after government troops lay down weapons
Sky News Updated Fri, 5 January 2024
An alliance of rebel groups in Myanmar has taken control of a key city in the north of the country after government forces reportedly laid down their weapons and withdrew.
The Three Brotherhood Alliance took control of the city of Laukkaing, located on the border with China, late on Thursday.
Around 1,000 government troops put down their arms and were allowed to leave, according to local people and independent media accounts.
It is the latest success for the alliance and the biggest in a series of defeats suffered by the government since rebels launched an offensive in October.
The alliance is made up of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the Ta'ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army.
It is one of the threats faced by Myanmar's military government which is fighting pro-democracy guerrillas and other ethnic minority armed groups across the country.
Armed ethnic groups have fought for greater autonomy on and off for decades, but the country has been in quasi-civil war since the army seized power in February 2021 from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking nationwide armed resistance by pro-democracy forces.
When the alliance launched its offensive, it said it had two purposes - to rid the country of both military rule, or what it called "dictatorship" and destroy the large-scale cyber scam operations run by local warlords, with Chinese backing, especially in Laukkaing.
China has publicly sought to eradicate the criminal industry and tens of thousands of people involved have been repatriated to China in recent weeks.
On Thursday, the regional military command headquarters based in Laukkaing, which had been under virtual siege for months, gave up.
Most of the seven army battalions believed to have been under its command, had collapsed in fighting in recent weeks.
A Laukkaing resident who lives nearby told The Associated Press the headquarters had fallen into MNDAA hands after the soldiers stationed there laid down their weapons.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, he said its soldiers in the city had already surrendered and been allowed to leave the city on military trucks since Thursday evening.
Independent online Myanmar news outlets, including Khit Thit Media and Myanmar Now, reported similar details.
Laukkaing is the capital of Kokang Self-Administered Zone, geographically part of northern Shan state.
The MNDAA is a military force of the Kokang minority, who are ethnic Chinese.
Peng Deren, the MNDAA commander, said in a New Year's speech published by The Kokang, an affiliated online media site, that the alliance had seized more than 250 military targets, five border crossings with China and arrested about 1,000 prisoners of war.
He said more than 300 cyber scam centres were raided and more than 40,000 Chinese involved in cyber crimes were repatriated to their country.
COMMODITY FETISH Rare 70s Star Wars Jawa figurine expected to fetch at least £15,000 at auction Sky News Fri, 5 January 2024
A rare Star Wars figurine dating back to the 70s is expected to fetch at least £15,000 after its owner found it in his loft.
The model is a 1978 Jawa designed by the now-defunct British toy company Palitoy, which used to make Action Man, Pippa doll and Merlin products.
It was found by the owner, who has remained anonymous, as he was unpacking various film memorabilia stored around his house.
The owner was Marvel UK's art director in the 70s and received a host of gifts from Palitoy during the promotion of Star Wars in Marvel's comics.
There are only 10 to 15 figurines of this kind to be documented, and this one is more special as it is in "exceptional condition" and decorated with the original vinyl cape - later substituted with a cloth cape not long into production.
The owner previously came across another Jawa figure which sold at auction for £26,670 smashing its auction estimate of £10,000 - £15,000.
This Jawa carries the same estimate but is expected to exceed that sum again.
Jonathan Torode, Excalibur's Auctioneer said they were "thrilled" to be part of the sale of one of the rarest Star Wars figures.
Owing to the success of the last original figure, he said people all over the world searched to find one in their homes but he never expected another to come from the same source.
Mr Torode added: "I feel utterly spoilt being able to handle another such rare part of Star Wars toy history."
With their cloaked faces, the Jawas' identities remain hidden, but they are renowned scavengers who scour the deserts of Tatooine for scraps to sell to the local residents.
They notoriously kidnapped the loveable droid R2-D2 in the 1977 Star Wars movie, A New Hope.
Enthusiasts will get a chance to bid for the figurine on 27 January at Excalibur Auctions.
Global maritime trade sails into geopolitical storm
Antoine GUY Fri, 5 January 2024 A number of factors have been pushing up shipping costs, including traffic backing up at the Panama Canal due to low water levels (Luis ACOSTA)
International maritime trade has hit stormy waters as attacks by Yemen's Huthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea has reduced the availability of ships, causing freight rates to surge.
Most large international shipping companies have decided to reroute trading to avoid the Red Sea and Suez Canal through which 12 percent of world trade usually passes.
The Huthis say the strikes are in solidarity with Palestinians in war-ravaged Gaza, which Israel has bombarded relentlessly for three months, in what it says is a campaign to destroy militant group Hamas.
Danish shipping giant Maersk said Friday that it would divert all vessels around Africa instead of using the Red Sea and Suez Canal for the "foreseeable future" after Yemeni rebels attacked its merchant ships.
Vessels are circumnavigating Africa via the Cape of Good Hope, which extends the journey between Asia and Europe by 10 to 20 days on average, according to Arthur Barillas, general manager of Ovrsea, a freight organiser.
Shipping companies have already announced significant price increases to cover the costs associated with the detour.
French shipping group CMA CGM has doubled the price of a 40-foot container between Asia and the Mediterranean to $6,000.
Italian-Swiss peer and sector leader MSC has hiked its prices to $5,900 from $2,900 for the same offering.
The United States says there have been more than 20 Red Sea attacks by Huthi rebels since October 19.
- Chinese New Year -
The industry is suffering from a shortage of containers in Asia owing to longer journey times, causing a headache ahead of the Chinese New Year next month.
"There is a real influx (of goods) from Asia," said Barillas.
In the runup to the Chinese New Year on February 10, "all the ships are full", causing freight rates to rise, he added.
Customers are rushing to have their goods shipped before the celebrations bring China, the world's biggest exporter, to a week-long standstill.
A benchmark indicator for measuring the freight tariff rate of goods transported from China -- the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index -- has almost doubled in a few weeks.
Such a sudden increase is reminiscent of what occurred during the Covid pandemic, when freight rates reached unprecedented heights on disruptions to supply chains.
"Many people, they focus on the spot rate. And yes, it has doubled. And, of course, it speaks about how desperate the situation is," Niels Rasmussen, chief shipping analyst at BIMCO, told AFP.
He added, however, that some shippers would have negotiated better deals.
"If you look at the average rate for everything out of China through most of Europe and the Mediterranean, the increase is 15 percent to 20 percent," said Rasmussen.
- Taiwan elections -
Attacks in the Red Sea are not the only ones disrupting international trade. The worst drought in decades to hit the Panama Canal has forced authorities to slow transits.
A potential further hazard could be the outcome of presidential elections in Taiwan due January 13, should it lead to another crisis with China, according to analysts.
However, "even with the threat of some congestion and equipment shortages, carriers are much better-positioned to accommodate operationally for these diversions when compared to the disruptions seen during the pandemic", Israeli freight reservation and payment platform, Freightos, said in a weekly note to clients.
Shipping companies have used recent huge profits to order hundreds of new ships which are beginning to be delivered.
agu-emb/bcp/rl
Tesla slashes electric car range amid claims it exaggerated mileage
James Titcomb Fri, 5 January 2024 Tesla says it has received legal requests from the Department of Justice over issues including vehicle range
Tesla has cut back claims about how far its electric cars can travel as it faces scrutiny from the US government.
Elon Musk’s company has reduced the estimated range of several cars on its US website by as much as 37 miles.
Tesla, which was this week overtaken by China’s BYD as the world’s best-selling electric car manufacturer, did not give a reason for the adjustment.
Tesla updated its website to say that its Model Y Performance vehicle has a range of 285 miles, down from its previous 303-mile claim. Meanwhile, the Long Range model has been cut from 330 miles to 310.
One version of its luxury Model S car has seen its estimated range reduced from 396 miles to 359 miles.
In October, Tesla said it had received legal requests from the Department of Justice over issues including vehicle range.
Tesla did not publicly say why it had changed the range estimates. According to internal company documents reviewed by the Drive Tesla website, the changes are in response to new testing conditions from US regulators, and “comfort and functionality improvements” that require more energy from the battery.
Tesla has faced questions over its cars’ ranges, a key selling point for electric vehicles as their manufacturers seek to avoid the “range anxiety” that deters many drivers.
An investigation by the Reuters news agency last year claimed that Tesla often exaggerated ranges to attract drivers, while the US organisation Consumer Reports found that Tesla cars were among those whose ranges fell short of what was claimed.
Tesla owners have sued the company in the US over false advertising related to the range claims. The company has responded to the lawsuits, calling the Reuters investigation “error-ridden” and the lawsuits “legally untenable”.
Tesla has not reduced its range claims in other countries, such as the UK, which uses a different testing regime.
A regulator in China said Tesla would make the changes through a software update issued to the vehicles. It covers almost every Tesla vehicle sold in China since 2014.
It comes the month after Tesla was forced to update its Autopilot system to more than 2m cars in the US. The company has not been required to make any changes in the UK.
Regulators have launched investigations into Autopilot after dozens of crashes, some of them fatal, in which the technology was activated.
The system warns drivers that they should have their hands on the wheel and pay attention to the road when it is activated, but Mr Musk has been criticised for over-stating the cars’ ability to drive themselves.
This week, China’s BYD surpassed Tesla as the world’s best-selling electric car maker, after selling 526,409 cars in the fourth quarter of 2023 against Tesla’s 484,507.
Dog’s sit-down protest on Scafell Pike forces mountain rescue to save the day
Telegraph reporters Fri, 5 January 2024 Dexter knows his own mind and made his owners and the rescue team well aware that he had no plans on moving an inch
Mountain rescuers were called out when a tired 6st (40kg) dog staged a sit-down protest on England’s highest peak.
Dexter, a Dobermann/Belgian Malinois cross, had been walking up Scafell Pike in the Lake District with his owners when, close to the summit, he decided he had climbed far enough.
The dog sat down and refused all attempts to coax him into carrying on with the walk.
As darkness started to descend and with the walkers failing to check in with loved-ones, family members had no option but to call in mountain rescuers, who trekked up the 978M (3208ft) peak at 11.30pm on Tuesday.
As the rescuers approached they were able to locate the stricken climbers because Dexter began to bark and howl when he heard their approach.
But when no amount of coaxing, pushing and pulling could persuade him to leave his perch, the eight members of the rescue team were forced to camp out on the mountain with the dog and its owners and hope for better luck at daybreak.
His owners were well equipped for spending a night outdoors but rescuers also erected bivvy shelters to protect from the wind and cold.
To the team’s relief, Dexter overcame his stubbornness the following morning and was led down the hill on a 50m rope.
Dexter's stubborn streak forced his owners and the rescuers to camp overnight on the mountain before being coaxed down at daybreak - Kevin Donald
A spokesman for Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team said: “Due to the weather conditions, and potential for hypothermia, a full callout was made and additional support from Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue Team and Lake District Search Dogs.
“After searches of several areas, the team assigned to Hollow Stones heard barking and howling and spotted a light high on Scafell.
“The walkers were uninjured, cold, and had not wanted to leave their dog on the fell.
“They were equipped well enough to spend an unplanned night on the fell, and we found that Dexter was trained to bark and howl, thus initially attracting our attention.
“Other rescuers harnessed the energy to make the hard pull up to their location but no amount of encouragement could make Dexter move downhill.
“The agreed course of action was to wait for daylight and hope that he regained his confidence to move downhill with better visibility. As such, bivvy shelters were deployed for all, and a long ‘paws’ ensued.
“After a ‘woof’ night, as dawn broke, further attempts were made but Dexter stood fast. As hope was fading a last ditch attempt was made with a 50m rope lead and he was gently encouraged downhill.
“Thankfully once he started moving there were no further problems and a brisk, boisterous and friendly walk with Dexter was then made back to Brackenclose.”
The rescuers - seen here with Dexter - look happy despite the night spent on the mountain - Kevin Donald
Sara Kelly, the mother of Dexter’s owner, thanked the rescuers.
She said: “This was my son and dog. They have climbed all of the local mountains as far as Ben Nevis together without any issues. Something just spooked him this time.
“We knew something was wrong when they didn’t check in as planned. We called the police and the team were there in no time. We cannot thank you all enough.”
BEST DAVID SOUL OBIT
David Soul, Stephen King and the terrifying power of Salem’s Lot
Alexander Larman Fri, 5 January 2024 David Soul in Salem's Lot - Alamy
The actor and singer David Soul, who has died at the age of 80, will best be remembered for his iconic performance as the detective Kenneth ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson in the ever-popular TV series Starsky and Hutch. Soul tended to be associated with roles that played on his apparently straight-arrow persona honed in the show, which, as time went by, he tended to play up to for comic effect. The highest-profile parts that he took in later years, unsurprisingly, were self-parodying cameos in everything from the Irvine Welsh adaptation Filth to the likes of Little Britain and Holby City on British television.
Soul’s twinkly, likeable presence made him a natural fit for roles in comedy and light drama, but these unchallenging roles did his acting abilities a disservice. Not only had he managed to subvert his clean-cut looks as early as 1973, in which he played a treacherous police officer in the Dirty Harry picture Magnum Force, but his finest hour as an actor came when he starred in the lead role of the Stephen King adaptation Salem’s Lot in 1979, which was broadcast on CBS as a two-part drama just after Starsky and Hutch came to its conclusion. Had an impressionable teenager watched the miniseries because they were a fan of Soul’s, they would undoubtedly have been scared witless.
Although King was already a bestselling author with a considerable fanbase by November 1979, with several iconic novels including The Shining, Carrie and – naturally – 1975’s Salem’s Lot terrifying millions of readers worldwide, he was not yet a known quantity in TV and film adaptations.
Although Stanley Kubrick was hard at work filming The Shining, which would ultimately, and publicly, disappoint King upon its release in May 1980, the only film of his work that had been released prior to 1979 was Brian de Palma’s Carrie. It had been a considerable box office hit in 1976, as well as winning critical plaudits for the lead performances by Sissy Spacek as the telekinetic teen and Piper Laurie as her religious fanatic mother.
Stephen King in 1970 - Getty
Any adaptation of Salem’s Lot had to live up to this precedent, and Warner Bros Television, who produced the film on a $4 million budget, were careful not to derail the King bandwagon before it had begun. After all, if it was done properly, it could be the beginning of a long and lucrative association.
Yet King was unenthusiastic at first, later saying that “TV is death to horror. When [Salem’s Lot] went to TV, a lot of people moaned and I was one of the moaners.” Initially, attempts to adapt it were dismal; King complained that “Every director in Hollywood who’s ever been involved with horror wanted to do it, but nobody could come up with a script.”
For it to succeed, it would have to take risks, and for them to pay off admirably, and terrifyingly. Its story of a successful writer, Ben Mears – something of a King trope throughout his novels – who returns to his hometown of Salem’s Lot, only to realise that vampirism is rampant in the town, whipped up by the charismatic and villainous Richard Straker, was rich in potential but would need to find the right filmmakers and stars. Otherwise the results could be disappointing, or even ludicrous.
James Mason, Tobe Hooper and David Soul on the set of Salem's Lot - Alamy
The hot horror director of the moment, Tobe Hooper, was hired, fresh from the vast commercial success of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and veteran screen villain James Mason would prove to be a seductive and terrifying Straker, He managed to make even the words “Good evening” sound frighteningly ominous. But in the lead role of Mears, Hooper and the screenwriter Paul Monash – a King veteran, having already produced Carrie – needed to find someone who was a familiar face but not over-associated with the horror genre, who could stand toe-to-toe with Mason and also provide a steadying figure that the audience might empathise with amidst the scares. The producer Richard Kobritz met with Soul, in what the actor later described as an appropriately “black, bleak” office, and offered him the role.
Soul was delighted to be acting opposite Mason, which he called “a real kick”, and the production was set in the town of Ferndale in Northern California. The crucial location was the Marsten House of the novel, a hilltop property with a reputation for being haunted which Mears is planning on writing a book about. An elaborate set was constructed outside Ferndale, in the style of a New England house, although as Soul said “they built the exterior, [but] it wasn’t a whole house…it was a façade, and the interior was at the Warner Brothers lot back in California.
“One day, when we were preparing to shoot up at the house, we heard this horrible crash, and there was this car that had run into a telephone pole. When we reached the car, the driver had this look on his face like he’d seen something impossible, and sure enough, this man had lived in Ferndale for 30 years, and had never seen this before.” Soul would not be the only person aghast at what the production would conjure up there.
Several of Soul’s Starsky co-stars, including Juliette Lewis’s veteran character actor father Geoffrey and George Dzunda – later to meet a grisly end in Basic Instinct – were reunited with him in Salem’s Lot, and Soul enjoyed working with them. But he reserved his highest praise for Mason, who he called “absolutely a marvel…a legend, a real legend, someone who came out of the old school, and boy, you could tell the difference. He really knew his craft.” Belying his terrifying persona on-set, Soul praised Mason as “a joy to be with, and a joy to be around.”
The two may have been deadly adversaries on set, but when not filming, they would head to Mason’s trailer and play cards together, which Mason was a keen aficionado of. And the veteran actor was not above punning humour, either; he referred to Soul and his young co-star Lance Kerwin, who played Mark Petrie, a boy whose knowledge of horror film lore helps solve the mystery of Salem’s Lot, as “Lancesky and Hutch.”
One of the film’s most terrifying characters was that of Kurt Barlow, the Nosferatu-esque vampire who Straker has come to Salem’s Lot in order to resurrect. As played by the Austrian character actor Reggie Nalder, Barlow’s character was changed from the conventional-looking villain of the novel to a demonic apparition, on the grounds that, as Kobritz said, “I wanted nothing suave or sexual, because I just didn’t think it’d work; we’ve seen too much of it.” (The fact that he had the velvet-voiced Mason as his lead villain meant that suavity was also assured, too.)
Chilling: a scene from Salem's Lot - Alamy
Soul remarked that “Nadler was born to play this role. He didn’t like it very much, because he had to wear these contact lenses, and his make-up kept falling off, so we had to stop and reset his face, eyes, teeth and eight-inch fingernails.” He quipped that Nalder may have been dissatisfied with the requirements of the role – the actor commented “The makeup and contact lenses were painful but I got used to them. I liked the money best of all” – whereas, in Soul’s knowing words, “I did it for the art.”
The series was packed full of immediately iconic scares. The moment in which the child vampire Ralphie Glick tries to enter his brother Danny’s room from outside, while scratching terrifyingly at the window, remains the most memorable, and has been alluded to in everything from The Simpsons to Eminem’s song Lose Yourself. Guardians of the Galaxy director and DC supremo James Gunn wrote, after Hooper’s death in 2017, that the filmmaker “created the moment that scared me the most as a child – that floating, dead kid tapping on the window.”
Bearing in mind the demands of television, rather than film, it largely eschewed explicit bloodshed in favour of what Hooper called “the overtone of the grave.” He said “A television movie does not have blood or violence. It has atmosphere which creates something you cannot escape – the reminder that our time is limited and all the accoutrements that go with it, such as the visuals.”
Soul enjoyed working with “the very fine director”, who he praised for being “very well prepared”. There were lighter moments, too. The actor celebrated his birthday on set; he later quipped, “they told me I had a good time, but I don’t remember a hell of a lot...I’m told I was enjoying it too.”
Reggie Nalder as the villain of Salem's Lot - Alamy
Salem’s Lot was enthusiastically received on its first screening, and was later followed by a sequel, Return to Salem’s Lot, and another 2004 miniseries adaptation, this time starring Rob Lowe. It has subsequently proved to be one of the most influential of all modern-day vampire stories, inspiring everything from such Eighties classics as The Lost Boys and Fright Night to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and King regular interpreter Mike Flanagan’s 2021 Netflix miniseries Midnight Mass.
And another film remake is planned, this time directed by It screenwriter Gary Dauberman. Yet it will struggle to surpass the original, which remains one of the most successful King adaptations, with the emphasis on suggestion and subtlety over bloodshed making it all the more terrifying.
As Soul put it: “Salem’s Lot is responsible for a whole new genre, particularly in terms of television. I think the film we did is the legendary film, the real thing, and everything else tried to copy elements of what we accomplished.” The obituaries will salute this versatile actor for being forever Hutch, but Salem’s Lot is surely his truest – and longer-lasting – legacy.
STANDARD OBIT
Starsky & Hutch actor David Soul’s 50 years on screen and stage
Jordan Reynolds, PA Fri, 5 January 2024
Actor David Soul was best known for his role as Detective Kenneth “Hutch” Hutchinson in the classic crime-solving television series Starsky & Hutch.
US-born Soul, who starred opposite Paul Michael Glaser, who played Detective Dave Starsky, in the 1970s US TV series, was also known for his roles in Here Come The Brides, Magnum Force and The Yellow Rose.
With a career spanning 50 years, Soul also made a name for himself as a director, producer, singer/songwriter and social activist. David Soul (Yui Mok/PA)
David Solberg (Soul) was born in Chicago, Illinois, on August 28 1943, then spent the next 12 years between South Dakota and post-Second World War Berlin.
His father Dr Richard Solberg, a professor of history and political science and an ordained minister, moved his family to Berlin where he served as a religious affairs adviser to the US High Commission.
Soul was affected by his experiences in Berlin and initially considered following in his father’s footsteps, later becoming involved with the South Dakota Young Democrats.
He was also an avid sportsman and was offered a professional baseball contract with the Chicago White Sox after high school in 1961.
David Soul arriving for the Theatregoers’ Choice Awards, held at Planet Hollywood in central London, in November 2005 (Yui Mok/PA)
But instead, during his second year of college, he left to go to Mexico City with his father who went to be a professor at a graduate school for young diplomats.
Here he was introduced to the indigenous songs of Mexico and when he returned to the US, he secured a job singing folk music at a coffee house at the University of Minnesota.
It was in Minneapolis where Soul got his first taste of theatre.
He was 21, married and with a child when he took over his friend’s role as the “Pugnacious Collier” in the Firehouse Theatre’s production of John Arden’s Sergeant Musgrave’s Dance.
Then, separated from his wife, Soul sent an audition tape and a photo, calling himself “The Covered Man” – while wearing a mask and shortening his name to Soul – to the William Morris Agency in New York, which signed him. Actor David Soul in 2004 (Ian West/PA)
Soul travelled to New York in 1965 and appeared on The Merv Griffin Show for multiple singing appearances, as well as with MGM Records.
His first release was The Covered Man. Soul wore a mask for four months and would not show his face, saying he wanted to be “known for his music”.
Studying in New York with Uta Haugen and Irene Daily, Soul was given his first television role in 1960s dolphin series Flipper.
He was spotted on The Merv Griffin Show by a talent executive at Columbia/Screen Gems, then signed a contract with Screen Gems which saw him move to Los Angeles.
Soul acted in Star Trek, Here Come The Brides, Perry Mason and Johnny Got His Gun, throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
He got his break as officer John Davis in Clint Eastwood’s police yarn Magnum Force, about Inspector Harold Callahan, which led to a part in Starsky & Hutch from 1974 to 1979. David Soul arrives for the annual National Television Awards at the Royal Albert Hall in central London in 2004 (Ian West/PA)
In the years following, Soul directed different television series, produced and directed theatre shows and produced and directed three documentaries.
He also funded, produced and co-directed a documentary on the shutdown of Pittsburgh’s steel industry between 1982 and 1985.
At the height of his fame he released the UK chart-toppers Don’t Give Up On Us and Silver Lady, and the hits Going In With My Eyes Open and Let’s Have A Quiet Night In.
Soul toured across large parts of the world with his band and performed as part of the late Queen’s silver jubilee in 1977.
But in the 1980s Soul hit the headlines when he was arrested for attacking his then-wife, and he went on to be part of a BBC programme in the early 2000s which aimed to tackle domestic violence.
He also went on to appear in TV series Salem’s Lot, an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name, as Ben Mears, who returns to his home town, which has been taken over by vampires.
Soul was also in Miami Vice, Harry’s Hong Kong, Homeward Bound and a TV series remake of Casablanca.
David Soul on stage at London’s Phoenix Theatre (Rebecca Naden/PA)
In the last 30 years of his life, Soul moved from Los Angeles to New Zealand, then to Australia, where he performed in Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers, Paris and finally London where he worked in theatre, television and film.
In the 1990s, he made his debut on the West End stage in the award-winning play Blood Brothers while he was living in the UK.
Some of his many television and film credits in the UK include appearances on Little Britain, Top Gear, Holby City, Agatha Christie’s Poirot: Death On The Nile, as well as films Tabloid and Puritan.
He and Glaser reprised their roles in the 2004 remake Starsky & Hutch, starring Ben Stiller as Starsky and Owen Wilson as Hutch.
Soul, who was a dual US and UK citizen, was married five times, including to actresses Mirriam Solberg, Karen Carlson, Patti Carnel Sherman and Julia Nickson, and had six children and seven grandchildren.
Soul died on Thursday at the age of 80 surrounded by his family, his wife Helen Snell said in a statement.
