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The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy originated as a 1978 radio comedy series written by Douglas Adams. This was followed by a series of novels, a television series and a computer game. A film version is due in theatres in April 2005. Although the various versions followed the same basic plot, they are in many places mutually contradictory, as Adams heavily rewrote the story for each "adaptation".

Introduction

The books are described as "a trilogy in five parts", having been described as a trilogy on the release of the third book, and then a "trilogy in four parts" on the release of the fourth book. They have a wide following around the world, thanks to their outlandish situations, characters and concepts (e.g. Babel fish, Vogon poetry, Slartibartfast and other minor characters, The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything), their anarchic, ironic humour, and their subtle social commentary.

The first radio series was originally going to be called 'The Ends of the Earth': six self-contained episodes, all ending with the Earth being destroyed in a different way. While writing the first episode, Adams realised that he needed someone on the planet who was an alien to provide some context for the story. Having done that, he then decided that this person needed a reason to be there, and so he decided that the alien was a field researcher for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and as he explored the concept more, it became obvious to him that the Guide was becoming the centre of the story and so he decided to focus the series on it, with the destruction of Earth in the first episode being the only hold-over from 'The Ends of the Earth'.

Adams claimed numerous times at length that the title came from an incident while he was hitch-hiking around Europe as a young man with a copy of The Hitch-Hiker's Guide to Europe (being too poor to afford Europe on Five Dollars a Day ), and while lying drunk in a field in Innsbruck with a copy of the book and looking up at the stars, thought it would be a good idea for someone to write a hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy as well. However, he also claimed later in life that he had told this story so many times that he had forgotten his actual memory of the incident, and only remembered himself telling various people the story.

The title The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is often abbreviated as "HHG", "HHGG", "HHGTTG" or "H2G2". In addition to the several incarnations of the story, of which the books are the most popular, this can also refer to:

the fictional guidebook The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, an eccentric electronic encyclopedia which features in the series
a website hosted by the BBC which is "almost but not quite entirely unlike" Wikipedia (see h2g2)

Note on spelling: Unfortunately, the different editions of the Hitchhiker's Guide spell it differently -- thus "Hitch-Hiker's Guide", "Hitch Hiker's Guide" and "Hitchhiker's Guide" are used in different editions (US or UK), versions (audio or text) and compilations of the book. For the sake of coherence, Wikipedia spells it Hitchhiker's Guide, which is reportedly the way author Adams himself preferred it. [1]

Plot overview

The series follows the adventures of Arthur Dent, a hapless Englishman who escapes the destruction of Earth (by the Vogons) with his friend Ford Prefect, an alien from Betelgeuse and researcher for the eponymous guide. Unfortunately for them, they have done so by hitching a ride onboard the Vogon's ship, and after being read some Vogon poetry, they are promptly kicked out an airlock. Zaphod Beeblebrox, Ford's semi-cousin and sometime Galactic President, saves the pair from death in his (stolen) spaceship, the Heart of Gold, whose crew rounds out the main cast of characters: Marvin the Paranoid Android, a terminally depressed robot, and Trillian, a woman known by Arthur as the only other surviving human being.

Note: The plots of the television and radio series are more or less the same as that of the first two novels, though some of the events occur in a different order and many of the details are changed. Much of parts five and six of the radio series were written by John Lloyd, but his material did not make it into the other versions of the story and is not included here. Many consider the books' version of events to be definitive, because they are the final version Adams produced (and also the most readily accessible).

It wasn't truly clear that the series was over (since it was already a trilogy with five books) until Adams died of a heart attack at age 49 in 2001. Indeed, Adams said that the new novel he was working on, The Salmon of Doubt, was not working as a Dirk Gently story, and suggested it might instead become a sixth book in the Hitchhiker's series. He described Mostly Harmless as "a very bleak book" and said he "would love to finish Hitchhiker on a slightly more upbeat note". Adams also remarked that if he were to write a sixth instalment, he would at least start with all the characters in the same place.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the characters visit the legendary planet Magrathea, home of the now-collapsed planet building industry, and meet Slartibartfast, a planetary architect. He relates the story of a race of hyper-intelligent pan-dimensional beings who built a computer named Deep Thought to calculate the answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. When the answer was revealed as 42, they were forced to build a more powerful computer to work out what the Ultimate Question actually was, but their plans never come to fruition.

The computer, disguised as a planet, was the Earth, and was destroyed five minutes before the conclusion of its 10-million-year program. The hyper-intelligent pan-dimensional biengs, who turn out to be mice, want to dissect Arthur's brain to help reconstruct the question, but our protagonists escape.

It is immediately set up for the next book in the series.

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

In The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, Zaphod is separated from the others and finds he is part of a conspiracy to uncover whoever really runs the Universe. Zaphod meets Zarniwoop, a co-conspirator and editor for the guide, who knows where to find the secret ruler. Briefly reunited with the others for a trip to Milliways, the restaurant of the title, Zaphod and Trillian discover that the Universe is in the safe hands of a simple man living on a remote planet in a wooden shack with his cat.

Ford and Arthur, meanwhile, fall backwards through time and end up on a spacecraft full of the outcasts of the Golgafrincham civilisation. The ship crashes on prehistoric Earth, disrupting the program to find the Ultimate Question and stranding Ford and Arthur. (The TV series ends at this point.)

Life, the Universe, and Everything

In Life, the Universe, and Everything Ford and Arthur are saved by Slartibartfast, when he enlists their aid in preventing galactic war. Long ago, the people of Krikkit attempted to wipe out all life in the Universe, but they were stopped and imprisoned on their home planet; now, they are poised to escape. With the help of Marvin, Zaphod and Trillian, our heroes prevent the destruction of life in the Universe and go their separate ways.

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

In So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, Arthur returns home to Earth, rather surprisingly since it was destroyed when he left. He meets and falls in love with a girl named Fenchurch, and discovers this Earth is a replacement provided by the dolphins in their Save the Humans campaign. Eventually he rejoins Ford, who claims to have saved the Universe in the meantime, to hitch-hike one last time and see God's Final Message to His Creation.

Mostly Harmless

Finally, in Mostly Harmless, Vogons take over the Hitchhiker's Guide (under the name of Infinidim Enterprises), to finish, once and for all, the task of obliterating the Earth. Arthur's spaceship crashes on the planet Lamuella, where he settles as a sandwich-maker. Meanwhile, Ford Prefect breaks into the guide's offices, gets himself an infinite expense account from the computer system, then meets the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Mark II. After he declines this dangerously powerful machine's aid (which he receives anyway), he sends it to Arthur Dent.

Trillian uses DNA that Arthur donated for money to have a daughter, and when she goes to cover a war, she leaves her daughter Random Frequent Flyer Dent with Arthur. Random steals the Guide Mark II, and uses it to get to Earth. Arthur, Ford, and later Trillian all end up on Earth trying to catch Random. While Arthur, Ford, Trillian, Random, and Tricia McMillan (Trillian in this alternate universe), find themselves together in Stavro Mueller's Beta club and Random kills Agrajag as Arthur Dent ducks and then the Guide Mark II removes all the Earths from probability, also removing all the characters involved, and itself.

Radio and TV series

As of 2004, there have been three radio series and a television series produced by or for the BBC. A further two radio series, to be broadcast back-to-back, are in production.

The original radio series

The radio series (and the subsequent vinyl LP recordings and television spin-off) greatly benefited from the commentary of noted radio comedy actor Peter Jones as The Book. His sonorous, avuncular tones undoubtedly gave the series a tremendous boost and firmly established the tenor of the piece.

The series was also notable for its use of sound, being the first comedy series to be produced in stereo. Adams said that he wanted the programme's production to be comparable to that of a modern rock album. Much of the programme's budget was spent on sound effects, which were largely the work of Paddy Kingsland .

The theme tune used for the radio, television and LP versions is "Journey of the Sorcerer", an instrumental piece by The Eagles from the album One of These Nights. Only the radio series used the original recording; a soundalike cover by Tim Souster was used for the LP and TV series. Apparently, Adams chose this song for its futuristic sounding nature, but also for the fact that it had a banjo in it, which he said would give it an "on the road, hitch-hikey feel".

The Primary Phase

Main cast:

The first radio series was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1978. It was split into episodes, known as "Fits" (an archaic term for a section of a poem revived by Lewis Carroll for The Hunting of the Snark). The original series comprised Fits the First through Sixth, and Fit the Seventh was broadcast separately on December 24 (though billed as a Christmas special it made no reference to the occasion). Fits the Fifth and Sixth were co-written by John Lloyd; subsequent versions of the story omit most of Lloyd's material.

The success of the series encouraged Adams to adapt it into a novel, which was based on the first four Fits and released in 1979. A slightly contracted double LP re-recording of the first four Fits was released in the same year, followed by a single LP featuring a revised version of Fits the Fifth and Sixth.

The Secondary Phase

A second radio series, comprising Fits the Eighth through Twelfth, was produced and broadcast in 1980, originally on five consecutive days; and the original novel produced a sequel based on Fits the Fifth through Twelfth (but not entirely in that order). The producer of both the radio and LP versions was Geoffrey Perkins (with the exception of Fit the First, produced as a pilot by Simon Brett). Thereafter the radio series ended and the books developed independently.

The TV series

Main cast:

The popularity of the first two books gave rise to a six-episode television series, which aired on BBC Two in January and February of 1981. It employed many of the actors from the radio series and was based on the novel versions of Fits the First through Sixth. The complexities of adapting the material for television meant that each episode was 35 minutes in length, and some of the best jokes from the radio series had to be cut. The programme is particularly notable for its mock computer animation sequences, actually produced by hand using traditional cel animation techniques. There have been several different edits of the series: Some, but not all, PBS stations recut the series into seven 30-minute episodes, while the videotape release added some previously unseen material and remixed the soundtrack into stereo. The DVD edition claims to be the final and definitive version.

Two important cast changes were made for the TV version. David Dixon replaced Geoffrey McGivern as Ford, and Sandra Dickinson played Trillian. The changes were made because McGivern did not suit the role visually, and Susan Sheridan was unavailable at the time.

The new radio series

On June 21 2004, the BBC announced in a press release that a new series of Hitchhiker's based on the third novel would be broadcast as part of their autumn schedule, produced by Above The Title Productions Ltd. This was followed by news that further series would be produced based on the fourth and fifth novels.

The Tertiary Phase

Main cast

The third 6-part radio series, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Tertiary Phase, based on Life, the Universe and Everything, ran on BBC Radio 4 from Tuesday September 21 to October 26 2004, with repeats on the following Thursdays. (Arthur Dent, of course, could never get the hang of Thursdays). Episodes were subtitled Fits the Thirteenth through Eighteenth. It was adapted by Dirk Maggs following instructions left by Adams. Most of the original radio series cast returned, with the exception of three. Two of these had passed away: Richard Vernon as Slartibartfast, replaced by Richard Griffiths; and Peter Jones, replaced by his friend William Franklyn ; some brief excerpts from Jones's original narration were also used in the first episode, cleverly disguised as the Book's speech-generation system changing as part of updates to the Guide from the publisher. The third absent cast member was David Tate , who played a multitude of minor roles in the two original radio series including Eddie the Heart of Gold's computer. On the other hand, John Marsh, who was the original series' continuity announcer returned to announce the credits. There was even a cameo role by Adams himself as Agrajag, edited from his BBC audiobook recording of the novel.

Before the final episode was broadcast, BBC Worldwide released the Tertiary Phase on CD, including additional material.

Since the opening of the third book starts at the same place and time (prehistoric Earth) as the opening of the second radio series, the entire Secondary Phase was dismissed as one of Zaphod's "psychotic episodes" (including events that did take place in the books).

The Quandary and Quintessential Phases

A fourth and fifth series will follow, with four episodes for each of the fourth and fifth novels; they will be broadcast in May/June 2005, starting on the 3rd May 2005. The names for these series have apparently been chosen to be more humorous than the standard terms quaternary and quinary, which are rarely used anyway. They are both separate series, but are being aired back to back to stop people (in the words of Dirk Maggs) "nodding off in between."

Interactive fiction

The TV series was followed in 1984 by a best-selling "interactive fiction", or text-based adventure game, distributed by Infocom. Titled simply The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, it was designed by Adams and Infocom regular Steve Meretzky and was one of the most successful produced by the company. As with many Infocom games, the box contained a number of "feelies" such as a "Don't panic" badge, some pocket fluff, and an order for destruction of Earth.

The game was resurrected in September 2004 by the BBC for the Hitchhiker's section of the Radio 4 website as part of the publicity for the initial broadcast of the Tertiary Phase, and is currently still available to play online. This new version uses an original Infocom datafile with a custom-written interpreter, by Sean Sollé, and Flash programming by Shimon Young, both of whom used to work at The Digital Village. The new version includes illustrations by Rod Lord, who was head of the studio that produced the guide graphics for the TV series. On March 2nd 2005 it won the Interactive BAFTA in the "best online entertainment" category.

"Hitch-Hikeriana"

Many merchandising and spin-off items were produced in the early 1980s, dubbed "Hitch-Hikeriana" and included a beach towel printed with the Guide's entry for towels and a number of novelty singles (see below).

Stephen Moore recorded two novelty singles in character as Marvin the Paranoid Android: "Marvin"/"Metal Man" and "Reasons To Be Miserable"/"Marvin, I Love You". The last song has appeared on a Dr. Demento compilation. There was also an EP featuring the re-recorded "Journey of the Sorcerer" together with "Reg Nullify In Concert" by Reg Nullify, and "Only the End of the World Again" by Disaster Area. These discs have since become collector's items.

Books in the trilogy

The books in the trilogy are named:

A short story was also written, Young Zaphod Plays it Safe. It appears in some of the omnibus editions of the trilogy, and in The Salmon of Doubt. It is almost, but not quite, entirely unrelated to the rest of the trilogy.

Neil Gaiman has written Don't Panic: The Official Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Companion. The original edition was published in 1984. The book is now in its third edition.

A novel, Douglas Adams's Starship Titanic, based on Adams's computer game and written by Terry Jones, is also set in the HHGG universe. While the story is entirely unrelated to the trilogy, Starship Titanic was briefly mentioned in Life, the Universe and Everything.

Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged, a character from Life, the Universe and Everything, also appears in a short story by Adams titled The Private Life of Genghis Khan which appears in some early editions of The Salmon of Doubt.

Two collaborative Internet projects were inspired by The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The original is Project Galactic Guide, which has no official affiliation. There is also h2g2, a project started by Douglas Adams' company The Digital Village and currently hosted by the BBC.

Film

Main article: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (movie).

After years of setbacks and renewed efforts to start production and a quarter of a century after the first book was published, the big-screen adaptation of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has finally been shot. Post-production began in early September of 2004. It will be released on 29 April 2005 in both the USA and the UK, and 10 June in South Africa.

Trivia

Marvin, played by actor Stephen Moore, was originally going to be called "Marshall" after comedy writer Andrew Marshall (see: The Burkiss Way), a friend who Adams regarded as being a very depressed person; it was changed to "Marvin" partly to avoid causing offence, but also because it was pointed out to Adams that on radio the name would sound like "Martial", which would have undesirable connotations.

In one of the Hitchhiker's novels, Adams mentions that every intelligent race in the universe has a drink called gin and tonics, but with slight spelling variations. The drinks themselves are unique - one variant is called "chinanto/mnigs" which is ordinary water at slightly above room temperature, another species has "tzjin-anthony-ks" which kills cows at a hundred paces.

Cultural references

References to the series can be seen in many types of media:

The name of the instant messenging program Trillian comes from the nickname of the character Tricia MacMillan.
The AltaVista Babel Fish Translator's name is a reference to the Babel fish.
On the television show South Park, the character Towelie often says, "Don't forget to bring a towel," which is similar to the Guide's hitchhiking advice.
Google's calculator feature displays the number 42 when asked, "What is the answer to life, the universe, and everything?" [2] (only works with all lower-case letters). Microsoft's msn.com's calculator also has this.
The Radiohead song "Paranoid Android" refers to Marvin, the depressed robot.
The band NOFX released an album in 1997 called So_Long_and_Thanks_for_All_the_Shoes, in reference to the dolphin's final quote, "So long, and thanks for all the fish."
GameFAQs' most popular message board: Life, the Universe, and Everything (LUE) is derived from the book of the same name, strangely the board's identity number is 402 (forty two with the numbers separated by a nought.) Several other boards such as Mostly Harmless or Brilliant also got the name from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
The character of Lionel, in the PBS Kids' series Between the Lions wears a '42' on his rugby jersey sleeve. This is a deliberate homage by Christopher Cerf , as discussed in his introduction to the US Editions of The Salmon of Doubt.
In the game GoldenEye 007 for Nintendo 64, one of the "awards" that can be earned in multiplayer mode is "Mostly Harmless."
In the game Elite one of the pilot rankings is "Mostly Harmless."
In the children's online game Neopets, an item called a Pan Galactic Gargle Slushie can be purchased. It references the Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster, named the best drink in existence by the Guide.
The Dopefish is listed as the second dumbest creature in the universe, an obvious reference to the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal.
Deep Thought (chess computer) is a chess computer, named after the Deep Thought computer in the book.

External links

Official sites

BBC Cult website (includes information, links and downloads)
BBC Radio 4 website (includes information on the new radio series)
- Computer Game (special Anniversary Edition, updated by the BBC and playable online using Flash)
Above The Title Productions (production company behind the new radio series)
Dirk Maggs (director of the new radio series)
Official Movie Site
The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy (1981 TV series) at the Internet Movie Database

Significant fan sites

Planet Magrathea – M.J. Simpson 's site.
The Douglas Adams Portal – Just one of Nicolas Botti 's many Hitchhiker's Guide sites.
ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha - The Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Appreciation Society.

Last updated: 08-05-2005 01:43:06

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