MASTERS OF SCIENCE FICTION debut showcases N.C. State professor's storytelling

Tomorrow night ABC will premiere Masters of Science Fiction, an anthology show featuring film adaptations of... well, science fiction stories! The show is being narrated by Stephen Hawking, which alone should say something about how classy this project is. And then there is the acting talent the producers have brought onboard: Malcolm McDowell, Terry O'Quinn (who also plays Locke on ABC's show Lost), and Brian Dennehy are just some of the faces that we'll be seeing during the show's initial four-episode run.

The first installment has a lot of local interest because it originated with a professor at North Carolina State University. John Kessel's short story "A Clean Escape" will star Sam Waterston and Judy Davis in a post-Apocalyptic tale of the near future about a psychiatrist who's trying to help a man with curious lapses in memory.

I haven't read the original short story yet, but my friend Chad Austin - who works at N.C. State's press office and who wrote an article about John Kessel and his story being used for Masters of Science Fiction - has told me to expect quite an excellent tale! The News & Observer also has an article about Kessel's story. And Mr. Kessel has drawn up a list of what he considers to be among the best film adaptations of science-fiction work.

Masters of Science Fiction premieres with "A Clean Escape" at 10 p.m. EST on August 4th on the ABC Network.