It's the ultimate fantasy for fans of Star Trek and Star Wars: the on-going debate over which series is best started with a shot across the bow by William Shatner, which, in turn, prompted Carrie Fisher to fire back and George Takei to plead for peace between the two sci-fi icons. Now CNN reports coverage of the spreading debate between fans of both series. Click here to read.

One of the DeLorean cars used in the 1985 boxoffice smash Back to the Future has sold for over $500,000. Part of the proceeds will be donated to a foundation to help cure Parkinson's Disease run by the film's star, Michael J. Fox. The DeLorean is making a bit a of a comeback lately among classic car collectors.  The auto's lifespan was short-lived. It was designed by the late, disgraced financier John DeLorean whose legal problems aborted his attempt to become a major player in the American car industry. For more click here

Gone are the days: Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop, when his name above the title meant boxoffice gold.

Forbes has compiled a list of the most over-paid movie stars. Topping the list are names like Drew Barrymore, Eddie Murphy (the list was compiled before the release of Tower Heist, which under-performed), Will Ferrell and Denzel Washington. The criteria is the number of dollars returned to the studio in relation to the salary paid to the star. For more click here

Actress Suzanna Leigh, who was Elvis Presley's leading lady in Paradise Hawaiian Style, is embroiled in a distasteful legal battle with the son of a deceased model who claims Leigh stole a ring from his mother. The heirloom was given to his mom by the late actress Sharon Tate, who died at the hands of Charles Manson's gang in 1969. The son, an acclaimed documentary filmmaker,  claims Leigh had stolen the ring on the pretense of having it appraised. She allegedly never returned it. When his mother passed away recently, Leigh sold the ring at auction. The son is now taking legal steps to have that sale nullified. Leigh denies any wrongdoing. For more click here

We're pretty late in posting this, but the sheer number of press releases and event announcements submitted to Cinema Retro has ye olde editor-in-chief occasionally finding himself guilty of letting some stories slip through the cracks. This is a press release relating to the new Star Babe Invasion retro comics that we're admittedly hooked on. You gotta love any magazine that has Raquel Welch, Barbara Eden and Bette Page on the cover!

STAR BABES RETURN!

Goofa Man Productions is all tingly to announce the release of the second issue of 3-D Pete’s Star Babe Invasion Comics!

The book takes an admiring look at those charismatic, curvaceous creatures from the cosmos... STAR BABES!

“I don’t know why I tend to focus on Star Babes,” admits the head honcho of Goofa Man Productions, Mike Fisher. “I mean,

they’re voluptuous women in skimpy costumes flying around in retro spaceships, blowing things to bits with cool-ass ray

guns. Why would ANY guy be drawn to that? I just can’t figure it out,” he wonders.  

This cosmic issue features a fun commentary on Jane Fonda’s classic Star Babe flick, Barbarella. Plus, read a 3-D Pete

tale of UFO abduction as well as an analysis of the Star Babes in the original Star Trek television series. This issue has

illustrations of sexy Julie Newmar, Raquel Welch, Marta Kristen, Nancy Kovack and more! Don’t forget the full-color center

spread of a gorgeous galactic girl! SKWONK-A-DONK!

The biggest scoop in this issue is an interview with fabulous Rachelle Wood — the most famous Star Babe you’ve never

heard of! Rachelle plays one of the hottie Star Babes in the Bud Light Close Encounters commercial which has enjoyed

a tremendous amount of airtime. Rachelle reveals all her Star Babe secrets when she confesses, “I was a Bud Light Star

Babe!”

ABOUT THE CREATOR

Fisher produces cartoons for Animation Magazine and other publications as well as online sites.

He contributed cartoons to Starlog magazine for over 20 years. 

In addition, Fisher produces award-winning independent short animations, which have shown at film festivals across the

country. His latest short video is a 30-minute documentary about UFOs, titled Craft of Unknown Origin. In this video, Fisher

uses his animation skills to visualize what UFO witnesses have seen.

If you have any questions for Mike, please contact him at galacticfish61@gmail.com. See more of Mike’s work at

www.goofaman.com.

TO ORDER 3-D PETE’S STAR BABE INVASION COMICS

The book is a 24-page, digest-sized comic with a full-color cover and a fabulous full-color center spread of a Star Babe!

ORDER NOW!

• ISSUE TWO (THE LATEST ISSUE) — Just send $5 to the address below.

• COLLECTOR’S ITEM, ISSUE 1 — Send $10 for this classic edition! Pete takes a look at Devil Girl from Mars as well as Star Babes from Star Trek and Lost in Space! While supplies last!

Star Babe Invasion/Mike Fisher

510 Enchanted Way

San Antonio, Texas

78260

Please make checks payable to Mike Fisher and specify which issue(s) you’d like. Thanks!

Everything old becomes new again. At at a time when movie fans are dumping VHS tapes and players into dust bins and thrift stores, the New York Times reports there is a sub-culture of horror fans who are keeping the format alive. Mind you, these aren't folks who sit around watching old Universal and Hammer horror films. Rather, they favor home grown, ultra crude productions that literally star the girl next door (who generally comes to a horrific end). There are enough of these VHS fans to merit some titles being newly released in the format. Click here to read

“I was born a nervous wreck, and I think movies were one way of transferring my own private horrors to everyone else’s lives". So said Steven Spielberg in 2007. If anyone shouldn't be nervous, it's Spielberg, who had already become a legendary director before he reached the age of 30. While most people equate Spielberg with directing, he also oversees a vast number of projects that he produces. The NY Times analyzes why Spielberg's passion for specific projects results in a workaholic lifestyle that will see him release two major films this year and a slate of other ambitious projects in 2012. Click here to read. 

An ultra rare pristine copy of Action Comics #1, the comic book that introduced Superman to the world in 1938, has blown away world records when sold recently by ComicConnect.com's auction service. The comic was given an Overstreet Guide estimated value of $1,050,000 but ended up selling for more than twice that amount: $2,161,000. While the value of many comics have  flatlined over the years, the "Golden Age" issues that introduced such icons as Superman and Batman continue to escalate. Adding intrigue to this auction was the fact that this issue had been stolen and was presumed lost forever- until surfacing in a Los Angeles garage recently. For more click here

On the What Culture! web site, writer Jame Simpson has an extended and ambitious article comparing whether John Wayne or Clint Eastwood were effective in various film genres: Westerns, war movies and detective thrillers. Click here to read and see if you agree with his conclusions.

It's deja vu all over again when it comes to movie poster designs.

We often rail about the sad state of movie poster marketing campaigns today. In the past, cheapo movies had ad campaigns that made them look like epics. Today, we have genuine epics with posters so poor it makes them look like low-budget monstrosities. Plagiarism is rampant, also. Check out the following article from the Gizmodo site to see how one successful poster campaign inspires endless legions of imitators for decades to come. Click here to read

John Wayne's beloved yacht, The Wild Goose, has been added to the National Register of Historic Places. The Duke purchased the converted minesweeper in 1962 and loved relaxing with friends and family on board. Among the dignitaries he entertained on the vessel were future presidents Richard M. Nixon and Ronald Reagan. Wayne also leased the boat out for TV and movie productions including the films Skidoo and The President's Analyst, as well as the classic television series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. For more click here

Vivid's X-rated spoof of Batman was the top-grossing porn film of 2010.

By Lee Pfeiffer

When you think of porn films, you probably envision the old days when guys wearing trenchcoats would slink into grungy theaters. Today it's as mainstream as you can get with couples all over the world indulging in naughty fare in the privacy of their own homes. However, the industry has been hit hard by the seemingly limitless number of web sites that provide X rated materials for free. Consequently, the glory days of making a fortune in porn video have come and gone. That is, with the exception of Vivid, the first porn production company to become a giant in its field. By industry standards, they are to the X-rated world what MGM once was to Hollywood: providing (relatively) gigantic budgets of hundreds of thousands of dollars to their films. They also put effort into actually getting witty scripts to accompany the huffing and puffing on-screen and devote up to six months to bringing a film to a, ...er, climax. They also have a "wanted list" of any celebrity sex tapes that make it to the open market. Many of these have supposedly been lost or stolen, but more cynical minds believe they are actually leaked to the industry by the participants themselves in order to ensure further publicity. For more click here

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Steven Spielberg defends (kinda defends, anyway) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Although the film earned a fortune at the boxoffice, it's generally hated by fans who believe everyone involved just did the project to earn a sizable paycheck. In the candid interview, Spielberg acknowledges some of the story points went against his own instincts but he wanted to be loyal to George Lucas, who wrote the script. For more click here