Tom Swift Hates Cephalopods

[Pulp Covers]

Tow Swift and His Barry Sonnenfeld Movie

Barry Sonnenfeld has sold a pitch to Columbia for a movie based on the adventures of Tom Swift. I only read one Tom Swift book as a kid (the one about His Jetmarine) and remember thinking that it was a bit juvenile for me even then. Basically Hardy Boys-level stuff only with awesome gadgets and settings. As someone who was already into Ian Fleming and Edgar Rice Burroughs, it didn't hold my attention.

But as long as Sonnenfeld plays it straight and doesn't try to make it strictly a kids' movie, it's a great idea for a possible franchise.

Tom Swift and His Movie Deal

I've told you about the "Hey, Oscar Wilde! It's clobberin' time!!!" blog before, right? One of the reasons I love watching it is that the subjects of the art aren't the same old superhero and movie icons, so I'm often introduced to new characters or am reminded of old ones I haven't thought about in a while. Tom Swift is a great example of the latter. That's Michael Golden's take on Tom to the right there.

I only had one Tom Swift book when I was a kid: Tom Swift and His Jetmarine. I'd be hard-pressed to tell you what it was about except that I remember thinking Tom was pretty cool for having a one-man sub. Even as a kid though, the concept of an independently wealthy boy-inventor/adventurer was pretty over-the-top for me, so I didn't track down more of his books. But I always thought there was potential in Tom if some of his cheesier elements were either explained or toned down.

Seeing Golden's illustration got me thinking about how the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew have faired pretty well through the generations since they were introduced, but how you don't hear much from Tom anymore. Apparently, I just wasn't in the loop on it, because there's quite a bit of new Tom Swift material coming out. There's a new series of books that started last year and it's just now been announced that a film and video game are in the works, with possible TV and webisodes to follow. Knowing the difference between today's kids and the kids of the '50s, I'm looking forward to seeing how the new writers and producers are updating the concept. Especially since the first book in the new series, Into the Abyss, looks very Jetmarine-like from the cover.