Science Fiction Writer
ROBERT J. SAWYER
Hugo and Nebula Winner

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Hugo and Nebula Award-winning science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer was the judge for a science-fiction episode of Collector Showdown, a high-definition game show broadcast on Treasure HD in the United States and Canada, and produced by High Fidelity HDTV Inc. of Toronto.

The episode was filmed September 14, 2006, at Bakka-Phoenix Books, Toronto's venerable SF speciality store (where Rob himself had worked back in 1982). Contestants showed off their science-fiction media collectables, and participated in a series of challenges, including trying their luck at trivia questions; Below are the questions Rob prepared for the show. The grand prize for the winner was to become a character in Rob's next book, Wake, the first volume of his "WWW" trilogy.

1  Who provided the voice of Darth Vader in the first Star Wars film? Which muscle-man actor was inside the Vader suit?

2  The Empire relied on little one-person ships called TIE fighters — but what does "T-I-E" stand for? And what distinguishes Darth Vader's personal TIE fighter from all the others?

3  The number-one bestselling 20th-century science-fiction novel has been filmed twice now. What's its title, and who wrote it?

4  What is Captain Kirk's brother's name? In his one brief on-screen appearance, who played him?

5  In which of the Star Trek motion pictures did we learn that Kirk's middle name is Tiberius? Which Canadian actor revealed that?

6  It turns out Galactica isn't the last surviving Battlestar after all. What's the name of the other Battlestar? Who played its captain in the new Battlestar Galactica series? Who played its captain in the original series?

7  In Star Trek: Enterprise, the Enterprise was the first-ever human-built warp-five-capable starship. What was its serial number? What was the second such ship called? What was that ship's serial number?

8  On Star Trek, Spock was half-human, half-Vulcan. What was his father's name? His mother's? His half-brother's?

9  What was the computer called in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey? Which Canadian actor provided his voice? What song does this computer sing? What does the computer's name stand for?

10  In what film do we hear the line, "So this is how liberty dies — to thunderous applause"? Who says it? When the line is uttered, who has just expanded his political power? Who does that person go on to become?

11  The most-famous split infinitive in history is "To boldly go." It was originally followed by the words "Where no man has gone before." When was that changed to "Where no one has gone before?" Who first said the new version? When do we hear Leonard Nimoy say the "To boldly go" speech? When do we hear William Shatner correct it from "where no man has gone before" to "where no one has gone before"?

12  Who are Sy Snootles, Max Rebo, and Droopy McCool? Who gets killed while those characters are present?

13  Name the big-budget film based loosely on Isaac Asimov's "Robot" series. Give the character name of the female robopsychologist who appears in his robot stories. Who played her in the movie version?

14  On what planet does Luke Skywalker meet Yoda? Who provides the voice of Yoda? What other famous space traveler did he provide the voice for?

15  On Star Trek, what starship was commanded by Commodore Decker? What is that starship's serial number? What starship was commanded by Captain Decker? What is that starship's serial number? What is Commodore Decker's first name? What is Captain Decker's first name?

Answers to the Trivia Questions

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Rob's aborted Star Wars novel

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