The First Immortal on UPI
Halperin, Jim (JIM@HERITAGECOIN.COM)
Mon, 2 Mar 1998 13:19:25 -0600
The following article went out on the UPI wire today. Vernon Scott's
column is carried in over 300 newspapers, so I'm hoping that this will
help gain some converts for cryonics and transhumanism.
Best regards to all,
Jim Halperin
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> Chiller on ice
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> (UPI; 03/02/98)
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>UPI Arts & Entertainment - Scott's World
> (800) By VERNON SCOTT
>UPI Hollywood Reporter
> HOLLYWOOD (UPI) The distinction between horror and science-fiction is
>often blurred, but a new sci-fi novel, headed for TV, gives science fiction a
>new reality.
>
> Pure sci-fi takes people into the future, usually without violence,
>excepting "Star Trek," "Star Wars," "Aliens" and other "Buck Rogers" stuff.
>
> True science fiction projects logical extensions of what mankind already
>knows scientifically.
>
> A shining example is "The First Immortal," a novel by James L. Halperin,
>author of the best-selling "The Truth Machine," scheduled to become a 20th
>Century Fox movie later this year.
>
> "The First Immortal" is the story of a medical doctor, his family and
>friends, who opt for cryonic suspension when they are on the verge of their
>deaths.
>
> Author Halperin's theorizes death is unnecessary, that humans can be
>suspended in a deeply frozen state until technology is developed to thaw and
>return them to strong, healthy lives at the peak of their physical and mental
>prowess.
>
> Layman readers can follow the scientific terminology and complex story
>lines
>without the hocus-pocus that often beclouds science fiction.
>
> This gripping story considers the moral, political, religious and ethical
>implications of eternal life on earth.
>
> Not the least intriguing element of the book is how humans, knowing they
>might live to be a thousand years old, would alter their lifestyles.
>
> Halperin, a Bostonian who now makes his home in Dallas, has optioned
>rights
>to "The First Immortal" to producer Robert Halmi who will make it a two-part,
>four-hour CBS mini-series for next season.
>
> "I've been a futurist for as long as I can remember," Halperin said the
>other day. "This book is a 200-year saga.
>
> "In the course of that time it becomes increasingly apparent in my story
>that human beings will no longer die of old age or from diseases.
>
> "I researched material for this novel for two years, including having all
>kinds of experts in many fields vet the manuscript for me."
>
> Halperin says the science in his book isn't pie-in-the-sky fantasy but
>solid
>derivation from serious studies, experiments and fact based on research and
>actuality.
>
> "I'm trying to pattern some thought into my brain now about what I can
>expect to find when I am revivified after undergoing cryogenic suspension,"
>he
>said.
>
> "When I'm in my 70s or 80s, prior to my own suspension, I want to remember
>all of these thoughts so that I won't get talked out of it.
>
> "That's not to say I believe cryonics will work out for me. It's just a
>lot
>better odds than being cremated or buried.
>
> "Cryonics is a very small part of the book. It's about the nature of
>humanity and what we really are. It covers the future of space travel,
>medicine
>and other elements of life 200 years from now.
>
> "To me the most interesting fields are the development of artificial
>intelligence and nano-technology, which will open up so many advancements in
>science.
>
> "I knew from the beginning that the human mind can rebuild a body molecule
>by molecule. It's a race against time when billions of human thoughts can be
>handled by computer technology in a fraction of a second.
>
> "Considering the sweep of time and history, adding two or three hundred
>years or more to human lives, which will make a great difference
>religiously. If you believe in the soul, then why shouldn't it survive for a
>thousand years in the same body?
>
> "The premise of the book is that no one knows what happens to you once
>you're dead: heaven and hell?
>
> "Some people think the billions of years after you die will be to you just
>like the billions of years before you were born: i.e. nothing, no
>consciousness.
>
> "Either way, death is not particularly desirable. We do what we can to
>avoid
>death in this society seat belts, medical treatment and so on.
>
> "Sixty years ago if your heart stopped beating you were dead. Period. That
>was the definition of death. Thirty years ago they were transplanting hearts
>into people. Who knows what it's going to be in the next 20 or 100 years?
>
> "This book was a labor of love. I rewrote it 30 times.
>
> "I was a psychology major at Harvard and I've read a great many books on
>science. I learned a lot about the brain while I researched 'The Truth
>Machine.'
>
> "I tried to make this book as plausible as I could. Nobody can say if it's
>really going to happen this way.
>
> "But I believe that much of the science in the book will develop even more
>rapidly along the lines it is moving now.
>
> "This book explores all the technologies and the rapidity at which they
>are
>advancing."
>
> Halperin vouchsafes his belief in the validity of cryonics with plans to
>have himself frozen when the time is right. -
> Copyright 1998 by United Press International.
>
> All rights reserved.
>
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>{UPI:Entertainment-0302.191} 03/02/98
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