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Tag: Back to the Future

  • Toyota Tacoma Gets Back To The Future Concept

    Toyota Tacoma Gets Back To The Future Concept

    The Toyota Tacoma has become Back to the Future-ized. Toyota announced this week that it would celebrate October 21, 2015 – the date introduced in Back to the Future Part II – by recreating Marty McFly’s dream truck with a concept based on the new 2016 Toyota Tacoma, which went on sale last month.

    Toyota showed off the model in New York and Dallas on Wednesday. Modifications (per the press release) were as follows:

    Custom 1985 Toyota Truck Exterior Paint
    Off-road Suspension
    Toyota Racing Development (TRD) Wheels
    BFGoodrich Tires
    Custom front and rear Tubular Bumpers
    Custom Light Bar
    KC HiLites Gravity LED G46
    KC HiLites Daylighter Gravity LED
    Custom “D-4S” Fuel Injection Badging
    Custom Tailgate with Iconic “TOYOTA” Logo
    Custom Vintage Headlight and Taillight Design
    Mud Flaps 1985 Toyota Truck

    Toyota has really gotten into the Back to the Future thing:

    Back to the Future Day has taken the Internet by storm, and continues to trend into October 22.

  • Lea Thompson, “Back To The Future” Co-star Had Odd Date To Prepare For Roles

    Lea Thompson has had many projects since she appeared in the Back To The Future trilogy, but she says they are the ones she’s the most proud of. However, one of her co-stars had an odd way of preparing for his role, and he asked her over to his place to join him the night before shooting began for their final scene together.

    When Crispin Glover invited her to come over and make some art with her, she was skeptical at first.

    “The night before we were supposed to do it, he invited me over to his all black apartment; black lacquer floors, ceilings, everything. The way he wanted to prepare for that scene is that we were going to paint a painting of a volcano together, which we then did. I thought that was the most awesome preparation to play a character ever,” Thompson said.

    Lea Thompson and her co-stars have all been in the headlines this week, as today’s date is the exact one Marty and Doc land on in the second film. Now, thirty years after the original film debuted, fans are still just as loyal as they were back then, and just as interested to see what our present day has in common with the movie’s idea of the future.

    As for Lea, she says she still has the prom dress and shoes she wore for the films, although they don’t fit anymore.

    “I can’t get in it any more, though. It was so tight! It was tight at the time, but now it’s really, really tight. It was beautifully made, and made to order for me. It’s got a low-drop waist, and the way it was cut was just so beautiful. And it’s still in great shape. I’ve still got the shoes. The shoes are even hard to get on now – my big ol’ feet from having babies,” Lea Thompson said.

  • Back To The Future IV – Is It Happening?

    Back To The Future 4 has long been rumored, but to date has not happened. Christopher Lloyd, who played Dr. Emmett Brown in all three previous Back to the Future movies wants it to happen.

    During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday, Lloyd said:

    “I would love to do Doc again, no question.”

    Christopher Lloyd told THR that he thinks they could find a way to write a good story and that the entire main cast should be in Back To The Future 4, including Michael J. Fox. He said this about Michael J. Fox:

    “I think regardless of the Parkinson’s, he’d probably jump on the role and he’d be great.”

    In a video sponsored by Toyota released just yesterday Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox discuss the future becoming reality. Well worth watching:

    The rumor mill regarding a possible Back To The Future 4 has spawned a whole community of fans pushing for this to happen. There is even a Facebook Community about it making comments and speculation blended with real news.

    Screen Shot 2015-10-15 at 2.08.15 PM

    They suggest that the new Back To The Future car should be a Tesla. Kind of makes sense:

    Tesla as the next DeLorean? It sparked significant controversy on this page, but the $140,000 gullwinged Tesla that can reach 88 mph in under 5 seconds on 1.21 kWh of electricity, wtth some modern “style” that Doc Brown would love, and has driverless features to boot. Plus the stainless steel construction…

    Fueling all of the fourth movie rumors is the date, October 21st, 2015. That is the exact date in Back to the Future: Part II where Marty travels to the future from 1985. In fact, there is a fan festival called WereGoingBack.com 2015 / WGB that starts on October 21st, 2015.

    Screen Shot 2015-10-15 at 2.19.13 PM

    Get your tickets now, it actually looks kind of interesting.

  • Back to the Future Event In NYC To Honor Film On Its 30th Anniversary

    Back to the Future is turning 30 years old, and is being celebrated in many ways by fans everywhere. New York City retailer PIQ is hosting an event on October 15 called “Welcome to the Future,” which will feature what it says is the largest collection of Back to the Future products in the city.

    Products will be available for sale, and a custom five-foot long, flying model DeLorean will be unveiled (right in the store window of course).

    The event will even have a couple of stars from the film – James Tokan (Principal Strickland) and Donald Fullilove (Mayor “Goldie” Wilson) – in attendance who will be posing for photos and signing autographs, according to an article at BackToTheFuture.com.

    The report also says that Radio City Music Hall is having a two-night screening of the original film with a symphony orchestra playing the score live.

    The main event at PIQ is happening from 5:00pm to midnight at PIQ Rockefeller Center.

    Other events are being held in Toronto, Pasadena, Burbank, New Orleans, Melbourne, Perth, and elsewhere. You can find a list here.

    In other Back to the Future news, Mondo is releasing the score for all three films in the trilogy on vinyl in an amazing collectors’ set.

  • Lea Thompson On Why She’s Lucky “Back To The Future” Made Her Famous

    Lea Thompson has a lot of film credits to her name, but the one she always gets asked about is Back To The Future. The trilogy has never lost one iota of charm over the years, and that says a lot, as it’s about to turn 30. Thompson sat down for an interview recently and talked about how lucky she is to be known for a film that aged her with makeup before her time.

    “It’s had a big resurgence. My mother-in-law said, ‘My great-grandchild loves the movie!’ That’s four generations. I feel lucky to be famous for ‘Back to the Future’ because of the fact that my character in the movie aged and people aren’t freaked out to see me now!” Thompson told ABC News.

    Lea, who says it took about three hours for the makeup artist to age her for several scenes in the films, admits she took some of her character’s wardrobe and wigs when shooting wrapped, including the prom dress Lorraine wears to the Enchantment Under The Sea dance. Because the films jump back and forth over several years, Lorraine spends time as a teenager and as a couple of different versions of Marty McFly’s mom, so her wardrobe was pretty varied. Thompson said she actually brought one of the wigs to the set of her ABC Family series Switched At Birth so that an actress–who was playing a younger version of Thompson’s character–could use it.

    Lea Thompson also talked about how Eric Stoltz–who was originally cast as Marty–helped land her the role, saying it was awkward when he was fired. But for fans of the movies, the idea of another actor playing Marty is unthinkable. Actor Christopher Lloyd said at a recent anniversary event that he and Michael J. Fox always had wonderful chemistry together, which made the job easy.

    “It was love at first sight. Everything just happened so easily with Michael. He has a comic flair, very spontaneous, had wonderful energy. It just all came through. And the chemistry we had between each other — I felt we never had to work for it. It simply existed,” Lloyd said.

  • Michael J Fox: Nike Set to Sell Back to the Future Power Shoelaces This Year

    Michael J. Fox, we’re counting on you. It’s 2015. This is the year it was all supposed to happen. We were supposed to have hoverboards. Not concept hoverboards; mass-produced, affordable, the real deal. Marty McFly went forward in time to 2015 and there were hoverboards.

    Maybe the hoverboard thing will happen; maybe it won’t. But Nike is bound and determined to get one thing to market before the year is out. Another product inspired by the adventures of Michael J. Fox’s character from Back to the Future II is on the drawing board.

    Power laces are coming, promises Nike. The shoe giant has been teasing a McFly-inspired shoe ever since early 2014. Called the Nike Air MAG, the shoe is designed to look like the ones McFly wore when he landed in 2015.

    The trouble has been getting the power laces to do their thing without a huge battery pack to power them.

    But Nike says that it is on the job and will definitely have the shoes out in 2015.

    Several pairs of the shoes are slated to be auctioned off to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. That organization is rumored to be seeking permission to merge with a smaller company, Michael Stern Parkinson’s Research Foundation. While Michael J. Fox’s Foundation is much larger, reports indicate that they see potential in the Stern organization in terms of developments toward actually finding a cure.

    Michael J. Fox has battled with Parkinson’s disease since the early 1990s, and has been a vocal public face in the race for a cure since 1998.

  • Lea Thompson Bids Adieu to ‘Dancing With the Stars’

    Lea Thompson bid adieu to Dancing With the Stars on Monday night–just one week shy of the show’s semifinals. The Back to the Future and Switched at Birth actress, along with her dance partner Artem Chigvintsev, spoke to the folks at Good Morning America’s on Tuesday morning.

    “It was a great night,” Lea Thompson said. “We had really a great time. We were always laughing and having a great time, and he’s an amazing choreographer.”

    “All because of you,” Chigvintsev added.

    Thompson was proud of her work on the dance floor and noted that not only had she become a more accomplished dancer, she also lost 10 pounds and now finds herself in much better shape.

    “It was really great to feel like my body was my body again,” she said. “I never worked out and I got so much stronger. I feel so much better than I’ve felt in 15 years. I’ve got to keep doing it.”

    Each DWTS contestant performed two dances on Monday evening. The first dance was performed with their pro partner to a style of dance, music and costume all chosen by viewers. The second dance included a third dancer who was either an eliminated pro dancer or a member of the show’s dance troupe.

    By the show’s end it was Lea Thompson and Sadie Robertson who were in jeopardy of elimination. Lea, ultimately, was the one cut, but she has nothing but great things to say about her time on the show.

    “I just feel really great … I feel strong and I’m anxious to get back to my day job on Switched at Birth,” she said.

    Were you at all surprised to see Lea Thompson eliminated Monday night on Dancing With the Stars? Do you think she deserved the elimination or were you thinking Sadie Robertson should have been cut instead?

  • ‘The Big Bang Theory’ in Lego Form

    ‘The Big Bang Theory’ in Lego Form

    The Big Bang Theory will soon be produced in a whole new way. Lego announced it’s going to create a set based on the hit CBS show. Following in the very successful footsteps of sets based on Ghostbusters, The Simpsons, and Back to the Future, this latest pop-culture institution will be forever cast in plastic and eventually sold on a collector’s market.

    The decision to make The Big Bang Theory Lego set was actually the result of a competition. Akin to a Kickstarter type of project, the ‘Lego Ideas’ program allows Lego fans to design their own sets and then others vote on them. Ideas garnering more than 10,000 votes will be reviewed by Lego. That’s when they get the chance of being made into an actual limited edition set.

    The Big Bang Theory Lego set was designed by two people who–during the competition–went by the names Alatariel and GlenBricker. They reportedly had some very stiff competition. Competing sets included an Apple store, the flying train from Back To The Future 3, some educational bird models, and two sets based on Doctor Who. The Big Bang Theory and the bird models were the only ones to make the final Lego cuts.

    How do you suppose Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Mayim Bialik, and the rest of The Big Bang Theory cast will feel knowing they and their set will be forever cast in Lego form?

    It’s pretty unlikely that the Lego sets will be played with by children. After all, they will come out in limited edition quantities. They will probably be scooped up by nerds (a term used to affectionately describe both adult Lego fans and fans of the show) who collect special edition Lego sets.

    Collectors had best stay tuned to Lego for production announcements. They’ll want to scoop up their sets and see how, over the years, they increase in value. Of course there will be those few enthusiasts who will set the little plastic figures up and put together the iconic living room set while watching The Big Bang Theory.

    Will you be one of them?

  • ‘Dancing With the Stars:’ Who Are These Stars?

    Dancing With the Stars hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews announced the new season’s cast a few days ago, leaving some fans to ask, “Where are the stars?” Of course it was pretty likely from the inception of the show that they would eventually run out of real stars–but Tommy Chong? He and Cheech Marin made up the duo famously known as ‘Cheech and Chong.’ The two smoked enough pot back in the 1970s to leave them with a life long case of the munchies.

    In addition to Tommy Chong, who will be paired with dance pro Peta Murgatroyd, is a lineup of cast members who might become stars by appearing on Dancing With the Stars, but really aren’t stars as of yet. A few were stars, but haven’t had that claim to fame for a very long time.

    Sadie Robertson is Phil Robertson’s granddaughter and she sometimes appears on Duck Dynasty, so that makes her a ‘sort-of’ star–maybe even a ‘star in training.’ Sadie will compete on Dancing With the Stars with Mark Ballas.

    Michael Waltrip is a star if you’re a pro racing fan. He will temporarily trade in his race car for dancing shoes and is paired with DWTS pro Emma Slater.

    Lolo Jones is an Olympic star, unless you count her efforts on the bobsled during the 2014 Winter Olympics. She will dance with Keo Motsepe, and can at least outrun everyone on the show if she feels she’s too embarrassed to continue on with the competition.

    Jonathan Bennett joins Dancing With the Stars following (no one said ‘following soon thereafter’) his appearance in the 2004 film Mean Girls. He won’t be dancing with Lindsay Lohan, but rather with dance pro Allison Holker.

    If you loved Back to the Future, you’ll remember Lea Thompson, who played Marty McFly’s (Michael J. Fox) love interest Lorraine Baines. She has come back to the present to dance with Artem Chigvintsev.

    Antonio Sabato, Jr. earned his stardom on General Hospital and Melrose Place, meaning when the drama gets ridiculous on Dancing With the Stars, he just might be involved. Cheryl Burke–his dance partner-in-crime–will likely hold him accountable for his actions, however.

    Randy Couture is a champion mixed martial artist who is trying to become a star as part of The Expendables franchise. In the meantime he is dancing with Karina Smirnoff on Dancing With the Stars.

    Janel Parrish plays the role of Mona Vanderwaal on Pretty Little Liars. Hopefully she leaves Mona’s cunning personality on that set as she comes to the DWTS set to compete alongside the very handsome Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

    Designer Betsey Johnson is a star in the fashion world. Might she be there to help out with the costumes she and partner Tony Dovolani will wear during this season’s competition?

    Bethany Mota comes to your TV straight from YouTube. She is a beauty expert with more than seven million followers. How does that even happen? She is dancing with just one Dancing With the Stars pro, however–Derek Hough–whose sister Julianne Hough will be sitting at the judge’s table this season.

    Alfonso Ribeiro comes from 1996–the last year The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air aired. He played the role of Carlton Banks opposite Will Smith. Will couldn’t be his dance partner on Dancing With the Stars (oh–he wasn’t asked?) so Alfonso is dancing with pro Witney Carson instead.

    Rounding out this season’s contestants is Tavis Smiley. The talk show host (most of us don’t know where he did that talking) will dance with Sharna Burgess.

    Will you be tuning in to watch this season of Dancing With the Stars? It premieres on September 15th on ABC. How many of this season’s ‘stars’ do you recognize?

  • Hoverboards Hoax: Funny Or Die Confesses it Was a Lie

    Every Back to the Future fan who dreamed of owning a hoverboard came closer to seeing this become a reality yesterday. Tony Hawk, Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd), and a mysterious company called HUVr released videos claiming that a hoverboard has finally been created. Hoverboards became famous from Back to the Future II. Since the film’s release, people have hoped that one day hoverboards would become a reality. And today…it still hasn’t.

    From careful analysis and investigations, The Verge team and others have already shut down any hope of the hoverboard video being real. According to Verge, you can see the strings used in the video with their screencap. This proves that these antigravity devices have not been invented yet. However, this makes many wonder what’s behind the elaborate lie: what’s really being promoted?

     

    Hawk will release a new mobile skateboarding game sometime this year, so of course that’s the obvious choice. On the other hand, isn’t this a little extreme? Why toy with hoverboard fans’ emotions for an app? Another popular theory is that this is a hoax designed either by Funny or Die or Jimmy Kimmel. The evidence has heavily been stacked in Funny or Die’s favor.

    According to CNET, “On the online portfolio site of Lauren Biedenharn — a costume designer and an artist based in Los Angeles where, as well as being the home of Hawk, Schoolboy Q, and Consentino, the video was shot — the most recent line of her resume reads, “Commercial: Back to the Future HUVR BOARDS.” Her employer and the producer of said commercial: comedy video Web site Funny Or Die.” Besides this proof, HUVr’s lead engineer is actor Nelson Cheng, who appeared in some Funny or Die videos. HUVr claims Cheng is just a spokesman for the company.

    With the upcoming release of self-tying laces, it’s not surprising many hoped hoverboards soon would follow, which makes this possible (very likely) hoax all the more diabolical and genius.

    HUVr’s official site shows a countdown teasing that something is coming in December 2014. When different media outlets attempted to contact the company, they stood by their claim of authenticity. As much as everyone would love to start riding hoverboards, there is too much proof against this reality. All Back to the Future fans can hope for now is another movie, or would that further crush dreams?

    Update: Funny or Die confessed that it was all a hoax. To make up for their lie, they’re giving away one hoverboard used in the video.

    Doc Brown is forgiven, but not you, Funny Or Die. Never you.

    Image via HUVr Tech, Facebook

  • Marty McFly’s Power-Lacing Shoes Soon To Be Reality

    If you have seen Back To The Future II, I am sure you are aware that by now, flying cars are not standard, hoverboards have not replaced skateboards, and we do not yet have a “Scenery Channel”; however, there is a technology evident in the Back To The Future II that will soon become reality, and that technology is having shoes with power laces, just like the shoes that Michael J. Fox’s character Marty McFly wore in the movie.

    In a recent article by The Inquisitr, Nike designer Tinker Hatfield states that Nike will “release the use of the fictional Back To The Future II laces that every fan of the trilogy has always dreamed of.” During this year’s NBA All-Star Weekend, Hatfield attended the Jordan Brand Flight Lab and (according to SoleCollector) was asked about the release of self-lacing shoes. Hatfield’s reply to this question was “Are we gonna see power laces in 2015? To that, I say YES!”

    According to FOX News, back in 2011, Nike released a shoe series called “Air Mag” for the Michael J. Fox Foundation For Parkinson’s Research. The “Air Mags” are an exact replica of the style of shoes worn by McFly in Back To The Future II, but without the power laces, and only 1,500 of the replica shoes were produced.

    Troy DaVinci from Sneakerology published a review of the “Air Mag” shoes on YouTube:

    Unfortunately, there has not been any official release from Nike about the release of self-lacing shoes; however, The Inquisitr states that the release of power-laced Air Mags could possibly be a future way to raise money for charity. Even though there has not been a release date for the Back To The Future II-inspired shoes, it is great to see this technology come to be a reality!

    Image via YouTube (0:04)

  • Michael J Fox Opens Up About His Life

    Michael J. Fox of Back to the Future and Family Ties fame spoke with The Guardian about his most recent project, The Michael J. Fox Show among other things. The 52-year-old spoke about his desire to “entertain people” as motivation for his return to mainstream television.

    “Denis [Leary] told me after I did Curb that I should get back to work, and I wanted to, to create a world and entertain people. There is also a satisfaction in knowing that maybe you’re doing something bigger, but that’s not for me to ponder,” Michael said.

    The following video is the official trailer for NBC’s The Michael J. Fox Show.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXl-krlLoxg

    Many believed Michael’s career was over after his diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease; however, he has continued working on such shows as Phineas and Ferb as well as Rescue Me. Michael explained the reason behind his perseverance as wanting to go against the grain.

    “If you pick me last, I will do everything I can to make you look like a fool,” Fox said.

    His innate desire to rise against adversity is not the only reason for the actor’s continued success. Michael credits his supportive wife of 25 years, Tracy Pollan, with being the main driving force.

    Michael spoke candidly about their relationship. “I wouldn’t be alive today if it weren’t for Tracy, I don’t doubt that. People picture Tracy as this paragon of stoicism, this long-suffering wife, and that’s all b******t. This is my situation and she deals with it, and I never feel like, ‘I’m sorry you have to put up with this’ – it’s nothing like that. When I told her about the Parkinson’s I said to her, ‘Are you in for this?’ and she said, ‘I’m in for it.’ And that was it. It was still a struggle but that was a really great moment. She is so funny and she puts up with my happy idiot persona,” he said before adding, “She is so HOT! Sometimes I look at her and I just can’t believe it!”

    The following picture of Michael and his wife is from the 40th Emmy Awards.

    Michael J. Fox has been an activist for stem cell research, and open about his hopes to find a cure for Parkinson’s disease. However, his interest has not been in vain.

    “Finding a cure? I don’t view that as something that will happen in my lifetime. That’s – that’s not my purpose, to find a cure for myself, and that’s not noble of me, that’s just the way it goes. But I know somebody will one day figure it out,” Michael J. Fox said.

    He has fought to ensure that the disease does not restrict his enjoyment of life as shown from the following interview.

    [Images Via Wikimedia Commons And Courtesy Of Paul Hudson and Alan Light]

  • Doctor Who/Doc Brown Rap Battle Is EPIC

    Doctor Who has been around seemingly forever, but the British show has found a recent surge in popularity among a new generation of fans. With fandom running rampant on the web, it was inevitable that the Doctor would be pitted against another famous Doc in a rap battle. Obviously.

    It’s happened, and it’s viral, and it’s epic. It seems to me that the Doctor won the battle, but I have to give credit to Doc Brown for working the line “Dalek my balls” into his rhyme. Enjoy.

  • Norman Alden, Character Actor, Dies at 87

    Do you remember “Lou the Mechanic” from the old AL Delco commercials? That was the work of Norman Alden, a great character actor from Fort Worth, Texas, who died this past Friday.

    Norman Alden was known for various television and movie roles, spanning from Coach Leroy Fedders in Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1976-1977) to playing various characters in Murder, She Wrote (1986-1988). Alden also performed various small roles, such as: Buddy Owens in Starsky & Hutch (1978), Chief Lacey in The Dukes of Hazzard (1979), Lou in Back to the Future (1985), and the voice of both Kranix and Arblus in Transformers (1986).

    Unfortunately, this past Friday (July 27th, 2012), Norman Alden died of natural causes in Los Angeles, California. Alden was 87 years of age.

    Various fans of Norman Alden have left the condolences via Twitter as shown below.




  • Eddie Van Halen Goes Back to the Future

    Eddie Van Halen Goes Back to the Future

    Apparently, there has been some debate in the past over a scene from the first Back to the Future movie. We all know Marty McFly was a big guitar geek in the flick, or at least we think he was judging from his playing with Marvin Berry and the Starlighters.

    In that prom scene with the band McFly hits on playing styles from the greats like Chuck Berry, Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, Angus Young, and possibly more. Despite the excellent guitar stylings he exhibits during this scene, the debate centers around a different scene, one where he visits a younger version of his father dressed as a spaceman.

    While his father slept, Marty hooked him up to his Sony Walkman and let him hear a few crazy sounding guitar licks, just to get his attention. The tape he loaded in the Walkman said, “Eddie Van Halen”. I guess there was some doubt about it truly being Eddie’s playing, but the man himself, Eddie Van Halen, recently verified that it was indeed his performance we heard.

    Below, you can find that great scene with Marty and his dad, and also a great video of him performing at his dad’s prom where the director of the film so tastefully decided to show off the tribute he made to his guitar mentors.

    For comparison sake, I thought it would be nice to include this video of Eddie back in 1985 making some of those crazy guitar noises that have made him famous. Enjoy:

  • Back To The Future: A Time Travel Outline [Infographic]

    Back To The Future: A Time Travel Outline [Infographic]

    As a fan of many time-travel-based movies, the well-known Back To The Future trilogy would have be my favorite. The movie does a great job at portraying society and technology in all of the times that Marty McFly and Doc Brown travel to, spanning from the “old west” (1985) to life with flying cars and hover boards. With all of the time travel that occurs during the three movies, have you ever wondered how all of the times visit overlap?

    For those who are wondering how time travel works, I will let Doc Brown illustrate his theory:

    Below, I have provided an elaborate infographic from rmmojado that displays how the trilogy’s characters (Einstein, Marty, Doc, Jennifer, and Biff) travel through time and how their traveling overlaps throughout their journeys in the DeLorean.

    (image)

  • Who Wants a Flying DeLorean?

    Would you like to own a flying DeLorean? Well you may just get your chance to fly back in time and reclaim your McFly roots!

    The following quadcopter has a DeLorean shell and is an homage to Doc Brown’s flying time machine from the “Back to the Future” trilogy. I felt like I was 10 again as I watched this model fly/hover over a snow covered field.

    You can judge for yourself but I thought it looked even cooler at night:

    This small replica beams with always-on headlights, taillights, and a blue LED strip at the rear of the vehicle that illuminates the flipped wheels and undercarriage.

    Commenters on YouTube claim that the designer made it for fun and have been asking if they can buy one from him.

  • Will Hover Boards Be Ready in 2015?

    Will Hover Boards Be Ready in 2015?

    YouTube user dondula7 designed a hover board that actually hovers and showed it off by making the following video:

    The board can support the weight of a few salt shakers at this point but further development of the board could make people’s dreams of swerving around town like Marty McFly come true. As you can see in the video, the hover board looks just like the one from Back to the Future. The designer explains in his YouTube description that he made this invention with a “prop hoverboard and an electromagnetic kit with laser stabilization technology. Its still a work in progress and a better display will be built to hide the electronics. The board can support up to 5 pounds in weight, so items can be placed on top of the board and still hover.”

    McFly used the hover board in the year 2015 so the heat is on to make “future” technology a reality within the next three years.

    I just hope the Nikes in 2015 designed for hovering will look more modern than the early 90s puffy high-tops version worn by McFly.

    When is someone going to get on developing those dehydrated microwaveable Pizza Hut pizzas dreamed up for the second film?

    Hat tip: Geek Tyrant

  • More Fun With The Back to the Future Nikes

    Nike’s Back to the Future trip has been a big success. The topic is burning up the blogosphere, sports blogs, especially and, of course, Twitter. Furthermore, there are reports are coming in of astronomical prices being paid for Nike’s futuristic high-top, and when I say astronomical, I’m talking spending in excess of $10,000 for one pair.

    As the previous article demonstrated, the shoes are going anywhere from almost $4000 up to five-digit amounts, but thanks to the spending power of British rapper named “Tinie Tempah” (Tiny Temper, I suppose). Tinie, according to the stalwart journalists at TMZ.com, is reported to have paid $37,500 for a pair of Marty McFly’s shoes.

    I say again, someone paid almost 40 grand for a pair of futuristic-looking shoes that don’t even have the power laces system as a feature. I don’t know about you, but if I had that much money to dispose of, it’s doubtful a pair of shoes I’d rarely, if ever, wear would be where my money goes.

    Whatever the case, I’m sure the Michael J. Fox Foundation, one that battles Parkinson’s Disease, is thankful for Tempah’s generosity. Speaking of Fox, he was on David Letterman the other night, demonstrating his shoes for the Dave and the audience:


    With all the discussion going on about the shoes, naturally, it became a trending Twitter topic, under the “Back to the Future” hashtag. Needless to say, there was a lot of “do want” types of responses, as well as people discussing the price Tempah paid for his pair:

    @zerohedge
    zerohedge    RT @SellPuts: Marty McFly Shoes — First Pair Sells for $37,500 http://t.co/CsXKqMS ** #loose 5 hours ago via TweetDeck · powered by @socialditto

    @ScienceChannel
    Science Channel     Um….this is awesome: http://ow.ly/6pVqp 5 hours ago via HootSuite · powered by @socialditto

    @The_T
    Turpster    I NEED THESE! http://t.co/Jz9q8St Back to the Future Marty’s Nike Self-Tying Mags! 9 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Unfortunately, however, the power laces are not available:

    @StrangeKidsClub
    Strange Kid    Nike Releases ‘Back to the Future’ Shoes! Wait… no power laces? Ah shucks. http://t.co/AX7Nkcq 8 hours ago via Tweet Button · powered by @socialditto

    But people do still want them:

    @leblogdebetty
    Betty Autier    Want them so baaaaadly : http://t.co/cdx0uyf #nikemag 9 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Well, Betty, they can be yours for a starting big of around $4000. If they had the power laces, I’d be bidding right now.

    All donations for the Air Mag shoes will be matched by Google’s Sergey Brin (up to $50 million). This vicariously means that Brin, thanks to the buying power of Tinie Tempah, will be paying almost $70,000 for a pair of shoes he won’t even get to own.

  • Nike Gets Viral For Back To The Future Shoes

    When it comes to viral marketing, Nike may very well be one of the best of the big boys. Whether it’s creative uses of Charlie Murphy, or having Kobe Bryant “jump over” a moving car, Nike’s marketing department is incredibly sharp, and their latest venture doesn’t disappoint, either. Remember those awesome self-lacing shoes from Back to the Future II?

    You know the ones I’m referring to, but if not, allow this to serve as a refresher:


    “Power laces! Alright!”

    It seems as if those self-lacing shoes are about to become a reality, and the word is being spread on a viral basis as Nike wants to stoke the fires of anticipation before they launch the 2011 Air Mags. Apparently, the shoes will be available tomorrow (Friday, September 9th), and as indicated, the buzz for Nike’s power-laced shoes is building.

    The viral aspect began in earnest when Frank Marshall, the executive producer on all three Back to the Future movies, started tweeting these ambiguous pieces of bait:

    @LeDoctor
    Frank Marshall    Something big is coming soon. Can’t say anything yet. No one should know too much about their own destiny. #BTTF 14 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    @LeDoctor
    Frank Marshall    Going to need a lot of hover boards. http://t.co/4ex43L8 #BTTF 13 hours ago via web · powered by @socialditto

    Of course, when you throw the idea of hoverboards out there, it’s hard not to get excited at the mere possibility, but since our scientific community has yet to master anti-gravity as a means of transportation — at least, on a consumer level — we know that’s still a pipe dream.

    Self-lacing shoes, on the other hand, are not.

    Nike’s already patented a self-lacing shoe construct, and now, it appears as if they are ready to unleash these beasts on the rest of the world. But first, the marketing aspect has to kick in, and thanks to the viral nature of the web, Nike’s “Power laces! Alright!” shoes are now buzzing.

    Nike has also released a promotional video for the Air Mags, and it’s vague enough to be considered a viral offering. To wit, the video is called “McFly’s Closet,” as if to provide a hint where Nike is leaning:


    Furthermore, the video upload is attributed to DocEmmettBrown88, which should also help clue people in about the inspiration for the shoes, which are awfully close to becoming a reality. There’s even an invitation-only event for the launch, and the invites feature something Back to the Future fans should instantly recognize: Doc Brown’s awesome sun shades.

    Doc Brown Shades

    Next time, when NBC is trying to figure out how to build positive buzz for a new product, something they failed at with the upcoming Whitney mess, perhaps they’ll take some lessons from Nike’s marketing department.

    Update:

    Nike has a press release concerning the shoes, and if any of you have any inclinations of acquiring a pair, get ready to flex some eBay skills. According to Nike:

    1500 pairs of the 2011 NIKE MAG will be auctioned on eBay with all net proceeds going directly to The Michael J. Fox Foundation. Each day for the duration of the ten-day auction, one hundred and fifty pairs of the 2011 NIKE MAG shoes will be made available via eBay’s Fashion Vault. The auction starts September 8, 8:30PM PST, and will end September 18. Thanks to a previous 50 million dollar match given to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, all donations will be matched, effectively doubling the contributions from the auction.

    While Nike says eBay’s Fashion Vault is where the charity auction will take place, there’s nothing on the page to indicate it the auction is now active. There is, however, a video of the shoes, which, I’m sad to report, will not have the power lace system.


    Still, power laces or not, the shoe is pretty awesome to look at, and it supports a good cause.