AS SEEN ON TV: EDMOND HALLEY

Here's a "holy grail" - I've searched for pictures from this episode for a long time. And now at last I have the televersion of Edmond Halley - thanks to Mark & Michael (who probably don't know I stole their full collection of the series!)

EDMOND HALLEY

AS SEEN IN:
'Tales From The Darkside'

AS PLAYED BY:
Fritz Weaver

From Wikipedia:

Edmond Halley FRS (8 November 1656 – 14 January 1742) was an English astronomer, geophysicist, mathematician, meteorologist, and physicist who is best known for computing the orbit of the eponymous Halley's comet.

In November 1703 Halley was appointed Savilian Professor of Geometry at the University of Oxford, his theological enemies, John Tillotson and Bishop Stillingfleet having died, and received an honorary degree of doctor of laws in 1710. In 1705, applying historical astronomy methods, he published Synopsis Astronomia Cometicae, which stated his belief that the comet sightings of 1456, 1531, 1607, and 1682 related to the same comet, which he predicted would return in 1758.

Halley did not live to witness the comet's return, but when it did, the comet became generally known as Halley's Comet.

"Comet Watch" starts as amateur stargazer Englebert Ames (Anthony Heald) is excited by the once in a lifetime opportunity to witness Halley's Comet which only passes the Earth every seventy-five point eight years. However while gazing at it through his old telescope something strange happens, he sees a woman heading towards him & she ends up coming out of the end of his telescope & into his room!

The woman says her name is Lara Burns (Sarah Rush) & that she found a time window in 1910 the last time Halley's Comet passed Earth which allowed her to ride it with its discoverer Edmund Halley (Fritz Weaver) who also drops into Englebert's room through his telescope to reclaim Lara but she doesn't want to go back with him...

(review by Paul Andrews for the IMDb)

According to the episode, the televersion of Halley must have faked his own death and then hid away until the comet returned. He may have spent all that time perfecting the way he could catch a lift via a time window and then travel the universe by riding the comet.And despite all that King Charles II had done for him, Halley harbored bitter restentment toward the regent for never granting him a knighthood for his work.

BCnU!