Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

[retrogameguy]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I think the joke lies in "six times nine" (pulled from the scrabble bag) being the question, and "42" being the answer, which doesn't make sense.

That's why God leaves this message in letters of fire in the mountains of that planet: "We apologise for the inconvenience".

The universe doesn't make sense because it cannot make sense, there is an underlying error, somewhere.

[philipdalton]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I suppose some might argue that the answer to life, the universe and everything is actually nothing. As far as they're concerned that what it's all worth.

[catflap]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I am 42 years old and do not have the answer yet...

[philipdalton]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

There's someone here who's come up with a theory of how the number 42 was come up with, dunno if they're right.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PmNizreNV4

[Richard1978]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Stephen Fry was a friend of Douglas Adams, they were the first 2 people in the UK to have Apple Macs.

[Animal2000]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

A great series and I loved it. Surprisingly the film remake of it wasn't too bad either. A great choice of Narrator in the form of Stephen Fry too.

There was rumours that the Band Level 42 got thier name from it aswell but it apparently turned out that there was a huge multi storey car park somewhere in America of which it's highest level was 42...

Ok, I'll go back to sleep now

[Hair Bear]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Well, I just tried the phrase 'life the universe and everything' using the A1 cypher and came up with 330!
Anyone else got any bright ideas?

[philipdalton]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I think Douglas Adams came up with a very original idea about Earth really being a computer which had been mistaken for a planet. It had been created by Deep Thought, the other computer, in order to find an answer to the ultimate question.
Speculation on how we all got here is a common theme of sci-fi; in the 'Doctor Who' adventure 'City of Death' life on Earth had got started by the radiation from an exploding Jagaroth spaceship.

[philipdalton]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Because the ultimate question was 'What do you get if you multiply six by seven?' perhaps?

I think it probably would have been that the computer would think life, the universe and everything were represented by three different numbers and 42 was either all three of them added together or the average.

[Hair Bear]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Because the ultimate question was 'What do you get if you multiply six by seven?' perhaps?

[philipdalton]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I wonder what gave Douglas Adams the idea that a computer would give the answer '42' when asked what was the answer to life, the universe and everything?

[darren]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

funny enough i loved python but never really saw this.
it seeme to pass me by.
but im sure id have liked it.

[Hair Bear]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

To me the TV version is definitive. Just a shame they didn't do the full 5 series trilogy, I might have had a better grasp of 'Bistromathics'. Then they could have done Starship Titanic as a spin off.

[Austin Maxi]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I was asked recently to design a cover for a book about the number 42, because of it's connection with Douglas Adams. I hadn't seen 'Hitchhikers.....' when it was originally shown, but a friend lent me a couple of videos of it (to give me an idea of potential book cover illustrations I could try). I found it quite entertaining, and I planned to buy the series myself, although I never did.

[Richard1978]

Re: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The TV version also had most of the radio cast. It's a shame they didn't make more than 1 series. Supposedly the BBC kept Arthur's dressing gown for years in case another series was made.