[Accidental Voice]

Oct 10, 2011 19:16


[There's a rustle of fabric as someone seems to shift, then Kitt's voice is heard.] Here we go. How do you feel about the classic horror genre, V?

[The dramatist sounds as if he is in good humour, answering readily.] I enjoy it. There's a certain charm to the pictures up to and including those involving Christopher Lee's Count.

Indeed. [There's certainly an agreeable tone to the AI's voice. The sound of a card being drawn is heard, then Kitt's voice again, this time as if reading or reciting.] “Who was the founder of Universal Studios?” [a beat, then a more natural tone] They categorized that as horror?

Carl Laemmle, if I recall correctly, and apparently so. Granted, horror films did contribute a great deal to the studio's early success...

[Kitt sounds amused.] True, in which case it makes sense.

[There’s some shuffling before V speaks.] Ah. “What was the first film adaptation of HG Wells' ‘The Island of Dr. Moreau?’”

[A very brief hesitation as Kitt goes through his databanks, then-] The movie was renamed to "The Island of Lost Souls," released in 1932.

I've seen several stills but never the production proper, I'm sad to say.

Nor have I. Perhaps the library in the Northern District has it.

We'll have to search someday.

Next time I'm that way. [Another card is drawn.] "Who did Lon Chaney's make-up in the 1925 Phantom of the Opera?"

[There's a single soft clap, and the answer is immediate, clearly confident.]  The man himself.

That he did. Mr. Chaney chose to do his own make-up.

And what make-up it was. [V chuckles, shuffling the cards again.] "Of these three iconic leads---Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, and Lon Chaney Junior, who did not play the part of Frankenstein's monster in a Universal picture?"

[Another pause from the AI as he searches his databanks.] That would be . . . Lon Chaney Junior.

Correct, as expected.

Of course. [Kitt is nothing if not sure of his data.] "Todd Browning, director of the 1931 Dracula, also directed a film which was banned in the UK for three decades. What was the title of this film?"

[The dramatist sounds thoughtful.] “Nature’s Mistakes” …or “Freaks,” rather. Same film; different showings.

[Kitt pauses just long enough to possibly make V question, but then answers.] That is correct. “Freaks,” released in 1932.

You could have said so sooner. [The 'complaint' is delivered in a teasing tone, and V does not waste any time this turn.] "Who played the Gill-Man while it was underwater in the original Creature from the Black Lagoon?"

Ri- . . . Ricou . . . Browning. [The AI doesn't sound so much uncertain of his answer as his pronunciation - and if anyone speaks French, he did kind of butcher that. There's a faint frown in his tone as he clarifies.] R-I-C-O-U Browning.

Correct. [V sounds pleased, and is certainly smiling.] I'm glad you were willing to accept my invitation; I doubt I'd have a game this good with anyone else.

Thank you, V. The pleasure has been mine as well. There aren't many who would be willing to play a trivia game with . . . a "rolling encyclopedia", as Michael used to say.

You're a challenging opponent; I appreciate that.

As are you. [A card is drawn.] Speaking of challenging . . . "In which year did Orson Wells and The Mercury Theater present the first radio-drama adaptation of Dracula?"

[There's only a brief beat before V answers.] 1934.

[And there's silence.]

[An ominous silence.]

[Kitt finally speaks up, and the faint note of triumph is nonetheless audible.] Incorrect. 1938.

[With disbelief, dismay, and what may be mock-anguish:] Four years further?!

Yes, I'm afraid so, V. [Oh, that's a note of amusement and victory in his voice, however subtle it may be.]

[There is a sigh: obvious over-acting.]

† kitt, v

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