Starlog (magazine)
Starlog was a monthly print magazine devoted to science fiction film and television and was conceived in 1976 by Norman Jacobs and Kerry O'Quinn. David Houston, who came up with the concept with O'Quinn, became an editor for the magazine as well as a contributor with numerous articles and interviews. Originally published under the imprint "O'Quin Studios, Inc.", it was later accommodated in "Starlog Press" as the founders started to bring more and other genre publications into the mix, starting in 1979 with the horror/fantasy orientated magazine Fangoria. According to the web-master of The Starlog Project, their original intent was to put out a one-shot magazine covering Star Trek: The Original Series. On the urging of their distributor the magazine was enhanced with articles about other genre productions to make it more appealing to a broader general public. Still, its first issue, dated August 1976, did feature The Original Series on its cover and over the years the magazine remained Star Trek heavy with frequently published Star Trek-related articles, features and interviews. Given the founder's original intention and the fact that it was launched shortly before its conception, coverage of Star Trek: The Motion Picture was particularly heavy.
The formula caught on with the readership, and within two years the magazine was upgraded from a quarterly magazine to a monthly magazine. Apart from being one of the earliest specific genre publications, Starlog has also been one of the longest running, outliving its main contemporary competitor, Cinefantastique, by three years. Issue 268 of August 2008 – six issues before the magazine's print run was terminated – became the last one to feature a Star Trek-related article.
In order to dampen the heavy Star Trek nature of the magazine (not altogether too successfully one might argue), particularly so in the years 1986-1993 during the production of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home through Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, it was decided to split off the majority of their Star Trek coverage from 1987 onward, when the spin-off television series went into production, into a number of officially endorsed "Official Star Trek Magazine" series publications, The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine, The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine, and The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine, each running for several years, with a couple of (prior) film one-shot specials to boot.
Aside from the "official" magazines and the below mentioned Future Life, Starlog magazine served as the source publication that spawned a slew of other spin-off serial publications, most of which also containing additional Star Trek material, including, The Best of Starlog, The Starlog Reporter, Starlog Poster Magazine, Starlog Spectacular, Starlog Yearbook, Starlog Scrapbook, CineMagic (which specialized in focusing on VFX production staffers and techniques, intended to be a "light" version of American Cinematographer), Science Fiction Video Magazine, SFX Magazine, Starlog Photo Guidebook, and Starlog photo guidebook Special Effects, each of which with varying degrees of success and longevity.
As with the other publications of Starlog Press, Starlog, where its behind-the-scenes features were concerned, was notable for the reproduction of production material (quite often made available by the production staff themselves), seldomly seen afterwards. Nevertheless, as far as Star Trek was concerned, neither Starlog, nor its "official" spin-offs, quite achieved the wealth and the depth of the later 1990s volumes of competitor Cinefantastique, a bit ironically perhaps, considering the original intent of the founders.
Yet, what Starlog did do that set them apart to this very day in an unique manner, was giving attention to the more obscure and peripheral contributors to the franchise, such as guest actors, guest directors, guest writers, people like novelization authors, as well as to lesser known production staffers and companies, who were rarely, if even at all, referenced to in other publications as far as their Star Trek contributions were concerned. Starlog Press staff writers Edward Gross and Pat Jankiewicz specialized in tracking down and interviewing these by the Star Trek franchise overlooked contributors.
In April 2009, Starlog decided to "temporarily" discontinue publication of the magazine in a print format with its most recent issue (#374), choosing to go exclusively into digital format at "Starlog.com". The "temporarily" nature became permanent when that site shut down, surviving contents being accommodated on the website of its sister publication Fangoria.
Future Life[]
Very early on, from 1978 onward, real-world space exploration related articles were included in Starlog as background articles for illustrative purposes. This gave O'Quinn and Jacobs the idea to launch a true and similar sister magazine Future Life that broached the subject from the opposite site of the spectrum; real world space exploration articles, lightened up with articles stemming from the realm of science fiction film, television and literature. The magazine, featuring interviews with real world scientists such as Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clark, launched in April 1978 as a (bi-)monthly publication. The publication did not enjoy as near a success as its sister publication had, and publication ceased after 31 issues in December 1981 – addended by a latter-day release in October 2006 as an one-time-only special section insert in Starlog 349 on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Star Trek. Four issues of the regular run, issues 9 (March 1979), 14 (November 1979), 16 (February 1980) and 17 (March 1980), contained Star Trek: The Motion Picture-related material. Despite its short life, the web-master of the above mentioned The Starlog Project has, nevertheless, cited accessibility, humaneness, being less dry, and realism as the strong points of the publication, thereby preferring it over the similar, but far longer-lived, contemporary OMNI magazine. [1]
Notable issues[]
As stated, Starlog has been very heavy on Star Trek throughout its entire run. However in some cases, content was restricted to short editorials, reviews, announcements and columns by staff writers. Listed below are only those issues that contained larger and more in-depth articles and interviews.
Issues 1-50[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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1, August 1976 | ![]() |
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2, November 1976 | ![]() |
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3, January 1977 | ![]() |
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4, March 1977 | ![]() |
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5, May 1977 | ![]() |
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6, June 1977 | ![]() |
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7, August 1977 | ![]() |
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9, October 1977 | ![]() |
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12, March 1978 | ![]() |
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17, October 1978 | ![]() |
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As Future Life 9, March 1979 |
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24, July 1979 | ![]() |
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25, August 1979 | ![]() |
note: with Star Trek poster
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27, October 1979 | ![]() |
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As Future Life 14, November 1979 |
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30, January 1980 | ![]() |
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31, February 1980 | ![]() |
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As Future Life 16, February 1980 |
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32, March 1980 | ![]() |
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As Future Life 17, March 1980 |
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note: cover, and interior art by Rick Sternbach
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33, April 1980 | ![]() |
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36, July 1980 | ![]() |
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37, August 1980 | ![]() |
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38, September 1980 | ![]() |
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39, October 1980 | ![]() |
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40, November 1980 | ![]() |
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42, January 1981 | ![]() |
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47, June 1981 | ![]() |
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49, August 1981 | ![]() |
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Issues 51-100[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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51, October 1981 | ![]() |
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52, November 1981 | ![]() |
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53, December 1981 | ![]() |
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54, January 1982 | ![]() |
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56, March 1982 | ![]() |
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59, June 1982 | ![]() |
note: with Star Trek poster
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60, July 1982 | ![]() |
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61, August 1982 | ![]() |
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62, September 1982 | ![]() |
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63, October 1982 | ![]() |
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64, November 1982 | ![]() |
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66, January 1983 | ![]() |
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67, February 1983 | ![]() |
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68, March 1983 | ![]() |
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71, June 1983 | ![]() |
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72, July 1983 | ![]() |
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80, March 1984 | ![]() |
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81, April 1984 | ![]() |
note: with Star Trek poster
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82, May 1984 | ![]() |
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83, June 1984 | ![]() |
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84, July 1984 | ![]() |
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85, August 1984 | ![]() |
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86, September 1984 | ![]() |
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87, October 1984 | ![]() |
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88, November 1984 | ![]() |
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91, February 1985 | ![]() |
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94, May 1985 | ![]() |
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95, June 1985 | ![]() |
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100, November 1985 | ![]() |
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Issues 101-150[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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101, December 1985 | ![]() |
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102, January 1986 | ![]() |
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103, February 1986 | ![]() |
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104, March 1986 | ![]() |
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105, April 1986 | ![]() |
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106, May 1986 | ![]() |
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107, June 1986 | ![]() |
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108, July 1986 | ![]() |
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109, August 1986 | ![]() |
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110, September 1986 | ![]() |
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111, October 1986 | ![]() |
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112, November 1986 | ![]() |
"Star Trek 20th anniversary celebration" Special Edition
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113, December 1986 | ![]() |
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114, January 1987 | ![]() |
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115, February 1987 | ![]() |
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116, March 1987 | ![]() |
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117, April 1987 | ![]() |
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118, May 1987 | ![]() |
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119, June 1987 | ![]() |
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121, August 1987 | ![]() |
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124, November 1987 | ![]() |
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125, December 1987 | ![]() |
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126, January 1988 | ![]() |
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127, February 1988 | ![]() |
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128, March 1988 | ![]() |
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129, April 1988 | ![]() |
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130, May 1988 | ![]() |
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131, June 1988 | ![]() |
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132, July 1988 | ![]() |
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133, August 1988 | ![]() |
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134, September 1988 | ![]() |
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135, October 1988 | ![]() |
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136, November 1988 | ![]() |
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137, December 1988 | ![]() |
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138, January 1989 | ![]() |
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139, February 1989 | ![]() |
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140, March 1989 | ![]() |
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141, April 1989 | ![]() |
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143, June 1989 | ![]() |
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144, July 1989 | ![]() |
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145, August 1989 | ![]() |
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146, September 1989 | ![]() |
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147, October 1989 | ![]() |
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149, December 1989 | ![]() |
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Issues 151-200[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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151, February 1990 | ![]() |
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152, March 1990 | ![]() |
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153, April 1990 | ![]() |
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154, May 1990 | ![]() |
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155, June 1990 | ![]() |
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156, July 1990 | ![]() |
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157, August 1990 | ![]() |
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159, October 1990 | ![]() |
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160, November 1990 | ![]() |
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161, December 1990 | ![]() |
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162, January 1991 | ![]() |
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163, February 1991 | ![]() |
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164, March 1991 | ![]() |
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165, April 1991 | ![]() |
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168, July 1991 | ![]() |
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169, August 1991 | ![]() |
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170, September 1991 | ![]() |
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171, October 1991 | ![]() |
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172, November 1991 | ![]() |
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173, December 1991 | ![]() |
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174, January 1992 | ![]() |
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175, February 1992 | ![]() |
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176, March 1992 | ![]() |
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177, April 1992 | ![]() |
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178, May 1992 | ![]() |
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179, June 1992 | ![]() |
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180, July 1992 | ![]() |
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183, October 1992 | ![]() |
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184, November 1992 | ![]() |
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186, January 1993 | ![]() |
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187, February 1993 | ![]() |
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188, March 1993 | ![]() |
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189, April 1993 | ![]() |
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190, May 1993 | ![]() |
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191, June 1993 | ![]() |
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192, July 1993 | ![]() |
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193, August 1993 | ![]() |
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194, September 1993 | ![]() |
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195, October 1993 | ![]() |
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196, November 1993 | ![]() |
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197, December 1993 | ![]() |
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198, January 1994 | ![]() |
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199, February 1994 | ![]() |
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Issues 201-250[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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201, April 1994 | ![]() |
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203, June 1994 | ![]() |
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204, July 1994 | ![]() |
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205, August 1994 | ![]() |
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206, September 1994 | ![]() |
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207, October 1994 | ![]() |
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209, December 1994 | ![]() |
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210, January 1995 | ![]() |
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211, February 1995 | ![]() |
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212, March 1995 | ![]() |
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213, April 1995 | ![]() |
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214, May 1995 | ![]() |
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216, July 1995 | ![]() |
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218, September 1995 | ![]() |
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219, October 1995 | ![]() |
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220, November 1995 | ![]() |
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221, December 1995 | ![]() |
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222, January 1996 | ![]() |
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223, February 1996 | ![]() |
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225, April 1996 | ![]() |
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226, May 1996 | ![]() |
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227, June 1996 | ![]() |
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228, July 1996 | ![]() |
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229, August 1996 | ![]() |
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231, October 1996 | ![]() |
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232, November 1996 | ![]() |
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233, December 1996 | ![]() |
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234, January 1997 | ![]() |
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235, February 1997 | ![]() |
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236, March 1997 | ![]() |
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237, April 1997 | ![]() |
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238, May 1997 | ![]() |
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240, July 1997 | ![]() |
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241, August 1997 | ![]() |
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243, October 1997 | ![]() |
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245, December 1997 | ![]() |
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247, February 1998 | ![]() |
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248, March 1998 | ![]() |
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249, April 1998 | ![]() |
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250, May 1998 | ![]() |
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Issues 251-300[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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252, July 1998 | ![]() |
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254, September 1998 | ![]() |
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255, October 1998 | ![]() |
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257, December 1998 | ![]() |
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258, January 1999 | ![]() |
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259, February 1999 | ![]() |
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260, March 1999 | ![]() |
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261, April 1999 | ![]() |
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263, June 1999 | ![]() |
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264, July 1999 | ![]() |
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265, August 1999 | ![]() |
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266, September 1999 | ![]() |
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267, October 1999 | ![]() |
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268, November 1999 | ![]() |
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269, December 1999 | ![]() |
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270, January 2000 | ![]() |
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273, April 2000 | ![]() |
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274, May 2000 | ![]() |
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277, August 2000 | ![]() |
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280, November 2000 | ![]() |
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281, December 2000 | ![]() |
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282, January 2001 | ![]() |
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283, February 2001 | ![]() |
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284, March 2001 | ![]() |
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285, April 2001 | ![]() |
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286, May 2001 | ![]() |
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287, June 2001 | ![]() |
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288, July 2001 | ![]() |
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291, October 2001 | ![]() |
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292, November 2001 | ![]() |
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293, December 2001 | ![]() |
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294, January 2002 | ![]() |
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295, February 2002 | ![]() |
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296, March 2002 | ![]() |
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299, June 2002 | ![]() |
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Issues 301-350[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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303, October 2002 | ![]() |
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304, November 2002 | ![]() |
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305, December 2002 | ![]() |
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306, January 2003 | ![]() |
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307, February 2003 | ![]() |
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308, March 2003 | ![]() |
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311, June 2003 | ![]() |
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315, October 2003 | ![]() |
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316, November 2003 | ![]() |
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317, December 2003 | ![]() |
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318, January 2004 | ![]() |
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319, February 2004 | ![]() |
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320, March 2004 | ![]() |
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321, April 2004 | ![]() |
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322, May 2004 | ![]() |
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324, July 2004 | ![]() |
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325, August 2004 | ![]() |
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327, October 2004 | ![]() |
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328, November 2004 | ![]() |
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330, January 2005 | ![]() |
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332, March 2005 | ![]() |
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334, May 2005 | ![]() |
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335, June 2005 | ![]() |
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336, July 2005 | ![]() |
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349, October 2006 | ![]() magazine cover ![]() insert cover |
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350, November 2006 | ![]() |
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Issues 351-374[]
Issue | Cover | Contents |
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353, March 2007 | ![]() |
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354, April 2007 | ![]() |
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355, May 2007 | ![]() |
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356, June 2007 | ![]() |
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357, July 2007 | ![]() |
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359, October 2007 | ![]() |
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361, December 2007 | ![]() |
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362, January 2008 | ![]() |
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363, March 2008 | ![]() |
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366, June 2008 | ![]() |
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368, August 2008 | ![]() |
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External links[]
- Fangoria.com – current homepage
- Starlog.com(X) – archived original Starlog homepage
- Starlog at Wikipedia
- Starlog wiki at Fandom.com
- The Starlog Project – Website with content descriptions.
- FUTURE LIFE: THE ENTIRE RUN – Subpage with content descriptions of the sister publication Future Life
- Starlog magazine – former online Starlog archive at Archive.com (defunct)
- Starlog magazine in Germany(X) at MadMags.de(X)