Screens of the Stone Age

Today we’re reviewing Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women (1968), the story of a cool Russian sci-fi movie about an exploratory mission to Venus which an American studio dubbed and re-cut to include telepathic “prehistoric” women, for some reason. In truth there’s very little prehistory in this one, so we get to talk about space travel for forty minutes! (Astronomers and engineers, please send your complaints and corrections to screensofthestoneage@gmail.com)

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In this episode:

Watch Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women (1968) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6mHuM8SWs4

Watch Planeta Bur (Planet of Storms) (1962) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VTF23EFvEM

Watch Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet (1965) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1dtqIPlERU

Asimov’s Three Rules of Robotics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Laws_of_Robotics

Mant! – Matinee (1993): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-brLyrdTyA

Venus: https://science.nasa.gov/venus/

Missions to Venus: https://science.nasa.gov/venus/exploration/

Venus Life Finder: https://www.planetary.org/space-missions/rocket-lab-venus-mission

Self-driving cars and the Trolley Problem: https://www.technologyreview.com/2018/10/24/139313/a-global-ethics-study-aims-to-help-ai-solve-the-self-driving-trolley-problem/

The Passengers by John Marrs: https://www.johnmarrsauthor.com/the-passengers

Are Autonomous Vehicles safer than Human Drivers? https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2026/the-safety-data-on-autonomous-vehicles

Bicycle Couriers in Canada can claim food as a fuel expense: https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/sole-proprietorships-partnerships/report-business-income-expenses/completing-form-t2125/line-8523-meals-entertainment-allowable-part-only.html#extra

Today we’re reviewing the feminist classic The Wild Women of Wongo (1958), which tells the story of two prehistoric tribes: one where all the women are beautiful and all the men are brutes, and the other vice versa. But don’t worry – social norms are upheld in the end and everyone is married off to an equally attractive partner.

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In this episode:

Watch The Wild Women of Wongo (1958) on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnVMGixO3-c

Pathécolor: https://filmcolors.org/timeline-entry/1218/

Burmese pythons in Florida: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burmese_pythons_in_Florida\

William Marsden, creator or Wonder Woman: https://www.npr.org/2014/10/27/359078315/the-man-behind-wonder-woman-was-inspired-by-both-suffragists-and-centerfolds

Our episode on Eegah! (1962): https://screensofthestoneage.com/podcast/episode-53-eegah-1962/

Coral Castle: https://coralcastle.com/

H.H. Holmes’ Murder Castle: https://guides.loc.gov/chronicling-america-h-h-holmes

The Tubes - Wild Women of Wongo (Live): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHk6wqqXMlg

Billy Idol - Sweet Sixteen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClxXDfvtoj0

Ancient Aliens: How Were These Mysterious Structures Built?! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN1yCWWN-Eo

Magnetic Currents by Edward Leedskalnin: https://www.leedskalnin.com/Leedskalnins-Writings-MAGNETIC-CURRENT.html

First Man (2017) is a “documentary” with an interesting relationship to scientific facts and a disturbing view of human nature. It follows human evolution through four reconstructed ancestors: an early beta cuck ape from Spain; a Tate stan basal hominin from Chad; an ancestral alpha mogger from South Africa; and a brainmaxxing sigma arsonist from China. Join us as we break down the silly walks, unnecessarily blurred monkey genitals, and (content warning!) graphic sexual assault.

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In this episode:

Pierolapithecus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierolapithecus

Sahelanthropus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahelanthropus

Gigantopithecus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigantopithecus

Sivapithecus/Ramapithecus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sivapithecus

Paranthropus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranthropus

Graecopithecus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graecopithecus

Peking Man (Homo erectus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking_Man

Harbin/Dragon Man: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin_cranium

Our episode on Skullduggery (1970): https://screensofthestoneage.com/podcast/episode-34-skullduggery-1970/

Our episode on Sasquatch Sunset (2024): https://screensofthestoneage.com/podcast/episode-106-sasquatch-sunset-2024/

Grieving chimpanzee carries dead baby for months: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj4Wk-hujPY

Zhoukoudian: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhoukoudian_Peking_Man_Site

The myth of the alpha wolf: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-the-alpha-wolf-idea-a-myth/

Parsimony: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximum_parsimony

Boma predator deterrent: https://news.mongabay.com/2017/09/keeping-lions-at-bay-to-keep-them-going/

Gao et al. (2017) Evidence of hominin use and maintenance of fire at Zhoukoudian: https://doi.org/10.1086/692501

Laughter in animals: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laughter_in_animals

Pusceddu et al. (2025) Animal medical systems from Apis to apes: history, recent advances and future perspectives: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70060

Ventro-ventro position (doggy is not the only style): https://synapsida.blogspot.com/2015/12/doggy-is-not-only-style.html

Man vs. horse races (horses have won): https://ultrarunninghistory.com/man-vs-horse/

Persistence hunting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persistence_hunting

Aiello and Wheeler (1995) The Expensive-tissue hypothesis: The brain and the digestive system in human and primate evolution: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2744104

Wrangham (2009) Catching Fire: How Cooking Made us Human: https://heb.fas.harvard.edu/publication/catching-fire-how-cooking-made-us-human

They keep making them, so we keep reviewing them! In the Blink of an Eye (2026) tells the tragic tale of an adorably precocious child’s radicalization and eventual transformation into a billionaire tech bro who destroys the earth. It’s a triptych of past, present, and future, taking us from an endearing mixed race Neanderthal family, to Rashida Jones’ groundbreaking PhD research, to a genetically engineered sci-fi Kate McKinnon’s quest to find the next planet to destroy. It’s alright, I guess.

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In this episode:

Longevity-obsessed tech billionaires: https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/11/health/kara-swisher-longevity-wellness

Kepler 16b: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kepler-16b

The ichnology of White Sands (New Mexico): Linear traces and human footprints, evidence of transport technology? https://doi.org/10.1016/j.qsa.2025.100274

RNA World: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RNA_world

Hairdos in prehistory: https://richlyadorned.wordpress.com/2017/01/31/hairdos-in-prehistoric-europe/

How to order authors in scientific papers: https://wordvice.com/blog/journal-article-author-order/

How to format genus/species names: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d_5jDJvYwY

Berger and Trinkaus (1995) Patterns of Trauma among the Neandertals: https://doi.org/10.1016/0305-4403(95)90013-6

The Divje Babe Flute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHXV07YCGKY

Lawnmower RC Airplane: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SuZLxMIsN6k

Neanderthals and ancient DNA: https://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/genetics/ancient-dna-and-neanderthals

Ehh, what’s up, doc? But in this case the “doc” is a PhD. Get it? Because we’re... Never mind, we’re back with more classic cartoons! As we move into the second half of the Twentieth Century the characters become more recognizable: Porky Pig, Mighty Mouse, Pink Panther, Woody Woodpecker – we ruin the fun of all these characters by trying to assess what species they are! (Oh wait, I should have said “what’s up, post-doc?”. I’ll keep workshopping it) (Part 2 of 2).

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Cartoons featured in this episode:

Springtime in the Rock Age (1940): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ivk88NXvc_k

Way Back When Women had their Weigh (1940): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUcPMfEGfeI

Prehistoric Porky (1940): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK6quxW5pc0

Mighty Mouse – Prehistoric Perils (1952): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAdUiP_giPY

Peabody's Improbable History S3E17 "The First Caveman" (1961): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1r5SZElTzQ

Pink Panther – Prehistoric Pink (1968): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io5oqdC_1co

Pink Panther – Extinct Pink (1969): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y3lt2oWh_0

Prehistoric Super Salesman (1969): https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x8imjrh

Other Links:

Meganeura: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meganeura

Snail tape measure: https://yarn-fun.com/products/snail-tape-measure

Black Panthers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_panther

King Cheetah: https://www.reddit.com/r/Awwducational/comments/ga8css/king_cheetahs_are_variety_of_cheetahs_with_a_rare/

What’s Opera, Doc? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9doSQ1cHAw

Bjorn Kurten’s Pleistocene Mammals of Europe: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315126470

Which big cats like catnip? https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/8td7ut/does_catnip_affect_wild_felines_the_same_way_it/

Do big cats like catnip? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEdpDl1hSz4

Oldest bows and arrows: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bow_and_arrow#History

Strawberry leopard: https://nypost.com/2019/08/20/rare-strawberry-leopard-photographed-in-south-africa/

Woody is an Ivory Billed Woodpecker: https://ivory-billedwoodpecker1.blogspot.com/2012/03/woody-woodpecker.html