LIVE FROM JACKSONVILLE! with Amadeus
99.9 Gator Country morning show host Amadeus shares stories that did not make it on the air, and he takes a deeper dive into those that did make the cut. Fans of Your Hometown Morning Show will enjoy a more behind the scenes look at what goes into the making of a country radio morning show. Listen daily for this PG-13 version of the top stories making pop culture headlines, artist interviews, and much , much more.
LIVE FROM JACKSONVILLE! with Amadeus
William Shatner: From Star Trek to Quantum Philosophy
Ever wondered what happens when a technical glitch sparks a philosophical revelation from one of science fiction's most iconic figures? That's exactly what unfolds in our conversation with William Shatner, where a simple audio feedback loop launches us into an exploration of existence itself.
The legendary actor joins us to discuss his upcoming appearance at the Thrasher-Horne Center, where he'll present a screening of the newly restored "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" followed by live storytelling and audience Q&A. But our conversation quickly transcends typical promotional fare. Shatner, at 94, demonstrates the same boundless curiosity that has defined his career as he contemplates whether we might all be living in some cosmic feedback loop of experience.
From there, we journey through the quantum wilderness with Captain Kirk himself as our guide. Shatner elegantly articulates how particles exist only when observed, references Einstein's "spooky" quantum mechanics, and connects these scientific puzzles to his work on "The Unexplained." His description of narration techniques reveals his dedication to authenticity, while his musings on mirages and perception challenge our understanding of reality. Throughout it all, Shatner's philosophical mind shines as brightly as his performing talents.
The episode also features a comprehensive rundown of Jacksonville's hottest August events, from Rob Thomas at Daily's Place to the Jacksonville Rock Orchestra's Journey tribute at the Florida Theatre. But it's Shatner's blend of showmanship and intellectual curiosity that makes this episode special. Despite the demanding schedule of his tour, he shares that connecting with audiences "overrides the fatigue" – a testament to his enduring passion for human connection.
Don't miss this rare opportunity to see William Shatner live at the Thrasher-Horne Center on August 3rd. Whether you're a Trekkie, a philosophy buff, or simply appreciate brilliant conversation, this is one event that promises to transport you beyond the final frontier of conventional thinking.
Welcome to a very special episode of Live from Jacksonville. Special because the one and only William Shatner is our guest today and I'm so excited to bring just a portion of the conversation we have with him to you. That's coming up in just a few minutes. Right now let's run down what's happening in the next few weeks here in Jacksonville. Daily's Place has Rob Thomas on Saturday, august 2nd. He was a guest on our last episode. In case you missed it and want to go back and check it out, he was a great guest. Then live with Collective Soul will be at Daily's on Friday, august 8th Dailysplacecom for those shows, and more Over at Vice Star Veterans Memorial Arena, riley Green with Ella Langley. They'll be there on Friday August 8th, the same night that Live and Collective Soul are at Daily, so it's going to be packed downtown. Maxwell will be at the arena on Sunday, august 19th and Nate Bargatze on Friday, august 15th. You can check out arenajackseventscom for tickets to those shows.
Speaker 1:Coming to the Florida Theater on Friday August 8th it's the Jacksonville Rock Orchestra performing Faithfully the music of Journey, the Voice Season 21 winners. Girl Named Tom will be at the Florida Theater on Sunday, august 10th. Postmodern Jukebox on Wednesday, august 13th. The Taylor Swift Laser Party featuring DJ Swifty will be at Florida Theater on Friday August 15th. The Taylor Swift Laser Party featuring DJ Swifty will be at Florida Theater on Friday August 15th and the annual Blues Brews, bourbon and Barbecue is happening on Thursday August 21st. Actually, I'll have a lot more details about that event on the next episode. Get to floridatheatercom for information.
Speaker 1:The St Augustine Amphitheater has Brad Paisley on Saturday August 2nd, cypress Hill and Atmosphere on Friday August 8th. They'll be at the Amph in St Augustine. The Red Clay Strays are playing at the Amph on Wednesday August 20th and UB40 with the Fix on Saturday August 23rd. That should be a really fun show. Get theampcom for tickets and details on all those shows. The newly renovated Ponte Vedra concert hall has former Florida Georgia line member Brian Kelly on Friday August 8th. Check out pvconcerthallcom to look at all their upcoming shows.
Speaker 1:So if you're new to town or to this podcast, we have several smaller venues in Jacksonville who are bringing in some great older and newer artists. Keep an eye on DecaLivecom, fivejackscom and for Jackrabbits in San Marco it's JacksLivecom. As I said, some of the artists are a little older, some are up and coming. Just great local venues for some great live music. Okay, I've been talking about William Shatner live on stage for months and it's finally here this Sunday, august 3rd, at the Thrasher Horn Center, they're screening Star Trek II, the Wrath of Khan, at 6 o'clock in the afternoon. Immediately following the movie, william Shatner will take the stage to tell some behind-the-scenes stories about the making of Wrath of Khan, as well as a Q&A with the audience. Somehow I was lucky enough to be picked to moderate this event, and me and my morning show brother, steve Sutton, over at 99.9 Gator Country, had a chance to chat with Mr Shatner last week. We started out talking about the Wrath of Khan chat with Mr Shatner last week.
Speaker 2:We started out talking about the Wrath of Khan, so that film has been refurbished better color, better sound and they'll play it on the big screen, of course, and then when the movie's over, I'll come out on stage and hopefully entertain you, tell you stories about the making and other stories and ask questions. We have a great time when I'm on stage, so it's a great evening's entertainment. Now just let me tell you what just happened prior to speaking to you. Ordinary people who are not acquainted with broadcasting won't understand what I'm saying. A feedback loop is when the microphone hears what the speaker is saying and the speaker hears what the microphone is saying and it continues. If I say hello on a feedback loop, it continues to say hello, hello, hello, hello. The machine is talking to itself, and that just happened prior to me coming on the air with you. I thought what an interesting philosophical thing. Are we living in a feedback loop? We've done this before and I have haven't. I Am living in a feedback loop. We've done this before and I have haven't.
Speaker 1:I Am I living a feedback loop? It's an interesting thought.
Speaker 2:This should be explored on the next episode of Unexplained yes, which is on the show I'm doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely. I love the Unexplained. I love the old episodes, I love the new ones.
Speaker 2:It's just like give me more the Unexplained. I love the old episodes, I love the new ones. It's just like give me more the Unexplained is really a fun show. I come in to the studio and do the narration and then, either before or after, I will have done what I do in front of the camera. But there's a great deal of narration there as well, and over the time I've done the show I've evolved a technique.
Speaker 2:A cold read is something where you read something you haven't seen before and you guys on broadcasting do it all the time. Somebody hands you a sheet of paper, read this now. And you read it cold. You don't know what the next word is going to be. But you've evolved a technique of kind of looking ahead and then looking back. It's quite involved, but a cold read means that you're seeing it for the first time, and so that's what I try to do with all the narration. I'm handed the script, we roll the recording device and I start to talk and I don't know exactly what I'm going to say or what it says. Now I'll do that once and then I'll do it twice, because now I know a little bit about what to anticipate and cover some pronunciation mistakes.
Speaker 2:But that cold read is as exciting to me as is the show, which is all about inexplicable things that are a part of our world. We don't know what it is. There's a thing oh dear Golly, it just ran out of my mind. Oh God, it means you're seeing a mirage. What is a mirage in the desert? Why does it look like there's trees and water several miles away? What's happening is that you're seeing an actual oasis, but it's been projected through the heat waves and the cold waves, through refraction, many miles away, and it's an illusion based on a real thing that is being, in effect, broadcast by these cold and hot waves. So you're seeing an oasis that doesn't exist, until you get closer and then you realize oh, that's a mirage.
Speaker 2:We are seeing all kinds of mirages in the UFOs, ships that dive under the water. It's a mirage. There's a word for it. I can't think of it, doggone it. Somewhere in the middle of this interview it'll occur to me. So I'm thinking about ah, it's just on the tip of my mind. Anyway, that's maybe what our life is. Maybe we're living a mirage.
Speaker 2:And we got a feedback loop. It all comes back to the feedback loop. Well, electronics is weird. Electronics deals with electrons and electricity and motion of these small things, and we don't understand it. We don't understand the science of quantum and we know what its effect is. We know that if you don't look at a particle, it ceases to exist Once you examine it. It exists. When you stop examining particle, it ceases to exist. Once you examine it, it exists. When you stop examining it, it ceases to exist. It's beyond science fiction. This study of the small particles of nature is a science fiction escapade. It makes no sense whatsoever. What we think of as the real world, because that is the real world, what we think of as the real world, because that is the real world the real world is made up of quantum, and yet quantum follows rules that don't follow the real world. As Einstein put it, it's a spooky thing out there.
Speaker 1:It is a spooky thing, Bill, with the few minutes we have left. Have you done these kind of shows before that were going to be seen at the Thrasherhorn Center on August 3rd?
Speaker 2:I've done them on occasion. For example, I'm doing a six-city tour, one after the other, driving from one venue to the other. So when that curtain comes down in your city, I get in the car with two other guys and we drive two, three and in some cases 400 miles to the next venue and try and sleep during the day, get up and do the show and do the same thing six times.
Speaker 1:What's your favorite part of doing these events?
Speaker 2:Coming out and talking to the audience is great fun. The interview I'm doing with you is part of a publicity campaign, of telling your audience in that city hey, I'm coming to town and you will never have more fun than coming to the theater and being with me watching the film and watching me come out on stage afterwards and having fun. You'll never have more fun. So I'm doing that because that's fun for me too, except for the fatigue factor of getting to the next venue. And I do it because the fun overrides the fatigue of getting there.
Speaker 1:Well, bill, just to let you know you're talking to two massive, massive fans. We are honored to even be in your presence right now. We thank you for your time and we cannot wait to see you on August 3rd at the Thrasher Horn Center.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much for saying that. I look forward to seeing you and your audience.
Speaker 1:There are still tickets available for this unique once-in-a-lifetime event, THCenterorg. I'd love to see as many familiar faces in the audience as possible. It's Sunday, August 3rd at the Thrasher Horn Center, thcenterorg for tickets. Hey, thanks for listening. We'll drop another episode in a couple of weeks and let you know what's happening live from Jacksonville.