Wednesday, September 28, 2011

zero hour airplane!

Part of me wants to believe that everyone in a certain age range has seen comedy classic Airplane!. Despite coming out before I was born, it no doubt aired on many lazy Saturdays and Sundays on the old KBHK channel 44 in the Bay Area. Or perhaps my first viewing came from the illustrious VHS selection available at the local library. Either way, Airplane! is comedy gold and totally appropriate for in-flight viewing (and certainly much better than Thor, which was 2 wasted hours of time on my last flight). What is less well known about Airplane! is that much of it, including entire scenes copied nearly word for word, is lifted from the much lesser known film Zero Hour, which is a serious dramatic film with the same storyline. Airplane! has a storyline? Yes it does even if all you remember is the protagonist's drinking problem, his co-pilot turning to jelly, a jive-talking nun, and to not call anyone Shirley. It's plot centers around a plane full of passengers and crew members who get sick after eating the fish and the subsequent need to land said plane without the pilots.

What I find fascinating is why anyone would think fish served as the main course on a flight would be even slightly palatable. In fact, I am not sure of the last time I even saw fish offered as a main course on a flight. Air France often had some bits of salmon in a salad dish, but they offered the usual options of chicken something and other meat something as the main courses (plus special options). Lufthansa goes with the same thing, though it's usually chicken or pasta. United doesn't serve complimentary meals on domestic flights anymore. And Southwest seems to have abandoned peanuts in favor of pretzels due to food allergies. I say 'screw it' and always sprinkle peanut dust around every flight I take. But fish as a main course? No, not a good idea. Perhaps the food scientists have not figured out how to create a fish-based meal that only results in flatulence which is odorless.

4 comments:

Sciencebunny said...

actually, highly fatty fish are very well-suited for reheating. the high fat content keeps the fish moist and flavorful. these are also fats high in HDL, so it's heart healthy as well.

unfortunately, most fatty fish is more expensive. therefore, most airlines will typically serve leaner fish like tilapia or a cheaper snapper. i had some lean fish on my last flight on singapore airlines. it wasn't very good.

Mike said...

I seem to remember the option for fish on one of my trips to Asia. Since I have seen Airplane as well, I did not get it.

Anonymous said...

Yes I do remember Airplane! and the scene of a line/queue suddenly created to calm a "distressed" passenger is simply glorious.

skip the fish have double the wine...

Anon

Brian said...

Anon - Yes, that would be this scene:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0GW0Vnr9Yc