Top 15 Time Travel Movies of All Time

While sitting in church on Sunday listening to a talk, the speaker made mention of his favorite Time Travel movies. So, what are the best Time Travel movies of all time? Here is my top 15 list, starting with No. 15:

15. Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Who can forget the time traveling phone booths and George Carlin as Rufus? And then there was Bill and Ted's new buddy, So-crates. Party on, dudes!

Rod Taylor as H.G. Wells

14. The Time Machine (1960)
A true classic tracing Wells' adventures through time. Won the Academy award for best special effects.

13. Escape from Planet of the Apes
One of the better sequels from the original Ape movies, talking astronaut apes travel back in time to wreck havoc in the 1970's. A pretty good laugh and never boring!

12. Groundhog Day
Bill Murray's character Phil Connors is forced to relive February 2nd repeatedly. How would you like to wake up to Sonny and Cher's I've Got You Babe every morning at 6 a.m.? A huge snub that Punxsutawney Phil was overlooked as best supporting actor!

11. Back to the Future II
The darkest chapter of the Back to the Future trilogy where the evil butt-head, Biff Tannen, has altered history for personal gain. But, Marty and Doc Brown save the day.

10. Time Cop
"Time travel is a reality and a crime." So it was in Time Cop. How could I omit the Belgian Brawler, Jean-Claude Van Damme from this list? Van Damme's Agent Walker saves his wife and the world from an evil U.S. Senator. The plot has a bunch of inconsistencies, but, hey, that's what makes it so goooood!

9. The Final Countdown
A little know flick from 1980 starring Kirk Douglass and Martin Sheen about a modern US Naval aircraft carrier mysteriously transported back in time to the eve of Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Should they splash the Zero's and destroy the Japanese fleet and change history forever, or let the bombing happen? Rent the DVD and see for yourself. It will not disappoint!

8. The Terminator
Arnold at his best as the Terminator seeking to erase John Connor from existence by killing his mother before he is born. "I'll be baaaaack." A classic!

7. Back to the Future III
Marty as Clint Eastwood, The Doc as the Blacksmith and Biff as Mad Dog Tannen, all set in the Old West! What could be better. ZZ Top even makes an appearance. Doc Brown falls in love and Marty finally goes home where all is well. A great wrap up to the Back to the Future series!

6. Somewhere in Time
Come on, admit it, you love this movie. Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, Superman and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Women, what could be better than that! I know you shed a few tears when Richard was zapped back to the present by a bad penny leaving Elise heartbroken. Pull out the Kleenexes and watch it again.

HG and The Ripper

5. Time After Time
Another classic  romantic adventure through time. HG Wells travels from 1899 London chasing the sadistic Jack the Ripper in modern day San Francisco. Love prevails and Jack is sent to perdition.

Spock and Kirk at it again.

4. Star Trek IV: The Wrath of Khan
The best of the Star Trek movies that involved time travel. Our heroes go back in time to the 1980's to retrieve a humpback whale to take back to the future to save the world. They accomplish the task in a stolen Klingon Bird of Prey. "Double dumb-ass to you." Thanks again Captain Kirk for the memories!

3. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
Arnold is back, no problemo, as a good guy, protecting the young John Conner. Linda Hamilton is impressive as the chiseled Sarah Conner. "Hasta la vista, baby."

2. Back to the Future
One of the most beloved films ever. Eric Stoltz was originally cast as Marty, but was replaced by Michael J. Fox after 5 weeks of shooting. It's funny how things work out. The flux capacitor, 1.2 gigawatts, the DeLorean, 88 mph, these facts and figures will live on forever. The show stealer George McFly, "Lorianne, you are my density."  Whatta great ride!!!

1. Planet of the Apes (1968)
I still remember seeing this film in the theater with my dad and granddad. A perfect meshing of time travel and SciFi. Astronaut George Taylor leaves earth in 1972, crash landing on a distant planet in the year 3878. Much to his shock and surprise he encounters a crazy upside down world where talking apes are at the top of the food chain and humans are mutes, slaves and science experiments. It was a "madhouse! Only in the final scene of the movie does Taylor and the audience realize that he has crash landed back on earth, in the future! "I'm home. You finally did it it, damn it, you blew it all to hell." yells Taylor in anguish  as the Statue of Liberty looks on, half buried on the beach. Live on Dr. Zira and Cornelius, the narrow minded Dr. Zaius, and Taylor's squeeze, Nova. I can still hear Charlton Heston's first words in Ape City, "Take your stinking paws off of me you damn, dirty ape!

Well, that's it. Let me know which of your favorite time travel movies I left off the list, and it better not be hot Tub Time Machine!!

Feeling Red

Robert Redford

LA Clipper owner Donald Sterling has been in the news recently, having made a series of idiotic racially insensitive remarks, leading him to being banned for life from the NBA and potentially losing his franchise.  Today, Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban is now in somewhat hot water over some race related comments he made. So, I hesitate to bring attention to any particular group, but…….I read something recently in National Geographic that has prompted a few comments.

For what it’s worth:

Many years ago during my training as a Resident Podiatrist at VA Wadsworth in LA, I received some practice management advice from one of my mentors, Dr. Al Dana. He advised us to NEVER perform surgery on redheaded women. We got a kick out this comment and gave it a good laugh, but Dr. Dana was not amused! He was as serious as a heart attack.  (Which actually killed him a few years later) As the years have gone by, it has been my observation that redheaded patients (not just women) present with different challenges. Dr. Dana’s advice has proven to be very wise. However, it has been my obligation to happily provide appropriate care to ALL patients I see, regardless of hair color. But, unbeknownst to Dr. Dana, there is scientific basis to his opinion. Check this out:

Most redheads experience pain differently than the rest of us. Their hair color is caused by a mutation in the skin’s melanocortin-1 receptor gene, which may “inadvertently activate” similar receptors in the brain that process anxiety and pain, says Anthony G. Doufas of the Outcomes Research Consortium of clinical anesthesiologists. Anecdotal evidence long held that redheads were harder to anesthetize. The consortium tested this theory and found that redheads required 19% more gas for general anesthesia. They’re also more sensitive to thermal pain and more resistant to local anesthesia. No wonder the Journal of the American Dental Association reports redheads are “more than twice as likely” to avoid the dental chair....National Geographic June 2014.

No matter who you are, there is something special about you.That is what makes the world interesting.

Some famous redheads:

Winston Churchill

U.S. Grant

David Caruso

Thomas Jefferson

Judy Garland

Lindsay Lohan

Andrew Jackson

George Washington

Vincent Van Gogh

William Tecumseh Sherman

Bill Walton

Mark McGwire

Brigham Young

Susan Sarandon

Bonnie Raitt

Christopher Columbus

Willie Nelson

Other famous redheads:

Calvin Coolidge                           
Dwight Eisenhower                             
Esau                                            
Genghis Khan                               
Mark Twain                                      
Muhammad
Rameses II                                   
Richard the Lionheart                        
William Clark (The Explorer)    

Note: Lucille Ball was NOT a natural redhead

Final note: One of my most favorite people in the world, Guy Masters, is a redhead.

Guy Masters

"Daddy, where's my wedding dress?

Ari and Derek Velez Mt Timpanogos Temple 4/25/14

Marrying off your first daughter is like becoming a parent all over again. Kar and I were married for 10 years before we had children. During this time, we became expert 'armchair parents.' We used to sit back and watch all the mistakes that family and friends made trying to raise their kids. We marveled at their repeated stupidity. How could they do that? What were they thinking? Occasionally, we would be very impressed with their parenting skills and took note of those things. After 10 years, we knew it all! We slept like babies at night knowing that when we had kids, it would be a breeze. After all, we had become experts, or had we? We have gone through a similar experience and mindset when it came to throwing a wedding. We were ready. It would be no big deal, or would it? Well, it is no shock to find out that when we adopted our two girls within 2 weeks of each other 27 years ago, we suddenly had no clue what we were doing as parents. When the pressure was on, we choked. We quickly had become outmatched and outgunned. We made our share of mistakes, but eventually figured it out, I think. Much like parenting, staging a wedding for our daughter Arianne turned out to not be such a simple thing as I thought. My eyes were opened. Nevertheless, after a whirlwind of effort, planning and execution we finally pulled it off. Or had we? We did it all during a somewhat short engagement period. We were incredibly efficient! But, at 10:30 PM on Thursday night April 24th (the night before the wedding), Ari called me. We had just had a wonderful rehearsal dinner at Heaps Brick Oven and were winding down in prep for the big day ahead. I answered and she said, "Daddy, where's my wedding dress? In shock, I handed the phone to the mother of the Bride, who covered her face with her hands and exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! I forgot to pick it up from the dry cleaners today."  A mini-meltdown ensued. But, after Googling the cleaners, we found out they would be open the next day at 7:00 AM. Whew! Disaster averted.
The wedding day was a dream. Our little girl had grown up and found the man of her dreams and married him for all time in the Mt Timpanogos Temple! What a beautiful thing to be together with family and friends on such a blessed occasion. So many memories of Ari and Ally played in vivid color in my mind. What a wonderful journey it has been, culminating in the awesome day for Ari and Derek. Their life together is just beginning. What amazing adventures lie ahead for them. We can't wait to see how it all turns out and look forward to being a big part of it.
CONGRATULATIONS MR. AND MRS. VELEZ!!!!!
Please enjoy a few photos taking you down Memory Lane:

Sleeping girl with curls

Ari and Alex

Ari and Ally Indian and Cowgirl

Ari and Dad

Ari and Mom on Dumbo

Ari and Grandad Forsling

Honing her driving skills

Bike riding with Timpy

The Maid

The Look

Bears in Yellowstone

On the beach in Kaua'i

We finally have a son!!

Walking The Bride down the Aisle at the post sealing Ring Ceremony At the Springville Museum of Art

Beautiful Mom and Beautiful Bride

Kar with Forsling Sibs

Mom and daughters

Proud parents of the bride

Day's and Forsling's Friends Forever

Grandma and Grandpa Linnemeyer

Harry and Mike, Blood Brothers

High School buddies and wives

Temple Tulips

Parting Shot:

Fiesta Days Carnival   Spanish Fork, UT July 24,  1989

Fiesta Days Carnival July 24, 2013

Wow, so many sweet memories!