Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit
- Publication: Loyola Phoenix
- Date: 1982-10-15
- Author: Paul Zomchek
- Page: 1
- Language: English
Dr. Who? No, don't run over to the Cudahy Library and whip out the D or W drawer of the card catalogue to find out what this phenomenon is all about. Loyola has its own chapter of "U.N.I.T. Irregulars," whoites, with an unusually keen knowledge of Dr. Who, the English produced television series.
Loyola's Dr. Who fan club is the "Independent Dr. Who Association of Fans," (IDAF) according to Perry Perez, president and virtual Dr. Who expert.
The television series was first run in Chicago on channel 11 in 1975. It was thought to be a children 's series, according to Perez. "It was shown in half-hour segments between shows like Sesame Street and the Electric Company." However, that quickly changed after "word of mouth got around that college students liked it. Time slots were changed and the shows were grouped into two hour features," said Perez.
"Adults just started watching because they saw that it was some kind of different program."
Perez defines the series as a show dealing with good versus evil.
"The doctor is good," according to Perez. He comes from the planet Gallifrey, where the beings, Time Lords, are more intelligent than Einstein. It is not unusual for an inhabitant of Gallifrey to live well over 1,000 years.
The mission of the beings on this planet, is that of recording the history of the universe, but it must be done with non-intervention.
Dr. Who wishes to intervene, but only to do good — this is where conflict comes into play.
The evil master and his followers on Gallifrey chase Dr. Who in an effort to stop him from intervening. They travel across the universe in a tardis.
Tardis is an acronym from time and relation dimensions in space. It can take the driver from the beginning of time to the end of the universe. It can take on any shape or form.
However, Dr. Who's tardis has a broken camelian circuit, so it remains in its original state, a victorian police call box.
But, if tardis can change shape, so can the doctor. He's currently on his fifth form. When Dr. Who dies, he is able to regenerate.
He was originally portrayed by William Hartnell in 1963, then Patrick Troughton in 1966, Jon Pertwee in 1970, Tom Baker in 1976, and now by Peter Davison.
One of the main objectives of the Loyola chapter of IDAF is to get people to recognize that there are different characterizations of Dr. Who other than Tom Baker, the characterization seen on channel 11.
Larry Charet, owner of Larry's Comic Book Store, and organizer of the Dr. Who convention in Chicago this past July, said, "England will offer the U.S. Dr. Who programs starring Peter Davison, in January of 1983."
According to Perez, "The different characterizations of Dr. Who is what interests people in him. Pertwee is flamboyant — he wears velvet suits and bow-ties: he is dashing. Other people like the way Baker stares.
Whatever the attraction is to this program, it's inevitably growing. According to Charet, over 6,000 people attended the Dr. Who convention. He carries an assortment of 50 different Dr. Who books, Dr. Who albums and fan magazines from England.
The IFDA chapter at Loyola, header by Perez, is another indication of the popularity of Dr. Who in Chicago. Perez stressed that his club will be very different from The North American Doctor Who Appreciation Society (NADWA). "They just sit around and talk about Dr. Who and reminisce, we will actually view the show. "
The first U.N.I.T. Irregulars extravaganza will take place on Saturday, Oct. 16. Three features will be shown there . These features have never been shown in this country, according to Perez. They will include: "Spearhead From Space" the first episode, with Jon Pertwee, "Castrvolva," with Peter Davison, and "An Unearthly Child" with the first Dr. Who, William Hortnell.
Fans from Loyola, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Northeastern University, St. Ignatius high school, and Lyons Township high school will "gather their forces together with the die-hard fans to watch the episodes," said Perez.
Students interested in attending the first meeting tomorrow must pay a $10 yearly membership fee. It will be held at 6 p.m. at 7301 W. 109th St., in south suburban Worth, Ill. Following meetings will be held the second Saturday of every month.
More information can be obtained through Perez at the Alpha Kappa Psi table in the Xavier Grill at WTC.
Spelling corrections: NADWAS, chameleon
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- APA 6th ed.: Zomchek, Paul (1982-10-15). Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit. Loyola Phoenix p. 1.
- MLA 7th ed.: Zomchek, Paul. "Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit." Loyola Phoenix [add city] 1982-10-15, 1. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Zomchek, Paul. "Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit." Loyola Phoenix, edition, sec., 1982-10-15
- Turabian: Zomchek, Paul. "Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit." Loyola Phoenix, 1982-10-15, section, 1 edition.
- Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr._Who_invades_LU;_U.N.I.T_Irregulars_hit | work=Loyola Phoenix | pages=1 | date=1982-10-15 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=28 May 2025 }}</ref>
- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Dr. Who invades LU; U.N.I.T Irregulars hit | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Dr._Who_invades_LU;_U.N.I.T_Irregulars_hit | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=28 May 2025}}</ref>
