Hans Morevek contacted me in October 1999, to inform me that I had spelt his name wrong:) He subsequently very kindly agreed to write a few lines on his very-fleeting involvement with Kubrick's AI project.RM
Some time in mid 1993 I received a phone message from Anthony (Tony) Frewin, Kubrick's assistant at Boreham Wood, saying that Kubrick had greatly appreciated my book "Mind Children" and was interested to read in a magazine that I was writing another, then titled "Mind Age: Transcendence through Robots". Three or four chapters were done at the time, and I called back to say I'd be happy to provide the draft to date, not least out of appreciation for 2001. He indicated that Kubrick didn't yet want to reveal what project my books fed.On September 16, 1993 I received a fax from Frewin saying Kubrick had been travelling and wanted to thank me for the typescript, and eagerly looked forward to reading it.
On November 28, 1993 I happened across a newspaper article: "Kubrick to direct a big-budget 'AI'" - ... project is shrouded in secrecy ... post-greenhouse world where many daily tasks are performed by robots ... Kubrick put aside "Aryan Papers" to work on it ... necessary computer effects weren't available [before] ...
Over the next year I sent subsequent chapters as they were done. A covering letter with the final chapter 6 on May 17, 1994 thanks Frewin for a phone message confirming receipt of chapter 5.
I remember a call around then from Frewin in which he thanked me and indicated that Kubrick had wanted to speak directly, but had to put it off until later because he was "so very, very busy."
Then there was no further contact. The news started to be about "Eyes Wide Shut," but I figured he'd get back eventually ...
The publication of the new book was delayed in 1995 by publisher hijinks, and I took the opportunity to update, expand and slightly reorganize it to seven chapters in 1996. It was finally published in January 1999 (actually late 1998) under the title "Robot: mere machine to transcendent mind".
Oh, I forgot one tenuous interaction: On September 11, 1995 I was at NASA HQ in Washington at an event instigated by director Dan Goldin to give a talk along with Roger Penrose (sort of playing the patsy: Goldin had really liked Penrose's anti-AI book, and I was there for balance). At the dinner following Penrose mentioned that he had been looking to possibly buy a house in Cambridge owned by Brian Aldiss, and that when Aldiss heard that Penrose would be meeting the author of "Mind Children" he was very excited, and sent greetings! Asked by others at the table who Brian Aldiss was, I said he was a well-known British science fiction writer, whose stories had been a formative influence in my development. Penrose said Aldiss would be pleased to hear that. The Kubrick connection was mentioned subliminally.
HM