MANDARIN TRANSLATIONS

Friday, February 16, 2007 7:31:22 AM

Well, so far my quest for a translator ain't pannin' out. I found a direct translation in a few cases isn't possible. A Madarin-fluent person who I talked to briefly told me he could basically say whatever he wanted in those cases. I would have to produce the planet names in pinyin (the romanized Chinese) and then pick characters from Simplified Chinese that sound similar hoping that they're combinations weren't already used. Like translating Londinum didn't mean "Little Doggie Having Intercourse" or "You Mother Sleets with Hamsters" or something equally stupid - which actually happens a lot - Coke-a-Cola was translated "Bite the Wax Tadpole" or something like that.

http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/tadpole.asp

On a different note - I just watched the lamest movie "Evil Eyes" which had not one, but two actors from Firefly. Adam Baldwin as the lead characters, and his frined was played by Mark Sheppard (aka Badger). I knew the movie would suck the minute I saw Udo Kier in the credits. For a wonderful Udo movie watch Dracula 3000!

Anyway, Adam Baldwin was a script writer who has to write a psychological thriller, and finds every nasty thing he writes - like the gruesome details of a murder or accident, are coming true, and he goes nuts. Anyway it was a dumb movie and I hated seeing Firefly characters reduced to working in such crap.