›

Doc as Carl Sagan. How did Marty Know?

SchottGunSchottGun
edited June 2011 in Back to the Future
Forgive me if this has already been addressed, as with some quick searches I wasn't able to find it in the forums.

I'm not sure if I missed something in the game, or even in the movies. But I never recalled Doc being referred to as "Carl Sagan" before Marty read the paper in Episode 1.

So when Marty read the paper, and he read "Carl Sagan" being killed, he knew it was Doc. How did he know that was Doc? Was there dialog that I missed? I don't recall Doc mentioning it in the tape, and in 1885 he went by his actual name.

Wikipedia notes that Carl Sagan was an astronomer that was born in 1934. Would Marty know well enough that Carl Sagan was a scientist of some sort that didn't exist in 1931, and that knowing Doc he would have took on the name of a scientist?

Or, is this just one of those things where it's a game about time travel and we are just to accept it :rolleyes:

Any help would be appreciated!

Also, I haven't played Ep 5 just yet so if it's addressed there just let me know without the details. Thanks everyone!

Comments

  • DarkstarDarkstar
    edited June 2011
    I'm pretty sure there was a picture of Doc in the paper.
  • SchottGunSchottGun
    edited June 2011
    Darkstar wrote: »
    I'm pretty sure there was a picture of Doc in the paper.

    Yeah I know there was a picture. But Marty "knew" it was Doc before he saw the picture. As he was reading, he goes "Carl Sagan!?" as in he recognized the name, and quickly turned the paper around. He just sort of acted like he knew who it was before he even turned the paper around.

    Maybe I'm just crazy I dunno. You can tell what I'm talking about by the IGN video that was posted that is a recap of the game.


    http://www.ign.com/videos/2011/06/22/back-to-the-future-the-game-recap
  • PlaneforgerPlaneforger
    edited June 2011
    Carl Sagan was pretty much a household name in the 70s-80s (well, I assume so - my mother used to go on about him all the time :p), so it's no surprise that Marty would have instantly found the name odd.
  • DarkstarDarkstar
    edited June 2011
    Well Carl Sagan was a pretty famous guy. I could see it drawing Marty's attention. That's the only thing I can think of anyway.
  • NameOfUserNameOfUser
    edited June 2011
    In Ep. 4 they refer to him as the "millions and millions" guy. He was famous in the 70s and 80s, so seeing that name in a 30s newspaper would be immediately suspicious. Besides that, most of Marty's fake identities are based around celebrities/characters from the 80s.
  • zelda42293zelda42293
    edited June 2011
    Since Carl Sagan wasn't born until 1934, Marty knew he wasn't born yet, and it would be like Doc to use a name of a famous person (Similar to how Marty used Clint Eastwood in 1885)
  • RAnthonyMahanRAnthonyMahan
    edited June 2011
    Carl Sagan was a recognizable name in the 80s, but not the 30s. Seeing that name in the newspaper would've obviously made Marty suspicious.

    Besides, it seems to be a rule of thumb that when time-travelling you use a reference nobody will get as an alias. "Clint Eastwood" should know that better than anyone. ;)
  • GazirraGazirra
    edited June 2011
    Yeah, Marty went by Calvin Klein and Clint Eastwood in the movies, and you get a choice between Michael Corleone, Sonny Crockett, and Harry Callahan in the game, all of which are well-known pop culture references in the 80's, but are merely names in the 30's.
    In fact, Marty's aliases are based on TV shows and movies, whereas Doc's alias is a famous scientist. Kind of shows their personalities :D
  • thehardmenpaththehardmenpath
    edited June 2011
    Perhaps there are other threads more appropiate to say it, but BTTF2 was one of Carl Sagan's favorite movies.
  • Rather DashingRather Dashing
    edited June 2011
    Carl Sagan was an amazing man that made science romantic, beautiful, and amazing for an entire generation. That people do not know who he is is simply a crime.
  • IgnatiusIgnatius
    edited June 2011
    People going to wikipedia to figure who Carl Sagan was makes Jesus cry.
  • R.I.P-BillR.I.P-Bill
    edited June 2011
    And we know Marty is at least aware of Carl Sagan as a recognizable figure because there was something in Doc's lab in episode 1 that played Sagan's thoughts on time travel and the Grandfather Paradox and Marty looked over at George.
  • Shadowknight1Shadowknight1
    edited June 2011
    Rather Dashing wrote: »
    Carl Sagan was an amazing man that made science romantic, beautiful, and amazing for an entire generation. That people do not know who he is is simply a crime.

    Agreed.
Sign in to comment in this discussion.