Captain's Chairman

A 66 year old man from Orange just paid $200,000 to be the 33rd passenger on Richard Branson's new civilian space flights that are planned to begin in 2009 sometime, the Register's Sciencedude blog is reporting.

Bob Walters, who failed as a younger man to pass the eye test required for pilots, is a big fan of Star Trek. So big, in fact, that this isn't the first time he's shelled out the big bucks for a space-themed purchase. he bought Captain Picrad's command chair at an auction for 51 grand.

But here's the quote from Walters in the article that reads oddly:

“It was great fun to quietly sit in the chair. I even bought the 3 movies in which it was featured so I could better grasp its actual use in those shows.”

So wait -- 51 grand for the chair, no problemo. But then he "even" bought the three movies, like, afterward? Methinks this fan may have things a little bit backward. You're supposed to obsess over the movies first, THEN shell out lotsa money for related products. Trust me, I know.