It's telling that the word 'robot' - coined by Josef Capek and first appearing in print in his brother Karel's play Rossum's Universal Robots in 1920 - is derived from the Czech word for 'labour'. Stories of artificial people and automata have appeared in stories for centuries, and it's often the case that these inhuman constructs are given tasks that their human masters wouldn't want to do themselves. From the factory-produced workers of Capek's RUR mentioned above to the eerily blank David in Prometheus, the notion of the robotic servant is a familiar one in science fiction.
It's a theme touched on in this year's Robot & Frank, a moving sci-fi drama about an old man's growing friendship with his artificial carer. Although the titular retired thief Frank (played by Frank Langella) is initially suspicious of the thing, its prowess as a robber's assistant convinces the old man to attempt one last jewellery heist. With this film in mind, here's a look at a few of cinema's other butlers and servants - some of them far more helpful to their masters than others...
The archetypal movie robot, Robby was the most expensive aspect of MGM's lavish Forbidden Planet; the creation of Arnold Gillespie, Mentor Huebner and Robert Kinoshita, the lovably cumbersome mecha cost a then-pricey $125,000 to build. The effort was worth it - not only was Robby the focus of the film's beautifully-designed poster (nominal leading man Leslie Nielsen being conspicuous by his absence), but he also enjoyed a considerable film career after Forbidden Planet. Appearances in TV shows and his own film followed, and Joe Dante even managed to find a cameo for him in 1984's Gremlins.
As Walter Pidgeon's Dr Morbius so carefully explains, Robby is not only a great cook, but can even use his complicated internal systems to synthesise food from scratch. Raw materials are shoved into a slot in his belly, where they're analysed and replicated by a tiny internal laboratory. This particular function is later exploited by a boozy ship's cook, who has Robby rustle up 60 gallons of synthesised bourbon. Clearly, this doesn't conflict with Robby's compliance to the Three Laws or Robotics...
For our money, the cutest robots in American cinema, these diminutive machines are one of Silent Running's highlights - alongside Bruce Dern, who stars as a mildly unhinged space hippy determined to save the last remnants of Earth's plantlife at any cost. With Dern's character drifting alone through space with his domed greenhouses, Huey, Dewey and Louie become his friends, as they play cards and tend their enclosed gardens together.
Although they're ungainly and don't even have the power of speech, the robots are utterly beguiling - and the moment where one of them is suddenly destroyed is enough to make even the most stoic grown adult weep.
Spurred on by Inventables' "Desktop Factory Competition," which seeks to "drive down the cost of filament by creating a new filament extruder" the octogenarian designed a machine that turn plastics pellets into printer ready filament.
After his initial entry into the competition was disqualified because it exceeded the $250 price limit, Lyman recreated his machine. "It's my first machine with a few little parts changed," Lyman said, "I resubmitted it, and it worked. It worked great."
As a reward, Lyman received $40,000, a laser cutter, 3D printer and CNC machine. What are his plans for his cash prize? According to Lyman, "I'm going to give half of it to the wife, and tinker with the other half."
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