Despite reports and rumors to the contrary, when it comes to pop singer Lance Bass' mission to the International Space Station, all systems are go.
So says David Kreiff of Destiny Productions, the Los Angeles-based television production company working to fund Bass' trip and to create the spin-off television program of the event, Celebrity Mission: Lance Bass.
"Lance has been in Russia three months; he's training intensely, he's kicking butt," Kreiff said. "We have sold the show to 40 countries. We've sold it with financial sponsors attached."
Kreiff remained tight-lipped about the particulars of the mission due to a confidentiality agreement. However, he did say a big announcement would be made next week regarding the future of the project.
"This is the first real business model for media in outer space," Kreiff told SPACE.com. "On the overall plan, we're looking good. We have corporate sponsors who will get huge exposure through our promotion."
Kreiff described the Celebrity Mission show as seven, one-hour episodes revolving around Bass' training and trials leading up to the launch. Then there would be a two-hour launch special. Upon Bass' return, Kreiff said there would be a two-hour "welcome back to Earth" special featuring a huge concert.
Yet despite this and NASA's announcement Thursday that it has prepared a package of last-minute training for Bass should the Russians give him the official sign-off, there have been problems.
Last week Russian Space Agency spokesman Sergei Gorbunov raised concern about the future of Bass' mission when he was quoted as saying the agency might kill Bass' plans because he had failed to meet a payment deadline. "Theoretically, we can already dissolve his contract," Gorbunov told Reuters.
Despite backtracking in a CNN report two days later, Kreiff said that the damage was done.
"(Gorbunov) has a large mouth," Kreiff told SPACE.com. "He has been very rude to us and he potentially lost me millions of dollars last week."
"All I can tell you is that we will meet and fulfill every obligation of our contract and we continue to plan and meet and fulfill every obligation of our deal," Kreiff said.
According to Kreiff, the incident last week wasn't the first time Russian enthusiasm has had a negative impact on the project.
As the sole owners to all the media rights surrounding the Bass expedition, Kreiff said he had a million dollar exclusive rights deal with a "Time or People-like magazine" for the first pictures of Bass in his spacesuit. However, Kreiff said both the video and still images of Bass were released to the press by the Russian agency.
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