SCIENCE FICTION TV SHOWS
Rachael A. Zubal
I've already posted something similar to this on the Earth2 group, so I
thought I'd post it on some other news group on science fiction.
Has anyone else noticed the trend in science fiction shows on television?
Some shows are good, some are so-so, some are pretty bad. Some are classics,
some are new, some are ones that I can't believe are still on the air! I'm
working on creating a list of all the science fiction television shows,
both excellent and pathetic, in the history of television. Can you add
to my list?
Here is the list to date (the alphabetization may be bad--Word Perfect
did the sorting and sometimes it doesn't work correctly. This is based on my
initial list (which was very short) and several names that people have given
me so far.
20,000 LEAGUES BENEATH THE SEA (I REMEMBER THE MOVIE, BUT NOT A SERIES)
ALF
ALIEN NATION
ARC II
AUTOMAN
BABYLON 5
BATMAN
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
BLAKES 7
BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY
CAPTAIN AMERICA
CAPTAIN VIDEO
DARK SHADOWS (MORE HORROR THAN SCI FI)
DR. WHO
EARTH2
FAR OUT SPACE NUTS
FIREBALL XL-5
FLASH
FLASH GORDON
FUTURE COP
ISIS
LAND OF THE LOST
LOGAN'S RUN
LOST IN SPACE
MAN FROM ATLANTIS
M.A.N.T.I.S.
MORK AND MINDY
MY FAVORITE MARTIAN
PLANET OF THE APES
QUANTUM LEAP
QUARK (ANYBODY WHO REMEMBERS THIS--E-MAIL ME!)
RED DWARF
ROBOTECH
SEAQUEST
SHAZAM
SPACE 1999
SPIDERMAN
STAR TREK
STAR TREK THE ANIMATED SERIES
STAR TREK THE NEXT GENERATION
STAR TREK VOYAGER
STAR TREK DEEP SPACE 9
STAR BLAZERS
THE BIONIC WOMAN
THE FANTASTIC JOURNEY
THE GREEN HORNET
THE HITCHHICKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
THE INCREDIBLE HULK
THE INVADERS
THE INVISIBLE MAN
THE OUTER LIMITS
THE PRISONER
THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN
THE STARLOST
TIME TRAX
TIME TUNNEL
TOM CORBETTE, SPACE CADET
TWILIGHT ZONE (BOTH OLD AND NEW VERSIONS)
UFO
ULTRA MAN
ULYSSES 31
V
VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA
WAR OF THE WORLDS
WONDER WOMAN
X-FILES
Any contributions to this list should be e-mailed to me at:
or
I'll be posting this to other sci fi news groups. :)
-raz
"Get away from her, you *bitch*!"
--Ripley to the Queen Alien attacking Newt in "Aliens"
Blindside
THE OUTER LIMITS
AMAZING STORIES
THE STARLOST
MISFITS OF SCIENCE
RAY BRADBURY THEATER (Don't know if thats the exact title. Something
close to that, anyways).
MANN AND MACHINE
MAX HEADROOM (I don't think thats the entire title)...
CAPTAIN POWER AND THE SOLDIERS OF THE FUTURE (I have a feeling I don't
have this one completely right)
Good luck with the rest of the list. :)
DNAiel of Branford College
THE TWILIGHT ZONE
THE NEW TWILIGHT ZONE
ROBOCOP
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
BG 1980
DR. WHO
RED DWARF
BLAKE'S 7
HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
MATTHEW STARR
STARMAN
THE X-FILES
MANTIS
VOYAGER
ST
ST;TNG
ST:DS9
VOYAGERS!
CAPTAIN CODY AND HIS STAR RANGERS
STAR RANGERS
TRANSFORMERS
SPACE 1999
LOST IN SPACE
Cheryl....@mvs.udel.edu
British-produced, I believe, about 5-10 years ago ( my pre-VCR ownership
days). It had a kind of X-Files quality about it, although the unit for whom
the protagonists worked just studied psi phenomena. However, there was a
certain psi corps conspiracy flavor which I really enjoyed. Got bounced after
about a year I believe, just as the intrigues and mysteries were getting
really fascinating.
Anyone else remember it? E-mail me.
Good luck, Rachel! Sherry
Jay Denebeim
That reminds me, thanks Cheryl. Early/middle '70s. "The Sixth Sense"
starred Garry Collins as a psychic investigator. Started out as a
"Movie of the Week" so it's from that time period. I believe it
lasted over a year, which is really good for an SF show. Pretty good
show as I recall bordering on excellent sometimes. Sorta like
McCaffrey's "To Ride Pegasis".
Couple more I can think of, Kolshack?: the Nightstalker starring
Darren McGavin (another Movie of the Week spinoff) could be concidered
SciFi, as much as the X-Files. Middle/late '70s 'bout the same time
as Star Wars came out.
Oh yeah, there was another UFO one, I think it was called "Project
Blue Book" or something similar, didn't last long. Which brings up
another british one called UFO, and of course, Space 1999, which is
surprisingly not on your list.
One more, can't remember the name of this one. Starred George
Peppard, same premise as Scooby Doo, about a guy that debunks things
that appear paranormal/UFOish. That was a good show.
Another one I was very fond of, I think it was called 'switch'. It
was a spy show with high tech eliments. There were several spys, the
only one who's name I recall was Doug McClure (I like the guy, but
he's the kiss of death to a show). They had telepresence to a bunch of
people in a control room lead by Burgess Merridith who helped these
spy type people out. Call it SciFi or not, at the time, I thought it
was cool. (being 11 or 12, I probably would have thought A-Team was
cool too :-))
Another show, from the distant past, I can barely remember it. I have
no idea who the stars were, or the title. It was british, before the
Avengers or the Prisoner. The primise had something to do with spy
types, who had ESP? I'd like to see it again, it was way above my
level of comprehension at the time it was on. I remember in the
ending credits, they had pictures of the principal characters (sorta
like the Avengers) with colored smoke pillars. (Very early days of
color TV, lots of nice bright colors)
Since you mentioned an animated show, don't forget the IMO best SF
animated show. Hanna-Barbara's third, last, and unfortunately, least
successful prime-time animated TV show: Johnny Quest. (Sorry, Joe, I
liked Real Ghost Busters, but couldn't consider that SF, it is the
best cartoon in the last 20 years, does that count?)
Can anybody help me with the one's I'm fuzzy about?
Jay
--
Sig under construction
Jay Denebeim
j...@deepthot.cary.nc.us dene...@deepthot.cary.nc.us
dene...@deepthot.cybernetics.net duke!wolves!deepthot!denebeim
Gharlane of Eddore
dene...@deepthot.cary.nc.us (Jay Denebeim) writes:
>
> That reminds me, thanks Cheryl. Early/middle '70s. "The Sixth Sense"
> starred Garry Collins as a psychic investigator. Started out as a
> "Movie of the Week" so it's from that time period. I believe it
> lasted over a year, which is really good for an SF show. Pretty good
> show as I recall bordering on excellent sometimes. Sorta like
> McCaffrey's "To Ride Pegasis".
At the beginning, executive story consultants were Harlan Ellison
and Dorothy C. Fontana. This ceased, early on, and one rumor has
it that that, during the severing of relations, the comment "You're
making a *bad* half-hour show and padding it to sixty minutes!" was
made. Years later, Universal crudely chopped all the episodes
to half-hour format, had Serling do a voice-over intro with a
painting, and forcibly inserted them into the syndicated version
of the half-hour "NIGHT GALLERY" mill. The fact that "SIXTH SENSE"
was forcibly mutilated after being killed off by misproduction, and
used to pad out another butchered series to get enough episodes for
minimal syndication should tell you about the high regard in which
the studio held it.
It's also worth noting that the original, first episodes of
"SIXTH SENSE" had some lovely synthesized theme music and a
set of opening credits shot on the Cal Tech campus that were
great. These were chopped and replaced with a "more normal"
bit of theme music for later episodes.
> Couple more I can think of, Kolshack?: the Nightstalker starring
> Darren McGavin (another Movie of the Week spinoff) could be concidered
> SciFi, as much as the X-Files. Middle/late '70s 'bout the same time
> as Star Wars came out.
Dan Curtis Productions did "KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER," and the
sequel, "KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STRANGLER" as TV-movies. When TNS
was run, it got the highest viewership of any TV show in history
(up to that point.) Francy Productions/Universal did about twenty
episodes of the series before bad slots, pre-emptions, and strange
attacks from Fundamentalists knocked it off the air.
> One more, can't remember the name of this one. Starred George
> Peppard, same premise as Scooby Doo, about a guy that debunks things
> that appear paranormal/UFOish. That was a good show.
You're probably mis-remembering the "BANACEK" segments of the
"MYSTERY MOVIE" series.
> Another one I was very fond of, I think it was called 'switch'. It
....
> only one who's name I recall was Doug McClure (I like the guy, but
> he's the kiss of death to a show). They had telepresence to a bunch of
> people in a control room lead by Burgess Merridith who helped these
> spy type people out. Call it SciFi or not, at the time, I thought it
Not even close. The pilot movie was "PROBE" and the TV series was
called "SEARCH." A blatant rip-off was recently attempted with a
Fox series called "FORTUNE HUNTER," which even stole blocks of dialog
from the "PROBE" pilot movie.
Incidentally, Doug McClure is hardly the "kiss of death" to a TV
show. "THE VIRGINIAN" is still in syndication, world-wide, and there
are "BARBARY COAST" fan clubs in several nations. You might note that
McClure is also one helluvva fine comedy actor, and has a lot of fun
doing low-budget syndicated sitcoms, and because he's sane enough to
not behave like a "star," is a damn good man to work with. He's also
an excellent, well-respected director and writer, known for his
courtesy to other performers and production crew. Hell, *HARLAN
ELLISON* likes him, does this tell you something?
> Another show, from the distant past, I can barely remember it. I have
> no idea who the stars were, or the title. It was british, before the
> Avengers or the Prisoner. The primise had something to do with spy
> types, who had ESP? I'd like to see it again, it was way above my
> level of comprehension at the time it was on. I remember in the
> ending credits, they had pictures of the principal characters (sorta
> like the Avengers) with colored smoke pillars. (Very early days of
> color TV, lots of nice bright colors)
I *believe* you're thinking of "THE CHAMPIONS," which starred
William Gaunt, Stuart Damon, and the yummy Alexandra Bastedo as Sharon
McReedy. (And Bastedo's BETTER looking now than she was THEN, too!)
"THE CHAMPIONS" dates from the late sixties, well *after* "THE AVENGERS"
had begun, and after "THE PRISONER" had finished production; but
it's the probable best choice, since the BBC didn't do much with
color for TV series until the mid-sixties. (Note that the Cathy
Gale (Honor Blackman) episodes of "THE AVENGERS" were B&W, and the
first year or two of Diana Rigg (Mrs. Emma Peel) were also done
in B&W; these were shot *before* the BBC began shooting series in
color.
> Since you mentioned an animated show, don't forget the IMO best SF
> animated show. Hanna-Barbara's third, last, and unfortunately, least
> successful prime-time animated TV show: Johnny Quest. (Sorry, Joe, I
> liked Real Ghost Busters, but couldn't consider that SF, it is the
> best cartoon in the last 20 years, does that count?)
Yep.
> Can anybody help me with the one's I'm fuzzy about?
See above.
Glenn Saunders
: Another one I was very fond of, I think it was called 'switch'. It
: was a spy show with high tech eliments. There were several spys, the
: only one who's name I recall was Doug McClure (I like the guy, but
: he's the kiss of death to a show). They had telepresence to a bunch of
: people in a control room lead by Burgess Merridith who helped these
: spy type people out. Call it SciFi or not, at the time, I thought it
: was cool. (being 11 or 12, I probably would have thought A-Team was
: cool too :-))
Doug McClure just died if you didn't know, sounds like he smoked himself
to death.
Steven W. Difranco
In a previous article, dene...@deepthot.cary.nc.us (Jay Denebeim) says:
>In article <95.64.15....@MVS.UDEL.EDU>,
> <Cheryl....@MVS.UDEL.EDU> wrote:
>>the protagonists worked just studied psi phenomena.
>
>
>Another one I was very fond of, I think it was called 'switch'. It
>was a spy show with high tech eliments. There were several spys, the
>only one who's name I recall was Doug McClure (I like the guy, but
>he's the kiss of death to a show). They had telepresence to a bunch of
>people in a control room lead by Burgess Merridith who helped these
>spy type people out. Call it SciFi or not, at the time, I thought it
>was cool. (being 11 or 12, I probably would have thought A-Team was
>cool too :-))
>
>
It was called "Search" and starred Hugh O'Brien, Doug McClure and
Tony Franciosa on a rotating basis. It's 2-hour premiere was called
"Probe" and Hugh was "Probe one". The producers found out that some
D.J. on the west coast had a radio show called "Probe" so they changed
the title to "Search" when it became a series. Pretty high tech for
its day, but not so today since the technology pretty much exists now.
--
Steven "Ask me for a PLAN to get out of DEBT" DiFranco ][No one is really
what they APPEAR to be ][ My universe runs on enlightened self-interest;
helping others achieve financial independence; and Cheez-Whiz ][ My views
belong to myself and not Primerica Financial Services ][ This space for rent]
Daniel Pead
Cheryl....@MVS.UDEL.EDU writes:
> Rachel, you might want to add the Omega Factor to your list. It was
> British-produced, I believe, about 5-10 years ago ( my pre-VCR ownership
> days).
I vaguely remember it - I think it was more like 10-15 years ago,
though. I think it only ran for 6 or 12 episodes.
There was also something called the "Enigma Files" - don't think that
it was really SF but it featured a team researching into old, unsolved
files at Scotland Yard... (There aint no such thing as a new idea!)
Another one not on the list was "Doomwatch" which was a bit before my
time, but dealt with environmental/medical disaster-type storylines.
The only episode I ever saw dealt with a remote village where many of
the inhabitants were deformed - this was caused by chemical waste
dumping, but the inhabitants had kept it secret because they THOUGHT it
was a result of incest. Not bad for late 60s/Early 70s TV...
Oh yes - "Sapphire and Steel" was also missed off the list ISTR...
David McAllum (sp? - he of UNCLE fame) and Joanna Lumley as some sort
of supernatural police charged with darning holes in the space-time
continuum... VERY weird plots and let down by the fact that the opening
titles referred to sapphire as a chemical element...
---------------------------------
Daniel Pead
Shell Centre for Maths Education
Nottingham University
Paolo Valladolid
Used to run on Nickelodeon. A group of telepathic teens who
seek out and recruit other telepathic teens. Their coach is
an alian energy being (like the one in Power Rangers). They
wear wristwatches that also function as communications
devices and personal teleporters.
Spartacus
A hero from the surface world who travels through various
underground worlds. The Earth is made up of many layers;
each a world of its own and inhabited by its own flora
and fauna. Infamous for the silly musicals.
Logans' Run
Based on the movie.
Jason And The Argonauts
I don't remember much about this 70s Saturday morning live
action show other than "Jason" was teh heroic figure and
commander of a space station. Jason flew around ina fighter a
lot.
There was another show produced by the same people about
a mobile laboratory called The Ark that roamed
post-nuclear-war Earth dispensing medical aid.
Paolo Valladolid
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David Stinson
FANTASTIC JOURNEY -
Produced by Bruce Geller (WILD WILD WEST),co-created/story editted by
D.C. Fontana. Starring Ike Eisenmann(??), Jared Martin, Roddy
McDowell. Nice show. Plane goes down in the Bermuda Triangle. Crashes
on an island. Turns out that they hit a portal that shifts you
through time and worlds (sounds like the premise of SLIDERS already,
doesn't it). Very good show, lasted half a season in the late 70's.
THE POWERS OF MATTHEW STARR (sometimes THE POWERS OF DAVID STARR)
also used the plot later used for the STARMAN tv series.
SAPPHIRE & STEEL (British TV series starrring David McCallum & Joanna
Lumley)
INVISIBLE MAN-
The 70's version with David McCallum as a scientist caught by the
effects of his machine, making him invisible.
All 5 or 6 versions of Planet of the Apes -
The animated version, RETURN TO PLANET OF THE APES (a one-season
version in the late 70's or early 80's, later recut into TV movies.
THE ADVENTURES OF BRISCO COUNTY, JR.
Anybody who says that this isn't SF didn't see the show.
WILD WILD WEST
See Brisco County.
GREATEST AMERICAN HERO
LOGAN'S RUN (the TV series)
MY FAVORITE MARTIAN (original & animated)
FLASH GORDON (animated)
GENE RODDENBERRY'S PILOTS:
SPECTRE (Somebody should use this one - better than X-FILES)
QUESTOR (DATA's grandfather)
GENESIS II (etc... the whole run of series using the organization
PAX)
MTV's DEAD AT 21
###################################################################
## Dave Stinson ## I DO know everything, just not all ##
## DA...@procom.com ## at once. You know, a Virtual Memory ##
## dsti...@ix.netcom.com ## problem! ##
## dast...@aol.com ## ##
###################################################################
"The deuce you say." - Buckaroo Banzai- Across
the 8th Dimension
Nyrath the nearly wise
: Jason And The Argonauts
: I don't remember much about this 70s Saturday morning live
: action show other than "Jason" was teh heroic figure and
: commander of a space station. Jason flew around ina fighter a
: lot.
That sounds like JASON OF STAR COMMAND, which was a spin-off show
from SPACE ACADEMY. The latter had as the Dean of the college
Jonathan Harris (Dr. Zachary Smith from Lost In Space)
It also had a sickeningly cute robot.
: There was another show produced by the same people about
: a mobile laboratory called The Ark that roamed
: post-nuclear-war Earth dispensing medical aid.
Not sure, but I believe that one was called Ark 2. Had an exceedinly
pretty Polynesian lady as a co-star. The ark vaguely looked like
the vehicles from DAMNATION ALLEY.
--
___
<(*)> Nyrath
John Wheeler
QUARK
MISFITS OF SCIENCE
THE PHOENIX
--
John T. Wheeler
Phoenix,Arizona
The New Home of a Greed-Obsessed
Major League Baseball Team...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Evil Guest Immortal: "I have you now, MacLeod." <clang, clang>
Duncan MacLeod: "I admit it. You're better than I am." <clang, clang>
EGI: "Then why are you smiling?" <clang, clang>
MacLeod: "Because I know something you don't know..." <clang, clang>
"..._I_ am the star of this show." <clang, slash, whap!, thud, cool fx>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
/\ Vermillion Ranger -- Sabalom Glitz
/vvvvvvvvvvvv \--------------------------------------,
`^^^^^^^^^^^^ /====================================="
\/ "Cactus Wren Bull of Heaven Thunderzord Power!!"
Jamie Hanrahan, Kernel Mode Systems
"Best"? Overall? I agree that it had the most consistently good
writing of anything in that period.
But Batman: The Animated Series has a lot going for it too. The
artwork routinely puts every other weekly/daily animated series, bar
none, to shame, and most of the stories have at least been good -- and
the great ones are GREAT. The direction is also good, character
development is outstanding... and besides, you don't have to listen to
Frank Welker.
--- Jamie Hanrahan, Kernel Mode Systems, San Diego CA
Internet: j...@cmkrnl.com (JH645) CompuServe: 74140,2055
david l jessup
: : I don't remember much about this 70s Saturday morning live
: : action show other than "Jason" was teh heroic figure and
: : commander of a space station. Jason flew around ina fighter a
: : lot.
: That sounds like JASON OF STAR COMMAND, which was a spin-off show
: from SPACE ACADEMY. The latter had as the Dean of the college
: Jonathan Harris (Dr. Zachary Smith from Lost In Space)
: It also had a sickeningly cute robot.
Just to bring this thread back on topic :-):
``Jason of Star Command'' came up recently in a conversation I had with
one of my friends, who maintains that Jason was played by --- Bruce
Boxleitner! Can anyone confirm or deny this?
-- Dave Jessup
MICHAEL J.KING SR.
Jay Denebeim wrote:
: Another one I was very fond of, I think it was called 'switch'. It
: only one who's name I recall was Doug McClure (I like the guy, but
: he's the kiss of death to a show). They had telepresence to a bunch of
: people in a control room lead by Burgess Merridith who helped these
: spy type people out. Call it SciFi or not, at the time, I thought it
: was cool. (being 11 or 12, I probably would have thought A-Team was
: cool too :-))
I think you mean "SEARCH" it starred Mr McClure,Hugh O'Brian and Tony Franciosa as the Field Agents and Burgess Meredith as the Control.Fun Show!!
Mike#139
--
Glenn Saunders
: ``Jason of Star Command'' came up recently in a conversation I had with
: one of my friends, who maintains that Jason was played by --- Bruce
: Boxleitner! Can anyone confirm or deny this?
Nope. He was played by a guy who many people may recognize from the
long-played-out Grey Poupon commercials. (at least he looks like that guy).
Daniel Pead
Guess what I saw a preview for on BBC 2 on Saturday - they're rerunning
it (starting Friday I think). What a strange coincidence - <hums theme
from
The Twilight Zone>.
Gharlane of Eddore
sw...@po.CWRU.Edu (Steven W. Difranco) writes:
>
> It was called "Search" and starred Hugh O'Brien, Doug McClure and
> Tony Franciosa on a rotating basis. It's 2-hour premiere was called
> "Probe" and Hugh was "Probe one". The producers found out that some
> D.J. on the west coast had a radio show called "Probe" so they changed
> the title to "Search" when it became a series. Pretty high tech for
> its day, but not so today since the technology pretty much exists now.
>--
This is incorrect.
The title change was specifically requested by the network, because
their brass felt that the title "PROBE" was "too medical."
The story about the radio show has some truth in it, but that was
NOT the main reason the title change occurred. (I remember sitting in
a Certain Office and listening to Leslie Stevens and Anthony Spinner
generating scurrilously unprintable alternate titles... "Medical?
Too medical? WE'LL show 'em too medical, how about <deleted>?"
Gharlane of Eddore
> Several More shows:
>
> FANTASTIC JOURNEY -
> Produced by Bruce Geller (WILD WILD WEST),co-created/story editted by
> D.C. Fontana. Starring Ike Eisenmann(??), Jared Martin, Roddy
> McDowell. Nice show. Plane goes down in the Bermuda Triangle. Crashes
> on an island. Turns out that they hit a portal that shifts you
> through time and worlds (sounds like the premise of SLIDERS already,
> doesn't it). Very good show, lasted half a season in the late 70's.
Your details don't ring bells with me; Bruce Geller is primarily famous
for "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE." It was my impression that Bruce LANSBURY
was the big gun on "WILD WILD WEST," along with John Mantley.
I wasn't aware that Geller was involved in "FANTASTIC JOURNEY," but I'll
take your word for it, since our local station didn't bother to carry it!
You should also take the trouble to mention Katie Saylor, if you're
going to mention Jared Martin. (See the unsold pilot, "MEN OF THE
DRAGON," for another show they worked in together.) ...And F.J.
was hardly the premise of "SLIDERS" or "DOORWAYS;" the *island* they
were stuck on contained overlaps from different TIMES, not different
time LINES.
> THE POWERS OF MATTHEW STARR (sometimes THE POWERS OF DAVID STARR)
> also used the plot later used for the STARMAN tv series.
Dead wrong. "STARMAN," which was pretty well made, was more of a
"Travelling Angel" show. "MATTHEW STAR" was a complete lox about
a supposed high-school kid (the actor looked nearly thirty!) who
was a Space Prince being sought after by Nasty Evil Vicious Alien
Assassins.... (with Lou Gossett working in it, it would have evolved
into a decent show, had they just left it alone for another season
or so; Gossett turns *anything* he's in into high-quality stuff, and
he was already starting to teach the writers their business. He's
also credited with effectively saving Peter Barton's life and career
in an on-set accident involving magnesium flares and severe burns.)
"T.P.O.M.S.".... as it exists... must be regarded as an exercise
in tedious fantasy, poorly made.
.....<deletia>
Michael Rogero Brown (Sys Admin)
: Tomorrow People
: Used to run on Nickelodeon. A group of telepathic teens who
: seek out and recruit other telepathic teens. Their coach is
: an alian energy being (like the one in Power Rangers). They
: wear wristwatches that also function as communications
: devices and personal teleporters.
The New Tomorrow People still runs on Nickelodeon, either Saturday or Sunday
afternoon. [that's the show I think you discribe above]
The only place in the US were you can see the original Tomorrow People is on
PBS station WXEL in West Palm Beach, Florida.
--
----------All Opinions Expressed are MINE, not IBM's--------------
Michael Rogero Brown (uK Development System Administrator)
IBM (uK Development) TEL/TIE (407) 443-6400
Boca Raton, FL Internet: mi...@bocaraton.ibm.com
If you think I speak for IBM, then I've got some swamp land^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H
real estate to sell you.
Patrick J. Murphy
: It was called "Search" and starred Hugh O'Brien, Doug McClure and
: Tony Franciosa on a rotating basis. It's 2-hour premiere was called
: "Probe" and Hugh was "Probe one". The producers found out that some
: D.J. on the west coast had a radio show called "Probe" so they changed
: the title to "Search" when it became a series. Pretty high tech for
: its day, but not so today since the technology pretty much exists now.
Speaking of "Probe", that was the name of a series a couple of
years back starring Parker Stevenson as an eccentric scientist who
investigated weird stuff - an evil sentient computer in the first
episode, deaths by "ball lightning", etc. There were only 5 or 6
episodes - I have one on tape. It was notable because Isaac Asimov was
supposed to have had something to do with its development.
Richard Chandler
> : There was another show produced by the same people about
> : a mobile laboratory called The Ark that roamed
> : post-nuclear-war Earth dispensing medical aid.
>
> Not sure, but I believe that one was called Ark 2. Had an exceedinly
> pretty Polynesian lady as a co-star. The ark vaguely looked like
> the vehicles from DAMNATION ALLEY.
I believe the producers were Norm Prescott and Lou Schiemer (Sp?) You can
tell because they used a lot of the same music and sound effects from the
Star Trek Cartoon.
I really hope that the Sci-Fi channel picks the show up and runs it again.
Way back when they were originally running it, my priorities were screwed up.
I was more interested in the vehicles and the jet pack than the
aforementioned Polynesian lady. Puberty later took care of that.
Oh, and there was a smart monkey onboard.
--
What part of "...shall not be infringed." don't you understand?
"Ride a motorcycle. Save Gas, Oil, Rubber, Steel, Aluminum, Parking Spaces,
The Environment, and Money. Plus, you get to wear all the leather you want!"
-- Rich Chandler, DoD #296
"Yeah, I've got ADD, you wanna make something of.... oooh, cool. Look!"
Glenn Saunders
: In article <3jqlt6$m...@clarknet.clark.net>, nyr...@clark.net (Nyrath the
: > : There was another show produced by the same people about
: > : a mobile laboratory called The Ark that roamed
: > : post-nuclear-war Earth dispensing medical aid.
: >
: > Not sure, but I believe that one was called Ark 2. Had an exceedinly
: > pretty Polynesian lady as a co-star. The ark vaguely looked like
: > the vehicles from DAMNATION ALLEY.
: I believe the producers were Norm Prescott and Lou Schiemer (Sp?) You can
: tell because they used a lot of the same music and sound effects from the
: Star Trek Cartoon.
: I really hope that the Sci-Fi channel picks the show up and runs it again.
: Way back when they were originally running it, my priorities were screwed up.
: I was more interested in the vehicles and the jet pack than the
: aforementioned Polynesian lady. Puberty later took care of that.
: Oh, and there was a smart monkey onboard.
I've seen crude videotapes of Space Academy and Jason of Star Command at
conventions, but I've never come across Ark II videos. It's a holy grail
of sorts for the liveaction children's scifi boom of the late 70s.
The notable thing to me about ARK II was that Robby the Robot was in it.
As I remember (and my memory is hazy) there was a plexiglass bubble on
the top of the vehicle and that's where Robby would set up his station.
There were elements of Ark II which reminded me a lot of Lost in Space.
If they indeed had jetpacks (which kind of jogs my memory) it was kinda
like the Lost in Space episodes where they went out with the Rover vehicle.
I also remember that the guy in charge was, I believe, a blond guy in his
40s with a beard and that their main clothing was, I believe, some kind
of tight pre-Buck Rogers spandex.
I also vaguely recall the intro sequence in which the Ark comes out of a
cave. I _think_ that the original advanced society they come from came
from underground ala THX1138.
And that the plot seemed to most resemble that of the Logan's Run series,
i.e. discovering what kind of cultures developed in pockets out in the
wilderness.
The Dread Pirate Roberts
> Speaking of "Probe", that was the name of a series a couple of
> years back starring Parker Stevenson as an eccentric scientist who
> investigated weird stuff - an evil sentient computer in the first
> episode, deaths by "ball lightning", etc. There were only 5 or 6
> episodes - I have one on tape. It was notable because Isaac Asimov was
> supposed to have had something to do with its development.
They are currently playing "Probe" on the Sci-Fi channel. I watched it
last night. Some super smart monkey killed this woman...very exciting
stuff. :) Actually, I like the show very much.
Later--Rick
Jay Denebeim
Never heard of him. No, no, not at all. Now, David McCullam(sp?) of
"Infection" *HIM* I've heard of :-)
"Not B5? Just say NO!"
(I'll forgive him his VR5 appearance :-))
Jay Denebeim
Nyrath the nearly wise <nyr...@clark.net> wrote:
>Not sure, but I believe that one was called Ark 2. Had an exceedinly
>pretty Polynesian lady as a co-star. The ark vaguely looked like
>the vehicles from DAMNATION ALLEY.
That reminds me. Did anyone else spot the vehical from Damnation
Alley in "The Wizard of Speed and Time?" (along with the car from
sleeper I think)
People who put the shot there that read the group don't count :-)
Anne Ritchie
Saturday a.m. tv show. Space station. Teen-aged (12-13) boy w/ black
curly hair said it, then discovered it was the name of his homeworld.
--
__/ __/ __ / My opinions are my own . . .
/ / / / / / /__/ / and I'll share them if I damn well want to.
/__/ /__/ /__/ /__ o arit...@starbase.neosoft.com
Teresa Shannon
>Does the word "Camelopardis" <sp?> mean anything to anyone?
>
>Saturday a.m. tv show. Space station. Teen-aged (12-13) boy w/ black
>curly hair said it, then discovered it was the name of his homeworld.
>
which was the old name for a giraffe, although heraldically the giraffe was
a beast resembling our modern giraffe but drawn with long curved horns.
My dictionary says the entymology of this word is the giraffe has a head
like a camel's and the pard, latin variation of pardos, means it has spots
like a leopard.
Additionally, there is Camelopardalis which is a constellation in the
Northern Hemisphere near Ursa Major and Cassiopeia. The constellation is a
representation of, of course, a camelopard. see above.
Esoterica-R-Us tws
Paolo Valladolid
There was a short-lived show about a powerful alien warrior
whose punishment was banishment to planet Earth in human
form. The warrior is accompanied by his probation officer,
a metallic floating eye who is somewhat anal. The warrior
in his true form looks somewhat like The Predator. The actor
who played him is the same one who played the villainous
sensei in Karate Kid; the one who thinks second place is
for losers.
I remember this show had a lot of hilarious moments; it
didn't just focus on the warrior using his fabulous
abilities to rescue damsels in distress. For example,
the scene where he tries to be romantic by serving
vinegar instead of champagne to his date. What I really
loved about this character was that for all his tremendous
power, he was completely ignorant of human customs, mores,
etc., and so would be constantly be screwing up. Yes, I
know this sounds like "Starman" but this show was a lot
better. For one thing, the hero didn't just stand there
and use psychic powers to blow enemies away; he acted like
a warrior and got physical on them.
Unfortunately I can't remember the proper title. "Its A
Hard Life On Earth" or something like that.
Nyrath the nearly wise
: Does the word "Camelopardis" <sp?> mean anything to anyone?
: Saturday a.m. tv show. Space station. Teen-aged (12-13) boy w/ black
: curly hair said it, then discovered it was the name of his homeworld.
SPACE ACADEMY. I believe that the obnoxious little boy was named Loki.
He was friends with the cute little robot Peep-oh. Both were just the
right size to stuff into a trash compactor.
Camelopardis is actually a constellation (the Giraffe I believe).
This show also featured Jonathan Harris (Dr. Zachary Smith) and
Pamela Firdin (ST:TOS And The Children Shall Lead)
Otherwise the TV show was a total waste of air time.
--
___
<(*)> Nyrath
CHOI ERIC MANSHUN
Patrick J. Murphy <pmu...@draco.unm.edu> wrote:
> Speaking of "Probe", that was the name of a series a couple of
>years back starring Parker Stevenson as an eccentric scientist who
>investigated weird stuff - an evil sentient computer in the first
>episode, deaths by "ball lightning", etc. There were only 5 or 6
>episodes - I have one on tape. It was notable because Isaac Asimov was
>supposed to have had something to do with its development.
Michael Piller, now of STAR TREK, was one of the producers.
--
Eric M. Choi | "Tomorrow we answer all the unanswered
University of Toronto | questions, right?"
ch...@ecf.toronto.edu | - Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 LM Pilot
er...@rainbow.physics.toronto.edu | Taurus-Littrow Valley, Dec. 13, 1972
Thomas W. Rackers
> There was a short-lived show about a powerful alien warrior
> whose punishment was banishment to planet Earth in human
> form. The warrior is accompanied by his probation officer,
> a metallic floating eye who is somewhat anal. The warrior
> in his true form looks somewhat like The Predator. The actor
> who played him is the same one who played the villainous
> sensei in Karate Kid; the one who thinks second place is
> for losers.
[snip]
> Unfortunately I can't remember the proper title. "Its A
> Hard Life On Earth" or something like that.
One of my wife's favorite shows at that time:
"Hard Time on Planet Earth".
Thomas Rackers
Panama City (mezzo-mezzo), Florida
t...@galileo7.ncsc.navy.mil
Gharlane of Eddore
pval...@waynesworld.ucsd.edu (Paolo Valladolid) writes:
> I just remembered another one:
>
> There was a short-lived show about a powerful alien warrior
> whose punishment was banishment to planet Earth in human
> form. The warrior is accompanied by his probation officer,
> a metallic floating eye who is somewhat anal. The warrior
> in his true form looks somewhat like The Predator. The actor
> who played him is the same one who played the villainous
> sensei in Karate Kid; the one who thinks second place is
> for losers.
Martin Kove, a highly-ept actor who shows up in many shows;
his physical condition and martial arts background give him
more range than many actors.
The voice of his probation officer was done by Charles Fleischer,
and much of the animaton was fairly-well-done early CGI.
> I remember this show had a lot of hilarious moments; it
> didn't just focus on the warrior using his fabulous
> abilities to rescue damsels in distress. For example,
> the scene where he tries to be romantic by serving
> vinegar instead of champagne to his date. What I really
This was one of the best comedy bits aired on TV that year;
the guest alien was played by Sandahl Bergman, a dancer, gymnast,
and general athlete, which afforded considerably more latitude for
physical comedy than could have been achieved with lesser actors.
> loved about this character was that for all his tremendous
> power, he was completely ignorant of human customs, mores,
> etc., and so would be constantly be screwing up. Yes, I
> know this sounds like "Starman" but this show was a lot
> better. For one thing, the hero didn't just stand there
> and use psychic powers to blow enemies away; he acted like
> a warrior and got physical on them.
Yes, it was fun, but the show suffered badly from lack of
imaginative scripts. Most of the stories were merely retreads
of classic "travelling angel" shows, and rather tired.
> Unfortunately I can't remember the proper title. "Its A
> Hard Life On Earth" or something like that.
"HARD TIME ON PLANET EARTH."
(Often mis-spelled as "HARD TIMES," but it's singular,
a reference to felony jail time.)