KING KONG (1976) TV Guide Ad

NBC presented the 1976 John Guillermin-directed/Dino deLaurentis-produced King Kong remake as a 3-hour television "event" - complete with additional footage not included in the theatrical release (nor any subsequent home video edition I'm aware of). I've confessed my affection for this movie here on the site before, and have to admit that I'm curious about the extra footage.

I first saw this Kong on television while on vacation in Canada. I can't recall if it was this 3-hour NBC version, or a cut-down, 2-hr presentation. In any case, I certainly don't - after all these years - remember any of the extra TV footage. Anybody know what was added?

News: BEYOND WESTWORLD (1980) TV Pilot on Blu-ray

Yep, the pilot episode of the very short-lived Beyond Westworld television series has been included as bonus feature on Warner Brothers' forthcoming Westworld Blu-ray (along with a vintage featurette and the theatrical trailer).

The obscure television spin-off, Beyond Westworld, was canceled after only three episodes were aired (although five were shot) by CBS in 1980. It starred Jim McMullan as Delos Security Chief John Moore, who had to stop a rogue roboticist named Quaid (James Wainright) from using the Delos robot technology to replace key political, military and corporate leaders and thus, conquer the world.

The Westworld HD disc is due in stores next Tuesday... and will be followed on the 26th by Shout! Factory's Blu-ray release of the American-International sequel, Futureworld.

I'm still hoping that Warner's MOD division, Warner Archive, will release the entire Beyond Westworld series this month, but they usually don't announce their new titles until the week they become available, so who knows?

You can pre-order the Blu-ray from Amazon: Westworld [Blu-ray]

News: Original BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (1978) Coming to Blu-ray Soon?

Maybe. I've read reports in a couple of places now that folks who bought the new Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome miniseries on Blu-ray found an insert inside the case that promised "The Original Movie That Launched A Phenomenon" and "Own it on Blu-ray High-Def!"

Star Kid Jerome Wybon posted a photo of that insert on the Space: 1970 Facebook page. I haven't found a listing for it on Amazon yet, nor any official online announcements. If - or when - I get more information, I'll update this post. If anyone finds anything, please pass it along.

Hopefully, this is true, and Universal will have put at least a little effort into cleaning up the source material and remastering it for HD, although based on the studio's track record, I'm not going to bet on anything. Still, I've said several times that I'd love to have this on Blu-ray, and I'm thrilled by the possibility. Hell, the standalone DVD I own of the Battlestar Galactica pilot isn't even anamorphic, so I'll be buying any new Blu-ray edition without hesitation. Stay tuned.

THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN by Earl Norem

From Charlton Comics' mid-70s run of Six Million Dollar Man magazines, here's artist Earl Norem's original cover art for Issue #5 (May 1977), where we find super OSI agent Steve Austin battling a four-armed, bionic Yeti (a cousin of the Bionic Bigfoot, I wonder?)!  I don't have this issue, and not having read the story this painting illustrates ("High Stakes in the Himalayas"), I'm not sure what's really going on. But the amazing Mr. Norem does a great job on the cover!

Captain's bLog: What I'm Watching

Thanks to a couple of recent - and generous - reader donations and a well-timed tax refund, I've been able to pick up a few more additions to my Space: 1970 DVD library this month. (I also - as I mentioned here previously - ordered and received a VHS copy of the 1980 telefilm, The Aliens Are Coming, which I transferred to DVD-R. Overall, I rather enjoyed it and think it would have made an okay series, but I really disliked the lead character, played by Tom Mason. Or maybe it was the actor I didn't like. The miniature spaceship effects were pretty cool, though.)

At the beginning of the month, I finally acquired the Universal Vault Series edition of Gene Roddenberry's 1974 pilot film, The Questor Tapes, which I had never seen all the way through before. I enjoyed it a lot - it may be my favorite of Roddenberry's non-Trek genre efforts - and will be writing up a full review here on the site in the coming weeks.

(Now if someone would release Roddenberry's occult pilot, Spectre, on disc, I'd be quite content.)

Then, I traded in my Buck Rogers In The 25th Century - The Complete Epic Series set for the re-issued Season 1 and Season 2 volumes. I was hesitant to do so, since they cost more combined than the original package, but what finally convinced me to double-dip - aside from the fact that the re-issues were on single-sided discs instead of the trouble-prone flippers in the Epic Series set - was Universal's late inclusion of the TV version (as opposed to Theatrical Cut) of the first episode, "Awakening," as an extra feature on the Season 2 discs. It clearly was a last-minute decision, too: its presence is not mentioned on the packaging (I think there may have been a sticker), and the episode itself is presented without chapter breaks or subtitles.

Last night I picked up Universal's The Six Million Dollar Man - The Complete Third Season. This is probably my favorite season of the show, as it brought back (and spun off) Lyndsay Wagner's Bionic Woman, and featured the first of Steve's encounters with the "bionic" Bigfoot (in the very impressive shape of hulking Andre The Giant).

The season also features the return of several other popular guest characters from previous years, including Monte Markham's "Seven Million Dollar Man," John Fujioka's "Last Kamikaze," Oscar Goldman's favorite secretary Jennifer Darling, and adorable ESPer Robbie Lee.

Finally, I've ordered the 1974 Wonder Woman pilot movie from Warner Archive. I haven't seen this one in years - decades, probably - and I'm looking forward to giving it a spin. This is the one with blonde Cathy Lee Crosby as the Amazon princess, battling the evil machinations of Ricardo Montalban while wearing a star-spangled track suit. Whatever else it may be, this incarnation of WW is definitely a product of the Seventies! Obviously, I'll be reviewing this one here at the site sometime soon, as well.

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968) International Posters

Today I present a selection of theatrical one-sheets for Stanley Kubrick's 1968 mindtrip, 2001: A Space Odyssey... the film (that, along with Planet Of The Apes) kicked off the Space: 1970 era of genre flicks. Most of these used Bob McCall's art in various configurations, but there are a few cool regional variations in here, too. Enjoy.

THE NEW ADVENTURES OF WONDER WOMAN (1977) TV Spot

Here's a 1977 CBS television preview for the revamped, "updated" version of the Lynda Carter superheroine series, The New Adventures Of Wonder Woman. Unless I'm very much mistaken, though (and the way I'm feeling today, it's possible I am), most - or at least many - of those clips are from the previous, World War II-set, ABC incarnation of the show!

Cosmic Valentines

Happy Valentine's Day!

Behind-The-Scenes Pix #37: SPACE: 1999

I'm not sure which episode this is from, but here's a nice production shot of a dramatic scene on the terrific Main Mission set (which both sounds - and looks - so much cooler than Year 2's cave-like "Command Center") from the first season of Space: 1999.

V (1983) or Not To V?

I've been on the fence about whether or not to include the two V television miniseries and subsequent weekly series here at Space: 1970. The original V mini ran in late 1983, which is pretty much my cut-off point here at the site, with the follow-up miniseries and weekly show airing the following year. I know it's my site, and realistically, I can write about anything I want - but man, the e-mails/comments I get when I step outside my self-imposed boundaries! It's amazing how quick people will jump on any opportunity to try and knock others down.

The show certainly feels like a 70s sci-fi show, with its ham-fisted social commentary, dystopian themes, Old School miniature effects, and broadly-drawn but appealing characters, and, frankly, I honestly enjoy most of the run in a way much like that of the shows I do cover here - unlike most 80s-90s genre efforts. A lot of this is probably attributable to the early creative influence of Kenneth Johnson, who originated the property and produced the first mini. Johnson was one of the most genre-savvy television producers of the era, with credits like The Bionic Woman, The Incredible Hulk - and, later, Alien Nation - to his name. He was always pretty canny about making outlandish sci-fi ideas work for mainstream television audiences (and networks/sponsors).

Of course, it also has that humungous 80s hair. 

Anyway, I will continue to ponder whether V can be squeezed into my already-elongated timeframe... what do you folks think?

BATTLE BEYOND THE STARS (1980) Press Kit Stills

Roger Corman's Battle Beyond The Stars is a great favorite of mine, and I'm always looking for memorabilia from the movie - although there doesn't seem to be much. No novelization that I'm aware of (wouldn't an Alan Dean Foster adaptation been cool?), no model kits based on Nell (or any of the other awesome spaceships in the film; I would have loved a Hammerhead kit), no action figures (imagine a St. Exmin figure?). There was a ViewMaster reel, though...? Well, at least James Horner's score is available, and of course, the stunning Blu-ray of the movie itself from Shout! Factory.

Today I have a small selection of B&W press kit stills from the movie to share with you. Enjoy!

PLANET OF THE APES on VHS!

Roddy McDowell stares at us in another trade ad from the fine folks at CBS/FOX video in the 80s trumpeting the five film Planet Of The Apes series on VHS videocassette... at the low, low "sell-through" price of only $19.98 (or $15.15 with discount) and colorful, all new packaging!

PIZZAZZ Magazine Cover Gallery

I have never actually read an issue of Marvel Comics' 70s-80s tween/teen magazine, Pizzazz, but I wouldn't mind getting a look at the mag's exclusive serialized Star Wars comic, which was mixed into the usual assortment of puzzles, pop culture articles, bubble gum pop star coverage (Shaun Cassidy!), short stories and games.

Of course, being of the Space: 1970 era, it covered (and cover-featured) plenty of genre stuff, including two properties that Marvel Comics was then publishing in four-color form: Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica - and lots of Marvel superheroes. Here's a small sampling:

Captain's bLog: Supplemental

Sorry that February's gotten off to such a slow start. Between getting my two new webcomics series* launched and a few personal/family emergencies (nothing serious, as they turned out - but stressful and time-consuming), I haven't had much time or energy to devote to the site these last few days.

Which is a shame, since December and January were the biggest months ever - in terms of traffic and page views - for Space: 1970, and I really hoped to keep the momentum going.

Anyway... I'll try and get back on track tomorrow with a fresh post or two. I've got some new stuff on my desk to review - reader donations paid for a DVD of The Questor Tapes and a VHS copy of The Aliens Are Coming - and I'm eager to write them up, along with a few other long-in-the-works articles.

Stay tuned.

* Perils On Planet X and Gravedigger.

Coming Attractions: REVENGE OF THE JEDI Teaser Trailer

I'm sure everyone else has seen this video millions of times, but until today, I hadn't seen this Revenge Of the Jedi trailer since I caught the first re-release of The Empire Strikes Back in the theater. I remember being really, really excited for the third film...

Now, I just get a kick out of the "Wilhelm scream" sound effect used when the guy falls into the sarlacc (sarlaac?) pit.

February's Space Babe: Pam Dawber

February's Space Babe is pretty Pam Dawber, of Mork & Mindy, the 70's most successful sci-fi sitcom. As Denver, Colorado native and "girl next door," Mindy McConnell, Dawber somehow managed to hold her own against the nearly-unrestrained comic energy of co-star Robin Williams as the irrepressible alien Mork (from Ork) for four seasons on ABC, beginning in the Fall of 1978.

Like every other kid at the time, I watched M&M pretty regularly - back then, Williams' hyper-paced comic style seemed fresh, original and constantly surprising. But when I caught reruns years later, I found his schtick more tiresome than amusing, and found myself much more impressed by Dawber's steady, grounded, more subtle comedy and her upbeat attitude and genuine warmth. And, damn, she was cute.

Dawber was born in 1951 near Detroit. As a young woman, she was a model and singer. Aside from her star-making role on Mork & Mindy, the talented actress has guest-starred in many other television series and starred in various theatrical productions.

PERILS ON PLANET X Launches!

My new, weekly interplanetary adventure webcomic, Perils on Planet X, begins today at www.perilsonplanetx.com. The story will be updated one page a week, every Friday. The art is by the talented Gene Gonzales, and I believe that anyone who enjoys this blog - and the sci-fi/space comics of the Space: 1970 era - will enjoy Planet X. I hope you will all check it out!