The Great Sci-Fi and Fantasy Shows of the '60s and '70s

[tv star collector]

There were some fantastic sci-fi/fantasy shows on television in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. This
thread salutes a few of them (feel free to add your favorites):

THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN (George Reeves, Noel Neill, Jack Larson)
ONE STEP BEYOND (hosted by John Newland)
THE TWILIGHT ZONE (hosted by creator Rod Serling)
THRILLER (hosted by Boris Karloff)
THE OUTER LIMITS
LOST IN SPACE (Guy Williams, June Lockhart, Jonathan Harris, Billy Mumy)
LAND OF THE GIANTS (Gary Conway, Deanna Lund, Don Marshall)
BATMAN (Adam West, Burt Ward, Yvonne Craig)
STAR TREK (William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley)
ROD SERLING'S NIGHT GALLERY
KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER (Darren McGavin)
ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS
THE SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN (Lee Majors)
THE BIONIC WOMAN (Lindsay Wagner)
THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. (Robert Vaughn, David McCallum)
THE GIRL FROM U.N.C.L.E. (Stefanie Powers, Noel Harrison)
THE INVISIBLE MAN (David McCallum, Craig Stevens)
SHAZAM! (Jackson Bostwick, John Davey)
ISIS (JoAnna Cameron)
WONDER WOMAN (Lynda Carter, Lyle Waggoner)
THE INCREDIBLE HULK (Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno, Jack Colvin)
SPIDER-MAN (Nicholas Hammond)
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (Lorne Greene, Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict)
BUCK ROGERS IN THE 25TH CENTURY (Gil Gerard, Erin Gray)

[Zoneboy]

Originally Posted by tv star collector

ONE STEP BEYOND (hosted by John Newland)
THE TWILIGHT ZONE (hosted by creator Rod Serling)
THRILLER (hosted by Boris Karloff)
ROD SERLING'S NIGHT GALLERY
KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER (Darren McGavin)
ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS

I like all these and each one had episodes that could be considered Science-Fiction but they fall more under the Anthology/Horror/Suspense genre. I'm surprised you left out Science Fiction Theater.

[tv star collector]

Originally Posted by Zoneboy

I like all these and each one had episodes that could be considered Science-Fiction but they fall more under the Anthology/Horror/Suspense genre. I'm surprised you left out Science Fiction Theater.

I never saw that series. In the 1950s, we only got one channel--and that
program wasn't on it.

[Zoneboy]

Originally Posted by tv star collector

I never saw that series. In the 1950s, we only got one channel--and that
program wasn't on it.

That's understandable, You can find it on eBay or in trading circles. From what I've seen so far, It's a really good show.

[tv star collector]

I meant to include both sci-fi and fantasy shows in the thread, and I've edited
the thread accordingly. But I wanted to limit the discussion to the "classic"
shows ('50s, '60s and '70s). There have been excellent ones, too, from the
'80s to the present (incl. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, THE X-FILES, BUFFY THE
VAMPIRE SLAYER, CHARMED, ROSWELL, SMALLVILLE, SUPERNATURAL, GHOST WHISPERER, MOONLIGHT, to name a few). Those are the ones that immediately spring to mind. [Of course, if you really wanted to be a completist, you could add comedy-fantasy shows and animated shows, as
writer Gary Gerani did with his 1977 book, FANTASTIC TELEVISION, which
served as the springboard for this discussion.]

[jimpickens]

Space 1999
UFO
Quark
Project UFO
Invaders

[Schmoopie]

I was never an old "Twilight Zone" fan, but every once in a while it comes on late and night and once I start watching, I am immediately intrigued.

My husband and I rented "The Night Stalker" series from Netlifx and I really liked those. I loved the ones that featured Seattle and Vegas! However, those two might have been feature films. I can't remember.

Andrea

[AB]

My favorites, which have already been listed are:

The Twilight Zone
Lost In Space
The Outer Limits
Night Gallery
Kolchak - The Night Stalker
One Step Beyond
Alfred Hitchcock Presents


Off hand I can't remember Thriller, what was it about?

[BarneyFife]

I'm not much of a Sci-Fi fan, but i did enjoy The Twilight Zone, Lost In Space and my all time favorite, Land Of The Giants. I love little people.

[tv star collector]

Originally Posted by annball1957

My favorites, which have already been listed are:

The Twilight Zone
Lost In Space
The Outer Limits
Night Gallery
Kolchak - The Night Stalker
One Step Beyond
Alfred Hitchcock Presents


Off hand I can't remember Thriller, what was it about?

Thriller was an anthology series on NBC (1960-1962), hosted by none
other than the late, great Boris Karloff (who also appeared in at least
six episodes). I haven't seen it since it originally aired, but I remember my
mother and I watched it every week. A pretty cool show. Judging by the
entries on your list, you probably would like it. As I recall, it was much
like the shows hosted by Rod Serling and Alfred Hitchcock and other series
of the horror/sci-fi/fantasy genre.

In the book Fantastic Television, by Gary Gerani & Paul Schulman (1977),
executive producer Hubbell Robinson states, "The show simply did not have
enough time to find its identity." It was cancelled after only two seasons.
Robinson believes it was because of "its hazy, uncertain image." There were
basically two types of stories: "the bone-chilling horror story with supernatural
overtones and the violent, fast-paced crime melodrama." Thus, it proved to be
an uneven series. "The mixing of horror and crime episodes," writes Gerani, "was
an unsuccessful formula. A realistic little heist could not chill the blood of a horror
fan and crime lovers simply did not find fantastic horror tales credible." Therefore,
the show was unable to maintain a consistent image and couldn't hold its audience
from week to week. Ratings suffered. Still, there were some standout episodes:
"Waxworks," "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper," "The Devil's Ticket," "The Weird
Taylor," and especially "The Cheaters" (all penned by Hitchcock scribe Robert Bloch).
If you can find it, I think it's worth a look. I know I'd like to see it again.

[Zoneboy]

Originally Posted by tv star collector

Thriller was an anthology series on NBC (1960-1962), hosted by none
other than the late, great Boris Karloff (who also appeared in at least
six episodes). I haven't seen it since it originally aired, but I remember my
mother and I watched it every week. Very cool show.

Karloff also hosted as well as starred in another anthology series called The Veil. 10 episodes were filmed but the series never aired. The entire collection can probably still be found in the Wal-Mart bargain bin for $5.50 which is where I got mine. It's a two-disc set and the quality is very good. You can also find it on Amazon or eBay.