Supertrain has already hosted royalty, but Harry Flood is especially on edge as he tries to whip his crew into shape ahead of President William Phillips boarding for a cross-country, election-night trip. But despite the presence of the Secret Service, security is still not tight enough – a lookalike swaps places with Phillips, and begins wooing the first lady. After just one night, however, she’s picked up on the different between the man she’s been with and her uptight, always-in-campaign-mode husband. But is she inclined to warn the authorities about what’s happened?
written by Robert I. Holt
directed by Barry Crane
music by Bob Cobert
Cast: Edward Andrews (Harry Flood), Patrick Collins (David Noonan), Harrison Page (George Boone), Robert Alda (Dr. Lewis), Nita Talbot (Rose Casey), Aarika Wells (Gilda), William Nuckols (Wally), Michael DeLano (Lou Atkins), Charlie Brill (Robert), Loretta Swit (Alice Phillips), Scott Brady (Forbes), Victor Buono (Misto), Roy Thinnes (William Phillips / Eddy Barnes), Billy Barty (Mick), Joe Gieb (Mack), Michael Minor (Passenger), Woody Eney (Passenger), John Shubeck (himself), Kelly Lange (herself), Warren Olney (himself)
Notes: Unusually, Supertrain uses real NBC news reporters in a fictional setting, a practice that always raises discussion among employees and management of a news operation. It’s worth noting that Supertrain was the pet project of NBC’s then-president and CEO, Fred Silverman, who likely had the clout to overcome any such objections from within NBC News. Victor Buono (1938-1982) had recently appeared as the recurring villain, Mr. Schubert, on Man From Atlantis, but may still be best known to genre audiences at King Tut, one of the villains who made Batman‘s 1960s TV life difficult. Loretta Swit was yet another M*A*S*H veteran appearing on Supertrain, though here it was a side gig, as she was still playing Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on that long-running sitcom. Supertrain!
LogBook entry by Earl Green
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