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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Planet Of The Lost

Jason Of Star CommandAllegra finds crystals on the surface of the asteroid where she, Jason and Nicole have taken refuge, but the two officers from Star Command are unimpressed with her find, as well as her insistence on being treated as royalty. When a giant insectoid monster attacks out of nowhere, Jason leads it away from his friends and drives it away by triggering an avalanche. Dragos’ space fighters accost Wiki in deep space, preventing the tiny robot from reaching Space Academy; fortunately, Wiki is close enough to its goal that the Academy helps him break free. Professor Parsafoot recovers the stranded space heroes, but Dragos intercepts them yet again. Jason has no choice but to send Allegra home via the Starfire’s escape pod, while the crew of Star Command find yet another planetoid on which to elude Dragos.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Samuel A. Peeples
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), Roseanne Katon (Allegra)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Marooned In Time

Jason Of Star CommandJason’s latest planetoid hiding place seems to be a time warp – characters from Earth’s distant past appear and disappear when the Starfire first lands. But Jason, Nicole and Parsafoot are soon captured by a man claiming to be treasure-hungry pirate Captain Kidd, who takes Wiki to help him find a treasure Dragos has left on this world. Typically for Dragos, the treasure turns out to be a trap – but despite the danger, the loot is needed to power up Jason’s Starfire.

Order this series on DVDwritten by David Villaire
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), Brendan Dillon (Captain Kidd)

Notes: Planets in Jason’s universe seem terribly prone to exploding.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Attack Of The Dragons

Jason Of Star CommandDragos spawns an electron storm in space, leaving Jason’s just-launched Starfire to be buffeted in the deep space equivalent of choppy waters. But with Captain Kidd aboard, Jason is able to pit the wits of one pirate against another (since Kidd is of the opinion that Dragos is little more than another scurvy dog of the high seas). Dragos dispatches all of his firepower to attack Space Academy, leaving himself open to attack from Jason himself. But can the Academy withstand the attack while Jason goes after Dragos?

Order this series on DVDwritten by Don Heckman
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), Brendan Dillon (Captain Kidd)

Notes: There’s no small irony in the scene of Commander Canarvin demanding quicker results from Space Academy’s engine room (since Canarvin actor James Doohan was often on the receiving end of such demands in Star Trek). The voices of Dragos’ fighter pilots are, in fact, the heavily-processed voice of Filmation honcho Lou Scheimer.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Peepo’s Last Chance

Jason Of Star CommandDragos discovers Wiki and Peepo conducting a defense survey on the planet Arcturon, and sends his minions to capture them. When the robots fail to check in with Star Command on time, Jason and Nicole go to Arcturon to investigate. When Peepo realizes that Dragos’ henchmen plan to reprogram him, he sends Wiki for help, but it powerless to prevent Dragos from extracting the coordinates of Space Academy from his memory banks. Jason leads Dragos’ henchmen on a chase while Nicole frees Peepo, unaware that Peepo has been completely reprogrammed.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Don Heckman
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin)

Notes: Aside from the appearance of Space Academy itself in nearly every episode, this is the only episode to deliver on the intriguing notion that Space Academy and Jason Of Star Command take place in the same universe, with both sets of characters potentially existing side-by-side. Peepo was seen throughout Space Academy.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

The Disappearing Man

Jason Of Star CommandA Seeker spacecraft appears out of nowhere near Space Academy and disappears again, reappearing moments later in the landing bay. Jason and friends record strange sounds aboard the empty Seeker, but when played back at a slow speed, the strange sounds turn out to be the voice of missing Space Academy cadet Matt Prentiss, who has been missing for a year. Professor Parsafoot devises a way to speed Jason up into the same “time dimension” as Prentiss, but after Jason finds the missing cadet and returns him to normal time, the device malfunctions, stranding Jason.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Sid Morse
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), John Berwick (Lt. Matt Prentiss)

Notes: Matt Prentiss is the only human character to carry over to Jason Of Star Command from Space Academy (original plans called for Commander Gampu to give Jason his orders, but a dispute with actor Jonathan Harris over merchandising royalties short-circuited the producers’ plans for such major continuity elements). He previously appeared in the Space Academy episode The Cheat. This episode shares many conceptual similarities with the Star Trek episode Wink Of An Eye – but to give credit where it is due, Jason figures the mystery of the mosquito-like voices much faster than Kirk does! In line with the notion that five years of his life have passed in the year that he has been missing, Prentiss’ hair has greyed (despite the fact that he still appears to be in his twenties).

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Star Wars TV Specials

The Star Wars Holiday Special

Star WarsOn the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, Chewbacca’s family awaits his return for the yearly celebration of Life Day. But when he doesn’t arrive on time, they assume the worst and begin secretly contacting members of the Rebel Alliance, including Luke and Leia. Chewie’s wife Malla, his father Itchy, and his son Lumpy begin to fear the worst when the Empire blockades Kashyyyk and stormtroopers begin to search residences. Han and Chewie must battle their way through the blockade, not only to reach Chewie’s family in time for Life Day, but to save them from Imperial troops that could uncover their secret connection to the Rebels.

Cartoon: Han and Chewie return from a mission to recover a magical talisman, but they make no contact with base – and overshoot the rendezvous point at high speed, crash-landing the Falcon on a watery world. Luke and the droids give chase in a Y-wing, also crashing on the planet. Their ship falls victim to a hungry sea creature, but they are rescued by an humanoid, covered from head to toe in armor, who identifies himself as Boba Fett. He leads them to the Falcon, where Han has fallen victim to a “sleeping virus” – and Luke soon succumbs as well. Boba Fett offers to steal the antidote from a nearby Imperial base, but Chewie is suspicious and insists on accompanying the Rebels’ new benefactor. While Boba Fett and Chewie are breaking into the Empire’s stronghold, Threepio and Artoo eavesdrop on a message from Darth Vader – a message intended for Vader’s hired gun, the bounty hunter known as Boba Fett.

written by Rod Warren, Bruce Vilanch, Pat Proft, Leonard Ripps and Mitzie Welch
directed by Steve Binder
music by Ian Fraser
songs by Mitzie Welch and Ken Welch

Cast: Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), James Earl Jones (voice of Darth Vader), Beatrice Arthur (Aknina), Art Carney (Sundan), Harvey Korman (Video chef/Morphian host/Krelman), Diahann Carroll (Hologram singer), Jefferson Starship (Hologram band), Mickey Morton (Malla), Paul Gale (Itchy), Patty Maloney (Lumpy), Jack Rader (Imperial officer), Stephaine Stromer (Imperial officer), Michael Potter (Imperial officer), The Wazzan Troupe (Hologram performers), Yuichi Sugiyama (?), The Mum Brothers (?), Claude Woolman (?), Lev Mailer (?), John McLaughlin (?)

Appearing in footage from Star Wars: David Prowse (Darth Vader), Alec Guiness (Obi-Wan Kenobi)

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

The Haunted Planet

Jason Of Star CommandJason’s Starfire vehicle is in trouble: its atomic power source is seconds away from going critical. He’s forced to land on a nearby planet and abandon the Starfire before it explodes, unaware that someone on that planet is the cause of the problem. A hooded man named Bork emerges, informing Jason and friends that they are now prisoners of Queen Vanessa. And she seems to be in no hurry to let them go.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Ted Pedersen & Martha Humphreys
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), Julie Newmar (Queen Vanessa), Angelo Rossitto (Bork)

Notes: Julie Newmar had appeared in the 1960s Batman series as Catwoman, as well as guest starring in the original Star Trek.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Escape From Kesh

Jason Of Star CommandUpon learning that Queen Vanessa of Kesh has captured him on behalf of Dragos, Jason resorts to extreme measures to escape, including the use of a miniaturization device that’s almost more trouble than it’s worth. Once he masters its use, he breaks Nicole and Professor Parsifoot out as well, and to their amazement, an intact Starfire awaits them outside…all part of Queen Vanessa’s latest trap.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Chuck Menville
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin), Julie Newmar (Queen Vanessa), Angelo Rossitto (Bork)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Amazing Spider-Man Season 2

The Con Caper

Amazing Spider-Man (1970s series)Politician James Colbert is released from jail after serving time for violating campaign finance laws, and is greeted by his old friend (and campaign cohort) Rita Conway, who is now J. Jonah Jameson’s assistant at the Daily Bugle. She has managed to talk Jameson into meeting with Colbert, who has emerged from his sentence with a fresh zeal for prison reform, though Jameson is reluctant to give any preferential column space to Colbert’s new agenda. Almost immediately, however, a riot breaks out at the prison, and the convicts gain the upper hand over the guards. Colbert insists on negotiating with the two prisoners behind the riots, Kates and McTieg. He manages to bring the hostage situation to a bloodless end, but only after Spider-Man has already made his first appearance to capture one of the more violent prisoners trying to escape. Peter, assigned to cover the ongoing story, narrowly avoids an exploding bomb planted on the door of his apartment moments after Colbert calls to invite him to cover a concert given by Rita at the prison. Peter proceeds to the prison in the guide of Spider-Man, just in time to see Kates and McTieg escape under the cover of an explosion during the concert. Peter thinks that the escapes convicts and Colbert are plotting something that requires the three of them to be outside the prison walls – and whatever it is, Spider-Man will likely be the one who has to stop it.

teleplay by Gregory S. Dinallo
story by Brian McKay
directed by Tom Blank
music by Dana Kaproff

Amazing Spider-ManCast: Nicholas Hammond (Peter Parker / Spider-Man), Robert F. Simon (J. Jonah Jameson), Chip Fields (Rita Conway), Ellen Bry (Julie Masters), William Smithers (James Colbert), Ramon Bieri (Kates), Andrew Robinson (McTieg), W.T. Zacha (Big Time), Paul Wexler (Prison Guard), Pat Corley (IFMM Receptionist), Fred Downs (Warden Ford)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Return Of The Creature

Jason Of Star CommandDelivered to Dragos by Queen Vanessa, Jason again makes escape and survival his first order of business. Unfortunately, Dragos has already extracted information on Star Command’s weaknesses from Peepo’s memory banks and has launched an attack, lowering Star Command’s shielding as a galactic typhoon approaches its position.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Len Janson
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Peepo On Trial

Jason Of Star CommandRocketing home to Star Command in the escape pod from his captured Starfire, Jason brings Peepo, Nicole and Professor Parsifoot yet. Jason and friends immediately set about solving the crisis at hand, of accelerating Star Command safely through the galactic typhoon, but no one is watching as Peepo – reprogrammed to continue obeying commands from Dragos – begins sabotaging Star Command.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Chuck Menville
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin)

Notes: Commander Canarvin refers to Star Command and Space Academy interchangeably. After several tense minutes of preparing to break into the control room and then breaking into the control room, Commander Canarvin punches a button, calls the engine room, and orders the engines turned back on. (Couldn’t he have done that from any other communications terminal in Star Command?) The quality of the “galactic typhoon” effects are far above average for American television science fiction of this era.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

The Trojan Horse

Jason Of Star CommandStar Command barely survived its passage through the galactic typhoon, but knowing that Dragos will be expecting to find debris, Jason plans to give the self-proclaimed master of the cosmos just what he wants: flotsam in which Jason is waiting to infiltrate Drago’s ship and take over. After capturing Dragos, Jason signals Star Command: Dragos’ reign of terror is over. But Dragos has another surprise up his sleeve, and Jason’s delcaration of victory is slightly premature.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Ted Pedersen & Martha Humphreys
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin)

Notes: Spoiler alert – when the next episode is titled Victory Of Star Command, maybe a good idea would be not revealing that title in the trail for the next episode. Because now we know who wins.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Jason Of Star Command Season 1

Victory Of Star Command

Jason Of Star CommandSurrounded by energy clones of Dragos, Jason and Nicole have to outthink their enemy. Dragos believes they’re both trying to escape, but Jason stays behind and hides to sabotage Dragos’ ship from within and face him in a final battle. Dragos’ unmanned drone ships launch an all-out attack on Star Command, and Star Command drains its energy reserves putting up a fierce fight. It’s now up to Jason to defeat Dragos before any further damage is inflicted, but Dragos isn’t giving up without an escape plan.

Order this series on DVDwritten by Don Heckman
directed by Arthur H. Nadel
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Jason Of Star CommandCast: Craig Littler (Jason), Sid Haig (Dragos), Susan O’Hanlon (Capt. Nicole Davidoff), Charlie Dell (Prof. E.J. Parsafoot), James Doohan (Commander Canarvin)

Notes: The fairly impressive space battle scenes reveal that Star Command/Space Academy can defend itself quite adequately. This brings the first season of Jason Of Star Command to a close. Where these short episodes, averaging 11 minutes each, shared a broadcast time slot with Tarzan and the Super 7, the next season would expand Jason’s adventures to a full half-hour time slot with new stories and new cast members. James Doohan would not return for that second season, returning instead to his post aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise for Star Trek: The Motion Picture (though he’d keep Commander Canarvin’s moustache even after re-enlisting with Starfleet).

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Captain America

Captain America

Captain AmericaRecently retired Marine Steve Rogers is celebrating civilian life on the road, until he receives a phone call summoning him to the lab of Dr. Simon Mills, who has taken up Steve’s father work on a super-strength hormone called FLAG (Full Latent Ability Gain). Steve’s father is the only person who has ever received FLAG without dying from the strength and abilities it imparts to any other test subject, and Dr. Mills hopes that Steve will submit to tests to see if he, too, can survive FLAG. He refuses, but when someone murders one of Steve’s late father’s colleagues, he realizes that others with less honorable intentions are also trying to discover what he knows about FLAG, and goes on the run. A crippling motorcycle “accident” arranged by his pursuers leaves Steve Rogers with no choice but to become a test subject for FLAG.

As he weighs the decision of whether or not to assume the crime-fighting mantle of his father, who was jokingly known as “Captain America”, Steve finds that his pursuers will never give up until they kill him or he brings them to justice. But the man employing them has bigger ideas: detonating a neutron bomb in one of the most heavily populated parts of the United States. Armed with a bulletproof shield, a jet-powered motorcycle, and a special suit of armor, the new Captain America now has no choice but to swing into action.

Download this episode via Amazonteleplay by Don Ingalls
story by Don Ingalls and Chester Krumholz
directed by Rod Holcomb
music by Mike Post & Jeff Carpenter

Captain AmericaCast: Reb Brown (Steve Rogers / Captain America), Len Birman (Dr. Simon Mills), Heather Menzies (Dr. Wendy Day), Robin Mattson (Tina Haden), Joseph Ruskin (Rudy Sandrini), Lance LeGault (Harley), Frank Marth (Charles Barber), Steve Forrest (Lou Brackett), Chip Johnson (Jerry), James Ingersoll (Lester Wiant), Jim B. Smith (FBI Assistant), Jason Wingreen (Surgeon), June Dayton (Secretary), Diana Webster (Nurse), Dan Barton (Jeff Haden), Ken Chandler (1st Doctor), Buster Jones (Anesthetist)

Captain AmericaNotes: This was an attempt to pilot a Captain America series, the latest Marvel superhero to go to live-action TV after the short-lived Amazing Spider-Man series (1977-78) and the Incredible Hulk series launched the previous year; as with Amazing Spider-Man, Stan Lee is credited as a consultant. Having gone to the Marvel well once with underwhelming results with Amazing Spider-Man, CBS green-lit not a series, but a second (and final) TV movie based on the ratings achieved by this movie; no series resulted. Heather Menzies had previously starred in the TV adaptation of Logan’s Run in 1977, also on CBS.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Time Express

The Garbage Man and the Doctor’s Wife

SearchPassengers book tickets aboard a seemingly antique train called the Time Express, unsure of what to expect, arriving at a gate at a train station shrouded in mystery. An elderly couple, Jason and Maggie Winters, greet them aboard the train and remind them of the rules: they can relive the past, or even change it, but they must return to the present aboard the train at the end of their experience. Millionaire Edward Chernoff boards the train, not to change his fortune but to change how he used it, while a doctor whose young wife needs a bone marrow transplant must go back in time to find her birth family, as her adoptive parents don’t match her as donors.

written by Gerald Sanford
directed by Arnold Laven
music by Richard Hazard

Time ExpressCast: Vincent Price (Jason Winters), Coral Browne (Maggie Winters), Woodrow Palfrey (Ticket Agent), William Edward Phipps (E. Patrick Callahan), James Reynolds (R.J. Walker), James MacArthur (Dr. Mark Toland), Jerry Stiller (Edward Chernoff), Pamela Toll (Olivia Toland), Michael Conrad (Sullivan), Alan Sues (Bank Manager), Anne Meara (Gloria Chernoff), Doris Dowling (Sister Bertelli), John de Lancie (John Clayton), Eldon Quick (Niles), Jan Clayton (First Nun), Del Monroe (First Gangster), Richard Angarola (Mr. Durant), Don Keefer (Jim Fraser), Wallace Earl Laven (Virginia Fraser), Bob Delegall (Dr. Samuels), Gay Rowan (Sister Allison), Melvin F. Allen (Mel), Buck Young (Police Clerk), Michael Laurence (First Reporter), Charles Rowe (Second Reporter), John Berwick (Nick), Dar Robinson (Lou), Karen Fredrik (Debbie Clayton)

Time ExpressNotes: If NBC‘s Supertrain was “The Love Boat on a futuristic train”, Time Express on CBS was “Fantasy Island on a time-traveling train”. Veteran Hollywood writers Ivan Goff (1910-1999) and Ben Roberts (1916-1984), who had been working together since the 1940s, had written such screenplays as The Man Of A Thousand Faces and Portrait In Black, then went on to create the successful TV series Charlie’s Angels in 1976. CBS had previously tapped them as the head writers on the short-lived TV adaptation Logan’s Run. Time Express would last only four episodes on CBS’ schedule. John de Time ExpressLancie, long before he became Star Trek’s Q, had already appeared in The Six Million Dollar Man and Battlestar Galactica, among others, at this very early stage in his career, while Gay Rowan had been one of the “three young people” (according to the opening narration) trying to discover the destination of The Starlost in the early 1970s.

LogBook entry by Earl Green