1.
ALF (TV series)
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ALF is an American science fiction sitcom that aired on NBC from September 22,1986 to March 24,1990. It was the first television series to be presented in Dolby Surround, the title character is Gordon Shumway, a friendly extraterrestrial nicknamed ALF, who crash lands in the garage of the suburban middle-class Tanner family. The series stars Max Wright as father Willie Tanner, Anne Schedeen as mother Kate Tanner, ALF was performed by puppeteer/creator Paul Fusco. Produced by Alien Productions, ALF originally ran for four seasons and produced 99 episodes, the revival series will premiere on Freeform in September 2017. ALF is an alien from the planet Melmac who follows a radio signal to Earth. The Tanners are a suburban family in the San Fernando Valley area of California. The family consists of social worker Willie, his wife Kate, their teenage daughter Lynn, younger son Brian, and their cat Lucky. Unsure what to do, the Tanners take ALF into their home and hide him from the Alien Task Force and their nosy neighbors Trevor and Raquel Ochmonek and he generally hides in the kitchen. It is eventually revealed that ALFs home planet Melmac exploded because of a catastrophe involving a nuclear war, ALF was off the planet when it was destroyed because he was part of the Melmac Orbit Guard. ALF is homeless, but he is not the last survivor of his species and he becomes a permanent member of the family, although his culture shock, survivor guilt, general boredom, despair, and loneliness frequently cause difficulty for the Tanners. ALF then shows Willie exactly where Dave is on a map of the universe. Gordon Shumway is a Melmacian nicknamed ALF by Willie Tanner in the pilot episode, ALF was born on October 28,1756 on the Lower East Side of the planet Melmac. Melmac was located six parsecs past the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster, and had a sky, blue grass. The commonly-used currency is a Wernick, which is equal to 10 American dollars, ALFs body is covered with fur and he has a rippled snout, facial moles and eight stomachs. His heart is located in his right ear. He likes to burp and eat cats, and can whistle without opening his mouth and he had a best friend on his home planet named Malhar Naik. He has friends named Skip, Rick, Stella, and a girlfriend named Rhonda and he attended high school for 122 years and was captain of a Bouillabaisseball team, a game played on ice using seafood as a ball. However, if things have gone too far, he does as much as possible to make up for his mistakes, in the episode Its Not Easy Bein
2.
ALF: The Animated Series
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ALF Tales was a spin-off from the series that also ran on NBC on Saturdays from September 1988 to December 1989. This show is a prequel to the live action sitcom ALF, depicting ALFs life back on his planet of Melmac. Since the name ALF was a short for Alien Life Form and only given to Gordon Shumway later on Earth. ALF would always be referred to as Gordon, his name, or Gordo by his friends Rick. Much of the humor arises from the taking part in surrealistic activities while treating them as ordinary. For example, in order to prove their manhood and win their distinguished antlers, gordon/ALF from this series is one of the cartoon characters featured in Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue. Augie Shumway – Gordons little sister, voiced by Tabitha St.3 Two for the Brig – Gordon and Sergeant Staff end up going to prison after mistaking their ship for a vacation cruise liner. 4 Gordon Ships Out – Gordon, Rick, and Skip decide to pool their savings for a sailing yacht, but end up marooned on an island thanks to a Pit Termite that Skip names Woody. 6 Pismo and the Orbit Gyro – The Orbit Gyro needs its regular maintenance, but it results in its main operator, a robot named Pismo, having a few screws loose. 720,000 Years in Driving School – After getting Gooped on the highway, Gordon Shumway has his drivers license revoked,8 Pride of the Shumways – Gordon plays Bouillabaseball for the Orbit Guard, and a scout offers him a chance for the big leagues. Curtis Shumway, a little league player, realizes there is a shadowy purpose for his big brothers promotion to the majors. 9 Captain Bobaroo – A bump on the head has Bob Shumway thinking he is a Captain Kangaroo-esque TV show host,10 Neep at the Races –Gordon enters his dog Neep in a race at Appliance, but Snake, the bikie, wants his cut. Neep wins the race, but they have to use the prizemoney to pay for the bikies motorbikes which were trashed in the process,11 Salad Wars –Gordons family goes to Salad Dressing Town in their mobile home, where the boss wants a salad seed monopoly. The title is a parody of the movie by George Lucas,12 Tough Shrimp Dont Dance – Gordon Shumway must rescue an alien shrimp race called the Muklukians from Larson Petty – with some unlikely help from one of their own. 13 Home Away from Home – When his parents go to Polyester city for holidays,14 Flodust Memories – After being taken for granted at home, Flo Shumway is entered for Mom of the Millennium contest by Gordon and his siblings as atonement. Flo wins, but is her popularity becoming more important than her family,15 Family Feud – After losing to the Shumways on a noted game show, the Fustermans declare war on their former friends, and Gordon and Rick end up caught in the crossfire. Gordon and his sister Augie must then journey to find the real Goomer,18 The Bone Losers – All of Melmac, including Rhonda, is smitten with palaeontologist Prof. Egovurger and his Thesaurus. Gordon discovers dinosaur bones in his yard, and constructs a Tunadacyl, Egovurger cant stand the competition and plans to steal the bones
3.
The Jim Henson Company
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The Jim Henson Company is an American entertainment company, a leading producer of childrens and family entertainment, and best known as the creators of the renowned Muppets characters. Founded in 1958 by puppeteer Jim Henson and performing partner and wife Jane Henson, the company has also produced many films, including The Muppet Movie, The Dark Crystal, and Labyrinth. Henson also operates Jim Hensons Creature Shop, a puppet, animatronics, and visual effects workshop, in 1989, the company entered merger negotiations with The Walt Disney Company, but the deal fell through following Jim Hensons unexpected death in 1990. Following Hensons death and the calling off of the Disney merger, the company was taken over by Hensons children, Lisa, Cheryl, Brian, John, and Heather, with Brian at the helm. In 2000 Henson was sold to EM. TV & Merchandising AG, a German media company, but by the end of year, EM. TVs stock collapsed. In 2004, Henson sold the rights to the Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House to The Walt Disney Company, but retains the rights to the rest of its characters, program library, and assets. As of 2014, Brian, Lisa, Cheryl, and Heather Henson run the company, Brian Henson serves as chairman, while Lisa Henson serves as CEO. Since 2000, The Jim Henson Company has been headquartered at the Jim Henson Company Lot, Jim and Jane Henson officially founded Muppets, Inc. on November 20,1958, three years after Sam and Friends debuted on WRC-TV in Washington, D. C. In 1968, the company started creating characters and more than 20 short films for the childrens show Sesame Street. During this time the shows host, Jimmy Dean, turned down the opportunity to own forty percent of the company because he didnt feel that he had earned it. For many years, Jim Henson had tried to sell several different shows to the major American networks, some ideas were made as unaired pilots, and some were never produced. Then, in 1976, British media-mogul Lew Grade approached Jim Henson to produce a show based in England. The success of The Muppet Show led to movies, specials, videos. The British company ITC originally owned The Muppet Show, among other Henson productions, during the 1980s Jim Henson produced new television series such as Fraggle Rock and The Jim Henson Hour. In August 1989, Jim Henson and Disney CEO Michael Eisner announced a deal in which Henson would merge his company with The Walt Disney Company, the deal, reportedly valued at $150 million, also included a fifteen-year contract for Hensons personal creative services. On May 16,1990, while negotiating with Disney. Under the changed circumstances, the two sides could not come to an accord, negotiations officially ended in December 1990, and Henson would remain an independent company. The Henson family took over management of the company, and Brian Henson was named president, chairman, in 1995, Henson signed a deal with Capital Cities/ABC to produce primetime television series, a deal which led to Muppets Tonight and Aliens in the Family
4.
Dinosaurs (TV series)
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Dinosaurs is an American family sitcom comedy television series that was originally broadcast on ABC from April 26,1991 to July 20,1994. The characters were designed by Henson team member Kirk Thatcher, news stories written at the time of the shows premiere highlighted Dinosaurs connection to Jim Henson, an American puppeteer who died the year before. Jim Henson dreamed up the basic concept about three years ago, said a New York Times article in April 1991. He wanted it to be a sitcom with a pretty standard structure, with the biggest differences being that its a family of dinosaurs and their society has this strange toxic life style, said Brian Henson. But until The Simpsons took off, said Alex Rockwell, a president of the Henson organization. The television division of the Walt Disney Company began working on the series in 1990 for CBS before the series landed on ABC, Dinosaurs is initially set in 60,000,003 BC in Pangaea. The show centers on the Sinclair family, Earl Sinclair, Fran Sinclair, their three children and Frans mother, Ethyl. Earls job is to push over trees for the Wesayso Corporation with his friend, the focus of the shows plot is the Sinclair family, Earl, Fran, Robbie, Charlene, Baby, and Ethyl. Character and family throughout the series often referred to petroleum companies and/or petroleum products. For example, Sinclair, Phillips, Hess, B. P, the following characters are not in the Unisaurs category below, Outside of the recurring characters, there are a group of dinosaur characters called Unisaurs. They are customizable dinosaur characters similar to the Whatnots from The Muppet Show, some of the Unisaurs are Full-Bodied while the others are hand-puppets. In the episode I Never Ate For My Father, in lieu of carnivorism, Robbie chooses to eat vegetables, and the other characters liken this to communism, and drug abuse. In the final season, The Greatest Story Ever Sold even references religion when the Sinclair family becomes eager to learn the meaning of their existence, the Elders dictate a new system of beliefs, and the entire cast abandons science to blindly following the newly popular Potato-ism. Another religious-themed episode was The Last Temptation of Ethyl, in which Ethyl willingly allows a televangelist to exploit her near-death experience to extort money from followers. She backs out after having a second experience, where instead of heaven, she experiences a place not so nice. Several jokes in the series were at the expense of television shows in general, Earl often wants to watch TV rather than do something more practical, and several jokes accuse television of dumbing down the population and making it lazy. Captain Action Figure shows up in childrens programming that Fran mistakes for a commercial, whenever Captain Action Figure mentions a product, the screen flashes Tell Mommy I WANT THAT. Before the appearance of Georgie, Dinosaurs used a puppet highly reminiscent of Barney the Dinosaur named Blarney in two episodes, during his appearances, members of the Sinclair family commented on his annoying characteristics and failure to teach anything to children
5.
The Brady Bunch
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The Brady Bunch is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26,1969, to March 8,1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family with six children, considered one of the last of the old-style family sitcoms, the series aired for five seasons and, after its cancellation in 1974, went into syndication in September 1975. While the series was never a critical or ratings success during its run, it has since become a popular staple in syndication, especially among children. In 1995, the series was adapted into a satirical comedy film titled The Brady Bunch Movie. A second sequel, The Brady Bunch in the White House, in 1997, Getting Davy Jones was ranked number 37 on TV Guides 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time. He set to work on a script for a series tentatively titled Mine. Schwartz then developed the script to include three children for each parent, while Mike Brady is depicted as being a widower, Schwartz originally wanted the character of Carol Brady to have been a divorcée, but the network objected to this. A compromise was reached whereby Carols marital status was never directly revealed, Schwartz shopped the series to the big three television networks of the era. ABC, CBS, and NBC all liked the script, but each network wanted changes before they would commit to filming, nonetheless, the outstanding success of the United Artists film was a factor in ABCs decision to order episodes for the series. As the sets were built on Paramount Television stage 5, adjacent to the stage where H. R, filming of the pilot began on Friday, October 4,1968, and lasted eight days. Mike Brady, an architect with three sons, Greg, Peter, and Bobby, marries Carol Martin, who herself has three daughters, Marcia, Jan, and Cindy. The wife and daughters take the Brady surname, included in the blended family are Mikes live-in housekeeper, Alice Nelson, and the boys dog, Tiger. The setting is a large, suburban, two-story house designed by Mike, in the first season, awkward adjustments, accommodations, gender rivalries, and resentments inherent in blended families dominate the stories. In an early episode, Carol tells Bobby that the steps in their household lead to the second floor. Thereafter, the focus on typical preteen and teenaged adjustments such as sibling rivalry, puppy love, self image, character building. The regular cast appeared in a title sequence in which video head shots were arranged in a three-by-three grid. In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the opening title sequence ranked number eight on a list of TVs top-10 credits sequences. Robert Reed as Mike Brady Florence Henderson as Carol Brady Ann B and he is the owner of a local butcher shop
6.
The Goodies
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The Goodies are a trio of British comedians, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden, and Bill Oddie. They wrote for and performed in their eponymous surreal comedy show during the 1970s and early 1980s, combining sketches, the three actors met each other as undergraduates at Cambridge University, where Brooke-Taylor was studying law, Garden was studying medicine, and Oddie was studying English. Their contemporaries included Graham Chapman, John Cleese, and Eric Idle, who became members of Monty Python. Brooke-Taylor and Cleese studied together and swapped lecture notes as they were law students, but at different colleges within the university. All three Goodies became members of the Cambridge University Footlights Club, with Brooke-Taylor becoming president in 1963, and Garden succeeding him as president in 1964. Brooke-Taylor, Garden and Oddie were cast members of the 1960s BBC radio comedy show Im Sorry, Ill Read That Again, which also featured John Cleese, David Hatch and Jo Kendall, and lasted until 1973. Im Sorry, Ill Read That Again resulted from the 1963 Cambridge University Footlights Club revue A Clump of Plinths. After having its title changed to Cambridge Circus, the revue went on to play at West End in London, England, followed by a tour of New Zealand and Broadway in New York, US. They also took part in various TV shows with other people, Brooke-Taylor also took part in Marty. In 1968 Brooke-Taylor appeared with Cleese, Michael Palin and Graham Chapman in How to Irritate People, Garden and Oddie took part in Twice a Fortnight, before Brooke-Taylor, Garden, and Oddie worked on the late 1960s TV show Broaden Your Mind. The original BBC television series ran from November 1970 to February 1980 on BBC2, with 67 half-hour episodes, the series was created by Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie, and originally co-written by all three, with Oddie providing the music for the show. Later episodes were co-written by Garden and Oddie and it was one of the first shows in the UK to use chroma key and one of the first to use stop-motion techniques in a live action format. Other effects include hand editing for repeated movement, mainly used to make animals talk or sing, in the series, the threesome travelled around on, and frequently fell off, a three-seater bicycle called the trandem. Their opponents were three members of the cast of The Liver Birds, Nerys Hughes, Elizabeth Estensen and Michael Angelis. They also presented the Christmas 1976 edition of Disney Time from the toy department of Selfridges store in London, however, after one half-hour Christmas special in 1981, and a six-part series in early 1982, the series was cancelled. In later interviews the cast suggest the reasons were economic. A special episode, which was based on the original 1971 Goodies Kitten Kong episode, was called Kitten Kong, Montreux 72 Edition, the Goodies won the Silver Rose in 1972 for this special episode at the Festival Rose dOr, held in Montreux, Switzerland. In the first episode of the series, The New Office
7.
Cavemen (TV series)
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Cavemen is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from October 2 to November 13,2007. The show was created by Joe Lawson and set in San Diego, in the series, cavemen were never really fully supplanted by modern humans, but integrated into Homo sapiens civilization as a separate species sub-group. Cavemen are a small but widespread minority group that have been present in every global civilization since the dawn of recorded history, effectively, Cavemen form another ethnic minority in the modern world, which faces several prejudices from Homo sapiens. Although these cavemen self-identify as Cro-Magnon, their appearance and physical anatomy is reminiscent of the Neanderthal. Male Cavemen are very hairy, have long beards and wear their head-hair shoulder-length. A Cavewoman that appeared on the also had a prominent brow ridge. Some Cavemen attempt to pass as Homo sapiens by shaving their body hair - other Cavemen call them shavers, the central humor of the show is that Caveman characters are not brutish primitives, but fully integrated into white-collar jobs, the central Cavemen characters are effete modern city-dwellers. They must also endure racial epithets such as Magger, a pun based on Cro-Magnon, the series focuses on three Cavemen who are roommates that share a condo, Joel, his brother Andy, and their cynical and self-absorbed roommate Nick. According to producer Joe Lawson, the show was going to be set in Newport News, Virginia. The setting then changed to Atlanta, Georgia and finally San Diego, Joel – The responsible straight-man of the group, a successful assistant-manager at a fashionable Norwegian furniture store. In the pilot episode, Joel starts dating a Homo sapiens woman named Kate, Andy – Joels weak-willed and childish, though well-meaning, brother. Andy is very timid, but ironically he is prone to outbursts of rage when he is driving. Nick – Joel and Andys roommate, is metrosexual, cynical, self-absorbed, narcissistic, Nick has no real job, though he claims to be working on my dissertation, and tends to just mooch money off Joel. Nick doesnt actually spend much time writing his dissertation, and tends to just sit around watching TV, Kate – Joels Homo sapiens girlfriend whom he starts dating in the first episode. Joel is initially worried that she is embarrassed to tell her friends that she is dating a Caveman, nonetheless, Kate and Joel seem to have developed a stable relationship. Leslie – Kates eccentric mother is not on terms with her husband. Kates mother is also the landlord of the complex that Joel, Andy. A running gag is that in a parody of stereotypes of racism and she does not try intentionally to be racist and is embarrassed that she appears to think all Cavemen look the same, but nonetheless she does
8.
Atlanta, Georgia
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Atlanta is the capital of and the most populous city in the U. S. state of Georgia, with an estimated 2015 population of 463,878. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, home to 5,710,795 people, Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County, and a small portion of the city extends eastward into DeKalb County. In 1837, Atlanta was founded at the intersection of two lines, and the city rose from the ashes of the American Civil War to become a national center of commerce. Atlantas economy is considered diverse, with dominant sectors that include logistics, professional and business services, media operations, Atlanta has topographic features that include rolling hills and dense tree coverage. Revitalization of Atlantas neighborhoods, initially spurred by the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, has intensified in the 21st century, altering the demographics, politics. Prior to the arrival of European settlers in north Georgia, Creek Indians inhabited the area, standing Peachtree, a Creek village located where Peachtree Creek flows into the Chattahoochee River, was the closest Indian settlement to what is now Atlanta. As part of the removal of Native Americans from northern Georgia from 1802 to 1825, the Creek ceded the area in 1821. In 1836, the Georgia General Assembly voted to build the Western, the initial route was to run southward from Chattanooga to a terminus east of the Chattahoochee River, which would then be linked to Savannah. After engineers surveyed various possible locations for the terminus, the zero milepost was driven into the ground in what is now Five Points. A year later, the area around the milepost had developed into a settlement, first known as Terminus, and later as Thrasherville after a merchant who built homes. By 1842, the town had six buildings and 30 residents and was renamed Marthasville to honor the Governors daughter, later, J. Edgar Thomson, Chief Engineer of the Georgia Railroad, suggested the town be renamed Atlantica-Pacifica, which was shortened to Atlanta. The residents approved, and the town was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29,1847, by 1860, Atlantas population had grown to 9,554. During the American Civil War, the nexus of multiple railroads in Atlanta made the city a hub for the distribution of military supplies, in 1864, the Union Army moved southward following the capture of Chattanooga and began its invasion of north Georgia. On the next day, Mayor James Calhoun surrendered Atlanta to the Union Army, on November 11,1864, Sherman prepared for the Union Armys March to the Sea by ordering Atlanta to be burned to the ground, sparing only the citys churches and hospitals. After the Civil War ended in 1865, Atlanta was gradually rebuilt, due to the citys superior rail transportation network, the state capital was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta in 1868. In the 1880 Census, Atlanta surpassed Savannah as Georgias largest city, by 1885, the founding of the Georgia School of Technology and the citys black colleges had established Atlanta as a center for higher education. In 1895, Atlanta hosted the Cotton States and International Exposition, during the first decades of the 20th century, Atlanta experienced a period of unprecedented growth. In three decades time, Atlantas population tripled as the city expanded to include nearby streetcar suburbs
9.
GEICO
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The Government Employees Insurance Company is an American auto insurance company headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland. It is the second largest auto insurer in the United States and it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway that as of 2015 provided coverage for more than 22 million motor vehicles owned by more than 14 million policy holders. GEICO writes private passenger automobile insurance in all 50 U. S. states, GEICO sells its policies through local agents, called GEICO Field Representatives, and over the phone directly to the consumer, and through their website. Its mascot is a gold dust day gecko with a Cockney accent, GEICO is well known in popular culture for its advertising, having made a large number of commercials intended to entertain viewers. GEICO was founded in 1936 by Leo Goodwin Sr. and his wife Lillian Goodwin to provide insurance directly to federal government employees. Despite the presence of the government in its name, GEICO has always been a private corporation not affiliated with any government organization. An important figure in GEICOs history is David Lloyd Kreeger, who became president of the company in 1964, in 1948, he formed a group of investors who bought into GEICO right before it went public that year. He became senior vice president and general counsel of the company, six years after becoming president of GEICO in 1964, he was named chairman and chief executive officer. He retained those titles until he retired in 1975 and he continued as chairman of the executive committee until 1979, when he was named honorary chairman. S. auto insurer. By 1975, it was clear that GEICO had expanded far too rapidly when it reported a $126.5 million loss. To prevent GEICO from collapsing, a consortium of 45 insurance companies agreed to take over a quarter of its policies and it took five years and a massive reorganization to set GEICO on the path to recovery. GEICO has also offered other types of insurance besides auto, including homeowners insurance from 1962 to 1996, a sister company, the Government Employees Life Insurance Company, offered life insurance from 1975 to 1985. In 1996, after years as a publicly traded firm. GEICO generally deals directly with consumers via telephone and internet, however, GEICO is now the second largest writer of private auto insurance in the United States. The policy, which is issued through GEICOs commercial department, has received praise from insurance experts, in 2016, J. D. Power rated the company #20 out of 24 for overall purchase experience, with a 2/5 score. Presidential candidate Donald Trump called for a boycott of the company, GEICO has many well-known ad campaigns. In 2012 GEICO spent over $1.1 billion in advertising, all are made and produced by The Martin Agency, which is based in Richmond, Virginia. GEICO ads have featured several well-known mascots, including, The GEICO Gecko is the most prevalent spokesperson mascot, Maxwell, the GEICO Piggy who shouts a long Whee and appears in more radio and TV commercials
10.
Cleopatra 2525
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Cleopatra 2525 is an American science fiction television series that aired in syndication for two seasons, from January 2000 to March 2001. Produced by Renaissance Pictures and distributed by Universal Television, many stations aired it as part of the Back2Back Action Hour, when complications arise during her breast augmentation surgery, 20th-century exotic dancer Cleo is put into suspended animation. Waking 525 years in the future, Cleo joins two women in their fight against the Baileys, armed flying machines who now control Earths surface. Her team leader, Hel, is commanded by a female entity called Voice. Voice controls many other teams and gives them their orders in a fashion, in effect, forming a resistance to the Baileys. Their final team member is Sarge, whose sister belongs to a cult that regards the Baileys with reverence, humanity has moved underground and built a complex of elaborate shafts and tunnels created by the shaft builders to survive the Bailey menace. Cleo wows the 26th century denizens with her philosophical sayings and his methods are massively destructive and he is the teams most frequent enemy. Hel has a stake in bringing him to justice, as hes responsible for her familys death. His unusual taste in clothing – dressing like a circus clown. He is actually Dr. George Bailey, the creator of the Baileys, hes still in love with Voice but his psyche has completely snapped. He didnt program the Baileys to betray humanity, but agrees with his creations logic, raina, A dangerous psychic and former Voice team member. Though she only appears in three episodes she is considered one of the more memorable villains and her favorite trick was to make people see friends as enemies and vice versa. The girls disarmed her powers the first time around, but this drove her to come after them again in an effort to regain her powers by having an implant chip embedded in her brain, Baileys, The Bailey units are enormous, heavily weaponized flying robots. They have taken over the surface, forcing humans underground and they will usually attack humans on sight. Their name comes from Dr. George Bailey, their creator, Baileys were created as an environmental clean up system, before they determined that humanity was the cause of the Earths problems. Cleopatra once developed a connection with a Bailey and tried to use it to the teams advantage. Betrayers, Betrayers are dangerous robotic enforcers who kidnap people, assimilate their every detail and they are emotionless, relentless and are capable of sustaining massive damage. Guns are built into their arms, their eyes fire optical blasts, they can regenerate and they also possess their human counterparts memories
11.
Come Back Mrs. Noah
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Come Back Mrs. Noah is a British sitcom starring Mollie Sugden that aired on BBC1 from 17 July to 14 August 1978 with a pilot broadcast on 13 December 1977. It was written by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft, who had also written Are You Being Served, joke banter was recycled from other series, and outrageously strange props were used. Come Back Mrs Noah was not a success, with some regarding it as one of the worst British sitcoms ever made, in the pilot episode, the craft is accidentally sent blasting off into space with Mrs Noah and a small crew on it. The series then centres on efforts to bring Mrs Noah back to Earth, the news bulletins on Earth, read by Gorden Kaye, revealed countries like the United States and Germany had to turn to Britain, the most successful nation on Earth, for help. After a failed effort to nudge the craft into the Earths atmosphere, the series concluded with Mrs. Noah, come Back Mrs Noah was also shown in the Netherlands, starting on 30 June 1979. It was also aired in Australia and on public television stations in the United States
12.
Evil Con Carne
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Evil Con Carne is an American animated series/spin-off of Grim & Evil and sister show of The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, created by Maxwell Atoms. The series first appeared on Cartoon Network during the show Grim & Evil, the two series later became separate programs in 2003. While The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy ran for six seasons, Evil Con Carne only ran fourteen episodes and it was also part of Cartoon Networks series, Cartoon Cartoons, and is the 15th and final cartoon of the series. An official series finale, titled Company Halt, aired on March 16,2007, on April 13,2012, the series returned to Cartoon Network in reruns on the revived block, Cartoon Planet. Hector Con Carne was a playboy crime lord and evil genius bent on taking over the world. Eventually, he was caught in an explosion initiated by his nemesis, Cod Commando, the explosion scattered most of his body across the world. He was rescued by a scientist, the curvaceous Major Dr. Ghastly and these two units were later installed into Boskov, a purple Russian circus bear, giving Con Carnes brain control over all of the bears actions and movements. Hector, Dr. Ghastly and his leader, General Skarr. Gathering an army, Con Carne resumed his quest for world domination and made a new goal, the Con Carne of the title is Spanish/Italian for with meat, as well as a pun on the expression evil incarnate and the dish Chili con carne. Hector Con Carne, the character and the antihero. He was a dynamic, evil playboy type with a soft Mexican accent, but was reduced to an anthropomorphic brain, somehow, the stomach has taken on a life of its own. He is often frustrated by the difficulty of taking over the world in its current state and it has also been revealed that in Bring Me the Face of Hector Con Carne that, before his body exploded, his face was not shown on screen. Major Dr. Ghastly, A mad scientist, Ghastly is the brains behind all Hectors plans and she does not really seem to be intent on taking over the world, she is more interested in inventing things and getting closer to Hector. General Skarr, Con Carnes paramilitary leader and he is a cold-hearted, hateful and harsh man, with a scar on his face, and one eye. He tends to be more evil than Con Carne himself, many times trying to overthrow his leader and he has made several appearances on The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, as Billys next door neighbor. He has also starred in the Billy & Mandy spin-off, Underfist and it has been stated that he quit working for Hector Con Carne after they were bought out by the cartoon industry because they didnt want the competition in world domination. Boskov, A former Russian circus bear, Boskov carries Con Carnes brain and he is sometimes difficult to control due to his animal instincts and lack of intelligence. Stomach, This former stomach of Hector Con Carne will only talk if its about food and he is an extremely talented anthropomorphic codfish secret agent/superhero in SPORK, who only speaks in gibberish
13.
Futurama
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Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series was envisioned by Groening in the mid-1990s while working on The Simpsons, he later brought David X. Cohen aboard to develop storylines and characters to pitch the show to Fox. In the United States, the series aired on Fox from March 28,1999, to August 10,2003, Futurama also aired in reruns on Cartoon Networks Adult Swim from 2002 to 2007, until the networks contract expired. It was revived in 2007 as four direct-to-video films, the last of which was released in early 2009, Comedy Central entered into an agreement with 20th Century Fox Television to syndicate the existing episodes and air the films as 16 new, half-hour episodes, constituting a fifth season. In June 2009, producing studio 20th Century Fox announced that Comedy Central had picked up the show for 26 new half-hour episodes, the show was renewed for a seventh season, with the first half airing in June 2012 and the second set for mid-2013. It was later revealed that the season would be the final season. The series finale aired on September 4,2013, while Groening has said he will try to get it picked up by another network, David X. Cohen stated that the episode Meanwhile would be the last episode of season 7 and also the series finale. Throughout its run, Futurama has received critical acclaim, the show has been nominated for 17 Annie Awards and 12 Emmy Awards, winning seven of the former and six of the latter. Futurama-related merchandise has also released, including a tie-in comic book series and video game, calendars. In 2013, TV Guide ranked Futurama as one of the top 60 Greatest TV Cartoons of All Time, Fox expressed a strong desire in the mid-1990s for Matt Groening to create a new series, and he began conceiving Futurama during this period. In 1996, he enlisted David X. Cohen, then a writer and producer for The Simpsons, the two spent time researching science fiction books, television shows, and films. When they pitched the series to Fox in April 1998, Groening and Cohen had composed many characters and story lines, Groening described trying to get the show on the air as by far the worst experience of my grown-up life. With The Simpsons the network has no input, Fox was particularly disturbed by the concept of suicide booths, Doctor Zoidberg, and Benders anti-social behavior. Groening explains, When they tried to give me notes on Futurama, I just said, and they said, Well, we dont do business that way anymore. And I said, Oh, well, thats the only way I do business, the episode I, Roommate was produced to address Foxs concerns, with the script written to their specifications. Fox strongly disliked the episode, but after negotiations, Groening received the same independence with Futurama, the name Futurama comes from a pavilion at the 1939 New York Worlds Fair. Designed by Norman Bel Geddes, the Futurama pavilion depicted how he imagined the world would look in 1959, many other titles were considered for the series, including Aloha, Mars. and Doomsville, which Groening notes were resoundly rejected, by everyone concerned with it. It takes approximately six to nine months to produce an episode of Futurama, the long production time results in several episodes being worked on simultaneously
14.
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
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Garth Marenghis Darkplace is a British horror parody television series created for Channel 4 by Richard Ayoade and Matthew Holness. The show focuses on fictional horror author Garth Marenghi and his publisher Dean Learner, Darkplace is presented as a lost classic, a television series produced in the 1980s, though never broadcast at the time. The presentation features commentary from many of the original cast, where such as Marenghi. Darkplace was broadcast in a timeslot, with very little advertising. It nonetheless built up a significant internet following, leading Channel 4 to repeat the series, in 2005, it was reported that Channel 4s Film Four had asked Holness and Ayoade to write a script for a movie version of their programme. The show was later broadcast in the United States on the Sci-Fi Channel, the spoof comedy series, released in 2004, lampoons 1980s television drama, particularly horror, sci-fi, and the rampant egotism of self-appointed mastermind authors. The show presents Garth Marenghis Darkplace as though it were a real, low-budget television series, produced in the 1980s, and now getting its first screening, this hoax is the shows fictional frame. Darkplaces fictional show-within-a-show includes deliberately poor production and special effects, sub-par acting, choppy editing and this is interspersed with present-day interviews with the cast. And they did it because I knew the truth, in 2004, due to the worst artistic drought in broadcast history, Channel 4 decided to air six of the original episodes. The makers of Darkplace endeavoured to make the show seem authentic, from the retro Channel 4 logo at the start to the distortion of the analogue music track at the start of scenes, the fashion. The texture of film stock, deliberately poor continuity, cheesy lines, wooden acting and cheap special effects, it is delivered in such a perfect way you cant help. Also included are interviews, in which the character Marenghi, with co-stars Dean Learner and Todd Rivers. The recurring theme of these interviews is that Marenghi is seen as a fool who overrates his own talent and has no idea how foolish he appears. More than a few people, and media outlets alike were out by this fictional framing. The shows musical soundtrack parodies the same subjects as the writing, Matthew Holness as Garth Marenghi, author, dream weaver, visionary, plus actor, who plays Dr. Rick Dagless, M. D. Dag is a Vietnam and Falklands War veteran and former warlock. He also keeps a Magnum revolver on him at all times and his wife is played by Lydia Fox. Richard Ayoade as Dean Learner, Garths publisher, who plays Thornton Reed, Ayoade himself stated in an interview in the Scottish Metro that My acting really is that s**t. The character Dean was in the Korean war, in which he lost a testicle and he generally uses an automatic pistol
15.
Goodnight Sweetheart (TV series)
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Goodnight Sweetheart is a British sitcom that ran for six series on BBC1 from 1993 to 1999 and a special that aired on 2 September 2016. The show was created by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, also creators of Birds of a Feather, the creators wrote the first series, while subsequent episodes were by a team of writers. Although originally made for the BBC the series has subsequently repeated on ITV3. The show has also repeated on Gold, Drama and Yesterday. For his starring role, Lyndhurst won the Most Popular Comedy Performer at the National Television Awards twice in 1998 and 1999, the original entrance to Ducketts Passage, leading to the Royal Oak, is located at Ezra Street, London, E2 7RH. The Royal Oak is near Ezra Street, at 73 Columbia Road, Gary Sparrow is a somewhat disillusioned TV repairman, in a drab marriage with his ambitious wife Yvonne, and best friends with Ron, a printer whose marriage is on the brink of breakdown. While on a TV repair call-out in East London, Gary accidentally discovers a portal which leads to war time London. There he meets Phoebe, a pretty barmaid who works in the Royal Oak pub, her father Eric who runs the Royal Oak, and Reg Deadman, a dim-witted but friendly policeman. Gary strikes up a friendship with Phoebe, and makes repeated trips through the time portal, in this life, he claims to be both a secret agent and a singer-songwriter, in fact passing off modern-day pop songs as his own, particularly songs by the Beatles. He impresses Phoebe by bringing her goods which are available in the present day, but were rationed in wartime Britain, such as chocolate, bacon and nylons. Most episodes centre on a dilemma for Gary caused by his dual life, as the series progresses, the characters are developed further. Gary and Phoebe eventually marry and they have a son, Michael, Yvonne also becomes pregnant, but suffers a miscarriage. Gary opens a shop in the present day, named Blitz and Pieces, Ron and his wife Stella separate and divorce. Gary and Phoebe move to a flat in Mayfair, where they befriend Noël Coward. Yvonne becomes a millionairess with a successful organic beauty products company, in the final episode, set on VE Day, Gary finds that the time portal has closed, trapping him in the past for good, leaving Ron to explain the truth to Yvonne. In the 2016 special, Gary is happily married to Phoebe and he returns to the past, but decides on living a double life again so that he can get to know his daughter. A total of 59 episodes were made, including a Christmas special in 1995, Marks and Gran, the creators, wrote the first series, many later episodes were written by other writers. As in Marks and Grans sitcom Get Back, most episodes of Goodnight Sweetheart — and the programme itself — were named after popular song titles
16.
The Hilarious House of Frightenstein
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The Hilarious House of Frightenstein is a Canadian childrens television series, which was produced by Hamilton, Ontarios independent station CHCH-TV in 1971. It was syndicated both in Canada and internationally, and occasionally appears in some television markets. In Canada, the series has not aired for several years, Van played most of the characters on the show. All 130 episodes were made in a nine-month span starting in 1971, Markowitz directed the brainstorming session while his assistant Roger John Greco made notes of everything said. CHCH had broadcast two other Markowitz shows, The Randy Dandy Show for children, starring Rafael Markowitz as Randy Dandy, and The Ed Allen Show, CHCH approved the production of Frightenstein to take advantage of the stations new ability to reach into the Toronto market for advertising money. Randy Dandys soda pop venture was later taken up by the Count when he promoted Dracola from the castle to raise money for his Brucie project, sid Biby led the station at this time. The Hilarious House of Frightenstein was one of the most ambitious shows attempted by Canadian producers during this era, Markowitz later began production of an animated cartoon version of the show with animator Al Guest that never got to air. Horror icon Vincent Price starred in introductions for the various segments. Price, who was attracted to the project because he wanted to do something for kids, on Canadian television stations, the show generally aired as a childrens show in an after-school or weekend morning time slot. In the United States, however, many stations aired it in a late night slot aimed primarily at college students, in some American markets, the show drew higher ratings than The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson among that demographic. The opening and closing credits were accompanied by a composition played entirely on a Moog synthesizer and written by Harry Breuer, Gary Carol, Jean Jacques Perrey. Its title is March of the Martians, the original recording can be found on an out-of-print Pickwick vinyl album called The Happy Moog. Count Frightenstein, the character, was the thirteenth son of Count Dracula. Count Frightenstein was also a black sheep vampire in other ways, supporting characters were played by Billy Van, except where specified. The Wolfman - A werewolf disk jockey at radio station EECH who spun rock, the Wolfmans theme song was Sly and the Family Stones I Want to Take You Higher. For licensing reasons, the numbers are no longer shown on some reruns. The Professor - A professor who provided science lessons on such things as thermal expansion, bwana Clyde Batty - A British explorer who teaches about wild animals on Zany Zoo. His name is a spoof of animal trainer Clyde Beatty, dr. Pet Vet - A veterinarian who teaches about domestic animals
17.
Vincent Price
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Vincent Leonard Price Jr. was an American actor, well known for his distinctive voice and performances in horror films. His career spanned other genres, including film noir, drama, mystery, thriller and he appeared on stage, television, radio, and more than one hundred films. He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures, and one for television, born and raised in the Saint Louis, Missouri area, he has a star on the Saint Louis Walk of Fame. Price was an art collector and consultant, with a degree in art history and he lectured and wrote books on the subject. He was the founder of the Vincent Price Art Museum in California and he was also a noted gourmet cook. Price was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the youngest of the four children of Vincent Leonard Price, Sr. president of the National Candy Company and his grandfather, Vincent Clarence Price, invented Dr. Prices Baking Powder, the first cream of tartar-based baking powder, Price was of English descent and was a descendant of Peregrine White, the first white child born in Colonial Massachusetts, being born on the Mayflower while it was in the harbor of Massachusetts. Price had some Welsh ancestry as well, Price attended St. Louis Country Day School. In 1933, he graduated with a degree in art history from Yale University, after teaching for a year, he entered the University of London, intending to study for a masters degree in fine arts. Instead, he was drawn to the theater, first appearing on stage professionally in 1934 and his acting career began in London in 1935, performing with Orson Welless Mercury Theatre. In 1936, Price appeared as Prince Albert in the American production of Laurence Housmans play, Victoria Regina, Price started out in films as a character actor. He made his debut in 1938 with Service de Luxe and established himself in the film Laura, opposite Gene Tierney. His first venture into the genre, for which he became famous, was in the 1939 Boris Karloff film Tower of London. The following year Price portrayed the character in The Invisible Man Returns. In 1946, Price reunited with Tierney in two films, Dragonwyck and Leave Her to Heaven. There were also many villainous roles in film noir thrillers like The Web, The Long Night, Rogues Regiment and The Bribe, with Robert Taylor, Ava Gardner and his first starring role was as conman James Addison Reavis in the 1950 biopic The Baron of Arizona. He also did a comedic turn as the tycoon Burnbridge Waters, co-starring with Ronald Colman in Champagne for Caesar and he was active in radio, portraying the Robin Hood-inspired crime-fighter Simon Templar in The Saint, which ran from 1947-51. In the 1950s, Price moved into films, with a role in House of Wax
18.
Billy Van
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William Allan Van Evera, known by the stage name Billy Van, was a Canadian comedian, actor and singer. Van was born in Toronto, Ontario and dropped out of Bloor Collegiate Institute in Grade 11 to pursue a career as an entertainer, starting as a youth, he and his four brothers toured North America as a singing act called the Van Evera Brothers. The single I Miss You / The Last Sunrise by the Billy Van Four, released on the Rodeo International label, as a comedian, Van gained national attention in 1963 as a performer on CBC Televisions late-night satire programme Nightcap. He threatened to quit the show after three seasons when the CBC wouldnt give him a raise from $400 to $500 an episode. At that time, a columnist in The Globe and Mail called Van perhaps the most talented variety performer ever developed by the CBC, after the dispute became public, the CBC capitulated and Van continued on the show for one final season. Van appeared in a spinoff series, Flemingdon Park, based on a recurring Nightcap skit. Nightcap was cancelled in May 1967, through the 1970s, Van was a regular member of the home team on the CHCH-TV charades series Party Game. In 1971, he began making The Hilarious House of Frightenstein, also for CHCH in Hamilton and it is this show for which he is most well known, and it has developed a cult following. 130 episodes were produced, and Van played almost every lead character, Van also appeared in many commercials, including Colt 45 Malt Liquor commercials for 15 years, where he won a Clio Award in 1975. In 1982, he hosted TVOntarios Bits and Bytes, a devoted to the usage of early personal computers. Van narrated the animated program Eureka, which taught children about physics and chemistry. Van also appeared occasionally in the Canadian TV show Bizarre, hosted by John Byner and he had a triple heart bypass in 1998. Van supported the Canadian Comedy Awards with promotional appearances from the inception in 2000. He was diagnosed in December 2001 with esophageal cancer, of which he died at age 68 on 8 January 2003 at Torontos Sunnybrook Hospital and he was survived by his wife Susan and two daughters, Tracy and Robyn, from a previous marriage. One of Vans brothers, Jack Van Evera, also became an actor and appeared on many Canadian television series such as The Forest Rangers and its the News 1975-1976, The Bobby Vinton Show 1976, The Sonny and Cher Show 1978, Eureka.45 Malt Liquor ad
19.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
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The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy is a comedy science fiction series created by Douglas Adams. The broad narrative follows the misadventures of the last surviving man, Arthur Dent, certain narrative details were changed between the various adaptations. The various versions follow the basic plot but they are in many places mutually contradictory. The first radio series comes from a proposal called The Ends of the Earth, six self-contained episodes, all ending with Earths being destroyed in a different way. While writing the first episode, Adams realized that he needed someone on the planet who was an alien to provide context. Adams finally settled on making the alien a roving researcher for a remarkable book named The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. As the first radio episodes writing progressed, the Guide became the centre of his story, however, he later claimed that he had told this story so many times that he had forgotten the incident itself, and only remembered himself telling the story. His friends are quoted as saying that Adams mentioned the idea of hitch-hiking around the galaxy to them while on holiday in Greece in 1973. Adamss fictional Guide is a guidebook to the entire universe, originally published by Megadodo Publications. The narrative of the versions of the story are frequently punctuated with excerpts from the Guide. The voice of the Guide, also provides general narration, the first radio series of six episodes was broadcast in 1978 on BBC Radio 4. Despite a low-key launch of the series, it received good reviews. A one-off episode was broadcast later in the year and this episode was released as part of the second radio series and, later, The Secondary Phase on cassettes and CDs. The Primary and Secondary Phases were aired, in an edited version. The first series was repeated twice in 1978 alone and many times in the next few years. This led to an LP re-recording, produced independently of the BBC for sale, a second radio series, which consisted of a further six episodes, and bringing the total number of episodes to 12, was broadcast in 1980. The radio series greatly benefited from the narration of noted comedy actor Peter Jones as The Book and he was cast after it was decided that a Peter Jonesy sort of voice was required. The series was notable for its use of sound, being the first comedy series to be produced in stereo
20.
Douglas Adams
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Douglas Noel Adams was an English author, scriptwriter, essayist, humorist, satirist and dramatist. Adamss contribution to UK radio is commemorated in The Radio Academys Hall of Fame, a posthumous collection of his works, including an unfinished novel, was published as The Salmon of Doubt in 2002. Adams was known as an advocate for environmentalism and conservation, as a lover of fast cars, cameras, technological innovation and the Apple Macintosh, Adams was born on 11 March 1952 to Janet and Christopher Douglas Adams in Cambridge, England. The following year in 1953, Watson and Crick famously first modelled DNA at Cambridge University, the family moved to East London a few months after his birth, where his sister, Susan, was born three years later. His parents divorced in 1957, Douglas, Susan, and their mother moved to an RSPCA animal shelter in Brentwood, Essex, Adams attended Primrose Hill Primary School in Brentwood. At nine, he passed the exam for Brentwood School, an independent school whose alumni include Robin Day, Jack Straw, Noel Edmonds. Griff Rhys Jones was a year below him, and he was in the class as Stuckist artist Charles Thomson. He attended the school from 1959 to 1964, then the main school until December 1970. Adams was six feet tall by age 12 and stopped growing at 6 ft 5 in and his form master, Frank Halford, said of him, Hundreds of boys have passed through the school but Douglas Adams really stood out from the crowd — literally. He was unnecessarily tall and in his short trousers he looked a trifle self-conscious, the form-master wouldnt say Meet under the clock tower, or Meet under the war memorial, he joked, but Meet under Adams. Yet it was his ability to write stories that really made him shine. He became the student ever to be awarded a ten out of ten by Halford for creative writing, something he remembered for the rest of his life. He also designed the cover of one issue of the Broadsheet, and had a letter and short story published nationally in The Eagle, in it, Adams rhymes futile with mute, while and exhausted with of course did. On the strength of an essay on religious poetry that discussed the Beatles and William Blake, he was awarded an Exhibition in English at St Johns College, Cambridge. He wanted to join the Footlights, an invitation-only student comedy club that has acted as a hothouse for comic talent, despite doing very little work—he recalled having completed three essays in three years—he graduated in 1974 with a B. A. in English literature. After leaving university Adams moved back to London, determined to break into TV, an edited version of the Footlights Revue appeared on BBC2 television in 1974. A version of the Revue performed live in Londons West End led to Adams being discovered by Monty Pythons Graham Chapman, the two formed a brief writing partnership, earning Adams a writing credit in episode 45 of Monty Python for a sketch called Patient Abuse. He is one of two people outside the original Python members to get a writing credit
21.
Holmes & Yoyo
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Holmes & Yoyo is an American comedy television series that aired on ABC for 13 episodes during the 1976-1977 season. Several episodes of Holmes & Yoyo were directed by John Astin, shull starred as Detective Alexander Holmes, John Schuck starred as his partner Gregory Yoyo Yoyonovich. Their co-stars included Andrea Howard and Bruce Kirby, jay Leno appeared in the pilot as a gas station attendant. Detective Alexander Holmes is a clumsy down-on-his-luck cop who constantly injures his partners, the department gives him a new partner, Gregory Yoyonovich. Yoyo, as he likes to be called, is good-natured, if a bit clumsy, besides super-strength, Yoyos other abilities include speed reading, and the ability to analyze clues at the scene. Yoyo had a built-in Polaroid camera, each time his nose was pressed, Yoyos control panel was built into his chest, which could be opened by pulling his tie. The level of Yoyos batteries was critical, because if they ran down his memory and, effectively, in one episode his batteries came very close to running down completely, and he was charged by being pushed against an electric fence with his arms extended. Yoyo weighed 427 pounds, and his heavy build could absorb the shock of a bomb, much of the shows comedy was derived from Yoyos constant malfunctions. Some of his common problems included, Uncontrollably spinning head over heels when near a garage door that was opening or closing. Another running gag involved Yoyos ability to read a book by simply fanning its pages, his invariable comment after doing so was. Today, Holmes & Yoyo is considered one of the worst television series ever made and it ranked number 33 on TV Guides List of the 50 Worst TV Shows of All Time. The 2013 series Almost Human once again revisits the theme, Holmes & Yo-Yo at the Internet Movie Database Holmes & Yo-Yo at TV. com
22.
Homeboys in Outer Space
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Homeboys in Outer Space is an American science fiction/fantasy sitcom that aired on UPN from 1996 to 1997. The series stars comedian Flex and Darryl Bell, the plot centers around two astronauts, Tyberius Ty Walker and Morris Clay, who flew around the universe in a winged car, nicknamed the Space Hoopty, in the 23rd century. The duos car, which was a cross between a lowrider and an 18 wheeler, was piloted by a female computer named Loquatia. Flex as Tyberius Ty Walker Darryl M. Dork Christian Mixon as Billy B, the series was later featured on TV Guides List of the 50 Worst TV Shows of All Time. Homeboys in Outer Space at the Internet Movie Database Homeboys in Outer Space at TV. com Homeboys in Outer Space at epguides. com
23.
UPN
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The United Paramount Network was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16,1995. In December 2005, UPN was spun off to CBS Corporation when CBS, UPNs website is redirected to CBSs website after UPN is shut down along with The WB Paramount Pictures had played a pivotal role in the development of network television. The Paramount Television Network was launched in 1949, but dissolved in the 1950s, set to launch in early 1978, it would have run its programming for only one night a week. Thirty Movies of the Week would have followed Star Trek, Phase II on Saturday nights, Star Trek, Phase II was reworked as the theatrical film, Star Trek, The Motion Picture, absorbing the costs already incurred from the aborted television series. Paramount, and its eventual parent Viacom, continued to consider launching their own television network, in 1993, Time Warner and Chris-Craft Industries entered into a joint venture to distribute programs via a prime time programming service, the Prime Time Entertainment Network. Paramount formed the Paramount Stations Group in 1991 when it purchased the assets of the TVX Broadcast Group and this was not unlike the purchase of the Metromedia stations by News Corporation five years earlier, which were used as the nuclei for Fox. In another parallel, 20th Century Fox, like Paramount, had long been a powerhouse in television syndication, all indicators suggested that Paramount was about to launch a network of its own. The new network would be owned by Chris-Craft Industries, while most of its shows were to be produced by Paramount Television, Chris-Craft and Paramount/Viacom each owned independent stations in several large and mid-sized U. S. cities, and these stations formed the nuclei of the new network. UPN launched on January 16,1995, initially carrying programming only on Monday and Tuesday nights from 8,00 to 10,00 p. m. Eastern and Pacific Time. In contrast, The WB debuted one week earlier, on January 11, with four series – only one of which, Muscle, of the networks early offerings, only Star Trek, Voyager, Moesha and The Sentinel would last longer than one season. As a result of the lack of viewership, UPN operated on a loss and had lost $800 million by 2000, within nearly two years of the networks launch, on December 8,1996, Paramount/Viacom purchased a 50% stake in UPN from Chris-Craft for approximately $160 million. Like Fox had done nine years earlier, UPN started with a few nights of programming each week, the first expansion of its prime time lineup came with the addition of programming on Wednesday nights in the 1996–97 season. UPN ordered 36 science fiction films for its movie night beginning in 1998 from four producers with most coming from Paramount, some titles would be shown on Showtime first so the cable channel would aid in advertising the movies. UPN completed its prime time expansion in the 1998–99 season, with Thursdays and Fridays as the last nights of programming to be added to the networks evening slate. Despite what publicity Desmond received from its controversial topicality, the series suffered low ratings and was cancelled after four episodes. On March 17, New York Supreme Court judge Herman Cahn ruled against Chris-Crafts move for a permanent injunction to curtail the Viacom-CBS merger and the enforcement of Viacoms ultimatum. Unable to find a partner, on March 20, Chris-Craft allowed Viacom to buy out its 50% stake for $5 million. This gave UPN the rare distinction of being one of the only broadcast networks to not have had owned-and-operated stations in the three largest media markets, New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago
24.
Hyperdrive (TV series)
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Hyperdrive is a British television science fiction sitcom broadcast by BBC Two in 2006 and 2007. The working title was Full Power, in a 2008 interview, Kevin Eldon commented that he considered a third series was unlikely to be commissioned. Set in 2151 and 2152, it follows the crew of HMS Camden Lock as they stumble through their mission to protect British interests in a changing galaxy. The series is written by Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley, directed by John Henderson, the first episode was broadcast on BBC Two on 11 January 2006. A second series began on 12 July 2007 on BBC Two, Henderson shows initiative, always a dangerous sign. It also says Hendersons education was received at Dagenham Secondary Modern, the website further describes Henderson as an idealistic explorer, eager to meet new races, and feels he is undervalued given his low-priority assignments. Frosts character also has a theme, his favourite show. He is very protective of his Commanders chair, which he refers to as Spinning Jenny, Kevin Eldon as First Officer Eduardo Pauline York – a brilliant scientist and tactician, second in command of the Camden Lock. He is also a borderline sociopath, obsessed with and taking immense joy in violence and he believes in a hardline doctrine and feels Commander Henderson is too lenient regarding the crew and application of regulations. He does not trust Technical Officer Jeffers, and has the ability to hold his breath for seven and a half hours to avoid the effects of sedative gas. He also shows affection towards Sandstrom, appearing to be in love with her at certain points in the show. Like his friend Henderson, York also watches Captain Helix, miranda Hart as Diplomatic Officer Chloe Alice Teal – Teal has a large and obvious crush on Commander Henderson, who has not responded to her advances. Teals skills as a diplomat could be questioned, as during the episode Hello, Queppu and she failed her final exam to become an officer, and is only present on the HMS Camden Lock as her father is an ambassador. In series two it is revealed that Teal is an agnostic, a belief which has apparently become a more formal religion in the future. She is also the instructor on the ship. Stephen Evans as Navigator Dave Vine – Vines greatest apparent achievement to date is purchasing a planet in an auction, the planet was quickly renamed Vineworld with such locations as Vine City 1 and Vine Ridge. Vine is a member of the crew, uncomfortable with standing up to the outgoing personality of Jeffers or the authoritarianism of York. Dan Antopolski as Technical Officer Karl Jeffers – an easy going and he dislikes York and makes written notes on all the senior officers mistakes
25.
Invader Zim
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Invader Zim was an American animated television series created by Jhonen Vasquez for Nickelodeon. The series centers on an extraterrestrial named Zim from the planet Irk and he is antagonized by Dib, a young paranormal investigator who is determined to stop Zim. Vasquez pitched Invader Zim to Nickelodeon, who desired a series for their older demographic, as the series went on, ratings declined and budgetary issues became more frequent. Before the second season was completed, Nickelodeon cancelled the series, the show first-ran on Nick from 2001 to 2002, with a handful of second season episodes going unaired, although these episodes were later seen on DVD in 2004 and Nicktoons Network in 2006. In 2017, Nickelodeon announced that there will be a film based on the series. The series centers on Zim, a member of the imperialistic Irken race, the Irken leaders, known as The Almighty Tallest, rule the Irken Empire together because they are exactly the same height. Zim is joined by GIR, an ineffective and erratic Standard Issue Information Retrieval unit, as it turns out, this mystery planet is Earth and Zim forms his base of operations there. According to the DVD commentaries, Invader Zim takes place in a universe of its own. The remainder of the show centers on Zims time infiltrating the human race at a school, or in his home planning attempts at world domination, opposing Zim is his classmate Dib, who is obsessed with the paranormal and supernatural and is determined to expose Zim as an alien. Supporting characters include Dibs cynical sister Gaz, Zim and Dibs teacher Ms. Bitters, apart from eight double-length episodes, each episode is a self-contained storyline. Some occurrences from previous episodes are mentioned, but there is little continuing storyline other than the invasion plot. Prior to airing of Invader Zim, Nickelodeon desired a series to suit its eleven to fifteen year-old demographic, the network hired alternative comic book writer Jhonen Vasquez to create the series. Several ideas were considered by Vasquez, including a version of Mork & Mindy, but were dropped by him. Vasquez indicated that little of his writing style was changed, other than restricting language. The biggest difference that he cites is the change from working alone to working with thousands of people at Nickelodeon, a pilot was originally pitched to the channel in 1999, which led to the series being greenlit. In season two, the style became slightly more stylized and pronounced in motion than season one. All of the season two episodes, except for The Most Horrible X-mas Ever, were never aired on Nickelodeon. They all eventually aired on Nicktoons from June 10 to August 19,2006, since November 25,2006, both seasons of Invader Zim are available for download on the Xbox Live Marketplace, Zune Marketplace and PlayStation Store
26.
It's About Time (TV series)
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Its About Time is an American fantasy/science-fiction comedy TV series that aired on CBS for one season of 26 episodes in 1966–1967. The series was created by Sherwood Schwartz, and used sets, props and incidental music from Schwartzs other television series in production at the time, the show currently airs on Antenna TV. Two astronauts, Mac McKenzie and Hector Canfield, travel faster than the speed of light, there, they have to adjust to living with a cave family led by Shad and Gronk. Their children were 18-year-old Mlor and 14-year-old Breer, the chief of the tribe, Boss and his right-hand man Clon were always suspicious of the astronauts. Ratings were impressive for the first few weeks on the air, in the retooled version of the show, the prehistoric family must begin adjusting to life in the 1960s, reacting to the unfamiliar surroundings, and setting up home in 20th-century Los Angeles. For example, one episode had Gronk and Shad learning to write their names and signing them for many salesmen who brought presents, which later had to be paid for. Mac and Hector also had to convince their disbelieving superior that they really did travel in time, seven episodes were produced with this new premise before the series was cancelled at the end of the season. Unable to return to Earth, they make friends with the natives, usually through humorous interactions, misunderstandings, eventually, they do return to modern day Earth, taking some of the cavepeople back with them, who must then adjust to living in 1960s Los Angeles. This episode was set in times, and clearly antedates the previous seven episodes. However, it did not air until April 2,1967, in the shows current syndication reruns on certain networks - such as Antenna TV - this episode airs in its intended order, immediately preceding 20th Century Here We Come. ClassicFlix has announced that later in 2017 they will release The Complete Series on DVD in region 1, the TV series was adapted into a comic strip by Dan Spiegle, distributed by Gold Key Comics. Electronic musician Venetian Snares samples the theme song extensively in his song Einstein-Rosen Bridge. com Its About Time Opening on YouTube
27.
The Jetsons
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It was Hanna-Barberas Space Age counterpart to The Flintstones. It debuted as the first program broadcast in color on ABC-TV, in contrast, The Flintstones, while always produced in color, was broadcast in black-and-white for its first two seasons. Following its primetime run, the show aired on Saturday mornings for decades, starting on ABC for the 1963–64 season and then on CBS, New episodes were produced for syndication from 1985 to 1987. No further specials or episodes of the show were produced after 1989 due to the deaths of stars George OHanlon and Mel Blanc. The 1990 film Jetsons, The Movie served as the finale to the television show until 27 years later. The Jetsons are a family residing in Orbit City, the citys architecture is rendered in the Googie style, and all homes and businesses are raised high above the ground on adjustable columns. Housekeeping is seen to by a maid, Rosie, which handles chores not otherwise rendered trivial by the homes numerous push-button Space Age-envisioned conveniences. The family has a dog named Astro, that like Scooby Doo talks with a consonant mutation in which every word begins with an R. George Jetsons workweek is typical of his era, an hour a day and his boss is Cosmo Spacely, the bombastic owner of Spacely Space Sprockets. Spacely has a competitor, Mr. Cogswell, owner of the rival company Cogswell Cogs, Jetson commutes to work in an aerocar that resembles a flying saucer with a transparent bubble top. Daily life is leisurely, assisted by numerous labor-saving devices, which break down with humorous results. Despite this, everyone complains of exhausting hard labor and difficulties living with the remaining inconveniences, George Jetson, age 40, is the main character and protagonist of the series. He is a family man who always seems to make the wrong decisions. He works at Spacelys Sprockets turning the Referential Universal Digital Indexer on and he is married to Jane and together they have two children, Judy and Elroy. Jane Jetson, claims age 33, but has a 40-year old husband, Jane is Georges wife, mother of their two children, and a homemaker. Jane is obsessed with fashion and new gadgetry and her favorite store is Mooning Dales. She is a wife who always tries to make life as pleasant as possible for her family. Outside of the home, she is a member of the Galaxy Women Historical Society and is a fan of Leonardo de Venus, Judy Jetson, age 16, is the elder child in the Jetson family
28.
Hanna-Barbera
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Hanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated American television animation for over three decades in the mid 20th century. In late 1966, it was sold to Taft Broadcasting and spent two decades as its subsidiary and it is officially considered the very first major animation studio to successfully produce cartoons exclusively for television. For their achievements, Hanna and Barbera together won seven Academy Awards, eight Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, the pair was also inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1993. Hanna-Barberas fortunes declined in the mid-1980s when the profitability of Saturday morning cartoons was eclipsed by weekday afternoon syndication, in late 1991, the animation studio was purchased from Taft by Turner Broadcasting System, who used much of its back catalog to program its new channel, Cartoon Network. After Turner purchased the company, Hanna and Barbera continued to serve as creative consultants, Turner merged with Time Warner in 1996 and the studio became a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Animation, into which Hanna-Barbera was absorbed after Hanna died in 2001, Cartoon Network Studios continued the projects for the channels output. Barbera went on to work for Warner Bros, Animation until his death in 2006. As of 2017, the studio exists as a unit used to market properties and productions associated with the Hanna-Barbera library. Melrose, New Mexico native William Hanna and New York City-born of Italian heritage Joseph Barbera first met while working at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer cartoon studio in 1939. Their first directorial production and collaboration was the Academy Award-nominated Puss Gets the Boot, Hanna and Barbera served as directors of the shorts for over 20 years, with Barbera in charge of the stories and pre-production and Hanna in charge of supervising the animation. Hanna also provided the screams, yelps and yells for Tom Cat, in addition to the series being nominated for twelve more Oscars, seven of the cartoons won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject between 1943 and 1953. The trophies were awarded to their producer Fred Quimby, who was not involved in the development of the shorts. In addition to their work on the cartoons, the two men moonlighted on outside projects, including the title sequences and commercials for the CBS sitcom I Love Lucy. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer decided in early 1957 to close its cartoon studio, as it felt it had acquired a reasonable backlog of shorts for re-release, Hanna and Barbera, contemplating their future while completing the final Tom and Jerry cartoons, began producing animated TV commercials. During their last year at MGM, they developed a concept for an animated TV program about a dog, a coin toss determined that Hanna would have precedence in the naming the new studio. Harry Cohn, president and head of Columbia Pictures, took an 18 percent ownership in Hanna and Barberas new company, H-B Enterprises, Screen Gems became the new studios distributor and its licensing agent, handling merchandizing of the characters from the animated programs. Sidney and several Screen Gems alumni became members of the board of directors. H-B Enterprises was one of the first American cartoon studios to produce cartoons specifically for TV broadcast
29.
Kinvig
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Kinvig is a sci-fi comedy television series made by London Weekend Television 1981. Des Kinvig runs a repair shop in the small town of Bingleton. One day his store is visited by Miss Griffin, who is from the planet Mercury, Kinvigs friend Jim Piper is a lifelong UFO watcher and is consumed by jealousy when he discovers that Kinvig has encountered extra-terrestrials. It is left ambiguous whether Kinvigs experiences with aliens are real or the product of an overactive imagination. The show was produced by LWT, and only ran for one series of seven episodes and it was written by Nigel Kneale, directed and produced by Les Chatfield, with original music by Nigel Hess. Around the time of transmission, Kinvig was positively reviewed by The Times. However, to later TV historians, Kinvig is not considered to be one of Kneales better productions, the Guinness Book of Classic British TV claims that apart from Jeavons performance, Kinvig was a huge disappointment. Peter Nicholls also criticised the program, saying the scripts lacked the precision required for decent farce, horsley Betty Hardy as Mrs. Snell List of science fiction television programs Kinvig at the Internet Movie Database
30.
Unidentified flying object
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An unidentified flying object, or UFO, in its most general definition, is any apparent anomaly in the sky that is not identifiable as a known object or phenomenon. Culturally, UFOs are associated with claims of visitation by extraterrestrial life or government-related conspiracy theories, UFOs are often identified after their sighting. Sometimes, however, UFOs cannot be identified because of the low quality of evidence related to their sightings, during the late 1940s and through the 1950s, UFOs were often referred to popularly as flying saucers or flying discs. The term UFO became more widespread during the 1950s, at first in technical literature, UFOs garnered considerable interest during the Cold War, an era associated with a heightened concern for national security. Various studies have concluded that the phenomenon does not represent a threat to national security nor does it contain anything worthy of scientific pursuit, the Oxford English Dictionary defines a UFO as An unidentified flying object, a flying saucer. The first published book to use the word was authored by Donald E. Keyhoe, the acronym UFO was coined by Captain Edward J. Ruppelt, who headed Project Blue Book, then the USAFs official investigation of UFOs. He wrote, Obviously the term flying saucer is misleading when applied to objects of every conceivable shape, for this reason the military prefers the more general, if less colorful, name, unidentified flying objects. Other phrases that were used officially and that predate the UFO acronym include flying flapjack, flying disc, unexplained flying discs, unidentifiable object, the phrase flying saucer had gained widespread attention after the summer of 1947. On June 24, a pilot named Kenneth Arnold reported seeing nine objects flying in formation near Mount Rainier. Arnold timed the sighting and estimated the speed of discs to be over 1,200 mph, at the time, he claimed he described the objects flying in a saucer-like fashion, leading to newspaper accounts of flying saucers and flying discs. In popular usage, the term UFO came to be used to refer to claims of alien spacecraft, between 5% and 20% of reported sightings are not explained, and therefore can be classified as unidentified in the strictest sense. The term Ufology is used to describe the efforts of those who study reports. UFOs have become a prevalent theme in culture, and the social phenomena have been the subject of academic research in sociology and psychology. Unexplained aerial observations have been reported throughout history, an example is Halleys Comet, which was recorded first by Chinese astronomers in 240 BC and possibly as early as 467 BC. Such sightings throughout history often were treated as supernatural portents, angels, or other religious omens. On January 25,1878, the Denison Daily News printed an article in which John Martin, Martin, according to the newspaper account, said it appeared to be about the size of a saucer, the first known use of the word saucer in association with a UFO. In April 1897, thousands of people reported seeing airships in various parts of the United States, scores of people even reported talking to the pilots. Thomas Edison was asked his opinion, and said, You can take it from me that it is a pure fake, the largest had an apparent size of about six Suns, he said
31.
Nigel Kneale
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Thomas Nigel Kneale was a British screenwriter. He wrote professionally for more than 50 years, was a winner of the Somerset Maugham Award, in 2000, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association. Predominantly a writer of thrillers that used science-fiction and horror elements, Quatermass was a heroic scientist who appeared in various television, film and radio productions written by Kneale for the BBC, Hammer Film Productions and Thames Television between 1953 and 1996. Kneale wrote original scripts and successfully adapted works by such as George Orwell, John Osborne, H. G. Wells. He was most active in television, joining BBC Television in 1951, Kneale wrote well-received television dramas such as The Year of the Sex Olympics and The Stone Tape in addition to the Quatermass serials. He has been described as one of the most influential writers of the 20th century, Kneale was born Thomas Nigel Kneale in Barrow-in-Furness, England. His family came from the Isle of Man, and returned to there in 1928. He was raised in the capital, Douglas, where his father was the owner and editor of the local newspaper. He was educated at St Ninians High School, Douglas, and after leaving studied law and he also worked in a lawyers office, but became bored with his legal training and eventually abandoned the profession. At the beginning of the Second World War Kneale attempted to enlist in the British Army, later that year he left the Isle of Man and moved to London, where he began studying acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. He made further broadcasts in the 1940s, including a reading of his story Zachary Crebbins Angel on the BBC Light Programme. He also had short stories published in magazines such as Argosy. He began using the name Nigel Kneale for these professional credits, after graduating from RADA, Kneale worked for a short time as a professional actor performing in small rôles at the Stratford Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. He continued to write in his time and in 1949 a collection of his work, entitled Tomato Cain. The book sufficiently impressed the writer Elizabeth Bowen that she wrote a foreword for it, following this success, Kneale gave up acting to write full-time. Kneales publisher was keen for him to write a novel, a keen cinema-goer, he believed that the audience being able to see human faces was an important factor in storytelling. His first professional script writing credit came when he wrote the radio drama The Long Stairs, broadcast by the BBC on 1 March 1950 and based on an historical mining disaster on the Isle of Man. In 1951 he was recruited as one of the first staff writers to be employed by BBC Television, before he started working for the BBC, Kneale had never seen any television
32.
Bernard Quatermass
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Professor Bernard Quatermass is a fictional scientist, originally created by the writer Nigel Kneale for BBC Television. An intelligent and highly moral British scientist, Quatermass is a pioneer of the British space programme and he continually finds himself confronting sinister alien forces that threaten to destroy humanity. The role of Quatermass was featured in three influential BBC science fiction serials of the 1950s, and again in a serial for Thames Television in 1979. A remake of the first serial appeared on BBC Four in 2005, the character also appeared in films, on the radio and in print over a fifty-year period. Kneale picked the characters surname from a London telephone directory. The character of Quatermass has been described by BBC News Online as Britains first television hero, remained a modern Mr Standfast, the one fixed point in an increasingly dreadful and ever-shifting universe. In 2005, an article in The Daily Telegraph suggested, You can see a line running through him and he shares elements with Sherlock Holmes and Ellen MacArthur. Little is revealed of Quatermasss early life during the course of the films, in The Quatermass Experiment, he at one point despairs that he should have stuck to his original career as a surveyor. In Nigel Kneales 1996 radio serial The Quatermass Memoirs, it is revealed that the Professor was first involved in experiments in the 1930s. According to The Quatermass Memoirs, during World War II Quatermass conducted top secret work for the British war effort, which he subsequently refused ever to discuss. By 1953 Quatermass is the head of the British Experimental Rocket Group, although Quatermass succeeds in launching a three-man crew, the rocket vastly overshoots its projected orbit and returns to Earth much later than planned, crash-landing in London. Despite this trauma, Quatermass continues with his programme, now called the British Rocket Group. In this serial we see his daughter, Paula Quatermass, who works as an assistant at the Rocket Group, but there is no sign of a wife or other children. In the fourth episode of the serial he mentions that he never reached his twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, tying in with The Quatermass Memoirs later assertion of his wifes early death. At the beginning of the serial, Quatermass and the Pit, Quatermasss funding is being cut back. It is not clear what happens to the Rocket Group immediately after this and he has recently become the guardian of his teenaged granddaughter Hettie after her parents were killed in a road accident in Germany. After Hettie runs away home, he travels to London in search of her. He presses the button to detonate it himself, with Hetties help, Kneale initially named his leading character Professor Charlton, but during the writing process decided he wanted something more striking and memorable
33.
The Last Man on Earth (TV series)
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The Last Man on Earth is an American post-apocalyptic comedy television series created by and starring Will Forte. The series premiered on Fox on March 1,2015, the pilot episode was written by Forte and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. On April 8,2015, the show was renewed for a second season, on March 24,2016, the show was renewed for a third season, which premiered on September 25,2016. Almost a year after a deadly virus spreads across Earth, Phil Miller is seemingly the only survivor in late 2020. While he searches for others and paints signs stating he is alive in his hometown of Tucson, Arizona, however, before attempting suicide, he discovers another survivor, Carol Pilbasian. Despite being annoyed by each other, Carol and Phil marry for re-population purposes, over the season, more survivors arrive, but Phils increasingly irritating attitude towards them leads him and Carol to search for a new home after he is banished from Tucson. In Season 2, Phil and Carol continue their trip in the middle of 2023. They soon discover the group has relocated to Malibu, California and travel there to reunite with the group, meanwhile, Phils astronaut brother Mike Miller crashes down to Earth and finds his way to Malibu, where he joins the survivors briefly before possibly being infected by the virus. In Season 3, Phil and the move to a self-sustaining office building in San Jose, California. Will Forte as Philip Tandy Phil Miller, an average, socially challenged man and he lives in his hometown of Tucson, Arizona, having already searched North America for other living people. In his pre-virus life, he worked dead-end jobs and lived in an apartment for which his parents paid the rent. Out of loneliness, he has adopted various sports balls as buddies and he has painted Alive in Tucson on billboards and highway signs during his trip, hoping others might see the message. Forte describes him as a person who sometimes borders on being a flat-out sociopath. Jacob Tremblay portrays young Phil, who appears to his brother Mike in multiple visions in the episode Pitch Black, kristen Schaal as Carol Andrew Pilbasian Miller, an eccentric notary from Delaware who sees Phils Alive in Tucson sign and travels to Tucson. She pressures Phil to marry her so they can work towards repopulating the Earth with legitimate children, Carol is shown to be compassionate and is good friends with Melissa and Todd but can hold grudges and be stridently moralistic. Carol and Phil divorce in the middle of the first season, in the second season, Carol becomes pregnant with Phils first child after he finally tells her he loves her, and they serve as the leaders of their community in Season 3. January Jones as Melissa Chartres, a real estate agent from Akron. She meets Phil and Carol after they crash their truck into her limousine
34.
Lexx
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Lexx is a science fiction television series that follows the adventures of a group of mismatched individuals aboard the organic space craft Lexx. They travel through two universes and encounter planets including a parody of the Earth, the series is a Canadian and German co-production, with some additional funding from Britains Channel 5. The Sci Fi Channel purchased the series from Salter Street Films, Lexx was co-produced by Salter Street Films, later absorbed by Alliance Atlantis. In Canada, Lexx aired on the Alliance Atlantis-owned Showcase network, the series was primarily filmed in Halifax and Berlin, with additional filming on location in Iceland, Bangkok, Namibia and London. Stanley H. Priest Bunny Fifi Vlad Dr. Ernst Longbore Tina Moss Cedric The main characters of the series are the Lexx and its crew. The crew consists of the captain of the Lexx, Stanley H. Tweedle, the love slave Zev/Xev, the former assassin Kai, last of the Brunnen-G. Together they are looking for a new home, the background conflict of the series is the war between Mankind and the Insect Civilization, in which each side seeks the annihilation of the other. It was foretold to Kai that one day he will destroy the last remnant of the Insect Civilization, the plot unfolds across a time span of over 6,000 years. Kais death occurs 2,008 years before the beginning of the events of the series, for the first two seasons, each episode is focused on space travel and usually one different planet. Each of the last two seasons has a location for all episodes. At the beginning of Season 3 the crew spends about 4,000 years in cryostats before arriving at the planets of Fire. In Season 4, the Lexx reaches our Earth in the present, Stan, Zev and Kai accidentally steal the Lexx, the most powerful destructive weapon in the two universes. After successfully fleeing from the Cluster, the planet of the League of the 20,000 Planets. Kai needs protoblood to live outside of his cryochamber, looking for protoblood, the Lexx returns to the Cluster to learn that a huge insect survived. This insect had controlled The Divine Order and His Divine Shadow in order to eat all human inhabitants of the 20,000 planets, the insect then begins a metamorphosis into the Gigashadow. With the help of Zev, Kai manages to fill up his store of protoblood, Kai places the cluster lizard Squish in the brain of the insect and thus is able to destroy it. The main conflict of the season is the fight against Mantrid. The crew had helped him transfer his mind into a machine in the first episode of the season while accidentally fusing it with a remnant of His Shadow
35.
Science fiction
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Science fiction often explores the potential consequences of scientific and other innovations, and has been called a literature of ideas. Science fiction is difficult to define, as it includes a range of subgenres and themes. Author and editor Damon Knight summed up the difficulty, saying science fiction is what we point to when we say it, a definition echoed by author Mark C. Glassy, who argues that the definition of science fiction is like the definition of pornography, you do not know what it is, in 1970 or 1971William Atheling Jr. According to science fiction writer Robert A, rod Serlings definition is fantasy is the impossible made probable. Science fiction is the improbable made possible, Science fiction is largely based on writing rationally about alternative possible worlds or futures. Science fiction elements include, A time setting in the future, in alternative timelines, a spatial setting or scenes in outer space, on other worlds, or on subterranean earth. Characters that include aliens, mutants, androids, or humanoid robots, futuristic or plausible technology such as ray guns, teleportation machines, and humanoid computers. Scientific principles that are new or that contradict accepted physical laws, for time travel, wormholes. New and different political or social systems, e. g. utopian, dystopian, post-scarcity, paranormal abilities such as mind control, telepathy, telekinesis Other universes or dimensions and travel between them. A product of the budding Age of Reason and the development of science itself. Isaac Asimov and Carl Sagan considered Keplers work the first science fiction story and it depicts a journey to the Moon and how the Earths motion is seen from there. Later, Edgar Allan Poe wrote a story about a flight to the moon, more examples appeared throughout the 19th century. Wells The War of the Worlds describes an invasion of late Victorian England by Martians using tripod fighting machines equipped with advanced weaponry and it is a seminal depiction of an alien invasion of Earth. In the late 19th century, the scientific romance was used in Britain to describe much of this fiction. This produced additional offshoots, such as the 1884 novella Flatland, the term would continue to be used into the early 20th century for writers such as Olaf Stapledon. In the early 20th century, pulp magazines helped develop a new generation of mainly American SF writers, influenced by Hugo Gernsback, the founder of Amazing Stories magazine. In 1912 Edgar Rice Burroughs published A Princess of Mars, the first of his series of Barsoom novels, situated on Mars
36.
Lost in Space
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Lost in Space is an American science fiction television series created and produced by Irwin Allen. The series follows the adventures of a family of space colonists who struggle to survive in a strange and often hostile universe after their ship is sabotaged. The show ran for three seasons, with 83 episodes airing between 1965 and 1968, the first season was filmed in black and white, with the second and third seasons filmed in color. Although the original concept centered on the Robinson family, many later storylines focused primarily on Dr. Zachary Smith, Smith and the Robot were both absent from the unaired pilot, as the addition of their characters was only decided upon once the series had been commissioned for production. Smith is thus the key to the story, in 1962 the first appearance of a space-faring Robinson family occurred in a comic book published by Gold Key Comics. The Space Family Robinson, who were scientists aboard Earths Space Station One, are away in a cosmic storm in the comics second issue. These Robinsons were scientist father Craig, scientist mother June, early teens Tim and Tam, along with pets Clancy, Space Station One also boasted two spacemobiles for ship-to-planet travel. The Jupiter 2 mission is sabotaged by Dr. Zachary Smith – an agent for an foreign government – who slips aboard the spaceship and reprograms the robot to destroy the ship and crew. However, when he is trapped aboard, his excess weight alters the crafts flight path, Smith manages to save himself by prematurely reviving the crew from suspended animation. The ship survives, but consequent damage caused by Smiths earlier sabotage of the robot leaves them lost in space. In the third episode the Jupiter 2 crashlands on a world, later identified by Will as Priplanus. Smith was liked by the trusting Will, and tolerated by the women, One of these colorful visitors even turned out to be Smiths own cousin, intent on swindling him out of a family inheritance with the assistance of a hostile gambling machine. A new theme tune was recorded by Warren Barker for the second season, in the third season, a major format change was introduced, to bring the series back to its roots as solid adventure, by allowing the Robinsons to travel to more planets. The Jupiter 2 was now allowed to freely travel space, visiting a new world each week, as the family attempt to return to Earth or to reach their original destination in the Alpha Centauri system. This season had a different opening credits sequence and a new theme tune – which. The stories had little realism, with, for instance, explosions happening randomly, merely to cover an aliens arrival or departure, or sometimes merely the arrival of some alien artifact. Props and monsters were regularly recycled from other Irwin Allen shows, as a matter of convenience. A sea monster outfit which had featured on Voyage would get a paint job for its Lost in Space appearance
37.
The Swiss Family Robinson
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The Swiss Family Robinson is a novel by Johann David Wyss, first published in 1812, about a Swiss family shipwrecked in the East Indies en route to Port Jackson, Australia. Wyss presents adventures as lessons in a history way and physical sciences. This resembles other educational books for young ones published about the same time, over the years there have been many versions of the story with episodes added, changed, or deleted. Perhaps the best-known English version is by William H. G. Kingston, other English editions that claim to include the whole of the Wyss-Montolieu narrative are by W. H. Davenport Adams and Mrs H. B. The closest English translation to the original is William Godwins 1816 translation, although movie and television adaptations typically name the family Robinson, it is not a Swiss name. The German title translates as The Swiss Robinson which identifies the novel as part of the Robinsonade genre, the novel opens with the family in the hold of a sailing ship, weathering a great storm. The ships passengers evacuate without them, and William and Elizabeth, as the ship tosses about, the father - William - prays that God will spare them. The ship survives the night and the family finds themselves within sight of a desert island. The next morning, they decide to get to the island they can see beyond the reef, with much effort, they construct a vessel out of tubs. After they fill the tubs with food and ammunition and all articles of value they can safely carry. Two dogs from the ship named Turk and Flora swim beside them, the ships cargo of livestock, guns & powder, carpentry tools, books, a disassembled pinnace, and provisions have survived. Upon reaching the island, the set up a makeshift camp. The father knows that they must prepare for a time on the island. William and his oldest son Fritz spend the day exploring the island. The family spends the next few days securing themselves against hunger, William and Fritz make several trips to the ship in their efforts to bring ashore everything useful from the vessel. The domesticated animals on the ship are towed back to the island, there is also a great store of firearms and ammunition, hammocks for sleeping, carpenter’s tools, lumber, cooking utensils, silverware, and dishes. Initially they construct a treehouse, but as time passes, they settle in a permanent dwelling in part of a cave. Fritz rescues a young Englishwoman shipwrecked elsewhere on their island, the book covers more than ten years
38.
The Lost Saucer
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The Lost Saucer is an ABC network television series produced by Sid and Marty Krofft. It first aired on September 6,1975, the Lost Saucer was about two friendly time-travelling androids from the year 2369 named Fi and Fum who land their flying saucer on present day Earth. They good-naturedly invite a young boy named Jerry and his babysitter Alice to check out the interior of their craft, as onlookers begin to gather though, the two androids become nervous about attracting attention and abruptly take off with Jerry and Alice. The adventures are set on Earth either in the distant past or in the distant future hundreds of years hence. Accompanying them on their adventures was a known as the Dorse which was a half-dog, half-horse hybrid with the body of a large shaggy dog. There were 16 original episodes produced for the 1975-76 season, the first six episodes were later rerun in the first half of The Krofft Supershow s first season. Each episode had a theme, usually a social or environmental one. Fat is Beautiful, for example, depicted a future in which people were grotesquely obese due to over-dependence on push-button conveniences, in Get a Dorse, two scientists kidnap the Dorse to use as a power source because the worlds fuel supplies were finally used up. * The exact date of this episode is uncertain, the Lost Saucer, The Complete Series is coming soon to DVD from Vivendi Entertainment as a part of The World of Sid & Marty Krofft collection. The Lost Saucer at the Internet Movie Database The Krofft Supershow at the Internet Movie Database The Lost Saucer at TV. com
39.
Sid and Marty Krofft
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They are largely known for a unique brand of ambitious fantasy programs, often featuring large-headed puppets, high-concept plots, and extensive use of low-budget special effects. The team also dominated the arena of celebrity music/variety programs during the period, the Krofft brothers, Sid and Marty, were born in Montreal, Québec. For years, they claimed to have born to a family of fifth-generation puppeteers. Their father was, in fact, a salesman who moved from Canada to Providence, Rhode Island. Sid Krofft became a puppeteer who worked in vaudeville and was a featured player with the Ringling Bros. In the 1940s, Sid created a puppet show, The Unusual Artistry of Sid Krofft. His father joined him on tour in Paris while Marty stayed in New York, by the 1950s, the Krofft brothers were working together, and in 1957, they developed Les Poupées de Paris, a puppet show with more mature themes. After designing the characters and sets for Hanna-Barberas Banana Splits, the Kroffts producing career began in 1969 with the childrens television series H. R. Pufnstuf. The series introduced the trademark style of large scale, colorful design, puppetry. Featuring a boy who has lured into an alternate fantasy world and can never escape. Some people suggested that the Krofft brothers were influenced by marijuana and LSD, in a 2005 interview with USA Today, Marty Krofft said, No drugs involved. You cant do drugs when youre making shows, referring to the alleged LSD use, Marty said in another interview, That was our look, those were the colors, everything we did had vivid colors, but there was no acid involved. Im no goody two-shoes, but you cant create this stuff stoned, the Kroffts also favored quirky superhero stories, often with children involved as the heroes or part of a hero team. In 1976, a developer asked the Kroffts to develop an amusement park for the new Omni International complex in downtown Atlanta, the World of Sid and Marty Krofft was the worlds first indoor amusement park, but due to poor attendance it was closed after just six months. The Omni International building that contained the amusement park was renamed the CNN Center when the site was converted to the present CNN headquarters, the Kroffts memorable childrens programs have developed a wide and enduring following, largely among adults who watched the shows as children. They were also responsible for a number of prime time music/variety programs. The Kroffts have occasionally departed from their formula, notably a new version of Family Affair. The team has attempted to update some of their most popular series for a younger generation, including new versions of Land of the Lost, Electra Woman and Dyna Girl
40.
Jim Nabors
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James Thurston Jim Nabors is a retired American actor and singer. Born and raised in Sylacauga, Alabama, Nabors moved to southern California because of his asthma, while working at a Santa Monica nightclub, The Horn, he was discovered by Andy Griffith and later joined The Andy Griffith Show, playing Gomer Pyle. Nabors and Ron Howard are the last surviving regular male cast members from that series, the character proved popular, and Nabors was given his own spin-off show, Gomer Pyle, U. S. M. C. Though known for his portrayal of Gomer Pyle, Nabors became a popular guest on variety shows in the 1960s and 1970s and he subsequently recorded numerous albums and singles, most of them containing romantic ballads. Nabors is also known for singing Back Home Again in Indiana, prior to the start of the Indianapolis 500, except for a few absences due to health or other conflicts, Nabors sang the unofficial Indiana anthem every year from 1972 until his final time in 2014. Nabors was born to Mavis and Fred Nabors in Sylacauga, Alabama, where he sang for his school and church. He attended the University of Alabama, where he began acting in skits, while at Alabama, he became a member of Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity. Because of his asthma, Nabors moved to Los Angeles and worked as a cutter for NBC. He also worked at a Santa Monica tavern, The Horn and his act featured him as a character similar to the Gomer Pyle character he later portrayed, he sang in a baritone and sometimes spoke in his higher-pitched comedic voice. At the club, comedian Bill Dana saw Nabors act and invited him to appear on The Steve Allen Show, Nabors signed on to the show, but it was soon canceled. It was at The Horn where Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith and was hired to play a role of Gomer Pyle. The show, which placed Nabors bungling, naive character opposite Sergeant Vince Carter, was also popular, Nabors resigned from Gomer Pyle, U. S. M. C. After five seasons—prompting producers Aaron Ruben and Sheldon Leonard to ask CBS to cancel it—because he desired to move to something else, most of the songs were romantic ballads, though he sang pop, gospel, and country songs as well. The climactic vocal performance on Gomer Pyle, U. S. M. C. Came in an episode titled The Show Must Go On, aired November 3,1967, in which Pyle sang The Impossible Dream in Washington, D. C. at a U. S. Navy relief show, accompanied by the Marine Corps Band. He hosted a variety show, The Jim Nabors Hour, which featured his Gomer Pyle co-stars Ronnie Schell, despite a poor critical reception, the show was popular. After the cancellation of The Jim Nabors Hour, Nabors embarked on a nationwide roadshow, typecast from his role as Gomer Pyle, Nabors found his subsequent roles mostly comedic. In a 1973 episode of The Rookies, he played his first serious role, also in 1973, Nabors sang The Star-Spangled Banner before Game One of the Major League Baseball World Series
41.
Ruth Buzzi
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Ruth Ann Buzzi is an American actress, comedian and singer. She has appeared onstage, as well as in films and television and she is best known for her performances on the comedy-variety show Rowan & Martins Laugh-In from 1968–73, for which she won a Golden Globe Award and received five Emmy nominations. Buzzi was born at Westerly Hospital, Westerly, Rhode Island, the daughter of Rena Pauline and Angelo Peter Buzzi and her father was born in Arzo, Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, a few miles from the Italian border. He was asked to work on the carving of the Presidents on Mount Rushmore but declined and her mother was born in the United States to immigrants from northern Italy. Buzzi attended Stonington High School, where she was head cheerleader, at 17, she enrolled at the Pasadena Playhouse for the Performing Arts and graduated with honors. She studied voice, dance, and acting, and took courses in cosmetology in case acting didnt work out, before graduation from college, Buzzi was already a working actress with a union card in musical and comedy revues. She moved to New York City after graduation and was hired immediately for a role in an off-Broadway musical revue. Buzzi performed in New York musical variety shows, and she made television commercials. Her first national recognition on television came on The Garry Moore Show in 1964, Buzzi saw her first taste of national fame as Shagundala the Silent, a bumbling magicians assistant to her comedy partner Dom DeLuise who played Dominic the Great. Buzzi was a member of the repertory company on the CBS variety show The Entertainers. In 1966–67, Buzzi appeared in Sweet Charity, with Fosses wife Gwen Verdon in the original cast and she had several small roles, one of them the Singing Fairy. In the late 1960s, Ruth Buzzi appeared in episode of The Steve Allen Show. Her character parts in the Allen sketches led her to be cast for NBCs new show Rowan and she was the only featured player to appear in every episode of Laugh-In including the pilot for the show and the Laugh-In television special. A versatile comedian and accomplished singer, Buzzi played everything from old women to tipsy drunks. Her most famous character was dowdy spinster Gladys Ormphby, clad in brown with her bun hairdo covered by a visible hairnet knotted in the middle of her forehead. Buzzi first used this look when she played Agnes Gooch in a production of Auntie Mame. In most sketches, she used her lethal purse, with which she would flail away vigorously at anyone who incurred her wrath, on Laugh-In, Gladys most often appeared as the unwilling object of the advances of Arte Johnsons dirty old man character Tyrone F. Horneigh. In a typical exchange, Tyrone accosts Gladys and asks, Do you believe in the hereafter, delighted, Tyrone shoots back, Then you know what Im here after
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Marvin Marvin
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Marvin Marvin is an American science fiction slapstick comedy television series that aired from November 24,2012 to April 27,2013. The series stars Lucas Cruikshank as the title character Marvin Marvin, on June 26,2013, Cruikshank said that he had left Nickelodeon for good. Under the supervision of his new parents, Bob and Liz. Helping him navigate Earth’s unfamiliar social customs are Marvin’s human siblings Teri and Henry and his mischievous grandfather, as if teaching Marvin how to act human wasn’t hard enough, the family and even Teri’s curious best friend, Briana, must also conceal his real identity from the world. Lucas Cruikshank as Marvin Forman, an alien from the planet Klooton who is revealed to actually be 580 years old in Pilot. His powers include the ability to freeze and heat objects at will using his fingers and he is also able to talk to animals, shapeshift, float, and calm people down using the Klootonian Calm Palm. In the pilot, he adopts the name Marvin Marvin because he knew Teri did not want him to have the same last name as her and he nervously repeated his first name Marvin as his last name. Victory Van Tuyl as Teri Forman, the sister of Henry. Jacob Bertrand as Henry Forman, Teri and Marvins younger brother and he is very mischievous and cunning with plans of secret parties, playing hooky, going to a nude beach on a family vacation etc. Pat Finn as Robert Bob Forman, the father and human father of Marvin. Mim Drew as Elizabeth Liz Forman, the mother and human mother of Marvin. She treats Marvin like her own children and really cares for him, casey Sander as George Pop-Pop, Teri and Henrys grandfather, Marvins human grandfather, and the father of Liz. He is very childish and mischievous like his grandson Henry, camille Spirlin as Brianna, Teris very loyal best friend. She finds out about Marvins secret in Space-Cation, angel Amaral as Ben, Marvins human best friend. Hes stereotypically nerdy and is not very popular and he quickly makes friends with Marvin when he sees that Marvin is not making friends easily. Ben is also known to have a comic book collection. Dennis Atlas as Derek Winfeld, a kid who believes he is a horse. He grows his hair long and wears brown as he gallops through the school whinnying, the series initially aired on Nickelodeon in the U. S. on November 24,2012, and on YTV in Canada March 19,2013
