ROD BROWN OF THE ROCKET RANGERS
(CBS, April 18,
1953-May 29, 1954)
CBS Television
Network
In the
entertainment world, imitation is part of the game. Whenever something proves
immensely popular, imitators are sure to follow; keeping it similar enough to
be recognizable while also changing enough to avoid being straight plagiarism.
Sometimes by the competition, sometimes by the same people who made that
popular thing in order to corner the market and steal an audience away from
the competition. Unfortunately, for Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers, it
stuck a little too close to its inspiration for its own good.
 |
CBS camera check. |
CBS wanted to get back into the science fiction
game—particularly the space-faring kind that was at the peak of its popularity
in 1953. Having been the original home of the still-thriving Tom
Corbett, Space Cadet currently airing on the DuMont Network,
CBS decided they should create a similar program of their own. They hired one
of the original Corbett directors, George Gould,
to direct the series. With him came several of Corbett’s writers and the
technical know-how for the effects used on that program.
 |
Rod Brown. |
Like Corbett, it would focus
on a crew of three traveling on adventures through space on their
atomic-powered space ship Beta in the mid-22nd century. Rod
Brown (Cliff Robertson) was the captain, with his prickly partner Frank Boyd
(Bruce Hall) and the chubby glasses-wearing Wilbur “Wormsey” Wormser (Jack
Weston), who served as the comic relief (something Corbett didn’t have).
They reported to Omega Base back on Earth; specifically, to Commander Swift
(John Boruff), who would deliver their weekly missions via radio transmission.
Unlike Corbett, which tried to adhere to the science of the day and keep
its episodes grounded in reality, Rod Brown opted for a more fantastical
approach with the customary ray guns and alien encounters, along with common
space criminals.
 |
Brown, Boyd, "Wormsey" and Swift at Omega Base. |
Rod
Brown of the Rocket Rangers debuted on CBS on April 18, 1953. Each episode
opened up with the introduction: “CBS Television presents Rod Brown and the
Rocket Rangers. Surging with the power of the atom, gleaming like great
silver bullets, the mighty Rocket Rangers space ships, stand by for blast-off.
Up, up, rockets blazing with white-hot fury, the man-made meteors ride through
the atmosphere, breaking the gravity barrier, pushing up and out, faster and
faster and then outer space and high adventure for the Rocket Rangers.” The
series was broadcast live from New York City at 11:30 in the morning. Robertson
was offered the role by William Dozier,
an executive at CBS at the time, and Robertson took it thinking it’d be a
quick, easy payday (sources vary on his salary being $150 or $175 a week, almost
$2000 when adjusted for inflation) while he was also doing a Broadway show. He
never counted on it becoming successful, running for over a year and producing
58 episodes (some sources say 59). The series’ theme was composed by Robert Allen.
 |
Operating some futuristic technology. |
While there
were some differences, there were far more similarities to Tom
Corbett for its producers’ liking. They filed a lawsuit against CBS, which
didn’t immediately affect the production or the show’s release schedule. After
four months of deliberations, the known consequence of the suit was that the
kinescope recordings of Rod Brown had to be destroyed. As far as anyone
knows, they were and the series was never rebroadcast after its conclusion.
Some of the audio recordings from a few episodes do exist, however.
 |
Rod Brown getting his space helmet prop. |
On my
Honor as a Rocket Ranger, I pledge that:
1. I
shall always chart my course according to the Constitution of the United States
of America.
2. I
shall never cross orbits with the Rights and Beliefs of others.
3. I
shall blast at full space-speed to protect the Weak and Innocent.
4. I
shall stay out of collision orbit with the laws of my State and Community
5. I
shall cruise in parallel orbit with my Parents and Teachers.
6. I
shall not roar my rockets unwisely, and shall be Courteous at all times.
7. I
shall keep my gyros steady and reactors burning by being Industrious and
Thrifty.
8. I
shall keep my scanner tuned to Learning and remain coupled to my Studies.
9. I
shall keep my mind out of free-fall by being mentally alert.
10. I
shall blast the meteors from the paths of other people by being Kind and
Considerate.
EPISODE GUIDE (incomplete):
“Operation Decoy” (4/18/53) – The Beta crew
investigates pirate attacks on shipping lanes.
“The Case of the Invisible Saboteurs” (4/25/53) – The Beta
crew looks into the disappearance of highly-classified files.
“The Planet of Ice” (5/2/53) – The Beta crew must rescue
a mail ship forced to land on frigid Jupiter.
“Whispers in the Mind” (5/9/53) – A mind-control device
gives false information to two Rangers on a navigation project.
“The Crater of Peril” (5/16/53) – The Beta crew looks
for radioactive material on the dark side of the moon.
“The Globe Men of Oma” (5/23/53) – While searching for a
missing spaceship, Rod and Frank are captured by the Omans.
“The Adventures of the Venusian Sea” (5/30/53) – A giant
octopus-like creature terrorizes the sea.
“The Little Men of Mercury” (6/6/53) – The Beta crew
visits a planet populated by tiny humanoids.
“World of the Doomed” (6/13/53) – The Beta crew
investigates a smuggling operation on a prison asteroid.
“The Strangler Trees of Triton” (6/20/53) – The Beta crew
rescues a fellow Ranger from a dangerous forest.
“Stranger from Outer Space” (6/27/53) – An alien robot
kidnaps Rod.
“The Phantom Birds of Beloro” (7/4/53) – Rod and Frank
rescue some old prospectors from bird-like preadators.
“The Black Cloud of Calistro” (7/11/53) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Suits of Peril” (7/18/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Apples of Eden” (7/25/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Space Bugs” (8/1/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Martian Queen” (8/8/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Fire Deamons of Delmos” (8/15/53) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Big Hammer” (8/22/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Volcanoes of Venus” (8/29/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Death Ball” (9/5/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Unseen Planet” (9/12/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Madness from Space” (9/19/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Looters of Leeron” (9/26/53) – Rod is captured by a
group of smugglers to work in their illegal radioactive mineral mine.
“The Octopus of Venus” (10/3/53) – A routine assignment to salvage
a wrecked spaceship leads to trouble under the sea.
“Colossus of Centauri” (10/10/53) – Rod breaches the end of the
solar system and discovers a planet of giants.
“The Lights from Luna” (10/17/53) – Rod must protect Earth
from the destructor of Solar City.
“The Twin Planet” (10/24/53) – Investigating an old theory
leads the Beta crew to discover a primitive land that resembles
Manhattan Island before Columbus.
“The Treasure of Tesoro” (10/31/53) – Rod and Frank are on
guard duty for the treasury vaults of Space Fortress Tesoro.
“The Robot Robber of Delmos” (11/7/53) – The Beta crew
investigates a bank robbery by a humanoid robot.
“The Magic Man of Mars” (11/14/53) – A carnival performer
leads a secret life as a space pirate.
“The Stickman of Neptune” (11/21/53) – A stowaway steals the
Beta to head for Neptune to search for a treasure.
“Money-Makers of Juno” (11/28/53) – Swift is kidnapped by a
ring of interplanetary counterfeiters.
“The Deep Sleep” (12/5/53) – Interplanetary bank robbers use
oxygen boosters to put everyone to sleep on Ganymede.
“The Cyclops of Themis” (12/12/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Electric Men” (12/19/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Copernicus Diamond” (12/26/53) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Stone Men of Venus” (1/2/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Energy Eaters from Luna” (1/9/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Operation Dinosaur” (1/23/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Escape by Magic” (1/30/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Invisible Force” (2/6/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Return of the Stickmen” (2/13/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Fishman of the Venusian Sea” (2/20/54) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Strong Man of Mayron” (2/27/54) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Eel of Iapetus” (3/6/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Strange Men of Leefri” (3/13/54) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Monkey that Couldn’t Stop Growing” (3/20/54) – The planet
Clavo enters the solar system due to its erratic orbit.
“The Plan of Planet H” (3/27/54) – The Beta crew
discovers Planet H plan to flood and take over the Earth.
“Invasion from Dimension X” (4/3/54) – The Beta crew
encounters shadowy figures from another dimension.
“The Matter-Transfer Machine” (4/10/54) – A gang uses a
transporter to smuggle isotopes off of Earth.
“Terror in the Space Lighthouse” (4/17/54) – Two inmates
plan an escape from an asteroid prison.
“Assignment Danger” (4/24/54) – Wormsey encounters trouble
on a routine passenger liner trip to Venus and is rescued by what seems to
be a kindly elderly woman.
“Bird Girl of Venus” (5/1/54) – An archaeological expedition
leads to the discovery of a winged humanoid.
“The Exploding Man” (5/8/54) – The Beta crew takes on
attempts to loot a uranium discovery on Ganymede.
“The Metal Eaters” (5/15/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Man who was Radioactive” (5/22/54) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
“The Cobalt Bomb” (5/29/54) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
No comments:
Post a Comment