Rocky Jones, Space Ranger is an American science fiction television serial originally broadcast in syndication from February to November 1954. The show lasted for only two seasons and, though syndicated sporadically, dropped into obscurity. Because it was produced on black-and-white film, rather than being broadcast live as were most other TV space operas of the day, it has survived in reasonably good condition. The filmed format also allowed more elaborate special effects and sets, exterior scenes, and much better episode continuity.
23-406: Space Ranger , or Space Rangers , can refer to: Dramas [ edit ] Rocky Jones, Space Ranger (1954), a U.S. science fiction (space opera) television serial that lasted for two seasons. Space Rangers (TV series) (1993), a television series about a small police force in 2104 at Planet Avalon's Fort Hope. Buzz Lightyear (from 1995),
46-495: A Hollywood producer best known for his successful My Little Margie TV series. Roland Reed Productions was founded in 1950, and in 1951 Warren Wilson penned the screenplay for the Rocky Jones pilot. By the end of 1951, a cast had been selected, headed by Richard Crane as Rocky Jones and one-time Our Gang member Scotty Beckett , as Rocky’s co-pilot and comic relief, Winky. The pilot was filmed between January and April 1952 with
69-577: A gun battle with local police, he was incarcerated for four months, and did not return to the United States until September 1954. By then, the character of Winky had been written out of the show, replaced by Biffen Cardoza ( James Lydon ). After filming of the initial 26 episodes ended, Maurice Cass (Professor Newton) died of a heart attack on June 8, 1954. An additional 13 episodes were ordered, and filming took place between August and October 1954. Lydon continued to play Biffen Cardoza, and Professor Newton
92-526: A sequel to the 2002 Space Rangers video game. Space Ranger, a name for Juno, a character in Overwatch 2 Music [ edit ] "Space Ranger" (1976), song by Can from I Want More (Can song) "Space Ranger" (2008), song by Scandal (Japanese band) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Space Rangers . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
115-602: A single, 30-minute episode each. Most of the three-chapter story arcs were edited into feature-length movies for television, and of those some were renamed (see guide below): My Little Margie My Little Margie is an American television sitcom starring Gale Storm and Charles Farrell that alternated between CBS and NBC from 1952 to 1955. The series was created by Frank Fox and produced in Los Angeles , California , at Hal Roach Studios by Hal Roach Jr. , and Roland D. Reed . My Little Margie premiered on CBS as
138-563: A space ranger in the Toy Story series. Power Rangers in Space (1998), which introduced the "Ranger" incarnation to the franchise. Comics [ edit ] Space Ranger (from 1958), a comic book hero by DC Comics. Video games [ edit ] Space Rangers (video game) (2002), a video game by the Russian game developer Elemental Games. Space Rangers 2: Dominators (2004),
161-587: A summer replacement for I Love Lucy on June 16, 1952, under the sponsorship of Philip Morris cigarettes (when the series moved to NBC for its third season in the fall of 1953, Scott Paper Company became its sponsor). In an unusual move, the series – with the same leads – aired original episodes on CBS Radio , concurrently with the TV broadcasts, from December 1952 through August 1955. Only 23 radio broadcasts are known to exist in recorded form. Set in New York City,
184-481: A year and the photos were changed and did not come to life. The program's theme song was originally titled "Bows and Strings in Teasing" by its composer, Alexander Laszlo , when he composed it for a 1946 Republic picture, The French Key . When My Little Margie contracted to use his music, Laszlo wrote a new arrangement with added bars of music, which then became the "My Little Margie Theme" from 1952 to 1955. Most of
207-478: Is Vern's girlfriend, and Margie's boyfriend is Freddy Wilson (Don Hayden). Mrs. Odetts (played by Gertrude Hoffmann on TV, Verna Felton on radio) is the Albrights' next-door neighbor and Margie's sidekick in madcap capers reminiscent of Lucy and Ethel in I Love Lucy . When Margie realizes she has blundered or gotten into trouble, she makes an odd trilling sound . Other cast members include Willie Best , who plays
230-563: The elevator operator, Dian Fauntelle, and silent film star ZaSu Pitts . Scottish actor Andy Clyde , prior to The Real McCoys , appears in the 1954 episode, "Margie and the Bagpipes". My Little Margie finished at number 29 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1954–1955 television season, and even more impressively, at number six in Nielsen's radio estimates for the 1954–55 season. Despite this success,
253-415: The public domain . I Love Lucy , however, is still under copyright in the United States. The show had two different openings and endings. Initially, the show opened with two photos, which come to life; first, Vern talks about the difficulty of raising Margie, then Margie's photo comes to life and she explains the difficulty of making her father behave the way she wants him to. This apparently ended within
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#1732858523646276-410: The difference between planets, moons, stars, and constellations, so that the specific locations Rocky and his sidekicks visited are generally unknown to astronomers. Half-hour episodes were usually grouped into storylines that consisted of three "chapters" that were broadcast in successive weeks. A few of the storylines were completed in a single episode. Rocky Jones was the creation of Roland D. Reed,
299-674: The exploits of clean-cut, square-jawed Rocky Jones, the best known of the Space Rangers. These were Earth-based space policemen who patrolled the United Worlds of the Solar System in the not-too-distant future. Rocky and his crew would routinely blast-off in a V-2 -like, chemically-fueled, upright rocketship , the Orbit Jet XV-2. It was later replaced by the nearly identical Silver Moon XV-3 on missions to moons and planetoids , where
322-402: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Space_Rangers&oldid=1245150385 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Rocky Jones, Space Ranger The show was based on
345-472: The odds of success seemed remote, yet they would always prevail. Although they might destroy a rocketship full of unseen villains, their space pistols were never fired at people, and conflicts were always resolved with only fistfights. Although many strange worlds were visited, the alien characters usually spoke American English , and always appeared as normal humans, albeit wearing bizarre costumes in normal environments. The script-writers did not appear to know
368-475: The series stars Gale Storm as 21-year-old Margie Albright and former silent film star Charles Farrell as her widowed father, 50-year-old Vern Albright. They share an apartment at the Carlton Arms Hotel. Vern Albright is the vice president of the investment firm of Honeywell and Todd, where his bosses are George Honeywell ( Clarence Kolb ) and Westley Todd (George Meader). Roberta Townsend ( Hillary Brooke )
391-580: The series was canceled in 1955. Gale Storm went on to star in The Gale Storm Show which ran for 143 episodes from 1956 to 1960. ZaSu Pitts joined Gale Storm in this series too, originally entitled Oh! Susanna . The show has been compared with two other 1950s sitcoms that aired at the same time, I Married Joan and Life with Elizabeth . All three programs were inspired by the success of I Love Lucy , but despite their own merits, have fallen into obscurity only to gain some popularity after entering
414-482: The show was syndicated, rather than being broadcast by a major network.) Today, all 39 episodes of the TV series are available for viewing on YouTube. Thirty-nine 30-minute episodes were filmed and shown during the period starting in February, 1954, and running into January, 1955, depending on the local market schedule. Thirty-six of these were grouped into 12 three-chapter, 90-minute, story arcs, and three were completed in
437-556: The show. A Rocky Jones, Space Ranger comic book was issued by Charlton Comics . Issues 15, 16, 17, and 18 of the ongoing title Space Adventures are devoted to Rocky's adventures. Rocky, Winky, Vena, Bobby, and Cleolanta appear prominently. The largest sponsor of the series was the Gordon Baking Company, makers of Silvercup Bread, the original sponsor of the Lone Ranger radio and television series. The series finally premiered
460-516: The surviving radio episodes are edited versions aired on the Armed Forces Radio Service (AFRS). CBS destroyed thousands of broadcasts from this period, so in many cases all that have survived have been the AFRS versions. The AFRS versions used the 1920s song "Margie" as a music fill at the end of the episode to take up the time that would have had commercials in the original CBS version. After
483-835: The titles and effects shots being prepared in March of that year. The outdoor scenes were filmed at Palomar Mountain Observatory. Post-production was completed in May. The pilot was screened on September 29, 1952. Although the premise showed potential, several characters were recast, including Vena Ray and Secretary Drake. With the new cast finally in place and teleplays prepared for the first 26 episodes, filming began in October 1953 and continued until April 1954. A merchandising blitz began during this time. Wristwatches, wallets complete with space dollars, badges, buttons, records, and clothing were produced to promote
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#1732858523646506-532: The week of Monday, February 22, 1954, at various days and times on stations across the United States. Off-screen issues began almost immediately. In February 1954, Scotty Beckett was arrested for possessing a weapon after being implicated in an armed robbery at the Cavalier Hotel in Hollywood. After posting bail, he fled to Mexico where he encountered more problems for writing bad checks and more weapons charges. After
529-489: Was replaced by Professor Mayberry ( Reginald Sheffield ), while regular villain Cleolanta, Suzerain of Ophiucius ( Patsy Parsons ) was replaced by Juliandra, Suzerain of Herculon ( Ann Robinson ). No further episodes were ordered, and the series ended after 39 episodes. (Several researchers have stated that this may have been due to the high cost of the special effects, which apparently made the series unprofitable, especially since
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