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Far-Out Space Nuts

Tower Of Tagot

Far-Out Space NutsUsing his “future machine”, the mad tyrant Tagot sees a future in which Barney, Junior and Honk threaten his reign. The Sarians, who seek to end Tagot’s reign by rescuing their kidnapped queen, equip the wayward space travelers with such weapons as an inviso-ray and a bravery belt, because they’re equally sure that Barney and Junior pose a threat to Tagot. The only missing piece of the puzzle? Nobody knows how they’ll overthrow Tagot.

written by Earle Doud & Chuck McCann
directed by Wes Kenney
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Robert Quarry (Zarlam), Barbara Rhoades (Pulma), Paul Wexler (Tagot)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

The Three Spaceketeers

Far-Out Space NutsAfter some simple housekeeping tasks go awry, Barney declares Junior “useless”…and Junior decides to strike out on his own, leaving Barney and Honk behind. Trouble immediately finds him in the form of two alien freedom fighters seeking to free their queen, who is imprisoned in a nearby fortress. These aliens believe that a great leader named “Junio” will guide them in their hour of greatest need…but, since they don’t know any better, “Junior” is drafted into their plan.

written by Dick Robbins & Duane Poole
directed by Wes Kenney
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Bob Basso (Junio), Al Checco (Sporian #1), Robert Dunlap (Sporian #2), Howard George (Lizard #1), Jason Kincaid (Lizard #2), Kathryn Loder (Royal Helona)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Flight Of The Pippets

Far-Out Space NutsA tiny flying saucer buzzes Junior while he naps, and he soon meets the crew, who can make themselves as big as he is – or shrink themselves (and him) – with a device they carry. When Honk arrives to rescue the miniaturized Junior, the aliens flee…and Junior is still tiny. He may have to become even tinier to thwart the Pippets’ plan to be the big species on the block.

written by Earle Doud & Check McCann
directed by Al Schwartz
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Robert Dunlap (Pippet Captain), Michael Hawes (Pippet), Mickey Morton (Pippet)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Birds Of A Feather

Far-Out Space NutsA group of Motrons – chicken-like birdmen – abduct Barney and Junior. Their leader, Falco, intends to force Junior to sit on the sovereign egg of the Motrons’ aerie. The egg contains the Motrons’ next ruled, but unknown to the hapless humans, they’ve become pawns in a Motron power struggle. Falco’s underlings intend to take the egg out of circulation, removing Falco’s family from power, but to save their own skins, Barney and Junior hatch a plan of their own.

written by Earle Doud & Check McCann
directed by Al Schwartz
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), John Myhers (Falco), Paul Wexler (Motron #1), Robert Dunlap (Motron #2)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Dangerous Game

Far-Out Space NutsA strange space vortex appears in the path of the lander, and when Barney and Junior investigate, a werewolf-like creature boards their spaceship. They are taken to Salana, a woman who tells them they will compete in games and play to win…or face spending eternity as her living trophies. Her wolf-like minions, Lycos and Lobos, are free to pursue them and ensure that they are not victorious. And simply not playing, as Junior suggests, isn’t an option.

teleplay by Sam Locke and Paul Roberts
story by Duane Poole and Dick Robbins
directed by Al Schwartz
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), John Caisse (Lobos), Lynn Cartwright (Salana), Mickey Morton (Lycos)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Secrets Of The Hexagon

Far-Out Space NutsWhen Barney accuses Junior yet again of being a useless idiot, Junior is vulnerable to the new intergalactic con man who offers him the ability to turn his fortunes around. But this scam artist isn’t selling space snake oil: he’s offering something called the Hexagon, which can fulfill nearly any wish its owner desires. And the asking price? The space travelers’ lander. When Barney and Junior discover that they’ve been had, the race is on to out-scam the scammer.

written by Earle Doud & Chuck McCann
directed by Wes Kenney
Far-Out Space Nutsmusic by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Cast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Rudy Diaz (voice of the Hexagon), Howard George (Flam), Gus Peters (Tride), Hal Smith (Komak)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Captain Torque Space Pirate

Far-Out Space NutsCaptain Torque’s attempts to find an intergalactic treasure map have proven far too dangerous for his inept henchmen. He decides to enlist the help of the next two fools he happens across, and naturally Barney and Junior are the easiest choices. To ensure their cooperation, captain Torque holds their spaceship hostage…with no guarantee that he’ll give it back even if they do accomplish the mission he has given them.

written by Earle Doud & Chuck McCann
directed by Walter G. Miller
music by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Far-Out Space NutsCast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Rudy Diaz (Captain Torque), Gus Peters (Henchman), Hal Smith (Intergalactic Patrol)

Notes: Many online resources place a comma in this episode’s title; the on-air title as broadcast contains no punctuation. Junior accidentally calls Captain Torque “Captain Turk” numerous times.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Far-Out Space Nuts

Vanishing Alien Mystery

Far-Out Space NutsA meteor storm forces Barney, Junior and Honk down on a derelict space station. They find that Lantana has also docked there, as have many others, for the reading of a space will. The deceased promises his entire fortune, including the station itself, to all present, and implores them to ignore legends that the station is haunted. But when the visitors to the station begin disappearing, one by one, it looks like someone wants to be the sole surviving benefactor of that space will…

written by Jack Mendelsohn
directed by Wes Kenney
music by Michael Lloyd / arranged by Reg Powell

Far-Out Space NutsCast: Bob Denver (Junior), Chuck McCann (Barney), Patty Maloney (Honk), Eve Bruce (Lantana), Mitchell Young-Evans (Spector), Michael Hawes (Zomar), Stan Jenson (Crakor)

Notes: Possibly the only instance of anything resembling continuity in Far-Out Space Nuts, this episode features a Gromek (It’s All In Your Mind), a Pippet (Flight Of The Pippets, a Crystallite (The Crystallites), and Lantana herself (The Robots Of Pod).

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Flies

Ark IIIn the 25th century, centuries of human progress have taken their toll. Pollution and war have left the Earth a desolate wasteland. The scientific community, reduced to a small enclave hiding away from the scavengers and savages that roam the planet’s surface, puts all of its hopes into a mobile laboratory called Ark II, commanded by Jonah and crewed by young scientists Ruth and Samuel, and the sentient chimpanzee Adam.

Word reaches the Ark II crew of a marauding band of orphaned children pillaging weaker communities and preying on travelers. The only group in the area that wields more power is a group of well-armed warlords. Jonah ventures out on his own, discovering that an adult named Fagon is guiding the Flies, and he discovers something else even more disturbing: the Flies’ most recent looting “find” includes at least one canister of a poisonous gas. With the children willing to do whatever Fagon says, Jonah knows time is running out to keep the Flies from stepping up from petty crime to something far deadlier – to themselves and to the warlords.

The Flieswritten by Martin Roth
directed by Ted Post
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Jonathan Harris (Fagon),Tierre Turner (Tick), Malachi Throne (War Lord Brack), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam)

Notes: Filmation Associates, famous for its numerous early ’70s cartoons (including Star Trek: The Animated Series), took The Fliesa bold step into live-action SF with Ark II. The centerpiece and home base of the show was Ark II itself, a custom-built vehicle on an existing truck chassis; contrary to urban legend, Ark II was a new vehicle, and was not the same vehicle as the Landmaster from Damnation Alley. Another new vehicle making an appearance here was the very real jetpack, developed and then abandoned by Bell Helicopter, which wound up in the hands of a hi-tech Hollywood prop rental service. It could only fly for thirty seconds before its fuel ran out, sending its pilot (a costumed stuntman, not actor Terry Lester) plummeting to the ground on at least one occasion. The production rented the jetpack for only eight of these brief flights, each of which was filmed by four cameras at the same time, ensuring a variety of stock footage. Ark II’s smaller “convertible SUV” The Fliesvehicle was called the Roamer.

Actor Jonathan Harris – famous for his role as the villainous (but hardly competent) Dr. Smith on Lost In Space, is the episode’s main guest star, but Filmation would hire him as the adult star of their next live-action genre show, Space Academy (which later morphed into Jason Of Star Command). Malachi Throne (a veteran of ’60s and ’70s TV fondly remembered for his appearances in early episodes of Star Trek) also guest stars.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Slaves

Ark IIJonah discovers a camp where a man named Baron Vargas has enslaved the people of an entire village, using “magic” to keep them under his power. As he is surveying the slave camp and working on a strategy to free its people, Jonah is captured by Vargas’ men and is put to work. He tries to lead a rebellion, but becomes the latest “victim” of Vargas’ “magic” – he’s dumped through a trap door and Vargas convinces the other slaves that he has turned Jonah into a chicken. Ruth, Samuel and Adam launch their own plan to free Jonah and the slaves, but they run the risk of being captured themselves.

The Slaveswritten by David Dworski
directed by Hollingsworth Morse
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Michael Kermoyan (Baron Vargas), Michael Mullins (Gideon), Karl Lukas (Cyrus), Charles Wagenheim (Old Slave), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Wild Boy

Ark IIJonah descends underground to retrieve mineral samples from an opening in the Earth. As Samual and Ruth monitor his progress on the surface, they are attacked by a boy who can’t even speak, though the approach of riders on horseback scares off their attacker. The riders’ leader, Simone, warns Jonah and his teammates about the “wild boy” who attacks anyone who approaches the abandoned mine, and expresses her desire to capture and tame the boy by any means necessary. Jonah thanks her for the warning, and instead makes it a point to befriend the boy next time he appears. Ruth and Samuel name the boy Isaiah and begin to teach him the basics of life in their vehicle, but when he sees the ore samples Jonah retrieved from the mine, he goes berzerk and runs away. Can anyone tame Isaiah, or is he trying to warn both Jonah and Simone of a greater danger?

Ark IIwritten by Susan Dworski
directed by Hollingsworth Morse
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Mitch Vogel (Isaiah), Jean Sarah Frost (Simone), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Robot

Ark IIThe Ark II crew enjoys a little bit of downtime. For Jonah, Ruth and Adam, this means fishing, though they’re slightly annoyed that their expert fisherman, Samuel, is spending his free time inside the Ark, working on his hobby project, a huge robot named Alpha-1 (or, to Samuel, “Alphie”). When toxic gas is detected in the air, and Jonah and his friends see strange behavior in people exposed to the gas, the vacation is over. Jonah orders Samuel to shut Alphie down because there’s serious work to be done. Alphie has other ideas, however, and escapes from the Ark. Now Jonah has to contend with a toxic gas and an escaped robot on the loose, either one of which could do serious harm.

The Slaveswritten by Chuck Menville and Len Janson
directed by Ted Post
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Al Dunlap (Brant), Elizabeth Cheshire (Nestra), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam / voice of Alphie)

Notes: If Alphie looks familiar, it’s because he’s as close as anything in Ark II gets to being a genuine sci-fi icon: he’s better known as “Robby the Robot,” an invention of MGM’s prop shop for the 1956 movie Forbidden Planet. He has appeared in dozens of other productions since, including Lost In Space, Twilight Zone, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., and Ark II’s Filmation stablemate Space Academy.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

Omega

Ark IIJonah brings the Ark II to a screeching halt when he sees an old man laying in the dust. This man has escaped from a society that was thriving only three weeks ago, until the reactivation of a 21st century computer led to the entire community falling under the computer’s mind control. The computer, called Omega, has a much easier time taking over the minds of the young, but with more time and effort it can control anyone’s mind. Marcus is the last holdout, and his granddaughter is already under Omega’s control. Jonah makes it his mission to free these people by deactivating Omega at any price… but before he can even start, Omega already has control over Samuel.

The Flieswritten by Bill Danch & Jim Ryan
directed by Hollingsworth Morse
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Harry Townes (Marcus), Helen Hunt (Diana), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam / voice of Omega)

Notes: Yes, it’s that Helen Hunt (of Mad About You fame), though it’s far from the young actress’ first role – she had been acting professionally for three years by the time of her appearance in Ark II. Veteran character actor Harry Townes was a fixture of the golden age of TV, guest starring in Twilight Zone, The Invaders, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, One Step Beyond, Inner Sanctum and Tales Of Tomorrow. He also appeared in The Outer Limits, the original Star Trek, Planet Of The Apes, Buck Rogers, and The Incredible Hulk. He died in 2001.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Tank

Ark IIAs the Ark is on the move through a valley filled with the remnants of machines of war, Samuel and Adam spot a girl being chased by a ragtag band of scavengers. Jonah and Samuel rush to her aid, but are brought up short by an amazing sight: one of the seemingly abandoned tanks is on the move. The distraction doesn’t stop the scavengers, however: they kidnap the girl, go to her village and demand a heavy ransom – most of that village’s food crops for the next year in exchange for her safe return. Jonah notices that one of the village’s young men is the one who was driving the tank. Jonah and his team offer their help in rescuing the girl, but to do so, Jonah may have to overcome his aversion to using the tank as the weapon is was meant to be.

The Fliesteleplay by Mark Jones & Michael Prescott and Robert Specht
story by Mark Jones & Michael Prescott
directed by Ted Post
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Marhsall Thompson (Baxter), Chris Nelson (Zachery), Tony Ballen (Roman), Bonnie Van Dyke (Jewel), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Ark II

The Cryogenic Man

Ark IIThe Ark arrives in time for the unearthing of two cryogenic capsules buried in 1986; Jonah and his crew volunteer their technology to help revive the two men frozen inside. Despite their cryogenic capsules nearly failing during power-up and revival, the two businessmen from the 1980s survive and awaken. One of them wastes no time in trying to sell the locals on his miracle chemical which will supposedly grow healthy crops in the more dire of conditions. There’s a reason this chemical was phased out before 1986, but of course no one alive in the 25th century remembers that.

The Flieswritten by Martin Roth
directed by Ted Post
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael and Horta-Mahana

Cast: Terry Lester (Jonah), Jean Marie Hon (Ruth), Jose Flores (Samuel), Jim Backus (Arnie Pool), John Fiedler (Norman Funk), Chuck Comisky (Jeb), Lou Scheimer (voice of Adam)

Notes: Jim Backus is easily the highest-profile guest star of Ark II’s entire run. TV audiences remember him best as Mr. Howell from Gilligan’s Island.

LogBook entry by Earl Green