'Space Patrol Orion' West German 1966 TV series & ST:TOS

Wow. Never heard of it. For a TV budget, especially a 1960s TV budget, it's visually stunning. Just imagine Star Trek's stories with this visual style.

And imagine "Way to Eden" with this...

 

That's pretty impressive: the dance choreography must've been tough, yet it's all so smooth!

I do like how "character-driven" this program appears to be!

 

As you can all imagine the dance sequences were what everyone in the audience would always remember about the series.

Back in the 1960's it looked totally weird, but if you think of all the aerobic excercises we've seen in the past decades it starts to look less weird, or at least IMHO.

Bob

 

The funny thing is, they used every day items for their sets more then TOS ever did. Part of their main console is an ironing machine ;-)

There is one episode that is all about a super nova, (which they sometimes call "Super Nova" and sometimes "Fast Runner")..but what the SFX shows is a comet. And then they go and destroy the super nova using a weapon called "Overkill" ;-)

 

Not much sillier than this:
[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnNhz0k_Qjg[/yt]

 

Give the choice I'd rather do the Space Patrol chicken dance.

 

Thanks for that post , I like how at about 0:37 the Count down sound like the Classic Cylon's from BSG.

 

They probably shared many of the same inspirations (Books: EE "Doc" Smith, Robert Heinlein's "Space Cadet," etc.; Films: "Forbidden Planet," etc.). Germany also had their own homegrown Perry Rhodan series among others. In the states, Roddenberry had seen Captain Video, Space Patrol (US), Captain Video, etc. (wherein they all contain bits here and there that would later resemble things in Trek '66).

"Star Trek" in and of itself wasn't a totally original creation. What did make it "different" was that it was aimed at an older audience. Science Fiction and Space Opera also was not unique to the USA.

 

I love the intro text at the beginning of the opening theme...I made a quick translation:

"What sounds like a fairy tale today may be reality tomorrow.
This is a fairy tale of the day after tomorrow:
There are no nations anymore.
There is just humankind and its colonies in space.
People settle on far away planets.
The ocean floor has been develeoped as residental area.
Space ships rush thru our milky way with speeds still unimaginable today.
One of those space ships is the ORION, a tiny part of a gigantic security system protecting earth from dangers from space.
Let´s accompany the ORION and its crew on its patrol service at the edge of infinity..."

 

^^ Almost flawless translation. In German "star" could equally refer to either a celestial body like the Sun or a planet. In the context of the opening narration it's "people settle on far away planets".

Bob

 

You´re right of course...as a german native speaker I´m embarrassed to have made that error. :-(

 

Or this scene from The Day the Fish Came Out (1967):

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_MtOMDsRiY[/yt]

Maybe we should start a "Silly-Looking Dance" thread.

 

Brought to you by Monty Python's Ministry of Silly Walks?

Bob