| Book
Review: "Science Fiction Television Series"
by Mark Phillips & Frank Garcia
 Science
fiction movies may account for many of the top grossing films
of all time, but on TV, it was a decidedly different story (at
least, up until recently). Marred by tight production schedules,
marginal budgets and penny-pinching network executives, many sci-fi
shows never got a chance to realize their full potential, and
many money-losing shows were banished to syndication hell, where
they were shown a few times before disappearing into the vaults
for good.
Or so it seemed. Not
only did many of these shows flourish after finally being exposed
to their intended audience, but with the advent of the Sci-Fi
Channel a decade ago, this cerebral, thought-provoking genre finally
got its due. After all, had it not been for syndication, it's
highly unlikely that a show like "Star Trek" would have
been able to amass such a huge following, leading the way for
10 films, 4 more spin-offs and a merchandising campaign that would
collectively gross more than $5 billion worldwide.
It is that very same
audience that authors Mark Phillips and Frank Garcia pay tribute
to in "Science Fiction Television Series." Nearly 700
pages long, this entertaining, meticulously crafted, highly informative
and relentlessly addictive tome documents the making -- and, in
many cases, the un-making -- of 62 of the most influential and
bizarre science fiction shows to hit the small screen between
the years 1959 and 1989. But rather than bombard the reader with
detailed techno-babble about the physical production of each series,
Phillips and Garcia wisely focus on candid interviews with producers,
writers, series regulars and occasional guest stars about some
of the creative squabbles and hissy-fits that went on behind the
scenes.
 And
Phillips and Garcia sure did their homework. Between groundbreaking
classics that were light years ahead of their time ("Star
Trek," "The Twilight Zone," "The Prisoner"),
envelope-pushers that were canceled far short of their creative
peak ("Battlestar Galactica," "V"), and overcooked
turkeys that should never have been green-lit in the first place
("Galactica 1980," "Automan," "The Starlost"),
Phillips and Garcia give each of the successes and the failures
their balanced, fun and informative due.
They also uncover
a slew of tidbits that even hard-core fans are sure to savor.
Among them:
- Legendary sci-fi
author Isaac Asimov was supposed to come on board "Battlestar
Galactica" as a writer for the second season, but ABC pulled
the plug before that could happen.
- NBC wanted to replace
Erin Gray as Gil Gerard's spandex-wearing partner-in-crime on
"Buck Rogers in the 25th Century," but none of the actresses
who were tested worked out (fortunately).
- Richard Kiel, the
robust actor best known for playing Jaws in the James Bond films
"The Spy Who Loved Me" and "Moonraker," was
originally cast as the not-so-jolly green giant in "The Incredible
Hulk." After test footage revealed that the actor didn't
look the part, body-builder Lou Ferrigno was called in to replace
him.
- Although "Star
Trek" was eventually resurrected for the big screen in 1979,
Mort Werner, NBC's then-VP of Programming, was eager to re-launch
the Starship Enterprise for a 90-minute TV movie as early as 1970.
Speaking of "Star
Trek," just when you thought you'd read (or heard) it all
before, along comes an amusing anecdote to make reading about
it again all the more worthwhile. For example, while filming the
second season episode "A Private Little War," guest
star Booker Bradshaw was instructed by Leonard Nimoy to strike
him across the face to wake his logical character out of self-induced
Vulcan coma. When Bradshaw adhered to his wishes, he slapped Nimoy
so hard that his famous ears went flying across the set!
Although series creators,
producers and writers like Glen Larson and Kenneth Johnson (who
wrote the book's forward) are interviewed at great length, the
book too often falls back on the recollections of some of the
more obscure guest stars to a diminishing effect. For example,
I could have lived without some of the stories from one of the
(many) doomed red shirts from "Star Trek" or the bridge
officer who counted down the number of "microns" to
the (many) Cylon attacks in "Battlestar Galactica."
But this is a minor complaint in a book that is such a good read.
If you grew up in
the 70's and 80's, then you probably remember where you were when
Diana gave new meaning to the words "deep throat" on
"V." Or maybe you latched onto "Star Trek"
when it was on every night of the week. Or maybe you remember
the enormous hype when "Battlestar Galactica" took off
in 1978 in the shadow of "Star Wars." Or maybe you just
want to catch up on a show that meant a lot to you, but you thought
nobody else cared about. Whatever the case, there's no doubt that
"Science Fiction Television Series" is a book that no
sci-fi buff should be without.
(To order
"Science Fiction Television Series," call 1-800-253-2187,
or go online to www.mcfarlandpub.com)
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