"Sheena: Queen of the Jungle" (1955) TV series

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Genre:

Adventure

Plot Keywords:

Based On Comic | Woman Heroine | Jungle | Africa | Kenya

Cast

Irish McCalla	...	Sheena (26 episodes, 1955-1956)
Chris Drake	...	Bob Rayburn (26 episodes, 1955-1956)
Neal the Chimp	...	Chim / ... (14 episodes, 1955)

Series Directed by
Carl K. Hittleman		(10 episodes, 1955-1956)
Arthur Pierson		(10 episodes, 1955-1956)
Stuart Gilmore		(2 episodes, 1955)

Series Writing credits
S.M. Eiger		(25 episodes, 1955-1956)
Will Eisner		(25 episodes, 1955-1956)
Joel Murcott		(4 episodes, 1955-1956)
Ken Field		(3 episodes, 1955)
Warren Wilson		(2 episodes, 1955)

Series Produced by
Edward Nassour	....	producer / executive producer (23 episodes, 1955-1956)
William Nassour	....	executive producer / producer (15 episodes, 1955-1956)
Don Sharpe	....	executive producer / producer (15 episodes, 1955-1956)
Joel Murcott	....	associate producer (14 episodes, 1955-1956)
Arthur Pierson	....	associate producer / producer (7 episodes, 1955-1956)
Lloyd Laumann	....	associate producer / producer (6 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Original Music by
Eli Briskin		(12 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Cinematography by
Álvaro González		(12 episodes, 1955-1956)
Henry Sharp		(3 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Film Editing by
Roland Gross		(7 episodes, 1955)
Carl Pierson		(6 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Production Management
John Pommer	....	production supervisor (2 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Russell Ray Heinze	....	assistant director (4 episodes, 1955-1956)
Charles Wasserman	....	assistant director (4 episodes, 1955)
Judson Cox	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1955-1956)
Mark Evans	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1955)

Series Special Effects by
Louis DeWitt	....	special photographic effects / special effects (16 episodes, 1955-1956)
Jack Rabin	....	special photographic effects / special effects (16 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Miki Carter	....	cinematographer: African animal sequences / photographer: African animal sequences / ... (15 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Editorial Department
Holbrook N. Todd	....	supervising editor / editorial supervisor (6 episodes, 1955-1956)
Maurice Wright	....	supervising editor (2 episodes, 1955-1956)

Series Other crew
Joel Murcott	....	story supervisor / story supervision (21 episodes, 1955-1956)
Howard Bryant	....	animal trainer (12 episodes, 1955-1956)
Donna M. Norridge	....	script supervisor (7 episodes, 1955)
Ismael Rodriguez	....	production executive (2 episodes, 1955)

Production Companies

• Nassour Studios Inc.

Distributors

• Alpha Video Distributors (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Moviecraft (2005) (USA) (VHS)

Runtime:

28 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Mexico

Company:

Nassour Studios Inc.

Trivia:

Anita Ekberg was originally to star, but backed out at the last minute when her contract was bought up by Batjac Productions (John Wayne's production company). Debra Paget also tested for the role.

Movie Connections:

Version of Sheena (1984)

Irish McCalla IS Sheena!

Neither the 1984 movie with Tanya Roberts, nor the current TV series with Gena Lee Nolin will ever supplant the original "Sheena" TV series of 1955-56, starring pin-up model Irish McCalla as the jungle queen. McCalla's stunning beauty, along with her wide-eyed innocence and physical prowess (she did all her own stunts for the first half of the series before an accident forced a stuntman in drag to take over) made her create a credible portrayal of Sheena that is totally true to the character from the comic book, just as Lynda Carter was able to do two decades later in the "Wonder Woman" TV series. The stories which featured Sheena and hunter guide Bob Rayburn (her boyfriend in the comics, though not identified as such here) fighting assorted bad guys in the jungle are largely run of the mill stories produced on the cheap, with mostly forgettable guest stars (save the pilot show "The Renegades" which featured John Banner, later of "Hogan's Heroes" and Robert Shayne, Inspector Henderson of "Superman", as the villains) that give the series the feel of a B-movie, but it remains good fun to watch years later (about 17 of 26 episodes can be found on video). And McCalla in her leopardskin outfit, is truly a sight to behold. For most fans of the jungle girl genre, Irish McCalla *is* Sheena, and no one has ever taken her place or ever will.