"The Rat Patrol" (1966) TV series 1966-1968

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Creator:

Tom Gries
(more)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

12 September 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Adventure | War

Plot:

Set in North Africa during World War II, this series chronicles the adventures of a 4-man team of commandos within the Long Range Desert Group...

Plot Keywords:

North Africa | Commando | Army | Cult TV | North Africa Campaign

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Christopher George	...	Sgt. Sam Troy (57 episodes, 1966-1968)
Gary Raymond	...	Sgt. Jack Moffitt (56 episodes, 1966-1968)
Lawrence P. Casey	...	Pvt. Mark Hitchcock (56 episodes, 1966-1968)
Eric Braeden	...	Capt. Hans Dietrich / ... (53 episodes, 1966-1968)
Justin Tarr	...	Pvt. Tully Pettigrew (53 episodes, 1966-1968)

(more)

Series Directed by
John Peyser		(10 episodes, 1966-1967)
Lee H. Katzin		(7 episodes, 1966-1967)
Robert Sparr		(6 episodes, 1967)
Herschel Daugherty		(5 episodes, 1967)
Frank Baur		(4 episodes, 1967-1968)
Sutton Roley		(4 episodes, 1967)

Series Writing credits
Tom Gries		(58 episodes, 1966-1968)
Richard H. Landau		(5 episodes, 1966-1967)
Anthony Lawrence		(5 episodes, 1966-1967)
Mark Weingart		(4 episodes, 1967)
John Peyser		(3 episodes, 1966-1967)
Edward J. Lakso		(3 episodes, 1967-1968)
Harry Kronman		(2 episodes, 1966-1967)
Ronald Sossi		(2 episodes, 1966-1967)
Daniel Aubrey		(2 episodes, 1966)
Don Brinkley		(2 episodes, 1967)
Richard De Roy		(2 episodes, 1967)
Peter Allan Fields		(2 episodes, 1967)
Ellis Kadison		(2 episodes, 1967)
Sheldon Stark		(2 episodes, 1967)

Series Produced by
Jon Epstein	....	producer (22 episodes, 1967)
Mark Weingart	....	associate producer (22 episodes, 1967)
Richard H. Landau	....	associate producer (14 episodes, 1966)
Stanley Shpetner	....	producer (9 episodes, 1966)
Lee Rich	....	executive producer (8 episodes, 1967)
Tom Gries	....	executive producer (3 episodes, 1966)
Bernard L. Kowalski	....	producer (2 episodes, 1966)

Series Original Music by
Dominic Frontiere		(43 episodes, 1966-1967)

Series Cinematography by
Brick Marquard		(34 episodes, 1966-1967)
Manuel Berenguer		(2 episodes, 1966)

Series Film Editing by
Richard K. Brockway		(19 episodes, 1966-1967)

Series Casting by
Lynn Stalmaster		(4 episodes, 1966-1967)

Series Art Direction by
Gil Parrondo		(14 episodes, 1966)
Jack T. Collis		(13 episodes, 1967)
Eddie Imazu		(9 episodes, 1967)

Series Set Decoration by
Charles S. Thompson		(20 episodes, 1967)

Series Makeup Department
Harry Ross	....	makeup artist (1 episode, 1966)

Series Production Management
Frank Baur	....	production supervisor (21 episodes, 1967)
Leonard C. Kroll	....	post-production supervisor (16 episodes, 1967)
Bernard Oseransky	....	assistant production supervisor (14 episodes, 1966-1967)
Lee Rich	....	executive in charge of production (7 episodes, 1966)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Grayson Rogers	....	assistant director (4 episodes, 1967)
George Templeton	....	assistant director (3 episodes, 1967)
Jack N. Reddish	....	second unit director (2 episodes, 1966)
Robert Gough	....	second unit director (unknown episodes)
Ricardo Hansa	....	first assistant director (unknown episodes)
Kuki López Rodero	....	first assistant director (unknown episodes)
Pedro Vidal	....	first assistant director (unknown episodes)

Series Art Department
Ángel Cañizares	....	set dresser (3 episodes, 1966)
Art Cole	....	property master (unknown episodes)
Richard Neblett	....	property master (unknown episodes)

Series Sound Department
John Haines	....	sound mixer (10 episodes, 1966)
Tom Edwards	....	sound mixer (10 episodes, 1967)
Ben Smith	....	sound effects editor (5 episodes, 1966)
Milton E. Berle	....	sound effects editor (2 episodes, 1966)

Series Special Effects by
A. Paul Pollard	....	special effects (3 episodes, 1966)
Henry Millar Jr.	....	special effects (2 episodes, 1967)
Glen Robinson	....	special effects (2 episodes, 1967)

Series Stunts
Jack N. Young	....	stunts (3 episodes, 1966-1967)
Nick Dimitri	....	stunt double (2 episodes, 1966-1968)
Frank Babich	....	stunts (unknown episodes)
Steven Burnett	....	stunts (unknown episodes)
Von Deming	....	stunt coordinator (unknown episodes)
Gary Epper	....	stunts (unknown episodes)
Chuck Hayward	....	stunt coordinator (unknown episodes)
Hal Needham	....	stunt double (unknown episodes)
Doug O'Dell	....	stunt double (unknown episodes)
Dick Ziker	....	stunt double (unknown episodes)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Nelson Tyler	....	aerial photographer (1 episode, 1966)
Doug Byers	....	electrician (unknown episodes)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
Eric Seelig	....	wardrobe (4 episodes, 1966)
Norman A. Burza	....	wardrobe (unknown episodes)

Series Editorial Department
Anthony DiMarco	....	supervising editor (28 episodes, 1966-1967)

Series Music Department
Earle Dearth	....	music editor / music supervisor (4 episodes, 1967)

Series Transportation Department
Robert Neal	....	driver (unknown episodes)

Series Other crew
Fred Lemoine	....	production executive (2 episodes, 1966)
Dennis Judd	....	location auditor (unknown episodes)
Ronald Sossi	....	assistant to producer (unknown episodes)

Production Companies

• Mirisch-Rich Productions
• Tom Gries Productions (in association with)
• United Artists Television (in association with)

Distributors

• American Broadcasting Company (ABC) (1966-1968) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2008) (USA) (DVD) (complete series)
• United Artists Television

Runtime:

30 min (58 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Filming Locations:

Amargosa Valley, Nevada, USA

Company:

Mirisch-Rich Productions

Trivia:

The hat pin worn by Christopher George (Sgt. Sam Troy) is the pin for the Australian Commonwealth Military Forces, which also served in North Africa during WWII.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The half-track used by the Germans is clearly a U.S. M3A1 half-track. The German half-track of the era, the Sdkfz 7, had eight drive wheels. The one used in the show has two drive wheels. (Unless Hauptman Diedrich was using a captured vehicle)

Quotes:

Pvt. Mark Hitchcock: Who was there, Sarge? You or me?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Werewolf (#10.4)" (1998)

Slick & Well Produced

The concept for this series came from a World War 2 saga titled THE DESERT RATS. It was expanded upon & fictionalized on ABC television.This color series was filmed in Spain for ABC in Color. Visually, the DVD set of season 1 that I have looked at is great.

There are several things to note which make the series not as good as it looks. ABC had an extremely limited budget shooting these & if you watch the first season a lot, you will find that many of the action shots are re-used in several episodes. No matter what plot is being followed, the same action sequence used in an earlier episode pops in.

The half hour format this series follows does not allow enough time for character development. COMBAT , the Vic Morrow series which was also on ABC, always had an hour to develop it's plots. There are some multiple parters to try & make up for this problem during the first season, but not enough. The main cast is quite good. Christopher George is a good actor & brings Sgt. Troy as close to being real as you can imagine. His three comrades in support are fine also. Hans Guidecast (now Eric Braden or Victor on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS) does well as the German Captain in pursuit of our heroes. often though, the scripts are limp & sometimes the re-use of the action sequences does detract from the quality of the series overall.

If you pick up the DVD set, watch for Ed Asner (Lou Grant) & Gavin McCloud (Captian Steubing of the LOVE BOAT Murray on Mary Tyler Moore series) in guest roles. The three parter features Claudine Longet several years before her lover Spider Savage died in mystery circumstances. This series is watchable & the DVD pictures are so good you can see the characters sun tans. Overall though, not as good as you remember when you were a child as the plots look a little limp to a grown up.

Sometimes, the jeeps suddenly get new equipment when our heroes are nowhere near their own lines. Amazing how they can do that & always get what they need & never run out of ammo. The action theme and fine camera work make this watchable.

When I was a child, I picked up & read a series of 7 paper back books based upon the series characters. The books developed the plots & characters in much more depth than the show. This makes my view of the series a little more negative than it should be.