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

Creator:

Tom Gries

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)

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 red cap that Pvt. Hitchcock wears, although it looks like a Civil War Confederate artillery lieutenant's kepi, is actually a French Foreign Legion kepi.

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:

Sgt. Sam Troy: Let's shake it!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Blood Waters of Dr. Z (#11.5)" (1999)

One of my all time favorite series...

I am a child of the seventies having grown up in and around the time and as a kid I can remember this being on in the afternoon and played on Saturday afternoon's. Two of my earliest best friends in this world were named Korey and Coy and we would watch this with great enthusiasm being only age 7 to 9 years old. My father at the time owned a jeep and after the show aired we would go outside and play the Rat Patrol. I always seemed to pick Tully to play because he always drove the jeep and we would spend an hour or two just making up our own adventures as we went along. My memories of this are quite strong when I still watch this series as it reflects a time when I had no worries in the world. I am not a violent person because of this series even for all the explosions and gun play it just makes feel good to watch it and because of that it truly is one of my favorite series of all time.