"Planet of the Apes" (1974) TV series

Writer:

Jim Byrnes (writer)

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

13 September 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Plot:

Two astronauts and a sympathetic chimp friend are fugitives in a future Earth dominated by a civilization of humanoid apes.

Plot Keywords:

Astronaut | Ape | Future | Fugitive | Orangutan

Cast

Roddy McDowall	...	Galen (14 episodes, 1974)
Ron Harper	...	Alan Virdon (14 episodes, 1974)
James Naughton	...	Pete Burke (14 episodes, 1974)
Mark Lenard	...	Urko (11 episodes, 1974)
Ron Stein	...	First Gorilla / ... (11 episodes, 1974-1981)
Booth Colman	...	Zaius (6 episodes, 1974)
Eldon Burke	...	Chilot / ... (5 episodes, 1974)

Series Directed by
Arnold Laven		(3 episodes, 1974)
Don McDougall		(3 episodes, 1974)
Bernard McEveety		(2 episodes, 1974)
Don Weis		(2 episodes, 1974)

Series Writing credits
Pierre Boulle		(18 episodes, 1974-1981)
Edward J. Lakso		(2 episodes, 1974)
Robert W. Lenski		(2 episodes, 1974)
Art Wallace		(2 episodes, 1974)
Jim Byrnes		(unknown episodes)

Series Produced by
Herbert Hirschman	....	executive producer (15 episodes, 1974-1981)
Stanley Hough	....	producer (15 episodes, 1974-1981)

Series Original Music by
Lalo Schifrin		(3 episodes, 1974)
Earle Hagen		(2 episodes, 1974)

Series Cinematography by
Gerald Perry Finnerman		(14 episodes, 1974)

Series Film Editing by
Clay Bartels		(4 episodes, 1974)
Axel Hubert Sr.		(4 episodes, 1974)
J. Frank O'Neill		(4 episodes, 1974)
William Martin		(2 episodes, 1974)

Series Casting by
Marvin Paige		(4 episodes, 1974)

Series Art Direction by
Archie J. Bacon		(14 episodes, 1974)

Series Set Decoration by
Stuart A. Reiss		(14 episodes, 1974)

Series Makeup Department
Daniel C. Striepeke	....	makeup artist (14 episodes, 1974)
Al Schultz	....	makeup artist (unknown episodes)

Series Production Management
Mark Evans	....	production supervisor (14 episodes, 1974)
Dick Glassman	....	unit production manager (14 episodes, 1974)
Joseph Silver	....	post-production supervisor (14 episodes, 1974)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Bill Derwin	....	assistant director (7 episodes, 1974)
Gilbert Mandelik	....	assistant director (7 episodes, 1974)

Series Special Effects by
L.B. Abbott	....	special photographic effects (unknown episodes)

Series Stunts
Hubie Kerns Jr.	....	stunts (13 episodes, 1974)
Jean Coulter	....	stunts (unknown episodes)
Paula Crist	....	stunts (unknown episodes)
Paul Stader	....	stunt coordinator (unknown episodes)
Glenn R. Wilder	....	stunt coordinator (unknown episodes)

Series Casting Department
Marvin Paige	....	casting (10 episodes, 1974)

Series Editorial Department
J. Frank O'Neill	....	film editor (1 episode, 1974)

Series Music Department
Lionel Newman	....	music supervisor (14 episodes, 1974)
Lalo Schifrin	....	composer: theme music (11 episodes, 1974)
Kenneth Hall	....	music editor (unknown episodes)

Series Transportation Department
Chris Haynes	....	driver (1 episode, 1974)

Series Other crew
Howard Dimsdale	....	executive story consultant (14 episodes, 1974)
Joe Ruby	....	story consultant (14 episodes, 1974)
Ken Spears	....	story consultant (14 episodes, 1974)
Anthony Wilson	....	developer for television (10 episodes, 1974)

Production Companies

• 20th Century Fox Television

Distributors

• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (original airing)

Runtime:

UK:47 min | USA:60 min (14 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Certification:

UK:PG | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Australia:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Ranch, Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA

Company:

20th Century Fox Television

Trivia:

While the movie originally set primarily in what used to be New York City, the television show is set in a futuristic California after a nuclear war.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In many of the interior close-up shots, the actors' own teeth are visible behind the teeth of their ape masks.

Quotes:

Urko: These humans are dangerous, don't you understand that? They think that they're as good as we are!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Planet of the Apes: Rule the Planet (2001) (TV)

interesting

PLANET OF THE APES was a show that stressed dialouge over brawn; Talk over heft and firepower. The tv show was big on words and had some good art direction yet alas, only lasted 14 episodes. The series featured creative people who worked on STAR TREK and had a quality to it seen prominently in the episode about the prison fishermen. The show at times had a flair of genius in production values and props. PLANET OF THE APES was a genre show in a era before big syndicated sci fi had found a market (except SPACE 1999). The series as a whole was not bad but it was not all it could have been either. There were questions raised in the films left unexplored that could have been delved into by the series. I recommend the DVD set to serious fans.