"The Martian Chronicles" (1980) TV mini-series

Director:

Michael Anderson

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

27 January 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Plot:

Earth sends its first manned probe to Mars in 1999, and a jealous Martian murders the two astronauts when his wife has erotic dreams of meeting them...

Plot Keywords:

Mars | Martian | Lost Civilization | Fictional War | Plague

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Rock Hudson	...	Col. John Wilder (3 episodes, 1980)
Gayle Hunnicutt	...	Ruth Wilder (3 episodes, 1980)
Bernie Casey	...	Major Jeff Spender (3 episodes, 1980)
Christopher Connelly	...	Ben Driscoll (3 episodes, 1980)
Nicholas Hammond	...	Commander Arthur Black (3 episodes, 1980)
Darren McGavin	...	Sam Parkhill (3 episodes, 1980)
Roddy McDowall	...	Father Stone (3 episodes, 1980)
Bernadette Peters	...	Genevieve Seltzer (3 episodes, 1980)
Joyce Van Patten	...	Elma Parkhill (3 episodes, 1980)
Maria Schell	...	Anna Lustig (3 episodes, 1980)
Fritz Weaver	...	Father Peregrine (3 episodes, 1980)
Linda Lou Allen	...	Marilyn Becker (3 episodes, 1980)
Michael Anderson Jr.	...	David Lustig (3 episodes, 1980)
Robert Beatty	...	General Halstead (3 episodes, 1980)
James Faulkner	...	Mr. K (3 episodes, 1980)
Jon Finch	...	Christ (3 episodes, 1980)
Richard Heffer	...	Captain Conover (3 episodes, 1980)
Barry Morse	...	Peter Hathaway (3 episodes, 1980)
Nyree Dawn Porter	...	Alice Hathaway (3 episodes, 1980)
Wolfgang Reichmann	...	Lafe Lustig (3 episodes, 1980)
Maggie Wright	...	Ylla (3 episodes, 1980)
Terence Longdon	...	Wise Martian (3 episodes, 1980)
Richard Oldfield	...	Captain Nathaniel York (3 episodes, 1980)
John Cassady	...	Briggs (3 episodes, 1980)
Anthony Pullen Shaw	...	Edward Black (3 episodes, 1980)
Burnell Tucker	...	Bill Wilder (3 episodes, 1980)
Peter Marinker	...	McClure (3 episodes, 1980)
Vadim Glowna	...	Sam Hinston (3 episodes, 1980)
Alison Elliott	...	Lavinia Spaulding (3 episodes, 1980)
Derek Lamden	...	Sandship Martian (3 episodes, 1980)
Phil Brown	...	Narrator (3 episodes, 1980)
Estelle Brody	...	Mrs. Black (3 episodes, 1980)
Laurie Holden	...	Marie Wilder (3 episodes, 1980)
Stacey Sipes	...	Margarite Hathaway (3 episodes, 1980)

Series Directed by
Michael Anderson		(unknown episodes)

Series Writing credits
Ray Bradbury		(3 episodes, 1980)
Richard Matheson		(3 episodes, 1980)

Series Produced by
Richard Berg	....	producer (unknown episodes)
Andrew Donally	....	producer (unknown episodes)
Charles M. Fries	....	associate producer (unknown episodes)
Charles W. Fries	....	executive producer (unknown episodes)
Milton Subotsky	....	producer (unknown episodes)

Series Original Music by
Stanley Myers		(unknown episodes)

Series Cinematography by
Ted Moore		(unknown episodes)

Series Film Editing by
Eunice Mountjoy		(unknown episodes)

Series Casting by
Caro Jones		(unknown episodes)
James Liggat		(unknown episodes)

Series Production Design by
Assheton Gorton		(unknown episodes)

Series Costume Design by
Cynthia Tingey		(unknown episodes)

Series Makeup Department
Colin Arthur	....	makeup artist (unknown episodes)
Jeanette Freeman	....	key hair stylist (unknown episodes)
George Frost	....	makeup designer (unknown episodes)
Mark Reedall	....	makeup artist (unknown episodes)

Series Production Management
Graham Ford	....	production manager (unknown episodes)
Thomas Fries	....	post-production supervisor (unknown episodes)
William P. Owens	....	production manager (unknown episodes)
Malcolm Stuart	....	executive in charge of production (unknown episodes)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
David Bracknell	....	assistant director (unknown episodes)
John Stears	....	second unit director (unknown episodes)

Series Art Department
Stuart Rose	....	propmaker (unknown episodes)
Rodger Shaw	....	property master (unknown episodes)
John Spottiswood	....	scenic artist (unknown episodes)

Series Sound Department
Ron Davis	....	sound editor (unknown episodes)
Bob Jones	....	sound recordist (unknown episodes)
Teddy Mason	....	sound editor (unknown episodes)
George Stephenson	....	sound recordist (unknown episodes)

Series Special Effects by
John Stears	....	special effects supervisor (unknown episodes)

Series Visual Effects by
Jonathan Angell	....	model maker (unknown episodes)
Jon Bunker	....	model maker (unknown episodes)
Ray Caple	....	matte artist (unknown episodes)
Enid Malik	....	model maker (unknown episodes)
Mick Mindoodt	....	visual effects assistant (unknown episodes)
Henry Richardson	....	visual effects liaison (unknown episodes)
Arthur Stovell	....	visual effects technician (unknown episodes)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Bob Kindred	....	model photographer: second unit (unknown episodes)
Mike Roberts	....	camera operator (unknown episodes)
K.H. Wallis	....	camera operator: aerial sequences (unknown episodes)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
Yvonne Zarb Cousin	....	wardrobe assistant (unknown episodes)
Bridget Sellers	....	wardrobe supervisor (unknown episodes)

Series Editorial Department
Michael John Bateman	....	assistant editor (unknown episodes)
Marcel Durham	....	assistant editor (unknown episodes)
John Jympson	....	supervising editor (unknown episodes)

Series Music Department
Richard Harvey	....	composer: additional music / composer: electronic music (unknown episodes)
Laurie Holloway	....	composer: additional music (unknown episodes)

Series Other crew
Rufus Andrews	....	location manager (unknown episodes)
Ron Atkinson	....	production administrator (unknown episodes)
Cheryl Leigh	....	script supervisor (unknown episodes)
Sam Silver	....	gold contact lenses (unknown episodes)
John Whalley	....	production executive (unknown episodes)

Production Companies

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Charles Fries Productions
• Polytel International Film
• Stonehenge Productions

Distributors

• National Broadcasting Company (NBC) (1980) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• Image Entertainment (laserdisc)
• International Video Entertainment (IVE) (video)
• USA Home Video (II) (198?) (USA) (VHS)
• Vic Vídeo (Brazil) (VHS) (compact version)

Other Companies

• Airstrip One Company, The  soundtrack album (2003)

Runtime:

360 min | Brazil:165 min (compact video version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

The miniseries was originally scheduled for release in September 1979 as a major kickoff to the 1979-80 season. Unfortunately, it fell victim to some negative publicity from Ray Bradbury himself. Although Bradbury had worked with scriptwriter Richard Matheson in adapting his book to the small screen, he was less than thrilled with the final production. At one point, shortly before the miniseries' scheduled release, Bradbury found himself the sole representative of the production at a press conference. When one reporter asked him what he thought of the miniseries, he responded candidly, "Booooooooring!" NBC soon shelved the miniseries and did not air it until January 1980.

Goofs:

Factual errors: [Probably intentional] People on Mars move about in normal Earth gravity, but Mars has only about 38% of the gravitational pull of Earth.

Quotes:

Maj. Jeff Spender: I just believe in things that were done. And there were so many things done here. Streets and houses and books and big canals and clocks and places with names - things that were used and touched for centuries. And I don't see how we could ever use them without feeling uncomfortable...
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Ghosts of Mars (2001)

Thought-Provoking Alien Saga

I remembered seeing this mini-series when I was ten or eleven. There were some scenes that were ever etched in my mind, and there were others which immediately raced to my mind as I began reliving my past watching it once again. This mini-series is extraordinary in many ways, yet problematic and flawed in many ways too. The whole concept is a huge undertaking when you consider when this was made. There were no CGI effects. The special effects are the things which have aged the poorest in this series. Some of the effects are probably even crude for 1979, but the design of the sets and costumes helps overshadow that now glaring flaw. The set designs, when you consider budget, etc..., are very innovative and even dream-like. The Martian landscape does seem to have a life of its own in this set of tales loosely connected about expeditions sent to Mars, the colonization of Mars, the realization that Martian life exists, the destruction of Earth from human vice, and some small anecdotal stories of people living on Mars. The thing which does bind all these together is the character of Rock Hudson. Hudson does a serviceable job, albeit a bit bland in his role. The script by legendary writer Richard Matheson is pretty good when considering how difficult Ray Bradbury's works are to film or televise. Matheson injects humour, heart, and hope in his teleplay about the human spirit and its quest to survive. Matheson also added some very nice narration that tries, if not always successful, to bring cohesion to the varying plot elements. In the end, the story is successful for its spirit. It is a thoroughly entertaining story. It has some good character acting by the likes of Roddy McDowell, Darren McGavin, Barry Morse, Bernie Casey, and Bernadette Peters. In fact the story that I seemed to remember best from my adolescent days was the one concerning Miss Peters. Hmmm....I wonder why. Anyway, if you like a pretty decent science fiction story, The Martian Chronicles will fit the bill. Its message about living life for the joy of being is a strong one, and one not to be taken too lightly.