Stingray (Stingray episode)

Last updated

"Stingray"
Stingray episode
Episode no.Episode 1
Directed by Alan Pattillo
Written by Gerry & Sylvia Anderson
Cinematography by John Read
Editing by David Lane
Production code1
Original air date7 September 1964 (1964-09-07)
Guest character voices
Episode chronology
← Previous
—		Next →
"Emergency Marineville"
List of episodes

"Stingray", alternatively titled The Pilot, is the first episode of Stingray , a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by the Andersons and directed by Alan Pattillo, it was first broadcast in Japan on 7 September 1964 and in the UK in October.

Contents

The series follows the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP), an organisation responsible for policing the Earth's oceans in the mid-2060s. Its flagship, Stingray, is a combat submarine crewed by Captain Troy Tempest, Lieutenant "Phones" and Marina, a mute young woman from under the sea. Stingray's adventures bring it into contact with underwater civilisations – some friendly, others hostile – as well as mysterious natural phenomena.

In the first episode, while investigating the unexplained destruction of a submarine, Troy and Phones discover that there is intelligent life on the ocean floor when they are captured by the forces of King Titan, tyrannical ruler of the underwater city of Titanica. Condemned to die, they are saved from execution by Titan's slave Marina, who joins the WASP and becomes the third member of the Stingray crew.

Plot

While patrolling an ocean trench, the World Security Patrol (WSP) submarine Sea Probe is torpedoed and destroyed by a vessel resembling a mechanical fish. The WSP orders its marine branch, the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP), to investigate. At Marineville, the WASP's headquarters on the West Coast of North America, Commander Shore assigns Captain Troy Tempest and navigator Lieutenant "Phones" to the mission.

Troy and Phones depart in Stingray, the WASP's flagship submarine, and proceed to Sea Probe's last known position. Troy, who has long suspected the existence of intelligent undersea life, believes a hostile force is responsible for the loss of Sea Probe and other vessels. As Stingray passes the island of Lemoy, Surface Agent X-2-Zero – an undersea spy operating from a house on the island – contacts his master King Titan, ruler of the ocean floor city of Titanica, to inform him of Stingray's approach.

On reaching the trench, Stingray is attacked by one of Titan's Mechanical Fish. Troy and Phones are captured by its crew of Aquaphibians – Titan's soldiers – and brought to Titanica. Troy is taken to Titan's throne room, where Titan tells him that their fate will be decided by Teufel, a captive fish that Titan worships as a god. Teufel turns his back on Troy, leading Titan to declare Troy and Phones enemies of Titanica and sentence them to death. On land, Stingray is presumed lost and Marineville prepares to retaliate by bombarding the trench with hydromic missiles.

Escorted by Marina, Titan's mute slave-girl, Troy and Phones are transferred to a Mechanical Fish for the journey to their execution site, the prison of Aquatraz. Marina betrays Titan and frees Troy, enabling him and Phones to overpower the Aquaphibian pilots. The trio use the Mechanical Fish to tow Stingray back to Marineville and the missile attack is aborted.

Over dinner with Commander Shore and his daughter, Lieutenant Atlanta Shore, Troy presents Marina as a new member of the Stingray crew. Atlanta, Troy's love interest, realises that she has gained a rival for his affections.

Regular voice cast

Production

The episode has no on-screen title but is referred to as "Stingray" in ITC documentation. [1] [2] It is also known as "Stingray (The Pilot)" or just "The Pilot". [3] However, it was not devised as a true pilot because Lew Grade, APF's chairman and investor, had approved the series format before filming began. [4] In his biography, Gerry Anderson said that the first episodes of APF's TV productions were called "pilots" for the sake of convenience. [5] Filming commenced in early June 1963, with the incidental music being written on 17 and 18 July and recorded on 9 and 10 August. [6]

The Andersons' script stated that Sea Probe's destruction was to be followed by a montage of shots showing a telecommunications tower and a telephone switchboard, accompanied by voiceovers representing various callers attempting to contact Washington, D.C. about the loss of the submarine. In the finished episode, this was replaced by a simple cut to an establishing shot of the World Security Patrol headquarters, based within a skyscraper. According to the script, this was to be a "futuristic" windowless structure modelled on a telephone exchange building. [7] Due to a continuity error, the lead WSP Commander is voiced by Don Mason in the scene set at WSP HQ, then Ray Barrett during a videophone conversation with Commander Shore. In later episodes the character is voiced by David Graham or Robert Easton. [8]

The ocean floor backdrops for the windows of Titan's throne room were created using back projection. According to Gerry Anderson, the hydromic missile launch towers were modelled on rocket launch towers at Cape Kennedy. [9] Scale models representing seabed-mounted interceptor torpedoes were adapted from model Bloodhound missiles manufactured by Airfix, while a squadron of WASP search-and-rescue aircraft were originally Revell Convair B-58 Hustlers. The name of the undersea prison to which Troy and Phones are being transferred (Aquatraz) was inspired by Alcatraz Prison. [7]

The episode has had several adaptations in other media. In 1965, its story was combined with those of "Deep Heat" and "Subterranean Sea" to create "Into Action with Troy Tempest", one of three Stingray EP audio plays released by APF's sister company Century 21 Records. [10] The episode was also included in two compilation films. At some point in 1963, APF combined it with the episodes "An Echo of Danger", "Raptures of the Deep" and "Emergency Marineville" to create a 99-minute Stingray feature presentation. Originally screened for Japanese TV executives, this was broadcast in a condensed form under the title "The Reunion Party" on BBC Four in 2008. [11] The second film, The Incredible Voyage of Stingray, was a made-for-TV feature produced by ITC New York in 1980. Combining the first episode with "Plant of Doom", "Countdown" and "The Master Plan", this was one of 13 compilations from various Anderson series to be shown on US syndicated and cable TV during the 1980s. [12]

Broadcast and reception

The series' world premiere was in Japan, where this episode first aired on Fuji Television on 7 September 1964. The episode's Japanese title translated as "Undersea Fish God". [13]

In the UK, the episode was first broadcast on 4 October 1964 on the Anglia, ATV London, Border, Grampian and Southern franchises of the ITV network, followed by ATV Midlands, Channel and Westward on 6 October and Tyne Tees on 9 October. It was repeated in multiple regions on 25 December 1964 and had its first showing on Granada on 30 December. [14] [15]

In 1992, the BBC acquired broadcast rights to the series and began a repeat run on BBC2 in the autumn, starting with the pilot on 11 September. Viewing figures for the episode were 3.36 million, the channel's sixth-largest audience for that week. [16]

Critical response

In a contemporary review, Tony Gruner of Kinematograph Weekly wrote that the episode had the "bounce and push of some of the old Hollywood movies", with an "American brashness [...] on par with" both its writing and the puppet cast's "transatlantic accents". [17] An article in Variety stated that the writing "deployed itself with the minimum of words"; it also called the direction "first rate". [18]

TV Zone magazine regards the episode as the best of Stingray, describing it as an "excellent introduction to the series" with "phenomenal puppetry and effects work". It praises the "gripping" story – "pure comic-book fiction, with its quasi-Atlantean civilisation and sci-fi trappings" – as well as the "economy" of the writing: "In a few short scenes, we're introduced to all the heroes and villains, and the fascinating character of Marina." The publication is critical of some aspects, calling Titan a "one-note" villain with no motive other than "being evil", and Troy's trial by Teufel "just bizarre". [19]

According to Simon Archer and Marcus Hearn, the episode recycles several plot elements from Fireball XL5 's first episode, "Planet 46". This, they argue, "re-affirms many of [Stingray's] links" to its precursor. They also suggest that the scene in which Surface Agent X-2-Zero quickly converts his dining room into a communications post "uncannily foreshadows" a scene in the film Goldfinger (1964). [2] Ian Fryer argues that while most of the episode is played seriously, consisting of "male-dominated situations of peril" similar to APF's earlier series, Marina's arrival marks a change in tone: "Suddenly the emotional palate of the series has grown larger in ways that Fireball XL5 – and especially the all-male environment of Supercar – never attempted: romance is in the air." [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Supermarionation</span> Style of television and film production

Supermarionation is a style of television and film production employed by British company AP Films in its puppet TV series and feature films of the 1960s. These productions were created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed at APF's studios on the Slough Trading Estate. The characters were played by electronic marionettes with a moveable lower lip, which opened and closed in time with pre-recorded dialogue by means of a solenoid in the puppet's head or chest. The productions were mostly science fiction with the puppetry supervised by Christine Glanville, art direction by either Bob Bell or Keith Wilson, and music composed by Barry Gray. They also made extensive use of scale model special effects, directed by Derek Meddings.

<i>Stingray</i> (1964 TV series) British childrens science fiction television series

Stingray is a British children's science fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Filmed in 1963 using a combination of electronic marionette puppetry and scale model special effects, it was APF's sixth puppet series and the third to be produced under the banner of "Supermarionation". It premiered in October 1964 and ran for 39 half-hour episodes.

<i>Supercar</i> (TV series) British television series

Supercar is a British children's science fiction television series produced by Gerry Anderson and Arthur Provis' AP Films (APF) for Associated Television and ITC Entertainment. Two series totalling 39 episodes were filmed between September 1960 and January 1962. Budgeted at £2,000 per episode, it was Anderson's first half-hour series as well as his first science fiction production.

<i>Fireball XL5</i> British childrens TV series

Fireball XL5 is a 1960s British children's science-fiction puppet television series about the missions of Fireball XL5, a vessel of the World Space Patrol that polices the cosmos in the year 2062. Commanded by Colonel Steve Zodiac, XL5 defends Earth from interstellar threats while encountering a wide variety of alien civilisations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trapped in the Sky</span> 1st episode of the 1st series of Thunderbirds

"Trapped in the Sky" is the first episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by the Andersons, it was first broadcast on ATV Midlands on 30 September 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Century 21 Organisation</span>

The Century 21 Organisation was a group of companies founded by Gerry Anderson in the early 1960s to expand on his television production company, AP Films (APF; later Century 21 Productions). In addition to APF, the group included:

"Operation Crash-Dive" is an episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Martin Crump and directed by Desmond Saunders, it was first broadcast on 16 December 1965 on ATV Midlands as the 12th episode of Series One. It is the eighth episode in the official running order.

"The Perils of Penelope" is an episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films for ITC Entertainment. Directed by Alan Pattillo and Desmond Saunders from a script by Pattillo, it was first broadcast on 14 October 1965 on ATV Midlands as the third episode of Series One. It is the 12th episode in the official running order.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pit of Peril</span> 2nd episode of the 1st series of Thunderbirds

"Pit of Peril" is the second episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by Desmond Saunders, it was first broadcast on 7 October 1965 on ATV Midlands.

"The Man from MI.5" is an episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by David Lane, it was first broadcast on 20 January 1966 on ATV Midlands as the 17th episode of Series One. It is the 20th episode in the official running order.

"Vault of Death" is an episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films for ITC Entertainment. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by David Elliott, it was first broadcast on 23 December 1965 on ATV Midlands as the 13th episode of Series One. It is the seventh episode in the official running order.

"Ricochet" is the 31st episode of Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films for ITC Entertainment. Written by Tony Barwick and directed by Brian Burgess, it was first broadcast on 6 November 1966 on ATV London and Anglia Television as the fifth episode of Series Two. It had its first UK-wide network transmission on 15 May 1992 on BBC2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plant of Doom</span> Episode of Stingray

"Plant of Doom" is an episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company AP Films for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by David Elliott, it was the second episode to be filmed but was first broadcast as the 34th episode, late in the series' original run, on 23 May 1965 on ATV London.

"The Ghost Ship" is the third episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by Desmond Saunders, it was the eighth episode filmed and was first broadcast on 18 October 1964 on the Anglia, ATV London, Border, Grampian and Southern franchises of the ITV network. It subsequently aired on ATV Midlands, Channel and Westward on 20 October.

"The Big Gun" is the 17th episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by David Elliott, it was first broadcast on 24 January 1965 on the Anglia, Border, Grampian, ATV London and Southern franchises of the ITV network. It subsequently aired on ATV Midlands on 26 January 1965.

<i>Thunderbirds</i> (TV series) British science-fiction TV series

Thunderbirds is a British science fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) and distributed by ITC Entertainment. It was made between 1964 and 1966 using a form of electronic marionette puppetry combined with scale model special effects sequences. Two series, totalling thirty-two 50-minute episodes, were filmed; production ended with the completion of the sixth episode of the second series after Lew Grade, the Andersons' financial backer, failed in his bid to sell the programme to American network television.

"Titan Goes Pop" is an episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Alan Pattillo, it was the 29th episode to be filmed and was first broadcast on 6 December 1964 by the on the Anglia, ATV London, Border, Grampian and Southern franchises of the ITV network. It subsequently aired on ATV Midlands, Channel and Westward on 8 December.

"The Uninvited" is an episode of Thunderbirds, a British 1960s Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by Desmond Saunders, it was first broadcast on ATV Midlands on 2 December 1965 as the tenth episode of Series One. It is the fifth episode in the official running order.

"Tom Thumb Tempest" is the 22nd episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Alan Fennell and directed by Alan Pattillo, it was first broadcast on 28 February 1965 on the Anglia, ATV London, Grampian and Southern franchises of the ITV network. It subsequently aired on ATV Midlands on 3 March 1965.

"Stand By for Action" is the 25th episode of Stingray, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by their company AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment. Written by Dennis Spooner and directed by Alan Pattillo, it was first broadcast on 21 March 1965 on the Anglia, ATV London, Grampian and Southern franchises of the ITV network. It subsequently aired on ATV Midlands on 24 March 1965.

References

  1. ↑ Bentley 2008, p. 81.
  2. 1 2 Archer & Hearn 2002, p. 97.
  3. ↑ Rogers, Dave; Marriott, John; Drake, Chris; Bassett, Graeme (1993). Supermarionation Classics: Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. London, UK: Boxtree. p. 44. ISBN   978-1-85283-900-0.
  4. 1 2 Fryer, Ian (2016). The Worlds of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson: The Story Behind International Rescue. Fonthill Media. p. 82. ISBN   978-1-78155-504-0.
  5. ↑ Archer & Hearn 2002, p. 88.
  6. ↑ Pixley 2022, pp. 65; 80; 245.
  7. 1 2 Pixley 2022, p. 244.
  8. ↑ Bentley 2008, pp. 81-83; 88-90.
  9. ↑ Anderson, Gerry (2001). "Stingray" DVD audio commentary. Granada Ventures (ITV DVD). 5037115012135 (EAN).
  10. ↑ Bentley 2008, pp. 349; 354.
  11. ↑ Bentley 2008, p. 94.
  12. ↑ Bentley 2008, p. 361.
  13. ↑ Pixley 2022, p. 107.
  14. ↑ Bentley 2008, pp. 79; 81.
  15. ↑ Pixley 2022, p. 112.
  16. ↑ Pixley 2022, p. 212.
  17. ↑ Pixley 2022, p. 104.
  18. ↑ Pixley 2022, p. 113.
  19. ↑ Payne, Stephen, ed. (Summer 2004). "The Anderson Files". TV Zone Special . No. 57. London, UK: Visual Imagination. p. 35. ISSN   0960-8230. OCLC   438949600.

Works cited

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.