The Rear Guard | |
---|---|
Created by | Jimmy Perry David Croft |
Written by | Jimmy Perry David Croft Arthur Julian |
Directed by | Hal Cooper |
Starring | Lou Jacobi Cliff Norton Eddie Foy Jr. John McCook Dennis Kort Arthur Peterson Jim Connell James McCallion |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of episodes | 1 (Pilot) |
Production | |
Running time | 30 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | 10 August 1976 |
The Rear Guard is a 1976 pilot episode for an American adaptation of the British situation comedy Dad's Army .
The pilot was aired on Tuesday, 10 August 1976 by the American Broadcasting Company (ABC). [1] However, it was not commissioned as a series. As it was considered a failure, the original tapes were wiped. However copies of the show are in the possession of the show's director Hal Cooper and other producers that were associated with the show.
Set in World War II, The Rear Guard followed a band of men in the American Civil Defense (c. 1942) who were part of an auxiliary force in the event of an invasion of the United States. The episode was an adaptation of "The Deadly Attachment", in which a German U-Boat crew are placed under the supervision of the platoon.
As The Rear Guard was a remake of Dad's Army, it included many of the same characters under alternative names. Here is a list of the characters and their original counterparts:
The characters of Privates Godfrey and Frazer were not included in the remake.
It Sticks Out Half a Mile is a British radio sitcom that was first broadcast on BBC Radio 2 from 1983 to 1984. Starring John Le Mesurier, Ian Lavender, Bill Pertwee and Vivienne Martin, the series served as a sequel to the television wartime sitcom Dad's Army, for which writers Harold Snoad and Michael Knowles had previously written radio adaptations.
Starsky & Hutch is an American action television series, which consisted of a 72-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions and starred Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul in the title roles, Starsky and Hutch. It was broadcast from April 1975 to August 1979 on the ABC network.
John Talfryn Thomas was a Welsh character actor, best known for supporting roles on television in the 1970s, including those of Private Cheeseman in Dad's Army (1973–1974) and Tom Price in Survivors (1975), while Thomas also appeared with Jon Pertwee in two Doctor Who serials.
James Perry was an English scriptwriter and actor. He devised and co-wrote the BBC sitcoms Dad's Army (1968–1977), It Ain't Half Hot Mum (1974–1981), Hi-de-Hi! (1980–1988) and You Rang, M'Lord? (1988–1993), all with David Croft. Perry co-wrote the theme tune of Dad's Army, "Who Do You Think You Are Kidding, Mr. Hitler?" along with Derek Taverner, for which Perry received an Ivor Novello Award from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors in 1971.
"The Man and the Hour" is the first episode of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and was first broadcast on 31 July 1968. It was later adapted for radio.
"The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Walker" is a missing episode in the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 15 March 1969. One of the three missing Dad's Army episodes, only a few short clips and screenshots survive in the archives.
"Under Fire" is a missing episode in the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Saturday 5 April 1969. One of the three missing Dad's Army episodes, the videotape was wiped for reuse. The last episode of series 2, it was the final Dad's Army episode to be recorded in black and white.
Baa Baa Black Sheep is an American television series that aired on NBC from September 23, 1976, until April 6, 1978. It was part period military drama, part comedy. In the final seven episodes, the character list was revamped, dropping some squadron pilots, adding a 16-year-old pilot and four nurses.
Captain George Mainwaring is a fictional Home Guard captain, first portrayed by Arthur Lowe in the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. In the 2016 movie he is played by Toby Jones and in the 2019 remake of three missing episodes he is played by Kevin McNally. Mainwaring is the bank manager and Home Guard platoon commander, in the fictional seaside town of Walmington-on-Sea during the Second World War.
"The Deadly Attachment" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Wednesday, October 31, 1973. It is arguably one of the best-known episodes of the series because of the comic aspects of a rare encounter between the platoon and the Germans. A scene in which a German officer demands to know Private Pike's name, and Captain Mainwaring says, "Don't tell him, Pike!" has been judged as one of the top three greatest comedy moments of British television.
The Hon. Sergeant Arthur Wilson is a fictional Home Guard platoon sergeant and bank chief clerk, first portrayed by John Le Mesurier in the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army.
Private James Frazer is a fictional Home Guard platoon member and undertaker, first portrayed by John Laurie in the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. He is noted for his catchphrases "We're doomed!" and "Rubbish!"
Private Charles Godfrey MM is a fictional Home Guard soldier, first portrayed by Arnold Ridley in the British television sitcom Dad's Army. He is retired and was previously a tailor for the Civil Service Stores or the Army & Navy Stores. Godfrey was a conscientious objector during the First World War, yet he did work as a stretcher bearer with the Royal Army Medical Corps and earned a Military Medal for taking the wounded off the battle field at the Battle of the Somme. This has earned him great respect among the platoon members and resulted in him being appointed as the First Aid supervisor. Ridley himself fought at the Battle of the Somme during the First World War.
"My Brother and I" is the second Christmas special of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Friday, 26 December 1975. The episode features Arthur Lowe in a dual role as his regular role of Captain Mainwaring and as Mainwaring's estranged brother Barry.
The Dad's Army missing episodes are lost episodes and sketches of the British television sitcom Dad's Army. The programme ran for nine series from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. Three out of six episodes from the second series and two of the four Christmas sketches are missing because, at that time, the BBC routinely reused videotape as a cost-saving measure.
Dad's Army is a British television sitcom about the United Kingdom's Home Guard during the Second World War. It was written by Jimmy Perry and David Croft, and originally broadcast on BBC1 from 31 July 1968 to 13 November 1977. It ran for nine series and 80 episodes in total; a feature film released in 1971, a stage show and a radio version based on the television scripts were also produced. The series regularly gained audiences of 18 million viewers and is still shown internationally.
"A Stripe for Frazer" is a missing episode of the British television comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on 29 March 1969. Of the three missing Dad's Army episodes it is the only one to have been reconstructed using animation.
Dad's Army is a 2016 British war comedy film, based on the BBC television sitcom Dad's Army. It is directed by Oliver Parker and set in 1944, after the events depicted in the television series. Catherine Zeta-Jones plays an elegant German spy, posing as a journalist, reporting on the Walmington-on-Sea Home Guard platoon.
"Resisting the Aggressor Down the Ages" is the second Christmas Night with the Stars sketch from the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Christmas Day 1969.
"Cornish Floral Dance" is the third Christmas Night with the Stars sketch from the British comedy series Dad's Army. It was originally transmitted on Christmas Day 1970, and again for the Royal Variety Performance of 1975. The latter still exists. The first version does not, although extracts and the soundtrack survive. It was recorded on 4 December 1970.