I need info on 50’s American sci fi
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I am writing a sceenplay set in 50’s America but need info. What was there in terms of popular America cult sci fi in the 50’s? It has to be set in outer space cos it ties in with this other plot thread. Something like (but not) Star trek, Flash gordan – it has to be something that was and can sort of now be taken as a serious look at space travel or aliens or something. Any ideas?
quote:
Originally posted by Burg:
I am writing a sceenplay set in 50’s America but need info. What was there in terms of popular America cult sci fi in the 50’s? It has to be set in outer space cos it ties in with this other plot thread. Something like (but not) Star trek, Flash gordan – it has to be something that was and can sort of now be taken as a serious look at space travel or aliens or something. Any ideas?
Are you talking about sci fi movies, TV or books? Because there’s a lot from all three media.
–Aleck
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Originally posted by Headgehog:
Wasn’t [i]Lost in Space[/i] from the 50’s. I think that was popular then.
No, [i]Lost In Space[/i] was from the mid-60s. 1950s sci-fi on TV (TV series, that is, not stand-alone dramas or movies shown on TV) was pretty much kiddie-oriented stuff with very few exceptions, now that I think about it.
Movie-wise, as far as popular titles go, the first “serious” film about space travel in the 1950s was [i]Destination Moon[/i] from 1950. Didn’t have anything to do with aliens, just about space travel (the first manned exploration to the Moon’s surface). Others (some may not play as well today as back then) that have a more “going into space and (maybe) seeing aliens” bent are:
[i]Angry Red Planet[/i] (1959)
[i]It! The Terror From Beyond Space[/i] (1958)
[i]Conquest of Space[/i] (1955)
[i]Rocketship X-M[/i] (1950)That’s all from off the top of my head for now…I’ll try and think of others.
–Aleck
Add to Aleck’s list [i]Forbidden Planet[/i] and [i]This Island Earth[/i]. Depending on exactly what you’re trying to do, you could try for a print SF source: a magazine like [i]Astounding, Galaxy,[/i]or [i]The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction[/i]. Through them you could tie in Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Poul Anderson, Frederick Pohl, Bradbury, etc.
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Originally posted by uberfrosch:
Add to Aleck’s list [i]Forbidden Planet[/i] and [i]This Island Earth[/i].
AAAAAGGGHH!!! I can’t believe I forgot those!!! [i]Forbidden Planet[/i], in particular, is one of my favorite films of all time (in particular, besides the excellent set design, tasteful direction, literate and well-done script (based on [i]The Tempest[/i] by Shakespeare) and cool animated effects from the Disney team for the “Id monster”, it’s got one of the best soundtracks in sci-fi history)!!! DAG-NABBIT!!! I even had Robby the Robot go through my head when I was writing the post!!!!
That’s it. That’s the film you should consider. It’s great, it’s serious, it’s a space adventure, it’s everything you need, if you’re looking for a film.
–Aleck
50’s SF. Well, don’t forget the seminal Television series, Tom Corbett: Space Cadet, or Space Patrol, or Rocky Jones Space Ranger. These were all proto-star trek series which had runs of several years and featured on television, radio, comics, books and collectibles. There’s actually a web site called “Solarguard” that is devoted to these.
“Cult” SF didn’t really exist at the time. But SF movies of various sorts were coming out. Allow me to add a few more to the list, in no particular order. Queen of Outer Space, Conquest of Space, Missile to the Moon, It Came From Outer Space, Godzilla, King Kong (reissued in 52 and made more money than on its original release), Them, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, It Conquered the World, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Plan 9 From Outer Space.
Also, you have to consider the popular folklore around this time. This was the era of the first flying saucer craze. Saucers were a brand new thing, fleets of saucers were sighted over Washington, saucers were reported to have shot down Captain Mantell’s air force fighter jet, engaged in dogfights, and sometimes featured human pilots with important messages to guys like Adamski. This was also the age when interplanetary exploration seemed just around the corner. In essence, there was a strong feeling that the Sci Fi movies weren’t far fetched, but often depicted real possible futures or fears and dreams of futures which were thought to be quite possible.
Eek! I forgot to mention War of the Worlds and of course When Worlds Collide, Kronos,
and of course Invaders From Mars and the unforgettable Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman.For the record, Lost in Space was 1966-69
or thereabouts.Generally, most film Sci Fi tended to be set on Earth, or in the Solar System.
There’s a very good book on 50’s SF movies published by McFarland, if you wish to look up their web site.
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Originally posted by :
There’s a very good book on 50’s SF movies published by McFarland, if you wish to look up their web site.
That’d be [i]Keep Watching the Skies![/i] (parts one and two, unless McFarland has combined both into one volume) by Bill Warren. These are the *definitive* books on the subject. Anyone with a passing interest in Sci-Fi films of this period *must* own them.
–Aleck
Add [i]Science Fiction Theater[/i] an anthology series hosted by Truman Bradley.
Thanks a lot. Some good input there, I’ve got a lot of **** to reasearch anyway at the moment but may look at some of the things suggested, but because I don’t know a great deal about any of the above I may just go with a fictional science fiction cult thing if that makes sense, it seems easier than sifting through lots of things and gives more scope for humour (it is a comedy) and means I can keep it fairly surreal without getting too many details wrong. Cheers, will et you konw if this thing gets on t.v.
Well, if it’s comedy sci fi, you might like to get some inspiration from some pretty hoopy sci fi books of around that time.
My fave would be the classic ‘Lensman’ series by E. E. (Doc) Smith. It was like cowboys in space and is rip-roaring stuff. He was a prolific writer but I guess you’d get most of the gist of his work from reaing one book.
Not sure if it was fifties though (might have been forties).
For what it’s worth, I seem to recall a Buck Rogers comic strip in the Sunday L.A. Times in the late fifties.
Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
Thing From Another World (1951)
On the Beach (1959)
The Quatermass Experiment (1953)
Quatermass II (1955)
Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)
Destination Moon (1950)
The Blob (1958)
The Fly (1958)
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