[JamesSmith]

Dear Guys:

I have a friend who's a history major, he has Combat and Rat Patrol on DVD. But he's never seen or heard of the other sixties war series --Twelve O'Clock High. I think it ran three years and it isn't on DVD yet, But are there any experts out there who'd like to share some opinions on the program and the chances of it coming out on DVD?

I haven't seen it either.


James Smith

[Zardon]

12 O'Clock High reruns were played on The History Channel for a long time last year!
The mid 1960s TV series was based on the 1949 film starring Gregory Peck.

The program takes place at an Army air base in WWII England. Most of the combat pilots are American personnel. The show's first season featured Robert Lansing as Bdgr. General Frank Savage.
Guest starring in two episodes early and late in the season was Paul Burke (previously one of the cops in Naked City) as Major Joe Gallagher, who clashed with Savage in his first appearance but made amends in his second. One of my favorite episodes late in the first year is a 2-parter "POW" , in which Savage and his crew bail out of their damaged plane over German territory.....only to be captured by the enemy. They escape in Part 2.

Co-starring in Season 1 is John Larkin as Major General Wiley Crowe.

Due to a personal disagreement between Robert Lansing and Executive Producer Quinn Martin, he was fired. So in the 2nd season premiere "The Loneliest Place in the World", General Savage is killed in combat when the Germans shoot down his plane. The camera doesn't show his face because Lansing was already off the show!! New regulars included Paul Burke on a full-time basis, as Joe Gallagher is promoted to Colonel. Also added were Chris Robinson as Sgt. Sandy Kamansky (one of the men in Gallagher's flight crew) and Andrew Duggan as General Ed Britt (who promoted Gallagher). Britt walks with a cane due to losing use of his leg in the first World War. Duggan was brought in since John Larkin had died between seasons, the only actor to pass away during production of this series.

Frank Overton plays Major Harvey Stovall for the entire series. He is assistant to General Savage at first and then to Col. Gallagher. Also seen in all three seasons is Barney Phillips as Doc Kaiser (not sure what his rank was).

There were other semi-regulars that turned up, including Robert Colbert in a few episodes during the first 2 years.

The third season is the same as the second, but it looks better because like all American series by 1966 they finally switched to color film. Unfortunately, the show was more expensive to produce due to a lack of available color WWII ariel footage. But more importantly it was low ratings on ABC that led to a cancellation in mid season after the last 17 episodes (there are 78 for the entire series).

Frank Glicksman was the original producer under Executive Producer Quinn Martin during the first season, and he was replaced for the rest of the series by William D. Gordon. Throughout the series, the music by Dominic Frontiere is wonderful! A lot of it previously was heard during the first season of The Outer Limits (1963-64), and was reused on the final season (1966-67) of The Fugitive.

[JamesSmith]

Would you recommend it for a friend who's a history major? And also any opinions on Garrison's Gorillas?

James Smith

[michael_ks]

Quote:

...due to a lack of available color WWII ariel footage.

It's aerial, not "ariel". Every time you write this I'm reminded of a Disney character.

Quote:

Would you recommend it for a friend who's a history major? And also any opinions on Garrison's Gorillas?

Basically it works out like this: "Combat" and "12 O' Clock High" set high standards for historical accuracy. "The Rat Patrol" and "Garrison's Gorillas" on the other hand take considerable artistic license with history. Interestingly enough, the latter two series both debuted later and in color, so it kind of stands to reason.

Black and white photography is already going to give the show an automatic edge, in a fashion, as we tend to associate monochrome with stark accuracy, grittiness and most importantly, realism--in no small measure due to the docudramas and newsreels that showcase the WWII era.

[Hank Dearborn]

In talking about 60s WWII dramas, there was also Convoy, Jericho, Blue Light and The Gallant Men. Also, another one from the late 50s was called The Big Attack. Blue Light was great but I'm not that big a fan of the other 3. I would say Combat was by far the best of the WWII shows.

As for the question about 12 o'clock high coming out, it's owned by Fox, so you've got a better chance at winning the lottery.

[Bob Hug]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hank Dearborn

In talking about 60s WWII dramas, there was also Convoy, Jericho, Blue Light and The Gallant Men. Also, another one from the late 50s was called The Big Attack. Blue Light was great but I'm not that big a fan of the other 3. I would say Combat was by far the best of the WWII shows.

You can get a little taste of "Blue Light" through the theatrical release of "I Deal in Danger" which Fox released on DVD.

Drama - I Deal in Danger Not Rated / 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment / DVD

[michael_ks]

Quote:

As for the question about 12 o'clock high coming out, it's owned by Fox, so you've got a better chance at winning the lottery.

Even if Fox did release the series, six announcements is too much to hope and hold out for. (And yes, I am aware that S3 only has 17 episodes).

[Zardon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by michael_ks

It's aerial, not "ariel". Every time you write this I'm reminded of a Disney character.

You didn't have to correct my typo. Stick to the subject at hand, please.

Quote:

Black and white photography is already going to give the show an automatic edge, in a fashion, as we tend to associate monochrome with stark accuracy, grittiness and most importantly, realism--in no small measure due to the docudramas and newsreels that showcase the WWII era.

The major flaw in that argument is that real life wasn't in black and white....unless you happen to be color blind. Combat and 12 O'Clock High were enjoyable in black and white, but they were made that way for budgetary reasons. Both series were further enhanced with the move to color film because that made them more realistic. ABC didn't lose viewers because of that. It was all about the scheduling and competition they faced from NBC and CBS. Ratings

[michael_ks]

When it's repeatedly written the same way, it ceases to be a typo.

"Color blindness" relates to accurately discerning similar color hues. It has nothing whatsoever to do with whether one's eyes can detect the color spectrum or not.

The awful tinted WWII era footage is precisely one of the reasons that "Twelve O' Clock High" fell out of favor with many viewers. The "12 O'Clock High Logbook" by Allan Duffin and Paul Matheis (BearManor Media, pub.) makes distinct mention of this.

If people were so hung up on an apparent "non-realism" that B&W photography imparts, then everything monochrome would have been colorized to make it "watchable". Hitchcock could have made "Psycho" in color, just as Woody Allen could have with 1978's "Manhatten". This discussion has been hashed out before and to my recollection you're the only who is so beholden to the notion that the advent of color in television programming was somehow our eternal salvation from the "dark days of B/W".

[Bob Hug]

Quote:

Originally Posted by michael_ks

Hitchcock could have made "Psycho" in color, just as Woody Allen could have with 1978's "Manhatten".

Just as George Clooney could have made "Good Night, and Good Luck" in color in 2005, where the black & white documentary footage of the McCarthy HUAC hearings matched up nicely with the docudrama.

Rick Jason, who co-starred as “Lieutenant Hanley” in the WW II series "Combat!" had this to say about the series' change from black & white to color in his autobiography “Scrapbooks of My Mind” . . . . .

“I never felt that the quality we had in the first four years was upheld in the fifth. Color lost that gritty feeling you can get with black and white. I recently watched one of the color shows and there I am, in my wonderfully pressed green jacket in a combat situation and it looks as if the jacket has just been returned by the dry cleaner.”

[Zardon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by michael_ks

When it's repeatedly written the same way, it ceases to be a typo.

Except that it wasn't....you just love to argue over nothing.

Quote:

"Color blindness" relates to accurately discerning similar color hues. It has nothing whatsoever to do with whether one's eyes can detect the color spectrum or not.

It was just a joke. Geez....some people have no sense of humor!

Quote:

The awful tinted WWII era footage is precisely one of the reasons that "Twelve O' Clock High" fell out of favor with many viewers. The "12 O'Clock High Logbook" by Allan Duffin and Paul Matheis (BearManor Media, pub.) makes distinct mention of this.

I don't approve of color tinting either, but the producers had no choice as so little WWII footage was shot in color to begin with. Again it comes down to working within the limited budget that ABC gave them. That's the same reason the first 2 seasons were shot in B & W. It was not for artistic reasons as was the case with Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" or some Woody Allen films. Besides, this is TELEVISION were typing about.....not feature films. If color photography wasn't so expensive to process prior to 1966, a lot more product would have been shot that way.

[michael_ks]

Quote:

Rick Jason, who co-starred as “Lieutenant Hanley” in the WW II series "Combat!" had this to say about the series' change from black & white to color in his autobiography “Scrapbooks of My Mind” . . . . .

“I never felt that the quality we had in the first four years was upheld in the fifth. Color lost that gritty feeling you can get with black and white. I recently watched one of the color shows and there I am, in my wonderfully pressed green jacket in a combat situation and it looks as if the jacket has just been returned by the dry cleaner.”

You read my mind, Bob. I recollected that you posted this info some time ago and I marvelled at Jason's comments then. Reminds me much of Alan Armer's reflections on "The Fugitive" where S4 is concerned.