Tales of Tomorrow

Tales of Tomorrow

Opening titles
Genre Anthology
Science Fiction
Directed by Charles S. Dubin
Don Medford
Leslie Gorall
Franklin J. Schaffner
Leonard Valenta
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 2
No. of episodes 85
Production
Running time 25 minutes
Release
Original network ABC
Picture format 4:3 Black and White
Audio format Monaural
Original release August 3, 1951 – June 12, 1953

Tales of Tomorrow is an American anthology science fiction series that was performed and broadcast live[1] on ABC from 1951 to 1953. The series covered such stories as Frankenstein, starring Lon Chaney, Jr., 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea starring Thomas Mitchell as Captain Nemo, and many others featuring such performers as Boris Karloff, Brian Keith, Lee J. Cobb, Veronica Lake, Rod Steiger, Bruce Cabot, Franchot Tone, Gene Lockhart, Walter Abel, Cloris Leachman, Leslie Nielsen, and Paul Newman. The series had many similarities to the later Twilight Zone which also covered one of the same stories, "What You Need". In total it ran for eighty-five 30-minute episodes. It was called “the best science-fiction fare on TV today” by Paul Fairman, editor of If.[2]

Production

The idea for this science fiction television series was developed by Theodore Sturgeon and Mort Abrahamson, together with the membership of the Science Fiction League of America. The original title was planned as Tomorrow is Yours.[3] A deal was struck with Richard Gordon and George Foley, giving the producers of the show first choice of any of the 2,000 short stories and 13 novels by the various members of the League.

Tales of Tomorrow was the first dramatized showcase for several authors, including Arthur C. Clarke.[4] Other early science fiction writers whose work was reflected in the series included Fredric Brown ("The Last Man on Earth" and "Age of Peril"), Philip Wylie ("Blunder"), C.M. Kornbluth ("The Little Black Bag") and Stanley G. Weinbaum ("The Miraculous Serum"). The show was intended for adults; at the time, most science fiction productions were targeted to children.[5] The producers wanted to blend mystery and science fiction, and emphasize fast pacing and suspense.[6]

Broadcast history

For the first few months, Tales of Tomorrow alternated the 9:30 to 10pm ET timeslot with Versatile Varieties, which had its last broadcast on December 14, 1951.

Season Time Slot
1 (1951-1952) Friday at 9:30 pm
2 (1952-1953)

Radio series

While the television version of Tales of Tomorrow was still being produced in 1953, ABC decided to try a radio version. The radio show ran from January 1 to April 9, 1953.[7] Unlike the TV version, scripts were adapted from stories appearing in Galaxy Science Fiction;[8] the contemporary series Dimension X has previously had a similar relationship with Astounding Science Fiction magazine.

The radio series was not successful. After only a few episodes, on February 26 it moved to CBS for the remainder of its 15 episode run.[9] The TV version was canceled shortly afterward. A few years after its cancellation, the radio series X Minus One (a 1955 revival of Dimension X) debuted, sharing a similar relationship with Galaxy Science Fiction. Four of the fifteen Tales of Tomorrow stories were later adapted for X Minus One: "The Stars Are the Styx", "The Moon Is Green", "The Girls from Earth", and "The Old Die Rich".[9][10]

Public domain episodes

Many of the TV episodes are still under copyright, but five of the surviving radio series episodes are now in the public domain in the United States and available for free download at Internet Archive. Live TV episodes were captured on kinescope.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Tales of Tomorrow at TV.com
  2. ↑ If v1#1 p. 151
  3. ↑ http://www.heinleinarchives.net/upload/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=831
  4. ↑ Arthur C. Clarke, "The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke", Preface to 'All the Time in the World' ISBN 0-575-07065-X.
  5. ↑ The Billboard (magazine), May 19, 1951, page 11
  6. ↑ The Billboard (magazine), August 18, 1951, page 9
  7. ↑ On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. By John Dunning. ISBN 0-19-507678-8, page 653
  8. ↑ Science Fiction Television. By M. Keith Booker, page 5, ISBN 0-275-98164-9
  9. 1 2 http://www.digitaldeliftp.com/DigitalDeliToo/dd2jb-Tales-of-Tomorrow.html Production information, and review sources on the radio series Tales of Tomorrow.
  10. ↑ https://archive.org/details/XMinus1_A Full listing of all "X Minus One" episodes at Internet Archive.
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