John T. Ryan BACK IN THE day, the early days of Television, that is, the notion of space Travel, not new to Science Fiction, was a hot genre for exploitation in the ever growing network and local channel schedules. There was, of course, two ways to obtain their desired "Space Operas." They could be either be culled from old theatrical movies; or they could be produced brand new, just for TV.ALTHOUGH THERE WEREN'T exactly very many old, previously released movies that dealt with space travel; there were some-even dating back to the silents. Among the backlog of oldies, as big as life and with double dosed action, was the movie serial.*ALTHOUGH THERE WERE quite a few space oriented serials available for the TV*, there are four that were the most durable and popular. They were BUCK ROGERS (Universal, 1939) and the trilogy of FLASH GORDON (Universal,1936), FLASH GORDON'S TRIP TO MARS (Universal,1938) and FLASH GORDON CONQUERS THE UNIVERSE (Universal,1940). These four were playing for years on local stations.**THE SECOND AVENUE of acquiring the coveted programing was to produce it just for TV. Hence, we had live & in studio classics as CAPTAIN VIDEO, BUZZ TOM CORBETT, SPACE CADET and SPACE PATROL. The in studio, live production had many drawbacks and limitations. The next step surely would be filmed series; which was much more akin to the theatrical film. Well the filmed series did become a reality when ROCKY JONES, SPACE RANGER debuted in 1954.AS WE RECALL it featured diverse stories, impressive special effects and an energetic and talented cast. Richard Crane gave a credible and energetic performance in the lead; supported by Sally Mansfield, Scotty Beckett, Robert Lyden and veteran Maurice Cass. We know by way of our friends in the neighborhood that Rocky Jones was tops.IN RECENT YEARS, we've seen at least one "movie" that was constructed through a compilation of several ROCKY JONES Episodes. The acting, the special effects, costuming and stories were good enough for the big screens of the nation's movie houses. It begs the question; so why was it canceled after one season of 39 episodes? Go figure!NOTE: * There were many serials with space travel and rocket ships. some, like BRICK BRADFORD (Columbia, which never made it to the small screen in your living rooms. On the other hand, Republic Pictures opened the floodgates giving the TV Stations such titles as: KING OF THE ROCKET MEN, THE PURPLE MONSTER STRIKES, FLYING DISC MAN FROM MARS, ZOMBIES OF THE STRATOSPHERE and others. NOTE: ** Just what is the common thread that runs through these four chapter plays? Well, other than the studio's being Universal, it is the Star Male Lead. Can you say Buster Crabbe?

shulma2002 I viewed Rocky Jones, Space Ranger as a child 50 years ago. By today's standards the SPFX are inferior but the stories were great: good against evil. It was entertaining and exciting. I'm sure that science fiction films and TV series made in the 60's and 70's, such as "Star Trek", have to thank Rocky Jones for many story lines. There was one episode where Rocky's ship becomes invisible due to a scientific breakthrough; a similar plot was used in "Star Trek" as well as in "Star Wars". We owe a lot to shows like Rocky Jones. It brought pleasure to many youngsters who could only dream about space travel. I still remember the plots and titles of many of those episodes; yet I cannot recall plots of shows I've viewed within recent years!

EitoMan Don't listen to the negative reviews. Rocky Jones Space Ranger is a great series. As basic juvenile oriented entertainment, it is terrific fun. There are spaceships, travels to different planets, weird science, and girls in mini-skirts. As a Science Fiction television show, it is pioneering, and arguably one of the most enduring.There seems to always be a rift between those who want their sci-fi to be "smart" and those who are looking for action and/or special FX. This series was made before the genre was divided. It's an early 50's sci-fi adventure t.v. show aimed primarily at juveniles--take it for what it is. Despite it's "limitations" it sure seems to have a lot of elements that would later be used by Gene Roddenberry on Star Trek.Rocky Jones Space Ranger portrays a future where interplanetary travel is routine. The show employs an ensemble cast with a family-like camaraderie. Rocky and his crew (Vena, Bobby, Biff, and Professor Newton) are sent out as emissaries of the United Worlds. The UW is portrayed as a peaceful alliance of planets, yet outside threats from rogue elements & planets require a force of Space Rangers. Diplomacy is always the first resort, but Rocky is definitely able to go fist-city with any bad-guy. Also of note is the fact that this series routinely cast women in important roles as both rulers, villains, and sidekicks--fairly unusual for 1954.Rocky Jones is a truly enjoyable sci-fi adventure t.v. shows for those young at heart. It's well written, filmed (as opposed to shot on video) and the special effects are actually pretty good for something produced in 1954. If you're not a sci-fi snob, you'll definitely enjoy this great, pioneering show.

coker-2 If it were not for COMMANDO CODY, SKY MARSHAL OF THE UNIVERSE, we would consider ROCKY JONES, SPACE RANGER to be the low point of 1950s space adventure series. Unlike the other shows of the day it was filmed and syndicated; that meant far better sets, props and special effects. But the writers seemed never to have understood what science fiction, or space adventure, was all about. The actors are good and deserve better material. They also deserve better directors. The art direction is quite good, but there are very few "practical effects," far fewer than even on the live space adventure shows. (When a ray gun fired on CAPTAIN VIDEO, we saw flame and smoke... when a ray gun fires on ROCKY JONES we hear a kind of farting sound.)