Flash Gordon (1954 television series)

Flash Gordon is a science fiction television series. It aired from October 15, 1954 to July 15, 1955. It is based on the characters in the Flash Gordon comic strip created by Alex Raymond. The series set is set in 3203.  Flash (Steve Holland), Dale Arden (Irene Champlin) and Dr. Zarkov (Joseph Nash) are agents of the Galactic Bureau of Investigation. They travel the galaxy in their ship the Sky Flash to battle cosmic villains under the order of Commander Paul Richards (Henry Beckman).

The series was filmed in West Berlin and Marseille as a West German, French and American co-production by Intercontinental Television Films and Telediffusion. The series aired in syndication throughout most of the U.S. It aired on the east coast on the DuMont Television Network.

The series was popular with American audiences. Critical response was positive. Modern critics brush the series off. Some critics respond positively to the series's presentation of Cold War and capitalist themes.

Production
Universal Studios had held the production rights to Flash Gordon but allowed them to lapse. Former Universal executives Edward Gruskin and Matty Fox struck a deal with Flash Gordon owners King Features Syndicate to produce the first 26 episodes of the series. The series was produced by Gruskin and Wenzel Lüdecke. Writers for Flash Gordon included Gruskin, Bruce Geller and Earl Markham. Episodes were directed by Wallace Worsley, Jr. and Gunther von Fritsch.

Production began in May 1953, with an empty beer hall in Spandau as the main  shooting location. Only the lead actors and director Worsley spoke English. Worsley said: "No matter what galaxy we explored, everyone spoke with a German accent. The use of German actors who could not speak English required us to use a lot of close-ups. I would stand behind the camera, correctly positioned for the actor's look, and read his or her line; the actor would then repeat the line, mimicking my pronunciation and emphasis."

The series was budgeted at USD$15,000 per episode on a three-day-per-episode shooting schedule. Worsley withdrew from the project after completing the first 26 episodes. Production was moved to Marseille under the direction of Gunther von Fritsch for the 13 final episodes.

Episodes

Notes

References

Bibliography
 Bassoir, Jean-Noel (2004). Space Patrol: Missions of Daring in the Name of Early Television. McFarland & Company. .
 Cook, John R. and Peter Wright (2006). British Science Fiction Television: A Hitchhiker's Guide. I. B. Taurus. .
 Harmon, Jim and Donald Frank Glut (1973). The Great Movie Serials: Their Sound and Fury. Routledge. .
 Dixon, Wheeler Winston. "Tomorrowland TV: The Space Opera and Early Science Fiction Television". collected in Telotte, J.P. (ed.) (2008). The Essential Science Fiction Television Reader, pp. 96–110. University Press of Kentucky. , .
 Terrace, Vincent (2002). Crime Fighting Heroes of Television: Over 10,000 Facts from 151 Shows, 1949-2001. McFarland & Company. .
 Worsley, Jr., Wallace and Sue Dwiggens Worsley (1997). From Oz to E.T.: Wally Worsley's Half Century in Hollywood. Lanham, MD, Scarecrow.

Other websites

DuMont historical website 

1954 television series debuts
1955 television series endings
1950s American television series
Flash Gordon television series
1954 establishments in the United States
1950s disestablishments in the United States