Captain Video: Master of the Stratosphere (1951)

Top cast47

Edit

Judd Holdren

Captain Video

Larry Stewart

Ranger

George Eldredge

Dr. Tobor

Gene Roth

Vultura

Don C. Harvey

Gallagher
(as Don Harvey)

William Fawcett

Alpha [Chs. 1-3, 7, 15]

Jack Ingram

Aker - Henchman [Chs. 1, 7, 10-14]

I. Stanford Jolley

Zarol [Chs. 8-9]

Skelton Knaggs

Retner

Jimmy Stark

Ranger Rogers

Rusty Wescoatt

Beal - Henchman [Chs. 1, 7, 11]

Zon Murray

Elko - Henchman [Chs. 1, 7, 10-14]

William Bailey

Prof. Dean's Butler [Chs. 4-5, 11]
(uncredited)

Benjie Bancroft

Theros Man
(uncredited)

Paul Baxley

Ranger at Lab
(uncredited)

Willie Bloom

Technician
(uncredited)

Barry Brooks

Theros Radio Operator
(uncredited)

Roy Butler

Real Vault Guard [Ch. 9]
(uncredited)

More like this

5.4

Dangers of the Canadian Mounted

5.1

Zombies of the Stratosphere

6.6

Captain Midnight

6.1

Lost City of the Jungle

6.5

The Green Archer

6.4

Deluge

Did you know

Edit

Trivia
To cut costs, the same cave and doorway set used for Dr. Tobor's laboratory on the planet Theros, was slightly re-dressed to become the entrance to the doctor's underground freezing chamber beneath his laboratory on Earth.

Goofs
In chapter 11, Captain Video slightly stumbles over his line "in this area" while being secretly recorded. However, during the playback, the Captain says his line perfectly.

Quotes
[last lines]
Captain Video: If all men were free to live by the majority rule and worship as they wish, the universe may never see war again!

Connections
Edited into Movies That Shook the World: 2001: A Space Odyssey (2005)

Batman And Robin In Space - Reasonably Entertaining

Lesser known Columbia cliff-hanger serial partly set in space.

Republic serials had better spaceship effects (see Radar Men From The Moon) and Universal space serials had better characters (see Buck Rogers) but Columbia made a reasonably entertaining serial with Captain Video, Master Of The Stratosphere.

It has an energetic feel (due partly to the music cues lifted from Columbia's Batman and Robin serial) and the two male leads do a fine job, even if their costumes could have been a bit better.

Granted, the very dated robots and animated spaceship effects do a bit of damage to the production as a whole, but I would rather watch this than most of the Star Wars films made in this century.

Columbia would go back into space in 1953 with - The Lost Planet - but stay clear of that serial.

Before Captain Video, Columbia had made two Batman serials, am I the only one who thinks this show has a "Batman and Robin 3" feel about it?