User reviews

Just happened to think of this awesome show that I watched at age 13 which as others have indicated, turned me on to history. Pleased to find reference to it here and see that for many others here have not forgotten either. The theme music has haunted me for years, yes rousing and patriotic. No sound here obviously but for those that remember, how about this.

Da da, da,da,da Da da da, da,da Da-da-da-da-da dauda da-da-da-da, dada with lots of snare drums (marching) in the background. Would make an awesome boxed set. I can remember 3-4 of them quite vividly. Come on CBS, get with it!

I watched this show religiously when I was a fourth grader (1963-1964), and it profoundly affected my life! I have been a fanatical lover of History since then, and I teach US History at the University level. I hated it when the series did not continue, and I have wanted to see it again ever since then. This is not only the best History series ever made, but one of the best TV series of all time. I rank it as one of the greats.

I wish that the series was on video/DVD. I have tried to email CBS about this, with no success; it is doubtful that they even own the series. I hope that someone will get the idea to release it, and do so soon. I also hope that somebody gets the notion to do a new "Great Adventure" someday.

It's difficult to believe this was only on for a single season. I remember them as well written drama's that humanized history and count them as a critical factor in nurturing my interest in History so much as to pursue a degree in it. Episodes like "Roger Young", "The Hunley", "The Story of Nathan Hale" and "A Boy at War" were amazing. The talent was there, the story was there, only the audience was missing. I guess folks were too busy watching the Flintstones. I would really love to see these issued on DVD or Video. Appearances by Joseph Cotton, James MacArthur, Peter Graves, Ricardo Montalban, Noah Berry, Claude Akins, Jackie Cooper, Lloyd Nolan, Earl Holliman and George Kennedy to name just a few.

After reading all the comments of this series I realize this Great Adventure show must have had an impact on the few that did watch as a child. I remember it as being very dramatic. I remember well many of the details of some of the episodes. I can see Lloyd Bridges playing Wild Bill and sitting at a table playing cards and getting shot in the back.I remember seeing the hole through his coat. In another episode, not sure which one,I remember drilling for oil and striking at the conclusion. I was in third grade and remember it being on Friday nights. My sisters and brother all watched. I couldn't remember how the theme song went but I do remember that it was powerful. I searched for a long time and findly found it on the Internet. I would like to see the series return on TV or DVD.

ATTENTION READERS: It has been mentioned several times about the theme song. I want to say I found it at www.wavethemes.net. Click on the online TV theme song catalog and look under the G's

One of the greatest shows ever on television. It stimulated my interest in history which has continued unabated to this day. Unfortunately the show was cursed with the Friday night "Death Time Slot" of either 7-8 or 8-9, I forget precisely which.

This is a series which should be not only published in DVD format, but brought back with new stories. Today, people seem to favor a "warts and all" realism to their stories and that's OK too because some of those original shows had that realism however subtly it was done. I can't conceive of a commercial network doing such a thing today but perhaps PBS?

This show was fantastic. It's hard to add more to what's already been said here. It captivated me as an 8 yr old. For me, one of the most impactful episodes was "Go Down Moses", the story of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. You can find the whole episode on YouTube. I understand it was restored by TVLand for Black History Month. Unbelievably, it stared Ruby Dee, Ethel Waters and Ossie Davis. And for all of you with fond memories of the theme music, that's on YouTube too!

I hope the whole series becomes available. It's a gem!

I loved this show. Admittedly the only two episodes that I distinctly remember are first; the episode in which Lloyd Bridges was Wild Bill Hickok. I remember him in a shootout at night on the streets I believe of Abilene, Kansas, where he kills the "bad guy", but hears someone coming up behind him and turns and fires and he kills his deputy and one of the town folk yells out in disbelief, "He shot his own deputy." It was because Hickok's eyes were going bad and he was too vain to wear glasses. The other episode is the one about American Revolutionary spy Nathan Hale. I'll never forget as he was about to be hung by the British he said his famous last words. "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country." I don't remember the actors name, but to this day anytime I see him in anything else I always remember him as Nathan Hale. I too would love to see this show on TVland or on DVD. I think it would still hold up.

I echo the sentiments expressed by many of the writers. This show had a profound effect upon me. It fueled my desire to read more history. Eventually I was recognized as one of the top 10 high school history students in the state. I went on to become a lawyer. I never forgot the stirring theme music. It was great to hear it through the links on this blog. I encourage the powers that be to make this series available online. Better still I would love to see it reproduced and expanded so a new generation might enjoy it. It would be a perfect addition to the History Channel. I encourage other members of this blog write to the History Channel and request a reairing of the episodes,

Although I specifically remember only one episode (Jackie Cooper in "The Hunley"), I can still hum the rousing theme march by Richard Rogers, a real toe-tapper!

The opening titles were a chronological panorama of historical scenes (Washington crossing the Delaware, etc.) ending with a rocket blasting off from Cape Canaveral. Very rousing!

Next to "Hawaii Five-O", probably my favorite main title.

I recall it coming on CBS late Sunday afternoons, after "The Twentieth Century" with Walter Cronkite.

This series deserves to be seen again.

Write CBS, Inc. and make your desires known!

It had a theme song by Richard Rogers, and was narrated by Van Heflin. It told stories with performers of quality: Bob Cummings as "Dr. Benjamin Waterhouse" a pioneer in inoculation for smallpox fighting prejudice in Thomas Jefferson's day; Jackie Cooper as the commander of the Confederate submarine " C.S.S.Hunley" on it's fateful cruise to sink the "U.S.S. Housatonic"; Barry Sullivan as "Holland" the reporter who discovered that President Grover Cleveland (Leif Ericsson) had a secret operation for cancer; Sullivan again, taken in by prospectors John McGiver and John Fiedler, in buying the land of their great diamond field sight unseen - only to have J.D.Cannon (as Clarence King)show that everyone has been fooled by them; Lee Marvin as a California raisin grower fighting the railroads there in 1905. These episodes have not been seen in decades, and deserve to be seen again. Like PROFILES IN COURAGE it has been relegated to the obscurity bin of (ironically enough) history.

Have you ever had the experience of something floating around in the recesses of your memory,and only fragments being accessible to your immediate consciousness? For years, I had fragmentary memories of a TV show. I remembered it had stirring music and an impressive looking narrator, and that it had something to do with American history. I remembered something about an Italian or Greek immigrant struggling to bring his crops into market, and something about a Quaker woman trying to educate black and white children in a school in the post-civil war south.Now , I finally saw someone mention the title in another context. After looking up these reviews, a lot of old memories came roaring back. I remembered the Hunley, and the operation on Grover Cleveland,and Jeff Davis, and a story about the man who dug the first oil well. I was five at the time, and TV was just what Mr. Newton Minow called it back then, a "vast wasteland". But even in that wasteland one could find an oasis or two. One such oasis was The Great Adventure. I wish I knew who had the rights to this( and Slattery's People and Profiles in Courage and My World and Welcome to It.) I am not a violent man, but I would almost be willing to force them at gunpoint to release these shows on DVD.

This show was scheduled Fridays @ 7:30 in th fall of 1963. That meant than one episode was pre-empted on 11/22 after the events surrounding the assassination of John F. Kennedy. I distinctly remember a twinge of disappointment that what was becoming a favorite show for this 7th grader would not air that night. But I was glued, as most of the nation,to TV. Later that night,remember the rifle used by Lee Harvey Oswald parading through hallways as he was processed for his crime. Live on TV. I missed his murder the following Sunday by seconds. Live on TV.These were four days that showed just how effective TV could be in relating timely events. A history story bumped by history. The show would not return until 12/6.

I was 9 years old when this wonderful series aired and I quickly became infatuated with it. Every Friday night I raced home on my bicycle, humming that inspiring theme music, to watch the next episode. I am still playing that music in my mind 45 years later. The shows on Nathan Hale, Harriet Tubman, the Confederate submarine Hunley and the WWII soldier played by James MacArthur still stand out vividly in my memory, although I never saw them more than once. This series was a huge source of my lifelong love of history and I was heartbroken when it ended after only one year. If it could only be brought back in reruns, or at least in DVD format, The Great Adventure would surely prove its timeless quality to more generations.

This show only lasted one year, perhaps because it portrayed American historical events in a good light at a time when people were beginning to question it. I found the episodes about Rodger Young (with James MacArthur in the Title role) and the Huntley really good and while I was young still remember a few scenes that impacted me. I would certainly like to see CBS take a chance and put this show on DVD

The Great Adventure TV series: I couldn't wait to see this show every week: I loved American history! It was great because it dramatized historical events and historical people so that others could learn history just by watching the show . The show inspired me to make a Merrimack and Monitor the first ironclad warships: one confederate: one union: out of milk cartons and took them to school in fifth grade! It's too bad the show only had one season because there are so many other stories they could've taught history to young Americans like myself . My family has been here since 1666 from Edinburgh to what is now Connecticut. I'm related to Thomas Hooker the first colonial governor of Connecticut: Mary Todd Lincoln: Walter Camp: Joseph Smith The founder of the Mormon church and other historical figures. I memorized the Gettysburg address when I was in fifth grade . Lincoln was my hero and most significant president I believe in USA history . The combination of an intelligence and knowledge of the constitution and morality and absolute determination to save our union and free the slaves and then tried to heal the nation . Now other channels such as History: National Geographic: Discovery and AHC and others are doing doc u drama type historical programs . This is good because the American Young need to be educated they don't seem to be getting the basics of an American history and American government and the teachings of how our nation was founded and the brilliance of the Constitution and its foundation for democracy . I truly believe The great adventure TV series should be included in the national archives as being of historical significance. There are many great actors in the Series since this is an anthology without a regular cast. I love shows like that because it gives actor so many opportunities I became an actor myself entertainer,musician and I have been involved in radio filmmaking and screenwriting . I have one fantasy romance Destiny that Im promoting to development involving, karma,past lives,reincarnation and soulmates that would be the date movie of the decade:and several others based on real life experiences and two specs for TV series. One being the conspiracy and cover up of the collaboration of our government with alien extraterrestrials known as the Greys. I wish some channel would show this entire series over and over again. The Great Adventure TV series watch it and if there is a DVD compilation of the show I'm gonna get it. Rick Camp Actor Screenwriter Producer

Very educational and showed a wide range of biographies and historical events. It was highly unusual then and now to see a prime time series that dramatized history in such a thoughtful, innovative, and realistic manner. The fact that there were no actors who appeared weekly and that it was an anthology series made it all the more interesting. From the inspirational theme song, the stage was set for another weekly adventure. This show greatly influenced me to take a lifelong interest in the subject of history, and I have enjoyed reading many books on American snd world history, eventually majoring in history in college and briefly teaching the subject before starting a long career as a special ed. Teacher.

Like "The Americans" which concentrated on the American Civil War, "The Great Adventure" was a quality show which each week presented a dramatization of a person or event in American history. Like "The Americans," "The Great Adventure" was ignored by the American public which, according to the ratings, was far and away more attracted to "Peyton Place," "My Mother the Car," "Car 54 Where Are You?" and other broadcasts which earned television the epithet of "The Vast Wasteland." Van Heflin concluded each episode of "The Great Adventure" by encouraging the American public to read history since, "Learning is the Great Adventure." Not enough of the American public heeded Mr. Heflin's advice.

Was this show only on for one season? That amazes me because I still remember many of the episodes so vividly. I was about 10 years old when "The Great Adventure" was on television and I always wondered why my history classes in school couldn't be this engrossing. I still remember the farms on the western plains being attacked by swarms of locusts, a young Andrew Jackson being struck by a British officer's sword, the founding of the Society for the prevention fo Cruelty to Children", and the claustrophobic feeling inside the USS Monitor. Why don't they have programs like this today? Why don't they run this series again on TVLand?

I too enjoyed the Great Adventure series. I can still remember small parts of them after 40 years.

My favorite show was the one about the CSS Hunley. This show inspired me to read more about the various Civil War battles that took place on water.

I also enjoyed the show about Jean LaFitte's contribution to the War of 1812.

I do recall that one of the originals was re-released after the series had ended. It was about Harriet Tubman. It would be good to see the whole series released in a DVD collection, but I have gotten nowhere with this request.

I still remember this wonderful series from my youth. LLoyd Bridges portrayed Buffalo Bill Cody. There was an episode about the founding of the SPCA; the first submarine, etc. Does anyone know where DVDs or VHS copies can be obtained? CBS produced it but no of their web pages offer this series for purchase. As a teacher, I am especially interested in showing thee episodes to my students. What a wonderful way to study history. I'm also interested in getting a copy of the opening theme. After much research, I've discovered that Richard Rogers wrote it. It is also on file in Washington DC in the music archives but I can't find where the music was published separately. A little help? Coachgary

This show was well written, well produced and ambitious. It was a touchingly uncynical effort. One of the producers was the great John Houseman, Orson Wells' partner in the Mercury Theater and later the intimidating Professor Kingsfield of "The Paper Chase".

Some of the performances I can remember are Rip Torn as egomaniac John Fremont, Lloyd Bridges as an aging Wild Bill Hickock who is too vain to wear glasses, Peter Graves as Daniel Boone, Jeremy Slate as Nathan Hale, Robert Culp as Sam Houston and James McArthur as doomed World War ll hero Rodger Young. Earl Holliman played a dust bowl farmer fighting locusts. I think Michael Rennie played Jefferson Davis.

Van Heflin was the host/narrator, who was later replaced by Russell Johnson who just served as narrator.

"The Great Adventure" was on during the 1963-64 season. It was on Friday nights from 7:30 to 8:30 pm eastern time. "The Great Adventure" was followed on CBS by "Route 66" at 8:30, "Twilight Zone" at 9:30 and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour" at 10:00. A strong line up.

This series still carries strong memories. Though only nine years old when it debuted, the storytelling always spoke to the best moments of this country. Indeed, I hear the echo of my own voice in the comments that others have left on this site.

In addition to the Confederate sub, one of my favorite tales was the struggle of the Italian immigrant to get his produce to market in California.

I noted that one of the other readers came across the theme song 'on the Internet.' Finding that instrumental has been my personal holy grail since first hearing it. Time has faded the memory of the tune, but it left a nine year old with a lump in his throat, as he watched the intro and closing credits with the rotating stars (believe they were part of the opening and/or closing credits). Anyway, if anyone has a link to the theme song, would love to see it posted.

Thanks for rekindling some great memories.