Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers
Encyclopedia
Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers was a 30-minute, weekly CBS
-TV network outer space adventure series, broadcast live Saturdays from April 18, 1953 to May 29, 1954. Set in 2153 and all-too-obviously inspired by Tom Corbett, Space Cadet
(1950 - 1955),
the series depicted the adventures of fearless Rocket Rangers, who operated from Omega Base, piloting their nuclear-powered space ship Beta throughout the solar system, to battle crime and the weird menace of extraterrestrial life-forms. The three Rangers were curly-haired Rod Brown (Cliff Robertson
), prickly Frank Boyd (Bruce Hall) and obese Wilber Wormser
(Jack Weston). Their immediate superior was Commander Swift (John Boruff).
Director George Gould had also been the director of ABC
's Tom Corbett
from 1950 to 1952, and he carried with him to CBS
several of the writers for that pioneering series, plus its basic concepts, plus the major special effect, an amplifier producing travelling mattes
. The very close similarity between Rod Brown and Tom Corbett generated at least one lawsuit
, which seems to have resulted in the Rod Brown kinescopes never being rebroadcast.
Rod Brown's adventures had a sponsor, Jell-O Instant Pudding. However, there are very few premiums or toys associated with the series, as compared to its rival live space adventure series such as Captain Video
, Space Patrol
, and Tom Corbett, Space Cadet. A Rocket Ranger membership card and a Rocket Ranger Squadron Charter have been observed. In addition, plaid flannel shirts for young boys, featuring a solid-color flannel placket silkscreened with the Rocket Ranger title, space ship, and spaceman, were also available.
The program began each week with an introduction: "Surging with the power of the atom, gleaming like great silver bullets, the mighty Rocket Ranger space ships stand by for blast-off. Up, up, rockets blazing with white-hot fury, the man-made meteors ride through the atmosphere, breaking the gravity barrier, pushing up and out, faster and faster, and then...outer space and high adventure for the Rocket Rangers."
A verse from the TV theme song went: "From the sands of Mars, out to the distant stars, we're the Rocket Ranger Corps..."
The membership card offered as a premium displayed the "Rocket Ranger code" as follows:
ON MY HONOR AS A ROCKET RANGER, I PLEDGE THAT:
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
-TV network outer space adventure series, broadcast live Saturdays from April 18, 1953 to May 29, 1954. Set in 2153 and all-too-obviously inspired by Tom Corbett, Space Cadet
Tom Corbett, Space Cadet
Tom Corbett is the main character in a series of Tom Corbett — Space Cadet stories that were depicted in television, radio, books, comic books, comic strips, coloring books, punch-out books and View-Master reels in the 1950s....
(1950 - 1955),
the series depicted the adventures of fearless Rocket Rangers, who operated from Omega Base, piloting their nuclear-powered space ship Beta throughout the solar system, to battle crime and the weird menace of extraterrestrial life-forms. The three Rangers were curly-haired Rod Brown (Cliff Robertson
Cliff Robertson
Clifford Parker "Cliff" Robertson III was an American actor with a film and television career that spanned half of a century. Robertson portrayed a young John F. Kennedy in the 1963 film PT 109, and won the 1968 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the movie Charly...
), prickly Frank Boyd (Bruce Hall) and obese Wilber Wormser
(Jack Weston). Their immediate superior was Commander Swift (John Boruff).
Director George Gould had also been the director of ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's Tom Corbett
Tom Corbett
Thomas W. Corbett is the 46th and current Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. He is a former Attorney General of Pennsylvania and was elected to that office in 2004 and reelected in 2008...
from 1950 to 1952, and he carried with him to CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
several of the writers for that pioneering series, plus its basic concepts, plus the major special effect, an amplifier producing travelling mattes
Matte (filmmaking)
Mattes are used in photography and special effects filmmaking to combine two or more image elements into a single, final image. Usually, mattes are used to combine a foreground image with a background image . In this case, the matte is the background painting...
. The very close similarity between Rod Brown and Tom Corbett generated at least one lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
, which seems to have resulted in the Rod Brown kinescopes never being rebroadcast.
Rod Brown's adventures had a sponsor, Jell-O Instant Pudding. However, there are very few premiums or toys associated with the series, as compared to its rival live space adventure series such as Captain Video
Captain Video
Captain Video and His Video Rangers is an American science fiction television series. It was broadcast on the DuMont Television Network, and was the first series of its kind on American television...
, Space Patrol
Space Patrol
Space Patrol has been the title of several science fiction works:*Space Patrol , the United States 1950s TV series with a concurrent radio version...
, and Tom Corbett, Space Cadet. A Rocket Ranger membership card and a Rocket Ranger Squadron Charter have been observed. In addition, plaid flannel shirts for young boys, featuring a solid-color flannel placket silkscreened with the Rocket Ranger title, space ship, and spaceman, were also available.
The program began each week with an introduction: "Surging with the power of the atom, gleaming like great silver bullets, the mighty Rocket Ranger space ships stand by for blast-off. Up, up, rockets blazing with white-hot fury, the man-made meteors ride through the atmosphere, breaking the gravity barrier, pushing up and out, faster and faster, and then...outer space and high adventure for the Rocket Rangers."
A verse from the TV theme song went: "From the sands of Mars, out to the distant stars, we're the Rocket Ranger Corps..."
The membership card offered as a premium displayed the "Rocket Ranger code" as follows:
ON MY HONOR AS A ROCKET RANGER, I PLEDGE THAT:
- I SHALL always chart my course according to the
Constitution of the United States of America.
- I SHALL never cross orbits with the Rights and
Beliefs of others.
- I SHALL blast at full space-speed to protect the
Weak and Innocent.
- I SHALL stay out of collision orbit with the laws
of my State and Community.
- I SHALL cruise in parallel orbit with my Parents
and Teachers.
- I SHALL not roar my rockets unwisely, and shall be
Courteous at all times.
- I SHALL keep my gyros steady and reactors burning
by being Industrious and Thrifty.
- I SHALL keep my scanner tuned to Learning and
remain coupled to my Studies.
- I SHALL keep my mind out of free-fall by being
mentally alert. - I SHALL blast the meteors from the paths of other people by
being Kind and Considerate.