The Questor Tapes (TV 1974)

Project Questor is brainchild of the genius Dr. Vaslovik: he developed plans to build an android super-human. Although he's disappeared and half of his programming tape was erased in the ... See full summary »

Director:

Richard A. Colla

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (teleplay), Gene L. Coon (teleplay),

Stars:

Robert Foxworth, Mike Farrell, John Vernon

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Foxworth	...	Questor
Mike Farrell	...	Jerry Robinson
John Vernon	...	Geoffrey Darro
Lew Ayres	...	Vaslovik
James Shigeta	...	Dr. Chen
Robert Douglas	...	Dr. Michaels
Dana Wynter	...	Lady Helena Trimble
Ellen Weston	...	Allison Sample
Majel Barrett	...	Dr. Bradley
Reuben Singer	...	Dr. Gorlov
Walter Koenig	...	Administrative Assistant
Fred Sadoff	...	Dr. Audret
Gerald Peters	...	Randolph
Eyde Girard	...	Stewardess
Alan Caillou	...	Immigration Offical

Storyline

Project Questor is brainchild of the genius Dr. Vaslovik: he developed plans to build an android super-human. Although he's disappeared and half of his programming tape was erased in the attempt to decode it, his former colleagues continue the project and finally succeed. But Vaslovik seems to have installed a secret program in Questor's brain: He flees and starts to search for Vaslovik. Since half of his knowledge is missing, he needs the help of Jerry Robinson, who's now under suspect of having stolen the android.

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Plot Keywords:

android | unsold tv series pilot | computer tape | airplane stewardess | unlikely friendship | 

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Genres:

Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ein Android wird gejagt

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jeffrey Hayes Productions, Universal TV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Of Gene Roddenberry's non-"Star Trek" pilots (Genesis II, Planet Earth, Spectre), this one came closest to being greenlighted as a weekly series. Gene Roddenberry ultimately pulled it from consideration because American TV network NBC demanded too many changes to the concept. The demands would allegedly have eliminated the Jerry Robinson character, and would have inserted revolving romantic interests for Questor.

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Goofs

Darrow enters the Lear jet, sets the tracking device down, and flips the switch to the "up" position to activate it. The next time that we see the tracking device, the switch is in the "down" position.

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Quotes

Jerry Robinson: Do you understand the implications of all this? Suppose Vaslovik isn't a good man.
[pause]
Jerry Robinson: Suppose he isn't even sane.
Questor: One's creator not sane... An interesting question. How would you answer that query in your own case, my friend?

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Connections

Referenced in Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Royale (1989)

User Reviews

Questor Tapes

It was a very well done project for it's time and Robert Foxworth did a splendid job. Any criticism of his performance is totally unwarranted and it was a touching performance. His interpretation of the Android was touching and the humanity and feeling he brought to the character was memorable.

The end of the movie is heartwarming and it has stayed a cult classic for us fans for decades. I remember being mesmerized by the special effects at the time even though they would seem dated by today's standards. The most important thing is the feeling brought to the characters and the relationship between Questor and humans.

It is sad that it has not been made available sooner on DVD so that fans of today can enjoy it with hindsight.

Hopefully the DVD I ordered will arrive soon and bring back all the fond memories. Lew Ayers did a find job also as did Mike Farell.