Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV 1979)

A 20th century astronaut emerges out of 500 years of suspended animation into a future time where Earth is threatened by alien invaders.

Director:

Daniel Haller

Writers:

Glen A. Larson, Leslie Stevens,

Stars:

Gil Gerard, Pamela Hensley, Erin Gray

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gil Gerard	...	Capt. William 'Buck' Rogers
Pamela Hensley	...	Princess Ardala
Erin Gray	...	Col. Wilma Deering
Henry Silva	...	Kane
Tim O'Connor	...	Dr. Elias Huer
Joseph Wiseman	...	Draco
Duke Butler	...	Tigerman
Felix Silla	...	Twiki (body)
Caroline Smith	...	Delta Section
John Dewey Carter	...	Supervisor (as John Dewey-Carter)
Kevin Coates	...	Pilot
David Cadiente	...	Comtel Officer
Gil Serna	...	Technician
Larry Duran	...	Draconian Guard
Kenny Endoso	...	Draconian Guard

Storyline

In 1987, Captain William "Buck" Rogers pilots his space shuttle on a mission but a meteor storm freezes him into an orbit that returns him to Earth 500 years later. In the year 2491, his shuttle is found and captured by the Draconian flagship, under the command of Princess Ardala and her henchman Kane. Reviving him, they return him to Earth after planting a homing beacon aboard his shuttle to track a path through Earth's defense barrier. Now, Buck Rogers must adjust to the 25th century, and convince the Terrans that the Draconians are planning to conquer Earth.

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Plot Keywords:

buck rogers | 25th century | space war | futuristic | world war three | 

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Taglines:

The original space man! The ultimate trip! Buck Rogers swings back to earth and lays it on the 25th Century!

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 October 1979 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: Awakening

Filming Locations:

Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites - 404 S. Figueroa Street, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,500,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bruce Lansbury Productions, Glen A. Larson Productions, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Why there are two different Tigermen in the original film? According to costume designer Jean-Pierre Dorleac, it's because the fight scene between Tigerman and Buck was added later, after the original production had already wrapped. When they tried to call the actor who had played Tigerman earlier in the film back (he'd been "discovered" for the part on the Universal Studios back lot tour), they couldn't find him! So they had to replace him with a lookalike (who, frankly, didn't).

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Goofs

While Col. Wilma Deering is saving Rogers from the Draconian flag ship the left side of her flight helmet reads "Cool Deering" in one shot and is blank in all the rest.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: In the year 1987, at the John F. Kennedy Space Center, NASA launched the last of America's deep space probes. The payload, perched on the nose cone of the massive rocket, was a one-man exploration vessel - Ranger 3. Aboard this compact starship, a lone astronaut - Captain William "Buck" Rogers - was to experience cosmic forces beyond all comprehension. An awesome brush with death: in the blink of an eye, his life support systems were frozen by temperatures beyond imagination. ...

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Crazy Credits

Erin Gray and Pamela Hensley appear as "dream girls" along side their names in the original (theatrical) credits.

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Connections

Version of Buck Rogers (1977)

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Soundtracks

"SUSPENSION"
Music by Stu Phillips
Lyrics by Glen A. Larson
Sung by Kipp Lennon

User Reviews

Ah, youth.

I happened to catch a 16mm print of this last weekend at a sci-fi movie marathon, and to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. Granted, I grew up watching the TV show, but hadn't seen it in years and had never seen the film.

Perhaps it's that sense of nostalgia that clouds my thoughts on it. The plot is decent, the sets need a lot of work and the effects are top-notch... for 1979. Still, I guarantee you that you will laugh and smile repeatedly, and find it hard to dislike this honest effort.

If you're in the mood for ridiculously cheesy 70s sci-fi, dancing robots and gorgeous women, then you really can't go wrong with this. If you're like me and trying to relive one's youth, by all means, go find a copy. By the way, would it be so hard for Universal to give this a DVD release? Please?