"The Secret Empire" (1979) TV series

Directors:

Alan Crosland
Dick Harwood

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

27 February 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Fantasy | Western

Plot:

In this homage to the cliffhanger serials of the '30s and '40s, 19th Century Wild West Marshal Jim Donner...

Plot Keywords:

Serial | Cliffhanger

Cast

Duncan Gamble

(1 episode, 1979)

Also Known As:

Cliffhangers: The Secret Empire (USA) (alternative title)

Runtime:

20 min (12 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Universal TV

Trivia:

This series was essentially a remake of the 1935 matinée serial, The Phantom Empire (1935), starring Gene Autry.

Pre-dated Raiders of the Lost Ark

This was a great escape for me as a teen in the late 70s. Although the mists of time may tempered this somewhat, but I remember the production values and scripts were of a higher quality than some TV shows at the same time (CHIPS and SuperTrain). Part of the Cliffhangers television show, The Secret Empire was kind of like The Wild Wild West meets The Fugitive and Star Wars. At the time it was novel to have each show end in a cliffhanger, ala Saturday serials. If I remember right, three shows, one about Susan Anton (Stop Susan Williams) and one about Dracula were given 20 minute segments in an hour long show. Each one ended in a cliffhanger and was resolved the next week.

It was the right mix of sex appeal (Susan Anton) science fiction (Lost Empire) and horror (Dracula), and it came about two years before Raiders of the Lost Ark made it to the silver screen. Too bad it hasn't made it to DVD/VHS yet. With the current "release anything" mentality perhaps this show will make it to tape/DVD soon.