Buck Rogers in the 25th Century

Outer space special effects are the highlight of this film, which is loaded with space battles. Pictured here are several Earth Star Fighters, hangered aboard the starship Draconia - flagship of the alien fleet. Earth pilots take off to defend the Draconia from a mock attack by space pirates. One of the pirates' fighter craft is inset top right. Next to it is Princess Ardala personal shuttle.

Universal, 1979, Color, 89 min.

This movie was originally planned as a TV pilot, but was shown theatrically before being used on TV. It bears little resemblance to either the original comic strip or the 30s serial. In this version, Buck (Gil Gerard) is a NASA pilot who gets quick-frozen in his shuttle-type exploratory craft, the Ranger 3, takes a 500-year ex-cursion around the solar system and arrives back in near-Earth space at a crucial mo-ment. The leaders of Earth are about to sign a treaty with the alien Draconians to counter the threat of space pirates who are disrupting interplanetary trade. The Draconians' flagship is the monstrously huge Star Fortress Draconia. It houses a fleet of small fighter craft, a la Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica. Earth defense forces use two-seater Star Fighters. All of the combat craft are laser-gun equipped. Special effects: Bud Esing and Jock Fag-gard. Matte artist: Syd Dutton. Spacecraft designs and miniatures supplied by Universal's Hartland Studios, David Garber and Wayne Smith.

NBC-TV, 1979-80, Color, one-hour episodes

Series based on the 1979 feature film (originally shot for TV but released theatrically first). Buck Rogers (Gil Gerard) battles his way against Earth's enemies in the late 25th century, many battles taking place in outer space with futurist combat craft (see the Buck Rogers movie listing.) Spacecraft include airplane-like combat craft ('Planet of the Slave Girls'), sled-like cargo craft ('Return of the Fighting 69th') and a colorful space liner reminiscent of the queen Mary ('Cruise Ship to the Stars'). Special-effects supervisors: David M. Garber and Wayne Smith.