Rocky Jones, Space Ranger

"Rocky Jones, Space Ranger" was a syndicated science fiction television serial originally broadcast in 1954. The show lasted for only two seasons and, though syndicated sporadically, dropped into obscurity. But because it was recorded on film rather than being broadcast live as were most other TV space operas of the day, it has survived in reasonably good condition. The film format also allowed more elaborate special effects and sets, exterior scenes and much better continuity.

The program was aimed mainly at children, so the plots were simple and always involved good versus evil and Rocky Jones outsmarting or outfighting the bad guys. By today's standards for television science fiction, a genre that flowered beginning with Gene Roddenberry's "Star Trek", the "Rocky Jones" serials seem crude and simplistic. But for its time, years before men first journeyed into space, the sets, props, and optical effects were remarkably well done. Indeed, many of the effects that became standard sci-fi fare, such as the forward view screen and automatically opening doors were seen first on "Rocky Jones".

Premise

The show was based on the exploits of clean-cut, square-jawed Rocky Jones, the best known of the Space Rangers. These were Earth-based space policemen who patrolled the United Worlds of the Solar System in the not-too-distant future. Rocky and his crew would routinely blast-off in a V-2-like chemically-fueled, upright rocketship, the "Orbit Jet" XV-2, or later the nearly identical "Silver Moon" XV-3, on missions to moons and planetoids where the odds of success seemed remote yet they would always prevail. Although they might destroy a rocketship full of unseen bad guys, their space pistols were never fired at people, and conflicts were always resolved with fist fights, as was typical of family fare at the time.

Although many strange worlds were visited, the alien characters usually spoke English and always appeared as normal humans, albeit in bizarre costumes and environments. The script-writers did not appear to know the difference between planets, moons, stars and constellations, so that the specific locations Rocky and his sidekicks visited are generally unknown to astronomers.

Half hour episodes were usually grouped into stories that consisted of three 'chapters' that were broadcast on successive weeks. A few of the stories were complete in one episode.

A "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger" comic book was issued by Charlton in 1954. Issues 15, 16, 17 and 18 of the ongoing title "Space Adventures" are devoted to Rocky's adventures. Rocky, Winky, Vena, Bobby and Cleolanta appear prominently.

Characters and actors

; Rocky Jones: Played by veteran movie and television actor Richard Crane (June 6, 1918 – March 9, 1969), Rocky was the quintessential action hero – brave, strong, handsome, highly moral, and always ready to defend his beliefs with action. To the women of the stories he was irresistible--- even to arch villainess Cleolanta--- but there were naturally no kisses or other physical displays.

; Winky: Rocky's faithful co-pilot and sidekick, Winky was the upbeat comic relief to balance the always serious Rocky. Winky was played by Scotty Beckett (October 4, 1929 – May 10, 1968), one of the original "Our Gang" comedy kids. The Winky character was replaced by Biffen Cardoza (James Lydon) after 26 episodes when Beckett was unavailable as he was serving time in jail for carrying a concealed weapon.

; Vena Ray: Vena served as Rocky's pretty navigator and translator and was a strong female role model in some episodes. She was played by character actress Sally Mansfield (1923 – January 28, 2001) who also appeared on "the Andy Griffith Show", "the Donna Reed Show", "Bachelor Father", and others. Her fresh good looks, short skirt, and cross-your-heart uniform added a feminine balance and sex appeal to the rocket crew.

; Bobby: Played by 10 year old Robert Lyden, Bobby got to live the dream of every youngster in the audience as he tagged along on Rocky's adventures. Bobby was the ward of Professor Newton, and no mention was ever made of his parents or origins.

; Professor Newton: Played by Maurice Cass (October 12, 1884 – June 8, 1954), Professor Newton could always be counted on to provide the scientific explanation for the fantastic events that unfolded, and although elderly, he would often accompany the spaceship crew on their adventures. He had his own observatory which looked suspiciously like the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. The character of Professor Newton was replaced by Professor Mayberry upon Cass' death in 1954.

; Secretary Drake: As the head of the Office of Space Affairs and the Space Rangers, Secretary Drake was a father figure to Rocky and his crew and to him Rocky was like his own son. Secretary Drake was played by Charles Meredith (August 27, 1894 - November 28, 1964)

; Cleolanta: Another strong female role, the beautiful but evil Cleolanta, played by Patsy Parsons (June 9, 1931 - October 26, 2006), was the ruler of Ophiucius and governed her planet wearing a low-cut evening gown and tiara. Cleolanta was usually the force behind the troubles that befell the United Worlds, but secretly had a crush on Rocky. She often berated her henchmen for not measuring up to him. In the Rocky Jones comics her name is given as "Cleolanthe", which may be the proper spelling.

; Pinto Vortando: Pinto was a seedy, unshaven space rogue whose presence usually meant trouble for Rocky. As played by Ted Hecht, he looked somewhat like an outer-space version of "Gunsmoke"'s later character Festus Haggen.

; Bovarro: Lived with his wife and young son on the moon Posita which was one of the two "gypsy moons" (the surviving moon was called Nagato) due to crash into Ophiucius in the three episode adventure : Crash of the Moons. Played by John Banner, who went on to considerable fame as the bumbling Sgt. Schultz on the long-running "Hogan's Heroes" TV show.

; Ranger Clark: One of Rocky's fellow Rangers. Ranger Clark operated the refueling space station O.W.9. Ranger Clark was played by William Hudson (January 24, 1925 - April 5, 1974)

Episodes

Thirty-nine episodes were filmed and shown over the period from April 10, 1954 to January 1, 1955. Thirty six of these were grouped into 12 three-episode stories, and three were complete in one episode. Many of the three-episode stories were edited into feature length films for television and of those some were renamed as shown below.

Two of the edited movies, "Manhunt in Space" and "Crash of the Moons", were lampooned on the cult hit comedy show Mystery Science Theater 3000.

All of the episodes are available on DVD and VHS, and eBay is a good source for obtaining them.

ources and External Links

*imdb title|id=0046639|name=Rocky Jones, Space Ranger
*Tv.com show|id=10282|name=Rocky Jones, Space Ranger
* [http://epguides.com/RockyJonesSpaceRanger/ "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger"] at epguides.com
* [http://www.slick-net.com/space/text/index.phtml#rocky Space Hero Files: "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger"]
* [http://www.comics.org/search.lasso?query=Rocky+Jones&type=character&sort=chrono&Submit=Search Database and Cover gallery of "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger" comics] at comics.org
* [http://www.mst3ktemple.com/rockyjones.html "Rocky Jones, Space Ranger" gallery]

See also

* "Space Cadet", 1948 science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein