(no subject)

Sarah wrote: One of the problems with UFO is the lack of consistent regular
characters (imho) and it would have been even worse in a second
series. It would have been the "Ed Straker" show :-D - perhaps
another reason why it was dropped.

It wasn't 'dropped' per se, it was meant to return for a second series and
everything was going as it should, until funding was removed at the last
minute. Gerry, and Lew Grade, having commissioned new sets etc, revamped it into
Space:1999. The second season of UFO was to have more emphasis on the
moonbase, so it seemed the logical thing to do at the time ;)

Live Long & Prosper



Claire


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I am glad I asked the question I did about the reason Alec Freeman vanished. It sparked some very insightful thoughts about what may have happened, and I did not realise the vast differences between British and USA shows as far as production. I was born and raised in Australia and we were offered British, American and Australian television, as a child you just take it all in and dont think about what goes on behind the scenes.

As a child I loved UFO because of the hardware but years later watching it as an adult, I of course watched it on so many levels, I believe that it was way ahead of its time and even a bit dark for a "childrens show" given the year that it came out. Its quite understandable that it has a cult status and rightly so.

Peace......................................Straker.


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What gave you the impression it was a childrens show?

Jeff

Edward Straker <[hidden email]> wrote:
I am glad I asked the question I did about the reason Alec Freeman vanished. It sparked some very insightful thoughts about what may have happened, and I did not realise the vast differences between British and USA shows as far as production. I was born and raised in Australia and we were offered British, American and Australian television, as a child you just take it all in and dont think about what goes on behind the scenes.

As a child I loved UFO because of the hardware but years later watching it as an adult, I of course watched it on so many levels, I believe that it was way ahead of its time and even a bit dark for a "childrens show" given the year that it came out. Its quite understandable that it has a cult status and rightly so.

Peace......................................Straker.


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Jeffrey Nelson wrote:
> What gave you the impression it was a childrens show?

Heh, well in *my* household, the only people who were
watching UFO during its first run were children... I
was 10, and my sister was 8.

Marc

Same here. Most adults that I knew weren't into sci-fi. But I never thought of UFO (Or Star Trek, for that matter) as a childrens show. To me, Lost in Space was a childrens show. Have either Gerry or Sylvia Anderson ever stated what demographic the show was aimed at? I'm just curious...

Jeff

Marc Martin <[hidden email]> wrote:
Jeffrey Nelson wrote:
> What gave you the impression it was a childrens show?

Heh, well in *my* household, the only people who were
watching UFO during its first run were children... I
was 10, and my sister was 8.

Marc



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Well it was a childrens show at the time, bearing in mind that childrens shows back then were of a much higher quality and did not speak down to children.

Straker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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Well UFO was aimed at children of the day, it was put on with other childrens shows and came from the stables of Gerry Anderson who did childrens shows but it is not degrading to the show at all. I just think that we who were kids at the time got to see top rate and much higher quality shows that kids get today, I see very little of value today at all, its all just cannon fodder. In the 60 and 70s shows were all individual and different and all bought something special to the table.

Peace...............................Straker.


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This is just my opinion so please don't attack. I think that UFO is not a children's show. "Matter of Priorities" was not for children. "4 sided triangle" was NOT a program for children. In New Orleans and other places it was on at 3am because the manager thought it was too mature for children. I found this out from a friend of mine who used to work for a PBS affiliate. Gerry ANderson's other shows were for children but UFO broke the lmold for that time frame. It was like Dr. Who. In England it is considered a children's program. In AMerica adults liked Dr. Who. I guess the brits are more sophisticated than Americans. LOL.

Edward Straker <[hidden email]> wrote:Well it was a childrens show at the time, bearing in mind that childrens shows back then were of a much higher quality and did not speak down to children.

Straker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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That was my whole point, that it was put out as a childrens show but it does not come off as one, several episodes were banned in Australia as well. If it came out today it would not be considered a childrens show God forbid the poor kids of today are under the evil that is cencorship as is it that they think farting is evil LOL

It is not a childrens show but it was sold as one, merchandise then was aimed at children, its adult collectors that buy it now but it was certainly a kids show, once the stations realised that there was dark content, it was either banned or shown late.

Also its not that the british are more sophisticated (and cultured ) than America, its that the USA is so self interested that it has no idea what the rest of the world is doing and therefore is a bankrupt culture. I see this first hand as I am from Australia but have been in the states for 6 years now. LOL

Peace............................Straker.






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My thoughts exactly...

The level of "drama" (and even of violence in some cases) in many of
the episodes shows that it was NOT intended as a children's series.


--- In [hidden email], bryan legg <bslwrsf@y...> wrote:
>
> This is just my opinion so please don't attack. I think that
UFO is not a children's show. "Matter of Priorities" was not for
children. "4 sided triangle" was NOT a program for children. In New
Orleans and other places it was on at 3am because the manager thought
it was too mature for children. I found this out from a friend of
mine who used to work for a PBS affiliate. Gerry ANderson's other
shows were for children but UFO broke the lmold for that time frame.  
It was like Dr. Who. In England it is considered a children's
program. In AMerica adults liked Dr. Who. I guess the brits are more
sophisticated than Americans. LOL.    
>
> Edward Straker <harlington_straker_film_studios@y...> wrote:Well it
was a childrens show at the time, bearing in mind that childrens
shows back then were of a much higher quality and did not speak down
to children.

UFO was made as a show for a peak time slot, ie 8.00 pm, but because of Gerry Anderson's previous shows being for kids, was treated as such by the schedulers. It was always intended for a more adult market, but sadly is seen as a kid's show when that's not what was intended.

Edward Straker <[hidden email]> wrote:Well it was a childrens show at the time, bearing in mind that childrens shows back then were of a much higher quality and did not speak down to children.

Straker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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Hi all - I tend to agree that UFO was the Andersons' first go at an adult TV
series - not to mention their first non-puppet show - but I digress.....I
always felt UFO was very adult in content, character development and those
tight-fitting, suggestive costumes for both men and women. Too many of the
eps extant dealt with adult themes - adultery, drug usage, marital discord
and divorce, yada yada yada. Not to mention the constant threat of nasty
aliens doing what they liked to us hapless humans. While the puppet shows
were definitely aimed at kids, UFO was a real departure with obviously
mature subject matter.

Pam the Canuck

--- In [hidden email], "Pat" <gangamanga2003@y...> wrote:

> The level of "drama" (and even of violence in some cases) in many
>of the episodes shows that it was NOT intended as a children's
>series.


In the " Complete Guide to UFO", Gerry is quoted as saying that the
series was not specifically aimed at children, but that he was
acutely aware they might be watching. This was in reference to the
drugs trip in The Long Sleep, which he thought was a bit too adult
for the series.

As has been said before, the fact that Gerry was the producer
confused programme controllers as to whether they should be aiming at
an adult or child audience, causing the messy scheduling in the
original broadcasts. As someone who first saw UFO as an adult it
struck me as being an adult show; in fact I *was* surprised to learn
it was a Gerry Anderson production, given his puppet show legacy :-)

The fact that it was "sci-fi" with lots of futuristic vehicles and
explosions etc. meant it did have appeal to children at that level,
but no-one can deny that the storylines – whether they be judged as
well scripted or directed – were not really for young children's
consumption or comprehension – even the less risqué ones (imho)

I noticed from reading the archives that before UFO was widely
available on videotape/ DVD, the majority of members tended to fall
into one of two camps – those that originally saw UFO as young
children and remembered mainly the special effects and models and
those who were in the throes of puberty and remembered certain
characters and storylines :-)

It seems Gerry felt the Pinewood episodes were treated much like a
second series, in terms of the many changes that were made.  
Apparently all the actor's contracts ended when the MGM studios
closed and many of them were working elsewhere when Gerry started to
re-assemble the cast, including George Sewell, which implies he *was*
asked to come back.



Sarah

--- In [hidden email], "Pat" <gangamanga2003@y...> wrote:

> The level of "drama" (and even of violence in some cases) in many
>of the episodes shows that it was NOT intended as a children's
>series.


In the " Complete Guide to UFO", Gerry is quoted as saying that the
series was not specifically aimed at children, but that he was
acutely aware they might be watching. This was in reference to the
drugs trip in The Long Sleep, which he thought was a bit too adult
for the series.

As has been said before, the fact that Gerry was the producer
confused programme controllers as to whether they should be aiming at
an adult or child audience, causing the messy scheduling in the
original broadcasts. As someone who first saw UFO as an adult it
struck me as being an adult show; in fact I *was* surprised to learn
it was a Gerry Anderson production, given his puppet show legacy :-)

The fact that it was "sci-fi" with lots of futuristic vehicles and
explosions etc. meant it did have appeal to children at that level,
but no-one can deny that the storylines – whether they be judged as
well scripted or directed – were not really for young children's
consumption or comprehension – even the less risqué ones (imho)

I noticed from reading the archives that before UFO was widely
available on videotape/ DVD, the majority of members tended to fall
into one of two camps – those that originally saw UFO as young
children and remembered mainly the special effects and models and
those who were in the throes of puberty and remembered certain
characters and storylines :-)

It seems Gerry felt the Pinewood episodes were treated much like a
second series, in terms of the many changes that were made.  
Apparently all the actor's contracts ended when the MGM studios
closed and many of them were working elsewhere when Gerry started to
re-assemble the cast, including George Sewell, which implies he *was*
asked to come back.



Sarah

I think that the confusion over who the series was aimed at was part of the
reason for UFO's not getting better audience figures. Many adults would have
thought that it was aimed at children, right from the opening Century 21
logo. On the other hand many parents were wary of letting their children
watch what, it soon became apparent, was a fairly dark series. Some of the
episodes have extended sequences which could have appeared in a horror film
of the time. (With the aliens replaced by a monster or psychopath). In even
the lighter episodes there were often moral dilemmas and personal crises
which would not have seemed out of place in
heavyweight drama and were certainly above the heads of most children.

I am sure that Gerry Anderson very much saw UFO as an adult series. After
all, he had never wanted to make children's series with puppets in the first
place and UFO came right after his Doppelgänger/Journey to the Far Side of
the
Sun feature film and before two other adult series. It was also mercifully
free of the whimsy of Space Precinct which was definitely aimed at a younger
age group. Had the adult projects all been more successful I suspect that
Gerry Anderson might never have made any children's series again.

Regards
John

I disagree.

Edward Straker <[hidden email]> wrote:Well it was a childrens show at the time, bearing in mind that childrens shows back then were of a much higher quality and did not speak down to children.

Straker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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It had some good drama like a soap opera at times. Yes, I liked it.

Agape,
Don


--- In [hidden email], Pamela McCaughey <mccaug@n...> wrote:
>
> Hi all - I tend to agree that UFO was the Andersons' first go at
an adult TV
> series - not to mention their first non-puppet show - but I
digress.....I
> always felt UFO was very adult in content, character development
and those
> tight-fitting, suggestive costumes for both men and women. Too
many of the
> eps extant dealt with adult themes - adultery, drug usage, marital
discord
> and divorce, yada yada yada. Not to mention the constant threat of
nasty
> aliens doing what they liked to us hapless humans. While the
puppet shows
> were definitely aimed at kids, UFO was a real departure with
obviously
> mature subject matter.
>
> Pam the Canuck
>