''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1964–1968 American

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

based on the 1961 film of the same name. Both were created by

Irwin Allen Irwin Allen (born Irwin O. Cohen, June 12, 1916 – November 2, 1991) was an American film and television producer and director, known for his work in science fiction, then later as the "Master of Disaster" for his work in the disaster film genr ...

, which enabled the film's sets, costumes, props,

special effect Special effects (often abbreviated as SFX, F/X or simply FX) are illusions or visual tricks used in the theatre, film, television, video game, amusement park and simulator industries to simulate the imagined events in a story or virtual ...

s models, and sometimes footage, to be used in the production of the television series. ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' was the first of Irwin Allen's four science fiction television series (the three others being ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'', ''

The Time Tunnel ''The Time Tunnel'' is an American color science fiction TV series written around a theme of time travel adventure starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. The show was creator-producer Irwin Allen's third science-fiction television series an ...

'', and '' Land of the Giants''), and the longest-running. The show's theme was underwater adventure. ''Voyage'' was broadcast on ABC from September 14, 1964, to March 31, 1968, and was the decade's longest-running American science fiction television series with continuing characters. The 110 episodes produced included 32 shot in

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

(1964–1965), and 78 filmed in color (1965–1968). The first two seasons took place in the then-future of the 1970s. The final two seasons took place in the 1980s. The show starred

Richard Basehart John Richard Basehart (August 31, 1914 – September 17, 1984) was an American actor. He starred as Admiral Harriman Nelson in the television science-fiction drama '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' (1964–68). He also portrayed Wilton Knig ...

and

David Hedison Albert David Hedison Jr. (May 20, 1927 – July 18, 2019) was an American film, television, and stage actor. He was billed as Al Hedison in his early film work until 1959 when he was cast in the role of Victor Sebastian in the short-lived espion ...

Show history

Pilot episode

The pilot episode "Eleven Days to Zero" was filmed in color but shown in black-and-white. It introduces the audience to the

futuristic The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currentl ...

nuclear submarine A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor, but not necessarily nuclear-armed. Nuclear submarines have considerable performance advantages over "conventional" (typically diesel-electric) submarines. Nuclear propulsion, ...

S.S.R.N. ''Seaview'' and the lead members of her crew, including the designer and builder of the submarine

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet ...

Harriman Nelson (

), and

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

Lee Crane (

), who becomes the ''Seaviews

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

after the murder of her original

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitu ...

. The submarine is based at the Nelson Institute of Marine Research in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning " Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West ...

, and is often moored some 500 feet beneath the facility in a secret underground submarine pen carved out of solid rock. The ''Seaview'' is officially for undersea marine research and visits many exotic locations in the

Seven Seas The "Seven Seas" is a figurative term for all the seas of the known world. The phrase is used in reference to sailors and pirates in the arts and popular culture and can be associated with the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Seven Seas east of Af ...

, but its secret mission is to defend the planet from all world and extraterrestrial threats in the then-future of the 1970s.

Season 1

The first season's 31 episodes included gritty, atmospheric story lines devoted to

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

themes and excursions into near-future

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is a term that has been used with a variety of (sometimes contradictory) meanings. The broadest interpretation is as a category of fiction encompassing genres with elements that do not exist in reality, recorded history, nat ...

, involving

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tang ...

and

sci-fi Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universe ...

elements. Aliens, sea monsters and

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...

s were featured, but the primary villains were hostile foreign governments. While fantastic, the scripts had a recognisably contemporary setting. The first episodes began with Admiral Nelson and the crew of the ''Seaview'' fighting against a foreign government to prevent a world-threatening earthquake, and continuing with a foreign government destroying American submarines with new technologies in "The Fear Makers" and "The Enemies". The season also had several

ocean The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wor ...

peril stories in which the ''Seaview'' crew spent the episode dealing with the normal perils of the sea. Two examples are "Submarine Sunk Here" and "The Ghost of Moby Dick". The season introduced a

diving bell A diving bell is a rigid chamber used to transport divers from the surface to depth and back in open water, usually for the purpose of performing underwater work. The most common types are the open-bottomed wet bell and the closed bell, which c ...

and a mini-submarine, and the first episodes featuring

extraterrestrials Extraterrestrial life, colloquially referred to as alien life, is life that may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been conclusively detected, although efforts are underway. Such life might ...

(Don Brinkley's "The Sky is Falling") and

sea monster Sea monsters are beings from folklore believed to dwell in the sea and often imagined to be of immense size. Marine monsters can take many forms, including sea dragons, sea serpents, or tentacled beasts. They can be slimy and scaly and are o ...

s. During the course of the first season, Nelson was promoted from a three-star to a four-star admiral. It was also established that while essentially a marine

research vessel A research vessel (RV or R/V) is a ship or boat designed, modified, or equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel but others require a dedicate ...

, SSRN ''Seaview'' was also part of the U.S. nuclear armed fleet (most notably defined in William Read Woodfield's episode, "Doomsday"). The season ended with the ''Seaview'' crew fighting a foreign government to save a defense weapon.

Season 2

The second season began with a trip inside a

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully aquatic placental marine mammals. As an informal and colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea, i.e. all cetaceans apart from dolphins and ...

, a trip inside a volcano, and a few

intrigue and nuclear war-themed episodes, and saw several brushes with world disaster. The season ended with a

ghost A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to re ...

story, one of the show's few sequels. Due to ABC's demands for a somewhat "lighter" tone to the series, the second season saw an increase in monster-of-the-week type plots, yet there were still some episodes that harkened back to the tone of the first season. The second season also saw a change from

color Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associ ...

. The beginning of the second season saw the permanent replacement of Chief "Curly" Jones with Chief Francis Ethelbert Sharkey, due to the death of Henry Kulky, who portrayed Chief Jones. The most important change in the series occurred during this season when a notably redesigned ''Seaview'' interior was introduced, along with the '' Flying Sub'', a yellow, two-man mini-submarine with passenger capacity. The Flying Sub could leave the ocean and become airborne. The futuristic craft greatly increased the ''Seaview'' crew's travel options. It was launched from a bay, access to which was via a sealed hatch stairway at the bow section. The ''Seaview''s private observation deck from the first season was never seen again. The ''Seaview'' control room was expanded and a large rectangular panel screen of flickering lights was added. The ''Seaview'' also now had a powerful laser beam in its bow light. The small mini-sub from the first season was retained and occasionally still used in the color episodes. The ship's enlisted men were also given more colorful uniforms (red or light blue jumpsuits) and white

Keds Keds is an American brand of canvas shoes with rubber soles. Founded in 1916, the company is owned by Wolverine World Wide. The original shoe design, the Champion, was the first mass-marketed canvas-top "sneaker". History Early history In 1 ...

Champion

sneakers Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used fo ...

. The traditional sailor uniforms worn in the first season were only seen in stock footage from the first season and on characters who were newly filmed to match up with that footage. A second-season episode, "The Sky's On Fire", was a remake of the basic storyline of Irwin Allen's original film ''

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' is a 1961 American science fiction disaster film, produced and directed by Irwin Allen, and starring Walter Pidgeon and Robert Sterling. The supporting cast includes Peter Lorre, Joan Fontaine, Barbara Eden, M ...

'' (1961) using considerable film color footage, though several film sequences were removed and had been featured in other first-season episodes such as "The Village of Guilt" and "Submarine Sunk Here." A few later season two episodes were filmed without Richard Basehart, who was hospitalized for a bleeding ulcer. He filmed the scenes in the Flying Sub for "The Monster's Web" before hospitalization, requiring a stand in and other characters taking over his lines. He was missing entirely from the next two episodes. These episodes didn't feature his character at all, while in one story "The Menfish"

Gary Merrill Gary Fred Merrill (August 2, 1915 – March 5, 1990) was an American film and television actor whose credits included more than 50 feature films, a half-dozen mostly short-lived TV series, and dozens of television guest appearances. He starr ...

guested as Admiral Park, a colleague of Nelson's who substituted for him. Basehart returned for "Return of the Phantom," the final episode of the season.

Season 3

The third season of ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' ran simultaneously with two other series produced by

, ''

'' (in its second season) and ''

''. The third season began with

Dick Tufeld Richard Norton Tufeld (December 11, 1926 – January 22, 2012) was an American actor, announcer, narrator and voice actor from the late 1940s until the early 21st century. He was a well-known presence on television as an announcer, but his ...

(voice of the Robot on ''Lost in Space'') playing an evil disembodied brain from

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

. The season continued with a

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely ...

story that is one of the few episodes to inspire a sequel. In one episode, the ''Seaviews officers and crew encountered

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

who believed

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

was still ongoing. The third season only had two espionage stories and one ocean peril story that were reminiscent of the first season. One of those three stories was about a hostile foreign government trying to steal a strange new mineral with the aid of a brainwashed Admiral Nelson. This espionage story was the end of the third season. The final two seasons continued the shift towards

paranormal Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as being beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. Not ...

storylines that were popular in the late 1960s.

Mummies A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay furt ...

, werewolves, talking

puppets A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. The puppeteer uses movements of their hands, arms, or control devices such as rods or strings to move ...

, and an evil

leprechaun A leprechaun ( ga, leipreachán/luchorpán) is a diminutive supernatural being in Irish folklore, classed by some as a type of solitary fairy. They are usually depicted as little bearded men, wearing a coat and hat, who partake in mischief. ...

all walked the corridors of the ''Seaview''. There were also

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

men,

flame A flame (from Latin '' flamma'') is the visible, gaseous part of a fire. It is caused by a highly exothermic chemical reaction taking place in a thin zone. When flames are hot enough to have ionized gaseous components of sufficient density the ...

men, frost men,

lobster Lobsters are a family (Nephropidae, synonym Homaridae) of marine crustaceans. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on the sea floor. Three of their five pairs of legs have claws, including the first pair, ...

men, and

shadow A shadow is a dark area where light from a light source is blocked by an opaque object. It occupies all of the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two- dimensional silhouett ...

men. The opening credits were largely identical to the revised season two, but the initial season two yellow lettering credits that were first altered to white, (and then back to yellow on the later revised sequence) were now depicted in a golden/yellowish lettering, and closing credits were set over a green-backed painting of ''Seaview'' underwater.

Season 4

The fourth and final season of ''Voyage'' began with Victor Jory playing a five-centuries old

alchemist Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim ...

and the ''Seaview'' is threatened by the hydrodynamic effects of a major volcanic eruption. Starting with the eighth episode of the season, there were revamped opening credits depicting action sequences and the stars' pictures in color set on a sonar board design. The closing credits picture remained unchanged from season three. Near the end of the fourth season, there were three unrelated stories of extraterrestrial invasion. One episode had an unknown master of disguise infiltrating and wreaking havoc aboard the ''Seaview''. Another episode depicted Nelson, Morton and Sharkey

gaslighting Gaslighting is a colloquialism, loosely defined as manipulating someone so as to make them question their own reality. The term derives from the title of the 1944 American film '' Gaslight'', which was based on the 1938 British theatre play '' G ...

Crane. There were two

time travel Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a ...

stories featuring the enigmatic but dangerous Mister Pem. The second had the ''Seaview'' going back in time to the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revoluti ...

. The episode (and series) ended with the ''Seaview'' returning to the present. The final scene of the show had Nelson and Crane sitting in the seldom-used easy chairs on the port side of the observation nose discussing how fast time goes by. In March 1968 it was announced that ''Voyage'' would not be back for a fifth season.

Music

The series' main theme, "The Seaview Theme", was written by

Paul Sawtell Paul Sawtell (3 February 1906 – 1 August 1971) was a Polish-born film score composer in the United States. Sawtell began his career with RKO, and eventually joined Universal Pictures. Sawtell worked on many western and horror films, and also ...

. A new darker, more serious theme composed by

Jerry Goldsmith Jerrald King Goldsmith (February 10, 1929July 21, 2004) was an American composer and conductor known for his work in film and television scoring. He composed scores for five films in the ''Star Trek'' franchise and three in the ''Rambo'' franc ...

was introduced at the beginning of the second-season episode "Jonah and the Whale", but this was quickly replaced by the original version. A version of the Goldsmith suite re-orchestrated by Nelson Riddle was heard as incidental music in the episode "Escape From Venice", and the original Goldsmith suite was used as incidental music throughout the rest of the series. The series' main composer, supervisor and conductor was

Lionel Newman Lionel Newman (January 4, 1916 – February 3, 1989) was an American conductor, pianist, and film and television composer. He won the Academy Award for Best Score of a Musical Picture for '' Hello Dolly!'' with Lennie Hayton in 1969. He ...

, who for the second season composed a serious sounding score for when the episode credits (episode title/guests/writer/director) were shown just after the theme song, which would be used by many episodes (starting with "The Left Handed Man") thru the second and into the early third season. Other guest composers included

Lennie Hayton Leonard George Hayton (February 14, 1908 – April 24, 1971) was an American musician, composer, conductor and arranger. Hayton's trademark was a captain's hat, which he always wore at a rakish angle. Early life Hayton was born in New Yo ...

, Hugo Friedhofer, ''

Star Trek: The Original Series ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry that follows the adventures of the starship and its crew. It later acquired the retronym of ''Star Trek: The Original Series'' (''TOS'') to distinguis ...

'' composer

Alexander Courage Alexander Mair Courage Jr. (December 10, 1919May 15, 2008) familiarly known as "Sandy" Courage, was an American orchestrator, arranger, and composer of music, primarily for television and film. He is best known as the composer of the theme musi ...

Morton Stevens Morton Stevens (January 30, 1929 – November 11, 1991) was an American film score composer. In 1965, he became director of music for CBS West Coast operations. He is probably best known for composing the theme music for '' Hawaii Five-O'', a ...

Leith Stevens Leith Stevens (September 13, 1909 – July 23, 1970) was an American music composer and conductor of radio and film scores. Early life and education Leith Stevens was born in Mount Moriah, Missouri,DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An ...

(no relation) who wrote the music to nine episodes, and Sawtell, who worked on the show for a while in the first season.

GNP Crescendo The gross national income (GNI), previously known as gross national product (GNP), is the total domestic and foreign output claimed by residents of a country, consisting of gross domestic product ( GDP), plus factor incomes earned by foreign ...

issued a soundtrack album in 1997 as part of its series tying into the documentary ''The Fantasy Worlds Of Irwin Allen'', featuring Sawtell's theme from the series and his score for the pilot episode "Eleven Days To Zero" (tracks 2–6) and Goldsmith's work for "Jonah and the Whale." # Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea Main Title (:29) # Murderous Pursuit (2:54) # Ocean Floor Search/Squid Fight (5:34) # Solid Ice (1:48) # Lost/Job Well Done (3:35) # End Title (The Seaview Theme) (:40) # Jonah and the Whale (Main Title) (:30) # A Whale of a Whale/Thar She Blows/A Whale of a Time/The Second Dive (4:23) # A Meal Fit for a Whale/Crash Dive/Sub Narcotics (4:18) # Collision Course I/Collision Course II/Diving Party/Going Down (4:44) # Home Free Part I/Home Free Part II (3:58) # Jonah and the Whale (End Credit) (:50)

Cast

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea David Hedison 1967

Harriman Nelson *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Lee Crane *

Robert Dowdell Robert Dowdell (March 10, 1932 – January 23, 2018) was an American actor, best known for his role as Lieutenant Commander Chip Morton in the television series '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea''. Biography Dowdell was born in Park Ridge, Il ...

Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...

Chip Morton *Derrik Lewis as Lieutenant Commander O'Brien (pilot episode, 1st-2nd seasons) *

Henry Kulky Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portuga ...

Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the bo ...

"Curly" Jones (1st season) *

Terry Becker Terry is a unisex given name, derived from French Thierry and Theodoric. It can also be used as a diminutive nickname for the names Teresa or Theresa (feminine) or Terence or Terrier (masculine). People Male * Terry Albritton (1955–2005), Am ...

as Chief Petty Officer Francis Ethelbert Sharkey (2nd–4th seasons) *

Del Monroe Del Monroe (April 7, 1932June 5, 2009) was an American film, television and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Seaman Kowalski in the television series ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'', which was broadcast on ABC from September 14, ...

as Kowalski *

Arch Whiting Harold Joseph Archambault (September 29, 1936 – May 7, 2007) was an American television actor. He was known for playing the role of "Sparks" in the American science fiction television series ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea''. Life and care ...

as Sparks * Paul Trinka as Patterson *Brent Davis as Peters (crew member – 1 episode) *

Lew Gallo Lewis D. Gallo (June 12, 1928 – June 11, 2000) was an American character actor and producer, best known for his role as Maj. Joseph Cobb on the 1960s ABC World War II series '' Twelve O'Clock High''. Gallo was born in Mount Kisco, New York, ...

as Kruger (crew member – 1 episode) *Ralph Garrett as Somers (crew member – 1 episode) *

Allan Hunt Allan Hunt (born February 12, 1945) is an American actor, probably best remembered as Crewman Stuart Riley from season 2 of ABC's '' Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea''. Biography Hunt trained at the Pasadena Playhouse, UCLA, American Conservato ...

as Stuart "Stu" Riley (2nd Season) * Richard Bull as the Doctor *

Wayne Heffley Wayne Heffley (July 15, 1927 – November 19, 2008) was an American television and film actor, known for the role of Vern Scofield on ''Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to a ...

as Seaview Doctor (2nd Season 1965–1966, 3 episodes) * Paul Carr as Casey Clark (1st season, recurring afterwards only in stock footage scenes) Scott McFadden, Ray Didsbury, Marco Lopez, and Ron Stein provided additional crewmen in non-speaking roles, often requiring stunt work.

Episode list

Season 1 (1964–65)

Season 2 (1965–66)

All episodes from Season 2 and onwards in color

Season 3 (1966–67)

Season 4 (1967–68)

Other media

paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

, ''City Under the Sea'', authored by

Paul W. Fairman Paul Warren Fairman (1909–1977) was an editor and writer in a variety of genres under his own name and under pseudonyms. His detective story "Late Rain" was published in the February 1947 issue of ''Mammoth Detective''. He published his story ...

, was published in 1965, to tie into the series. It had a different storyline than the episode of the same name. The book should also not be confused with the later Irwin Allen film of nearly the same name, which was about the attempts of the world's first under-sea city to prevent the earth from being hit by a rogue asteroid. It is not about "A wealthy family attempting to move the Earth's oceans to another planet for resettlement" as has occasionally been stated. *

Western Publishing Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and ...

published a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

based on the series. Western's comic company,

Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was originally an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated this way from 1962 to 1984. Currently, Gold Key Comics is owned b ...

put out a series that ran 16 issues from 1964 to 1970. Most covers were painted, and most had a photo of either Richard Basehart or David Hedison on them. The first issue of the Gold Key comic was a story called "The Last Survivor". The story brought back Dr. Gamma, the villain from the pilot episode, "Eleven Days to Zero". Gold Key's story was the only sequel to the pilot episode. Hermes Press reprinted the entire run in 2 hardback volumes; the first was released in 2009. *In 1966,

World Distributors World Distributors (known colloquially as "Pembertons") was a British publisher and distributor of magazines and comic books. The company was known for repackaging American comics and producing comic book annuals based on licensed properties. For ...

, a British

publishing company Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, news ...

Manchester, England Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, published the first of two ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' Annuals, hardback gift books. The British-made books used the series' characters in all new stories but also contained a reprint of a story from the Gold Key Comics series. Both books were mostly prose stories with some illustrations. *

Aurora Plastics Corporation The Aurora Plastics Corporation was an American toy and hobby manufacturing company. It is known primarily for its production of plastic scale models of cars, airplanes, and TV and movie figures in the 1960s. Its principal competition in modelin ...

released a

plastic model :''In art and architecture, plastic model may also be any three-dimensional physical model, regardless of material.'' :''In mechanical engineering, a plastic model is a mathematical model of a material which incorporates plasticity.'' 300px, A 4-y ...

kit of ''Seaview'' as well as the ''Flying Sub'' during the original run of the series. From 1975 - 1977, Aurora reissued both kits; the ''Seaview'' (kit #253) was modified with a sea floor base (originally created for the ''Dick Tracy Space Coupe'' kit #819) and sub surface details, while ''The Flying Sub'' (kit #254) was remodeled in a different base color. The 1975 - 1977 kits—part of Aurora's reissue of 5 of their 11 TV & movie-related science-fiction kits, also included instruction sheets with a detailed history of the TV series or movie plot. *Both kits were recently re-released by Polar Lights. The ''Flying Sub'' model sold more than the ''Seaview'' model. *Other collectables from the show include a

board game Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a co ...

with illustrations based on the pilot episode, as well as a boxed card game with a painting of the divers' battle with the giant octopus, both from

Milton Bradley Milton Bradley (November 8, 1836 – May 30, 1911) was an American business magnate, game pioneer and publisher, credited by many with launching the board game industry, with his eponymous enterprise, which was purchased by Hasbro in 1984, and ...

, and a school

lunch box A lunch box (alt. spelling lunchbox) refers to a hand-held container used to transport food, usually to work or to school. It is commonly made of metal or plastic, is reasonably airtight and often has a handle for carrying. In the United ...

with thermos from Aladdin with depictions of Admiral Nelson and Captain Crane trying to save the ''Flying Sub'' from an evil looking

octopus An octopus ( : octopuses or octopodes, see below for variants) is a soft-bodied, eight- limbed mollusc of the order Octopoda (, ). The order consists of some 300 species and is grouped within the class Cephalopoda with squids, cuttlefish, ...

. There was also a Sawyers

View-Master View-Master is the trademark name of a line of special-format stereoscopes and corresponding View-Master "reels", which are thin cardboard disks containing seven stereoscopy, Stereoscopic 3-D pairs of small transparent color photographs on film.M ...

slide reel based on the episode "Deadly Creature Below." *In 1964, a 66-card set of black-and-white trading cards was released by Donruss. Selling for 5 cents a pack, the set consisted of stills from the first season. Today, a set in

mint condition Mint condition is an expression used to denote the quality of a pre-owned good as displaying virtually no imperfections and being in pristine condition relative to its original production state. Originally, the phrase related to the way collect ...

can sell for several hundred dollars. *In the UK, TV Tornado published 14 issues that contained ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' stories, either comics or text with illustrations as per the issue and at least two TV Tornado annuals had original stories as well. *Theodore Sturgeon wrote a novel, ''

'', based on the original script written by Irwin Allen for the movie, and published in 1961.

Popular culture

*The popularity of the TV show inspired ''

Mad Magazine Mad, mad, or MAD may refer to: Geography * Mad (village), a village in the Dunajská Streda District of Slovakia * Mád, a village in Hungary * Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport, by IATA airport code * Mad River (disambiguation), several ...

'' (March 1966) to spoof the show, their version being called ''Voyage to See What's on the Bottom'', featuring a submarine called the ''Seapew'' and a flying sub called ''Son of Seapew''. *Australian TV show ''

Fast Forward To fast-forward is to move forwards through a recording at a speed faster than that at which it would usually be played, for example two times or two point five times. The recordings are usually audio, video or computer data. It is colloquially ...

'' sent-up the series as ''Voyage to the Bottom of the Harbour''. *Stock footage of ''Seaview'' was used in the ''

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as bein ...

'' episode "The

Bermuda Triangle The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is an urban legend focused on a loosely defined region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and ships are said to have disappeared under mysteri ...

Crisis." *An often referenced running joke is that in many episodes of the series, characters lurch to camera movements on the visibly static set, to give the illusion that ''Seaview'' had sustained impact. This was an old movie trick, and was commonly used by other television shows of the period, including ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'', but none did it so frequently, nor with such relish as ''Voyage''. Hence, the technique is still commonly known as "Seaview Rock and Roll". *On the SciFi Channel's 1995 documentary tribute to Irwin Allen, ''The Fantasy Worlds of Irwin Allen'', series co-star

June Lockhart June Lockhart (born June 25, 1925) is an American actress, beginning a film career in 1930s & 1940s in such films at ''A Christmas Carol'' and '' Meet Me in St. Louis''. She primarily acted in 1950s and 1960s television, and with performances on ...

recalled this technique being used also on ''Lost In Space'', where the cast also knew it as "the rock-and-roll". *The

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Comp ...

animated series ''

Phineas and Ferb ''Phineas and Ferb'' is an American animated musical-comedy television series created by Dan Povenmire and Jeff "Swampy" Marsh for Disney Channel and Disney XD. Produced by Disney Television Animation, the series was originally broadcast as ...

'' has an episode with a pun on the title called ''Voyage to the Bottom of Buford''.

Home media

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

has released all 4 seasons on DVD in Region 1 in two volume sets. In Region 2,

Revelation Films Revelation Films is a British film and television production and distribution company delivering visual entertainment via cinema, television and digital platforms. Tony Carne founded Revelation Films in 1992 as a video and television production ...

has released the entire series on DVD in the UK in four complete season sets. On March 26, 2012, they released ''Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea: The Complete Collection'', a 31-disc set featuring all 110 episodes of the series as well as bonus features. In Region 4,

Madman Entertainment Madman Entertainment Pty. Ltd., also known as Madman Films, is an Australian distribution and rights management company headquartered in East Melbourne, Victoria, specialising in feature films, documentaries and television series across theatr ...

released the first two seasons on DVD in Australia on August 20, 2014.

Reboot

On November 23, 2020, it was announced that

Legendary Entertainment Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC ( doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...

is developing a new version. Chris Lunt and Michael A. Walker are writing the project.

Notes

References

*''SEAVIEW: The making of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' by Tim Colliver, copyright 1992, published by Alpha Control Press. *''Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' DVD sets *''The Irwin Allen Scrapbook Volume One Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea'' Edited by William E. Anchors, Jr.; copyright 1992 by Alpha Control Press. *''Irwin Allen Television Productions 1964–1970'', Jon Abbot, McFarland and Company, 1996 *''Voyage au fond des mers : guide pour la série d'Irwin Allen,'' Max Philippe Morel, Lulu.com, 2012 *''TV.Com''

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (TV series) 1964 American television series debuts 1960s American science fiction television series 1968 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming Black-and-white American television shows English-language television shows Live action television shows based on films Nautical television series Submarines in fiction Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Television series set in the future Television series by Irwin Allen Television Productions Television series set in the 1970s Television series set in the 1980s Underwater civilizations in fiction Television series created by Irwin Allen