Science Fiction Theater
| Science Fiction Theatre | |
|---|---|
Series title card
|
|
| Also known as | ''Beyond the Limits'' |
| Genre | Anthology Sci-Fi Drama |
| Directed by |
Jack Arnold (director) William Castle Eddie Davis (director) Tom Gries Paul Guilfoyle (actor born in 1902) Leigh Jason Lew Landers Herbert L. Strock |
| Presented by | Truman Bradley |
| Composer(s) | Ray Bloch |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 78 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
Frederick W. Ziv Maurice Ziv |
| Producer(s) | Ivan Tors |
| Cinematography | Monroe P. Askins Curt Fetters Robert Hoffman |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Ivan Tors Productions Ziv Television Programs |
| Distributor |
MGM Television Peter Rodgers Organization |
| Release | |
| Original network | Syndication |
| Picture format |
Color (1955–1956) Black-and-white (1956–1957) |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | April 9, 1955 – February 8, 1957 |
Science Fiction Theatre is an American science fiction anthology series that was syndicated and broadcast from 1955 to 1957. It was produced by Ivan Tors and Maurice Ziv. There were a total of 78 episodes.
Hosted by Truman Bradley, a radio/tv announcer and 1940s movie actor, each episode introduced stories which had an extrapolated scientific, or pseudo-scientific emphasis based on actual scientific data available at the time. Typically, the stories related to the life or work of scientists, engineers, inventors, and explorers. The program concentrated on such concepts as space flight, robots, telepathy, flying saucers, time travel, and the intervention of extraterrestrials in human affairs.
Broadcasting a total of 78 25–26 minute episodes, the series was also known as Beyond The Limits for repeat syndication during the 1960s and alternatively as Science Fiction Theater.
Opposite to what happened during the 1950s, the first season was filmed in color, but to cut production costs the second season was filmed in black-and-white. The producers had originally thought that color television broadcasting would progress faster than it actually did.
Like the syndicated Out There and Tales of Tomorrow anthology series before it, Science Fiction Theatre was a predecessor to later science fiction anthology shows like The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits.
The series is probably known best to modern audiences for having been referenced in the film Back to the Future (1985) as George McFly's favorite television program. (In another connection to the film, two episodes of the series featured Michael Fox, the actor whose Screen Actors Guild registration forced Back to the Future star Michael J. Fox to add a middle initial to his name.)
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