Captain's Library & Theatre MEN INTO SPACE "Dust and the Depths"

We Have Already Seen...

...a four man-expedition led by this stalwart young fellow, USAF Coloney Edwar MacCauley, has reached the Moon!

They discover underground caverns where, during a moonquake, one of the astronauts sacrifices himself to enable the others to climb out safely.
The three survivors return to the ship, then decide to do another probe into the cavers below...

This adaptation of the conclusion of the 2nd episode of the series, "Moon Landing" is almost totally-different than the aired episode!

It's much more ambitious in scope and would've required far more eleborate SFX than what was shown on TV.

We suspect that, due to the lead time to produce the comic (about three months from scripting to illustrating to printing), comic scripter Gardner DuBois worked from an early draft of the episode from James (Shogun) Clavell.
To compare, we offer you the actual episode by clicking HERE, and it'll open in a new window for your viewing pleasure!

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Men Into Space

The Making of the TV Series

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Captain's Library MEN INTO SPACE "Moon Landing"

As the Artemis Moon-Shot Finally Prepares for Launch...

...we're going to show you how we planned to do it even before we sent a single human being into space with the comic adaptation of a TV series from 1959...

To Be Concluded...Thursday!

The Men in Space TV series ran for one season of 38 episodes, the equivalent of three seasons today on broadcast or streaming services, on CBS in 1959-60.

It eschewed typical space-opera stereotypes and plotlines, and presented a realistic "Day after Tomorrow" scenario utilizing info provided by the US Air Force, the then-newly created NASA, actual rocket scientist Dr Werhner von Braun, and designer/futurist Chesley Bonestell!

The story from Dell's Four Color Comics: Men into Space #1083 (1960), adapting the second episode "Moon Landing" scripted by James (Shogun) Clavell was scripted by Gaylord DuBois and illustrated (pencils & inks) by Murphy Anderson!

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The Making of the TV Series

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Captain's Library MEN INTO SPACE Returns to the Moon...65 Years Later!

As the Artemis moon shot prepares to blast-off...

...we're going to look at the first TV series that fairly-realistically speculated how it would happen!

These covers, from the novelization of the first few episodes of the TV show, give you an idea of the tone of the series.

There was also a one-shot comic which ran three stories, the first of which is synopsized below!

We're running that tale as part of Space Hero Saturdays this coming Saturday!

 The remaining two-part story does cover the lunar launch, journey, and landing!

You'll see those chapters right here on Tuesday and Thursday!

But first, let's take a break the way the spacemen do...

No, we're not advocating smoking, but we did want to spotlight the kool, cutting-edge Chesley Bonestell art the series used as the basis for it's production design!

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Men Into Space

The Making of the TV Series

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Captain's 50th Anniversary Library SPACE: 1999 "Breakaway"

Just as There Were Three Graphic Versions of the Pilot Episode "Breakaway"...

...there were three prose versions of tthat episode, including two that weren't seen in America!
For example, this short story appeared in the first British Space: 1999 Annual, a hardcover which featured prose and comic stories as well as background info and games!

There was also a prose adaptation in the first Space: 1999 novelization by EC Tubb, published in both America and England, incorporating the first four episodes.
Tubb also wrote  Space: 1999 "Earthfall" a double-length novel re-adapting "Breakaway", but ignoring everything after that, creating a new narrative spanning decades and returning the second generation of Alphans, along with elderly survivors of Breakaway, to a devastated Earth!

It was, until recently, available only in England!

Next Week: Our Space: 1999 Retrospective Concludes with the Actual "Breakway" Comic Book from Power Records!

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Space: 1999 "Breakaway" by EC Tubb

(which adapts the first four episodes)

And/Or

Space: 1999 "Earthfall" by EC Tubb

(which adapts "Breakaway", and then diverges from the TV series)
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Captain's 50th Anniversary Library SPACE: 1999 "Moonless Night"

Our final graphic adaptation of the pilot episode, "Breakaway", from the first issue of the color Charlton comic series.

Script by Nicola Cuti (who also wrote last week's "The Last Moonrise").

Art by Joe Staton (who, most recently, helped reboot the long-running Dick Tracy newspaper strip).

Next Week:
The Never-Seen-in-America Illustrated Short Story Adaptation of "Breakaway" from the 1975 British Space: 1999 Annual!

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Space: 1999
The Complete Series

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Captain's 50th Anniversary Library: SPACE: 1999 "The Last Moonrise"

We presented the first of three different comic adaptations of the pilot episode, "Breakaway".

Today, we offer the second adaptation, from #1 of Charlton's Space: 1999 b/w magazine.

Written by Nicola Cuti, drawn by Gray Morrow.

It's interesting to see how much is left out of the five-page story, as opposed to the twenty-page Power Records version, which is much more complete.

Artist Gray Morrow was also the magazine's art editor, and painted all eight covers, some of which were reused on merchandise like t-shirts and puzzles.

The cover art for #1, shown above, was also used as advertising key art for first season print ads.

Next Week:

...the Four-Color Comic Adaptation!

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Space: 1999
The Complete Series

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