Mr. Terrific with Alan Young (Unaired Pilot) 1 of 3

[jubchuqun]

Mr. Terrific and Captain Nice ... two of my favorite programs back when I was about 6 years old. FOND MEMORIES....

[tubefluid]

Just came here from Captain Nice. :p

I wonder which one would win?

[us71]

Never seen this before. Thanks for posting it

[dynagravitomagnetic]

@us71 There were other episodes in black and white. These are gone now. Since there was no color shift the transformation sequence was quite grotesque. He would move his face in jitters due to rapid frame photography. This caused him to appear very ill. It was very disconcerting to watch

[NekoValtz]

huh... I thought this was going to be DC's Mr. Terrific. You know the "Fair Play" guy

[onemooners]

young before his horse,i beleive

[toddcharry]

@onemooners This came after Mister Ed, which ran from 61' through 66'. They claimed they thought he was to old for the part but like Bob Denver would always be Gilligan, Alan Young would always be Wilbur. So maybe that had something to do with them using another actor for the short run of the series.

[bigred997]

directed by legendary don weis who did several jack benny shows, andy griffith and batman episodes.

[JubalCalif]

Fascinating! As big a fan as I am of Alan Young, I think the younger & more rubber-faced Stephen Strimpell was the better choice. I recall watching the show when I was a kid in the 1960's. "Stanley H. Bemish" sounds like a name Jerry Lewis would have given his character in one of his movies. THANKS so much for sharing this delightful footage with us! May you have your HAPPIEST New Year ever! :)

[oldaxekid]

So, it wasn't the splotch on Alan Young's career record that it could have been....fine

[norristerse]

@oldaxekid

do i detect the faintest hint of sarcasm? (LOL)

[fromthesidelines]

Actually, CBS didn't want this version of the pilot (even though the network expressed enthusiasm upon initially viewing it, according to several articles in BROADCASTING magazine during the spring and summer of '66), insisting it be reworked, recast and reshot- so probably the decision NOT to appear in the series was already taken out of Alan's hands. Perhaps CBS' opinion was, 'we like the idea, we just don't like HIM in the leading role'.

[mechmuertos]

DC comics should have sued for the use of "Mr. Terrific" as an already copy righted superhero.

[fromthesidelines]

This pilot was produced in the spring of 1966, 'that', shortly after Alan Young finished production on "MISTER ED".

[thatgoofball]

what year was this?

[mozmuse]

you're basing that on hearsay, are you not?

Mr Young could've wanted to do it and the network could've decided not to. Or, other people could've parted ways because of creative disagreements, or many other things. Please don't say things against Mr Young, especially when you don't know them to be true or not -- the man is a genius, and a legend.

[RoyFive]

Just as well it didn't work out. Stephen Strimpell was perfect as Stanley.

[fromthesidelines]

Three of Jack Benny's four writers who worked on his TV series over the previous decade collaborated on this pilot script, and would also create a similar unsold "superhero parody" pilot the following season {"The Return Of the Original Yellow Tornado", starring Mickey Rooney and Eddie Mayehoff}.

[fromthesidelines]

...and so it was slightly reworked and recast for a January 1967 premiere, with Stephen Strimpell taking Young's role, and Edward Andrews replaced by John McGiver {and the "O.S.A." becoming the "Bureau of Special Projects"}. "The Ranch" (:48) is a topical reference to current President Lyndon Johnson, who often relaxed on his Texas ranch when not in Washington. Incidentally, three of Jack Benny's four writers (who wrote his TV series for 10 years) wrote this pilot script...

[fromthesidelines]

Beacuse of the sudden popularity of ABC's "BATMAN" at the beginning of 1966, the other networks wanted their own "superhero satires" for their fall '66 schedules. This original pilot episode was produced for CBS, right after Alan Young finished "MISTER ED". But he eventually decided he didn't want to star in another "fantasy sitcom", and politely declined to appear in the series after it was sold to the network....