| Salvage 1 | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Created by | Mike Lloyd Ross |
| Starring |
|
| Theme music composer | Walter Scharf |
| Composers | Jack Hayes Ken Harrison |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Harve Bennett Harris Katleman |
| Producers | Mike Lloyd Ross Ralph Sariego Craig Schiller |
| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production companies | Bennett/Katleman Productions Columbia Pictures Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Audio format | Monaural |
| Original release | January 20 – December 9, 1979 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Salvage |
Salvage 1 is an American science fiction series that was broadcast for 16 episodes (of the 20 produced) on ABC during 1979. The pilot film, Salvage, was shown on January 20, 1979, to high ratings.
Plot
The pilot centers on Harry Broderick (Andy Griffith) who owns the Jettison Scrap and Salvage Co. and is a specialist in reclaiming trash and junk to sell as scrap. His dream is to recover equipment left on the Moon during Apollo Program missions. In the show's opening title narration, Harry states:
"I wanna build a spaceship, go to the Moon, salvage all the junk that's up there, bring it back and sell it."
He invites the former astronaut Addison "Skip" Carmichael (Joel Higgins) and NASA fuel expert Melanie "Mel" Slozar (Trish Stewart) to assist him in this effort. During Slozar's fuel experiments, the Federal Bureau of Investigation becomes concerned over the purchases of chemicals.
Broderick and his ragtag crew complete their mission and go on to further adventures in the subsequent series. A recurring subplot drives numerous attempts to find the appropriate explosive mixture to break an iceberg from the Arctic Shelf, to be transported to the California coast as a source of fresh water.
Richard Jaeckel had a recurring role as Jack Klinger, the FBI agent tasked with keeping an eye on Broderick and his associates. Their relationship is generally rocky, but the Salvage crew fly to his rescue when he is captured during a mission to a Latin American dictatorship.
The Vulture
Harry builds a spaceship dubbed Vulture, made completely from reclaimed salvage and powered by a chemical called monohydrazine. The main body of Vulture is composed of a Texaco gasoline semi-trailer tank truck with a cement mixer as the capsule. This is augmented with three shorter rocket boosters placed 120 degrees around the main tank.
Episodes
Season 1 (1979)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 2 | 1 2 | "Salvage" | TBA | TBA | January 20, 1979 |
| 3 | 3 | "Dark Island" | Gene Nelson | Ruel Fischmann | January 29, 1979 |
| 4 | 4 | "Shangri-la Lil" | Ron Satlof | Judy Burns | February 5, 1979 |
| 5 | 5 | "Shelter Five" | TBA | TBA | February 12, 1979 |
| 6 | 6 | "The Haunting of Manderly Mansion" | Ray Austin | Mike Robe | February 26, 1979 |
| 7 | 7 | "The Bugatti Treasure" | Ed Abroms | Story by : Mike Lloyd Ross Teleplay by : Richard Chapman & Ruel Fischmann | March 5, 1979 |
| 8 | 8 | "The Golden Orbit: Part 1" | TBA | TBA | March 12, 1979 |
| 9 | 9 | "The Golden Orbit: Part 2" | Ron Satlof | Robert Swanson | March 19, 1979 |
| 10 | 10 | "Operation Breakout" | Gerald Finnerman | Gerald K. Siegel | April 2, 1979 |
| 11 | 11 | "Mermadon" | TBA | TBA | April 16, 1979 |
| 12 | 12 | "Up, Up and Away" | Les Green | Robert Swanson | May 14, 1979 |
| 13 | 13 | "Energy Solution" | TBA | TBA | May 21, 1979 |
| 14 | 14 | "Confederate Gold" | TBA | TBA | May 28, 1979 |
The first season ranked 48th out of 114 shows that season with an average 17.7/26 rating/share.[1]
Season 2 (1979)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | 1 | "Hard Water: Part 1" | Les Green | Mike Lloyd Ross | November 4, 1979 |
| 16 | 2 | "Hard Water: Part 2" | Les Green | Mike Lloyd Ross | November 11, 1979 |
| 17 | 3 | "Round Up" | TBA | TBA | unaired |
| 18 | 4 | "Harry's Doll" | TBA | TBA | unaired |
| 19 | 5 | "Dry Spell" | TBA | TBA | unaired |
| 20 | 6 | "Diamond Volcano" | TBA | TBA | unaired |
The last four episodes were shown in the early 1990s on The Nostalgia Channel.[2]
Production
Science fiction author Isaac Asimov was the show's scientific adviser.[3]
Merchandise
Estes Rockets made a prototype of a model rocket version of the Vulture. It was never brought to market.[4]
References
- ^ https://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/79-OCR/BC-1979-06-18-OCR-Page-0056.pdf#search=%22rounding%20up%20the%20ratings%22
- ^ Salvage episodes Archived July 4, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Appeared only in closing credits of some Salvage 1 episodes after the pilot. Asimov also states in his autobiography, I, Asimov, that he served as an advisor for a few Salvage 1 episodes: Isaac Asimov, I, Asimov: A Memoir (New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, 1994), 367-68.
- ^ Article & photos of Vulture Model Rocket