Land of the Giants watch online HD
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Short summary
At the time of its debut, this was the most expensive show produced on television.
The props used in this show, (such as the computers and guns) also were used in Lost in Space (1965), The Time Tunnel (1966), Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964), and Batman (1966).
Often dismissed by science fiction "purists" such as Harlan Ellison, due to the sheer physical impossibility of such "giants" existing. Purists believed the giants' mass (which would increase geometrically while their strength only increased proportionately) would crush them. Murray Leinster's novelization of the show attempted to account for this, but no such explanation is ever given in the series.
Although it is supposed to be another planet, nameplates visible on cars and trucks on the show clearly indicate they were manufactured by Chrysler Corporation (the automaker contracted with the series' studio at that time).
In season two, episode twenty-four, "Wild Journey", Steve and Dan travel back through space and time to before they left Earth, and they attempt to change history by persuading any one of their passengers not to take the fateful flight. Stefan Arngrim (Barry Lockridge) had entered puberty and could not reprise his younger self, so a body double (with face obscured) was used.
Throughout the run of the show, the actors and actresses performed their own stunts and stunt doubles were rarely used unless it was absolutely necessary.
Heather Young, who played stewardess Betty Hamilton, was pregnant for much of the show's second season, resulting in her either being filmed mostly from the waist up, wearing baggy outfits, or being written out of several episodes altogether.
Even though certain cities are named, the name of the giants' planet is never mentioned.
In the second season, devices such as a laser torch and a periscope were used by the castaways.
The cabin chairs used in the Spindrift are the same design as those used in the cabin of the spaceship seen in Planet of the Apes (1968), also in production at 20th Century Fox in the summer of 1967.
The flight number for the Spindrift was 612.
Although the series ran for two years (1968-70), the first twelve episodes were filmed in the summer and fall of 1967 to meet the original planned start of the series, which would have been January 1968. The network was originally planning to use this show as a mid season replacement show. Since nothing needed replacing on their schedule, the series' premiere date was pushed back to the fall of 1968, where it replaced Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea (1964) series on the schedule. The 1967 start of the series' filming helped explain the difference in appearance of Stefan Arngrim from year one to year two, because, in actuality, three years had transpired over the course of the series' fifty-one episodes.
The sub-orbital passenger flight 612 (also known as the Spindrift) was launched on June 12, 1983.
The series takes place in 1983.
Prior to the show being green lighted for production, Irwin Allen showed the network executives a six minute presentation film, which featured Allen's storyboard of the pilot. However, there were some differences. First, Burton's name wasn't Steve, but Tim. Also, the character that would become Fitzhugh was originally named Peter Lingelhopper. However, the biggest difference was that there was no Valerie. The second female castaway was originally going to be a female doctor named Joan Templeton, who was heading to London to take part in an international science conference.
Deanna Lund stated in an interview that if the show had returned for a third season, the producers were going to explore the possibility of a romance between her character Valerie Scott and Mark Wilson (Don Matheson). This would have reflected the real-life romance between the two, who married after the show's cancellation.
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| Complete series cast summary: | |||
| Gary Conway | - | Capt. Steve Burton 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Don Matheson | - | Mark Wilson 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Stefan Arngrim | - | Barry Lockridge 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Don Marshall | - | Dan Erickson 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Deanna Lund | - | Valerie Scott 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Heather Young | - | Betty Hamilton 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
| Kurt Kasznar | - | Alexander B. Fitzhugh 51 episodes, 1968-1970 | |
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