by G. Jack Urso
For millions of years, Earth was fertile and
rich. Then pollution and waste began to take their toll. Civilization fell into
ruin. This is the world of the 25th century. Only a handful of scientists
remain, men who have vowed to re-build what has been destroyed. This is their
achievement: Ark II, a mobile storehouse of scientific knowledge manned by a
highly trained crew of young people.
Their mission — to bring the hope of a new future to mankind.
—
Opening
narration to Ark II
Ark II is a short-lived CBS sci-fi
series that aired at 11 A.M. Saturday mornings from September to December 1976.
The show was created by Martin Roth, who wrote for many of the most popular TV shows
from the 1960s through the 1990s, and the executive producers were Norm
Prescott and Lou Scheimer, who also produced
Space Academy,
Jason of Star
Command, and Star Trek:
The Animated Series, with which Ark
II shares its sound effects library for computer and sensor sound effects.
The series details the adventures of three young people traveling around in an
RV equipped with advanced technology, and a talking chimp, seeking to help
those who survived the unchecked pollution and toxic waste which devastated the
planet and reduced civilization to scattered isolated tribes and villages. The
complete series is available below from
a dedicated YouTube channel.
Aeolus 13 Umbra
has reviewed several 1970s Saturday morning sci-fi TV shows, including Land of the Lost,
Space Academy,
and Jason of Star
Command, but if I had to choose just one quintessential 70s
Saturday morning sci-fi show it would be Ark
II. The costumes, vehicles, props, and eco-friendly storylines, definitely
have a sense of the zeitgeist of the era. When researching the series, I didn’t
think I would find much but was surprised to see that it maintains a small core
of dedicated, if middle-aged, fans who carry on the show’s legacy with videos,
prop replicas, and models. Articles and blog entries are numerous, including
one by author, director, and film critic John Kenneth Muir who reviews each
episode of the series.
The program
stars Terry Lester as Jonah, Jean Marie Hon as Ruth, José Flores as Samuel, and
Moochie the chimp as Adam. The crew is ethnically diverse with Northern
European, Asian, and Hispanic heritages being represented. A biblical theme is
apparent, not just in the names of the RV and the crew, but also the idea of
searching a devastated land in search of survivors. The resolution to each
episode is usually a recap of the moral or lesson of the day, and usually
involving some environmental theme. In addition to the expositions, there is a
certain amount of conflict and action and adventure, but at a fairly tame level
and real physical violence is shown. Ark
II is, after all, a children’s show. In the years following the creation of
the National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence (NCCPV) in
1968, Saturday morning programs that showed any level of physical violence were
targeted for criticism, such as Space
Ghost, The Herculoids, and Birdman, all of which were cancelled in
1968 and 1969, respectively. Shows that were educational in nature generally
won the networks’ recognition for their efforts, if not always ratings.
Synopsis
The series, set
500 years in the future, takes place in the year 2476. Ark II, a reference to
both Noah's Ark and the Earth being a sort of "ark" as well, is an
advanced mobile laboratory that also houses the four-wheel Ark Roamer all-terrain
vehicle and the Jet Jumper rocket pack. The crew of three young scientists includes
intrepid commander Jonah (Terry Lester) and his assistants Ruth (Jean Marie
Hon), Samuel (José Flores), and a talking chimpanzee named Adam (played by
Moochie and voiced by executive producer Lou Scheimer).
I’m not a big fan of
talking chimps, but the concept is not overplayed and most of the action
revolves around the human actors. The use of sign language among the chimpanzee
received widespread publicity in the early 1970s, so it was not a stretch to
believe that in 500 years rudimentary simian voice abilities will develop.
Shades of Planet of the Apes, which
also features an Earth devastated by human civilization? Sharped-eye viewers
will notice the reuse of left-over sets from Planet of the Apes in such episodes as “The Mind Group” and “Orkus.”
Ark II shares similarities with the Logan’s Run TV series, also about three people from a highly
technological society traveling a wasteland in an advanced vehicle and
encountering new communities of survivors every week. All three series could
conceivably fit into one continuity, albeit at different times (Logan’s Run
is set 300 years in the future and Planet
of the Apes, 2,000 years).
The log number
in the first episode is 1,444. Assuming one log per day, this means the Ark II
crew is nearly four years into their mission; however, the log numbers in later
episodes are much lower. Episode 2’s log is 406, episode 6’s log is 75, and so
forth. The numbering is inconsistent and as episode 1 has the highest log entry
number the events in that show must come after the last episode, whose log
entry number is 42. Nevertheless, the intention seems that the episodes are
presented in chronological order, so these inconsistencies can be chalked up to
sloppy continuity.
 |
The Jet Jumper in flight.
|
As noted, the
recurring device is that Ark II travels the wasteland looking to spread
civilization to devastated areas. This enables the show to bring the
protagonists to the conflict rather than the conflict to the protagonists. The Logan’s Run TV series and Star
Trek: The Original Series share this concept, itself based upon the TV
series Wagon Train, which traveled
the harsh environment meeting new communities along the way. Gene Roddenberry,
in fact, pitched Star Trek as a
“Wagon Train to the Stars.” Ark II, however, doesn’t vary from the concept.
At
least Star Trek had the occasional
foray into the main characters’ background, visits to Star Bases and encounters
with other Star Fleet vessels; however, Ark
II has none of that. Every week, there was another village, another
environmental theme, but we learn little about the world the Ark II crew comes
from. We never visit their city nor meet others like them. Do Jonah, Ruth, and
Samuel have families? While "Ark II" is a reference to Noah's Ark
(being the first one), are there other Arks? Are there other Arks? Even for the
notoriously cheap Filmation, creating logos and signage for an “Ark III” or
“Ark IV” could not have cost much and seems like a lost opportunity to expand
the Ark II mythos and break up the
repetitive story lines with little added extra expense. If the series
lasted longer we may have seen that, but the lack of an expanded universe
locked the show into a repetitive cycle of village after village and may be one
of the reasons why the audience failed to connect with the series enough to see
a full season.
All Aboard!
Terry Lester (Jonah)
had just two credits to his name before being cast as Jonah, a small uncredited
role in Airport 1975 and a guest
starring role on the William Shatner-helmed Barbary
Coast. With his blond hair and beard, and empathetic nature, Lester strikes
an unconventional appearance for the traditional hero, but entirely in keeping
with the spirit of the times — the laid-back 1970s. Indeed, Lester in Ark II reminds me of any number of
Christian Youth Group leaders I knew at the time. A talented singer and piano
player, later in his career Lester became better known for his work in the soap
operas As the World Turns, Santa Barbara, and The Young and the Restless. He also managed to squeeze in a few
prime time roles, including the infamous TV movie Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park (1978) and as a Kazon in the Star Trek: Voyager episode “Maneuvers”
(1995). He passed away in 2003 at 53 following health complications due to
AIDS.
Ark II marks Jean Marie Hon’s (Ruth) first
television credit, but she gives a strong, authentic performance for her
initial foray into acting, despite the sometimes banal dialog the actors have
to deal with. Hon's work is not too surprising given that she was trained as an
NBC contract player for about a year or so before Ark II. Her career spanned just nine years but includes a recurring
role in another classic short-lived 70s sci-fi series, Man from Atlantis, and ended in a reunion with Lester in the 1985
TV movie, Blade in Hong Kong. After
leaving acting, Hon earned a doctorate in pharmacy and owned her own pharmacy
in Ventura County, Calif., until her retirement in 2019.
José Flores’ (Samuel)
first credit is a 1976 appearance in an episode of Barney Miller before he was cast in Ark II, the highest profile role in his ten-year career which
essentially ended in 1986 (except for one further credit in a small part in the
2011 Mexican film La hija del capo mayor).
As a minor, his parents were always on set and as both he and Moochie the
chimp, and sometimes Ark II itself, could only work a few hours a day,
production had to move as quickly as possible. Despite his youth, Flores gives
a sincere and often impassioned, if not always polished, performance as the
young scientist Samuel.
The list of guest
stars features a roster of both veteran and up-and-coming stars including, Jim
Backus (Gilligan’s Island), John
Fielder (Tigger, Winnie the Pooh), Jonathan
Harris (Lost in Space), Geoffrey
Lewis (Any Which Way You Can?, Bronco Billy, Tom Horn), Malachi Throne (It
Takes a Thief, Star Trek), a
masked Del Monroe (Voyage to the Bottom
of the Sea), and the always reliable Vito Scotti (The Godfather); younger actors such as Helen Hunt (Mad About You, Castaway), and Dawn Lyn (My
Three Sons), and Mitch Vogel (Bonanza);
and little-known character actors whose long list of credits date back to
Hollywood’s Golden Era such as William “Billy' Benedict,” Guy Stockwell, Harry
Townes, and even Robby the Robot from Forbidden
Planet turns up! There are many more than can be provided here, but the
expert talent helps raise the episodes to their potential.
Tech
and Toys
The costumes,
jet pack, and vehicles are the iconic items from the series. The costumes look
most directly influenced by Space: 1999
and are comprised of a silver-gray tunic with one arm and part of one pant leg
in either red (males) or blue (females). Distinctive armbands and belts
contained various technology such as communicators, trackers, and remote
vehicle controls. The jet pack (dubbed the Jet Jumper in the series) is an
actual Bell Rocket Belt and looks similar to the one used in Lost in Space. In Ark II, the Bell Rocket Belt seen in the series is flown by Nelson
Tyler, an engineer and inventor (though not involved in the development of the BRB).
The Bell Rocket Belt was developed for the U.S. Army in the 1960s but was
never acquired due to the short duration of the flights, approximately 20
seconds. The Jet Jumper footage was reportedly recorded all in one day and then
reused throughout the series.
 |
Ark II (top); Landmaster (bottom).
|
The titular Ark
II vehicle is the most recognizable piece of technology from the series. Though often
mistaken for the Landmaster from the 1977 film Damnation
Alley, it is a separate vehicle. Constructed by the Brubaker Group, Ark II
was built on a garbage truck chassis and was difficult to navigate due to the
low position of the driver’s seat. According
to the documentary The Launch of
Ark II, the chassis cost $75 and the modifications $75,000 ($338
and $338,169.60 in 2019 dollars, respectively).
As noted in The Unofficial Ark II
Appreciation Page, someone sitting in the “fake” driver’s seat had to give
directions to the driver, which made it an unsafe vehicle to even be around.
So, those scenes of extras scrambling for their dear lives to get out of the
way of Ark II as it rambled through a village probably didn’t require much
acting. The vehicle often broke down, and with two to two and half days of
production allotted for each episode, a team of mechanics and welders had to be
kept on stand-by in order to keep pace with the shooting schedule. After the
series ended, the nose section of the Ark II was reused for the Seeker spacecraft
in Filmation’s Space Academy,
also produced by Norm Prescott and Lou Scheimer.
Brubaker also constructed
the smaller 4-wheeled “Roamer” (housed in the aft part of Ark II) based on its
preexisting Brubaker Box Kit built on a Volkswagen Thing chassis. It was
refitted with an automatic transmission due to the limited driving skills of
the young José Flores and for those scenes where the Roamer was “driven” by Adam
the Chimp or operated by remote control by one of the characters, in which
case, a driver was hidden under the vehicle’s dashboard.
The Ark II
vehicle itself in the series is purportedly powered by non-polluting hydrogen,
which it can create, and has its own food replicator eliminating the need for
food storage, so problems regarding food and fuel were not an issue. Consequently,
however, the lack of shortages of either eliminated a potential point of
conflict in the series and contributed to repetitive story lines. The vehicle
can also generate a protective force field, is equipped with a forward laser, a
tractor beam, a retractable crow’s nest, and a variety of computer support
gear. Oddly, the producers thought tape storage devices would still be used 500
years in the future. Additionally, the vehicle has no head lights, making night
driving shots impossible.
Though a hand
laser is occasionally shown, it was really more of a tool than a weapon. A
blinding hand-held light device was often used in defense, so the emphasis was
on non-lethal responses to defusing conflict, though its effectiveness varied.
There was no
merchandise produced during the Ark II
series run, which is a bit odd since even the equally short-lived single season
of Sealab 2020
managed a board game and slides for the 1972 Kenner Give-A-Show Projector. Since
Sealab 2020
didn’t last beyond the Fall 1972 season, merchandise development was concurrent
with series, even if a full season of episodes, let alone a second season,
would not be produced. The same goes for the short-lived live-action Korg 70,000 B.C., which only managed 19 episodes
for the 1974-75 season. Despite its nearly equal short length, Korg produced a board game, lunch box,
and comic book tie-ins. Nothing seems to have been planned for Ark II and this was another missed
opportunity for Filmation. Nevertheless, interest in the show, while a small
and niche market, remains and several model kits of the Ark II vehicle are
currently available nearly five decades later after the show first ran.
Concluding
Thoughts
Ark II’s main competition at 11 A.M.
Saturday mornings was
Land of the Lost,
in its third and final season, and the second half hour of the 90-minute Kroft Supershow whose segments included
the popular “Electra Woman and Dyna Girl,” making stiff competition for the environmentally-minded
series. With the hugely successful
Land of the Lost
winding down, and the fast-action and variety of the
The Kroft Supershow, the slower-paced
Ark II must have paled by comparison. CBS moved
Ark II to 12:30 P.M. Saturdays in
February 1977; however, by noon network affiliates were allowed to cut away for
local programming, and even if they did not, by that time most kids were
summarily being licked out of the house after spending the entire morning in
front of the television. Reruns were scheduled for Sundays in 1977, an
unconventional time for a program meant to run on Saturday mornings, but even
if ratings suddenly exploded, the demise of the show was already decided. By
the Spring of 1977, production had begun on
Space Academy
and the
Ark II vehicle was already being parted out to build the space-going Seeker
for the new series.
 |
| Jonah gets ready for flight with help from Ruth. |
As a child of
the 1970s, I can attest that interest in the environment, and particularly
among the youth, was at all-time high. In addition to being woven into the
storylines of Saturday morning children’s shows, it was also integrated into
our curriculum and taught by young ex-hippie teachers turned-on to “thinking
green.” Environmental warnings were
even included in commercials and prime time TV shows, and sometimes to great
effect. The 1971 Keep America Beautiful
“Crying Indian” public
service announcement (PSA) was responsible for raising awareness and decreasing
visible street litter. In the 1974 All in
the Family episode, "Gloria's Shock," Mike warns Gloria of the
hole in the ozone caused by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), found in everything
from hairspray to deodorant to refrigerators. In the months following when the
episode aired, there was an immediate drop in sales of household products
containing CFCs, reported an Apr. 10, 2019, Sierra Club report. CFCs were
finally banned in the United States in 1978. In the 1970s, from compact
cars to trash compactors, environmental awareness was considered part of being
civic-minded.
If someone were
to have asked me in 1976 where we would be today as a society regarding
pollution, I would have expressed faith in our advanced technology and my fellow
Americans that we will have solved our environmental problems by 2019, but that
is not so. Disappointingly, while our knowledge has increased, and the threat
of Climate Change worsens, politicians seeking to maintain their power exploit
the fear and ignorance of their supporters by casting doubt on proven
scientific research. Long-standing pollution regulations and environment laws are
being rolled back. In the summer of 2019, the Arctic Ocean was devoid of all
ice for the first time in recorded history. Polar bears and other arctic
animals are seeing their ecosystems literally melt away right in front of their
eyes. Meanwhile, in the Amazon, man-made forest fires to clear off land for
cattle consume vast acreage of important belts of oxygen-generating jungle
canopy, not to mention the displacement and death of indigenous animals and
human tribes. Instead of progressing, we seem to have taken a giant step back
and the future warned of by Ark II
seems one step closer.
Give me talking
chimps any day.
Ark II Log, Entry Number One: I Jonah, Ruth,
Samuel, and Adam, are fully aware of the dangers we face as we venture into
unknown, maybe even hostile areas, but we’re determined to bring the promise of
a new civilization to our people and our planet.
—
Opening narration
to Ark II
In Cinefantastique’s Planet of
the Apes issue (Summer 1972) Goldsmith spoke about the soundtrack, saying, “it should not be an electronic score, not gimmicky, and [I] wanted to do it
with a normal orchestra. I did not want to do the obvious on this . . . I was
thrilled with it." Goldsmith also notes that at the time of the interview,
“the Austrian Ballet is using it in their production of 'Othello'” (37). While
Goldsmith does use orchestral elements, he departs from the epic orchestration
approach in place of what is a minimalistic and sometimes discordant soundtrack
that captures the sense of mystery and danger in the movie. According to
Goldsmith, no experimental techniques or “unusual instruments” were used,
except perhaps for stainless steel bowls used with the percussion section for the
waterfall scene (“The Clothes Snatchers”) and putting the
mouthpiece backwards on the French horns, to achieve “that swooshing sound in
the desert scenes” (37).
