An American Doctor Who Series.

[unclepatrick]

I got great respond with a British Star Trek Series.
http://www.alternatehistory.com/disc...d.php?t=253839
Now Let take a British show to the US.

You are a British Citizen who grew up on Doctor Who. You wanted to work in the British Film or Television industry. But you could not get Hired. You there fore in 1976, moved to Hollywood CA.
You look at the newspaper and magazines about Film industry. The Director of the Academy Award Nominated film American Graffiti , George Lucas is doing a Space Opera film. The Director of Jaws, One of the Biggest film hits ever, Steven Spielberg, is doing a Alien contact film, Close Encounters.
It same like Sci Fi is in, in Hollywood. If one of the Film is a Success, then the TV networks are going to want Sci Fi TV shows.

How about a American Version of the Show, you Love it Britain, Doctor Who? You make some calls and get the rights to the basic outline of the Show, Doctor Traveling in Time/Space Machine, Doing Good, fighting evil.
Because of the way the BBC works, you don't have the rights to the Daleks or any other monster or creature on the Show.

You need a American Producer. Your First Choice Gene Roddenberry is busy trying to bring Star Trek Phase Two to TV.
So you get Leslie Stevens and Joseph Stefano as the Producers.
They worked together on The Outer Limits and Stevens has Produces Show like the Name of the Game, It Take A Thief, The Invisible Man and Search.
Stefano work on Hitchcock Psycho as Well as the Outer Limits. \

They recommend that you Hire David Gerrold as the script editor. He best known as the writer for the Star Trek Episode Trouble with Tribbles. He also has work as the script editor on the Sid and Marty Croft show, Land of the Lost. For that show, he was able to get real science fiction authors like Larry Niven, Ted Sturgeon, Ben Bova and Norman Spinrad to do scripts. He should be able to bring similar talent to Doctor Who.

Now you have decisions to make.
Who do you cast as the Doctor? Do you go with a known actor like Vincent Price or Leonard Nimoy? or do you consider a younger person like a stand up comedian like Robin William? Who do you pick?

Do you keep the TARDIS in the shape of a Police Box? American would have no idea what a Police Box is. If you change it, than what would the outside look like? A Car? A statue?

Ok it up to you. How does the show go?

[drcynic]

Let's see... 1976... How about Robert Vaughn if Leonard Nimoy isn't available?

No. But I would keep it as something a bit more eccentric than a car. Maybe a trolley or a caboose from a locomotive.

[JRScott]

Keep in mind the Doctor's TARDIS is broken and has been for years, he did fix it for a few episodes. The TARDIS is suppose to take on something that fits into its surroundings, not just a police box. It could be almost anything really. If its broke in a similar way, then perhaps a Christmas Tree, about the same size roughly, and well fits in around Christmas time. Unfortunately there is nothing really iconic outside of holiday decorations that is accepted nation wide as the United States is much larger than Britain and more culturally diverse.

Also I probably wouldn't make it The Doctor, you'd want a different Time Lord.

Comedy's weren't real big in the 70s so making a comedy probably wouldn't work. Probably given the scene at the time, might offer the part to Jason Robards. (Remember its a Time Lord over time you can change who the actor is).

Perhaps this Time Lord continues to meddle in American Politics, he has from time to time appeared to set the course of American history. Thus he often visits the past of America, often discovering something changed or amiss and corrects it. Over time you also teach a bit of real history while mingling it with a sci fi epic. Perhaps the Ant People make an appearance as an ally or antagonist (drawing from Native American history).

[wietze]

Originally Posted by JRScott

Keep in mind the Doctor's TARDIS is broken and has been for years, he did fix it for a few episodes. The TARDIS is suppose to take on something that fits into its surroundings, not just a police box. It could be almost anything really. If its broke in a similar way, then perhaps a Christmas Tree, about the same size roughly, and well fits in around Christmas time. Unfortunately there is nothing really iconic outside of holiday decorations that is accepted nation wide as the United States is much larger than Britain and more culturally diverse.

Also I probably wouldn't make it The Doctor, you'd want a different Time Lord.

when think of things about the size of the tardis that you see everywhere....

portapotty? (not very glamorous i know lol)
large size dumpster?
abandoned snack booth?
or just make it invisible

[Garrison]

Originally Posted by wietze

when think of things about the size of the tardis that you see everywhere....

portapotty? (not very glamorous i know lol)
large size dumpster?
abandoned snack booth?
or just make it invisible

You don't want to do invisible with 1970's effects, really you don't.

[Kalvan]

We had several attempts at the same, including The Time Tunnel, The Adventures of Gary Seven, Voyagers!, Quantum Leap, and even by some interpretations Time Trax, Prehisteria, and Time Squad.

Frankly, Dr. Who was and remains lightning in a bottle.

[NothingNow]

Originally Posted by wietze

when think of things about the size of the tardis that you see everywhere....

It's a 15' Airstream. Iconic, Ubiquitous, and cheap as fuck for a prop/set.

[unclepatrick]

Originally Posted by Kalvan

We had several attempts at the same, including The Time Tunnel, The Adventures of Gary Seven, Voyagers!, Quantum Leap, and even by some interpretations Time Trax, Prehisteria, and Time Squad.

Frankly, Dr. Who was and remains lightning in a bottle.

What is the Adventures of Gary Seven?

[JRScott]

Originally Posted by NothingNow

It's a 15' Airstream. Iconic, Ubiquitous, and cheap as fuck for a prop/set.

This could work.

[jamsodonnell]

Originally Posted by unclepatrick

What is the Adventures of Gary Seven?

I think it was a tv series that Gene Roddenberry was planning if Star Trek cot canceled at the end of season 2 (it very nearly did). Obviously it never got off the ground as Star Trek got its third season

Gary Seven was a character the Enterprise encountered in the episode Assignment Earth. If I remember rightly The Enterprise is sent back to the late 60s on a research mission. They encounter Seven who is tasked with stopping a rocket launch that might start WWIII. I think the rocket was going to put a nuclear missile platform into space.

[voss749]

Originally Posted by Kalvan

We had several attempts at the same, including The Time Tunnel, The Adventures of Gary Seven, Voyagers!, Quantum Leap, and even by some interpretations Time Trax, Prehisteria, and Time Squad.

Frankly, Dr. Who was and remains lightning in a bottle.

Quantum Leap doesnt belong with those other series. It ran for 5 seasons, 96 episodes and won 5 emmys and 2 golden globes for best acting. It was a successful series.

Dr. Who ran for so long because it was on the BBC. It would never have lasted more than a season or two on american tv.

[HaroldWinthrop]

And if the American TV industry had have got hold of Doctor Who, it would have been bowdlerised for US sensibilities, like the other British 'transplants' to American TV of the era, including:

George & Mildred = The Ropers
Man about the House = Three's Company
Steptoe & Son = Sanford & Son

As for US attempts to 'remake' British sci-fi, can I use as evidence the execrable 'Life on Mars' re-do? God help us if 'Blakes 7' undergoes similar adaptation!

[Torqumada]

Originally Posted by HaroldWinthrop

God help us if 'Blakes 7' undergoes similar adaptation!

Wellllll....

Torqumada

[Emperor Norton I]

Assignment Earth was a backdoor pilot for it's own series, featuring Gary Seven in weekly adventures to save the Earth from itself and maybe with villains and adventures besides that (who knows, since it never took off). I think that would have been the American "Doctor Who", given its galactic angle (Gary Seven was working for aliens to protect humanity) and there's always the chance of the same unique idea for recasting. That being the character dies but is reborn, just as a different type of person. So Gary Seven could turn into Gary Eight, Nine, Ten, and so on. You could also always just keep him being replaced by another agent if he dies, with that same name procession.

[HaroldWinthrop]

Originally Posted by Torqumada

Wellllll....

Torqumada

Hence my comment on a Blake's 7 remake trainwreck.

[Enigmajones]

Doctor Who: A very unknown adaptation of the much loved British series, that debuted on American television in 1977. In pre-production, the series was very simplified, with Doctor Who becoming an American Doctor who was selected by the TARDIS, a council of space lords who rule time, to defeat the Skelads. The Skelads being Robots from the future who want to destroy all of humanity. It ran for 6 episodes, was critically panned, and dropped by ABC for the 1978 season. The show has gained a cult following, and has been rebroadcast by BBC, as Professor What.

[BigWillyG]

Originally Posted by wietze

when think of things about the size of the tardis that you see everywhere....

portapotty? (not very glamorous i know lol)
large size dumpster?
abandoned snack booth?
or just make it invisible

What about a phonebooth and maybe through in a Superman reference once in awile?

[Enigmajones]

Originally Posted by HaroldWinthrop

And if the American TV industry had have got hold of Doctor Who, it would have been bowdlerised for US sensibilities, like the other British 'transplants' to American TV of the era, including:

George & Mildred = The Ropers
Man about the House = Three's Company
Steptoe & Son = Sanford & Son

As for US attempts to 'remake' British sci-fi, can I use as evidence the execrable 'Life on Mars' re-do? God help us if 'Blakes 7' undergoes similar adaptation!

From what I've heard the Life on Mars US Series wasn't that bad. I never saw it, but the original was great.

[Kaptin Kurk]

Dr. Who was a children's program in the U.S., when I was first exposed to it. I think I could see a Dr. WHo program running oppositie the old Bat-Man and Robin.

[JN1]