Supercar (1961)
Supercar was a children's TV show produced by Gerry Anderson and Arthur Provis's AP Films for ATV and ITC Entertainment. 39 episodes were produced between 1961 and 1962, and it was Anderson's first half-hour series. In the UK it was seen on ITV and in the US in syndication. The format uses puppets in a technique called supermarionation, a name that was first seen in the closing titles of the last 13 episodes. The plot of the show consisted of Supercar, a vertical takeoff and landing craft invented by Rudolph Popkiss and Horatio Beaker, and piloted by Mike Mercury. On land it rode on a cushion of air rather than wheels. Jets in the rear allowed it to fly like a jet and retractable wings were incorporated in the back of the car. Retrorockets on the side of the car slowed the vehicle. The car used "Clear-Vu", which included an inside television monitor allowing the occupant to see through fog and smoke. The vehicle was housed in a laboratory and living facility at Black Rock, Nevada, U.S.A. In the show's first episode, "Rescue", the Supercar crew's first mission is to save the passengers of a downed private plane. Two of the rescued, young Jimmy Gibson and his pet monkey, Mitch, are invited to live at the facility and share in the adventures.
Seasons & Episode
When Masterspy sabotages an experimental nuclear powered train in an attempt to kill Dr. Beaker, Mike's only chance to save him is to use an untested magnet designed to grab small vehicles.
Professor Popkiss orders a special cooking wine from France, but when the crate arrives everyone gets quite a surprise from its contents - there's a girl inside.
When Mitch unties a rope that is securing the Professor's latest project, a gas-filled balloon, it takes off with Mike, Jimmy, and Dr. Beaker aboard. So it appars to be up to Professor Popkiss to fly Supercar to their rescue.
What at first seems a simple job training airplane pilots turns into a situation where Supercar must stop Masterspy and Zarin from taking over an airliner in mid flight.
Answering a distress call, Mike and Beaker find that a Professor Karloff plans to take over America by reducing all its citizens to miniature size, but then find themselves on the wrong end of his shrinking ray.
Mike must take Supercar into oribt to rescue his pet monkey Mitch, who has accidentally launched himself in a rocket to outer space.
On the hunt for the person who engineered the planting of atomic bombs all over the United States, the Supercar team find themselves captured by the culprit, a villainous sheriff.
Professor Popkiss comes down with appendicitis. After the operation, Mike has to fly to the Arctic to get the closest blood donor who has Professor Popkiss's blood type.
Masterspy's latest plan to gain possession of Supercar is to offer to buy it outright - using counterfeit money.
A helicopter arrives at Black Rock carrying criminals who have broken out of prison and demand at gunpoint that Supercar fly them to a safe haven in Mexico.
In the middle of Mike's birthday party, a stranger from outer space arrives and freezes time for everyone but Mike.
The Supercar team discovers that Masterspy has tapped a transatlantic cable, and is able to use this to track him back to his underwater lair.
Mitch switchs places with a musical gorilla.