SCIENCE FICTION THEATRE - J. P. Telotte


 It is not uncommon to see books about early days of popular entertainment, There are some wonderful histories of the early days of television, and there have been several histories of the early days of televised science fiction. This is the first book that I have seen dedicated solely to Science Fiction Theatre.

Science Fiction Theatre was an anthology television series that ran two seasons from 1955-1956. I almost used the adjective "innovative" but honestly, just about any television show from the mid-1950's could be considered innovative.

Although the series isn't as familiar to science fiction fans and television fans as other, often syndicated shows, the series was clearly inspiration for programs such as The Outer Limits and The Twilight Zone, though the latter two have more name recognition. And while I recently listened to a podcast giving a lot of credit to Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry for being rather progressive with getting shows into syndication, Science Fiction Theatre takes top honors there as well.

Author J.P Telotte does a fine job of digging deep into archives and giving us a bit of biography of creator Ivan Tors (a name I was not familiar with, but as someone interested in television I certainly should have been) and the making of the series. By this account, Tors was a man interested in his subjects and the storytelling, and not just about making fast, cheap, entertainment - something which is certain to doom any Hollywood creative.

The book gives us some really good information and has made this reader interested in knowing more about the show and trying I've been trying to find episodes to watch online. But the book does read very much like a college paper and given it's published by a university press it might seem even more likely. There's a manner of paper writing that college professors seem to look for that you don't typically find in mass consumer publications, such as phrases like: "In the next section I'm going to discuss..."

As a paper, this is very good. As an information book, I think Telotte could have gone a little deeper examining the format and structure of the show and maybe let a little of the author's own passion show through.

Looking for a good book? Science Fiction Theatre by J.P. Telotte examines an early science fiction anthology television series and provides some interesting background to the show, but it reads a little too much like a college project paper to be truly engaging.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

3-1/2 stars

* * * * * *

Science Fiction Theatre

author: J.P. Telotte

publisher: Wayne State University Press

ISBN: 9780814350294

paperback, 134 pages

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