FAR OUT SPACE NUTS
(CBS, September
6-December 13, 1975)
Sid & Marty
Krofft Productions
MAIN CAST:
Bob Denver – Junior
Chuck McCann –
Barney
Patty Maloney
– Honk
Far Out
Space Nuts was the first of two programs developed by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions
exclusively for CBS (the other being Pryor’s
Place), and one of two space-themed shows they released in 1975 (the
other being The Lost Saucer). The show served as a last-minute replacement
for a scrapped cartoon.
 |
| Promo image of Barney, Junior and Honk by their ship. |
Developed by
the Kroffts, Joe Ruby, Ken Spears,
Chuck McCann and Earle
Doud, Space Nuts followed the adventures of dim-witted Junior (Bob
Denver) and the grumpy Barney (McCann), two NASA
maintenance workers who accidentally find themselves launched and lost in
space. There, they befriended a furry alien named Honk (Patty Maloney) who only
spoke via honking sounds from the horn on top of her head.
 |
| Junior getting his mind switched with a sinister computer. |
Far Out
Space Nuts debuted on CBS on September 6, 1975, with music by Michael Lloyd for Mike Curb
Productions. Written by Doud, McCann, Dick Robbins, Duane Poole, Buddy Atkinson, Dick Conway, Jack Mendelsohn,
Bruce Howard
and Ray Parker,
the series blended goofball comedy with satire poking fun at movie clichés and
parodies of other movies and shows; blending elements of McCann’s comedy
stylings and Doud’s experience as a writer for Mad Magazine. While the jokes
were generally family friendly, the bulk of the humor was targeted for adults. For
instance, the villain of “It’s All in Your Mind” was named G.A.L 36-24-26 (an
idealized woman’s measurements, voiced by Joan Gerber). Denver actually
had his choice of two Saturday morning programs, having also been offered a
role in Filmation’s The
Ghost Busters alongside former Dusty’s Trail
co-star Forrest Tucker before
ultimately ending up settling for Space Nuts.
 |
| The Nuts meet an alien queen. |
Unfortunately
for Denver, Space Nuts fared as well as Dusty’s Trail did. The
show’s adult humor ended up not attracting the child audience CBS would have
liked and it was trounced in the ratings by Speed
Buggy and Return
to the Planet of the Apes. The series remained on CBS until it
was replaced by Filmation’s Ark II the following season. It entered into
syndicated reruns as part of the package program Krofft Super Stars
beginning in 1978, where it began to slowly find its fans. The first two
episodes were released to VHS by Embassy
Home Entertainment in 1985. Rhino Home
Entertainment released another VHS
in 1999 with the episodes “Tower of Tagot” and “Secrets of Hexagon”. In 2002,
they released “Birds of a Feather” to DVD as part of The
World of Sid & Marty Krofft compilation, and the pilot
episode in the 2005 compilation Saturday
Morning with Sid & Marty Krofft.
EPISODE GUIDE:
“It’s All in Your Mind” (9/6/75) – Junior and Barney end up
on a planet ruled by a brain-controlling computer.
“The Crystallites” (9/13/75) – Junior enjoys being the ruler
of the glass people, until he finds out he has to become glass as well.
“Robots of a Pod” (9/20/75) – Junior and Barney have to
rescue a princess and retrieve a magic belt from an evil robot ruler.
“Fantastic Journey” (9/27/75) – A mad scientist makes Junior
and Barney his assistants.
“Tower of Tagot” (10/4/75) – Junior and Barney have to
rescue a queen from the evil Tagot.
“The Three Space-keteers” (10/11/75) – Junior is mistaken
for a legendary hero and is tasked with rescuing a queen.
“Flight of the Pippets” (10/18/75) – Junior and Barney are
shrunk down and added to a collection of miniatures.
“Birds of a Feather” (10/25/75) – Captured by the bird-like
Vultrons, Junior and Barney are ordered to hatch a giant egg.
“Dangerous Game” (11/1/75) – A woman and her dog-like
henchmen hunt down Junior and Barney.
“Secrets of the Hexagon” (11/8/75) – Junior and Barney are
duped into trading their spaceship for a powerful key.
“Captain Torque, Space Pirate” (11/15/75) – An evil space
pirate forces Junior and Barney to steal a treasure map for him.
“Vanishing Aliens Mystery” (11/22/75) – Junior and Barney
end up on a space station in time for the reading of a will, and all of the
heirs slowly being disappearing.
“Barney Begonia” (11/29/75) – Barney is turned into a
half-man, half-flower creature.
“Destination: Earth” (12/6/75) – Junior and Barney end up
taking a trip through time as a way to get back home.
“Galaxy’s Greatest Athlete” (12/13/75) – Junior is tricked
into competing in an athletic event by two beautiful women.
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