Space Academy
A 1977 Filmation series about young psychic explorers in space.
Space Academy is an American science fiction television series produced by Filmation that originally aired Saturday mornings on the CBS television network from September 10 to December 17, 1977, with repeats running on and off until September 1, 1979. A total of 15 half-hour episodes were made. The series is notable for featuring veteran actor Jonathan Harris, best known as Dr. Zachary Smith from Lost in Space, and for introducing a spin-off, Jason of Star Command, in 1978.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Science fiction
- Creator
- Allen Ducovny
- Director
- Various
- Presenter
- Filmation
- Starring
- Jonathan Harris / Pamelyn Wanda Ferdin / Ric Carrott / Maggie Cooper / Brian Tochi / Ty Henderson / Eric Greene
- Composer
- "Yvette Blais" and "Jeff Michael"
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English and dubbed into Spanish for Spanish-speaking television markets. (These dubs are an audio option on the 4-DVD set.)
- Num Seasons
- 1
- Num Episodes
- 15
- Executive Producer
- Norm Prescott / Lou Scheimer
- Producer
- Arthur H. Nadel
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Set in the 'star year' 3732, Space Academy is located on an asteroid and brings together gifted young minds to explore space. Commander Isaac Gampu, played by Jonathan Harris, is the head of the academy; his aging has been slowed by space exposure, making him over 300 years old. The main characters are members of the Blue Team: siblings Chris and Laura Gentry (Ric Carrott and Pamelyn Ferdin), who possess telekinetic and psychic powers; Adrian Pryce-Jones (Maggie Cooper); Paul Jerome (Ty Henderson); Tee Gar Soom (Brian Tochi), who has superhuman strength; and Loki (Eric Greene), an orphan who can teleport. The robot Peepo, voiced by Erika Scheimer, is a 'self-determining, type A manudroid' with voice replication and multilingual abilities.
Reader's Guide
Space Academy represents a typical 1970s children's television program that combined science fiction with moral lessons, such as the idea that superpowers are not a cure-all and that even the wise can err. The series is remembered for its diverse young cast and for featuring Jonathan Harris in a post-Lost in Space role. It spawned a spin-off, Jason of Star Command, which reused sets and costumes. The show's home media releases include a 2007 Region 1 DVD set from BCI Eclipse and a 2009 Region 2 Spanish set from Savor Ediciones. Merchandise included action figures by Aviva Toy Company distributed by Woolworth. The series has a noted continuity error regarding character introductions, acknowledged in the DVD companion booklet.
Did You Know?
- The series originally aired Saturday mornings on CBS from September 10 to December 17, 1977, with repeats until September 1, 1979.
- Jonathan Harris, who played Commander Isaac Gampu, was best known as Dr. Zachary Smith from Lost in Space.
- The robot Peepo was voiced by Erika Scheimer through a pitch-shifter with regenerative delay.
- A spin-off, Jason of Star Command, debuted in 1978 and used the same sets, costumes, and special effects.
More in American children's science fiction television series 1-20
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced