ALL SCI-FI

[Bud Brewster]

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Even though this wonderfully spooky series rarely presented stories which were legitimately science fiction, it did consistently delve into fascinating concepts which were allegedly based on "true stories"!

I only remember a few of the episodes — but based on those memories, I purchased a DVD set several years ago which offered the whole series. Unfortunately, the DVDs' picture quality was extremely poor.

However, now Youtube has several episodes which look wonderful!

Frankly I suspect that my old box sets will soon end up in the trash . . .

I've decided to start a thread for this series on All Sci-Fi, and the YouTube link below has dozens of episodes with excellent pictures.

____ One Step Beyond TV SERIES 69 Full Episodes


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Bud Brewster]

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Here are the last three colorized episodes offered by TCC - Timeless Classics Now in Color on YouTube.

I sure hope they'll do more of them soon.

ONE STEP BEYOND S01 E05 ~ Twelve Hours to Live


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_______ ONE STEP BEYOND - S01 E06 ~ Epilogue


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______ ONE STEP BEYOND -S01 E07 ~ The Dream


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This last episode below is one I haven't seen since it aired May 12th 1959 — but I remember it vividly. If you haven't seen it, watch it first . . . then read the spoiler below!

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The crew of a German U-Boat is driven nearly mad by a strange, periodic banging on the hull — which causes the allied ships nearby to detect their presence and drop depth charges relentlessly!

After many days of these inexplicable events — despite the crews' desperate efforts to find the cause — the captain and crew are finally forced to surface and surrender!

In the epilogue, John Newland reveals that after WWII the submarine was dissembled, and the decomposed body of a construction worker was found, a poor man who had been accidentally trapped between the inner and outer hull during the U-boat's construction!

A friend who lived just down the street saw the episode too, and he came up with a brilliant theory to explain the strange occurrence.

We were in his front yard, and he sat down on the lawn, his legs crisscrossed in front of him and one elbow propped on his knee while he pretended to hold a large wrench. Then he moved his forearm back and forth as if he was banging on the inside surface of the U-Boat's outer hull, desperately trying to attract attention to the fact that he had been welded into the space between the hulls!

My friend further theorized that the poor worker slowly suffocated to death (or starved) while the newly constructed submarine awaited its final launch and was then placed into active surface.

During the years ahead, the man's body eventually mummified inside the sealed space between the hulls — still sitting with his legs crossed and his stiffened hand gripping the tool — which was perhaps leaning against the boat's outer hull.

But while cruising across the turbulent waters of the Atlantic, the U-boat would roll and toss. And the arm of the seated corpse would be pulled back and forth until the elbow (still propped on the man's knee) would limber up enough to allow the wrench — still clucked in the dry and withered hand — began to tip back and forth, just as it had before the man died!

When this happened, the dead man would again begin to bang on the U-boat's outer hull from time to time — like when the sub was jostled underwater by sharp maneuvers, or when the shock of the enemy depth charges rocked the boat during a battle.

The One Step Beyond episode presents these events when the banging occurred with considerable artistic license, making it seem like a vindictive ghost had rhythmically pounded on the hull whenever the U-boat crew was frantically trying to remain silent and evade the sonar of the Allied ship above them.

Admittedly this was just a clever dramatization of the actual events . . . easily forgiven.

But my friend's brilliant theory which explained the series of actual banging noises that caused the crew of the U-boat to surrender — along with the fact that the corpse of a construction worker was later found trapped between the double hulls — makes such perfect sense that I firmly believe he was right!

Naturally, I don't believe there was a vindictive ghost in that sub who sought vengeance against the people who caused his death.

But the delicious irony of a poor dead man whose determination to be rescued — even posthumously — is more than enough to give me chill bumps when I watch this episode!

_________One Step Beyond ~ The Haunted U-Boat.


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Pow]

I'm a big fan of this TV series too, Bud.

I always thought of it as a supernatural "Dragnet." You know, "The story you are about to see is true but the names have been changed to protect the innocent."

How much the truth got stretched regarding these "factual incidents" we can only speculate?

The idea that they were based on actual events made the episodes even more chilling & mysterious than "The Twilight Zone" in some ways. And I say that as a Rod Serling/ TZ aficionado.

John Newland brought just the right amount of seriousness and erudition as the host of the show.

Some of my favorite episodes are : "Night of April 14," which you posted here, along with "Epilogue" (February 24, 1959), "The Dream" (March 3, 1959), "The Vision" (March 24, 1959), "The Devil's Laughter" (March 31, 1959), "The Navigator" (April 14, 1959), "Brainwave" (October 6, 1959), "The Day the World Wept: The Lincoln Story" (February 9, 1960), and "Gypsy" (May 17, 1960).

The music score for the show was terrific and helped establish the eeriness of the stories.

The original show ran from 1959 to 1960 and totaled 96 episodes.

It seems like "One Step Beyond" is overdue for a reboot.

How many new paranormal or unexplained stories have been documented sense 1961? There should be a plethora of fresh stories to allow a brand new production of the show to cover.

"Unsolved Mysteries" & "Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction" have picked up the torch from "One Step Beyond" with their episodes recounting bizarre true events.

Both of those shows filled a void for fans of the paranormal.

However, there still must be many more strange tales to cover since the decades OSB left us. A new show could fill that void.

[Bud Brewster]

[Pow]

An Analytical Guide to Television's One Step Beyond: 1959~1961, by John Kenneth Muir.

OSB was born a series obsessed with validating itself and its dramatized cases, week-in and week-out.

In the cases of OSB, it never made the claim that its dramatizations were "real" in-and-of-themselves or that it was a documentary. Instead, it argued that its dramatizations were based on fact and that the core concepts of those dramatizations (telepathy, precognition, alien abduction, Bigfoot) were valid and worthy of further study. On those grounds it is a resounding success.

Although many artists contributed enormously to the success of OSB, from creator Merwin Gerard, musician Harry Lubin and editor Henry Berman to writers Larry Marcus and Collier Young, there remains one face who will be forever associated with this timeless anthology series.

Of course, that gentleman is John Newland (1917~2000).

Were Newland merely the host of OSB, his prominence there might seem a tad misplaced, but this talented actor was not just the on-screen presence who kept the series glued together, he was the artisan who endowed the program with so much of its look, style, texture and pace.

John Newland was a theatrical actor in the early 1950s, he quickly graduated to television and promptly became the Golden Age's foremost leading man. Yet, at the time, television did not have the same level of respect afforded it as film did. Many critics and industry insiders viewed television as but a "poor cousin" to film. Still, Newland understood the potential of TV as an art form and, looking ahead, chose that venue as his central career mode.

Newland amassed a huge number of credits on TV with his multiple appearances.

Within the genre, Newland also made an impressive name for himself. In Tales of Tomorrow (1951~1953) he played Victor Frankenstein to Lon Chaney, Jr.'s Monster in an adaptation of Mary Shelly's classic novel Frankenstein that aired on January 18, 1952.

Newland also guest starred three times on the horror series Lights Out (1949~52), and appeared on The Inner Sanctum (1954), and on Science Fiction Theater (1955~57).

These experiences provided young Newland with three important ingredients for his future success in television.

Firstly, he had seized a national and highly visible platform on which to prove his artistry.

Secondly, he gained a familiarity with the science fiction and horror genres.

Third, and perhaps most importantly, Newland's hundred-or-so performances in 1950s television drama gave him the perfect opportunity to study, study, study.

On the sets of those programs in which he starred, Newland watched carefully how programs were assembled and shot, and very quickly graduated to the director's chair.

Sidebar: John Newland's trajectory was similar to other actors who would learn and soak up like a sponge every aspect of the film and TV productions they performed on.

Both Jack Webb & Michael Landon began as actors but became highly motivated to morph into producers, writers, and directors. Partly because they wanted to create projects that they could be enthused about. And partly because actors are at the whims of the movie and network studios. They don't often get to control their own acting careers; and work is sporadic at best. Even if you become a hot property you can never be assured how long it will last.

Producing, writing, and directing can offer actors much more job security in a profession that always rides on insecurity.

Rise or fall, at least the production is your creation and you no longer remain at the vagaries of the studios or networks.

I've read that the Frankenstein TV adaptation that Newland starred on has a classic story behind it.

Lon Chaney, Jr. was a very fine actor, but he also could imbibe very heavily. When they were filming him as the Monster, Lon, in a haze, was still under the impression that they were doing a run-through of the episode.

Being a professional he made sure not to destroy chairs or any other props he was scripted to do as the Monster for the drama since this was only a rehearsal, or so he thought.

Consequently what the audience got were scenes where the raging Monster would pick up a chair to destroy but instead he'd gently place it back down on the floor!

Another biographer of Lon told a different story regarding this incident.

Lon had not been drunk or hungover at all. He'd been getting his make-up put on as the Monster which required 4-hours.

When he was called to the set, Chaney incorrectly assumed that it was a dress rehearsal and therefore took care not to actually destroy any props as the Monster and save them for the actual filming.

He does lift a chair that he's supposed to break but then he places it gently back on the floor. At this point the director informs Lon that they are really filming. Once Lon is made aware of this he then goes through with smashing props as he is supposed to do for the scene.

[Bud Brewster]

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Here's thirteen of the episodes that have been colorized.

_ One Step Beyond Series, Full Episodes, Colorized


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I watched the first one, Emergency Only (with the lovely Paula Raymond from Beast from 20,000 Fathoms, and I was surprised at how well done it was.

Give it look, and take that . . . One Step Beyond.

________ One Step Beyond s1e3 Emergency Only


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If like that one, try this Julie Adams of The Creature from the Black Lagoon fame.

___ One Step Beyond s1e6 Epilogue - Julie Adams


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[WadeVC]

What a wonderfully creepy, moody series One Step Beyond is, and seems to be overlooked by many.

The fact that the episodes are based upon (or so they say), real-life events makes them even more intriguing.

A delightfully fun series that is nestled somewhere between The Twilight Zone andThe Outer Limits.
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"You look like a pooped out pinwheel."
-Robot Monster

[Bud Brewster]

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I replaced the links above that no longer worked, and I found a YouTube side that has all 85 of the episodes in the series!

___ One Step Beyond Full Episodes In Official Order


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[WadeVC]