Space Patrol

Space Patrol is an American science fiction adventure series set in the 30th century that was originally aimed at juvenile audiences via television, radio, and comic books.

The stories followed the 30th-century adventures of Commander-in-Chief Buzz Corry (Ed Kemmer) of the United Planets Space Patrol and his young sidekick Cadet Happy (Lyn Osborn), as they faced interplanetary villains with diabolical schemes, venturing against their archenemies in their space ship Terra V.

Many episodes featured commercial tie-in merchandise, like toys and mail-order premiums, that were advertised during commercial breaks.

The Stars

Ed Kemmer portrayed the lead role of Commander-in-Chief Buzz Corry, bringing a sense of seriousness and military bearing that helped increase the popularity of the series. Lyn Osborn co-starred as Cadet Happy, Corry’s youthful sidekick.

Other main cast members included Virginia Hewitt as Carol Carlisle, the daughter of the Secretary General of the United Planets, and Ken Mayer as Maj. Robbie Robertson, the Security Chief of the Space Patrol.

Key Dates

• The radio version of Space Patrol ran from September 18, 1950
• It ran until March 19, 1955, producing 129 thirty-minute episodes.

Other Information

Space Patrol first began broadcasting on TV on March 9, 1950, as a Monday-through-Friday 15-minute show on the ABC-owned-and-operated Los Angeles station KECA (now KABC-TV). On December 30, 1950, ABC added a half-hour version of the program to its Saturday schedule, which became an overnight sensation.

The television series aired Concurrent with the radio program and with the same stars until July 2, 1954, before returning on September 4, 1954, and finally disappearing from the air on February 26, 1955. Over its 5-year run, 210 half-hour shows and close to 900 15-minute shows were produced.

A comic book tie-in, Space Patrol, published by Ziff-Davis, ran for two issues in 1952 and featured cover paintings by Norman Saunders and Clarence Doore, with illustrations by Bernard Krigstein. The comics now retail for around $1,000 each in high-grade condition.

Despite the American series being nearly a decade old, when a similarly themed UK children’s puppet series also titled Space Patrol was syndicated to America in the early 1960s, it had to be retitled Planet Patrol to avoid confusion.

The emergence of electronic media during the 1990s permitted a greater interchange of Space Patrol merchandise that had previously been closely held by collectors, stimulating new interest and the production of new publications and merchandise for fans.

The original space ship prop control panel sold at auction in 2014 for $23,000, further demonstrating the enduring popularity of this classic science fiction series.