''Space Master X-7'' is a 1958 American horror science fiction film in Regalscope from

Regal Films Regal Entertainment, Inc. (formerly and more commonly known as Regal Films) is a Philippine film production company based in Pasig. It was founded by Lily Monteverde on August 19, 1962. It has produced movies of all genres; and is the oldest ...

, produced by Bernard Glasser, directed by

Edward Bernds Edward Bernds (July 12, 1905May 20, 2000) was an American screenwriter and director, born in Chicago, Illinois. Career While in his junior year in Lake View High School, he and several friends formed a small radio clique and obtained amateur li ...

, that stars Bill Williams,

Lyn Thomas Lyn Thomas (born Jacqueline Thomas; 1929–2004) was an American stage, television and film actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of ...

, and Robert Ellis.

Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...

Judd Holdren Judd Clifton Holdren (October 16, 1915 – March 11, 1974) was an American film actor best known for his starring roles in the serials '' Captain Video: Master of the Stratosphere'' (1951), '' Zombies of the Stratosphere'' (1952), '' The Lost Pl ...

, and

Moe Howard Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He is best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television ...

have supporting roles. The screenplay was written by George Worthing Yates and Daniel Mainwaring.

Plot

A space probe returns to Earth covered with a mysterious fungus, which, when accidentally mixed with human blood, transforms into an ever-growing pile of space rust. If not stopped, the infection could eventually cover the entire world.

Cast

* Bill Williams as John Hand *

as Laura Greeling * Robert Ellis as Pvt. Joe Rattigan *

as Dr. Charles T. Pommer *

Rhoda Williams Rhoda Elaine Williams (July 19, 1930 – March 8, 2006) was an American actress who voiced Drizella Tremaine in Walt Disney's ''Cinderella''. Early life Williams learned to read at age three, and performing on radio came naturally to her. She ...

as Stewardess Archer * Joan Barry as Jean Meyers, a brunet * Carol Varga as Elaine Frohman *

Thomas Browne Henry Thomas Browne Henry (November 7, 1907 – June 30, 1980) was an American character actor known for many guest appearances on television and in films. He was active with the Pasadena Community Playhouse and was the older brother of actor ...

as Prof. West * Thomas Wilde as Collins * Fred Sherman as Mr. Morse, Hotel Manager * Gregg Martell as Jim Dale, plane engineer *

Jess Kirkpatrick Jesse Bertram Kirkpatrick (October 2, 1897 – August 9, 1976) was an American film and television actor. Life and career Kirkpatrick was born in Champaign County, Illinois. He attended the University of Illinois, where he played as a half ...

as Pilot Vaccarino * Court Shepard as Battalion Fire Chief Hendry *

as Retlinger, the Cab Driver *

Al Baffert AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media * Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera * Al (''Fullmetal ...

as Plane passenger

Production

After making several Westerns for Regal Pictures, director Ed Bernds and producer Bernard Glasser thought they would make a science fiction picture. Bernds says the script was written on "spec" by Daniel Mainwaring and George Worthing Yates. Bernard Glasser bought it and director Bernds rewrote the script without credit because the original was written for a

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

with a larger budget and a longer running time. Bernds said the film's total budget was $90,000. Glasser, however, recalled that ''Space Master X-7'' was budgeted at $125,000, with $25,000 going to the screenwriters. The film was rushed into production to take advantage of the

Explorer I Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States in 1958 and was part of the U.S. participation in the International Geophysical Year (IGY). The mission followed the first two satellites the previous year; the Soviet Union ...

satellite space launch. Regal's head of publicity, Marty Weiser, recommended they change the title from ''Missile into Space'' to the more exciting-sounding ''Space Master X-7''.

Harry Spalding Harry Spalding (1913-2008) was an American writer best known for the films he wrote for Robert L. Lippert and director Maury Dexter. He later worked for the Walt Disney Company. He sometimes wrote under the name "Henry Cross". Select Credits * ' ...

, who was Robert L. Lippert's story editor, recalls the filmmakers went over budget but did a good job, so good they were hired for ''

The Return of the Fly ''Return of the Fly'' is a 1959 American horror science-fiction film and sequel to '' The Fly'' (1958). It is the second installment in ''The Fly'' film series. It was released in 1959 as a double feature with ''The Alligator People''. It was ...

'' (1959). Moe Howard, who made a cameo appearance in the film in a notable departure from his slapstick performances, had worked previously with Bernds on his

Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appeare ...

shorts and asked if the production crew had a position for his son-in-law

Norman Maurer Norman Albert Maurer (May 13, 1926 – November 23, 1986) was a comic book artist and writer, and a director and producer of films and television shows. Comic books Maurer's lifelong association with the Three Stooges began about the time o ...

. Maurer would work as the film's production assistantWarren, Bill (1986). "Keep Watching The Skies Volume 2". McFarland & Co., Inc. . Page 767 received $1,000.00 for his efforts. In fact, Glasser was so impressed with Maurer's work that he recommended him to producer Sidney Pink for Pink's upcoming science fiction film, ''

The Angry Red Planet ''The Angry Red Planet'' (also called ''Invasion of Mars'' and ''Journey to Planet Four'') is a 1959 American science fiction film directed by Ib Melchior and starring Gerald Mohr. Melchior reportedly had an initial production budget of only $ ...

'' (1959).

Legacy

A ''Space Master X-7'' video game was announced in 1983 for the

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocesso ...

by Fox's video game publishing arm. It was not based on the film; programmer

David Lubar David Lubar (born March 16, 1954) is an author of numerous books for teens. He is also a video game programmer, who programmed ''Breakout (arcade game), Super Breakout'' for the Game Boy and ''Frogger'' for both the Super Nintendo Entertainment ...

had not even heard of the 1958 film before Fox decided to attach its title to an original game he had developed. The game's Atari 8-bit family port, published by Sirius Software that same year, was released as ''Alpha Shield'', dropping the film connection entirely.

References

Bibliography

* Warren, Bill. ''Keep Watching the Skies! American Science Fiction Movies of the Fifties'' (covers films released through 1962), 21st Century Edition. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2009 (First Edition 1982).

External links

* * * {{Edward Bernds 1958 films 1950s science fiction films American black-and-white films American science fiction films 20th Century Fox films 1950s English-language films Films directed by Edward Bernds 1950s American films