Buck Rogers is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

adventure hero and feature comic strip created by

Philip Francis Nowlan Philip Francis Nowlan (; November 13, 1888 – February 1, 1940) was an American science fiction writer, best known as the creator of Buck Rogers. Biography Nowlan was born on November 13, 1888. While attending the University of Pennsylvania, N ...

first appearing in daily US newspapers on January 7, 1929, and subsequently appearing in Sunday newspapers, international newspapers, books and multiple media with adaptations including radio in 1932, a serial film, a television series, and other formats. The ''Buck Rogers'' strip, published 1929–1967 and syndicated by John F. Dille Co. (later called the National Newspaper Syndicate), was popular enough to inspire other newspaper syndicates to launch their own science fiction strips.

Ron Goulart Ronald Joseph Goulart (; January 13, 1933 – January 14, 2022) was an American popular culture historian and mystery, fantasy, and science fiction author. He published novelizations and other work under various pseudonyms: Kenneth Robeson, Con ...

, "The 30s -- Boomtime for SF Heroes". ''

Starlog ''Starlog'' was a monthly science fiction magazine that was created in 1976 and focused primarily on '' Star Trek'' at its inception. Kerry O'Quinn and Norman Jacobs were its creators and it was published by Starlog Group, Inc. in August 1976. ...

'', January 1981 (pp. 31–35). The most famous of these imitators was ''

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' adve ...

'' (

King Features Syndicate King Features Syndicate, Inc. is a American content distribution and animation studio, consumer product licensing and print syndication company owned by Hearst Communications that distributes about 150 comic strips, newspaper columns, editoria ...

, 1934–2003); others included ''

Brick Bradford ''Brick Bradford'' is a science fiction comic strip created by writer William Ritt, a journalist based in Cleveland, and artist Clarence Gray. It was first distributed on August 21, 1933 by Central Press Association, a subsidiary of King Features ...

'' (

Central Press Association The Central Press Association was American newspaper syndication company based in Cleveland, Ohio. It was in business from 1910 to 1971. Originally independent, it was a subsidiary of King Features Syndicate from 1930 onwards. At its peak, the ...

, 1933–1987), '' Don Dixon and the Hidden Empire'' (Watkins Syndicate, 1935–1941), and '' Speed Spaulding'' (John F. Dille Co., 1940–1941). The Buck Rogers strip also probably inspired developing a strip based on ''

John Carter of Mars John Carter of Mars is a fictional Virginian soldier who acts as the initial protagonist of the Barsoom stories by Edgar Rice Burroughs. A veteran of the American Civil War, he is transported to the planet Mars, called Barsoom by its inhabi ...

'' (

United Feature Syndicate United Feature Syndicate (UFS) is a large American editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1919. Originally part of E. W. Scripps Company, it was part of United Media (along wit ...

, 1941–1943) which was introduced in 1941 though based on an

Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs (September 1, 1875 – March 19, 1950) was an American author, best known for his prolific output in the adventure, science fiction, and fantasy genres. Best-known for creating the characters Tarzan and John Carter, he ...

character first seen in 1912. The adventures of Buck Rogers in comic strips, movies, radio, and television became an important part of American

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

. ''Buck Rogers'' has been credited with bringing into popular media the concept of

space exploration Space exploration is the use of astronomy and space technology to explore outer space. While the exploration of space is carried out mainly by astronomers with telescopes, its physical exploration though is conducted both by robotic spacec ...

,Patrick Lucanio, Gary Coville, ''Smokin' Rockets: The Romance of Technology in American Film, Radio and Television, 1945–1962'' (2002). McFarland. following in the footsteps of literary pioneers such as

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...

and

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

as a familiar environment for

swashbuckling A swashbuckler is a genre of European adventure literature that focuses on a heroic protagonist stock character who is skilled in swordsmanship, acrobatics, guile and possesses chivalrous ideals. A "swashbuckler" protagonist is heroic, daring, ...

adventure.Garyn G. Roberts, in Ray B. Browne and Pat Browne (.ed) ''The Guide To United States Popular Culture''. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 2001. (p.120)Robert Jennings, "Bucking the Future: From 1928 to the 25th Century With Anthony Rogers". ''

Comic Buyer's Guide ''Comics Buyer's Guide'' (''CBG''; ), established in 1971, was the longest-running English-language periodical reporting on the American comic book industry. It awarded its annual Comics Buyer's Guide Fan Awards from 1983 to circa 2010. The publi ...

'' July 5, 1990. (pp. 58, 60, 62, 65-66). In 1933, Nowlan and Calkins co-wrote ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'', a novella which retold the origin of Buck Rogers and also summarized some of his adventures. A reprint of this work was included with the first edition of the novel '' Buck Rogers: A Life in the Future'' (1995) by

Martin Caidin Martin Caidin (September 14, 1927 – March 24, 1997) was an American author, screenwriter, and an authority on aeronautics and aviation. Caidin began writing fiction in 1957. In his career he authored more than 50 fiction and nonfiction books ...

Buck Rogers comic strip

Publication history

The character first appeared (under the name "Anthony Rogers") in Nowlan's novella ''

Armageddon 2419 A.D. ''Armageddon 2419 A.D.'' is a science fiction novella by Philip Francis Nowlan that first appeared in the August 1928 issue of the pulp magazine ''Amazing Stories''. A sequel called '' The Airlords of Han'' was published in the March 1929 iss ...

'', published in the August 1928 issue of ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances i ...

''. The newspaper syndicator

John F. Dille The National Newspaper Syndicate, originally known as the John F. Dille Co., was a syndication service that operated from 1917 to c. 1984. It was founded by Chicago businessman John F. Dille and specialized in comic strips and gag cartoons. It ...

saw the opportunity to adapt the story into a newspaper comic strip. After Nowlan and Dille enlisted editorial cartoonist

Dick Calkins Richard William Calkins (August 12, 1894 – May 12, 1962), who often signed his work Lt. Dick Calkins, was an American comic strip artist who is best known for being the first artist to draw the ''Buck Rogers'' comic strip. He also wrote for th ...

as the illustrator, Nowlan adapted the first episode from ''Armageddon 2419 A.D.'' and changed the hero's name from "Anthony" to "Buck". Some have suggested that Dille coined that name based on the 1920s cowboy actor

Buck Jones Buck Jones (born Charles Frederick Gebhart; December 12, 1891 – November 30, 1942) was an American actor, known for his work in many popular Western movies. In his early film appearances, he was credited as Charles Jones. Early life, milita ...

. On January 7, 1929, the ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century A.D.'' comic strip debuted. (Coincidentally, this was also the date that the ''

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

'' comic strip began, distributed by

.) ''Buck Rogers'' was initially syndicated to 47 newspapers.Phillips, McCandlish
"Returning From the 25th Century ..."
''New York Times'' (December 2, 1969), p. 62. On March 30, 1930, a

Sunday strip The Sunday comics or Sunday strip is the comic strip section carried in most western newspapers, almost always in color. Many newspaper readers called this section the Sunday funnies, the funny papers or simply the funnies. The first US newspap ...

joined the Buck Rogers

daily strip A daily strip is a newspaper comic strip format, appearing on weekdays, Monday through Saturday, as contrasted with a Sunday strip, which typically only appears on Sundays. Bud Fisher's ''Mutt and Jeff'' is commonly regarded as the first daily c ...

. Writer Nowlan told the inventor R. Buckminster Fuller in 1930 that "he frequently used uller'sconcepts for his cartoons".

, an advertising artist, drew the earliest daily strips, and Russell Keaton drew the earliest Sunday strips. Like many popular comic strips of the day, ''Buck Rogers'' was reprinted in Big Little Books; illustrated text adaptations of the daily strip stories; and in a ''Buck Rogers''

pop-up book The term pop-up book is often applied to any book with three-dimensional pages, although it is properly the umbrella term for movable book, pop-ups, tunnel books, transformations, volvelles, flaps, pull-tabs, pop-outs, pull-downs, and more, each ...

. At its peak in 1934, ''Buck Rogers'' appeared in 287 U.S. newspapers, was translated into 18 languages, and appeared in an additional 160 international papers. Keaton wanted to switch to drawing another strip written by Calkins, '' Skyroads'', so the syndicate advertised for an assistant and hired

Rick Yager Rick may refer to: People *Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name *Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality *Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and mycol ...

in 1932. Yager had formal art training at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and was a talented watercolor artist; all the strips were done in ink and watercolor. Yager also had connections with the Chicago newspaper industry, since his father, Charles Montross Yager, was the publisher of ''The Modern Miller''; Rick Yager was at one time employed to write the "Auntie's Advice" column for his father's newspaper. Yager quickly moved from inker and writer of the ''Buck Rogers'' "sub-strip" (early Sunday strips had a small sub-strip running below) to writer and artist of the Sunday strip and eventually the daily strips. Authorship of early strips is extremely difficult to ascertain. The signatures at the bottoms of the strips are not accurate indicators of authorship; Calkins' signature appears long after his involvement ended, and few of the other artists signed the artwork, while many pages are unsigned. Yager probably had complete control of ''Buck Rogers'' Sunday strips from about 1940 on, with Len Dworkins joining later as assistant.

Dick Locher Richard Earl Locher (June 4, 1929 – August 6, 2017) was an American syndicated cartoonist. Early life and career Locher was born in Dubuque, Iowa. After high school, he began studying art at the University of Iowa and the Chicago Academy of ...

was also an assistant in the 1950s. The strip's artists also worked on a variety of tie-in promotions such as comic books, toys, and model rockets. For all of its reference to modern technology, the strip itself was produced in an old-fashioned manner — all strips began as India ink drawings on Strathmore paper, and a smaller duplicate (sometimes redrawn by hand) was hand-colored with watercolors.

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

in Oxford, Ohio, has an extensive collection of original artwork. The relations between the artists of the strip (Yager et al.) and the owners of the strip (the Syndicate) became acrimonious, and in mid-1958, the artists quit.

Murphy Anderson Murphy C. Anderson Jr. (July 9, 1926 – October 22, 2015) was an American comics artist, known as one of the premier inkers of his era, who worked for companies such as DC Comics for over fifty years, starting in the Golden Age of Comic Books in ...

was a temporary replacement, but he did not stay long.

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

began drawing the strip in 1959 and remained until the final installment of the original comic strip, which was published on July 8, 1967. At that point, ''Buck Rogers'' appeared in only 28 newspapers. Artist/writer credits: * Jan 1929 to Sep 1939 –

(a), Philip Nowlan (w) * Sep 1939 to Nov 1947 –

(a);

(w) * Dec 1947 to Oct 1949 –

(a), Bob Williams (aka

Bob Barton Robert Wilbur Barton (July 30, 1941 – January 15, 2018) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher from 1965 to 1974 for the San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds. B ...

) (w) * Oct 1949 to Jan 1951 – Leonard Dworkins (a);

(w) * Jan 1951 to Jun 1958 –

(a),

(w) * Jun 1958 to Apr 1959 –

(a), ??? (w) * Apr 1959 to Apr 1960 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a), Jack Lehti (w) * Apr 1960 to Oct 1960 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a), Howard Liss (w) * Oct 1960 to Feb 1961 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a),

Fritz Leiber Fritz Reuter Leiber Jr. ( ; December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992) was an American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theater and films, playwright, and chess expert. With writers such as Robert ...

(w) * Feb 1961 to May 1961 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a),

Ray Russell Ray Russell (September 4, 1924 – March 15, 1999) was an American editor and writer of short stories, novels, and screenplays. Russell is best known for his horror fiction, although he also wrote mystery and science fiction stories. His most ...

(w) * May 1961 to Nov 1961 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a),

(w) * Dec 1961 to Jul 1967 –

George Tuska George Tuska (; April 26, 1916 – October 16, 2009),George Tuska
at the Social Security Death Index via Fami ...

(a), Howard Liss (w) Art assistants: * 1929 to 1933 –

Zack Mosley Zack Terrell Mosley (December 12, 1906 - December 21, 1993) was an American comic strip artist best known for the aviation adventures in his long-running ''The Adventures of Smilin' Jack'' which ran in more than 300 newspapers from 1933 to 1973. ...

* 1938 to 1942 – Leonard Dworkins * 1951 to 1956 – Leonard Dworkins * 1954 to 1955 –

Revival

Revived in 1979 by the New York Times Syndicate, the strip was produced by

Gray Morrow Dwight Graydon "Gray" Morrow (March 7, 1934 – November 6, 2001).e., the Gilberton Company, publisher of the ''Classics Illustrated'' comic-book series of literary adaptations], and I was given a script. One thing led to another and I was soo ...

and Jim Lawrence (writer), Jim Lawrence. Shortened to ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' in 1980, long-time comic book writer

Cary Bates Cary Bates (born 1948) is an American comic book, animation, television and film writer. He is best known for his work on ''The Flash'', '' Superman'', ''Superboy, the Legion of Superheroes'' and ''Captain Atom''. Biography Early career Bates ...

signed on in 1981, continuing until the strip's 1983 finale.

Characters and story

The first three frames of the series set the scene for Buck's "leap" 500 years into Earth's future: Buck is rendered unconscious, and a strange gas preserves him in a suspended animation or coma state. He awakens and emerges from the mine in 2429 AD, in the midst of another war. After rescuing Wilma, he proves his identity by showing her his American Legion button. She then explains how the Mongol Reds emerged from the Gobi desert to conquer Asia and Europe and then attacked America starting with that "big idol holding a torch" (the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

). Using their disintegrator beams, they easily defeated the army and navy and wiped out Washington, D.C. in three hours. As the people fled the cities, the Mongols built new cities on the ruins of the major cities. The Mongols left the Americans to fend for themselves as their advanced technology prevented the need for slave labor. The scattered Americans formed loosely bound organizations or "orgs" to begin to fight back. Wilma takes Buck back to the Alleghany org in what was once Philadelphia. The leaders don't believe his story at first but after undergoing electro-hypnotic tests, they believe him and admit him into their group. Other prominent characters in the strip included Buck's friend Dr. Huer, who punctuated his speech with the exclamation, "Heh!"; the villainous Killer Kane and his paramour Ardala; and Black Barney, who began as a space pirate but later became Buck's friend and ally. In addition, Buck and his friends encountered various alien races. Hostile species Buck met included the Tiger Men of Mars, the dwarf-like Asterites of the Asteroid belt, and giant robots called Mekkanos. When the Sunday strip began, there was no established convention for the same character having different adventures in the Sunday strip and the daily strip (many newspapers carried one but not the other), so the Sunday strip at first followed the adventures of Buck's young friend Buddy Deering, Wilma Deering's younger brother, and Buddy's girlfriend Alura, later joined by Black Barney. It was some time before Buck himself made his first appearance in a Sunday strip.

Comic books

Over the years, there have been many Buck Rogers appearances in

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

s as well as his own series. Buck appeared in 69 issues of the 1930s comic ''

Famous Funnies ''Famous Funnies'' is an American comic strip anthology series published from 1934 to 1955. Published by Eastern Color Printing, ''Famous Funnies'' is considered by popular culture historians as the first true American comic book, following semin ...

'', then two appearances in ''Vicks Comics'', both published by

Eastern Color Printing The Eastern Color Printing Company was a company that published comic books, beginning in 1933. At first, it was only newspaper comic strip reprints, but later on, original material was published. Eastern Color Printing was incorporated in 19 ...

. Then in 1940, Buck got his own comic entitled ''Buck Rogers'' which lasted for six issues, again published by Eastern Printing. Kelloggs Cereal Company produced two Buck Rogers giveaway comics, one in 1933 and again in 1935. In 1951,

Toby Press Toby Press was an American comic-book company that published from 1949 to 1955. Founded by Elliott Caplin, brother of cartoonist Al Capp and himself an established comic strip writer, the company published reprints of Capp's '' Li'l Abner'' s ...

released three issues of ''Buck Rogers'', all reprints of the comic strip. In 1955, an Australian company called Atlas Productions produced five issues of ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century''.

Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was originally an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated this way from 1962 to 1984. Currently, Gold Key Comics is owned b ...

published a single issue of a Buck Rogers

in 1964. A second series was based on the 1979 television series ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' and was published from 1979 to 1982, first by Gold Key, then by

Whitman Publishing Whitman Publishing is an American book publishing company which started as a subsidiary of the Western Printing & Lithographing Company of Racine, Wisconsin. In about 1915, Western began printing and binding a line of juvenile books for the Hammi ...

, continuing the numbering from the 1964 single issue.

TSR, Inc. TSR, Inc. was an American game publishing company, best known as the original publisher of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). Its earliest incarnation, Tactical Studies Rules, was founded in October 1973 by Gary Gygax and Don Kaye. Gygax had bee ...

published a 10-issue series based on their ''

Buck Rogers XXVC Buck Rogers XXVC (sometimes written as Buck Rogers in the 25th Century) is a game setting created by TSR, Inc. in the late 1980s. Products based on this setting include novels, graphic novels, a role-playing game (RPG), board game, and video ...

'' game from 1990 to 1991. In 2009,

Dynamite Entertainment Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book publisher founded by Nick Barrucci in 2004 at Mount Laurel, New Jersey. It is best known as the owners of '' The Boys'' franchise across several IP medias. Dynamite primarily publishes adaptation ...

began a monthly comic book version of Buck Rogers by writer

Scott Beatty Scott Beatty is an American author, comic book writer, and superhero historian actively published since the late 1990s. Biography Scott Beatty has authored hundreds of adventures for many of comics’ most iconic characters including Batman and R ...

and artist

Carlos Rafael Carlos Rafael may refer to: * Carlos Rafael do Amaral (born 1983), Brazilian football midfielder * Carlos Rafael Fernández (born 1954), Argentine economist and former Minister of the Economy of Argentina * Carlos Jorge (athlete) (''Carlos Rafae ...

. The first issue was released in May 2009. The series ran 13 issues (#0-12) plus an annual, later collected into 2 trade paperbacks. In 2012,

Hermes Press Hermes Press is an American publisher of art books, comic books, and comic book reprints. The company was founded in 2000 and is best known for their archival reprints of classic comic book and strip series and art books. History Hermes Press was ...

announced a new comic book series with artwork by

Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin (; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane, and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker. Early life ...

. The series was collected into a graphic novel titled ''Howard Chaykin's Buck Rogers Volume 1: Grievous Angels'' in 2014.

Books

Starting in 1933, Whitman (an imprint of

Western Publishing Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and ...

) produced 12 Buck Rogers Big Little Books: # ''Buck Rogers, 25th Century A.D.'' (1933) # ''The Adventures of Buck Rogers'' (1934) # ''Buck Rogers in the City Below the Sea'' (1934) # ''Buck Rogers on the Moons of Saturn'' (1934) # ''Buck Rogers and the Depth Men of Jupiter'' (1935) # ''Buck Rogers and the Doom Comet'' (1935) # ''Buck Rogers in the City of Floating Globes'' (1935) # ''Buck Rogers and the Planetoid Plot'' (1936) # ''Buck Rogers in the War with the Planet Venus'' (1938) # ''Buck Rogers Vs. the Fiend of Space'' (1939) # ''Buck Rogers and the Overturned World'' (1941) # ''Buck Rogers and the Super-Dwarf of Space'' (1943)

Radio

In 1932, the ''

Buck Rogers Buck Rogers is a science fiction adventure hero and feature comic strip created by Philip Francis Nowlan first appearing in daily US newspapers on January 7, 1929, and subsequently appearing in Sunday newspapers, international newspapers, books ...

'' radio program, notable as the first science-fiction program on radio, hit the airwaves. It was broadcast in four separate runs with varying schedules. Initially broadcast as a 15-minute show on CBS from 7 November 1932, it was on a Monday through Thursday schedule. In 1936, it moved to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule and went off the air in May of that year. Mutual brought the show back and broadcast it three days a week from April to July 1939 and from May to July 1940, a 30-minute version was broadcast on Saturdays. From September 1946 to March 1947, Mutual aired a 15-minute version on weekdays. The radio show again related the story of our hero Buck finding himself in the 25th century. Actors

Matt Crowley Matt Crowley (June 20, 1905 – March 7, 1983) was an American film, television and radio actor. Life and career Matt Crowley was born in New Haven, Connecticut. He was a student of George Pierce Baker at Yale University. As an actor, Crowl ...

, Curtis Arnall, Carl Frank and John Larkin all voiced him at various times. The beautiful and strong-willed Wilma Deering was portrayed by Adele Ronson, and the brilliant scientist-inventor Dr. Huer was played by Edgar Stehli. The radio series was produced and directed by Carlo De Angelo and later by Jack Johnstone.

Film and television adaptations

World's Fair

A ten-minute Buck Rogers film premiered at the 1933–1934

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

in Chicago. John Dille Jr. (son of strip baron John F. Dille) stars in the film, ''Buck Rogers in the 25th Century: An Interplanetary Battle with the Tiger Men of Mars''. It was later shown in department stores to promote Buck Rogers merchandise. It was shot in the Action Film Company studio in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, and was directed by Dr.

Harlan Tarbell Harlan Eugene Tarbell (February 23, 1890 – June 16, 1960) was an American stage magician and illustrator of the early 20th century. He was the author of the well-known '' Tarbell Course in Magic''. His only foray into cinema was an early 193 ...

. A 35mm print of the film was discovered by the filmmaker's granddaughter, donated to UCLA's film and television archive, restruck and subsequently posted to the web. It is available on the VCI Entertainment DVD 70th Anniversary release of the 1939 ''Buck Rogers'' serial. The characters featured include Buck Rogers,

Wilma Deering Wilma Deering is a fictional character featured in the various iterations of Buck Rogers which have spanned many media over the years.Robert Jennings,"Bucking the Future: From 1928 to the 25th Century With Anthony Rogers". '' Comic Buyer's Guide ...

, Dr. Huer,

Killer Kane Killer Kane is a fictional character in the ''Buck Rogers'' comic strip and its subsequent 1939 ''Buck Rogers'' serial film produced by Universal Studios.M. Keith Brooker, ''Encyclopedia of Comic Books and Graphic Novels''.Santa Barbara, Calif. ...

, Ardala, King Grallo of the Martian Tiger Men, and robots.

Movie serial

A 12-part Buck Rogers

serial film A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a film, motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater ...

was produced in 1939 by

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

Company. Buck Rogers (

Buster Crabbe Clarence Linden Crabbe II (; February 7, 1908 – April 23, 1983), known professionally as Buster Crabbe, was an American two-time Olympic swimmer and film and television actor. He won the 1932 Olympic gold medal for 400-meter freestyle swimmi ...

) and his young friend Buddy Wade get caught in a blizzard and are forced to crash their

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

in the Arctic wastes. In order to survive until they can be rescued, they inhale their supply of Nirvano gas which puts them in a state of suspended animation. When they are eventually rescued by scientists, they learn that 500 years have passed. It is now 2440. A tyrannical dictator named

and his henchmen now run the world. Buck and Buddy must now save the world, and they do so with the help of Lieutenant Wilma Deering and Prince Tallen of Saturn. The serial had a small budget and saved money on special effects by reusing material from other stories: background shots from the futuristic musical ''

Just Imagine ''Just Imagine'' is a 1930 American pre-Code science fiction musical-comedy film, directed by David Butler. The film is known for its art direction and special effects in its portrayal of New York City in an imagined 1980. ''Just Imagine'' st ...

'' (1930), as the city of the future, the garishly stenciled walls from the Azura palace set in ''

Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars ''Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars'' is a 1938 Universal Pictures 15–chapter science-fiction movie serial based on the syndicated newspaper comic strip ''Flash Gordon''. It is the second of the three Flash Gordon serials made by Universal between 1 ...

'', as Kane's penthouse suite, and even the studded leather belt that Crabbe wore in ''Flash Gordon's Trip to Mars'' turned up as part of Buck's uniform. Between 1953 and the mid-1970s, this film serial was edited into three distinct

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 ...

versions.

1950–1951 ABC television series

The first version of Buck Rogers to appear on television debuted on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

on April 15, 1950, and ran until January 30, 1951. There were a total of 36 black and white episodes in all (allowing for a 2-month summer hiatus). One episode of the show survives today. Its time slot initially was on Saturdays at 6 p.m., and each episode was 30-minutes-long. The program was later rescheduled to Tuesday at 7 p.m., where it ran against the popular ''

Texaco Star Theatre ''Texaco Star Theater'' was an American comedy-variety show, broadcast on radio from 1938 to 1949 and telecast from 1948 to 1956. It was one of the first successful examples of American television broadcasting, remembered as the show that gave Mi ...

'' hosted by

Milton Berle Milton Berle (born Mendel Berlinger; ; July 12, 1908 – March 27, 2002) was an American actor and comedian. His career as an entertainer spanned over 80 years, first in silent films and on stage as a child actor, then in radio, movies and tel ...

. The show was sponsored by Peter Paul candy bars. The producers were trying to emulate the success of DuMont's ''

Captain Video ''Captain Video and His Video Rangers'' is an American science fiction television series that aired on the DuMont Television Network and was the first series of its genre on American television. The series aired between June 27, 1949, and Apri ...

'', but the series probably failed as a result of its minuscule budget. The decision to put the show on a summer hiatus for almost two months also undercut efforts to build an audience. In the 1950 TV series, Buck Rogers finds himself in the year 2430. Based in a secret lab in a cave behind

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...

(the city of Niagara was now the capital of the world), Buck battles intergalactic troublemakers. Due to the minuscule budget, most of the episodes took place mainly in the secret lab. There were a number of changes to the cast during the series' short duration. Three actors played Buck Rogers in the series:

Earl Hammond Erwin Saul Hamburger (June 17, 1921 – May 19, 2002), known professionally as Earl Hammond, was an American actor, who has appeared in several films and television series. Career Earl Hammond began acting in radio at the age of 7, and continued ...

(who starred as Buck very briefly), Kem Dibbs (whose last appearance in the role was aired on June 3), and Robert Pastene (whose first appearance in the role was aired on June 10). The series apparently went on summer hiatus from around July 7 until the end of August, probably reappearing on the air again around Labor Day with Robert Pastene still in the lead role. (Kem Dibbs went on to have a long acting career in film and television.) Two actresses portrayed Wilma Deering:

Eva Marie Saint Eva Marie Saint (born July 4, 1924) is an American actress of film, theatre and television. In a career spanning over 70 years, she has won an Academy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, alongside nominations for a Golden Globe Award and two Brit ...

and Lou Prentis. Two actors would also play Dr. Huer: Harry Southern and

Sanford Bickart Sanford may refer to: People *Sanford (given name), including a list of people with the name *Sanford (surname), including a list of people with the name Places United States * Sanford, Alabama, a town in Covington County * Sanford, Colorado, ...

. Black Barney Wade was played by Harry Kingston. The series was directed by Babette Henry, written by Gene Wyckoff and produced by

Joe Cates Joseph Davis Cates (August 3, 1905 – October 13, 1967) was an American Negro league shortstop in the 1930s. A native of Madisonville, Kentucky, Cates played for the Louisville White Sox in 1931. In 28 recorded games, he posted 21 hits in 107 ...

and Babette Henry. The series was broadcast live from station

WENR-TV WLS-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, airing programming from the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios on North State S ...

, the ABC affiliate in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. There is one known surviving

kinescope Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film, directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 1940 ...

of this first Buck Rogers television series, airdate 12-19-50, episode title "Ghost in the House". The surviving episode states it originated from ABC in New York, casting some doubt on the Chicago WENR-TV claims. Perhaps as the show was remounted, the base of operations changed. At the time of broadcast, the ABC owned and operated WJZ-TV New York, which in 1953 became WABC-TV New York.

Motion picture and 1979–1981 NBC television series

In 1979, Buck Rogers was revived and updated for a prime-time television series for

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

Television. The pilot film was released to cinemas on March 30, 1979. Good box office returns led NBC to commission a full series, which started in September 1979. Glen A. Larson produced the film and the first season of the eventual series. The series starred

Gil Gerard Gil Gerard (born January 23, 1943) is an American actor, whose roles include Captain William "Buck" Rogers in the 1979–81 television series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century''. Early life Gerard was born January 23, 1943, in Little Rock, Arkan ...

as Captain William "Buck" Rogers, a

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

pilot who commands ''Ranger III'', a

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...

-like ship that is launched in 1987. When his ship flies through a space phenomenon containing a combination of gases, his ship's life support systems malfunction and he is frozen and left drifting in space for 504 years. By the time he is revived, he finds himself in the 25th century. There, he learns that

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

was united following a devastating global

nuclear war Nuclear warfare, also known as atomic warfare, is a theoretical military conflict or prepared political strategy that deploys nuclear weaponry. Nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction; in contrast to conventional warfare, nuclear w ...

that occurred in the late 20th century, and is now under the protection of the Earth Defense Directorate, headquartered in New Chicago. The latest threat to Earth comes from the spaceborne armies of the planet Draconia, which is planning an invasion. Co-starring in the series were

Erin Gray Erin Gray (born January 7, 1950) is an American model, casting agent, and actress whose roles include Colonel Wilma Deering in the science fiction television series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' and Kate Summers-Stratton in the situat ...

as crack Starfighter pilot Colonel Wilma Deering, and Tim O'Connor as Dr. Elias Huer, head of Earth Defense Directorate, and a former starpilot himself. Ardala appeared (played by

Pamela Hensley Pamela Gail Hensley (born October 3, 1950) is an American actress and author. Her notable acting roles include Princess Ardala on the 1979–1981 television series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'' and C.J. Parsons on the 1982–1985 televisio ...

), as a Draconian princess supervising her father's armies, with Kane (played by

Henry Silva Henry Silva (September 23, 1926 – September 14, 2022) was an American actor. A prolific character actor, Silva was a regular staple of international genre cinema, usually playing criminals or gangsters. His notable film appearances include ...

in the film; by

Michael Ansara Michael George Ansara (April 15, 1922 – July 31, 2013) was an American actor. He portrayed Cochise in the television series '' Broken Arrow'', Kane in the 1979–1981 series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century'', Commander Kang in ''Star Trek ...

in the series) as her enforcer, a gender reversal of the original characters where Ardala was Killer Kane's sidekick. Although Black Barney did not appear as a character in the series, there was a character named Barney Smith (played by

James Sloyan James Joseph Sloyan (born February 24, 1940 in Indianapolis, Indiana) is an American actor. Early years Sloyan left the United States at an early age to live abroad in Rome, Capri, Milan, Switzerland, and Ireland. His career in show busines ...

) who appeared in the two-part episode, "The Plot to Kill a City". New characters added for the series included a comical robot named Twiki (played by

Felix Silla Felix Anthony Silla (January 11, 1937 – April 16, 2021), also credited as Felix Cilla, was an Italian actor and stuntman, known for his career in Hollywood in TV and film. Silla starting his career in the circus, but is best known especial ...

and voiced by

Mel Blanc Melvin Jerome Blanc (born Blank ; May 30, 1908July 10, 1989) was an American voice actor and radio personality whose career spanned over 60 years. During the Golden Age of Radio, he provided character voices and vocal sound effects for comedy ra ...

), who becomes Buck's personal assistant, and Dr. Theopolis (voiced by

Eric Server Eric Server (born December 4, 1944 in Santa Monica, California) is an American television actor, best known for providing the voice of computer brain Dr. Theopolis in the 1979 TV series '' Buck Rogers in the 25th Century''. From 1979 to 1981 he ...

), a sentient computer that Twiki often carries around. Buster Crabbe from the original serial series had a cameo in the series as well. The series ran for two seasons on NBC. Production and broadcast of the second season was delayed by several months due to the 1980 actors strike. When the series returned in early 1981, its core format had been revised. Now rather than defending Earth, Buck and Wilma were aboard the deep-space exploration vessel ''Searcher'' on a mission to track down the lost colonies of humanity. Tim O'Connor's Dr. Huer was written out of the series and replaced by

Wilfrid Hyde-White Wilfrid Hyde-White (12 May 1903 – 6 May 1991) was a British character actor of stage, film and television. He achieved international recognition for his role as Colonel Pickering in the film version of the musical ''My Fair Lady'' (1964). Ea ...

as quirky scientist Dr. Goodfellow and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

character actor

Jay Garner Jay Montgomery Garner (born April 15, 1938) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who in 2003 was appointed as Director of the Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance for Iraq following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, makin ...

as Vice Admiral Efram Asimov of the Earth Force. Also onboard was

Thom Christopher Thom Christopher (born October 5, 1940)Staff"Thom Christopher" ''Soap Opera Digest''. Accessed May 28, 2009. "Native New Yorker Thom Christopher hails from the Queens neighborhood of Jackson Heights." is an American actor. Christopher attended ...

playing the role of Hawk, a stoic birdman in search of other members of his ancient race. The revamp was unsuccessful and the series was canceled at the end of the 1980–1981 season. Two novels based on the series by Addison E. Steele were published, a

novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...

of the 1979 feature film, and ''That Man on Beta'', an adaptation of an unproduced teleplay.

Future films and conflict

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book writer, penciller and inker, novelist, screenwriter, film director, and producer known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'' and subsequen ...

was slated to write and direct a new motion picture with

Odd Lot Entertainment OddLot Entertainment was an American independent film studio, founded by Gigi Pritzker and Deborah Del Prete in 2001, which dealt with financing and production of films. History OddLot Entertainment In 2013 OddLot has produced a cinematic versio ...

, the production company that worked with Miller on ''

The Spirit The Spirit is a fictional masked crimefighter created by cartoonist Will Eisner. He first appeared June 2, 1940, as the main feature of a 16-page, tabloid (paper size), tabloid-sized, newsprint comic book insert distributed in the Sunday editio ...

''. However, after ''The Spirit'' became a box office and critical failure, Miller's involvement with the project ended. In 2015, the producer

Don Murphy Don Murphy (born April 1967) is an American film producer who produced '' Natural Born Killers'', ''Real Steel'', '' Splice'' and many other films, including ''Transformers'' and '' Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen''. Personal background ...

announced that he was developing a Buck Rogers film based on the novella ''Armageddon 2419 A.D.'', however this conflicted with the Dille Family Trust, which claimed to hold the rights of the franchise. In February 2019 the Dille Family Trust (DFT) entered into a Settlement Agreement with the Nowlan Family Trust selling the Trust's assets and assigning the DFT's intellectual property rights to Buck Rogers to the Nowlan Family Trust and the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Civil Action NO 15-6231 case was dismissed with prejudice on March 4, 2019. Subsequently, the Dille Family Trust filed for an adjudication and termination of the trust in Court of Common Pleas of Lawrence County Pennsylvania Orphan Court, Case NO 43-19 OC Lawrence County, PA. The Lawrence County Court retains jurisdiction over the matter. On April 4, 2019 the Beneficiaries of the Dille Family Trust filed an Ex Parte Petition in SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES Probate Division. The stated general purpose of the petition was to appoint the Beneficiaries as co trustees of the trust. Case No. 19STPB03164 was dismissed with prejudice on July 11, 2019. Again on October 29, 2020 the Beneficiaries of the Dille Family Trust filed an Ex Parte Petition for an order approving the termination of the trust, distribution of assets and waiver of accounting however this time in the SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF SAN MATEO, Case No, 20PR001401. The case was dismissed with prejudice on April 4, 2021 and the November 2, 2020 Order vacated/set aside. The Lawrence County Court retains jurisdiction over the Trust. On October 14, 2020, it was announced that Don Murphy,

Susan Montford Susan Montford is a Scottish filmmaker living in Los Angeles. She has produced, written and directed movies that range from cult hits to blockbusters. She was born in Glasgow, Scotland. She is related to the Scottish football commentator Arthur ...

, Flint Dille and

Legendary Entertainment Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC (doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...

will produce a Buck Rogers film which is intended to launch a transmedia franchise. Legendary had no comment. On December 10, 2020, it was announced that the same Murphy/Montford/Dille/Legendary consortium is developing a new Buck Rogers television series with

Brian K. Vaughan Brian K. Vaughan (born July 17, 1976) is an American comic book and television writer, best known for the comic book series '' Y: The Last Man'', '' Ex Machina'', '' Runaways'', ''Pride of Baghdad'', ''Saga'', and '' Paper Girls''. Vaughan was a ...

writing. Legendary had no comment. On January 29, 2021, it was announced that

Smokehouse Pictures Smokehouse Pictures is an American film and television production company. The company was founded in 2006 by George Clooney and Grant Heslov after the shutdown of Section Eight Productions. Its name is taken from the Smoke House restaurant, loc ...

will also co-executive produce. Smokehouse co-founder

George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by George Clooney, numerous accolades, including a British Academy Film Awards, British Academy Film A ...

is also suggested to star in the series. Legendary had no comment.

Role-playing games and video games

''Buck Rogers XXVC''

In 1988,

created a game setting based on Buck Rogers, called ''

''. Many products were produced that were set in this universe, including comic books, novels,

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing a ...

game material and

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

s. In the

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

, the

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

s were allied to Buck Rogers and NEO (the New Earth Organisation) in their fight against RAM (a Russian-American corporation based on Mars). The games also extensively featured "gennies" (genetically enhanced organisms). The gameplay of the ''Buck Rogers – Battle for the 25th Century''

board game Board games are tabletop games that typically use . These pieces are moved or placed on a pre-marked board (playing surface) and often include elements of table, card, role-playing, and miniatures games as well. Many board games feature a comp ...

by TSR dealt with token movement and

resource management In organizational studies, resource management is the efficient and effective development of an organization's resources when they are needed. Such resources may include the financial resources, inventory, human skills, production resources, or i ...

. There is purported to be a single expansion for the board game called the ''Martian Wars Expansion'', but it is not known if this was ever released.

Books

From 1990 to 1991, ten "comics modules" set in the ''Buck Rogers XXVC'' universe were published, entitled ''Rude Awakening'' #1 - #3, ''Black Barney'' #1 - #3. and ''Martian Wars'' #1-#4. These shared the numbering as a series issues #1 - #10 with issue #10 as a flip-book with Intruder #10. There has been speculation that two more stories were printed but not widely distributed.

= Ten paperback novels set in the XXVC universe were published, starting in 1989

= * ''Arrival'' (anthology) by

Flint Dille Flint Dille (born November 3, 1955) is an American screenwriter, game designer and novelist. He is best known for his animated work on ''Transformers'', '' G.I. Joe'', '' An American Tail: Fievel Goes West'', and his game-writing, '' The Chronicl ...

, Abigail Irvine, Melinda Seabrooke (M.S.) Murdock,

Jerry Oltion Jerry Oltion (born 1957) is a science fiction author from Eugene, Oregon, known for numerous novels and short stories, including books in the '' Star Trek'' series. He is a member of the Wordos writers' group and also writes under the pen name ...

, Ulrike O'Reilly and

Robert Sheckley Robert Sheckley (July 16, 1928 – December 9, 2005) was an American writer. First published in the science-fiction magazines of the 1950s, his many quick-witted stories and novels were famously unpredictable, absurdist, and broadly comical. ...

(TSR, Mar 1989, ) ''The Martian Wars Trilogy'' * ''Rebellion 2456'' by M.S. Murdock (TSR, May 1989, ) * ''Hammer of Mars'' by M.S. Murdock (TSR, Aug 1989, ) * ''Armageddon off Vesta'' by M.S. Murdock (TSR, Oct 1989, ) ''The Inner Planets Trilogy'' * ''First Power Play'' by John Miller (TSR, Aug 1990, ) * ''Prime Squared'' by M.S. Murdock (TSR, Oct 1990, ) * ''Matrix Cubed'' by Britton Bloom (TSR, May 1991, ) ''Invaders of Charon Trilogy'' * ''The Genesis Web'' by Ellen C. & Theodore M. Brennan (C.M. Brennan) (TSR, May 1992, ) * ''Nomads of the Sky'' by William H. Keith Jr. (TSR, Oct 1992, ) * ''Warlords of Jupiter'' by William H. Keith Jr. (TSR, Feb 1993, )

= Also based on the game

= * '' Buck Rogers: A Life in the Future'' by

, a standalone novel retelling the original story. (TSR, 1995, )

Pinball

At the beginning of 1980, a few months after the show debuted,

Gottlieb Gottlieb (formerly D. Gottlieb & Co.) was an American arcade game corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. History The main office and plant was located at 1140-50 N. Kostner Avenue until the early 1970s when a new modern plant and office was lo ...

came out with a Buck Rogers pinball machine to commemorate the resurgence of the franchise.

Video games

''Planet of Zoom'' video game

Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...

released the

arcade video game An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an arca ...

in 1982.

Strategic Simulations

In 1990, Strategic Simulations, Inc. released a ''Buck Rogers XXVC'' video game, '' Countdown to Doomsday'', for the

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...

IBM PC The IBM Personal Computer (model 5150, commonly known as the IBM PC) is the first microcomputer released in the IBM PC model line and the basis for the IBM PC compatible de facto standard. Released on August 12, 1981, it was created by a team ...

Sega Mega Drive The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Syst ...

, and

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

. It released a sequel, '' Matrix Cubed'', in 1992.

''High-Adventure Cliffhangers''

In 1995, TSR created a new and unrelated Buck Rogers role-playing game called '' High-Adventure Cliffhangers''. This was a return to the themes of the original Buck Rogers comic strips. This game included biplanes and interracial warfare, as opposed to the space combat of the earlier game. There were only a few expansion modules created for High-Adventure Cliffhangers. Shortly afterward, the game was discontinued, and the production of Buck Rogers RPGs and games came to an end. This game was neither widely advertised nor very popular. There were only two published products: the box set, and "War Against the Han".

Later novels

Many of the later appearances of Buck Rogers departed widely from the original circumstances of the Han-dominated America and the hero from the past helping overturn that domination; Rogers in his numerous later incarnations was given various other past careers which did not include the Han. However, in the 1980s the original ''

'' was taken up again and authorized sequels to it were written by other authors working from an outline co-written by

Larry Niven Laurence van Cott Niven (; born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction writer. His best-known works are ''Ringworld'' (1970), which received Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards, and, with Jerry Pournelle, ''The Mote in God's Eye'' ...

and

Jerry Pournelle Jerry Eugene Pournelle (; August 7, 1933 – September 8, 2017) was an American scientist in the area of operations research and human factors research, a science fiction writer, essayist, journalist, and one of the first bloggers. In the 1960s ...

and loosely tied-in with their bestseller ''

Lucifer's Hammer ''Lucifer's Hammer'' is a science fiction post-apocalypse-survival novel by American writers Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle that was first published in 1977. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1978. Two issues of a planned si ...

'' (1977). The first sequel begins 2476 AD, when a widowed and cantankerous 86-year-old Anthony Rogers is mysteriously rejuvenated during a resurgence of the presumed-extinct Han, now called the Pr'lan. The novels include: * ''Mordred'' by

John Eric Holmes John Eric Holmes (February 16, 1930 – March 20, 2010) was an American professor of neurology and writer of non-fiction, fantasy and science fiction. His writings appeared under his full name and under variants such as Eric Holmes and J. Eric ...

(Ace, January 1981, ) * ''Warrior's Blood'' by Richard S. McEnroe (Ace, January 1981, ) * ''Warrior's World'' by Richard S. McEnroe (Ace, October 1981, ) * ''Rogers' Rangers'' by John Silbersack (Ace, August 1983, )

Toys

Buck Rogers in the 25th Century U-238 Atomic Pistol-NMAH-AHB2015q029270

The first ''Buck Rogers'' toys appeared in 1933, four years after the newspaper strip debuted and a year after the radio show first aired. Some mark this as the beginning of modern character based licensed merchandising, in that not only was the character's name and image branded on many unrelated products, but also on many items of merchandise unique to or directly inspired by that character. Of the many toys associated with ''Buck Rogers'', none is more closely identified with the franchise than the eponymous toy

raygun A raygun is a science-fiction directed-energy weapon that releases energy, usually with destructive effect.Jeff Prucher, '' Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction,'' Oxford University Press, 2007, page 162 They have vario ...

s. The first "Buck Rogers gun" wasn't technically a raygun, although its futuristic shape and distinctive lines set the pattern for all "space guns" that would follow. The XZ-31 Rocket Pistol, a 9½-inch pop gun that produced a distinctive "zap!" sound, was at the American Toy Fair in February 1934. Retailed for 50¢, which was by no means inexpensive during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, it was designed to mimic the rocket pistols seen in the comic strips from their inception. In the comics, they were automatic pistols that fired explosive rockets instead of bullets, each round as effective as a 20th-century

hand grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...

. The XZ-31 Rocket Pistol, was the first of six toy guns manufactured over the next two decades by Daisy, which had an exclusive contract with John Dille, then head of the National Newspaper Syndicate of America, for all ''Buck Rogers'' toys. Most of these were pop guns, which had the virtue a being noisemakers that couldn't fire any actual projectiles and were thus guaranteed to be harmless as one of their selling points. The XZ-35 Rocket Pistol, a smaller 7-inch version without some of the detail of the original that's often called "the Wilma Pistol" by collectors, followed in 1935, retailing for 25¢ and arguably offering less value for quintuple the initial price. Most consumers hardly noticed, because in 1935 the floodgates were opened and they had a lot choices. Both the XZ-31 and XZ-35 were cast in " blued" steel with silvery nickel accents. The XZ-38 Disintegrator Pistol, the first actual "ray gun" toy and such an iconic symbol of the franchise that it made a cameo appearance in the first episode of the 1939 movie serial, as if to show that what the audience was seeing was indeed the Real Thing, debuted in 1935. It was a 10-inch pop gun topped with flint-and-striker

sparkler A sparkler is a type of hand-held firework that burns slowly while emitting bright, intense colored flames, sparks, and other effects. Sparklers are particularly popular with children. In the United Kingdom, a sparkler is often used by chil ...

using a mechanism, not unlike that used in cigarette lighters, cast in a distinctive metallic copper color. The XZ-44

Liquid Helium Liquid helium is a physical state of helium at very low temperatures at standard atmospheric pressures. Liquid helium may show superfluidity. At standard pressure, the chemical element helium exists in a liquid form only at the extremely low temp ...

Water Pistol Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a s ...

was produced in late 1935 and early 1936. Loaded like a syringe by dipping nozzle into a container of water and drawing back a plunger, it was advertised to be capable of shooting 50 times without reloading. In 1946, following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the advent of the

atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

, Daisy reissued the XZ-38 in a silver finish that mimicked the new

jet aircraft A jet aircraft (or simply jet) is an aircraft (nearly always a fixed-wing aircraft) propelled by jet engines. Whereas the engines in propeller-powered aircraft generally achieve their maximum efficiency at much lower speeds and altitudes, je ...

of the day as the

U-235 Uranium-235 (235U or U-235) is an isotope of uranium making up about 0.72% of natural uranium. Unlike the predominant isotope uranium-238, it is fissile, i.e., it can sustain a nuclear chain reaction. It is the only fissile isotope that exists ...

Atomic Pistol. By then, pop guns were considered old-fashioned, and even the ''Buck Rogers'' franchise was losing its luster, having been overtaken by real-world events and the prospect of actual crewed space flight. By 1952, Daisy lost its exclusive license to the ''Buck Rogers'' name and even dropped any pretense of making a toy raygun. Its final offering was a reissue of the XZ-35 with a garish red, white, blue and yellow color scheme, dubbed the Zooka. The ''Buck Rogers'' rocket pistol that had started it all 20 years earlier had been overtaken by the real world

bazooka Bazooka () is the common name for a Man-portable anti-tank systems, man-portable recoilless Anti-tank warfare, anti-tank rocket launcher weapon, widely deployed by the United States Army, especially during World War II. Also referred to as the ...

. "Space guns" in general and "rayguns" in particular only gained in prestige as the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

"space race" began and interest in "The ''Buck Rogers'' Stuff" was renewed, but it was no longer enough to offer a futuristic cap or pop gun. A proper raygun needed to actually project some sort of ray if it were to capture the imaginations of would-be space travelers of 1950s Americans. Enter the era of the plastic battery-powered flashlight raygun. In 1953, Norton-Honer introduced the Sonic Ray Gun, which was essentially a 7½-inch flashlight mounted on a pistol grip. Pressing the trigger activated not only the flashlight beam (which had interchangeable colored lenses for differently colored "rays") but also an electronic buzzer. It could, therefore, be used as a pretend raygun but also as an actual

Morse Code Morse code is a method used in telecommunication to encode text characters as standardized sequences of two different signal durations, called ''dots'' and ''dashes'', or ''dits'' and ''dahs''. Morse code is named after Samuel Morse, one of ...

signal device. This toy, and its successor, the Norton-Honer Super Sonic Ray Gun, was featured prominently in the actual ''Buck Rogers'' newspaper strips of the time, many of which concluded with a secret message in a Morse Code variant called the Rocket Rangers International Code, the key to which was available only by sending as self-addressed stamped envelope to the newspaper syndicate or the "

cheat sheet A cheat sheet (also ''cheatsheet'') or crib sheet is a concise set of notes used for quick reference. Cheat sheets were historically used by students without an instructor or teacher's knowledge to cheat on a test or exam. In the context of h ...

" included in the package with the toy. In 1934, a Rocket Police Patrol Ship windup red and green tin toy spaceship was produced by Louis Marx & Company with Buck seated in the cockpit holding a ray gun rifle. A second orange and yellow Patrol Ship was released the same year by Marx with window profile portraits of both Wilma and Buddy Deering on the right side and Buck and Dr Huer on the left side. Both tin toys are in the collection of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. In 1936, a line of Buck Rogers painted lead metal toy soldier three-inch figures were made for the British market. These were a set of six British Premium figures for Cream of Wheat and included Buck, Dr. Huer, Wilma, Kane, Ardala and an unidentified Mekkano Man Robot. In 1937, Tootsietoys put out a six-piece die cast metal set of four 5″ long space ships and two 1.75″ tall figures of Buck and Wilma. In 2009 and 2011, two versions of Buck Rogers action figures were released by the entertainment/toy companies "Go Hero" and "Zica Toys". The first is a vintage version of Buck Rogers as he appeared in the original comic strip. This 1:6 scale figure of Buck wears the 1930s period uniform including visor leather like plastic helmet and vest, a glass bubble space helmet, a red light up plastic flame jet pack, a mini gold colored metal XZ-38 Disintegrator Ray Pistol and a wooden slotted lid box with the limited edition number up to 1000. The second 1:9 scale figure is based on Gil Gerard wearing the white flight suit from the 1979 movie/TV series and also features a Tigerman figure.

In popular culture

Buck Rogers's name has become proverbial in such expressions as "Buck Rogers outfit" for a protective suit that looks like a

space suit A space suit or spacesuit is a garment worn to keep a human alive in the harsh environment of outer space, vacuum and temperature extremes. Space suits are often worn inside spacecraft as a safety precaution in case of loss of cabin pressure, ...

. During the mid 20th century, the bulk of the American public's exposure to science fiction literature came through newspaper comics, and their opinion was formed accordingly. Stemming from this, a phrase in common use before 1950 was "that crazy Buck Rogers stuff" in regards to what they viewed as fantastical literature. Such was the fame of Buck Rogers that this became the basis for one of the most fondly remembered science fiction spoofs in a series of cartoons in which

Daffy Duck Daffy Duck is an animated cartoon fictional character, character created for Warner Bros. Cartoons, Leon Schlesinger Productions by animators Tex Avery and Bob Clampett. Styled as an Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic American black duck, black ...

portrayed

Duck Dodgers Duck Dodgers is the metafictional star of a series of cartoons produced by Warner Bros., featuring Daffy Duck in the role of a science fiction hero. He first appeared in the 1953 cartoon short ''Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century'', directed b ...

. The first of these was ''

Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century ''Duck Dodgers in the th Century'' (spoken as "twenty-fourth-and-a-half") is a 1953 Warner Bros. '' Merrie Melodies'' cartoon directed by Chuck Jones. The cartoon was released on July 25, 1953, and stars Daffy Duck as space hero Duck Dodgers, ...

'' (1953), which was directed by

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the ''Looney Tunes'' and ''Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, produ ...

. There were also two sequels to this cartoon, and ultimately a ''

'' television series. Buck Rogers is featured in

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

's blockbuster sci-fi movie '' E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (1982). E.T. is inspired to create a makeshift communicating device (to 'phone home') by copying a Buck Rogers comic strip. The ''Buck Rogers'' appellation has become a particularly descriptive term for vertical landings of '' spaceships'', which was the predominant mode of rocket landing envisioned in the pre-

spaceflight Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly spacecraft into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight is uncrewed and conducted mainly with spacecraft such as satellites in or ...

era at the time Buck Rogers made his original appearance. While many science fiction authors and other depictions in popular culture showed rockets landing vertically, typically resting after landing on the space vehicle's

fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

s, ''Buck Rogers'' seems to have gained a special place as a descriptive compound adjective. For example, this view was sufficiently ingrained in popular culture that in 1993, following a successful low-altitude test flight of a prototype rocket, a writer opined: "The

DC-X The DC-X, short for Delta Clipper or Delta Clipper Experimental, was an uncrewed prototype of a reusable single-stage-to-orbit launch vehicle built by McDonnell Douglas in conjunction with the United States Department of Defense's Strategic De ...

launched vertically, hovered in mid-air ... The spacecraft stopped mid-air again and, as the engines throttled back, began its successful vertical landing. Just like ''Buck Rogers''." In the 2010s, SpaceX rockets have likewise seen the appellation to ''Buck Rogers'' in a "Quest to Create a '''Buck Rogers''' Reusable Rocket" or a ''Buck Rogers'' dream. The animated television series ''

Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years a ...

'', created by

Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is the creator of the comic strip ''Life in Hell'' (1977–2012) and the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Fut ...

and David X. Cohen in 1999, was strongly influenced by themes and characters from the "Buck Rogers" comic strip, as well as many other science fiction books and films. "

" was a hit single by the British rock band Feeder in 2001. The

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

' self-titled album (1995) features Buck Rogers's XZ-38 Disintegrator Pistol on the album's cover. Track nine of

Hyphy The term hyphy ( ) is Oakland slang meaning "hyperactive". More specifically, it is an adjective describing the hip hop music and the culture associated with the area. The term was first coined by Oakland rapper Keak da Sneak. History The hyp ...

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...

rapper

Mac Dre Andre Louis Hicks (July 5, 1970 – November 1, 2004), known by his stage name Mac Dre, was an American rapper from Vallejo, California. He was an instrumental figure in the emergence of hyphy The term hyphy ( ) is Oakland slang meaning "h ...

's album ''

Heart of a Gangsta, Mind of a Hustla, Tongue of a Pimp ''Heart of a Gangsta, Mind of a Hustla, Tongue of a Pimp'' is the fourth album by Bay Area rapper Mac Dre. Originally released on Outbac Records, on Ghetto Celebrities, Mac Dre makes reference to Outbac Records (James Ross - now known as Ehustle ...

'' (2000) is titled "Black Buck Rogers". In '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), the film about the United States supersonic test pilots of the 1940s and 1950s and the early days of the United States space program, in one scene, the character of the Air Force Liaison Man tells test pilots

Chuck Yeager Brigadier General Charles Elwood Yeager ( , February 13, 1923December 7, 2020) was a United States Air Force officer, flying ace, and record-setting test pilot who in October 1947 became the first pilot in history confirmed to have exceeded the ...

and Jack Ridley and test pilots and future

Mercury Seven The Mercury Seven were the group of seven astronauts selected to fly spacecraft for Project Mercury. They are also referred to as the Original Seven and Astronaut Group 1. Their names were publicly announced by NASA on April 9, 1959; these seve ...

astronauts

Gus Grissom Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom (April 3, 1926 – January 27, 1967) was an American engineer, pilot in the United States Air Force, and member of the Mercury Seven selected by National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) as Project Mercur ...

Deke Slayton Donald Kent "Deke" Slayton (March 1, 1924 – June 13, 1993) was a United States Air Force pilot, aeronautical engineer, and test pilot who was selected as one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts. He went on to become NASA's first ...

and

Gordon Cooper Leroy Gordon "Gordo" Cooper Jr. (March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004) was an American aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force pilot, and the youngest of the seven original astronauts in Project Mercury, the first human spa ...

about the need for positive media coverage in order to assure continued government funding for the rocket program, dramatically declaring "no bucks — no Buck Rogers!" In a later scene in which the seven astronauts confront the NASA rocket scientists who have been running the program to demand changes to allow them to fly their spacecraft as actual pilots rather than as mere passive passengers in vehicles totally controlled from the ground—threatening to reveal to the press how they were being marginalized despite their public status as heroes, which would in turn damage Congressional support for the program—Cooper, Grissom and Slayton repeat the "no bucks — no Buck Rogers!" speech to the startled scientists to make their point. In

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

's epic drama '' The Aviator'' (2004),

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in th ...

refers the

Hughes XF-11 The Hughes XF-11 (redesignated XR-11 in 1948) was a prototype military reconnaissance aircraft designed and flown by Howard Hughes and built by Hughes Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Although 100 F-11s were ordered in ...

as his Buck Rogers ship. Buck Rogers is heavily referenced in the 2006 two-episode arc of the animated television series ''

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

'', "

Go God Go "Go God Go" is the twelfth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series '' South Park''. The 151st episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 1, 2006. The episod ...

" and "

Go God Go XII "Go God Go XII" is the thirteenth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series '' South Park''. The 152nd episode of the series overall, it first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 8, 2006. Written a ...

References

External links

* * * Strickler, Dave. ''Syndicated Comic Strips and Artists, 1924–1995: The Complete Index''. Cambria, CA: Comics Access, 1995. .
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
(official website, Buck Rogers and Dille Family Trust) – checked 19 nov 2011—not available * *

Audio/video

Public domain ''Buck Rogers'' radio serials
at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{Authority control Science fiction book series Science fiction comics Drama comics American comic strips American comics characters American comics adapted into films Comics adapted into radio series Comics adapted into television series Comics adapted into video games Comics characters introduced in 1929 Comics set in the 25th century 1929 comics debuts 1967 comics endings 1979 comics debuts 1983 comics endings 1950 American television series debuts 1951 American television series endings 1950s American science fiction television series American space adventure films Rogers, Anthony Rogers, Anthony Rogers, Anthony Rogers, Anthony Rogers, Anthony Rogers, Anthony Film serial characters Post-apocalyptic comics Science fiction film characters Science fiction television characters Space adventure television series ZX Spectrum games

Buck Rogers comic strip

Publication history

Revival

Characters and story

Comic books

Books

Radio

Film and television adaptations

World's Fair

Movie serial

1950–1951 ABC television series

Motion picture and 1979–1981 NBC television series

Future films and conflict

Role-playing games and video games

''Buck Rogers XXVC''

Books

= Ten paperback novels set in the XXVC universe were published, starting in 1989

= Also based on the game

Pinball

Video games

''Planet of Zoom'' video game

Strategic Simulations

''High-Adventure Cliffhangers''

Later novels

Toys

In popular culture

See also

References

External links

Audio/video