Thanks to DuMont scholar David Weinstein, here for your viewing pleasure are some incredibly rare behind-the-scenes images from CAPTAIN VIDEO at the beginning of its second season. These appeared in DuMont's in-house newsletter for employees, namely THE RASTER, issue of August, 1950. During this period, CAPTAIN VIDEO was broadcast 7 to 7:30 PM weekdays, and 7:30 to 8 PM on Saturdays, "EDST... on the Du Mont web," as the article says, going on to say "The tremendously popular feature enjoys... a daily viewer audience of well over a million. Youthful worshippers grant this new electronics hero a place heretofore reserved for such stalwarts as Dick Tracy, Jack Armstrong or Flash Gordon. Captain Video even outsupers Superman, to the daily delight of an enchanted audience of small and not-so-small fry." [Throughout the newsletter, by the way, DuMont is consistently written as two words, "Du Mont."]

First Announcer: "Caappptaaiinn Viiddeeeooo! Electronic Wizard! Master of Time and Space! Guardian of the Safety of the World!"

Second Announcer: "Fighting for law and order, Captain Video operates from a mountain retreat-- with secret agents at all points of the globe. Possessing scientific secrets and scientific weapons, Captain Video asks no quarter, and gives none, to the forces of evil! Stand by for Caaappptaaiinn Viiddeeeooo, and his Video Rangers!"

DuMont's program director James L. Caddigan (seated, with bow-tie) took a very active hand in day-to-day programming, even writing scripts when emergencies arose. In particular, CAPTAIN VIDEO was Caddigan's "personal baby," since he considered himself its co-creator, and it was always DuMont's top-rated show. Here he makes some suggestions for forthcoming plot developments to Captain Video's first scriptwriter, Maurice C. Brockhauser, standing, who billed himself as M. C. Brock in these days.

CAPTAIN VIDEO's director Larry White (right, in grey suit) goes over the day's script with production facilities manager Al Hollander, specifically to identify the particular props and any new sets that will be needed in the coming episode.

By this time, Captain Video finally had a prop department, and here Dick Geismar is shown constructing the Captain's fearsome ray rifle. As near as we can tell from this and other photos, the rifle consists of the front half of a wind-up cap-firing machinegun, with the handgrip of a western-style cap gun sticking out of the open end to provide a forward grip for the rifle. One plastic pipe goes back to an oddly-shaped plastic box with a dial on the side. Two other plastic pipes run from the open rear of the cap-firing machinegun mechanism to what seems to be mainly the rear half of the same cap-firing machinegun, with a bit of extra detailing stuck on here and there. However it was made, it looks quite effective, and is shown in a large number of publicity photos from the 1950 - 53 period. For another view of it, dating from early in 1952 after Al Hodge took over the role of Captain Video, click here.

Other important behind-the-scenes members of the Captain Video crew were Rudy Luchek, who painted most of the scenery, and sound-effects man Ken Rodney. Andy Jaeger, DuMont's film librarian, picked out the B-Westerns to be shown in 10 minute segments during every daily broadcast, and Pete Sarkies did any film editing required. Finally, Elizabeth Mears handled casting for all the DuMont programs. All are depicted in the original article. By the way, throughout the article, DuMont's network is referred to as a "web."

CAPTAIN VIDEO was broadcast live from DuMont's Wanamaker Studio A. Here's the main set, the Captain's secret mountain headquarters. On the right side of the photo can be glimpsed what is probably the office set for Commissioner of Public Safety Carey, who gave the Video Rangers their orders. Because the headquarters set was never "struck," any 30-minute adventure which didn't involve it tended to take place on some very cramped temporary sets, some of which seemed no bigger than a closet. More than once, the narrow corridors outside the studio were pressed into service as a setting.

Here the cast, director and stage hands sit down for a "dry run" read-through of the day's script. Richard Coogan, who played Captain Video, is at the right. Third from right is Don Hastings, the Video Ranger. Director White sits on a stool in the center. Other actors and crew are unidentified.

Kids hoped that each episode would find the Captain and the Ranger at the controls of their speedy rocket-plane X-9. Here is the only known photo of this set, which consisted entirely of a piece of canvas painted by Rudy Luchek, representing the rear bulkhead, and two cardboard steering wheels! Captain Video and the Ranger sat on four-legged stools like the one on which Director White is perched in the previous photo. The "seat backs" were painted directly onto the bulkhead backdrop. Note that the football helmets with goggles which are so often identified with Captain Video were not worn in these days, although Captain Video did sometimes wear goggles when handling equipment in his headquarters. Captain Video's first director, Charles Polacheck, told Roaring Rockets that the goggles and earphones were adopted as an inexpensive way to give the actors a "futuristic look."

At the end of today's action-packed episode, Captain Video and the Ranger make a horrifying discovery. How will they handle it? Tune in tomorrow! Caddigan felt very strongly that each daily broadcast of CAPTAIN VIDEO should end with a serial-style cliffhanger. In fact, there were often two cliff-hangers per broadcast, since the 10-minute B-Western clip could often be edited to involve a cliffhanger at clip's end!

Return to CAPTAIN VIDEO.