Enthusiasts of Sci-Fi TV – and sixties TV in general –
suffered a notable loss, with the passing of Warren Stevens on March 27, 2012,
at the age of 92.
You can read more about Mr. Stevens HERE.
Warren Stevens was a particular favorite actor of mine, for
his frequent association with Sci-Fi productions (noted in the list of his
credits below) – and his wide range of appearances over what will always be my
favorite era of television.
He was generally a deliberate, no-nonsense type of character
actor, whose portrayals could fall on “the side of good” or “the side of evil”
with equal dexterity.
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| Warren Stevens aboard the Seaview. Is he "good" or "evil"? Stay Tuned! |
Indeed, he appeared in THREE different episodes of VOYAGE TO
THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA, as THREE distinctly different characters – and tallied
one for “good” and two for “evil”. And,
in those VOYAGE roles, his talents shined in such diverse characterizations as
a Hard-Boiled Government Security Agent, an Invading Alien Leader, and a Cursed
Ancient Mariner who has survived into the modern world as a US Navy Commander!
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| Voyage: "The Saboteur" with Richard Basehart |
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| Voyage: "Deadly Invasion" |
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| Voyage: "Cave of the Dead" |
Warren Stevens will continue to live ALL OVER my DVD
collection, with appearances in (Alphabetical Order): Alfred Hitchcock
Presents, Amazing Captain Nemo (Irwin Allen), Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Honey West, I
Spy, Ironside, Land of the Giants, Man from U.N.C.L.E., Mission Impossible, Outer
Limits, Perry Mason, Rat Patrol, Star Trek TOS, Time Tunnel, Twilight Zone, and
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
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| Star Trek: "By Any Other Name" |
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Star Trek: "By Any Other Name" with William Shatner
|
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Land of the Giants: "Brainwash" with Leonard Stone (ABOVE)
Land of the Giants: "A Place Called Earth" (BELOW)
|
And, never forget he co-starred in perhaps the granddaddy of
much televised sci-fi – the ultra-classic fifties film “Forbidden Planet”
(1956). His role in Time Tunnel’s “One
Way to the Moon” closely echoes that of “Forbidden Planet”.
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| Forbidden Planet |
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| Time Tunnel: "One Way to the Moon" |
Mr. Stevens also appears as himself in an extra feature of
the “Forbidden Planet” DVD set, that was released in 2006.
Mr. Stevens also appears as himself in an extra feature of
the “Forbidden Planet” DVD set, that was released in 2006. 
4 comments:
Joe,
Thanks for the wonderful tribute to Warren Stevens. It was nice seeing highlights of his career - particularly in the shows we remember well.
There were two aspects of his appearance in the very good episode "By Any Other Name" on STAR TREK. First, his role as Rojan was quite chilling - especially when he crushes the "styrofoam" cube containing the "essence" of the crew woman. Quite horrifying.
But then there's a sequence in which he occupies Kirk's chair on the bridge of the Enterprise and interacts with Mister Spock. For a moment, Stevens made me think that he'd have made a good starship captain - although not the role of Kirk, as no one could top Shatner.
Another wonderful character actor leaves us...
(Hmmm...I need to see if he was on PERRY MASON!)
Take care,
Bruce
Mr. Stevens brightened many a dreary movie & TV show. He will be missed.
Bruce:
That’s an excellent point! Stevens WOULD have made a good starship captain – especially one that would have found himself in conflict with Kirk. He had that certain “directness” about him that would have made for an interesting situation.
On PERRY MASON, Stevens was in “The Case of the Empty Tin”. That was in PERRY MASON Season One, Volume Two – so I know it’s on your shelves!
How he managed to miss out on LOST IN SPACE, THE FUGITIVE, and THE WILD WILD WEST, I’ll never know!
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Jim:
Or, maybe Mr. Stevens made some good and unique shows all the better! That’s the tack I’m stickin’ with!
Joe.
Additional word: Warren Stevens was in that group of great ‘60s-era character actors that included the likes of Peter Mark Richman, Malachi Throne, Henry Jones, Victor Buono, and so many more. They don’t make ‘em like that anymore. Alas.
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