More from 150 Episodes Classic Sci-Fi TV:
One episode ("Operation Moon Beam," 1959) of the infamous cartoon show Clutch Cargo (the only one in the set.) Very minimal animation, with the creepy effect of real human lips superimposed over the characters when they talk. Adventurer Clutch Cargo, with little kid Spinner and dog Paddlefoot, gets sent on the first flight to the Moon. Weirdly, his scruffy pal Swampy is already there, on a ship he made from junk. An evil carnival owner shows up also, wanting to capture the Moon's only inhabitant, a blue-skinned woman, to put on display. Not very good.
"The Case of the Cotton Kimona" (1954), a failed pilot for the proposed TV show The Shadow. Lamont Cranston and companion Margo Lane investigate a murder. Typical crime stuff, with invisibility.
Destination Space (1959): Made-for-TV movie (and maybe failed pilot) about the various problems facing a space station from which the first flight to the Moon is going to take place. Lots of stock footage from the theatrical film Conquest of Space (1955), changed from color to black-and-white, so decent special effects. Aims for realism. Not bad.
"The Return of Andrew Bentley" (1961), a single episode of the anthology series Thriller, hosted by Boris Karloff. Guy's uncle directs him to guard his tomb against the ghost of an evil sorcerer and his familiar demon. (So much for "sci-fi.") Gothic horror written by Richard Matheson, from a story by August Derleth and Mark Schorer. Not bad.
A single episode of the sitcom Johnny Jupiter (1953). The plot involves the goofy protagonist imitating a professor known for his philosophy that money is not important, when the guy refuses to make a speech without getting one thousand bucks. The sci-fi element is the fact that the protagonist is in contact with Johnny Jupiter (who is, indeed, from the giant planet) and his robots Major Domo and Reject. Those three characters are played by tiny hand puppets showing up on a "television screen" (just a rectangular hole) except when the clumsy Reject gets zapped to Earth, becomes a guy in a robot suit (wearing glasses!) and "helps" the protagonist. Frequently interrupted by the characters talking to the audience about M&M candies, which, apparently, you used to be able to buy by the scoop as well as in packages. Not exactly good, but odd enough to be worth a look.
"Stamp Day for Superman" (1954). Government promotional film (and, I guess, an episode of The Adventures of Superman) in which the Man of Steel saves Lois Lane, catches the crooks, and tells kids to purchase saving stamps (something like savings bonds for children) at school. Not very good or bad, but a mildly interesting look at something I don't think still exists.
We skipped a bunch of episodes of the "true" psychic experience series One Step Beyond (1959-1961) because we'd seen the whole thing before. Kind of like a sedate Twilight Zone.
Half of the episodes of the series Rocky Jones, Space Ranger (1954) that are in the set, and maybe we'll watch the others later. Heroic spaceman Rocky, comedy relief co-pilot Winky, navigator/translator Vena, little kid Bobby, and science guy Professor Newton have space opera adventures. Evil space queen Cleolantra shows up frequently as the antagonist. Not terrible for what it is.
The Phantom Empire (1935): Not TV, but an old movie serial. Singing cowboy Gene Autry, as himself, gets mixed up with some crooks, an underground civilization, and its evil queen. The combination is nutty enough to be of some interest. For nostalgia buffs.
Undersea KIngdom (1936): Naval Academy graduate/athlete Ray "Crash" Corrigan travels to Atlantis (which is, somehow, a completely dry land under the sea) with a kid, a spunky girl reporter, and a science guy. They get mixed up with the conflict between the evil king and the good high priest. Another old movie serial, very similar to the above without the Western stuff.
Six episodes of the series Tales of Tomorrow (1951-1953): Early live TV, and mostly adaptations of real SF stories by real SF writers. Not bad.
Four episodes of the series Lights Out (1946-1952): TV version of the old radio show.. More supernatural horror than SF, although one episode has SF elements. So-so.
There were also two episodes of the anthology series General Electric Theater (1953-1962), hosted by Ronald Reagan. We'd seen one before somehow ("Let It Rain" with Reagan himself, some kind of fantasy.) The other was "The Ballad of Mender McClure." A backwoods guy shares his turkey with Death (Vincent Price, looking like Colonel Sanders and really hamming it up.) In return, he gets a supply of a liquid that will cure dying folks, but only if Death is standing at the foot of the dying patient's bed and not the head of it. This seemed weirdly familiar to me, and I finally realized that it was very, very loosely based on "The Third Guest" by B. Traven. Differences: The story takes place in colonial Mexico, not the American backwoods; the protagonist is also visited by the Devil and Jesus Christ before he meets Death; and it's a serious story, not a comedy.