Things That Bring Back Memories – “Land of the Lost” #MondayMemories 8


Things That Bring Back Memories

memoriesFor this week’s “Things That Bring Back Memories” post, I am going to pick something in the topic of “Television” and go with the show “Land of the Lost“.  This is one show that I watched very often, when I was younger.

Do you have a television show that could be a part of the  “Things That Brings Back Memories“?  What was it and what did it mean to you?

For those of you, who are either too young, or don’t remember, here’s the first episode of the great “Land of the Lost” show:


memoriesI remember watching this show diligently when I was younger.  It cracks me up to look at the intro and see the “old school” graphics – I love it!!  Go green screen! ha/ha  This was one of those that you always wanted to know what was going to happen.  The stories were fun, and being a tomboy myself, I loved to see little Holly out in her pigtails keeping up with the guys and taking on the dinosaurs!!memories

Also seeing the “Enik’s” and “Sleestak’s” was always exciting.  Who remembers the room with the jewels?  That was always a thing I loved.  And who remembers the little “Cha-Ka”?  He always seemed to be Chewbacca’s little brother to me!! ha/ha

I know that they recently made an updated movie with Will Farrell, but in my opinion, it will never be the same as the original.  Kind of like when they tried to redo Dukes of Hazzard with those other guys…WHATEVER!! 🙂

Great stories and great memories of when TV had only a minimal amount of channels.  Is there an old show that brings back memories for you? or an area that you lived?  Leave a comment and let me know.

 


memoriesMore Info on the Show:

Land of the Lost details the adventures of the Marshall family (father Rick, and his children Will and Holly) who are trapped in an alternate universe inhabited by dinosaurs, a primate-type people called Pakuni, and aggressive humanoid/lizard creatures called Sleestak. The episode storylines focus on the family’s efforts to survive and find a way back to their own world, but the exploration of the exotic inhabitants of the Land of the Lost is also an ongoing part of the story.

An article on renewed studio interest in feature film versions of Land of the Lost and H.R. Pufnstuf commented that “decision-makers in Hollywood, and some big-name stars, have personal recollections of plopping down on the family-room wall-to-wall shag sometime between 1969 and 1974 to tune in to multiple memoriesreruns of the Kroffts’ Saturday morning live-action hits,” and quoting Marty Krofft as saying that the head of Universal Studios, Ronald Meyer, and leaders at Sony Pictures all had been fans of Krofft programs.

A number of well-respected writers in the science fiction field contributed scripts to the series (mostly in the first and second seasons), including Larry Niven, Theodore Sturgeon, Ben Bova, and Norman Spinrad, and a number of people involved with Star Trek, such as Dorothy “D.C.” Fontana, Walter Koenig, and David Gerrold. Gerrold, Niven, and Fontana also contributed commentaries to the DVD of the first season.

The prolific Krofft team was influential in children’s television, producing many oddly formatted, highly energetic, and special-effects heavy programs. Many Krofft shows have similar plots involving children accidentally trapped in other worlds, but Land of the Lost is the Kroffts’ most serious treatment of the premise…especially in the first season, slightly less so in the second, and considerably less so in the third.


Plot and Format:

The Marshalls are brought to the mysterious world by means of a dimensional portal, a device used frequently throughout the series and a major part of its internal mythology. This portal opens when they are swept down a gigantic 1,000-foot waterfall. We later learn in “Circle”, which explains the time paradox, that this portal is actually opened by Rick Marshall himself, while in Enik’s cave, as a way for the current Marshalls to return to earth, resolving the paradox and allowing Enik to also return to his time.

Outfitted only for a short camping trip, the resourceful family takes shelter in a natural cave and improvises the provisions and tools that they need to survive. Their most common and dangerous encounters are with dinosaurs, particularly a Tyrannosaurus rex they nickname “Grumpy” who frequents the location of their cave. However, many of the dinosaurs are herbivores, posing no threat to the Marshalls, unless unintentionally provoked. One is a particularly tame young Brontosaurus whom Holly nicknames “Dopey,” and whom the family looks upon as a pet.

They also do battle with the hostile Sleestak (lizard-men) and “cave men” called Pakuni (one of whom, Cha-Ka, they befriend), as well as a variety of dangerous creatures, mysterious technology, and strange geography.

The main goal of the three is to find a way to return home. They are occasionally aided in this by the Altrusian castaway Enik. This storyline theme—marooned in a surreal, fantasy-filled jungle setting, continually attempting to return home—was in this sense somewhat similar to Gilligan’s Island and other such TV series. At the start of the third season Rick Marshall is accidentally returned to Earth alone, leaving his children behind, and is replaced by his brother Jack. Spencer Milligan’s absence was explained by having Rick Marshall disappear after he was trying to use one of the pylons to get home, and that Jack had stumbled upon his niece and nephew after he embarked on a search of his own to find them.

Though the term “time doorway” is used throughout the series, Land of the Lost is not meant to portray an era in Earth’s history, but rather an enigmatic zone whose place and time are unknown. The original creators of these time portals were thought to be the ancestors of the Sleestak, called Altrusians, though later episodes raised some questions about this.

Many aspects of the Land of the Lost, including the time doorways and environmental processes, were controlled by the Pylons, metallic obelisk-shaped booths that were larger on the inside than the outside and housed matrix tables — stone tables studded with a grid of colored crystals. Uncontrolled time doorways result in the arrival of a variety of visitors and castaways in the Land.

 

Thanks for stopping by today.  Please be sure to leave a comment, if this show meant something to you, too.  Or to just let me know what you think of the story in this post! Thanks and have a great day!!

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Audrey
9 years ago

One of my childhood favorites! A co-worker and I used to make jokes about Sleestaks all the time that only we understood since we were the only two of the same age that grew up in the U.S. great memories.

#ibabloggers

Nancy
9 years ago

Thanks for sharing, the show may have been before my time, but looks like something I would enjoy! #ibabloggers

Joanne T Ferguson
9 years ago

G’day Love nostalgic posts and yes it does bring back memories!
Cheers! Joanne #ibabloggers

Michelle
9 years ago

This brought back so many wonderful memories. Thank you so much for sharing them. #ibabloggers

Mary Burris
9 years ago

I used to watch Land of The Lost all the time as a kid. I think I even had one of those lunchpails!

tara pittman
9 years ago

I loved watching this show. I loved that the dinos never hurt them