The pilot episode, "Freeing the Serfs", was shot in Southern Californa
in March of 1957, in order to meet the need to screen for ABC affliates,
who would then make airtime commitments for their stations, six months in
advance of series broadcast start(January, 1958). England's winter freeze
and muddy spring thaw didn't allow for such a delivery schedule.
Color prints were screened (16 and 35mm)for the affliate buyers as it
was felt that this would improve sales. The episode was not broadcast
in color. No color prints exist in the current inventory of Sony Pictures Television.
The original color negative also appears to be lost but the three silver seperation
35mm rolls have survived. These are usuallyfound to be shrunken after a half-century
but new computer registration programs successful align the three images to restore
the three stripcolor, which can then be color-timed to perfection. It would not be
inexpensive but creating a good color master of the first episode is now within
technical possibilities.
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