R.I.P. Gerry Anderson

This has been a sad Christmas for television, sci-fi and the entertainment industry in general. Yesterday, December 26th 2012, a truly great person passed away, and the world will never be the same. Although Gerry Anderson's biggest successes were in the 1960's, fifty years ago, his legacy has survived till today, and I can say with certainty that another fifty years from now his body of work will still be remembered.

Gerry was born on April 14th 1929. He entered the emerging television industry as a director and producer. He began by making children's programmes involving puppets, such as "The Adventures of Twizzle" (1957) and "Torchy the Battery Boy" (1960). I've never seen these series, so there's a chance they no longer exist. His real breakthrough was a tv series called "Four Feather Falls" in 1960. I saw this repeated on television a few years ago, and I was amazed at its originality; the daring mix of a western cowboy series with added sci-fi elements. Being made with puppets it had the appearance of being a children's show, but it was serious enough to appeal to older audiences.

Yet Gerry wasn't completely happy. It was his dream to make a live action series, but his puppet shows were so good that the television studios made him continue with them. His following series also featured puppets and were set in the mid 21st Century: "Supercar" (1961), "Fireball XL5" (1962) and "Stingray" (1964). These series were the first to use a new technology called Supermarionation, conceived by Anderson himself. The voices were recorded by human speakers in advance. The puppet wires were not used merely for moving the puppets, they were metal wires which carried the audio signals of the recordings. Sensors in the puppet heads moved the lips in synch with the dialog, creating greater realism than ever possible with puppets before. Gerry also had the foresight to film "Stingray" in colour, even though at the time colour television was not available in England and was only available in America on a limited basis as an experimental service. Although "Supercar" and "Fireball XL5" had elements to make them appealing to children, "Stingray" was a clear attempt to make a puppet show for adults.

Then the television series was broadcast that made him truly famous. "Thunderbirds" (1965) was his first full length series, each episode lasting 50 minutes, which often seemed too short. Rather than looking like tv episodes, each episode had the character of a small film. No attempts were made to adapt the series for children, this was an adult programme, and it was broadcast at the peak viewing times. The fast paced action, backed up by strong characterisation, made this one of the best television series ever made. Two spin-off films were made by Anderson, and while they never achieved the commercial success of the television series, they stand far above the dismal live action film made in 2004 without Anderson's participation.

After this Gerry made a few more puppet series, including "Captain Scarlet and the Mysterions" (1967) and "Joe 90" (1968). I don't understand the departure from his previous style. I wish he had continued with "Thunderbirds". These new series leaned once more towards children's entertainment. They still enjoy a cult following today, but even Gerry's most hardcore fans will agree that he had passed his peak.

In the next decade Gerry was finally given his wish to make live action series. "Space 1999" (1975) still has many fans today, but in my opinion "UFO" (1970) was far superior. This is a forgotten gem, known only to relatively few fans. It almost reaches the height of "Thunderbirds", and is much more serious than the apparent fetishwear of some of the actors suggest. (For instance, why should the moonbase radio operators be required to wear purple wigs? Why do the submarine crews wear fishnet tops?)

Gerry's television programmes are still fondly remembered by audiences today. The 32 episodes of "Thunderbirds", tragically few, are still broadcast all year round by British tv channels. Who can he be compared with? Nobody even comes close. In the 1960's nobody had the skill to match him. In the 21st Century it would be impractical. Nobody would make a puppet show like "Thunderbirds" today, because it would be much cheaper to use CGI animation. In an interview Gerry dispelled the myth that puppets were used to save money. On the contrary, the costs of the large scale props and explosions were enormous, making "Thunderbirds" a much more expensive series than "Doctor Who".

I heard about his death on the news last night, but I decided to delay writing a tribute until I had rewatched the first "Thunderbirds" episode. Yes, the "Thunderbirds" and "Stingray" box sets were among the first DVD's I ever bought. I won't write anything about his character as a person; I'll leave that to those who knew and loved him. I shall only praise the pioneer, the great man, who has left an eternal legacy behind him. R.I.P. Gerry Anderson. Whatever changes will be made to technology, as long as entertainment still exists your name will be remembered. Hundreds, maybe even thousands of years from now, people will gain pleasure from your creations.