
Fantastic book with never-before-revealed information. Packed with photos and inside information available nowhere else, the incomparable Marc Cushman has done it again! This is a must-have for "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" fans and all Irwin Allen fans. You'll learn things you never knew and get the truth on the inner workings of the TV industry as you read how Irwin Allen battled and cajoled to get the first hourly science fiction TV show with a recurring cast of characters to the small screen. "Voyage" paved the way for 1960's sci-fi classics "Lost in Space," "Star Trek," "The Invaders," "The Time Tunnel." "Land of the Giants" and so many more. Brian G. Walsh - Amazon

I'm in my fifties, and this is THE book I've been waiting for since I was a teenager! I've read Cushman's Star Trek books (I teach an Ethics of Star Trek class) and this book continues the same high standard of research and writing. Some of my own work on naval forces was inspired by Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and I think this book and the books that will follow in this series will set the standard for decades to come. By the way, I've corresponded with former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe Admiral James Stavridis, USN (Ret.) about my work, and he said he liked Voyage when he was a kid! The difference between Admiral Stavridis and myself, other than the fact he was a REAL admiral, is that I still love Voyage even though I am now as old as Admiral Nelson was. Highly recommended for science fiction fans. Attached are autographed photos of Admiral Stavridis and David Hedison plus Richard Basehart. - Prof. Roger Thompson MA FRAS FRSA, Kyung Hee University, Korea.

As one of only a handful of surviving original cast members of the series VTTBOTS, I highly recommend this book! I appeared in the Pilot and played the recurring character of “Lieutenant O’Brien” in the first year of the series and in many of the most highly rated segments. I’ve read other accounts of our show, but the details and research in Marc Cushman’s book were the best. His in-depth interviews with cast members, recollections of guest artists, segment reviews and network ratings are first rate and happily transported me back to those days on the soundstage at 20th Century-Fox. I’ve waited 50 years to do that. Thanks, Marc! --- Derrik Lewis, Palm Springs, CA.
The first year of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea was a milestone for television in many ways – it was the first big-budget science fiction series with continuing characters (far from the crude world of Captain Video), the first big ratings success for such a show and blended high adventure with scenes of real drama. The initial season of Voyage has been over-looked or forgotten, over-shadowed by the monsters in the subsequent color episodes.
In Marc Cushman’s Voyage volume one book, he looks back at all 32 black and white episodes from year one and does so with a thoughtfulness and insight, the same professionalism reflected in his previous volumes on Star Trek and Lost in Space. It’s wonderfully thorough, with interesting analysis, rare production notes, unfilmed story ideas, many extremely rare photographs and exclusive interviews with many people who have stories to tell – ABC executive Lew Hunter, actor Derrick Lewis (Lt. O’Brien) and even the late Harlan Ellison, who clarifies what really happened at that explosive story conference for his single Voyage script, “Price of Doom.”
The best of Voyage still resonates today and despite all of my own years of research on Voyage for Starlog and other magazines, this book often surprised me with its revelations. If you’ve had any interest in Voyage, this is the book that will answer your questions and do so in a vastly entertaining way. I can’t wait for Cushman’s Voyage follow-up, volume two, which will examine the 1965-68 seasons of Voyage!
- Mark Phillips, Author and Magazine Writer/Critic, Canada
In Marc Cushman’s Voyage volume one book, he looks back at all 32 black and white episodes from year one and does so with a thoughtfulness and insight, the same professionalism reflected in his previous volumes on Star Trek and Lost in Space. It’s wonderfully thorough, with interesting analysis, rare production notes, unfilmed story ideas, many extremely rare photographs and exclusive interviews with many people who have stories to tell – ABC executive Lew Hunter, actor Derrick Lewis (Lt. O’Brien) and even the late Harlan Ellison, who clarifies what really happened at that explosive story conference for his single Voyage script, “Price of Doom.”
The best of Voyage still resonates today and despite all of my own years of research on Voyage for Starlog and other magazines, this book often surprised me with its revelations. If you’ve had any interest in Voyage, this is the book that will answer your questions and do so in a vastly entertaining way. I can’t wait for Cushman’s Voyage follow-up, volume two, which will examine the 1965-68 seasons of Voyage!
- Mark Phillips, Author and Magazine Writer/Critic, Canada