FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: BEHIND CLOSED DOORS (1958-1959)

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS (1958-1959) – This Cold War spy series starred and was narrated by Bruce Gordon, who portrayed U.S. Navy Commander Matson (no first name given). Matson would take an active role in some episodes and would narrate from a supporting role in others.

The half-hour series ran for 26 episodes and was based on the espionage files of Rear Admiral Ellis M. Zacharias, who had served in World War One and World War Two. Zacharias offered closing commentary in 17 of the episodes.

Behind Closed Doors was a docu-drama and is generally pretty entertaining. The half-hour running time and the inventive plots prevent any potential boredom from setting in.

THE EPISODES:

THE CAPE CANAVERAL STORY – Commander Matson and U.S. Naval Intelligence deal with a Soviet submarine sent to monitor American rocket tests at Cape Canaveral as well as with a Russian spy who tries forcing a charter boat captain in the area to take him to a spot where he can observe launches. Virginia “Mrs. Olson” Christine also stars.

FLIGHT TO FREEDOM – Dr. Brauer (Francis Lederer), a German rocket scientist now working for the Soviet guided missile program, is motivated to try defecting to the U.S. when his longtime colleague Dr. Von Elm is lobotomized by the communists for dissent. Television debut of Arlene Martel. 

DOUBLE JEOPARDY – There’s a Sandbaggers feel to this tale of U.S. and British Intelligence convincing an Oxford professor of the Russian language to pose as a janitor in order to plant a bug in the Russian embassy in London.

MIG NINE – A pilot in the Soviet Air Force decides to defect to the West by flying off in the latest, state of the art Mig aircraft while the KGB tries to stop him. Sort of like The Hunt for Red October meets Firefox. Kenneth Tobey and Melinda Byron guest star.

TROUBLE IN TEST CELL #19 – Commander Matson and his colleagues investigate when a new jet engine explodes during its final test. They determine it was sabotaged and work to corral the guilty party.

MAN IN THE MOON – Clara Koller (Judith Evelyn) is a lonely widow whose job is managing the budget of a large manufacturer with U.S. government contracts. A seemingly innocent social club that she joins is secretly run by Soviet agents who want to extract information from her. Denver Pyle appears.   

THE NIKE STORY – When a U.S. Army officer is murdered by spies at the Nike-Hercules Missile base where he works, an intelligence agent (John Doucette) is sent to find the killer and expose a Soviet spy ring using a No Nukes group as cover for their activities. Also with William Bryant.

IT WAS LEARNED ON HIGH AUTHORITY – Fred Lang (Robert Knapp), an engineer who works on a Los Angeles missile base, is really a Soviet agent who is ordered to plant a bomb on a plane carrying Defense Department scientists to a Top-Secret meeting at Cape Canaveral.

THE ENEMY ON THE FLANK – During the Lebanon Crisis, two U.S. intelligence agents are assigned to look into Soviet interference with America’s Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea. A Russian sub operating out of a base in Albania is behind the activities. Psychotronic favorites James Best and Myron Healey guest star. 

A COVER OF ART – Commander Matson enters Czechoslovakia under cover as an art dealer. His mission – effect the escape of American agent Andrew Fleming (Keith “Not that one” Richards) who is on trial for spying when he was forced to parachute from his failing aircraft. John Banner plays the prosecutor. 

THE MIDDLE EAST STORY – In revolution-torn Iraq, Israeli agent Jessica Tabor (Ziva Rodann) uncovers a Soviet plot to assassinate King Hussein of Jordan. She informs two American spies (Richard Webb and John Sutton) who work to thwart the assassination attempt.

THE BRIONI STORY – U.S. agent Blake Adams (Sheldon Lawrence) is sent into Yugoslavia to help protect Marshal Tito from being assassinated. He works with sculptress Sarah Fletcher (Jeanette Sterke). Ferdy Mayne also stars.

THE OBELISK – A British nuclear scientist attempts to defect to the Soviet Union with a trove of secret documents he has stolen. He must rendezvous with a Russian helicopter on the moors in Scotland.

MESSAGE FROM HARDENBURG – In West Germany, a man calling himself Dr. Haas runs a fencing academy which he uses to recruit agents to further an enemy plot to topple the government. Agent Karl Gebhardt enlists in the academy to infiltrate the subversive organization. Also with Susan Cummings.

THE ALKALOID ANGLE – An American agent is killed investigating large-scale hashish shipments to Lebanon. The Soviet Union is behind it, and Robert Hatfield (Biff Elliott) is called out of retirement to smash the Russian drug network with the help of a French spy (Natalie Daryll). He learns a traitor has blown his cover to the communists. With Frank Gerstle.

CRYPTO FORTY – David Sparrow (William Bishop), the developer of a code machine, is captured and taken behind the Iron Curtain. Western agents mount a rescue mission before Sparrow can be forced to make a similar machine for the Soviets. Werner Klemperer and Osa Massen guest star.

THE ALASKAN STORY – A Russian spy ring is operating in Alaska, so U.S. intelligence Agent Rand (Brad Dexter) goes undercover in a prison where a communist agent is serving time. He arranges to escape with the Soviet spy hoping he will lead him to the rest of the Alaskan ring. Also with Claudia Barrett.

THE QUEMOY STORY – American spy Anna Sung (Roberta Haynes) is captured by communist spies in Macao. Commander Ralph Bennett (Robert Richards) and Macao police detective Mike Perrera (Paul Picerni) search for her and uncover a communist plot to seize Quemoy Island.

THE ESPIONAGE STUDENTS – Western intelligence agent Imre Vicec (Dave Kashner) covertly photographs the students and teachers at a communist “spy school” in Bulgaria. He gets killed and agent David Thatcher (Dean Harens) is sent in to recover the photographs he took. Also with Anna-Lisa and Liliane Montevecchi.   

THE GENEVA STORY – A Soviet official who had fallen into disfavor is released from prison so he can head a Russian delegation to a nuclear arms conference in Geneva. U.S. agent Nick Blake (Dennis Patrick) discovers that the USSR plans to use an American assassin to kill the official and blame the U.S. for it. Gregory Gaye and Evy Norlund also star.

THE MEETING – American agent Ralph Drake (Ray Danton) is sent to secretly confer with six Western spies operating in Eastern Bloc nations about the new head of Soviet intelligence. Also with Virginia Gregg, Booth Colman and Judith Braun.

MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD – U.S. intelligence man Douglas Kincaid (Simon Scott) has infiltrated a communist spy cell in San Francisco. One of their meetings is raided, following which Kincaid and the others are arrested. It’s part of an American plan to pretend to deport “communist” Kincaid to Yalta, where he can help a high-ranking Soviet official (Robert Carricart) defect to the West. Steve Conte appears.

THE GAMBLE – An interesting case of “Who knew what was coming?” American agent Jeff Richards (Philip Canning) must free South Vietnamese Prince Tallat and his sister Princess Santha (Nyra Monsour) from the cluches of communist North Vietnamese forces which want the prince to betray the free world by embracing communism. With Carol Thurston. 

DOUBLE AGENT – British Intelligence struggles to flush out a Double Agent before they can sabotage an arms shipment to anti-communist networks operating behind the Iron Curtain. Sue England, Violet Rensing and Theodore Marcuse guest star.

THE ANTIDOTE – Dr. Paul Mattley (John Lupton) devises a cure for radiation poisoning. Communist agents poison his wife (Nan Leslie) and refuse to give him the antidote unless he turns over his cure for radiation poisoning. Also with Richard Bull.

ASSIGNMENT PRAGUE – The Soviets are producing an anti-Western propaganda film in Warsaw. Simultaneously, a U.S. agent is hired to work on the production but covertly assembles a documentary about Polish resistance to Russia. Warren Stevens, Patricia Huston and Emil Sitka star. 

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