THE INVISIBLE MAN (1975-1976) – Before Harve Bennett and Steven Bochco would launch The Gemini Man they tried a very similar premise with The Invisible Man. David McCallum, with his best Cousin Oliver hairdo (below right), starred as Dr. Daniel Westin, a scientist working for KLAE Corporation on matter transformation.
A failed attempt at Westin’s invention has the side effect of making living and unliving matter invisible. Westin fears that the government might want to use his accidental creation for military purposes, so he uses the prototype to turn his naked body invisible and destroys all evidence of the device and his research before fleeing.
Westin is trapped in invisible form but he and his scientist wife Kate (Melinda Fee) work together to make “realistic” fake skin for hands and a seemingly fleshy mask for Daniel to wear as a face in order to appear normal in public. (Though how it made him appear to have teeth is never explained.)
With the help of KLAE Corporation figure Walter Carlson (Jackie Cooper in the pilot movie, Craig Stevens in the series) working with Westin from then on as his handler, he is sent as an invisible secret agent on missions while Daniel tries to rediscover his process and make himself visible again.
This otherwise solid premise was weakened by the fact that the hero had to peel off his fake skin to become invisible, meaning he was always naked in action, which was silly and made him vulnerable. When the creative team started over with Ben Murphy in The Gemini Man the following year they had the main character’s flesh AND clothing turn invisible.
PILOT MOVIE: THE INVISIBLE MAN (May 6th, 1975) – My above description also serves as a synopsis, with the resulting series set up by KLAE Corporation only allowing Dr. Westin to use their laboratory facilities to work on his invisibility cure if he and his wife work for them as spies. Henry Darrow played Dr. Nick Maggio in this 90-minute telefilm.
THE EPISODES:
THE KLAE RESOURCE – As the secret “KLAE resource” Daniel and Kate are hired out as spies for delicate government assignments. (Mission: Invisible) In this episode they are sent to rescue a reclusive scientist who is being forced to sell his fossil fuel breakthrough to a Middle Eastern country who fear losing their grip on the oil market. With James Karen and Conrad Janis.
THE FINE ART OF DIPLOMACY – The Invisible Man and his wife Kate are assigned to take down a ring that is stealing original works of art and replacing them with fakes. Ross Martin and Michael Pataki guest star. Continue reading
THE FLYING DOCTOR (1959-1960) – This installment of Balladeer’s Blog’s Forgotten Television is a series that was based on the 1950s BBC radio show about Australia’s airborne doctors who tended to widely separated communities in the Outback. Previously, I covered the long-running Australian television series The Flying Doctors based on the same outfits. 
STANDOUT EPISODES: 
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 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. 
BEN VEREEN … COMIN’ AT YA (1975) – As famous and celebrated as the multitalented Ben Vereen is, he’s STILL underrated! At least here in 2026 he is, but in 1975 the stage and television performer was enchanting the U.S. like no other black performer since Sammy Davis Jr. 
Vereen hosted the program plus sang, danced and starred in comedy sketches with celebrity guest stars. One of the show’s regulars was the one and only Lola Falana, who always got a show-stopping introduction from Ben. (“Lola Fuh-LAW-Naaa, Lola Fuh-LAW-Naaa.”) 
THE ROBERT HERRIDGE THEATER (1960-1961) – This half-hour anthology series ran 26 episodes and featured dramatizations of stories by prominent authors as well as experimental installments. 
THE MILES DAVIS STORY – An experimental biography of Miles Davis told via concert footage of Davis himself as well as Dave Brubeck, John Coltrane, Ahmad Jamal and Gil Evans. 
EL MARIACHI (2014) – This Mexican television series directed by Salvador Cartas was loosely based on the 1992 Robert Rodriguez movie of the same name and its sequels, Desperado (1995) and Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003). It’s no secret that Rodriguez himself is not fond of this series. According to some sources Sony allegedly made a tentative notification of their plans to the writer/ director and then ran with it without further input from him. 
The series of movies certainly seemed to partially inspire the later Sicario films, but I much prefer Rodriguez’s flicks. The El Mariachi television program is, unfortunately, inferior to both franchises. That’s a shame because lead actor Ivan Arana certainly looks the part and Martha Higareda as the hero’s love interest Celeste is just the right mix of sultriness and butt-kicking badness. For some reason photos of Higareda don’t come close to capturing her full allure but seen in motion she’s even more impressive.
THE D.A. (1971-1972) – For any readers who are not familiar with the topic, D.A. stands for District Attorney. This short-lived series starred Robert Conrad as Deputy D.A. Paul Ryan in Los Angeles. Harry Morgan portrayed H.M. Stafford, Ryan’s investigator. 
MURDER ONE (December 8th, 1969) – Deputy District Attorney Paul Ryan (Robert Conrad) works at convicting a beautiful nurse who is using her medical skills to conceal her murders of her rich husbands and other relatives. It’s an uphill battle since his superiors think the woman is innocent. Also starring Diane Baker, Howard Duff, J.D. Cannon, Dana Elcar, Fredricka Meyers and Scott Brady. (2 hours) 
THE CHAMPIONS (1968-1969) – This British series from ITC featured three secret agents whose plane crash-landed near Shangri-La, the secret civilization in the Himalayas. They were granted enhanced physical strength and superior senses as well as ESP. They used their new abilities in their role as secret agents for an international organization called Nemesis. 
THE BEGINNING – Pilot Craig Stirling is flying himself and his colleagues Dr. Sharron Macready and William Gaunt out of Communist China after completing their latest mission. The Chinese Air Force damages their plane to such a degree that they crash-land in the Himalayas and learn Shangri-La really exists. The three are granted paranormal abilities and return to the world at large. Burt Kwouk guest stars. 
GREAT GHOST TALES (1961) – This half-hour series featured dramatizations of horror stories from Algernon Blackwood, Saki, Edgar Allan Poe and others. It was also the very last regularly scheduled fiction program to be broadcast live in the U.S. 
CHANNING (1963) – Also known as The Young and the Bold this hour-long drama series was a college version of Mr. Novak, against which it went head-to-head. B-Movie titan Jason Evers starred as Professor Joseph Howe, a Korean War veteran now teaching at fictional Channing College. Henry Jones portrayed Fred Baker, his former professor and now Channing Dean. 
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