K00 - The Green Slime (Pilot) (filmed in October 1988)
As of 10/3/2008 we can no longer call the MST3K pilot a missing
episode. At Archon 32 in St Louis, MO the cast of Cinematic Titanic
hosted a panel discussion. Joel took the opportunity to show the
complete pilot that he apparently had recently discovered he had a copy
of. Here
is a detailed breakdown of what is seen in the pilot.
Just a few comments about some things we now
know (or don't know):
- Even though the story line behind the show evolved quickly we now
know that the Satellite of Love was the name of the ship from the
beginning.
- We've known for quite a while that Joel appeared as Joel Hodgson
(not Robinson) and that he was joined by Crow and Beeper, who would soon be replaced by Servo. We now know that Gypsy,
not Gypsum, was
there from the beginning. One difference is that Gypsy was a boy
robot.
- Does anyone else think it's strange that in some segments Joel keeps
referring to "people of earth", "your planet" and
"your president." I realize this was just a test, but it sort
of makes him sound like an alien visiting our planet.
-
Very little of the film The Green Slime was used. We
have, however, seen a short clip of Joel saying one riff that was not included in
the pilot. Before the title of the movie even appears
an asteroid shows up on the
screen. When a character says "That's an asteroid" Joel points
to it and says "That's no asteroid! It's a battle station!"
We have also seen Joel's silhouette over the movie title. Makes me
wonder if more of the movie was riffed on, but not used in the actual
pilot tape. It seems that a longer theater segment would have been
produced even if just to try out the shadowrama effect.
Based on the what we now know about the pilot the first host segment could
have been almost nine minutes long. None of the others could have
been more than a minute and a half. I guess now I have something else to try to track down.
- At the end of the fifth host segment Joel says "We got movie
sign" for the first time.
- There was no opening theme. As the story goes Jim showed the pilot to someone (perhaps it was
Don O'Conner from KTMA) who suggested that it needed a theme song to explain
the premise of the show (just like Gilligan's Island). Joel and Josh
wrote the theme over lunch and came up with the line "his bosses didn't
like him so they shot him into space." That was the birth of the
mad scientists. Up until then the idea was that Joel had launched
himself into space.
After selling the show to KTMA general manager Don O'Conner, a 1.5
minute sales tape was made in early November to be used as an advertisement of the
upcoming premiere on Thanksgiving Day. The tape mentions The Green Slime and
Thunderbirds to the Rescue, although neither would actually be used for a KTMA episode.
Also, the quick shots from a supermarionation film are not from either of
the films
used for K01 or K02. They are from Thunderbirds in Outer Space, which at
one time had been
rumored to be an early KTMA episode and actually appeared in the KTMA TV
listings on 11-24-88 as the first episode shown at 6PM. The sales tape still uses the THEATRE spelling, but the
set now has the red/orange lighting and the new doorway sequence is included. There
are scenes from the pilot, but no new clips from any other KTMA episodes though.
K01 - Invaders From the Deep (aired 11/24/88 at 6 PM)
In the first host segment Joel informs us that the guys at the station
( not the mads) sent him a facsimile
telling him the next movie is Invaders From the Deep (as seen in a flashback
segment in K17). Joel is joined in the theater in at least one segment by Crow to watch this Gerry and Sylvia Anderson supermarionation film (as seen
during the KTMA opening theme). Now that we have seen the complete KTMA
pilot we know that the story line of Joel taking care of vacuum flowers that
contract a space virus that spreads through the crew was reused in K01. I have included some pictures from the pilot to compare with the shots from
K01. This also explains why we have seen some pictures of Crow with
strange tubes running up to his neck.
(Note: The gray vase and the platform under it on the desk are
also seen during The Crawling Hand (106) when Joel mentions
"vacuum-flowers" once again.)
K01 images 
Pilot images 
Note: I believe the photo at the bottom of this page of Joel holding
a pot with flowers made out of chattering teeth is from this episode. Notice
the location of the vase and the button panel. Also, the pictures of
Crow from this episode (see below) all have strange tubes running down from his
neck. These seem to have only been used in this episode to recreate
the spraying foam effect used in the pilot.
Note 2: I have no proof that Servo appeared in this
episode other than that is what MSTies have always been told by the fine
folks at Best Brains.
K02 - Revenge of the Mysterons from Mars (aired 11/24/88 at 8 PM)
Joel and Crow do the opening segment where they discuss the Macy's
parade (from Scrapbook Tape). We don't know who did the theater segments for this
episode. There was another host segment where Gypsy is holding some gourds in
her
mouth which she deposits on the desk (seen during the K15 montage).
Note: I have no proof that Servo appeared in this episode either.
Note 2: It has always bothered me a little
how different Joel's hair looks from the opening scene with Crow to the
scene with Gypsum and Crow. Maybe it's nothing.
K03 - Star Force: Fugitive Alien II (aired 11/27/88 at 6 PM)
Just three days after the Thanksgiving double feature premiere
another episode aired. All three had been prepared in advance and the KTMA opening
was filmed at approximately the same time as K03 (since Joel matches his appearance from
this show). Sources tell us that the opening was completed and used for the 11/24/88
premiere. One host segment has Crow explaining Thanksgiving to Gypsy and another
shows Joel using his num-clucks (from Scrapbook Tape and KTMA opening theme
respectively). Another segment
has Crow and Servo with clothes pins on their noses. Originally I thought this
was from K01, but I've changed my mind, particularly due to the lighting of
the set and the fact that Crow does not have any tubes running from his neck
as seen in the pictures at the bottom of this page.
Joel, Crow and Servo were all in the theater for
this episode. We know this from a few seconds seen during the Comedy Channel pitch tape
included on the Scrapbook Tape. The telephone call-in line must
have been added for this episode since in K04 a
caller references that it is 11/27.
Note: I believe the picture at the bottom of the page of Crow and
Gypsy is from this episode. Notice the location of the vase, button panel and even
the pen on the desk. The position of these objects is also why I'm
fairly sure the num-cluck segment is from this episode.
The additional shots used in the KTMA opening were filmed either
immediately before or after K03. Those scenes are of Joel polishing switches, the
quick shot of Joel, Crow and Gypsy in the theater and Joel with the demon dogs. We have been
told that the demon dogs were never used in an episode until season 1.
K04 - Gamera vs. Barugon (aired 12/4/88 at 6 PM)
This is the earliest episode fans have a copy of and can therefore be
used as a reference point in the history of the show. Joel was sporting a new, short
haircut. The show was obviously taped after the original three since the caller
messages are played. This episode also has the earliest scenes we have of Servo
talking we have heard to date. He used an unusual Kermit the Frog type voice.
Some other potential resources for information that have not proven
successful to date are:
Jim Mallon - the co-creator and executive producer of the show is
the only person known to have copies of all of these episodes. As
years have passed Jim has mentioned that he may try to share more of the
KTMA episodes either through his own website or as extras on DVDs.
Joel Hodgson - the other co-creator has shown fondness for these
early shows in some interviews. It is likely, but uncertain, he
has copies. He did share original pilot with fans after all.
Donald O'Conner - Don was the general manager when the show was
launched and we believe was given a copy of at least the pilot, if not other episodes.
Is Don still with us?
Ted Dean - Ted mentioned on Deus Ex Machina's Tape Trading Post
back in 1997 that he had copies of K02 (except the first 20 minutes) and K03 (except the
last 30 minutes). The email address listed is invalid and we have not been able to
locate the correct Ted Dean by phone search. His entire post
seemed somewhat suspect, but it was a lead worth investigating.
Other KTMA cast and crew members - you never know.
That covers the results of the investigation so far. If anyone
has any further information or would like to suggest additions or modifications to the
information above please contact Tom Noel.
Like many fans we will never be entirely satisfied until we have
copies of all of these episodes. Until then keep reaching for the stars.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For your viewing enjoyment here are a few other pictures from those
early days. Pictures A, B, C, D and E were all taken the same day as the
filming of Invaders From The Deep (K01) due to Joel's costume and the fact
that they all show strange tubes running out of Crow's neck. Picture F was taken during the filming of Star Force: Fugitive Alien II
(K03) due to the
location of the objects on the desk. The final picture, G, is of Kevin performing the voice of
Cambot,
but I still don't know which episode it was in.:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G. 
