Supercar was the first of Gerry Anderson’s shows to feature "Supermarionation." This style of puppetry, developed by Anderson, featured eighteen-inch-high marionettes that blinked and moved their mouths and eyes. Anderson developed a way to synchronize the dialogue and the lip movement of the marionettes, giving them more life-like qualities than ever before. He solved the problem of unrealistic walking by having the characters spend most of their time seated in the Supercar.
Supercar, designed by Professor Popkiss and his assistant Dr. Beaker, was meant to be a prototype for an all-terrain vehicle that could navigate on land, sea, air, and even space. Mike Mercury piloted the craft with help from Jimmy Gibson and his monkey, Mitch. The nefarious Masterspy spent every episode trying to steal Supercar for his own evil uses. The villain was assisted in his evildoing by Zarin (who created more problems than he solved) and by British baddies Harper and Judd.
Like most Anderson shows, the appeal of Supercar was the vehicle itself. It had the ability to become a jet plane, a spaceship, a hovercraft, or a submarine, and was equipped with a “Clear-vu” display screen, which allowed Mike to see through clouds or fog.
Compared to Anderson's later shows, Supercar was very simple. As he developed new technologies and more life-like puppets, Gerry Anderson would be responsible for some of the most memorable children's shows ever created, including Fireball XL-5 and Thunderbirds.
Release History 1961 syndicated
Sub Categories
live-action
sci-fi/fantasy
action/adventure
Cast Mike Mercury Graydon Gould
Doctor Beaker David Graham
Mitch the Monkey David Graham
Professor Popkiss George Murcell
Masterspy George Murcell
Zarin David Graham
Jimmy Gibson Sylvia Anderson
Various Sylvia Anderson
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