1977- Star Wars came to theaters. All of the sudden, various studios and television networks began to look into the possibility of bringing the space action of Star Wars to the small screen without using the movie itself. Enter Universal Pictures, ABC Network, and writer Glen A. Larson. Larson had a concept called Adam's Ark and had proposed the idea of Galactica to Universal. They agreed to produce a pilot and a three hour movie was filmed. ABC picked up the series and the rest is history.

The following is a (not so) brief explanation of that series.

I. What is Battlestar Galactica? (obvious question)

Battlestar Galactica aired in the 1978-79 season on the ABC TV Network. It is the story of the last Battlestar (a large space vessel) Galactica. The ship leads a 'rag-tag fugitive fleet' of 220 civilian vessels to a lost human colony, a colony called Earth. Meanwhile they are pursued by a machine race responsible for the destruction of their home, the Cylons.

II. Colony called Earth? (More Background)

Earth, in this universe, is the planet settled by the thirteenth tribe of humans. The first twelve tribes settled the colonies that make up the Battlestar Galactica universe.

III. Why are they being pursued? (Premise)

The Cylons were once reptillian, but their machine creations turned on them, then began a 1000 yahren (Colonial term for year) war against the humans. the Battlestar fleet was destroyed by a Cylon force during a trap disguised as a peace conference. The peace conference was devised by humanity's greatest traitor, Lord Baltar (played by John Colicos).

Galactica Commander Adama (played by Lorne Greene)decides that mankind's only hope lies in the lost thirteenth tribe and their home. He gathers a fleet and leaves the Colonies with every last living human, followed by Baltar and the Cylons.

IV. Who are the characters? (Cast)

Well, there's Adama, Baltar, Adama's children: Bridge officer Athena (Maren Jensen) and Fighter Pilot Apollo (Richard Hatch), Apollo's wife Serina (Jane Seymour) and her son Boxey (Noah Hathaway), Apollo's wingman Starbuck (Dirk Benedict), and Adama's second-in-command Colonel Tigh (Terry Carter).

V. A little more background on the series, please? (Other Facts)

Okay. The visual effects, costuming, sets, and other elements made Battlestar Galactica the most expensive television series of its time (at $1 Million per episode).

The Visual Effects were produced by John Dykstra, best known for Star Wars, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and the Spiderman movie.

The show was a)Too expensive to produce, and b)Ratings lowered past the point to justify the costs, so the show was cancelled after only one season.

The show was revived in 1980 as Galactica 1980. The show was a failure and is not too popular with fans.

A large Battlestar Galactica revival campaign exists on the internet. The fans will soon get their wish in late 2003 as a new 4-hour miniseries airs on the Sci-Fi channel. Unfortunately, the project is not too popular with the more vocal fans.

VI. Where else can I go? (links)

http://www.battlestargalactica.com The home for information on the revival.

http://www.scifi.com/galactica For information on the 2003 mini-series

http://www.kobol.com A large collection of Battlestar Galactica info with memorabilia for sale.