Series Description

The Captain Midnight TV show was a 30 minute sci-fi crimefighter series on CBS about a World War II veteran who, along with his sidekick, fought evil-doers all around the world. It was the perfect series for the time as the "cold war" conflict between capitalist, communist and solialist countries provided lots of fodder for the scripts. Also, the "advanced" scientific knowledge that they got from scientist Aristotle "Tut" Jones also fit well into the time period which encompassed the beginnings of nuclear, electronic, computer and rocketry research and development. Captain Midnight even had one of those new-fangled airplanes called a "Jet"!

Captain Midnight Cast

Richard Webb .... Jim Albright / Captain Midnight
Olan Soule .... Aristotle "Tut" Jones
Sid Melton .... Ichabod "Ikky" Mudd

Captain Midnight Trivia:

The Captain Midnight TV show was preceded by a 1938 radio program. It began on station WGN in Chicago and was also titled Captain Midnight. The radio show was sponsored by Skelly Oil in Chicago and then by Ovaltine when it went national. Ovaltine remained the sponsor for the TV show. Kids could send in Ovaltine proofs of purchase and become members of Captain Midnight's Secret Squadron. They also received a decoder badge, which enabled them to decipher secret messages that Captain Midnight would give them on the show.

Captain Midnight was titled, "Jet Jackson" in canceled because there was a well-known outlaw there who was called, "Captain Midnight".

Screen Gems owned the rights to the show but Ovaltine owned the rights to the name, "Captain Midnight". When Screen Gems put the series into syndication, the title had to be changed to "Jet Jackson - Flying Commando" in order to not infringe on Ovaltine's rights. The sound was edited so that whenever the words, "Captain Midnight" were spoken, you would instead hear, "Jet Jackson".

You might remember seeing Sid Melton on television as "Alf Monroe", the carpenter on the series "Green Acres". He also played "Charlie Halper" on the series, "Make Room For Daddy".

Captain Midnight's jet was actually a "Skyrocket". It had a jet engine and also had a rocket engine.

Unfortunately, Richard Webb, who played Captain Midnight, shot himself to death on June 10, 1993. He left a suicide note explaining that he could no longer go on living with the severe respiratory problems which had caused him much suffering for years.

On a much happier note, Richard Webb was awarded a star on the Walk of Fame in Hollywood, California. It's located at 7065 Hollywood Boulevard.

Captain Midnight Opening Narrative

Version #1:
(Note: A jet plane was shown coming in for a landing. Then the jet's pilot appeared, faced the audience and said:)
"Hello, Secret Squadron members. We'll get right to our thrilling story in a moment, but first let me tell you how Ovaltine builds strength and health ..." (Then the show went to an Ovaltine commercial).

Version #2:
"On a mountaintop high above a large city stands the headquarters of a man devoted to the cause of freedom and justice, a war hero who has never stopped fighting against his country's enemies, a private citizen who is dedicating his life to the struggle against evil men everywhere - Captain Midnight!"