Russell Johnson

The film, based on the hit television series, opens inside the lab of the evil Dr. Clayton Forrester (Trace Bellieu), a mad scientist residing in the depths of Deep 13. He explains to the audience that because of our curiousness, we have become part of his evil experiment. His experiment involves his captive Mike Nelson (himself) being forced to watch terrible and awful movies released in the past few decades. In this film, Dr. Forrester explains that we are to endure the 1955 Universal sci-fi film "This Island Earth". On the Satellite of Love, Mike Nelson is doing his morning workout and is greeted by the feminine robot Gypsy (Jim Mallon) and Tom Servo. After hearing a suspicious banging noise, Mike and Tom discover that the wise-cracking Crow T. Robot is attempting to tunnel his way down to Earth with a pickaxe, breaking the hull of the satellite. After fixing the hull by placing a bowl on the hole, Dr. Forrester calls Mike and explains what his experiment is. He also mentions that he hasn't bowed down to him in the past few weeks. Therefore, using a questionable force, he makes MIke and the robots bow down to him. He then proceeds to start the experiment after asking them if they needed to use the restroom. He pulls the lever, the movie sign alarm sounds off, and Mike and the robots proceed to the theater to endure the cheesiness of the 1955 film "This Island Earth".

As the film opens in 1962, General Douglas MacArthur (Gregory Peck) is at West Point, his alma mater. MacArthur, ramrod straight, reviews the ranks of marching cadets before delivering his poignant, bittersweet, farewell address to the Corps. The action abruptly shifts back to the tunnels of Corregidor in early 1942, where MacArthur's besieged American and Filipino troops are desperately holding out against the victorious forces of Japan. The end is near. In Washington, General George Marshall and Admiral Ernest J. King are simultaneously delivering the grim news to President Roosevelt (Dan O'Herlihy). They discuss global priorities and admit that they can't hold the Philippines. Roosevelt reluctantly decides to order MacArthur off Corregidor, knowing that he will be furious. MacArthur is ordered to board a submarine and slip away to Australia, where he can organize ongoing resistance. But MacArthur refuses to sneak away from his beloved command traveling furtively beneath the waves. He insists on boarding a PT boat, and his family insists on accompanying him on the dangerous voyage. The Japanese navy has thrown a blockade around the islands, and the heavily armed PT boats would be no match for destroyers. The pair of PT boats manage to evade the Japanese pickets and floating mines, proving that the blockade can be circumvented. Eventually arriving in Melbourne, MacArthur discovers that there is no Philippine relief expedition being organized. He addresses the adoring Australian crowds, explaining that his first priority will be the recapture of the Philippines. But he soon learns that Bataan and Corregidor have fallen, leaving 70,000 of his starving men imprisoned under unimaginable conditions. MacArthur decides to mount the defense of Australia among the jungles of New Guinea, where the battle is fought under brutal circumstances. As a result, MacArthur develops his famous island hopping strategy, bypassing Japanese strongholds through the use of Allied naval and air superiority, cutting critical supply lines and starving the isolated Japanese strong points into submission. MacArthur also develops a well-earned reputation for dramatics, self-promotion and vanity. The Allies advance steadily up the Southwest Pacific island chain over the next two years, but not without tremendous bloodshed. Ordered to Honolulu in July 1944 to meet with President Roosevelt and Admirals Leahy and Nimitz, MacArthur upstages his naval rivals with a grandiose, belated arrival. His jealous, distrustful relationship with Roosevelt is apparent. The US Navy wants to bypass the Philippines and take Taiwan first. MacArthur makes an impassioned argument that to do so would be an indelible stain on American honor. He reminds them that numerous promises have been made to the loyal people of the Philippines, including by Roosevelt himself. In the end, MacArthur's view prevails. US forces come ashore at Leyte Gulf in October 1944. In an iconic scene, MacArthur insists on going ashore right behind the second wave of troops. He steps off the landing craft into knee-deep water, wading ashore as the cameras roll. On the beach, MacArthur addresses the Filipinos by radio, exhorting them to drive the Japanese occupiers out. As the battle rages, the General receives his fifth star. He is soon taken to a prison camp where many of the brutalized, emaciated survivors of Bataan and Corregidor have been held for more than two years. Many emotional reunions follow. Back home, President Roosevelt dies in the spring of 1945. Harry Truman succeeds him and authorizes the use of two atomic weapons to bring Japan to her knees. A furious MacArthur rails against this new, impersonal brand of warfare, realizing that an era has passed. Aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, MacArthur presides over the solemn surrender ceremonies in September 1945. As Allied military governor of Japan, MacArthur institutes liberal social reforms and oversees the complete rebuilding and modernization of Japan. When the Russian military representative in Japan curtly informs MacArthur that Russia will soon commence an illegal occupation of Hokkaido Island, MacArthur just as curtly informs the Russian that the entire Soviet delegation will be thrown in jail. The occupation never occurs. MacArthur is given one last chance at military glory in June 1950 when Communist North Korean forces invade South Korea, moving swiftly and nearly pushing American and South Korean forces off the peninsula. MacArthur is appointed Supreme Commander of UN forces in Korea. He buys time until he can devise a brilliant but risk-laden amphibious landing behind North Korean lines at Inchon. The successful operation proves to be a stroke of genius. North Korean forces are virtually cut off from supplies and reinforcements and have to retreat northward in disarray. MacArthur then carries the fight into North Korea itself. Despite MacArthur's reassurances to the contrary, the Communist Chinese suddenly enter the war in huge numbers in order to bolster their sagging North Korean ally. UN forces are again pushed southward, incurring heavy casualties. MacArthur grows increasingly frustrated, chafing at political interference from Washington. Tensions between Truman and MacArthur boil over when MacArthur's insubordination in the face of direct orders threatens to undermine Truman's authority. After a stellar military career spanning more than a half-century, MacArthur is relieved of command. He returns to a hero's welcome in April 1951 while Truman's popularity plummets. MacArthur delivers a moving retirement address to a joint session of Congress. The movie then moves forward to 1962, and an increasingly frail Douglas MacArthur is bidding farewell to West Point. One last time he utters the famous words that were the hallmark of his career: Duty. Honor. Country.

A fireball streaks across the desert sky and crashes. We see an aerial view of Sand Rock, Arizona in the late evening in the early spring. Inside an isolated ranch house outside of town we meet John Putnam (Richard Carlson) and his girlfriend Ellen Fields (Barbara Rush). He is an amateur astronomer, she the local school teacher. They sit in front of a fire in his partially completed home enjoying a cup of coffee. They walk outside to take in the night air when they spot the "meteor" from the opening shot. From inside the crater, by the old Excelsior Mine, we see a sphere partially exposed that looks like a soccer ball. A hexagonal shaped "door" opens and we see some weird machinery and in shadow one of the occupants--a single eyed blob of a creature. It exits the ship and explores the desert leaving in its wake a shimmery trail. John and Ellen charter Pete Davis (Dave Willock) to take them to the crater in his helicopter. They circle the crater and land near the rim. The three climb to the top and peer inside. John walks down to the floor of the newly formed crater insisting that Ellen and Pete stay up on the rim. John sees the ship partially buried in the side of the mine, and also notices the shimmery substance near the exit of the ship. He stretches his hand out to touch the glowing material, but hesitates when he notices something inside the ship and stands up to face it. The door closes and slams shut triggering an avalanche of loose debris, burying the ship and almost killing John. John climbs back out of the crater and explains what he saw, but Ellen and Pete do not believe him. Two cars approach the crater. Pete and Ellen beg John not to discuss what he saw--they think he was imagining it. Sheriff Matt Warren (Charles Drake) and Dave Loring (Alan Dexter), who runs the local newspaper, arrive on the scene. John starts to relay his story and the disbelief and ridicule starts. Three more cars arrive at the crater. John, Ellen, and Pete fly back to the airport. John and Ellen drive back to his house. Along the way they are being observed. They encounter the creature on the highway as it appears to block their path on the road. John pulls to the side of the road thinking they hit it. Finding nothing they continue down the road. The next morning the crater is a buzz of activity. A KLTV television news van pulls up. The Sheriff's office has set up a cordon around the crater admitting only authorized personnel. The military has sent a small group out to explore. John and Ellen arrive only to be hounded by the press. John is there to meet with Dr. Snell. Dugan (Robert Carson) from American Press, and Lober (Dick Pinner) from Press Dispatch want to question John about the Sand Rock Star newspaper headline, "Star Gazer Sees Martians". They get no answers and turn their attention to Ellen, who is equally reluctant to talk to the press. John walks down into the crater to talk to Dr. Snell (George Eldredge). His assistant, Bob (Bradford Jackson) is taking radioactivity measurements, but finds none. Snell is convinced it was just a meteor, and refuses Johns request to dig it out. As John heads back to his car, where Ellen was patiently waiting, he is confronted by Matt. He has known Ellen a long time and is concerned about her involvement with John. He is jealous. John and Ellen drive off. As they are driving the see the county telephone linemen, George (Russell Johnson), and his boss, Frank (Joe Sawyer). John asks them if they've seen anything. Frank tells them he's hearing something very strange on the wires. Frank and George head down the road and encounter the creature. As he exits the truck, George is attacked and "globbed" or absorbed. John and Ellen suspect something is wrong and turn around and head back in the same direction that George and Frank took. They find the empty telephone truck on the side of the road. John retrieves his gun from the car and they begin their search, starting with the truck. John notices blood on the truck door and the shimmery trail, a telltale sign of the xenomorph. George appears to them, but is behaving very strangely. John notices Frank's arm on the ground, unmoving, the rest of his body is hidden behind a boulder. John and Ellen head back to town to get the Sheriff. John states his conclusion that Frank is dead, and it appears that George was the perpetrator. The xenomorph, now masquerading as George explains things to the human George and Frank. The Sheriff reluctantly agrees to accompany John and Ellen back out to where they encountered George and Frank, but when they arrive the truck and any evidence is gone. The three drive back to town. The Sheriff returns to his office, but John notices George and Frank walking through town. John follows and confronts them. They warn John not to interfere. Back at the Excelsior Mine, miners Sam (Edgar Dearing) and Toby (Warren MacGregor) are building a fire just outside the mine opening. They are waiting for Tom (George Selk) to return with food. Tom and his mule are just about back to the mine when the mule is spooked, and runs off. Tom turns around and is confronted by the xenomorph and is "globbed" or absorbed. Sam and Toby think they hear something in the mine and enter it. As they exit the mine they are met by the creature and are also a globbed. John and Ellen are summoned to see the Sheriff that evening. Frank's wife (Virginia Mullen) and George's girlfriend Jane Dean (Kathleen Hughes) have reported them acting strangely and now missing. Their clothes are also missing. The sheriff questions John because he appears to be the last one to have spoken to either of them. Ellen takes Mrs. Daylon and Jane home in John's car. John stays with Matt to discuss the situation; he tells Matt that Frank and George are in fact the creatures from the space craft stuck in the crater. The sheriff tells John that electrical equipment has been stolen from the hardware store and that Dr. Snell and his assistant, Bob, have been reported missing. John and Matt go out to the crater and find Dr. Snell's car, but no trace of Snell or Bob. Ellen is driving alone on the highway when she encounters Frank standing in the middle of the highway. She stops and he gets into the car. Frank instructs Ellen to take him to the mine. Back at the Sheriff's office, the phone rings. It is for John, and he is informed that the xenomorphs have Ellen. The Sheriff and John drive out into the desert. John exits the car and searches for Ellen. He sees what appears to be Ellen on a ridgeline in a cocktail dress. He follows her. She leads him to the opening to the mine shaft. A voice from inside the mine tells John that they are repairing their ship and will be leaving that night. The missing townsfolk are being held hostage. John begs to see the creature as it really is. It shows itself and John is horrified and repelled. He returns to see Matt who has been waiting by the car. Matt drops John off at his house. John notices the door unlocked and a shimmering trail leading back to an empty closed. All of his clothes are missing. The Sheriff gives orders to clear everyone away from the crater. John tells Matt that he got a visit and his clothes are missing. Frank appears in town just outside the Sheriff's office. Matt is spoiling for a confrontation with the creature impersonating the lineman, but John restrains him. They fight. Frank drives off in his telephone truck. The Sheriff forms an impromptu posse as John steals his police car and heads off to the crater. The Sheriff intends to confront Frank on the highway. Taking a shortcut through the desert, he forms a vehicle barricade across the highway. As Frank approaches, the posse opens fire. The truck careens off the highway and hits a boulder and bursts into flame. Meanwhile John arrives at the mine entrance and enters. He finds alien Ellen. She tells John they only need a few more hours. She then attacks him with a wand that emits a beam that cuts through rock, but misses. He shoots her with his gun and she falls into a lake below and dissolves. The posse arrives outside as John continues his exploration of the old mine. He hears machinery and finds the aliens in their human form making repairs to their ship. The head xenomorph has assumed John's identity. He explains their mission and the equipment's power. John demands Ellen's release as a sign of good faith. Alien John reciprocates by ordering all the hostages released. As they depart the mine, alien John resumes his alien form. John seals the mine entrance with dynamite to keep the posse away from the aliens. The ground begins to rumble and the ship departs, streaking across the sky.

At the Delta Tire Company, general manager F. L. Rennick and Lt. White discuss how best to catch local loan sharks, headed by Lou Donelli, who lure plant employees into gambling and then beat them up when they cannot repay their loans. At the same time that employee Ed Haines and his friends speculate about who among them is responsible for leading new workers to the loan sharks, his wife Martha "Marty" Haines is visited by her brother, ex-boxer Joe Gargen. Joe, who was unfairly indicted after a man he was fighting fell and died from a head injury, has just finished his three-year prison term. Joe is taken by the beauty of neighbor Anne Nelson, Rennick's secretary, who visits and announces that she has set up a job interview for him at Delta. That night, dinner is interrupted when neighbor Steve Casmer returns home bloodied by a loan shark goon. Against Joe's advice, Steve and Ed plan to organize the plant workers against the loan sharks. Later, Joe bumps into Anne downstairs and kisses her, but is chagrined to see a man enter her apartment. At Joe's interview the next afternoon, Rennick asks him to work undercover to identify the plant's loan shark spy, but Joe, who wants to live a straight life, refuses. He is relieved to learn, however, that the man in Anne's apartment is her brother Paul. Meanwhile, Ed gathers information from his coworkers which suggests that section boss Charlie Thompson is the informant. When Ed confronts his boss, Thompson places a call and Ed then is murdered. As soon as Joe hears about Ed's death, he returns to Rennick and offers to catch the killers, as long as he can do it his own way. Over the next weeks, Joe works undercover in different areas of the plant. Although he becomes friendly with the workers, some spurn him when, in order to make the crooks trust him, he pretends to be nonchalant about Ed's murder. Soon, Thompson introduces him to Donelli, and Joe begins to lose money gambling, while at the same time courting Anne. When a goon tries to beat him up, Joe wins the fight easily and is summoned to see Donelli, who offers him a job "making collections." Marty, Anne and his coworkers discover his new job, and Joe is forced to accept their anger in order to safeguard his scheme. He soon meets the loan sharks's bookkeeper, Walter Karr, and the boss, Vince Phillips. In order to gain more power and move closer to the real boss, Joe suggests a scam in which a fake laundry business will serve as a front to "loan" money to housewives. Within months, the business venture is a success and Joe demands twenty-five percent of the profits. Although Donelli grows more suspicious of Joe, Phillips trusts him more, and admits that Donelli ordered Charlie to kill Ed. Marty denounces Joe and moves in with Anne, who now refuses to speak to him. Although he wants to quit, Joe is determined to catch Ed's murderer, and so when Phillips tests his loyalty by ordering him to beat up Paul, Joe does so. Hearing that Anne plans to turn Joe in to the police, Marty races to talk to him. Donelli listens through the office intercom as Joe turns Marty away and then calls Rennick to ask for help in fingering Phillips. Donelli pulls a gun on Joe, but Joe beats him up. He then visits Phillips and demands $50,000 in exchange for records of their business transactions. When Phillips reluctantly brings Joe to his boss, Joe is shocked to see Karr. Karr pulls a gun on Joe and both he and Phillips chase Joe through his offices above an old theater. While hiding in the box seats, Joe manages to shoot first Phillips and then Karr. At the police station, Rennick thanks Joe by bringing in Anne, who kisses him, now aware of how much he has sacrificed.