Sci Fi TV Obscurities: Captain Nice (1967)

Sci Fi TV Obscurities: A look at sci fi and fantasy TV shows that made it to the air only briefly before getting cast to the television wasteland.

What Is It? Carter Nash is a mild-mannered man working for the police department as a chemist, and he discovers a secret formula that transforms him into a superhero with superhuman strength, invulnerability, and the ability to fly (though he is afraid of heights). His mother, whom he lives with, convinces him to use these powers to fight crime and he takes up the guise of Captain Nice, sporting a uniform that she sewed together.

Aired: NBC, 1967, 1 Season Totaling 15 Episodes

Starring: William Daniels, Alice Ghostley, Ann Prentiss

Created By: Buck Henry

Is It Must Watch Sci Fi? No. It’s a fun little bit of nostalgia from its age, but not essential viewing.

The Skinny: In 1966, Batman debuted on ABC and became a huge hit, prompting the other networks to come up with their own camp superheroes to lure some of the viewers that were watching the adventures of the Dynamic Duo. NBC already had its spy spoof Get Smart on the air, and it had proven quite popular in its first few seasons. Network execs decided to tap into the creative team of that show and had co-creator Buck Henry produce a superhero parody to air on NBC’s schedule. He delivered Captain Nice which was essentially a riff on Superman and it was actually a fun little show while it lasted.

The big difference between Captain Nice and the Man of Steel, apart from the name and costume, is that Carter Nash was not much braver in his hero form, and really not that heroic at all. The comedy generally worked around that premise, with the hero usually fighting run-of-the-mill criminals. Some more colorful villains like Batman offered might have spiced the show up a bit, but it never got around to delivering much of a rogures gallery. The show still had its moments and did a decent job as a superhero parody very much in the vein of Get Smart. Sadly, it only lasted one season and has rarely been seen since its original run. But it is worth seeking out as a sci fi TV curio and will deliver some laughs for those interested in a fun little spin on the superhero genre.

Cancelled Too Soon: Yes. This series tried to capitalize on the popularity of Batman which had become a pop culture phenomenon when it debuted in 1966. But by 1967, viewers were already losing interest in the adventures of the Caped Crusaders and that show would be gone by the end of the next season. The campy superhero craze was already waning by the time Captain Nice hit the schedule, and it didn’t help that it aired in the Monday 8 PM EST timeslot against top-rated The Lucy Show on CBS. The adventures of Carter Nash never found much of an audience and disappeared from the schedule after airing fifteen episodes.

Should It Be Rebooted? No. This show is hardly known these days and even though a good superhero parody might be welcome in the current television environment, it’s unlikely that NBC or another venue would be interested in reviving this one.

Interesting Facts: CBS also aired a superhero parody in 1967 that was very similar to Captain Nice. Titled Mister Terrific, it followed mild-mannered gas station attendant Stanley Beamish who worked for a secret government organization that supplied him with a pill that turned him into a superhero. That series aired a half-hour earlier than Captain Nice on Mondays and premiered on the same day. Camp superhero overload took its toll, though, and Mister Terrific was off the schedule by the end of the season as well. Buck Henry would later create the sci fi parody Quark for NBC which had a short run from 1977-78 (more on that one at this link).

Where Can You Watch It? Unfortunately, this series has never been released on DVD and it is not available on any of the streaming services that I am aware of. You can find episodes on YouTube from time to time, though.

Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com