Spider-Man (1977 film)

Not to be confused with the 2002 film of the same name.
Spider-Man

United Kingdom theatrical release poster
Based on Spider-Man by
Stan Lee
Steve Ditko
Written by Alvin Boretz
Directed by E. W. Swackhamer
Starring Nicholas Hammond
Lisa Eilbacher
Theme music composer Johnnie Spence
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
Production
Executive producer(s) Charles W. Fries
Daniel R. Goodman
Producer(s) Edward J. Montagne
Editor(s) Aaron Stell
Cinematography Fred Jackman
Running time 90 minutes
Production company(s) Danchuck Productions
Marvel Television
Distributor Columbia Pictures
Release
Original network CBS
Original release
  • September 14, 1977 (1977-09-14)

Spider-Man is a 1977 American live-action made-for-television superhero film, which serves as the pilot to the 1978 television series titled, The Amazing Spider-Man. It was directed by E. W. Swackhamer and stars Nicholas Hammond and Thayer David.

Plot

Peter Parker (Nicholas Hammond), a freelance photographer for the Daily Bugle, is bitten by a radioactive spider and discovers he has gained superpowers, such as super-strength, agility and the ability to climb sheer walls and ceilings. When a mysterious Guru (Thayer David) places people under mind-control to rob banks and threatens to have ten New Yorkers commit suicide at his command unless the city pays him $50 million, Peter becomes the costumed hero Spider-Man to stop the crook's fiendish scheme. Things take a bad turn when the villain hypnotizes Peter Parker into being one of the ten people to jump off a building on command.[1]

Cast

Production

The famed sequence in which Spider-Man crawls across an office ceiling and jumps to the wall was accomplished using a complex set of rigging and cables hidden in tracks in the ceiling. Stunt grips lifted stuntman/stunt coordinator Fred Waugh to the ceiling, and he then scuttled down the hallway using a slider track while the wire pressure pulled him upwards.[2] The scene in which Spider-Man swings from building-to-building was extremely expensive and dangerous, and required two days of rigging; to avoid having to repeat this, the stunt was filmed from multiple camera angles to create extra footage which could be used in future episodes of the TV series.[2]

Release

The film premiered on CBS on September 14, 1977. It received a 17.8 rating with a 30 share, making it the highest performing CBS production for the entire year.[2] Overseas, the film was later shown theatrically. It received a VHS release in 1980.

References

  1. ↑ Marty McKee; Big A; Kevin Gillease. ""The Amazing Spider-Man" Pilot (1977) - Plot Summary". IMDb. IMDb. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 Mangels, Andy (October 2010). "Spinning the Story of the Amazing Spider-Man". Back Issue! (TwoMorrows Publishing) (44): 44–48.

External links


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