Planet of the Apes

Starring: Roddy McDowall, Ron Harper, James Naughton, Mark Lenard
First Aired: September 13, 1974
Number of Seasons: 1
Estimated Production Cost: $250,000 per episode*

Disney Studios owns a portion of the Planet of the Apes media empire, which includes the film franchise and television series. The French television show La Planete des singes, which aired in 1963, was the inspiration for the film Planet of the Apes. The franchise has inspired a slew of comic books, novels, movies, and remakes and reboots since it was discovered by American filmmakers. The television series Planet of the Apes was one of the first television entries into this media empire, which would go on to make more than $2 billion in worldwide box office revenue with its films. CBS broadcasted this live-action series as part of its 1974 autumn television lineup. Unfortunately, the show’s low ratings proved to be its downfall.

Planet Of The Apes

The Saint

Starring: Roger Moore, Geoffrey Keen, Arnold Diamond, Aubrey Morris, Lois Maxwell
First Aired: February 9, 1969
Number of Seasons: 6
Estimated Production Cost: $100,000 per episode*

In 1920, Leslie Charteris invented the character of Simon Templar, a Batman-like superhero who assists police officers in solving criminal cases. The Templars have served as the inspiration for a variety of television episodes, novels, and films, with The Saint being one of those shows. The American television network NBC broadcasted the British spy thriller series as part of their summer lineup. It filled the hole left by another show earlier in the evening. The Saint turned out to be an extremely profitable venture for ITC. It ran for 120 episodes and brought in $450 million (adjusted for inflation) for the network in its first season. The majority of the episodes of the show were shot in black and white because color television was only a few years away at the time.

The Saint