Lone American astronaut Kit Draper (Paul Mantee) fights for survival on the Red Planet in the 1964 sci-fi film, Robinson Crusoe on Mars.

A science fiction classic, Paramount Pictures' Robinson Crusoe on Mars -- starring Paul Mantee and Adam West -- was way ahead of its time, depicting the exploration of the Red Planet five years before man even set foot on the moon.

Inspired by Daniel Defoe Classic

Robinson Crusoe on Mars was inspired by the classic Daniel Defoe novel, The Life and Most Suprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. First published in 1719, the book tells the story of an English castaway who survives 28 years on a remote tropical island before being rescued.

The movie was written by John C. Higgins and Ib Melchior, with Byron Haskin directing. Haskin possessed previous cinematic space experience, having directed The War of the Worlds (1953), Conquest of Space (1955) and From the Earth to the Moon (1958). The movie's all-important special effects were expertly rendered by Lawrence Butler.

Filmed in Death Valley

Budgeted at $1.2 million, Robinson Crusoe on Mars was filmed at California/Nevada's Death Valley National Park, with Zabriske Point serving as the main locale. Because of Death Valley's federally-protected status, cast and crew were under strict orders not to molest any plant life in the area.

Situated 282 feet below sea level at its lowest point, the arid, rugged Death Valley basin proved to be the ideal filming locale, expertly mimicking the Martian surface. Lending further authenticity to the project was the matting of Death Valley's surface back in the laboratory, casting it in a spooky, Mars-like reddish hue.

The production featured a handful of recycled props from previous sci-fi films. They included the Martian spacecraft from 1953's The War of the Worlds and spacesuits (this time worn by the aliens) from 1950's Destination Moon.

On to Mars

The movie opens aboard the spaceship Elinor M., which is orbiting the Red Planet in order to test its gravitational field. Following a near-collision with a flaming meteor, the ship's two astronauts and their test monkey are forced to abandon their vessel via ejector capsules. Violently catapulted from the damaged ship, Colonel McReady (Adam West) is killed, but astronaut Kit Draper (Mantee) and Mona (played by Barney the woolly monkey) are able to reach the Martian surface safely.

Commander Draper's Martian odyssey now begins. Armed with only a small survival kit, including video tapes in which a professor lectures on self-preservation, Draper and Mona set out to explore their new surroundings. His immediate concern, he relates into his tape recorder, is oxygen. Although the Martian atmosphere contains limited amounts of the precious element, Draper can only breathe it for small intervals before having to go back on his oxygen tanks.

When his oxygen supply is finally depleted, Draper loses consciousness while sprawled out at a makeshift campsite. Upon awakening, he discovers that the Martian stones burning around him release oxygen, thus giving him an unlimited source of the element.

With the help of Mona, Draper solves his next problem -- food and water. The monkey leads him to a series of underground caves, where drinkable water and edible tube plants are housed.

Draper Meets Friday

Draper later meets up with a towering escaped slave, whom he christens "Friday" (Vic Lundin). The man is shackled with some type of electronic bracelets, which enable his masters to hone in on him. Pursued by interplanetary spaceships, Draper and company make their way through Mars' underground canals, hoping to emerge at the polar ice cap where an American space vessel can effect their rescue.

Release and Reviews

Robinson Crusoe on Mars made its world premiere in Providence, Rhode Island, on June 4, 1964.

Variety (6/3/64) loved the picture, calling it "an enthralling screen experience for people of all ages," while Time magazine (9/4/64) declared it "a pleasant surprise: a piece of science fiction based on valid speculation."

Taking a dimmer view was The New York Herald Tribune (8/27/64), who found the production "too clinical. It kind of leaves you cold..."

Following a mediocre performance at the box office, the movie's planned sequel -- Robinson Crusoe in the Invisible Galaxy -- was abandoned.

"Mr. Echo, go to hell!" an angry, frustrated Kit Draper shouts into the abyss.

Mars can be a lonely place...