Very rare brad-bound promotional script for the pilot episode of Galactica: Saga of a Star World, written by Glen A. Larson and distributed in limited quantities to television network studios in 1977. The script, 171 pages with 23 full-color plates, 8.5 x 11, issued as “Prod. # 85245,” features ‘Special Run’ dates of August 30, 1977, and September 14, 1977, with a caption to the title page noting: “This material is the property of Glen Larson Productions and Universal Studios. It is intended solely for use by studio personnel. Distribution to unauthorized persons is prohibited.” The title page lists Larson as the writer and executive producer, and Leslie Stevens as the Supervising Producer. In addition to pages dedicated to the cast and sets, the script contains 20+ conceptual artwork plates used to add a visual element to the show’s science-fiction storyline, a style also employed on the script’s front cover, which features the show’s title in reflective silver text against a star-filled celestial background. In fine condition, with general handling wear to the covers. It's believed that less than 100 of these scripts were made.
Saga of a Star World, aka Battlestar Galactica, served as the pilot for the American science fiction television series Battlestar Galactica, which was produced in 1978 by Glen A. Larson, who secured a then-unprecedented $1 million per episode budget for the show. Although produced for television, originally as part of a planned series of telemovies and eventually as a television series, Universal Studios decided to release a re-edited 2-hour theatrical version to recoup some of the high production costs, with producers believing the series ‘could be a fine shot at a corner of the Star Wars market.’ On July 8, 1978, two months before its U.S. television debut, the film was released in Canada on 75 screens. The film had its U.S. premiere on September 11, 1978, at the Philadelphia International Film Festival and Exhibition, and made its television debut on ABC on September 17, 1978.
