Bearcats! - Production Notes

Production Notes

The series was created by veteran TV writer/producer Douglas Heyes who also served as executive producer. He wrote and directed the TV movie Powderkeg that served as the pilot film for the series. Episodes were shot on location in near Tucson, Arizona and also in and around Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The series featured a number of well-known guest stars including Leslie Nielsen, Kevin McCarthy, Jane Merrow, Keenan Wynn, Henry Darrow, David Canary, Ed Flanders and Eric Braeden.

For filming, the series used two full-scale metal replicas of first generation (1912–16) Stutz Bearcats made by Hollywood car customizer and film car builder George Barris. While externally very close to the original cars, in fact they were built on custom chassis powered by Ford drivetrains and had modern four wheel brake systems for safety. The two replicas were very similar to one another, however the first built (and the one used for most filming) had a manual 4-speed transmission while the second had an automatic. Additionally, there was a slight variation in the location of the horn bulb and the pinstripes on the sides of the hood of the second car, so the cars can be differentiated while closely viewing the episodes. In addition to the two cars used in the series, Barris built and retained a third car for use at car shows which differed in many details and color from the TV cars. All three cars survive today, though Barris' display car has been extensively modified.

The episode "Groundloop at Spanish Wells" features a 1918 Standard J-1 airplane (though it's called a Curtiss Jenny in the script) that had recently been restored in Tucson (where the episode was filmed) by Charles Klessig of Fargo, North Dakota. A later episode featuring the same pilot character, "The Return of Esteban", featured a 1929 British de Havilland DH.60 Moth biplane. According to Klessig, the episode was filmed in New Mexico where the higher altitudes precluded the use of the older aircraft.

The W.W. I tank shown in the episode "The Devil Wears Armor" is an M1917 (aka Six Ton) tank, an American-built version of the Renault FT. Its gun is not authentic. The M1917 was first ordered in 1917, and the first example was produced in late 1918, four years later than the series' 1914 setting.

The MPC (Model Products Corporation) model company released a 1/25th scale model kit of a Stutz Bearcat as a tie-in with the series. Its box art featured Taylor and Cole in costume with the genuine 1914 Bearcat used in Powderkeg. A photo on the side of the box showed the first Barris replica in a scene from the episode "The Devil Wears Armor".