Salvage (1979)
Article 5979 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 6-5-2021
Directed by Lee Philips
Featuring Andy Griffith, Joel Higgins, Trish Stewart
Country: USA
What it is: Successful TV series pilot

An ambitious junkman conceives of a plan to retrieve salvage from the moon. Can he make his plan become reality?

I’ve seen quite a few TV-Movies intended as pilots for series that never made the grade, but this is one of the exceptions; it did become a series, albeit one that had a very short run. Somehow, I’m not surprised; the premise here is rather far-fetched and I’m not sure a series based on this would work in the long run. On the plus side, the characters are fun, there’s a genuine wit to the proceedings, and it’s rather likable. The first part of the movie is involved with the implementation of the plan and gathering the necessary talent to pull it off; the second mostly plays for suspense and is far more familiar, as it concentrates with the various dangers and setbacks of the voyage to the moon itself. All in all, I rather like it, and I’m glad it was given a chance as a series.