Goliath Awaits
| Goliath Awaits | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Richard Bluel Pat Fielder |
| Directed by | Kevin Connor |
| Starring | Mark Harmon Christopher Lee Eddie Albert John Carradine Alex Cord Robert Forster Frank Gorshin Jean Marsh John McIntire Emma Samms |
| Theme music composer | George Duning |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Producers | Hugh Benson Larry White |
| Editor | J. Terry Williams |
| Running time | ~200 min (original) 110 min (VHS/laserdisc) |
| Original release | |
| Network | Operation Prime Time/ Independent |
| Release | 1981 |
Goliath Awaits is a 1981 American television movie originally broadcast in two parts in November 1981 on various stations as a part of Operation Prime Time's syndicated programming.[1][2] It is about a luxury passenger ship sunk by a torpedo fired by a German U-boat in 1939 that is discovered in 1981 with over 300 survivors and their descendants living in an air bubble in the wreck.
Plot
In 1939, the luxury British ocean liner RMS Goliath, carrying 1,860 passengers, is hit by a torpedo fired by a German U-boat and sinks while on a trans-Atlantic crossing to the United States three days after the outbreak of World War II.[1][2]
Scientists aboard a research ship discover the wreck of the Goliath in 1981 lying upright in 1,000 feet (305 m) of water.[2] Divers sent down to investigate the wreck, including oceanographer Peter Cabot (Mark Harmon), hear banging and music coming from the ship,[3] and are shocked to see the face of a beautiful young woman (Emma Samms) at a porthole. They discover 337 survivors and their descendants living in an air bubble in the wreck caused by the vessel having slowly sunk to a relatively shallow depth. The residents of Goliath, who have invented some technologies to help them survive, some not even known to the outside modern world, live in a superficially utopian society under the autocratic leadership of John McKenzie (Christopher Lee), a junior officer at the time of the sinking credited with saving a portion of the passengers and crew.[1] The scientists are surprised to discover that McKenzie and some of the ship's residents are not interested in being "rescued", and that there are outcasts and rebels opposed to McKenzie's seemingly beneficent leadership, which also includes brutal discipline, mandatory contraception, euthanasia, and outright murder disguised as a mysterious disease.
Complicating things, the Goliath had been carrying some sensitive documents to U.S. President Roosevelt. A joint American/British military team is sent by Admiral Wiley Sloan (Eddie Albert) to retrieve and destroy the documents.[1][3]
Principal cast
- Mark Harmon – Peter Cabot
- Christopher Lee – John McKenzie
- Eddie Albert – Admiral Wiley Sloan
- John Carradine – Ronald Bentley
- Alex Cord – Dr. Sam Marlowe
- Robert Forster – Commander Jeff Selkirk
- Frank Gorshin – Dan Wesker
- Jean Marsh – Dr. Goldman
- John McIntire – Senator Oliver Bartholemew
- Jeanette Nolan – Mrs. Bartholomew
- Duncan Regehr – Paul Ryker
- Emma Samms – Lea McKenzie
- Kirk Cameron – Liam
Filming
The movie was principally filmed on location aboard the RMS Queen Mary.[1][4]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Goliath Awaits". Retrieved 2008-04-08.
- ^ a b c McLean, Robert A (1981-11-05). "High Adventure at the Bottom of the Sea". The Boston Globe. p. 1.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ a b Maslin, Janet (1981-11-16). "TV: 'Goliath Awaits,' Undersea Yarn". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-04-08.
- ^ Gore, Robert J (1981-05-30). "Queen Mary Is Setting for Sci-Fi Film". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-04-14.