The Silent Service

I can vividly recall watching this series on Saturday nights during my early teen years. I'd lie on the carpet in our living room and marvel at the opening of each show when you'd see a vintage WWII submarine shooting almost straight up out of the water in what appeared to be an emergency surfacing exercise. The series dramatically chronicled the actions of the United States submarine service during the second World War. The story of a different submarine and it's heroic crew was featured each week and the actors always kept my young mind stimulated with their dramatic portrayals of early submariners. I'm sure the series has been off the air for about 50 years, but I still think about it whenever I reflect on my favorite viewing in the early years of B&W T.V.

The thing that everyone remembers about the show was the opening credits with a film of the USS Pickerel, a late WWII diesel-electric boat, doing an emergency surface from 250 feet. How many of us young boys used to mimic that action at the City Park swimming pool! I wonder how many future submariners were inspired by this TV show, which was partially funded by the taxpayers (by virtue of the loaner submarine and crew provided by the Navy for some filming). I've spoken with a few veterans of the U.S. submarine service in WWII about sub movies and TV. Of all, they pick this TV series as head and shoulders above all others.

This series, plus Whirlybirds, Sea Hunt, Science Fiction Theater, and Range Rider were the prime time TV shows I couldn't miss. Add Saturday morning Mr. Wizard, Fury, and Sky King, and that is my entire recollection of TV from the 50's.

Clear the bridge. Dive, dive!

This series (which I found on YouTube) was well-done with its weaving of real WW2 action footage with scenes filmed onboard the loaner submarine they used. It makes you appreciate the valor of those who chose the silent service: cramped, dank, hot quarters; enduring unrelenting depth charge attacks; going without decent air and electricity; and paying the ultimate price of going down with all hands (over 50 boats did so in WW2). To think that men clamoured to be part of this elite service, knowing the dangers involved is a testimony to the backbone that once was present in our men and our culture. Having been done in the 50s, this series shows a military in which ladies provide a supporting role and men provide the combat presence. How refreshing to look back on a time when our society and military were more in sync with the Creators order.

Being a child of the 50s and a son of a WW2 combat veteran, I am proud to see what our military once stood for. Well done and a tribute to better times and a stronger nation.

In response to the poster who asked what major studio owned the show, I am guessing it would be NBC, as California National Productions was run out of the West Coast division of NBC. That said, many California National shows are starting to fall into public domain use; such as many episodes of the William Bendix version of "Life of Riley", "Adventures of Hiram Holliday", and others. I would suspect, based on that, that the "major studio" who is trying to get their hands on the films would be a DVD distributor who wants to release the show. I say more power to them. "The Silent Service" was a great show, I used to stay up very late during the summertime when I was in grade school in the 60s to watch reruns of the show on a local independent station.

My father, Capt Harley K. Nauman, was featured on one of the silent service episodes. I was very young and don't remember much more. My father was captain on the Steckleback and the Salmon during WWII. Any information on the episode he was in and where I can get a copy of it would be very helpful. My fathers year of birth was 1910, he graduated from the Naval Academy in 1934 and retired from the Navy in 1964 with the rank of Rear Admiral. I don't have much more information but can contact my sister with questions you may have. Thanks in advance for your assistance.

BILL BUEHLER California