Tom Swift On TV

Tom Swift On TV
Cancelled films

As early as 1914, Edward Stratemeyer proposed making a Tom Swift movie, but no such movie was made. A Tom Swift radio series was proposed in 1946. Two scripts were written, but, for unknown reasons, the series was never produced. Twentieth Century Fox planned a Tom Swift feature movie in 1968, to be directed by Gene Kelly. A script was written and approved, and filming was to have begun during 1969. However, the project was canceled owing to the poor reception of the movies Doctor Dolittle and Star!; a $500,000 airship that had been built as a prop was rumored to have been sold to a midwest amusement park. Yet another movie was planned in 1974, but, again, was cancelled.

Television

Scripts were written for a proposed television series involving both Tom Swift Jr. and his father, the hero of the original book series. A television pilot show for a series to be called The Adventures of Tom Swift was filmed in 1958, featuring Gary Vinson. However, legal problems prevented the pilot's distribution, and it was never broadcast; no copies of the pilot are known to exist, though the pilot script is available. In 1977, Glen A. Larson wrote an unproduced television pilot show entitled "TS, I Love You: The Further Adventures of Tom Swift". This series was to be combined with a Nancy Drew series, a Hardy Boys series, and a Dana Girls series. Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys were eventually combined into a one-hour program The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries with alternating episodes.

Tom Swift & Linda Craig Mystery Hour Publicity Photo

Tom Swift & Linda Craig Mystery Hour

On July 3, 1983 ABC-Television aired a pilot for a new series, the Tom Swift and Linda Craig Mystery Hour.

The studio's press release, sent to local tv-listings publications, described the program thusly:
"Young detectives Tom Swift and Linda Craig use their scientific acumen to find a hidden treasure to which they unwittingly lead a gang of cut-throat criminals."

ABC placed the pilot in the same time-slot it had formerly used for the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, but the program did not develop into a series.

From IMDb: Linda Craig's grandfather is kidnapped with the intention of ransoming him for Tom Swift's latest invention, a hand-held carbon dater, which would enable the crooks to identify the oldest structure on the grandfather's property and possibly locate a hidden treasure.

Cast
Tom Swift:	Willie Aames
Linda Craig:	Lori Loughlin
Rad Gorman:	Christopher Blande
Rudoph Ulmer:	George DiCenzo
Mrs. Gorman:	Ja'net DuBois
Bronco Mallory:	William Windom
Kathy Hamilton:	Amanda Wyss
Grandma Mallory:	Carmen Zapata

Crew
Directed & Produced by Harry Harris Written by Michael Michaelian, Katharyn Powers Music by Jerrold Immel Film Editing by John Farrell Art Direction by Bill Ross

The CW Tom Swift Show

Tom Swift appeared in the episode "The Celestial Visitor" from the second season of The CW's Nancy Drew with Tian Richards portraying the character as a Black, gay, billionaire inventor. The episode is a backdoor pilot for a spin-off project titled Tom Swift, in development at The CW. In August 2021, Tom Swift was ordered straight-to-series and will debut Tuesday May 31 2022. In February 2022, Ashleigh Murray joined the cast as Zenzi Fullington
Production companies: CBS Studios, Fake Empire
Series Plot: Follow the adventures of billionaire inventor Tom Swift, who is thrust into a world of sci-fi conspiracy and unexplained phenomena after the shocking disappearance of his father. Tom takes to the road on a quest to unravel the truth, leaving behind the comforts of his usual moneyed lifestyle, all while fighting to stay one step ahead of an Illuminati-scale group hell-bent on stopping him.
Due to extremely low ratings the show was cancelled after one season.

Ep1 - 31 May 2022...And the Liftoff to Saturn - Directed by Anton Cropper
Episode plot: As an exceptionally brilliant inventor with unlimited resources and unimaginable wealth, the devilishly charming Tom Swift is a man who many men would kill to be, or be with - a man with the world in the palm of his hand. But that world gets shaken to its core after the shocking disappearance of his father, thrusting Tom into a breathtaking adventure full of mysterious conspiracies and unexplained phenomena. On his whirlwind quest to unravel the truth, Tom finds himself fighting to stay one step ahead of an Illuminati-scale cabal hellbent on stopping him.

Ep2 7 June 2022 ...And the 4b Curl - Directed by Michael Allowitz
Episode plot: When Tom discovers that an important piece of the mission to save his father is on the grounds of a family frenemy's estate, he's forced to make a tough choice - woo them with the most awkward dinner known to man. But Tom is shocked when that dinner of errors revels a dark secret from Tom's past that even Zenzi didn't know. Zenzi and Tom venture into a dangerous mine to find the next capsule piece, but the only question - is their friendship strong enough to survive the secrets they've kept from each other.

Ep3 14 June 2022 ...And Nine Inches of Danger - Directed by Jeff Byrd
Episode plot: While hosting the tech event of the year at Swift Enterprises, Tom embarks on a daring gambit to stop a security breach - and to do so, he'll have to get extremely close to the mysterious Rowan, whose undeniable chemistry with Tom complicates the question of whether Rowan is a shadowy adversary or a guardian angel. Meanwhile, Zenzi, Isaac and Lorraine look to Tom to shore up the corporation's standing with powerful investors, and Lino struggles to understand his inexplicably heightened physical abilities.

Ep4 21 June 2022 ...And the Chocolate Cowboys - Directed by Clara Aranovich
Episode plot: An annoyed Tom goes full on dad mode when Lino shocks his friends by stowing away in a side panel on the Swift Jet hoping to join in on the mission to rescue his uncle Barton. Meanwhile, Zenzi persuades Tom to let her take the jet to meet up with Congressman Eskol in hopes of finding out if Stone Corp. might be planning an attack in Dallas. Lastly, in a surprising twist Tom insists that Isaac accompany Zenzie to help keep her safe.

Ep5 28 June 2022 ...And the Crashed Cotillion - Directed by Ruben Garcia
Episode plot: Tom, Zenzi and Isaac are on capsule piece rescue mission #3, and are determined that this time no detours, kidnappings or rogue dates will stop them, that is until Tom receives harsh news from Claire. Meanwhile, Lorraine works on finalizing the Tubman Group Cotillion. Lastly, Lino drops a bomb on Isaac.

Ep6 5 July 2022 ...And the Benefits of Bondage - Directed by Bille Woodruff
Episode plot: Tom finds himself stuck between a rock and a hard place. Meanwhile, Zenzi is startled when a worried Isaac surprises her while she's in her car applying lipstick and triple checking her already flawless makeup in the mirror after a visit to the gym. Lastly, Rowan issues a strong warning to Isaac.

Ep7 12 July 2022 ...And the Book of Isaac - Directed by Ruba Nadda
Episode plot: When they discover that one of their own has been poisoned, Tom, Zenzi and Barclay work together to figure out who is responsible.

Ep8 19 July 2022 ...And His Two Men and a Baby - Directed by J. Miller Tobin
Episode plot: Tom's mysterious guardian angel Rowan makes an urgent plea for help in rescuing a missing scientist targeted by the same anti-tech conspiracy that sabotaged Barton Swift's ship. When the Squad embarks on this mission, a surprising secret comes to light and brings Tom and Rowan closer than ever before. Meanwhile, Zenzi's simmering feelings for Isaac are complicated by a bold move from Congressman Eskol.

Ep9 26 July 2022 ...And the Night to Remember - Directed by Andi Behring
Episode plot: Tom continues his search for the last capsule piece which leads him to an interesting situation with Susannah. He also learns some information about his childhood that he was never supposed to know. Meanwhile, Zenzi and Isaac uncover Congressmen Eskol's hidden agenda.

Ep10 August 2, 2022 ...And the Cost of Forgiveness - Directed by Rose Troche
Episode plot: Only hours are left before Tom must launch the rescue drone to save his father from outer space. But his plans are jeopardized by an anti-technology attack at Swift Enterprises' Black engineering conference - and by the fallout from the discovery of his father's shocking betrayal during Tom's childhood. Tom will be forced to confront his deepest emotional wounds, and his journey will bring about a stunning revelation that will change his life forever.

Cast and Characters
Main
Tian Richards as Tom Swift, a young, billionaire inventor
Ashleigh Murray as Zenzi Fullerton, Tom's cousin and best friend
Marquise Vilsón as Isaac Vega, Tom's bodyguard
Albert Mwangi as Rowan, a Congressman's security detail
April Parker Jones as Lorraine Swift, Tom's mother
Recurring
LeVar Burton as voice of Barclay, an artificial intelligence
Brittany Ishibashi as Claire Corm
Ward Horton as Nathan Eskol, a family friend of the Swift family who is a Congressman
Donovin Miller as Lino, Tom's adoptive brother
Christopher B. Duncan as Barton Swift, Tom's father
Hayward Leach as Justin Chase
Elizabeth Cappuccino as Susannah Robb

On October 28, 2020, it was announced that The CW was developing a spin-off from their Nancy Drew series titled Tom Swift. The series is based on the book series of the same name and is created and executive produced by Melinda Hsu Taylor, Noga Landau, and Cameron Johnson. The show is set in the "Drew-niverse". On February 8, 2021, it was announced that Ruben Garcia will be directing the pilot episode. On August 30, 2021, The CW had given the production a straight-to-series order and it was expected to debut during the 2021-22 television season. Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, and Lis Rowinski were also added as executive producers
Lead actor Richards said of the adaptation, "The original Tom Swift was great for his time and what he represented. At the time, that was the face of young boys, All-American kids full of possibilities. But in 2021, that can look so different. It can look like someone like me-a Black guy who is chocolate, who is queer, who is all those things that we're told aren't the normal or the status quo." He added, "We're going to dive into so many sectors of identity. We're going to talk about Blackness-and a different kind of Blackness than we're used to seeing, which is the Black elite, the 1 percent, the billionaires. We're also going to talk about a queer boy's journey into becoming a queer man. Not only self-acceptance, but acceptance as a whole, having the community and people around you."