The Big List of Time Travel Adventures

 Related to: A Connecticut Yankee
 from antiquity to 2017



   A Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
by Mark Twain
First publication: 1889

A clonk on the head transports Hank Morgan from the 19th century back to the time of Camelot.

 You know about transmigration of souls; do you know about transportation of epochs—and bodies? 

Mark Twain, Master Traveller

I first read the original in 7th grade: for me, a vast improvement on Huck Finn. I do see some roots of Robert A. Heinlein (a fellow Master Traveller) in the Connecticut Yankee’s political, economic and social machinations.




   A Connecticut Yankee
in King Arthur’s Court
adapted by Bernard McConville (Emmett J. Flynn, director)
First release: 14 Mar 1921

I may never see this first movie adaptation since only three of the eight reels are known to still exist. The hero in this comedy version is a 1921 man who has just read Twain’s book and then travels by dream to the time of Camelot without the political carnage that was in the original story.



   Cuddles: A Flapper in King Arthur’s Court
by Charles Forbell
First publication: Kay Features, 4 Mar 1929

After a car crash, Cuddles, our favorite flapper, finds herself in Camelot where she is unflappable.

 P-p-peace! Ye half d-d-d-dressed dragon! Ye wot not w-w-what ye good Kynge Arthur will think of such an t-t-t-tantalizing reflection of c-c-cr-creation! 




   A Connecticut Yankee
adapted by William M. Conselman (David Butler, director)
First release: 6 Apr 1931

At the beginning, this version of the story borrows a bit from Frankenstein (a mad scientist) and H.G. Wells (who invents a time machine), but in the end, poor Hank Morgan (actually, Hank “Martin” in this case, portrayed by Will Rogers) still ends up at the round table predicting an eclipse.

 Think! Think of hearing Lincoln’s own voice delivering the Gettysburg address! 




   Classic Comics’
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
adapted by Jack Hearne
First publication: Classic Comics 24, Sep 1945

Jack Hearne’s illustrations provided an abbreviated but accurate adaptation of Hank Morgan’s medieval travails.

 Ah! I’ve got it! On June 21st, 528, there was a total eclipse of the sun, but in 1879 there was none . . . now to wait . . . that will prove everything! 




Young William Shatner

   Studio One
created by Fletcher Markle
First time travel: 20 Mar 1949 (“Berkeley Square”)

Almost every week for a period of nearly eleven years (7 Nov 1948 to 29 Sep 1958), Studio One presented a black-and-white drama to CBS’s television audience. We can claim some of the tv plays as our own in the sf genre, and at least two included time travel (a “Berkeley Square” remake on 20 March 1949, and “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court” on 19 May 1952). One other sf connection comes from Studio One clips of William Shatner (in “The Defender”, 1957) which were used to portray a young Denny Crane in an episode of Boston Legal (“Son of the Defender”, 2007).

 You’ve heard of the transmigration of soul; have you ever heard of the transposition of a man’s body in time and place? 

—A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court




   A Connecticut Yankee
in King Arthur’s Court
adapted by Edmund Beloin (Tay Garnett, director)
First release: 22 Apr 1949

You know the story of Hank Morgan well enough by now, but do you know Edmund Beloin’s (one of Bob Hope’s writers) musical version with bumpkin Bing Crosby? This is my favorite of all the filmed versions.

 ♫Lord help the sister, who comes between me and my sister,
and Lord help the mister, who comes between me and my maaaan!♫ 

—oops, wrong Crosby movie!




   CBS Mystery Radio Theater
created by Himan Brown
First time travel: 31 Jan 1974

The fun mp3 files include radio news, weather, commercials and more from the 70s, all surrounding the mystery story hosted by E.G. Marshall. Here are the time-travel episodes that I’ve found so far, including two (in July 1976 and March 1977) by Grand Master Alfred Bester.
  1. The Man Who Asked for Yesterday (31 Jan 1974) to the previous day
  2. Yesterday’s Murder (27 Jun 1974) heroine redoes her life
  3. Come Back with Me (2 Jul 1975) hero relives favorite times
  4. Assassination in Time (26 Sep 1975) to Lincoln’s assasination
  5. The Lap of the Gods (25 Nov 1975) sea captain in the 1820s
  6. A Connecticut Yankee . . . (8 Jan 1976) to Camelot
  7. There’s No Business Like (19 Jan 1976) to 2076
  8. The Covered Bridge (23 Mar 1976) a feminist to the 1770s
  9. Time Killer (5 Apr 1976) before Great Depression
  10. Future Eye (19 Jul 1976) 2976 detective to 1976
  11. Now You See Them, Now You Don’t (12 Mar 1977) back from World War V
  12. A Point of Time (15 Nov 1977) overthrow dictator in 2200
  13. The Time Fold (16 Mar 1978) from 1979 to far future
  14. Time Out of Mind (18 May 1978) to World War II
  15. The Winds of Time (16 Oct 1978) heroine secures closure
  16. The Time Box (18 Feb 1980) to the 1880s
  17. The Man of Two Centuries (29 Apr 1981) Huron travels centuries
  18. The Old Country (24 Mar 1982) back to World War II

 This is our bicentennial year: a time to pause and count our blessings. And among the greatest of these are the men and women of letters who flourished in our native land, who created a literature that was both typically American and universally admired. 

—host E.G. Marshall in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court


I’m not sure when this commemorative plate was issued for the cartoon.

   A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur’s Court
produced, directed and plagiarized by Chuck Jones
First airing: 23 Feb 1978

This half-hour Warner Brother’s cartoon was shown on tv a few times and then released on VHS as Bugs Bunny in King Arthur’s Court. With the help of Way Bwadbuwy, Bugs finds himself in Camelot, whereupon he brings about a dragon-powered steampunk age.

 Never again—never, never again—do I take travel hints from Ray Bradbury! Huh! Him and his short cuts! 




   A Young Connecticut Yankee
in King Arthur’s Court
by Frank Encarnacao and Ralph L. Thomas (Thomas, director)
First aired: 27 May 1995 (made-for-tv)

Michael York plays Merlin to teenage rock-and-roll hopeful Hank Morgan is zapped back to the round table Mark-Twain-style by a wonky speaker.

 Lancelot? This is awesome. 




   A Kid in King Arthur’s Court
by Michael Part and Robert L. Levy (Michael Gottlieb, diretor)
First release: 11 Aug 1995

This time around, the Yankee is failed little-leaguer Calvin Fuller who’s pulled back to Camelot where we see him with a flashlight, a Walkman, roller blades, superglue, a mountain bike with training wheels, bubble gum, karate, a candy bar, a Swiss Army knife, an aging Arthur and a pretty young princess.

 Swiss Army knife! The very name conjurs up greatness! 




   A Knight in Camelot
adapted by Joe Wiesenfeld (Roger Young, director)
First release: 8 Nov 1998 (made-for-tv)

Not even Whoopi (as Vivien Morgan, Ph.D., the Connecticut Yankee) or Michael York (King Arthur) could save this adaptation, even though it did bring many of the basic ideas and characters of Twain’s original. But it fell down on poor dialogue, forced melodrama, and strained moralizing.

 This evilness of yours must be avenged, so I’m gonna blot out the sun. 




   Black Knight
by Darryl Quarles, Peter Gaulke and Gerry Swallow (Gil Junger, director)
First release: 21 Nov 2001

When janitor Jamal Walker falls into the moat at Medieval World, he wakes up and carries out a weak impersonation of a Connecticut Yankee.

 Your Majesty, starting at small forward from Englewood High, two-time all-county conference player of the year, the messenger from Normandie—Jamal “Skyyyyyy” Walker! 


 

13 items are in the time-travel list for these search settings.
Thanks for visiting my time-travel page, and thanks to the many sources that provided stories and more (see the Links and Credits in the menu at the top). —Michael (main@colorado.edu)