Trivia / The Invaders (1967)

• Creator Backlash: More of a backlash against a creator's idea - series creator Larry Cohen's notion that many (but not all) of the aliens would have a little finger they couldn't bend was considered ridiculous by many of the crew. By the second season, after Cohen had basically been pushed out of the show production process, the finger gimmick was rarely seen or referred to.
• Dawson Casting: In the episode "The Trial", Vincent tells murder suspect Charlie Gilman that he stuck by him in Korea and he intends to stick by him now. Gilman is played by Don Gordon, aged 41 at the time, which means that, in real life, he could have conceivably served during The Korean War. Roy Thinnes, however, was 29 at the time. He would have been 12 or 13 years old at the height of the Korean conflict in real life.
• Fake Russian:
  • The very American (Pittsburgh to be exact) Fritz Weaver as Russian Ambassador Peter Bork in "The Captive".
  • Also, Scottish-German actress Dana Wynter as Russian scientist Dr. Katerina Serrat in "The Captive".
• Follow the Leader: The Invaders has been accused of being a Science Fiction variation of an earlier Quinn Martin series, The Fugitive. Both shows feature a hero who is on the run from people determined to defeat him, while he fights back as best he can. Series creator Larry Cohen claims his real inspiration for the 'running man' aspect of the show wasn't The Fugitive, but the films of Alfred Hitchcock.
• Playing Against Type: A rare non-cop show from QM Productions.
• Real-Life Relative: Roy Thinnes's then-wife Lynn Loring guest-starred in the first season episode "Panic".
• Similarly Named Works: The series shares its title with a comic book. There is also an episode of The Twilight Zone (1959) entitled "The Invaders", as well as an episode of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
• What Could Have Been: 90's Usenet personality Gharlane of Eddore once told an anecdote about going to the show's producers and pitching a script idea that revealed Vincent's second-season backer Edgar Scoville was in fact a benevolent alien, only to find himself instantly tossed out onto the street; either the producers really hated the idea, or they already had a similar plan.
• You Look Familiar: A number of instances — quite common for any QM show, as they loved to reuse certain guest stars over and over in different roles. But it's most noticeable with Kent Smith, who played a character named Stan Arthur in the first season episode "Moonshot" and returned in the second season in the recurring role of Edgar Scoville.

---