For millions of years, Earth was fertile and rich. Then pollution and waste began to take their toll. Civilization fell into ruin. This is the world of the 25th century. Only a handful of scientists remain, men who have vowed to rebuild what has been destroyed. This is their achievement: Ark II, a mobile storehouse of scientific knowledge, manned by a highly trained crew of young people. Their mission: to bring the hope of a new future to mankind. Three young scientists travel around the country that has been ravaged by pollution. In their hi-tech RV (called Ark II), they study the land and help out those in need.
This was a show about the bleak future, aimed at the younger audience. It first aired in 1976 but didn’t run for too long, having only 15 episodes but it did capture the hearts of the boys growing up in the seventies (me included).
The series is best-remembered for its eponymous vehicle: a futuristic-looking six-wheeled combination RV and mobile laboratory. The 44 ft long vehicle was a fiberglass body on a 1971 Ford. The front end of the Ark II prop was later re-used as the nose portion of the Seeker spacecraft in the series Space Academy and Jason of Star Command.
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Cast : Terry Lester | Jean Marie Hon | Jose Flores | Adam the chimpanzee |
Guest stars included Jonathan Harris, Malachi Throne, Jim Backus, Geoffrey Lewis, Philip Abbott, Robert Ridgely, Helen Hunt, and Robby the Robot.
Article sources include YouTube, Imdb, Wikipidea and of course my own recollections of the show