Battlestar Galactica Viper Mark i

1977 was a big year for me.  Two great films came out that year. Roger Moore starred in A Spy Who Loved Me, which featured a Lotus Esprit that had the ability to transform into a submarine. And, of course, Star Wars. The film featured the Death Star, TIE fighters, Y-wings, and the iconic X-wing fighter. 

Now, most Star Wars aficionados know that John Dykstra was in charge of the special effects and worked to develop the computer motion-controlled cameras that could repeat the same movements multiple times so the camera could make multiple passes with various mattes attached, allowing to replace the blue screen in the background and add multiple effects onto the screen.

This revolutionized the film industry. However, 1977 came and went, and back on Earth, TV executives were looking for something that could capitalize on the science fiction frenzy that happened the year before, and they turned to Glen Larson for something that would bring back that excitement. That would be Battlestar Galactica.