http://www.ohio.com/lifestyle/19244924.html

"...Nor are there any extras on the DVD, surprising with something that's considered a TV landmark. That's even more surprising when you see that CBS is releasing a short-lived TV series on DVD on Tuesday, with extras.

That set is The Invaders: The First Season (CBS, 17 episodes, five discs, $36.98), the 1967-68 series about a man, David Vincent, trying to stop an alien invasion of Earth after he stumbles upon the landing of a flying saucer.

The series came from the same producer as The Fugitive, which was nearing the end of its network run as The Invaders went on the air; both have the same elements of a man on the move with a story no one will believe, lots of guest stars, a somber narration and a strong current of paranoia. But The Invaders was not a big hit, and it had some very silly moments — such as the extended pinkie finger that distinguished aliens taking human form.

But star Roy Thinnes was a sturdy actor and, aside from special effects that were unremarkable then and now, the show has some effective moments. And it's a time capsule of television, especially in the opening boasting the show is ''in color.''

DVD extras include three promotional spots from the show's run, an extended version of the series premiere, about half an hour of Thinnes talking about the show (and his own views about UFOs) and introductions for each episode by Thinnes....."

INTERVIEW: Roy Thinnes, TV’s David Vincent, Talks The Invaders by Sheldon Wiebe

June 2nd, 2008 ·

Posted by: Sheldon A. Wiebe in Hollywood Insider, Television

When The Invaders premiered as a mid-season replacement on January 10, 1967, science fiction on television was a pretty grim genre. The heyday of Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits was past and – other than Star Trek – the best the genre had to offer was campy series that played fast and loose with the science because it was “science fiction and you could do what you wanted” [generic quote from producers of every bad television science fiction series ever made]. Like Star Trek’s Gene Roddenberry, the creator of The Invaders wanted to avoid that kind of silliness – as did the show’s producer, the legendary Quinn Martin [The Fugitive]. It was their straightforward, no-nonsense, dramatic approach that convinced Roy Thinnes to take on the role of David Vincent, the architect who saw an alien ship land way too early one morning. Mr. Vincent was kind enough to chat with me about the series and its effect on his life.........

.........One of the things about the show that I didn’t realize back then, was that it was shot is a quasi-documentary style – very direct and with that Quinn Martin signature narration. Did that approach make it feel more real when you were doing it?

Well, the whole atmosphere was very serious on the set. The real leader of our unit was director of photography, Andrew Macintyre.

I came into the thing as much of a sceptic as you’d want to meet. I was leery about doing science fiction [because] I was afraid I’d always be labelled a science fiction person.

Andrew, on along ride to location – we usually rode together – told me a lot of stories. He was a World War II bomber pilot and flew a lot of missions over Italy and mid-Europe. He told me, early on, that they were talking from ship to ship about being followed by formations of something they couldn’t identify.

He was raising the hair on my neck, telling me some of these stories!

It turned out that there a number of key people in the crew that were interested in the subject in various ways, and not just on a curiosity level, but… There was man who was working with people who were working on magnetic engines, hoping to find a power source that would provide the kind of speeds that we would need to cross vast areas of the universe.

There were some very interesting people [on the crew].

Many interesting recordings and documents came my way. He seemed to be schooling me on the veracity of the subject –and I soon became a clear believer that something was going on out there...........

Very good interview here:

http://eclipsemagazine.com/EM%20Exclusives/interview-roy-thinnes-tvs-david-vincent-talks-the-invaders-by-sheldon-wiebe/5797