during lunch breaks." Broadcast history Combat! premiered on ABC on October 2, 1962, and was broadcast for five seasons to become TV's longest-running World War II drama. In total Combat! aired 152 hour-long episodes. The first 127 episodes, spanning four seasons, were produced in black and white. The fifth and final season produced 25 color episodes. The show was developed by Robert Pirosh, who wrote the pilot episode. Cast Recurring Characters: Season 1 only (except Davis who appeared twice in Season 2) Fletcher Fist as Cpl./Pvt. Brockmeyer 7 episodes Joby Baker as Pvt. Kelly 3 episodes (killed in third) John Considine as Pvt. Wayne Temple Jr. 2 episodes (killed in second) Arnold Meritt as Pvt. Jerome Crown 3 episodes Dennis Robertson as Pvt. Albert Baker 7 episodes William Harlow as Pvt. Davis 5 episodes Robert Fortier as Capt. Jampel 3 episodes Prior to portraying Pvt. McCall, William Bryant made three guest appearances throughout the first four seasons. Throughout the whole series, however, Paul Busch portrayed multiple characters, the majority of them being German. Conlan Carter (a newcomer) was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in 1964 for his portrayal of PFC "Doc". Guest cast The majority of the guest stars appeared as additional squad members, French citizens or German soldiers. In the first season, the then little-known Ted Knight and Frank Gorshin made appearances. Other notable guest stars included: Directors Directors for the series were: Jus Addiss (1 episode) Robert Altman (10 episodes) Laslo Benedek (2 episodes) Richard Benedict (2 episodes) Michael Caffey (11 episodes) Alan Crosland, Jr. (6 episodes) Richard Donner (1 episode) Tom Gries (3 episodes) Georg J. Fenady (6 episodes) Herman Hoffman (1 episode) Burt Kennedy (6 episodes) Bernard McEveety (31 episodes) Byron Paul (1 episode) John Peyser (27 episodes) Vic Morrow (7 episodes) Ted Post (6 episodes) Sutton Roley (15 episodes) Boris Sagal (pilot episode) Military accuracy and authenticity From Pirosh's original ideation of Combat!, authenticity was considered important to the show. Most of the cast members were veterans of the armed services, with several having served during World War II. Dick Peabody and Shecky Greene served in the U.S. Navy, while Rick Jason served in the Army Air Corps. Vic Morrow served in the Navy in 1947. Jack Hogan served as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, and Conlan Carter served in the U.S. Air Force during the post–Korean