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[ComicMike]

Thank you very much, Robb

Yes, the original film, "The Ghost & Mrs. Muir" from 1947 is absolutely wonderful and it is also in my collection.

[The Australian Panther]

I've been bingewatching 'Man in a Suitcase'
I missed this one back in the day. It has completely surprised me. It's themes are very contemporary.
The main character, McGill is the ultimate outsider, Dishonorable Discharged and literally lives out of a suitcase!
And there are no other regular characters at all.  Even for the TV audience, he is not particularly likable and whenever he meets Police, Authorities or clients he does not go out of his way to make himself liked.
The basic formula is - he is hired by a member of the elite to solve a problem that they don't want the police or authorities to know about. They must have hired just about every oxford-educated actor with a plummy accent for the villains and the hypocritical upper class snobs that abound.
Sir Lew Grade must have given them an excellent budget as there are several episodes in Europe and at least one in Africa. The stories are surprisingly critical of British society for a commercial TV show.
Excellent scripts, direction and acting.
There was only one season. I would love to know more about what went on behind the scenes with this show.
It only ran for one season. I wonder if Sir Lew watched a couple of episodes - which were critical of the kind of circles he moved in, and said, 'Cancel it'
The star, Richard Bradford was quite an interesting guy himself.
Another one of the US actors that Lew Grade enticed to the UK for work. They all found conditions very different from the equivalent in the US and many were quite disappointed.
Here are two quite powerful episodes.
Man in a Suitcase - Brainwash
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C6j255mDZc&list=PLw6gg897HVfs9qNqSnHVuXsMTfgWqzeW3&index=9
Man In A Suitcase - Web With Four Spiders
https://comicbookplus.com/forum/index.php?action=post;topic=2005.3300;last_msg=87156

You will notice - the endings are abrupt, no happy endings, in fact, no satisfying endings, and sometimes no complete endings at all. Consequences to come.
And now I'm going to have my evening meal and watch the second of the episodes that feature Jacqueline Pearce!

       

[profh0011]

Last year I saw a one-hour interview with Robert Vaughn, done not long before he passed away.  He complimented the interviewer on something I noticed, being very well-prepared & researched and asking very intelligent questions.  I've been a fan of Vaughn most of my life, but my estimation of him increased dramatically as a result of this.

At one point, they discussed "THE PROTECTORS", a half-hour adventure series devised by Lew Grade, which Gerry Anderson produced.  I found it interesting that Vaughn had nothing but high praise for Grade, his working methods, all the European locations they filmed at, and so on.  But he never once mentioned Anderson.  Although the show looks and feels like some of Gerry's shows, it's probably got less of his mark on it than anything else, since on that show, he was just a hired hand, with no say in the format or the casting!

Vaughn was critical of the half-hour format, which made it very difficult to have properly-developed stories or characters, and said he often had "no idea" what was going on in the stories while filming them.  When asked if the scripts improved in the 2nd season, he replied, "...........not really."



I've now watched the entire series (52 episodes) TWICE... while also watching THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. at the same time.

I'm currently on the 3rd season of U.N.C.L.E., alternating each week between MAN and GIRL FROM.)  I'm also doing the same thing with VOYAGE season 3 and THE TIME TUNNEL, so I'm kind of over-dosing on 1966-67 at the moment.

Amazingly, even the really CHEAP studio-bound vidoetaped 2nd season of THE AVENGERS tends to blow all of these away when it comes to the writing and acting.  I don't think that such a high praise for AVENGERS as a knock against American adventure shows by comparison.

[The Australian Panther]

Seems I was right about why Man in a Suitcase only ran for one season.
from the comments on the Tribute below.

One of the best ITC Series ever.
However, Richard Bradford got into trouble with Sir Lew Grade the owner of ITC because Bradford wanted his McGill onscreen Hero to show more how you could get hurt, as well as win the day, hence The Hero can also get inured as well, but Sir Lew Grade wanted just another straight forward  Goodies beat Baddies Show without McGill getting to look as if he had been in a fight. This was one of the reasons why Man In A Suitcase was finally dropped, and in shortsightedness this was a mistake.
My Father just loved the way McGill was always alert to whom just might be behind him at all times, giving this TV Series an insight that something was going to happen, and usually did which added to the demeanor of the McGill character.
Even now today, many Spy type TV Shows don't have an edge to them like Richard Bradford had the foresight to do with and give his portrayal of McGill.
Well done Richard, and RIP.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_in_a_Suitcase

The level of violence portrayed in the show was unprecedented for an ITC series. This was partly because of Bradford's concerns that the stories and characters should remain real. Unlike most TV action heroes of the time, McGill would not get cleanly knocked unconscious and then recover without effect; Bradford took great pains to depict the character as wounded and concussed. In addition to beatings, McGill is several times shot and stabbed, and ends more than one episode recovering in hospital. 

Since McGill regularlyt got injured, often waking up in hospital, Bradford was likely defying Lord Grade even during the the filming of the first series.
Along with the writers, directors and the crew.

Man in a Suitcase was effectively a replacement for Danger Man, whose production had been curtailed when its star Patrick McGoohan had decided to create his own series, The Prisoner. Many of the Danger Man production crew moved over to Man in a Suitcase, which was initially to be titled McGill after its lead character.   

That  would also help to explain their wanting the show to be much darker and realistic .
Victor Canning directed one episode.
I would love to get some detailed info the making of the show.
And here is a tribute to Richard Bradford set to the Who, ' I can see for miles and miles'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkgyUX-1b-Y   
cheers!

[ComicMike]

Once again I travel back to my early childhood and watch 'The Jetsons' (1962-63) which I last saw as a very young boy. The Hanna-Barbera productions are just great and it's a pleasure to watch now that I'm an old boy.

From 1971-1972 the comics were published in Germany by 'Neuer Tessloff Verlag', as a large-format paperback, in color and with 48 pages, in 21 editions. The issues also included other stories, including, if I remember correctly, 'The Flintstones', 'Huckleberry Hound' and 'Yogi Bear', all of which also got their own comic series in Germany.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Jetsons

[bowers]

 Comickraut, I think Hannah -Barbera eventually became a victim of its own success. Prime-time cartoons were not at all common in the 60's, yet "The Flintstones" and "The Jetsons" proved it was possible! HB ruled pre-prime time and afternoon cartoons with a plethora of half-hour animation shows starting with "Huckleberry Hound" "Quick-Draw McGraw" and that American icon, "Yogi Bear". Unfortunately, they didn't quit while they were ahead. Minor characters from the aforementioned shows were given their own series. ("Scoobie Doo" started as an extra in several shows, and he had never even had been given a name.) Script quality became non-existent, and many of these later programs quickly faded. The animation market was just too saturated, and the newer HB offerings  couldn't compete! Cheers and, by all means, Hooray for Dr. Hackenbush! Bowers

[ComicMike]

Hello Bowers, of course I didn't notice a drop in quality in the H-B productions as a child, but the drop is a phenomenon that probably affects all long-lived series, in modern cartoon series, it is unfortunately particularly noticeable, for example at 'South Park' and "The Simpsons'.

At the moment, I've seen the first season of the 'Jetsons' and I'm still enjoyed it, let's see how it goes later. 

Cheers and Hooray back. 

BTW, Dr. Hackenbush is currently on vacation, so Hooray for Capt. Spaulding. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Otvkqvh8vc&ab_channel=mbielchris

[profh0011]

I was unaware Scooby-Doo had appeared before getting his own show.  Myself, I came in on the 2nd season (which, looking back, turned out to be shorter than the 1st-- I HATE WHEN THEY DO THAT!!!), so, at first, I got to see 2 seasons (or 1-1/2 if you look at it that way) before I began seeing "reruns".

The 1st 2 seasons were wonderful.  The 3rd year consisted entirely of reruns of seasons 1-2.  (I HATE WHEN THEY DO THAT!!!!!)

The 4th year was, really, the 3rd season, where they totally-screwed with the format by presenting THE NEW SCOOBY-DOO MOVIES.  Each show was an hour (instead of half-hour), and each featured "celebrity guest-star team-ups" (either real people or characters from other cartoon shows).  This was... "interesting"... the first time around.  But I NEVER was inspired to want to watch them a 2nd time.

Also, it was pointed out in the CD liner notes of a "Hanna Barbera" soundtrack comp, that Hoyt Curtin apparently never liked the original theme songs used in seasons 1-2.  WTF???  But he loved the one he did for the "Movies".  WHICH I HATED.  Go figure.


Regarding the plummetting quality... this was NOT merely a matter of long-running shows running out of steam, or the market being saturated.  Both of those factors may have come into play.  But, as a kid who grew up in the 60s and became a teen in the 70s... I can outright say, the biggest problem was CENSORSHIP.  You had this "moral crusade" by "parents-teachers groups" who were dedicated to the elimination of "violence on children's television".

the results were nothing less than CATASTROPHIC.  They not only removed what they considered "violence" (oblivious that "violence"-- read, "ACTION") is essential in ADVENTURE series-- they also got rid of all action or excitement of an kind.  Saturday mornings became a WASTELAND in the 70s.  I feel really sorry for anyone who was a kid growing up in that decade.

I can count on my fingers the number of shows that I felt were worth watching in that period...

FAT ALBERT AND THE COSBY KIDS
KID POWER  (based on the "Wee Pals" newspaper strip)
STAR TREK  (this was often better-written than the 3rd live-action season)
LAND OF THE LOST (season 1 only-- after that, it turned to S***)

There may be a few others, but I pretty much gave up by the mid-70s.

I must note that JONNY QUEST turned up in reruns on Saturdays in the 70s-- BUTCHERED BEYOND BELIEF.  It was such a pleasant shock when USA began running it uncut in the 80s.

[bowers]

 Prof, to the best of my remembrance, a very Scooby-like dog was a bit player in "Pixie and Dixie" (Huckleberry Hound Show, 1958-1962) and other HB offerings. The cat, Mr.Jinx, would offer him a dog biscuit to distract him and escape. The pup would then moan and smack his lips as he reached a state of Nirvana, floating off the floor. (Sort of the forerunner of the Scoobie-Snack.) Other characters, such as "Snagglepuss" also started out as extras who later got their own feature. Cheers, Bowers

[crashryan]

The cat, Mr.Jinx, would offer him a dog biscuit to distract him and escape. The pup would then moan and smack his lips as he reached a state of Nirvana, floating off the floor. (Sort of the forerunner of the Scoobie-Snack

I remember that dog! I cracked up over his routine. Somehow in my mind he's associated with Quick Draw McGraw. I hear his voice saying, "Would you like a dog-ee bis-kit?"

[bowers]

 Crash, I have no doubt this pup made an appearance with Quick Draw and Baba Looey! Quick Draw McGraw was one of HB's better efforts- good writing and it was genuinely funny! For the uninitiated, Quick Draw was a lawman horse (with stetson and guitar) accompanied by his burro buddy, Baba Loooey. Occasionally, Quick Draw would don his mask and cape and become that scourge of western evil doers, the mysterious "El Kabong".

About the same time HB was in its ascendancy, the Jay Ward Studios  gave us some of the weirdest and most hilarious stuff ever animated. To some, it was an acquired taste, but the terrible puns and offbeat humor was right up my alley. Of course everybody knows "Rocky and Bullwinkle", "Peabody and Sherman" and "Fractured Fairy Tales" (Edward Everett Horton's narration was priceless!) Some of the lesser known characters were every bit as good, such as "Super Chicken". A favorite episode had Super Chicken and his lion sidekick, Fred, chasing the crook but losing him. Fred remarks "You'll have to use your Super Vision to find him!" to which the chicken replies "Fred, if I had any supervision do you think I'd be out here running around in this cape and hat?" Oh, my...  Cheers, Bowers

[The Australian Panther]

In Oz, Saturday morning was, lback then, not a time to stay in and watch TV.
We had cartoons for an hour after school.
And for years we got a half hour of classic Warner brothers cartoons. Nothing from HB could match that. 
The Flintsones and the Jetsons were aimed at adults and screened after 7.00 pm and we watched those.
Even back then, I much preferred cartoon series that worked on both an adult and a kids level.
So, Top Cat.
Also Roger Ramjet.
Roger Ramjet Opening Theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7SqSNQeAFM
Was this theme written by the same team that did King of Diamonds?   
Snagglepuss
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoLCDrOJGV0
It's The Wolf Ep 01 YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN0oQU
With the unmistakable Paul Lynde
But towering over them all,
Rocky and Bullwinkle.
Rocky And His Friends (Original Rocky And Bullwinkle Opening)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BdfuF7oD-M
As far as I am concerned, Rocky and Bullwinkle was as close as the US got to the surreal comedy of
the Goon Show.
Something for you Nostalgia fans.
Top 50 Best Hanna-Barbera Opening Themes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8RHVd5dg_A 

cheers!

[The Australian Panther]

The YouTube AI led me to this.
Twelve chairs (comedy, dir. Leonid Gaidai, 1971)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8t2dbJ7YXY
English Subtitles.
Now, the 12 Chairs was a popular Russian book and I remembered that Mel Brooks filmed it, so I went looking.
The Twelve Chairs - Mel Brooks Movie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0osPRbt8xT0
Excellent Cast.
Well it must be the night for serendipity, because on a quite different search, I Found this.
The Thirteen Chairs - aka 12+ 1 (1969) Sharon Tate last movie English language restored
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFI5t-WHqM0   
Not a bad film either! Tim Brooke-Taylor (Goodies) among other familiar faces.
Enjoy!

[profh0011]

Rocky & Bullwinkle and all the related cartoons remain among my favorites, as well as my favorites from Jay Ward.

I understand he started out with Crusader Rabbit, but I have very little memories of that.

I also have the impression Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties may have come before Rocky & Bullwinkle.  What long baffled me as a kid was how there seemed to be 3 completely separate syndication sets, perhaps it ran 3 seasons (I never bothered to look this up), but was put out as 3 separate packages.  (Anyone remember when BEWITCHED was out there as 2 separate packages?)  THE AVENGERS was the same thing-- the Diana Riggs & Linda Thorsons were one package, the Joanna Lumleys were another (which as far as I know, only CBS here ever ran), and the Honor Blackmans were a 3rd, which never got here until the mid-90s, even though her 2 seasons were from 1962-64!

At least on PBS, they kept adding DOCTOR WHO seasons to a single huge package as more episodes bwere found or became available.


Sometime after Rocky & Bullwinkle was Hoppity Hooper, which was also hilarious, but inexplicably, didn't run very long, and virtually disappeared from syndication.  While Rocky & Bullwinkle were a pair, Hoppity Hooper had 3 characters-- a small smart one, a tall dumb one, and a 3rd, "Uncle Waldo", who was in between. All I recall, he kept being the target of anything bad that happened.  He kinda reminded me a bit of Dr. Smith from LOST IN SPACE, and I have a feeling (without looking it up) he was voiced by Hans Conreid.

The final Jay Ward series (as far as I know) was GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE, which consisted of 3 series, George, Super Chicken and Tom Slick.  They were always run in that order... until, inexplicably, in the 80s, someone began running them George, Tom and Super Chicken.  It may not seem to matter, but to me, it completely threw off the whole rhythm of the show!


Similarly, in the 80s, one of the networks began re-running THE BULLWINKLE SHOW, which was the last season of those, and instead of each half-hour episode being bracketed by a Rocky & Bullwinkle (one a the start, the other at the end), they insisted on runnning 3 R&B each half-hour, alternating between those and the extra features.  And while Dudley Do-Right, traditionally, was run just before the 2nd R&B, in this mutilated format, Dudley would be run 2nd, right after the 1st of the 3 R&B.  The COMPLETELY destroyed the rhythm of each half-hour show.


While I'm on the subject... one of my favorite Disney movies of all time was GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE with Brenden Fraser.  It managed to capture the humor and the vibe of the cartoons, but wasn't really that authentic to it.  Instead... and this flips me out... it was a comedy ADAPTATION of the first 2 Edgar Rice Burroughs TARZAN books.  NO, REALLY.  That crazy film was MORE authentic to Burroughs than the Johnny Weismuller films ever were!! 

I've read the Gold Key adaptations of "Tarzan of the Apes" and "The Return of Tarzan" (art by Russ Manning).  The story structure is too similar to be a coincidence.  Ursula and her fia...this GUY she knows... (heh) run across George, the story continues back in civilization, but the climax takes place back in the jungle, where they get married.

I love the Weismuller films, but every time I see them, I wish MGM had actually FOLOWED THE DAMN BOOKS.

[Robb_K]

Rocky & Bullwinkle and all the related cartoons remain among my favorites, as well as my favorites from Jay Ward.

(1) I also have the impression Dudley Do-Right of the Mounties may have come before Rocky & Bullwinkle.  What long baffled me as a kid was how there seemed to be 3 completely separate syndication sets, (2) perhaps it ran 3 seasons (I never bothered to look this up), but was put out as 3 separate packages. 

Similarly, in the 80s, one of the networks began re-running THE BULLWINKLE SHOW, which was the last season of those, and instead of each half-hour episode being bracketed by a Rocky & Bullwinkle (one a the start, the other at the end), they insisted on runnning 3 R&B each half-hour, alternating between those and the extra features.  And while Dudley Do-Right, traditionally, was run just before the 2nd R&B, in this mutilated format, Dudley would be run 2nd, right after the 1st of the 3 R&B.  The COMPLETELY destroyed the rhythm of each half-hour show.   

(1) "Dudley Do-Right of The Mounties" did NOT start before "The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle", nor did "Mr. Peabody", or "Fractured Fairy Tales".  They all made their TV debuts in the half-hour first series of "The Adventures if Rocky and Bullwinkle ABC show.

(2) As I remember it, there were 5 years of the original USA TV run of "The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle"/"The Bullwinkle Show", split between ABC and NBC, starting in 1959-60, and ending with 1963-64.  "Rocky and Bullwinkle" was first in half-hour programmes, and was changed to "Bullwinkle"  1 hour shows for the last 2 years.  I'm not sure about the later syndication.  The comic books started in early-mid 1962, two years after the TV series started in USA, but a few months BEFORE the TV broadcasts started there.  The TV series started its run in Canada in 1963.

[profh0011]

As I remember it, there were 5 years of the original USA TV run of "The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle"/"The Bullwinkle Show", split between ABC and NBC, starting in 1959-60, and ending with 1963-64.  "Rocky and Bullwinkle" was first, and was changed to "Bullwinkle" for the last 2 years.  I'm not sure about the later syndication.

Well, right there is at least a partial explanation for 2 separate syndication packages.

What I've seen over the years was THE BULLWINKLE SHOW (the later stories-- most about 8 chapters per story) and THE ROCKY SHOW (half-hour) or ROCKY AND HIS FRIENDS (15-minute version!).  These were the earlier ones.  It seems the first 3 stories were each about 40 chapters per story.  If you figure 2 chapters per half-hour episode, that's 20 weeks for ONE story!  (The 2nd & 3rd may not have been that long... it's been decades since I saw them.) 

The first 3 stories, I figured out back in the 70s, were "The Mooseberry Bush", "Upsidasium" and "The Metal-Eating Mice" (my own titles).  These 3 stories were all connected, continuity-wise, and should be seen in that order.  But the local station here ran them 1, 3 & 2 instead of 1, 2 & 3.  (They pulled the same S*** with the 3 FLASH GORDON serials!)



I can only remember seeing "The Mooseberry Bush" once, and one of the things I remember is that it had a laugh track for maybe the first 8 chapters, but then they got rid of it.

Also, William Conrad, the narrator, initially spoke slow and quietly.  Over time, he became louder, faster, more frenetic, and increasingly would talk back and forth with characters on-screen.  Conrad said in an interview that he was reading off a teleprompter, the script was on a long scroll, and they would pull the scroll past the camera faster and faster to be funny, forcing him to read faster just to keep up.

For decades, I had no idea June Foray was the voices of both Rocky AND Natasha!

[bowers]

 WOW! After a wonderful season of "Van der Valk", PBS gave us an amazing trifecta of mysteries last Sunday, starting with a second season of "Miss Scarlet and the Duke". Kate Phillips is amazing as Victorian London's only female consulting detective!
Next, "Magpie Murders", written by Anthony Horowitz ("Foyle's War", also some "Poirot" and "Midsomer Murders"). Lesley Manville plays an editor trying to find the last chapter of a murdered best-selling author's last book. A mystery within a mystery, with the author's characters popping up during her investigation.
Finally, "Annika", my personal favorite. Nicola Walker leads a team of detectives investigating marine crimes. Walker breaks the fourth wall to deliver terrible puns (I love it!) or to share some quirky observations. Her handling of an obnoxious journalist is just priceless! Walker's dead-pan delivery keeps this series from becoming just another procedural police drama (yawn). I  understand this show is based on a BBC radio series- would love to hear it! Cheers, Bowers

[The Australian Panther]

Bowers, said,

Anthony Horowitz [wrote] ("Foyle's War", also some "Poirot" and "Midsomer Murders")

Horowitz is quite prolific - and always a quality writer.
He developed and wrote the Alex Rider series,
2 James Bonds, a third is due out later this year. And they are good.
2 Serlock Holmes novels,
    The House of Silk (2011)
    Moriarty (2014)
The 7 episodes of the British police series, New Blood.
[I have the DVD collection of that one, I should get it out and watch the final episodes.] An excellent series. 
And that list is just the tip of the iceberg.
Comics? Graphic Novel adaptations. 
6 Alex Rider
3 'The Power of 5' another of his series.
and 4 Graphic Horror - graphic Novels.
Numerous TV episodes and series and also movies.
Phew! Does he ever get out from behind the keyboard?
cheers!
   

[The Australian Panther]

Prof,
Crusader Rabbit was one I was trying to remember.
Crusader Rabbit vs. the State of Texas - Full serial! (1950) Digitally remastered
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObxCgxZJrCY

then there are these. 

Hoppity Hooper 1 - Ring A Ding Spring
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cjyp6znj3A

Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales - 1965-66
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgTR9YoX00M
Voices - Don Adams as Tennessee. Larry Storch is in there somewhere.
cheers!

[profh0011]

I recognized the name Anthony Horowitz, but I had to look him up.  Hmm.  Well, apparently, the ONLY thing I know him from is POIROT, for which he wrote 11 adaptations.  And I've seen 10 of them repeatedly.  Maddeningly, the later ones completely escaped me, as, somehow, my PBS station seemed to stop running the newer ones.  So, his last (which is all the way back in 2001!) I have still never seen to this day.  And any that came after it as well, I'd say.


Funny thing.  Jay Ward's cartoons were animated by Gamma Productions, a studio in Mexico City.  His weren't the only cartoons done there. It was pointed out to me many years ago that the others "weren't as good" as Jay Ward's.  I say B***S***.  The others were simply... "different".

This included TENNESEE TUXEDO, and, more famously I think... UNDERDOG!!!

Back in high school, I had a patch of "Simon Bar Sinister" sewn on my jacket.

I always remember his mantra...

"Money and power-- and MONEY and POWER-- AND MONEY AND POWER!!!!!!"

[The Australian Panther]

No Comment - speaks for itself!
Danger Diabolik - 1968 1080p BluRay (Full Film)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb-TIFlw2l8
Ennio Morricone score.
Terry-Thomas outdoing himself. 
Do I have to say, great print?

cheers 

[profh0011]

I gotta get that on DVD one of these days.  Fabulous, fun film.  And John Philip Law is so good in so many things.  It totally baffles me that they didn't get him to come back for a 2nd SINBAD movie, as GOLDEN VOYAGE is my all-time favorite Ray Harryhausen film.

I've also got one of the DIABOLIK digest comics... though I can't read it (it's in Italian!). 



Funny thing-- I just orderd some episodes of an Italian TV series, but, as far as I know, they don't come with English subtitles.  (Be a wonderful surprise if I find out they do!)  They're adaptations of Sherlock Holmes stories, so I pretty much know the plots...

[profh0011]

Not counting the musical, I have 2 films in my collection based on George Bernard Shaw plays; this is the "other" one...

PYGMALION (1938)

Leslie Howard & Wendy Hiller star as Professor Henry Higgins & Eliza Doolittle. This movie is FUNNY AS HELL!!!

Yes, it's difficult not to imagine ALL the Lerner & Lowe songs from the later musical as you watch this, but then again, every time I looked at Wendy Hiller, I kept seeing "Princess Dragomiroff" from MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. (Go figure.)

I have a terrible print of this off my local PBS station Channel 12 from back in the 80s, but it isn't half as awful as the print they ran of TO BE OR NOT TO BE. I enjoyed this SO much, I've now added it to my "wanted" list. Some time ago, The Criterion Collection put out a DVD with "Gorgeous new transfer, with digitally restored image and sound". Now, after all these years, I feel a need to see and hear that!

[crashryan]

Thanks to Kevin Burton Smith at his Thrilling Detective website, I learned about The Boston Terrier, an unsuccessful 1962 series starring Robert Vaughn. The show was co-created by Blake Edwards and Tom Waldman. According to Smith, the duo originally made an hour-long pilot (I don't know the cast) in 1961 after Peter Gunn wrapped up. Not having found any takers Edwards reworked it in 1962 to fit a half-hour format. He made two pilots for this version, both starring Vaughn but otherwise having different cast members. The first half-hour pilot was broadcast on the Dick Powell Theater in April of 1962. This episode is available on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8sC2oQLBnw

The Boston Terrier is the nickname of A. Dunster Lowell (Robert Vaughn), a suave dilettante detective based in Boston. Lowell is a member of the old Boston gentry, dresses expensively, drives a Jaguar, and that sort of thing. He and his inventor pal Professor Mumford (John McGiver) use the latest technology--wireless microphones, microscopic analysis, etc.--to help with detecting. Robert J Wilke overacts as Lt Duffy Cardoza, a cliche gruff friend-enemy cop. Blake Edwards directs a script by Aaron Leslie Pine. Edwards and Waldman share story and character credit. In this episode Lowell investigates the disappearance of an upper-crust Bostonian and runs up against a local mobster.

The YouTube print is adequate but has a serious flaw. An important chunk of the story is missing from the first act, making an already convoluted story harder to follow. Inexplicably a chunk of that chunk is pasted to the end of the video following a flash of a cat food commercial.

The Boston Terrier is interesting but I can see why it didn't ring any bells at the networks. There's something off about the whole thing. The show was intended to be a "lighter Peter Gunn" in which the action and violence are tempered by Lowell's clever banter. Robert Vaughn isn't too bad as Lowell, but his lighthearted delivery is flat and accompanied by too many smug smiles. His dialogue is the sort of thing George Sanders or Vincent Price did so well. Vaughn just doesn't have the lilt. I'd sum up his performance as either uncomfortable or self-conscious.

To my mind what really messes up the show is the pacing of the dialogue. It's hard to describe. Someone speaks a line in its entirety. Then the next character speaks their line. In between the lines there's a beat, or maybe half a beat, of silence. It's as if the actors were told to leave space for the dialogue track to be edited. It reminds me (oddly) of the Filmation Star Trek cartoons in which the actors recorded their lines separately instead of with the rest of the cast.  Dialogue exchanges always sounded stilted because no one knew how anyone else played their lines. In the case of The Boston Terrier the pause magnifies the scenery chewing of Lt Cardona and of the crochety old plutocrat who sets the plot in motion. I acknowledge that TV dialogue was written and paced differently in the old days. But other shows of the time, Perry Mason for example, have similar theatrical dialogue and broad performances without it seeming that everything stops for an instant after each line.

All the same I'd say the show is an interesting artifact for Robert Vaughn fans.

[The Australian Panther]

Here is a real oldie. Faded print but still reasonable.

Special Agent K 7 (1937)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSdnhYNJRRE

How did I come across this? looking at a book by Frank Kane.

Frank Kane was born on July 19, 1912 in Brooklyn, New York. He quit law school to get a job because he was starting a family. He worked variously as an editor, in public relations for the liquor industry, and as a columnist publicizing movie stars visiting the city. He moved on to writing scripts for several radio crime shows, including The Shadow for six years. In 1947, he wrote his first crime novel featuring his signature private eye Johnny Liddell. Some 40 Johnny Liddell novels and many Liddell short stories for the pulps followed. Johnny Liddell has been described as an enjoyably generic 1950s hardboiled detective who did not age with time but rather changed with the tastes of his readers. Kane also wrote for television and worked on the series Special Agent 7, The Investigators, and Mike Hammer. He died unexpectedly on November 29, 1968 at the age of 56 in Manhasset, New York. 

Now, this appears to be a movie, was it later made into a TV show, or has the biographer got his info wrong?

Cheers!