77 Sunset Strip / Hawaiian Eye, etc. (4 Viewers)

[criblecoblis]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"Teresa" (S1E39)

Russ, you make this episode sound fun! It has a good cast. Andra Martin and Marie Windsor are both in other episodes of BSB, and they're both very good in them. But then, Marie Windsor was always good.

 

[criblecoblis]

Saving The Strip: Seventh Season, 1964–65

Part 12: Final Notes

As it turned out, the collapse of Webb’s grand plan to help revitalize the show using modern jazz caused no problems. In fact, it was arguably a huge stroke of luck. For one thing, the Crescendo ultimately closed about ten episodes into the seventh season, which would have been awkward had the show been relying upon its presence to enhance authenticity.

(By the way, here’s a screen cap from S1E3 “A Nice Social Evening,” showing the Crescendo:

The 77 Sunset Strip building is just out of the frame to the left. The Playboy building will fill the space between the two, more or less.)

More importantly, jazz was even then beginning to lose its foothold in the Top 40 (as suggested by the failure of the Crescendo), so the intended weekly dose of modern jazz would likely have come to seem a bit dated as the season progressed. Orr’s on-the-fly fix of including a mix of folk acts appealing to Boomers and pop acts appealing to their parents worked well to place the show in the present moment, for a much wider audience than Webb’s strategy was likely to have done.

And while Stu’s classical contributions may not have done anything to add to the show’s contemporary feel, they did remind viewers that, at his core, Stu was a cultured, highly-educated, complex fellow.

The icing on the musical cake is that the one part of the jazz strategy that was implemented, the hard-bop themes and cues, did end up having the effect Webb originally intended. The tight, muscular, well-executed music lent an air of heightened energy to the show from the first frame to the last. The new versions (there were several, in various moods) of Kookie’s leitmotif were especially effective.

Moreover, in what was probably just a coincidence, on July 17, 1965 the Horace Silver Quintet had its greatest chart success when “Song for My Father” peaked at 95 on the Billboard Hot 100. It spent 10 weeks total on the chart, and went on to become a jazz standard, the intro of which is later famously quoted by Steely Dan in “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number.” So Webb did have the right idea about the themes and cues.

The show was just lucky all around. The music worked, the changes demanded by the stars worked, and as the season progressed, the mood of the country improved.

Still, fortune does tend to favor the prepared. Orr managed to meet every goal set for him. The seventh season was just as crackling with energy as was the first. As a result, Sunset Strip rebounded admirably in the seventh season, landing in the top 25 for the first time since the third season. The audience is back!

Sadly, however, the show may not be back. The very magnitude of its success in this season may well have doomed it.

 

[criblecoblis]

Oh, and if you look at the screen cap I included in the above post, you'll see that under the MeTV bug is the top of an angled blade sign with just "C" showing. That's almost certainly the sign for Chez Paulette.

I've never seen the whole sign, but I have seen the bottom "E" of it in photos of the front, and it's angled, light lettering on a dark background, and in the same typeface as the "C" in the above photo. And that's at least roughly where Chez Paulette was.

 

[criblecoblis]

Sorry. Little kitten feet on the keyboard created an unintended, ineradicable post.

Carry on.

 

[Rustifer]

Sorry. Little kitten feet on the keyboard created an unintended, ineradicable post.

Sometimes I use that as my excuse when I've posted something after one too many cocktails.

 

[ajabrams]

Here's another shoutout for The Roaring Twenties. I'd love to see that show again, especially for the participation of Dorothy Provine as Pinky -- and all her wonderful songs!!

 

[Bob Goughan]

Russ, it's great finally to see a SurfSide 6 review here! I haven't watched this episode myself yet, so I can't comment intelligently about it, but I'm eager to see this show, because unlike 77SS, I do recall watching this show in its original run. I don't remember any individual episodes, but it's probably where I acquired my fondness for Diane McBain.

My mom hated the show and unlike 77 or HE, I had to sneak to watch the show, ready at any time to change the station. Not as good as the other shows but worthy in it's own right.

 

[Bob Goughan]

Still moving in a great direction, Rob. I will be interested in whether any "international" capers will continue. In my estimation, they were the weakest episodes--mainly because of faux back lot locations, poor scripting and the senselessness of LA private eyes getting involved in foreign politics. One would think there's enough crime in LA to keep the boys busy enough. Watching "Chinatown" a few days ago made me think that's the kind of LA-centric stuff that would be great for the series. Or a gas-o-meter mystery. Those big hulking structures just scream for some eerie location shots. A Beverly Hills caper that includes cameos of celebrity residents eager to participate in the hit series?

I'm still chewing on the idea of Kookie and JR as the junior clones of Bailey & Spencer--but I could buy into a scenario where they're focused more on intrigues involving the "youth culture", as you say. Maybe stories that weave in parts of the 60's drug / music culture and war protests and less about the "beatnik" scene. And plenty of chicks.

Less Dino's? How about Frank & Musso's?

One last thought before you throw something at me for inserting too many variables in your excellent series continuation--I would hate to see Roscoe clean up his act so much that his first love--horse racing--gets lost in the transition. I fondly remember episodes featuring Roscoe bits being accompanied by comical hoof clopping and neighing in the background. Perhaps he's appointed as the "honorary" mayor of Santa Anita.

Chinatown, now there was a film.

 

[Bob Goughan]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"Mrs. Viner Vanishes" (S1E9)

As long as I'm going off the 77 SS reservation to do commentaries on Hawaiian Eye and Surfside 6, I thought I may as well make it a hat trick by including Bourbon Street Beat in my repertoire. I did not follow this series as closely as the others, so I'm going to enjoy wading into it with fresh eyes and chilled martinis. Heck, I might even stoke up some spicy shrimp 'n grits to get in the mood.

The episode starts out smartly with some great location shots as Cal Calhoun (Andrew Duggan) drives his decidedly unsexy '50 Olds through the French Quarter--but switches immediately to a typical stage set when he arrives at his destination. Too bad. Cal has come to the Le Grand Hotel to visit his girlfriend--intriguingly named Lusti Weather (Nita Talbot). She's called Cal to rescue her from a rogue cockatiel on the loose in her room. Lusti displays her lungs in two ways: Screaming at a decibel level equal to that of a tornado warning horn, and...well...you can guess the other way. A nearly painted-on dress helps.

Meanwhile a guest at the hotel, Arthur Viner (Wayne Morris) can't seem to convince anyone that he's there with his wife--who no one has actually seen. Is Viner a kook of some sort? Cal decides to look into it while exercising his over-the-top 'naw-leans accent. Mrs. Viner seems to have vanished into thin air. A fair number of martinis get consumed as Cal, Lusti, Rex Randolph (Richard Long) and Kenny Madison (Van Williams) deliberate Mrs. Viner's displacement. They're able to find bits and pieces--her monogrammed compact case and expensive alligator purse--but no Mrs. Viner. Arthur Viner, who sports a surprisingly 21st century stylish spiky haircut, is just beside himself.

View attachment 64748

Andrew Duggan; Nita Talbot; Wayne Morris

Cal goes on quest to backtrack Mr. and Mrs. Viner's trip to this point in hopes of turning up more evidence. Each place he stops seems to uncover a different description of Mrs.Viner. Sometimes she dresses fashionably, other times like a stripper from a back street dive. Cal ends in Ft. Shelby, Arkansas (no one said investigation locales were always exotic) to interview the Viner's next door neighbor lady. Cal turns on some good ol' boy Southern sweet talk and extracts gobs of useful information from the woman. Seems Mr. Viner has eyes for the ladies and is a bit more suspicious than what he appears. The ending has a satisfying little twist to it.

I really liked this story. Kudos to scriptwriter Irving Elman for providing some sparkling and witty conversation between Cal and the stunning Lusti Weather. "My mother was once frightened by a bird", explains Lusti. "What kind of bird was it?" inquires Cal. "A stork."
Twenty-eight year old Nita Talbot in a variety of form-fitting outfits is reason enough to catch this episode.

Notes:
Wayne Morris unexpectedly dropped stone dead of a heart attack just 2 months before this episode aired.

Paul Henreid, best known for his role as Ingrid Bergman's husband in Casablanca, directed this as well as two other episodes in this series.

Nita Talbot was nice to look at always. Did a few nice tuns in BSB.

 

[Bob Goughan]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"A Light Touch of Terror" (S1E10)

Kenny (Van Williams) and Melody (Arlene Howell) are hanging around the office, which somehow resembled my grandma's parlor decor. Melody is pissed at Kenny for scaring her while wearing a goulish mask. She is somehow reminded of notorious axe murders that occurred back in the old days. It's an unexpected prophesy of what's to come.

Cut to a party that Kenny and Melody attend later--a ghastly affair called "The Axeman's Lair"--a sort of Halloween haunted house tour with axe-wielding dummies popping out every few feet. Charming party. Much to Kenny's dismay, Melody doesn't drink, dance, make out or eat spicy food--yep, New Orleans is just perfect for her. To lighten the mood, a lot of jitterbug dancing going on that I guess young folks of the era thought of as quite progressive. Oops, somebody at the party turns up dead, an axe buried in his back. It's a downer for sure. Kenny's going to look into it. He asks a doubting Rex Randolph (Richard Long) for help, but since there's no fee attached Rex takes a dim view of pro bono work. So Kenny's on his own.

Meanwhile, at the local carnival, one of the hoochie-coo dancers is found dead by axe, discovered by another fellow dancer Lureen (Sue Ane Langdon). Apparently the ghost of Lizzie Borden lives on, at least at the carnival. Fortunately, Cal (Andrew Duggan) is on hand to impart some senior detective advice to Kenny on how to investigate a murder. "You're gonna need a lot of cool-headed thought, particularly since you're likely gonna risk your life..." Yeah,who wouldn't want to leap head first into that?

View attachment 64831

Rex reads up on detective techniques; the only known time Ken and Melody touch; Cal demonstrates New Orleans howdy-do

Kenny starts with interviewing Lureen, mainly because she's nearly naked most of the time. She shows a lot of interest in Kenny, almost licking the plaid off his shirt to get at him. Kenny, for whatever stupid reason, resists her overtures. He'll take a rain check. "You don't have to wait 'til it rains", simpers Lureen. Next, Kenny visits Alise (Kaye Elhardt) since her ex-boyfriend Dwayne (Joe Cronin)--Kenny's former classmate--is a suspicious fellow. Dwayne is a slick dude with a chip on his shoulder from being kicked out of the university.

Kenny sets himself up as bait for the murderer, and sure enough he shows up wearing a mask and an axe at his dorm room. Kenny fights him off, but the culprit gets away before getting identified. Was it Dwayne? Kenny meets up with Dwayne's dotty old grandmother, who convinces him her grandson is a psychopathic killer. Kenny warns Alise as being Dwayne's next possible victim--and so she is. In the end, it takes Kenny, Rex and Cal to get Dwayne--who ignominiously falls to his death off a loose roof drain pipe.

Time for Kenny to take up a rain check.

Notes:
This could have been a much better episode had the murderer turned out to be someone completely different from who we suspected. It was just too predictable all the way through. In addition, the carnival aspect made almost no sense to the story whatever. WB must have had to amortize an old carnival set for tax purposes.

Melody (Arlene Howell) has to be the most milquetoast-y female gal pal in all of the WB detective properties of the era. She was a native of Louisiana, which gave her some validity in the series.

Kenny Madison drives a new '59 Corvette, which certainly adds to his coolness quotient. But as a law student and part-time intern in the detective agency, where did the bucks come for such a chariot?

I thought this was a weak episode and I agree Melody was at the bottom of the pecking order in the gals that know/.work for the guys in the four shows. How did he pay for the 'vette??

 

[Bob Goughan]

You and me both. As I mentioned earlier, this was the WB series to which I paid the least attention. There's literally not one episode I remember, so it's basically all new to me. I'm a ways away from getting a solid picture of the main characters, even though Ken Madison and Rex Reed show up in later series that I watched.
Anyway, that's my excuse for my BSB commentaries probably lacking in insight at the moment. Not my best work.


Oh yep.

Don't worry. The posts are spot on.

 

[Bob Goughan]

Saving The Strip: Seventh Season, 1964–65

Part 11: The Season Finale

In the two-part season finale “The Ghost Caper,” an overt tribute to Montgomery Pittman, eccentric businessman Art Moomey (John Hubbard) from S2E16 “Switchburg” returns to ask Stu to investigate another offbeat property he seeks to purchase, a ghost town in the middle of nowhere that was partially burned down right before it was to be opened as a tourist attraction.

“Stu,” says Art, “the Switchburg Hotel has been so successful that ghost towns have gotten under my skin! Only about a third of this town burned down, and the rest has all been restored. You should see it, Stu. All I have to do is move out a few squatters and tidy the place up, and it’ll be another gasser!”

Stu says, “Oh, Art, not again! I barely survived the Switchburg case! Why don’t you go through a real estate agent?”

Art replies, “Because the title is terribly clouded, so none of them will handle it. Apparently, the owner died in the fire under suspicious circumstances, leaving no will and no relatives. I need you to investigate this guy and try to find a relative I can deal with, and take a census of the squatters so I can help them relocate if I do land the place.”

Stu winces and says, “I hate to say no to an old friend, but I promised Jeff I’d stay away from pie-in-the-sky snipe hunts like this. He’s become grumpy in his old age.”

“Don’t be silly! Jeff is the brains of this outfit! I’m sure he’ll be reasonable. And we have to act quickly! Sooner or later the state will step in and condemn the place, and then we’ll lose all that priceless history! And I’ll make it well worth the trouble. I’ll pay you triple what I paid for the Switchburg job!”

Jeff hears this last outburst, and comes into Stu’s office. Art continues, “Hello, Jeff! . . . Oh, by the way, Stu, the name of this place is Roctown.”

Stu suddenly looks as if he’s been shot. He slowly eases himself down into his chair. His eyes focus on a spot somewhere far outside his office. He says in a quiet, distant voice, “Art, we can’t take this job. I know that place all too well.”

Of course he does. It’s the ghost town from S4E12, “Reserved for Mister Bailey.”

Jeff says, “Uh, partner. . . can we talk in my office?”

Stu looks at Jeff and says, in the same quiet voice, “Jeff, you remember the case. . .” and then relates to Jeff and Art a synopsis of the earlier episode as we see the accompanying scenes from that episode in flashback.

When Stu is finished, Art says, “Oh, come now, Stu. You’re a seasoned professional. That was, what? Three years ago? Surely you’re over the trauma by now! . . . Okay, I’ll pay you four times the Switchburg rate. With these fancy new premises, you can’t afford not to do it! Jeff, talk some sense into him!”

Jeff replies, “You bet I will,” drags Stu into his office, and closes the door. He gives Stu a level look for a few seconds, then says matter-of-factly, “He’s right, you know. We’re in a lull just now, and these new digs aren’t just paying for themselves.”

Stu replies, “Partner, indulge me on this one. I have no desire to go anywhere near that God-forsaken place ever again. And there are squatters there to be dealt with on top of that. We’re not social workers. Oh, Jeff, this is the kind of case you hate!”

“Art’s not asking us to knock over any jewelry stores, is he?”

Stu is abashed for a moment. Then, he chuckles ironically and replies, “Don’t give him any ideas.”

Jeff pokes Stu in the chest and says, “How about this: Kookie and I’ll go check out this town and take a census of the squatters. You must have a lead or two about, uh—what’s the name of that nut who tried to kill you?”

“Walter Van Nuys.”

“Van Nuys? Very nice! Any relation to the town?”

“I don’t imagine so. Walter was from England, likely from London or thereabouts.”

“Whatever. See what you can find about Van Nuys’ background. He didn’t just sprout out of the ground. He has to have some relative somewhere. Roscoe can do the leg work. You don’t have to go anywhere near this Roctown place. No one’s going to try to kill you again, at least not on this case.”

Stu, against his better judgment, is compelled by circumstances to go along with Jeff’s plan. Jeff and Kookie go to Roctown and find a veritable community of squatters, including a crusty old desert rat (William Fawcett) who considers himself to have a proprietary interest in the town because he was there in its heyday, an amiable hillbilly (Victor Buono) whom Jeff discovers is actually a successful Hollywood screenwriter there on the Q.T. to collect observations for a script he has in mind about the place, and a feral young woman (Sherry Jackson) who is alarmingly ready to kill to protect her little brother (Billy Mumy). How these two ended up there, alone in the middle of nowhere, is a mystery that Kookie is determined to get to the bottom of.

Meanwhile, Stu’s investigation takes him and Roscoe to England, where he learns that Jeff’s assessment of the case was not entirely accurate. . . .

Next: final notes.

This is very good...

 

[Bob Goughan]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"Teresa" (S1E39)

The writers' building on the WB lot was empty. Everyone was on strike--which means all the writers were most likely hanging out in bars and bitching loudly about their plight. Meanwhile, BSB episodes still needed to be turned out. Time for W.B. Hermanos to look through the studio files for a past script to pirate. Aha--Key Largo! Hurricanes! A nearly deserted island! Crooks on the run! Sexy gals! Why, it's all here with hardly any tweaking whatsoever! Easy peasy!

Rex (Richard Long) is hired by Jan Dennison (Andra Martin, looking surprisingly like Sherry Jackson) to find her brother Brad (Richard Rust in a thankless role). Brad has been hanging out on an island owned by Mara (Marie Windsor, looking surprisingly like Allison Janney), with whom he has some unrequited lust. Mara is harboring two bank robbers Mark Comden (Brad Dexter) and Joe Komack (John Beradino) for the sum of $50,000. Joe is married to Barbara (Karen Steele), a has-been actress whose main purpose in life is to drink heavily and seriously strain the seams of her blouse. Despite Karen's physical attributes, Joe is actually in love with bug-eyed Mara. Mara is mostly in love with money.

View attachment 65019 View attachment 65020 View attachment 65021 View attachment 65022
Karen displaying why she got roles; Marie looking creepy; Sherry...er...Andra Martin; Brylcreem fan Richard Long

So this is the scenario at hand as Rex and Jan head towards the island in a small boat for a 3 hour tour. A 3 hour tour--in the middle of a hurricane named Teresa, which is artfully accomplished with sound effects and wind machines that serve to create some wonderful upskirt shots, and actual tropical storm footage swiped from Key Largo. Include pounding rain and now we've got all the womenfolk in soaked see-through blouses. Add in Ginger and Mary Ann and we'd have had a helluva visual narrative. You might be able to tell what I was most focused on.

Well, there's much intrigue surrounding who loves who, a bag full of stolen bank cash, and of course a weather incident sure to affect the electrical power grid on the island. Fortunately, an old stone fort stands on a hilltop--refuge for those who can make it there in time. Some do, some don't. Teresa gets her revenge on those who deserve it.

I chose to jump all the way to the end of Season 1 to see how the main characters had developed--all which remained pretty much the same except for Kenny Madison (Van Williams) trading in his college duds for an actual suit.

Notes:
In 1950, rumor had it that Karen Steele and Groucho Marx had a little monkey business going on. She later graduated to switchboard operator for Art Linkletter Productions. After buying a number of sweaters in a size slightly smaller than her impressive frame, her Hollywood career finally got on track.

By the time this episode aired, Andra Martin was getting a divorce from Ty Hardin for extreme cruelty, and earning $200 a week on her WB contract.

As my wife would say, "It's the bra..."

 

[Rustifer]

Don't worry. The posts are spot on.

Thanks, Bob. I'll fire up a few more commentaries once I get over this nagging flu. Mainlining Nyquil doesn't generally facilitate lucid thoughts.

 

[Bob Goughan]

Thanks, Bob. I'll fire up a few more commentaries once I get over this nagging flu. Mainlining Nyquil doesn't generally facilitate lucid thoughts.

Nor does drinking it straight out of the bottle.

 

[criblecoblis]

It's been fun. . .

 

[Rustifer]

It's been fun. . .

Absolutely great and imaginative, Rob!

 

[Rustifer]

Episode Commentary
Bourbon Street Beat
"The Black Magnolia" (S1E12)

You can't have a decent New Orleans story without sticking a steamboat into the plot. It may be stereotypical, but necessary. Add in a cast that includes Mary Tyler Moore, a fairly good script and some atmospheric photography--and you've got something to watch.

The Mongomery Sisters, Laura and Nancy (MTM, Melora Conway), want to find $75,000 that their gambler grandfather hid on the Mississippi Queen years ago. Laura hires Cal Calhoun (Andrew Duggan) to find the missing cash after Nancy gets shot earlier for sneaking onto the boat to nose around. The boat watchman (Joe King) used her as target practice.
Cal visits Laura's Aunt Lurella (Sara Hayden) who may have a clue as to the location of the money. Lurella claims the money is a curse and a myth. In addition, she considered Grandpa to be a complete arsehole.

Meanwhile, Cal is being followed by a scurrilous fellow who gives him a whopping conk on the head. No reason given. With dented head, Cal next visits the watchman who is conveniently related to one of the grandfather's enemies. The plot, she thickens. The watchman proves to be an uncooperative fellow, so Cal beats the snot out of him just to get in a little daily exercise.

o

MGM before pre-glamorous Laura Petrie; Richard Long wonders what anyone sees in Arlene Howell; Ken Madison helms the S.S. Gayheart

Cal proposes to visit the riverboat himself after poring over blueprints of the vessel. He has some ideas. Seems to date, everyone looking for the lost cash has confined their searches to drawers and cabinets on the boat--as if those would be sufficient hiding places to remain undiscovered for so many years. By the time Cal gets to the paddlewheeler, the watchman has been murdered. Laura gets arrested for the deed due to her scarf being found on the body. "A frightening miscarriage of justice," intones Cal is his best Southern accent.

Turns out that Aunt Lurella was quite the beauty back in her heyday, frequently prancing about on the Mississippi Queen in a proverbial little black dress--thus earning the nickname "Black Magnolia". Spoiler Alert: Auntie has some help finding the cash--a surprising relative.
Mystery being solved, Cal, Rex and Laura enjoy a nice meal of chicken aspic, lobster thermador, ham 'n eggs. Not a bowl of gumbo anywhere.

Notes:
Sign in a diner: Fried Oysters 45 cents. I don't think I've ever paid less than twelve bucks for a modest batch of fried oysters.

I'm getting used to frequent meeting scenes in the BSB detective's office kitchen / bar--which has an inconvenient spiral staircase in the middle of it. It's the only interesting element in the office.

Mary Tyler Moore looks uncharacteristically humdrum in this episode until the last scene at dinner, where she wears a dress exposing a fair expanse of breastal flesh.

 

[Rustifer]

Wow. I haven't experienced this level of quiet since I bought a new Audi and didn't tell my wife beforehand.

 

[criblecoblis]

Wow. I haven't experienced this level of quiet since I bought a new Audi and didn't tell my wife beforehand.

That's because I made a dozen long posts in a row. It'll be the new year before the thread recovers.