Thu 12 Nov 2015
A Failed TV Pilot Review: SILVERFOX (James Coburn, 1991).
Posted by Steve under Reviews , TV mysteries[12] Comments
SILVERFOX. ABC, 6 July 1991. 60min. James Coburn (Robert Fox), Julia Nickson-Soul, M. Emmet Walsh, Jillie Mack, Leigh Taylor-Young. Story: Chris Abbott, Tom Selleck & Chas. Floyd Johnson. Director: Rod Holcomb.
This is one busted TV series pilot that had some potential, or at least the basis for some. The idea and the leading player were fine. In terms of what made it onto the air, one time only, it’s the story and the execution that misfires, and badly. It was billed as The ABC Saturday Night Movie, but according to the review in Variety, it ran only from 10 to 11 pm, which matches the length of the copy I have.
Which was long enough to tell that the series wasn’t going to be going anywhere. James Coburn is the star, obviously, and he’s definitely not the problem. The concept is not bad, either. He plays a spy who’s been number one in the game all his life, but now that he’s getting older, does he want the comfort of a desk job, or does he want to put off retirement for just one more job?
And frankly, I didn’t really understand what the job was. Something to do with a murdered gangster and some plates for counterfeiting Japanese yen, but other than the young Asian agent named Shimoi Chen he teams up with (Julia Nickson-Soul), I really didn’t put any other names and faces together. A story that’s strictly by the numbers tends to do that to you.
As a younger actor, James Coburn I often found a little too smug and cocky to enjoy his performances, although to be honest, I may have changed too. As Silverfox in this film and at the age of 63, he had mellowed a lot, and I found him relaxed and easy-going and playing a role he was meant to play, at least at that time of his career.
November 12th, 2015 at 10:08 pm
Should it be noted that Tom Selleck’s wife is Jillie Mack?
November 12th, 2015 at 10:11 pm
I missed this one, but Coburn in a weekly series would have been a treat.
In a sense it was a shame he became a star and more lead actor since he was always such a good villain.
November 12th, 2015 at 10:39 pm
The more I think about it, the idea of James Coburn in a series like this back then is really appealing. Based on the script for this one, though, it wasn’t going to be this one.
November 12th, 2015 at 10:28 pm
Jerry
No, I didn’t make the connection. Thanks for pointing it out. I don’t know how or why Tom Selleck got involved in this project. There might be an interesting story there, but so far I haven’t discovered much about it. Nothing at all, really.
November 13th, 2015 at 12:42 am
I never saw this one either and had never heard of it until now. I wonder why. Sounds like I was really lucky.
November 13th, 2015 at 12:49 am
Coburn did of course star in a couple of TV series in the 60s. He was brilliant as the bad guy in KLONDIKE (a series on my growing to be reviewed list) and I hope some day to see ACAPULCO.
Don’t forget THE FIFTH CORNER which I reviewed here:
https://mysteryfile.com/blog/?p=20508
November 13th, 2015 at 1:27 am
The ABC Saturday Night Movie featured a “double feature.” Another failed pilot K-9 aired from 9pm to 10pm (Eastern).
SILVER FOX aired from 10-11pm. It out-rated CBS’s DOCTOR DOCTOR and GOOD SPORT. But lost to NBC’s DEAR JOHN and CAROL & CO. (Broadcasting magazine).
November 13th, 2015 at 4:07 am
– James Coburn had one other regular series gig:
He served as on-camera host-narrator of Darkroom, a sub-Twilight Zone anthology that ran on ABC in fall 1981, very briefly. The story goes that ABC inadvertently sabotaged the show by running promos that gave away the twist endings.
– Tom Selleck’s involvement with Silverfox may be a spillover from his long-term deal with Universal TV for Magnum PI.
You may recall that Selleck had a similar credit on Burt Reynolds’s B. L. Stryker, just prior to this.
Next time you look at this pilot, see if you can spot how many names in the credits also worked on Magnum in one capacity or another.
November 13th, 2015 at 11:56 am
Thanks Mike. I finally remembered DARKROOM this morning. Oh, it died because it aired opposite of DALLAS, was not very good, and did not have enough of Coburn.
Chris Abbott, Chas Floyd Johnson (who also was a producer on ROCKFORD FILES) and Selleck all worked on MAGNUM PI. I suspect this came from Selleck’s production company.
November 13th, 2015 at 12:31 pm
Curtis Harrington directed a single evening of DARKROOM, containing two stories (“A Quiet Funeral” and “Make-Up”). It was terrific.
November 13th, 2015 at 1:20 pm
10. Mike, I am not a fan of horror or anthologies but I do remember my biggest disappointment with the series was Coburn did not act in it. He played himself as host which was nice, but I wished they had gone old school “Star” anthology drama, called it the James Coburn Show and had him act in one of the stories each week.
November 14th, 2015 at 3:58 am
An American media company gave away the endings of their products by making tell-all trailers? Shocking! I’d never have suspected this…
I always make a point of trying to avoid American movie trailers, as it seems to be a point of honour amongst the makers that they will try and spoil all of the twists and turns of their movies. If it is a whodunnit I always feel that it will consist of nothing but one of the cast screaming “X did it,with a candlestick, in the library! Okay? You don’t have to go see the film now.”
Coburn was a terrific villain, and one of those actors who could slip effortlessly between good guy and bad guy and quite often somewhere inbetween.