THE DAIN CURSE. CBS – Martin Poll Productions. Based upon the novel by Dashiell Hammett; developed for television by Robert W. Lenski. Producer: Martin Poll. Director: E.W. Swackhamer. Cast: James Coburn as Hamilton Nash, Nancy Addison as Gabrielle Leggett, Bernice Straight as Alice, Jean Simmons as Aaronia, Jason Miller as Owen, Hector Elizondo as Sheriff Feeney and Brent Spiner as Tom Fink.

PART ONE – MAY 22, 1978 – MONDAY AT 9-11 PM (Eastern)

PART TWO – MAY 23, 1978 – TUESDAY AT 9-11 PM

PART THREE – MAY 24, 1978 – WEDNESDAY AT 9-11 PM

   THE DAIN CURSE features three stories – a simple diamond robbery that reveals a complex mystery involving drugs, child abuse, blackmail and various murders; a con using a religious cult that ends with death; and a middle aged PI who must overcome his attraction to a young innocent girl and save her from the evil around her.

   THE DAIN CURSE originally appeared as four separate Continental Op stories in Black Mask magazine. Hammett would rework the four stories (“Black Lives” November 1928, “The Hollow Temple” December 1928, “Black Honeymoon” January 1929 and “Black Riddle” February 1929) into a three-part novel (Knopf, 1929). While it was a critical and commercial success when first published, time has not been kind to one of Hammett’s weakest work. The book suffers from its clumsy structure, its padded overly complicated story and a weak ending.

   The TV adaptation by Robert W. Lenski would win him an Edgar award and an Emmy nomination (losing to HOLOCAUST writer Gerald Green). Surprisingly, there was no writer credit on screen, instead Lenski received a developed for television credit. Perhaps this was because he stayed loyal to the book and its structure. But changes were made, some were wise, others not.

   Characters such as Minnie the maid’s boyfriend and many red herrings were wisely dropped. The end of each part was changed. Hammett ended each part with the dramatic closure of that part’s case. Lenski knew each TV episode would need a cliffhanger ending to bring back the viewer for the next night. For example, he followed the book closely, but ended Part One with something that happened in Part Two – The Temple, drugged Gabrielle confessing to murder.

   Many of the changes were minor such as changing the Continental Detective Agency to Dickerson National Detective agency and moving the action from the California coast to the East coast and “The City” (New York).

   Lenski should have used even more of Hammett’s original dialogue than he did. His original dialogue tended toward pulp clichés, such as a place smelling of death or things being too quiet.

   The most notable change was replacing Hammett’s Continental Op with PI Hamilton Nash played by James Coburn. The well-dressed Ham owed more to the crime-fighting image of Dashiell Hammett than to the Continental Op. While Coburn would have been a terrible choice to play the Op, he was perfect as the thin, handsome, more energetic PI Hamilton Nash.

   Hammett’s Continental Op appeared in 36 short stories (four would make up Hammett’s first novel RED HARVEST, and four became THE DAIN CURSE). The Op was the visual opposite of TV PI Hamilton Nash. He was a short, overweight (180 lbs), ugly, middle-aged man. He had no life outside of his work. Hammett never even gave him a name. It was this image that made the relationship between the Op and the young victim Gabrielle so important to the tone of the book. It added to the creepiness of the all ready odd mystery as the Op got deeper into Gabrielle’s life, resisting and denying his growing attraction to her and her growing dependence on him, a favorite older Uncle who was fighting inside his desires for the young innocent girl.

   Hamilton Nash had a past he hid from others. To keep his noisy boss satisfied (you would think the boss of a detective agency would know the past of his employees) Ham claimed he had an ex-wife who had run off with the milkman because he was never at home. Coburn with his leading man looks and thin athletic body did not seem as wrong for young but adult looking Nancy Addison as the Continental Op did for the virginal Gabrielle.

   But Coburn’s Hamilton Nash did share the cynical soul of the Op, as well as the Op’s obsessive personality, his deductive talents, and his fatalistic acceptance of injustice. According to Nash, criminals had invented justice. Nash had no problem leaving a case the client thought solved, even when he knew better.

   Nancy Addison had the difficult role of the freaky Gabrielle. Her scenes with Coburn brought to life Hammett’s Gabrielle’s feelings for the older PI who was always there to save her. To her Nash was a protector not a potential lover.

   The rest of the cast, especially Jason Miller and Jean Simmons, captured Hammett’s characters well in their performances. Early in the book, Mrs. Alice Leggett was described as being serene and the only sane soul in the Leggett’s household. This played a role in the story. Bernice Straight performance failed to capture that aspect of Alice, but her performance did get her an Emmy nomination for single performance by a supporting actress in a comedy or drama series (she lost to HOLOCAUST Blanche Baker).

   E.W. Swackhamer’s direction was worthy of the Emmy nomination he received (he lost to HOLOCAUST director Marvin J. Chomsky). He kept the characters moving to give a sense of energy and tension to the slow paced twisty story. In Part One’s denouement scene, several people filled the lab of the dead man. Nash refused to believe the letter left by the man was a suicide note. Swackhamer had Nash restlessly moving around the room while the rest stay still. As Nash declares the man was murdered, he moves out of the shot (but not out of the room) leaving the camera focused on the reactions of the rest of the people there.

   Production values for THE DAIN CURSE were average at best, but never let down the story. Music by Charles Gross reminded us the time was 1928, and added a nice noir sound when needed.

   Following the success of the mini-series ROOTS, CBS had high expectations for THE DAIN CURSE. The ratings for the first night were a moderate success with a 37 share. But the ratings for the second and third night fell with each episode receiving a 30 share, OK but not the blockbuster numbers hoped for by CBS.

   THE DAIN CURSE aired during the May sweeps, an important ratings period for the networks and its local stations. ABC, CBS, and NBC were going all out to attract viewers. Viewers not hooked by Part One of THE DAIN CURSE had other options, including one in syndication.

   THE BASTARD (aka THE KENT FAMILY CHRONICLES) from Operation Prime Time (OPT) scrambled the regularly scheduled programs for that week. OPT was a group of independent TV stations who had united to finance programs from major studios. Produced by MCA/Universal, THE BASTARD was a four-hour mini-series scheduled to air over two nights. It proved a major challenge to THE DAIN CURSE when the two series aired against each other in many markets. Another problem for CBS and the other networks was THE BASTARD aired not only on 25 independent TV stations but also on network stations preempting network programs. THE BASTARD appeared on 14 ABC, 27 CBS and 25 NBC stations.

   I would like to read THE DAIN CURSE in its original Black Mask format, but the original four stories reportedly have never been republished. The book was a disappointment. It was padded and told three weak stories instead of one strong one. The TV mini-series was never able to overcome the problems of the novel and added some of its own, most notably the effect casting played on the romantic spine of the story.

      Sources:

Broadcasting Magazine – May 15, 1978, May 29, 1978, and June 5, 1978.

The Dashiell Hammett website by Mike Humbert:

http://www.mikehumbert.com/Dashiell_Hammett_05_The_Dain_Curse.html

Editorial Comment:   The first two videos consist only of clips from the show. I do not know if the bottom one is the complete mini-series or not, as I have not watched it to the end. I am suspicious about it, as it is only three hours long.

Also Note:   Curt Evans reviewed the novel version of The Dain Curse earlier on this blog. Follow this link.

KING OF DIAMONDS. Syndicated, 1961-1962; Ziv/United Artists. Cast: Broderick Crawford as John King and Ray Hamilton as Casey.

   John King was the chief investigator for the Continental Diamond Industries. With Casey, his young handsome assistant, King led the fight against the evil IDB, the Illicit Diamond Buyers (well, at least the criminals were honest about it). Or as King explained, “… from the minute the diamonds come out of the clay until they go on somebody’s finger we protect them. The we is me.”

   King of Diamonds was a typical Ziv first run TV Film syndication series with the creative talent working against the limitations of low budgets and too short a production schedule. The series fortunately didn’t take itself too seriously which gives it a charm and makes it still fun to watch.

   The pace of the half hour episodes were fast enough for us to enjoy the story without noticing or caring about the plot holes. The writing featured dialog that was equally quick:

   The episodes began with the narrator (probably Highway Patrol narrator Art Gilmore) setting up the story such as in “The Wizard of Ice”:

   Broderick Crawford was the perfect Johnny King, tough guy detective, a man obsessed with the recovery of stolen diamonds. Murder, justice, those were the police’s problems all Johnny King wanted was the diamonds back. Crawford biggest acting challenge was trying to be convincing as a ladies man with beautiful women from his past still helpless against his charms.

   It is hard to take the show seriously when King wore a trench coat and fedora in nearly every scene including at least once when he was sitting behind his office desk. Check out that outfit in this trailer for the series:

   Ray Hamilton was forgettable in the stock character role of King’s young assistant. The guest cast was above average especially (in the episodes I have seen) Lola Albright, John Anderson and Gerald Mohr.

   Directors such as Irving Lerner were able to overcome a lack of time and money and occasionally shoot some quality scenes such as a car chase in a high-rise parking lot involving three people in “The Wizard of Ice.”

EPISODE INDEX. (I have watched three episodes each with incomplete credits. Titles from IMdb.com.)

“The Wizard of Ice.” Written and produced by John Robinson. Directed by Irving Lerner. GUEST CAST: Lola Albright, Telly Savalas, John Anderson, John Marley, and Richard Kiel. *** A hijacking of two million in diamonds gets complicated by a woman.

“Commando Tactics.” Written by Steve Fisher. Directed by John Rich. GUEST CAST: Gerald Mohr *** King’s fun loving WWII commando buddy has decided to try the adventurous fun life of a diamond thief.

“Backlash.” Written by Edward J. Lasko. Directed by Skip Homeier. GUEST CAST: James Coburn and Nancy Kulp. *** War hero and respected citizen in a small town in Maine has his past come back to haunt him as a former army buddy arrives wanting to sell the diamonds they had stolen from the Nazis during the War.

   King of Diamonds was an entertaining show despite its flaws or in part because of them, but it was the story behind the scenes I found more interesting.

   It is well known Broderick Crawford had a problem with alcohol (too many DWIs cost him his driver’s license and they had to adapt filming Highway Patrol). There is an interesting story about why Crawford agreed to do King of Diamonds in Rick Jason’s (The Case of the Dangerous Robin) autobiography Scrapbooks of My Mind. (Thanks to Wikipedia for citing its sources.)

   Despite being in over 185 markets including the top five markets in the country, King of Diamonds lasted just one season. TV was changing at the time. In the words of Broadcasting (9/18/61), “Production of programs for first-run syndication has virtually collapsed.”

   Production costs were rising. The trade magazine reported the cost of an average first-run syndicated TV Film series had risen to $40,000 to $50,000 per episodes. With a star such as Broderick Crawford (who was also credited as associate producer) King of Diamonds’ costs were most likely even higher.

   Meanwhile the market had been taken over by off-network reruns that were cheaper, had proven popular with the viewers, and could be aired on a daily basis.

   In the fall of 1961, King of Diamonds competed against twenty-one newly available off-network reruns series including Peter Gunn, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Hong Kong, Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp, The Lone Ranger and Yancy Derringer.

   Another problem facing first-run TV Film syndication was the increase in the networks’ involvement in the programs they aired. Even the weakest network, ABC had increased the amount of programs they scheduled and their series quality. Also, the hour-long format was beginning to take up more and more time of the prime-time schedule.

   TV’s most successful first-run TV Film syndication company, Ziv Television would soon disappear as United Artists Television would completely take over the company (dropping the name Ziv from Ziv/United Artists television) in 1962 when Frederick Ziv sold the last part of the company he still owned and left Hollywood to teach at the University of Cincinnati.

   It is hard to mourn the passing of Ziv Television with its bottom of the barrel production values, but it was responsible for a few shows such as King of Diamonds that might not have been the best television ever made, still have enough charm to entertain.

VINCE KOHLER – Rising Dog. St. Martin’s Press, hardcover, 1992. No paperback edition.

   Unlike most of today’s comedy mystery writers, Vince Kohler (1948-2002) understood the key to quality comedic mystery fiction is a good mystery with comedic elements, not how funny the jokes are. The few of us who have read his work still miss his talent for writing solid mysteries with eccentric characters, black humor, and a sense of the rainy coast of Oregon so real you’ll need a raincoat.

   Vince Kohler wrote four books, Rainy North Woods (1990), Rising Dog (1992), Banjo Boy (1994), and Raven’s Widow (1997). All four featured journalist Eldon Larkin who worked as reporter/photographer for the South Coast Sun, the local newspaper for small town Port Jerome, Oregon. Educated, he reads French classic literature in the original language, but proving how useful his education is, Eldon is a loser when it comes to the important things in life — women, cars, and career. He left Berkeley California and an ex-wife behind, and now dreams of the big story that will get him a job with a big city newspaper.

   The books can be read in any order and all of equal high quality. So I grabbed one off my shelf and was pleased to see Rising Dog.

   Rising Dog features a complex mystery centered on the murder of radical environmentalist John Henspeter, who is trying to stop a land developer from cutting down some trees to put up a condo. But while the mystery will hold your interest, it is the fast pace action, humor, and non-stop weirdness that will keep you entertained from beginning to end.

   Eldon responds to a phone call from Jasper, former drunken tugboat captain turned preacher, who claims to have raised his dog from the dead. Eldon meets with Jasper, the resurrected doggie and the members of Jasper’s church.

   On the way to where the miracle occurred, the group comes across some construction workers dealing with protester Henspeter. Things escalate, and as Eldon takes pictures, the church members and construction workers break out into a fight. It all stops with the arrival of a beautiful, topless mystery woman in her thirties on horseback (we will learn later her name is Enola Gay). All fall silent in awe. As quickly as she appears, she disappears back into the woods. Peace has been restored, until the dog arrives with a human foot. Its page 15 of 274 and the fun has barely begun.

   Kohler had a gift for ratcheting up the tension then easing off with a slight touch of the absurd. Near the end of the book, Eldon and Enola Gay finds themselves caught between gunfire from two sides:

   Anyone who features odd characters is usually compared to Elmore Leonard, but Kohler’s books are better. Kohler’s pace and his ability to balance mystery, action, and humor avoids the dull sections I find in many of Leonard’s books.

   Kohler’s descriptions of locations are among the best in all fiction. He avoids the faults of the popular Weird Florida comedic mystery authors such as Carl Hiaasen, Christopher Moore, Tim Dorsey, etc. While too often the Florida locations out-weird the characters and events, Kohler’s locations play the straight man in his story, something real to anchor the story so the humor never cost the mystery its believability.

   Sadly, all four of his books are out of print and have yet to be rescued by e-books. There is little information on the Internet about Kohler besides his books for sale and two columns by his friend Bob Hicks.

      http://www.artscatter.com/general/sunday-scatter-it-was-a-dark-and-stormy-night-in-the-rainy-north-woods

      http://www.artscatter.com/general/going-native-on-the-oregon-coast-a-hair-raising-tale

   From Rising Dog, “Vince Kohler is a staff writer for the Oregonian in Portland. Kohler has traveled widely and in the course of his career, has filed stories from South America, Europe, the Soviet Union, and China. He is married, has three cats, and considers himself a permanent resident of the Pacific Northwest…”

   My favorite form of fiction is mystery lite, stories the opposite of film noir. Where film noir is soaked in self-pity and doom, mystery lite finds life too absurd to be taken seriously. Writers such as Norbert Davis, Ross Thomas, Gregory Mcdonald, Nat and Ivan Lyons, and Donald Westlake fill their books with the dark tragedies of life then make fun of them. Vince Kohler was one of the best at it. I miss him.

NOTE:   For a list of all of this week’s other “Forgotten Friday” books, check out Patti Abbott’s blog here.

BULLET IN THE FACE. Independent Film Channel, August 16-17, 2012. IFC Original / Just For Laughs Television and Muse Entertainment Enterprise in Association with Alan Spencer & Company. Cast: Max Williams as Gunter Vogler, Kate Kelton as Martine/Lilly, Eddie Izzard as Tannhauser, Eric Roberts as Racken, Neil Napier as Hagerman, and Jessica Steen as Commissioner Eva Braden. Developed, Executive Produced and Written by Alan Spenser. Directed and Co-Executive Produced by Erik Canuel. Music by James Gelfand. Theme “Dispatch” written, produced and performed by Amanda Bauman and Patrick Doyle (Courtesy of AmA music). [Series is available online for purchase.]

   Bullet in the Face is a comedy developed and written by Alan Spencer. Spencer is best known for his over the top comedy Sledge Hammer, a series that broadly mocked the TV cop shows. Here Spencer takes on neo-noir. The result is an at times funny but always strange series featuring excessive violence with graphic language and enough gore and blood to satisfy Sam Peckinpah and Quentin Tarantino.

   It helps (as with any satirical comedy) to be aware of the genre. The series’ targets include such neo-noir movies as Frank Miller’s Sin City and crime graphic novels by such writers as Ed Brubaker. Fans of film directors John Woo and Luc Besson as well as mystery writers such as Duane Swierczynski will enjoy this series.

   Set in the corrupt city of Bruteville, Tannhauser, an agoraphobic evil mastermind with a fondness for snow globes, is trying to take over the city now under the control of old school mobster Racken.

   The story begins with psychopath Gunter learning his lover and equal psychopath Martine is pregnant. This complicates his life as their boss Tannhauser has ordered him to kill her after they rob a jewelry store. During the robbery, the city’s hero cop arrives. Gunter kills the cop but is betrayed and shot in the face by Martine on Tannhauser’s orders.

   Gunter wakes up in a police hospital with a new face, the face of the good guy cop he had killed. Seems the female police Commissioner loved the cop (the cop didn’t return her affections, he spent all his time with men). So hoping for another chance, she had his face transplanted onto Gunter and gives Gunter the opportunity to go after those who had betrayed him.

   The acting matches the exaggerated humor of the script and the cartoonishness of the characters. Max Williams plays Gunter with the appropriate hamminess and silly German accent.

   Kate Kelton as Martine/Lilly is the love of the life of three men, Gunter, Tannhauser and Racken. Each man thinks he is the father of her unborn child. Kelton matches Williams’ Gunter in insanity and accent.

   Here is a clip with Kate Kelton and Eddie Izzard. Warning, it contains adult language: http://www.ifc.com/bullet-in-the-face/videos/bullet-in-the-face-killer-species

      [Editorial Comment: I’ve been unable to view the video at this link. I’ve included it in Michael’s review in the hope that others may succeed where I seem to fail.]

   It is Izzard and Roberts as the two mobsters that steal the show. Eddie Izzard is a bizarre delight as Tannhauser. When asked if he thought he was God, he answered, “No, God thinks He is me.”

   Eric Roberts is equally wonderful as the old school mobster Racken, who keeps a scrapbook of photos of cops he had killed. Racken does not approve of Tannhauser’s style, “He’s not a normal criminal, probably never had a hoagie in his life.”

   Jessica Steen convincingly plays the sexually frustrated, boss from Hell, Police Commissioner Eva Braden who has her own unique ways of trying to keep Bruteville safe from a possible mob war.

   Neil Napier is Gunter’s police partner Hagerman, an easy to cry, absurdly righteous cop who had been partner to the man Gunter killed, the man whose face is now Gunter’s. Hagerman is hated for his decency and Napier plays him with a delightful goofiness that adds a layer of humor to the character.

         EPISODE GUIDE

“Meet Gunter Vogler” (8/16/12) Guest Cast: Christopher Heyergahl and Maya Fuhr *** Sociopath Gunter is having a bad day. When his plan to rob a jewelry store and kill people goes wrong, his lover and mother of his unborn child shoots him in the face. To make matters worse Gunter wakes up with the face of a heroic cop he had killed.

   A very funny episode that wastes no time as it sets up the premise and characters.

   Sample of humor: When shown video of Matrine shooting him in the face, Gunter refuses to believe it. “Why would that woman shoot me? We had dinner reservations later.”

“Angel of Death” (8/16/12) Guest Cast: James Kidnie and Alix Sideris *** Priests are being murdered by the Angel of Death.

   Another fun episode as Gunter begins to enjoy his role as a cop as he seeks revenge against Tannhauser who is in hiding. This episode can offend many with its excessively irreverent treatment of the rituals of Christianity.

   Sample dialog: When the doctor (Alex Bisping) wishes to do oral surgery to help the face transplant take, Gunter reacts violently, “I killed the last dentist I went to and stole his car. His office still sends me a bill.”

“Drug of Choice” (8/16/12) Guest Cast: Robert Naylor and Marcel Jeannin *** Gunter attempts to mentor a young boy who had just murdered two people and a parakeet.

   Weakest episode of the series. While it advances the story arc, the humor usually falls flat.

   Sample dialog: While chasing the man who gave the kid the gun used in the killing, Hagerman calls out, “Fassbinder, we would like a few words with you, as well as some complete sentences.”

“Kiss Me Thrice” (8/17/12) Guest Cast: Heidi Foss and Jason Cavalier *** Racken recruits Gunter to kill Tannhauser.

   This episode has some great scenes such as during a catfight between Martine and a huge woman, Martine wins by reminding her opponent she’s pregnant every time the other woman comes close to hitting her.

   Sample dialog: Martine discovers Gunter is alive with another man’s face. She has a gun pointed at him, demanding he explain what is going on, Gunter ignores her and leaves. She screams after him “This is a real gun, not an abstract piece of art. It shoots bullets.”

“The World Stage” (8/17/12) Guest Cast: Debbie Wong and Kaoru Matsui *** A third group entrance finally sets off the drug war.

   The identity of the third group and its plan is comedic genius. Also watch for writer Alan Spencer’s cameo. Hitchcock would have been proud.

   Sample dialog: Racken defends himself to a PC Mobster (Larry Wilmore) who wonders if Racken is progressive enough, “I was the first guy to recruit kids from low-test score schools. It was like, it was like, no juvenile delinquents left behind.”

“Cradle To Grave” (8/17/12) Guest Cast: Miranda Handford and Andrew Campbell *** The gang war concludes and Martine gives birth.

   Nice final episode that resolves the story while lampooning the ending of another popular crime TV series.

   Sample dialog: The cops have fled the police station to escape a bomb. Gunter finds the bomb and tosses it out the window, killing all the cops outside. The Commissioner notes no one had to die. “True,” replies Gunter, “If they’d stayed inside, but instead they fled like yellow kittens from a Korean butcher.”

   While many will find the series offensive, it is a funny parody of neo-noir (a genre many find offensive). As in true neo-noir the language, sex, violence, and situations are extremely graphic, but I enjoyed watching the story Gunter described as a rollercoaster ride designed by Kafka.

   At the time of this posting IFC still had information and clips for the series available at the network’s website.

THE FIFTH CORNER. NBC, 1992. Tri-Star Television / John Herzfeld Production / Adelson and Baumgarter Production. Cast: Alex McArthur as Fifth Corner, James Coburn as Dr. Grandwell, Kim Delaney as Erica Fontaine, J.E. Freeman as Boone, and Anthony Valentine as The Hat. Creator and Executive Producer: John Herzfeld, Executive Producers: Gary Adelson and Craig Baumgarter, Supervising Producer: Bruce Zabel. Producer: Paul Pompian, Co-Producer: Robert Florio. Music by David Michael Frank.

   Over at YouTube I found a clip for the forgotten TV series THE FIFTH CORNER:

   As a fan of spy and noir fiction, I was hooked. The series itself was short lived with six hours filmed (two hour TV Movie and four hour long episodes). NBC cancelled it and took it off the air after its second week leaving three of the hour-long episodes unaired.

   I have found a copy of all six hours in the Collector’s market at sell.com.

   John Herzfeld (DR. VEGAS) created a flawed but delightful mystery, full of clues, red herrings, twists, macguffins, betrayals, sex and violence. His most serious mistake was taking the cynical hardboiled spy noir story and telling it with the emotional, express-your-feelings style of the early 90s.

   The man with amnesia had many names. His evil co-workers called him George, but to simplify things we will call him by the nickname they had given him, Fifth Corner. He was called the Fifth Corner because when there was no way out he would find one.

   Star Alex McArthur (RAMPAGE) played Fifth Corner like the typical early 90s male hero, the sensitive man, intense, emotional, not afraid to cry. Fifth Corner had been a top spy and ruthless killer but when he loses his memory McArthur’s version becomes an emotional wreck. This unlikely change for the character cost the character much of its appeal and believability. In his favor, McArthur seemed to find the character’s stronger side as the series progressed.

   Fans of Kim Delany (NYPD BLUE) will enjoy her wardrobe or lack of, as she does what she can with the stereotypical character of the beautiful, headstrong, independent woman who becomes the hero’s love interest. To add to her challenge her character, saxophone playing, NY Times reporter Erica Fontaine had some of the most out of place dialog in the series such as, “I never let down my guard, but with you I dropped it like a whore’s nightgown.”

   J.E. Reeder (MILLER’S CROSSING) was convincing as Fifth Corner’s sidekick. But the character was weakened by too many quirks, the lover of take-out food, comic book reader, AA member with a fear of bad breath who lives in the front seat of the limo. Attempts to comment of Fifth Corner’s problems by mirroring them with Boone’s problems from his past did not work. The bit with Boone being a former op of The Corporation who fell in love with the wife of the last man he killed was a gratuitous side-trip from the all ready complicated story.

   I am a fan of James Coburn (DAIN’S CURSE) especially when he is using his cool laid-back persona as he does here as evil billionaire Dr Grandwell, a man who never lets a life or country get in his way of making money. I do wish the story had spent more time with Grandwell and his mysterious beautiful, blind, female companion (Julia Nickson-Soul, BABYLON 5).

   Grandwell’s second in command “The Hat” (Anthony Valentine, CALLAH) might have worked as a noir character but the bit with the hat was too silly visually. His minions all had the proper noir background, the blonde femme fatale (Madchen Amick, TWIN PEAKS), the femme fatale’s killer boy toy (Mark Joy, DOGMA) the psychopath Cristoph Ohrt, (EDEL & STARCK), and the good solider (Voyo, RAMBO FIRST BLOOD PART 2).

   David Michael Frank’s (ABOVE THE LAW) soundtrack was delightfully appropriate for film noir. The one exception was his original song, “Hold Onto That Feeling” (co-written with Robert Jason who performed it) for the episode “Home” that as a bad sentimental 90s pop song may have fit the melodrama of the episode, had no place in a spy-noir TV series.

         EPISODE INDEX:

“Trio.” (April 17, 1992) Friday, 9pm-11pm (Eastern). Written and directed by John Herzfeld. Guest Cast: Sergio Calderon *** A man who lost his memory finds himself tied to the murder of a woman and a larger conspiracy. He discovers he has many names, one of which is the nickname Fifth Corner. A beautiful redhead named Erica is on his trail. Everyone wants his mysterious diary (a laptop with details of all his assignments). His evil boss Grandwell wants him back working for The Corporation, which disappoints Fifth Corner’s rival The Hat who wants him dead.

   Each episode featured a self-contained mystery involving another persona of Fifth Corner. We began with the name Richard Braun, but then switched to George Thompson. The mystery was who killed the woman “Richard” woke up with in bed, and why she was killed. “George” switched our attention to Grandwell and the mystery of who the Fifth Corner was.

   The TV movie was fun, if flawed. As with most spy-noir fiction, the story was not overburdened with reality. The murder mystery was solved and Fifth Corner, Erica and Boone joined together to take on Dr. Grandwell and his evil corporation.

Ratings: 16 share. Opposite: ABC aired repeat DINOSAURS (20), repeat BABY TALK (20) and new 20/20 (27). CBS had a repeat of JANEK “Murder Times Seven (1990) (15). FOX had a new SIGHTINGS (13), repeat TOTALLY HIDDEN VIDEO (9) and turned 10-11pm over to local stations.

“Eva.” (April 24, 1992) Friday, 10-11pm Written by John Herzfeld. Directed by Albert Pyun. Guest Cast: Peter Kwong and Tim Thomerson. *** Fifth Corner (aka “George”) search for his wife Eva is interrupted when he is arrested as Jack Previn for the murder of a Japanese electronic genius. He is about to be extradited to Japan when the blonde who works for The Hat arrives and post bail.

   The new name is Jack Previn and the mystery is the death of a Japanese inventor and his missing amazing electronic gadget. The arc story of Fifth Corner’s search for his identity and Erica’s obsession about bringing down Grandwell continue as the series primary focus.

Ratings: 13 share. Opposite: ABC aired new 20/20 (26), CBS had repeat BURT REYNOLDS SPECIAL (15), and FOX turned the time over to local stations.

“Home.” (never aired). Written by John Herzfeld and Bryce Zabel. Directed by Sam Pillsbury. Guest Cast: Barbara Barrie and Chris Allport *** While Fifth Corner continues to search for his identity Grandwell has erased all evidence of Erica’s existence. Fifth Corner may have found his family and his name, John Avlean. The mob is moving in on John’s big brother’s restaurant. When the Fifth Corner and Boone take on the mob, things go wrong.

   This week’s name is John Avlean and the mystery deals with the mob’s attempt to take over John’s big brother’s restaurant.

   This episode suffers from too much emotional melodrama but the scene where Fifth Corner and Boone take on the mob was full of style and shocking surprises that made the scene one of the best moments of the series.

“Woman at Her Toilette.” (unaired). Written by Leslie Bohem and John Herzfeld. Directed by Gabrielle Beaumont. Guest Cast: Marina Sirtis, and Frank Stallone *** Grandwell wants the painting he had Anthony Parachini (Fifth Corner) steal for him. Fifth Corner can’t remember where the painting is, but finds yet another identity, Jean Michel, that leads him to it. To complicate things, a hit squad arrives to kill Grandwell, and Anthony and get the painting. To save Erica and get her life back, Fifth Corner makes a deal with Grandwell.

   Two new names are featured, Anthony who worked for Grandwell and Jean who lead a secret life from Grandwell. The mystery is where is the painting.

   Perhaps the weirdest episode of the series, highlighted by Marina Sirtis (STAR TREK NEXT GENERATION) doing an erotic performance art piece for Fifth Corner, Erica, and Boone that had nothing to do with the story or arc.

“Sword of Damocles.” (never aired). Written and directed by John Herzfeld. Guest Cast: Paul Cain and Tianna Thorpe *** Fifth Corner had agreed never see Erica again if Grandwell restores her identity. When Erica learns of the deal, she rejects it, even if it means she will be killed. Grandwell remains in his forgiving mood in regard to Fifth Corner, but The Hat finally convinces Grandwell to let him kill Fifth Corner. Grandwell expects and hopes The Hat will fail.

   The last episode spares us a new name or mystery as we rush towards the resolution of Grandwell and Fifth Corner arc story. The final gunfight is the perfect example of where this series went wrong, as everyone was busy self-analyzing each other that the actual shooting was almost an afterthought. The series ends with many of the questions unanswered including the real name of Fifth Corner.

   While I recommend this series, if there ever was a TV series that needs to be remade it is THE FIFTH CORNER. This spy noir series was a great idea that deserved better.

      SOURCES:

Epguides.com

Tvtango.com

IMdb.com

DIRK GENTLY. BBC Four/ITV Studios in association with The Welded Tandem Picture Company for BBC Cymru Wales, 2010 and 20123. Created and executive produced by Howard Overman. Cast: Stephen Mangan as Dirk Gently, Darren Boyd as Richard MacDuff, Lisa Jackson as Janice, Jason Watkins as DI Gilks, and Helen Baxendale as Susan Harmison. For a more complete list of credits and an in depth look at the series visit the official BBC Four website.

    Douglas Adams’ (Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) private detective Dirk Gently first appeared in the comedy fantasy mystery novel Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. His adventures continued in The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul (1988) and in the unfinished Salmon of Doubt (2002).

    “But right now on BBC Four, its murder most random with Dirk Gently,” proclaimed the network’s announcer.

    Dirk Gently believes in “the fundamental interconnectedness of all things,” the quantum mechanics of Physics applied to all life.

    The series takes place in a modern day London. However, there are occasional moments when we realize the action is in an alternate universe, such as when Dirk fails to keep a computer program out of the hands of the Pentagon and America conquers Mexico.

    The mysteries are played fair with clues, some obvious while others not. Everything is connected. When Dirk takes things from anyplace, know it will play a role in the case, unless it is cash from the dead person’s pocket – that will be for pizza.

    The series was less interested in adapting Adams’ books than attempting to capture the spirit of his work and characters. Considering how impossible it would be to film the books, it was a wise choice, if not always successful.

    Stephen Mangan may not fit the image of Dirk from the books but he plays the character convincingly. A self-centered con man with the social skills of Sherlock Holmes, Dirk may or may not believe in his detective skills but is satisfied that things always work out in the end. He drives a broken down car worthy of Harry Orwell’s admiration. He is a deadbeat whose primary joy in life is eating fatty foods.

    Darren Boyd plays the spineless “Watson,” Richard MacDuff. But it is this character where the series goes most wrong. MacDuff appeared in the first book only. Lacking a narrator (though a narrator would have improved the TV series much as it did Pushing Daisies and Dragnet), the series needed a second character to help reveal exposition to the audience. The result was the series became less Dirk Gently and more a funny spoof of Holmes and Watson, as well as police procedurals.

    Helen Baxendale was wasted as Susan Harmison, MacDuff’s girlfriend. The writers really didn’t know what to do with the character except use her as a story device to threaten MacDuff and Dirk’s partnership (while MacDuff considers himself a partner having invested all his money into the agency, Dirk considers him his assistant).

    Lisa Jackson plays the one note character, Dirk’s secretary Janice. Janice sits in the outer office refusing to do any work, such as answer phones or show clients into Dirk’s office, until Dirk pays her wages. While not the most logical, the running gag is funny especially in the final episode.

    Jason Watkins gets the required role of stupid cop DI Gilks, whose role gives Dirk someone to run from.

            THE EPISODES:

Pilot (12/16/2010). Written by Howard Overman. Based on Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, by Douglas Adams. Directed by Damon Thomas. Guest Cast: Doreen Mantle, Anthony Howell, Billy Boyle, and Miles Richardson. *** Dirk is hired by an old woman to find her cat. This leads him to his friend from college Richard MacDuff, who is breaking into his girlfriend Susan’s home to delete an email he regretted sending.

    They look for the cat in a warehouse full of SF looking machines that self-destructs apparently killing a millionaire scientist. The same millionaire who had been “in love” with MacDuff’s girlfriend Susan since their college days, and who Susan had been rejecting for years because of an incident in college. This and more is all connected and leads Dirk to the cat and the answer to two murders.

    Typical Dirk moment: Among his expenses (payable in advance) Dirk charges the old lady for is the cost of a new refrigerator for his office (the one in his apartment had been padlocked by his landlord).

Episode One (3/5/12). Written by Howard Overman. Directed by Tom Shankland. Guest Cast: Cosima Shaw, Paul Ritter, Colin McFarlane and Kenneth Collard. *** MacDuff has joined the detective agency as Dirk’s partner/assistant. The agency has been hired by a paranoid millionaire computer genius convinced the American Pentagon is out to kill him.

    They find him murdered, and uncover his plans to invade Switzerland. From the clues, Dirk realizes the man had invented a computer program that will prove whatever premise you want, to justify the unjustifiable, a computer program the Pentagon would kill to get.

    Typical Dirk Gently moment: Dirk believes in Zen navigation. While many believe when you are lost you should consult a map, Zen navigation advises one to find someone who looks like they know where they are going and follow them. Dirk admits this method rarely gets him where he was going but it often gets him where he is supposed to be.

Episode Two (3/12/12) Written by Matt Jones. Directed by Tom Shankland. Guest Cast: Bill Paterson, Sylvestra Le Touzel, Lydia Wilson and Andrew Leung. *** Dirk’s mentor, Professor Jericho hires the agency to discover who was stealing funds and projects from the computer research department.

    While Professor Ransome struggles on the verge of creating an AI named Max, Jericho is working on a robot version of his lost daughter Elaine. The robot is stolen and Jericho blames Dirk.

    Typical Dirk moment: Dirk falls in love with the woman of his dreams, a woman who shares his obsession for fatty foods.

Episode Three (3/19/12). Written by Jamie Mathieson. Directed by Tom Shankland. Guest Cast: Lisa Dillon, Tony Pitts, Tina Maskell and Jason Stevens. *** Final episode of the series. Someone is killing Dirk’s former clients. He thinks someone is trying to frame him and runs from the police. The police are hoping he will be the next victim and regrettably feel obligated to offer him protection.

    Dirk’s most basic random beliefs are tested when normal police procedural work finds the evidence to arrest the killer. MacDuff quits the agency when he is bothered by how flippant Dirk is over the mysteries when people are dying. But in the end the proper police work proves wrong and the inner connectedness of all things is the key to the solution.

    Typical Dirk moment: One of Dirk’s first cases had him help convict a man for murder. He had been hired to find out who was stealing post-it notes from an office. Dirk framed the man he thought was guilty. However, when the police went to arrest the man for post-it note theft, they discovered the man’s brother murdered body. Later it was learned there was no stolen post-it notes, it had been an error in accounting.

    Dirk Gently has its moments of delightful absurdist humor and the mysteries are fun, but, like in the books, the characters wear thin after awhile. The series is worth watching, but I would rather re-read The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul.

    The series has been released on Pal format (non-USA) DVD. Currently (and unlikely for long) you can watch the episodes over at YouTube starting with the pilot here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0oXJ0Ocjr8&list=PL2B639E39513C8D4E&index=1&feature=plpp-video

LUCAS TODD – Showdown Creek. Macmillan, hardcover, 1955. Toronto Star Weekly Novel, newspaper supplement, Saturday 19 November 1955. Permabook M-3044, paperback, 1956

FURY AT SHOWDOWN. United Artists, 1957. John Derek, John Smith, Carolyn Craig, Nick Adams, Gage Clarke, Robert Griffin. Screenplay: Jason James, based on the novel Showdown Creek, by Lucas Todd. Director: Gerd Oswald.

   Showdown Creek is the kind of spare, gritty tale that Westerns should aspire to. Researching this, I can find no other book attributed to Lucas Todd, the author, nor any bio/bibliographic background on him, but perhaps that’s as it should be for a book that celebrates the outcast as this once does.

   As the story opens, Brock Mitchell is trying to ramrod a one-horse ranch for his broken-legged Uncle Ben and live down a reputation as a smart-ass hellion. Uncle Ben has arranged financing to get him through lean times, but the deal’s hit a snag, and nobody seems to know what the delay is —- until Mitchell learns that Chad Deasey, an ex-con with a grudge against him, has hit town and put up a respectable front, tied in with the most prominent local lawyer (soon to turn up dead) and persuaded the town banker to put the brakes on Uncle Ben’s deal, apparently just to ruin him and repay Mitchell for killing Deasey’s brother in a fair fight back in Brock’s gun-toting days.

   It’s pretty standard stuff for a Western: crooked banker, shady lawyer, upright hero handy with a gun, honest ranchers and even a purty blue-eyed widder woman trying to understand it all. Author Todd seems to know something about moving cattle around (not all western writers do) and he puts it across as he ladles out the more standard ingredients into his prairie stew, giving Peters a hot-headed sidekick and adding something about the railroad coming through.

   But he also tinges all this with an almost intangible feel for the dilemma of a flawed man painfully misunderstood. Every fight, shoot-out and unsolved crime echoes not only in physical violence but also in the looks Brock gets from the good citizens of Showdown Creek: the rumors, conversations broken off when he enters a room, and his increasing isolation from a community he needs.

   It’s intriguing stuff, and if it never quite rises to the level of Camus, the sense of alienation is still strong enough to lift this above the run-of-the-range shoot-’em-down and linger in the memory.

   Showdown Creek was filmed, appropriately enough, by Gerd Oswald, himself something of a Hollywood pariah, who was given only five days and a cast of unknowns and no-talents to do the job —- the only two players you ever heard of in this movie are John Derek and Nick Adams, so you see what I mean about the acting.

   The marvel is that Fury at Showdown emerges as a tight, deeply-felt tale of guns, cattle and youthful angst.

   Given the low budget and tight schedule, Fury at Showdown is necessarily a town-bound western, rarely leaving the claustrophobic confines of office, saloon and jail for the free range that now seems more like a false promise than the reality of the West.

   Somehow, though, that only helps convey the sense of constriction felt by the hero (or supposedly felt; this is John Derek acting, remember) as he struggles to reach some wide open plain of the soul, free of the town’s censure.

   That sounds like tall boots for a B Western to fill, but writer Jason James tweaks the story significantly — in his version, Chad Deasey has always been a respectable citizen and it’s Brock Mitchell who’s the ex-con, just released from jail for killing Deasey’s brother — and director Gerd Oswald puts it across with well-judged camera work and a sense of pace that never falters.

   Fury at Showdown never got much attention, and it’s far from ideal, but definitely worth your time.

   What is a franchise character? Let’s adapt the word as used in the film business and apply it to books. So our franchise character is any character that has been featured in three or more books. Good golly, look at them all.

   A franchise character should be special, unique among the rest, so lets narrow it down a bit. The character must appear in three or more original novels. No comic books, short stories, screenplay adaptations, folklore or ballads. And since this is Mystery*File, we will limit our choices to the mystery genre.

   Considering there are countless mystery books series released every month, it is shocking how many of fiction’s most beloved and remembered characters don’t have a book series to his or her name.

   Dashiell Hammett’s NICK and NORA CHARLES, the most famous and best of the detective couple appeared in only one novel The Thin Man. There is good news for the two. November 2012, Mysterious Press plans to release Return of the Thin Man, featuring two novellas Hammett wrote to be used as the basis for the movies “After the Thin Man” and “Another Thin Man.” But it is still not enough to make a book series.

   Others who failed to make the list due to a lack of a series of original novels include CONTINENTAL OP, BOSTON BLACKIE, BATMAN, SUPERMAN, CISCO KID, DICK TRACY, and ROBIN HOOD.

   Still too many characters for a list, so let’s add films. It is only fair since we stole their word, franchise. Of course in the past, a movie franchise was called, oddly enough, a series. So how can we define a movie series, oops, franchise (and limit our number of characters on the list)? Let’s require three or more original theatrical films shown in America featuring the same studio or independent producer, and/or actor. They must be original films for the movie theatre, doing what Thrush never could do and eliminate MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. with its films made up of TV episodes.

   While there have been several films featuring PHILIP MARLOWE and ZORRO, none were a part of a series of three films featuring the same studio and/or actor. Also off the list are: LEW ARCHER, NERO WOLFE, JOHN J. MALONE, MIKE HAMMER, FLASHGUN CASEY, TRAVIS MCGEE, RAFFLES, FLETCH, and MR AND MRS NORTH.

   Still too many characters, so let’s add a weekly TV series, a miniseries of three or more episodes, or three or more TV Movies, but no network pilots or foreign productions that have not aired on American TV. You are welcome to add in the comments any, such as the reported PHILO VANCE Italian series, which would restore the character to the list.

   A surprising number of popular mystery characters have never had a TV series such as SAM SPADE, THE SHADOW, NICK CARTER, MR. MOTO, BULLDOG DRUMMOND, JAMES BOND, JACK RYAN, JASON BOURNE (only a two part TV movie), and HARRY PALMER (who has only two TV Movies so far).

   One character will qualify soon, making him lucky number thirteen on our soon to be revealed list. Thomas Harris created HANNIBAL LECTER, the villain with an odd diet, in a series of four books that began with Red Dragon (1981). A famous movie series of four films has followed beginning with Manhunter (1986). Sometime in the upcoming TV season (most likely in 2013) a TV series featuring the serial killer and cannibal will premiere on NBC.

   What should we include in the mystery genre? Should we include the action/adventure series of INDIANA JONES and TARZAN? How about horror and JASON VOORHEES from Friday the 13th? All have a series of original books, series of films, and a weekly TV series. I’m not adding them to our list of mystery characters, but feel free to argue in the comments why I should or suggest others.

   So who survived? Who can be called a franchise character in all three major formats?

         THE LIST OF THE TRIPLE THREAT FRANCHISE CHARACTERS:

CHARLIE CHAN – Created by Earl Derr Biggers as a minor character in the book House Without a Key (1925) that was serialized in the magazine Saturday Evening Post. Five more books were to follow. CHARLIE has appeared in many films, the first being a ten episode serial from Pathe House, Without a Key (1926), with George Kuwa playing the minor role of CHAN. Fox produced sixteen films between 1931 and 1938 starring Warner Oland. After Oland’s death, Sidney Toler took over the part with eleven for Fox, then eleven more for Monogram Studios. After Toler’s death, Roland Winters took over the Monogram series for six films between 1947 and 1949. J. Carrol Naish played the detective in the syndicated TV series The New Adventures of Charlie Chan (1957 – thirty-nine episode). The character played a minor role in the animated children cartoon featuring Chan’s children solving crimes called The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan (CBS, 1972). Keye Luke was the voice of CHARLIE CHAN.

         http://charliechanfamily.tripod.com

ELLERY QUEEN – Created by “Ellery Queen” (Frederic Dannay and Manfred Lee) in the novel The Roman Hat Mystery (1929), the first in a decades-long book series. Movies have proven unkind to ELLERY, but he was featured in a Columbia film series that lasted seven films, four starring Ralph Bellamy and three with William Gargan. There have been four different TV series featuring the character. The Adventures of Ellery Queen (DuMont, 1950-51; ABC 1951-52) starred Richard Hart then after Hart’s death, Lee Bowman. Adventures of Ellery Queen (Syndication, 1954, thirty-two episodes) starred Hugh Marlowe in the series also called Murder is My Business. The Further Adventures of Ellery Queen (NBC, 1958-59) starred George Nader until the production left New York for Hollywood where Lee Philips took over. Finally (so far), perhaps the best TV adaptation of a traditional mystery detective was Ellery Queen (NBC, 1975-76) starring Jim Hutton.

         http://www.elleryqueen.us

DR. FU MANCHU – Created by Sax Rohmer. The character began in short story “Fu-Manchu,” published October 1912 in the magazine The Story-Teller. A long series of books would follow. Harry Agar Lyons was the first in films to portray the evil Doctor in the silent British movie serial The Mystery of Dr. Fu Manchu (1923). Warner Oland starred in three Paramount films starting with Mysterious Dr Fu Manchu (1929). Better remembered is the film series with Christopher Lee that lasted five films beginning with The Face Of Fu Manchu (1965). Glen Gordon played the role in the syndicated TV series “Adventures of Fu Manchu” (1955 – thirteen episodes).

         http://njedge.net/~knapp/FuFrames.htm

HERCULE POIROT – Created by Agatha Christie, the Belgian PI first appeared in The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1916) and lasted thirty-three novels before he met his end in Curtain (1975). Austin Trevor (Alibi, 1931) was the first to play the character in film. Peter Ustinov played the private detective in three theatrical films (Death On the Nile, 1976, Evil Under the Sun, 1982 and Appointment With Death, 1988) and three TV-Movies for Warner Brothers (Thirteen at Dinner, 1985, Dead Man’s Folly, 1986, and Murder in Three Acts, 1986). The most popular portrayal of the character has been by David Suchet who has played POIROT since 1989 for various productions usually seen in the United States on PBS series Mystery.

         http://www.poirot.us/poirot.php

LONE WOLF aka MICHAEL LANYARD – Louis Joseph Vance created the ex-thief turned adventurer that appeared in a series of eight books beginning with The Lone Wolf: A Melodrama (1914). The character first appeared on film in silent movie The Lone Wolf (1917) starring Bert Lytell, who would star in five films, the other four for Columbia. Most of the LONE WOLF films came from Columbia Pictures with Warren William starring in nine and Gerald Mohr in three. The syndicated TV series, The Lone Wolf (also known as Streets of Danger) turned him into a PI. The series starred Louis Hayward and lasted thirty-nine episodes.

         http://thrillingdetective.com/lone_wolf.html

MATT HELM – Created by Donald Hamilton, the government agent appeared in over twenty-five books beginning with Death of a Citizen (1960). MATT HELM changed from tough-guy to campy spy in a movie series of four films starring Dean Martin beginning with The Silencers (1966). In 1975 a TV series starring Tony Franciosa as ex-spy turned PI aired for one season on ABC.

         http://thrillingdetective.com/helm_matt.html

MICHAEL SHAYNE – Created by “Brett Halliday” (David Dresser). The character first appeared in Dividend on Death (1939) and continued in a series of seventy-seven novels. Lloyd Nolan played the red headed PI in a 20th Century Fox film series of seven movies beginning with Michael Shayne, Private Detective (1940). PRC followed with five movies starring Hugh Beaumont. Richard Denning played the PI in a NBC-TV series (1960-61).

         http://thrillingdetective.com/shaynemike.html

MISS JANE MARPLE – Agatha Christie is the only author with two franchise characters. MISS JANE MARPLE first appeared in Murder at the Vicarage (1930) and would last a total of twelve novels, the final one being Sleeping Murder (1976). Arguably the best of the entire “Little Old Lady” turned detective subgenre. Margaret Rutherford played the character in the popular “Murder” film series for MGM that lasted four films beginning with Murder She Said (1961). The character has PBS to thank for showing the British productions of her TV series starring such actresses as Geraldine McEwan and Julie McKenzie.

         http://www.poirot.us/marple.php

PERRY MASON – Created by Erle Stanley Gardner. The only lawyer on the list, he first appeared in The Case of the Velvet Claws (1933) and continued for eighty-five novels. Warner Brothers film series began with The Case of the Howling Dog (1934) and lasted six films, four starring Warren William. Raymond Burr starred in the CBS TV series that lasted between 1957 through 1966. CBS would bring back the character in New Adventures of Perry Mason (1973-74) with Monte Markham playing the lawyer. In 1985, Raymond Burr would return to star in thirty TV Movies between 1985-1993 (CBS).

         https://www.thrillingdetective.com/mason.html

THE SAINT aka SIMON TEMPLAR – Created by Leslie Charteris in Meet–The Tiger! (1928). The former thief turned adventurer Simon Templar has been featured in over ninety books. The character has appeared in many films including an RKO series of eight films with George Sanders starring in five. Two series featuring the character have appeared on America television. The Saint starring Roger Moore began in 1962 on British television and later in syndication to American television stations. In 1966 NBC aired episodes from the series. CBS’s Return Of The Saint starred Ian Ogilvy and ran twenty-four episodes during the 1978-79 season.

         http://www.saint.org

         http://www.lesliecharteris.com

         I have left off one consulting detective and one amateur detective who belong on the list. Can you name who they are? One of the missing is obvious while the other is a surprise. Please use the comments for your answer, as well as other suggestions and comments.

     ADDITIONAL SOURCES:

Wikipedia

IMDb.com

http://mikegrost.com

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/mystery/index.html

ANDY BARKER, P.I. NBC. Red Pulley Production. Conaco, NBC-Universal. Cast: Andy Richter as Andy Barker, Clea Lewis as Jenny Barker, Harve Presnell as Lew Staziak, Tony Hale as Simon, Marshall Manesh as Wally. Created by Conan O’Brien and Jonathan Groff. Music by Adam Cohen. Directed by Jason Ensler.

   Episodes are available on DVD and downloading sites, as well as at Hulu.com where they can be watched for free.

   While Barney Miller remains the greatest ever TV detective comedy, Andy Barker, P.I. may hold that title for TV PIs. But then consider the competition. Generally PI comedies featured a lucky idiot PI (The Michael Richards Show), parodies (Ace Crawford, Private Eye) or gimmicks (Small & Frye, with a six inch PI). What made Andy Barker different was he was a good and dedicated professional at both jobs, CPA and PI.

   Andy lives in a nice middle class home in Fair Oaks, California, with his happy supportive wife and young children. He is a kind, well-mannered, nice guy with a natural talent for solving murders and tax forms. Richter is near perfect as he played his typical role of an average man quick to accept and deal with any strange thing happening around him.

   Andy opened his new accounting business in a local outdoor mall. His first client is a femme fatale looking for help from the office’s former occupant, PI Lew Staziak. Out of boredom and with no other clients, Andy checks out her story. He visits Lew who has retired to a rest home. But after Andy solves the case, Lew decides to keep working as a PI and will from then on take for granted Andy’s help. Lew is as nuts as he is violent.

   Andy’s new business neighbors are not much more stable. Under Andy’s second floor office is “Video Riot”, a video store run by film buff Simon who thinks of himself as Andy’s PI partner. The mall’s restaurant is “Afghan Kebabs” run by Wally an immigrant who, after 9/11, changed his name and covered his restaurant in patriotic American décor with his surveillance camera hidden in the head of a Richard Nixon bust.

   The writing uses the contrast between the fictional PI lifestyle versus reality as a basis for some delightful off beat humor. For example, the cliché plot device of a time limit such as a bomb set to go off at midnight. In “Dial M For Laptop,” Andy has only until midnight to find his stolen laptop with his father-in-law’s tax return or miss the tax deadline (trust me, it’s visually funnier than it reads).

   This was a bad time for NBC. The network had reached new heights in its ability to keep any possible success away from any of their series. Andy Barker, P.I. was too quirky to attract a large audience, but to set it up against events such as NCAA Final Four tournament, and very popular series such as CSI and Grey’s Anatomy was one of NBC’s dumber moves.

         EPISODE INDEX:

● “Pilot” (3/22/07, Thursday 9:30-10pm) Written by Conan O’Brien and Jonathan Groff. Guest Cast: Vanessa Branch, Gary Anthony Williams, Steve Cell, and Nicole Randall Johnson

   Andy Barker, CPA, opens his new business office in a small outdoor mall, but he finds himself helping a client who mistakes him for the office’s former occupant, a hardboiled PI.

Ratings: 6 share versus ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy (23), CBS’s NCAA Basketball tournament (10) and Fox’s rerun of Family Guy (5).

● “Fairway My Lovely” (3/22/07, Thursday (9:30-10pm) Written by Alex Herschlag and Jane Espenson. Guest Cast: Peter Allen Vogt, Margaret Easley, and Nicole Randall Johnson

   When Andy’s gross and massively overweight client dies on a golf course, everyone assumes it was a heart attack, except the man’s wife who hires Andy to prove the man’s mistress killed him.

Ratings: 5 share versus ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy (22), CBS’s NCAA Basketball tournament (13), and Fox’s American Dad (4).

● “Three Days of the Chicken” (3/29/07, Thursday 9:30-10pm) Written by Gail Lerner. Guest Cast: Brian McNamara, Terry Rhoades, Ben Falcone, and Boogie.

   Andy helps Wally who is being shaken down by an evil Chicken cartel.

Ratings: 4 share versus CBS’s CSI (22), ABC’s rerun Grey’s Anatomy (10), and Fox’s rerun Family Guy (5).

● “Dial M For Laptop” (4/5/07, Thursday 10-10:30pm) Written by Chuck Tatham. Guest Cast: David Huddleston, Traci Lords, and Frank Santorelli.

   Andy’s laptop is stolen when Lew’s plan to help a victim of blackmail leaves Andy unknowingly in the middle.

Ratings: 4 share versus CBS’s Shark (17) and ABC’s October Road (9).

● “The Big No Sleep” (4/14/07, Saturday at 8-8:30pm) Written by Josh Bycel. Guest Cast: Jesse L. Martin, Nestor Carbonell, and Kim Coates.

   Lew expects Andy’s help in revealing a woman to be a fraud and adulteress, but Andy has trouble at home. His baby daughter refuses to sleep until he finds her missing stuffed toy, Snowball.

Ratings: 3 share versus CBS’s Cold Case rerun (9), Fox’s Cops (6), and ABC’S Saturday Night Movie (Shark, 2004) (6)

● “The Lady Vanishes” (4/14/07, Saturday at 8:30-9pm) Written by Jon Ross. Guest Cast: Ed Asner, Amy Sedaris, and James Hong.

   Andy finds a decades old lost letter from Lew’s ex-lover claiming she was framed for the murder of her gangster lover. Andy looks into the case, leading to the return of Lew’s evil former partner, Mickey.

Ratings: 3 share versus (CBS’s Cold Case rerun (9), Fox’s second Cops (7), and ABC’S Saturday Night Movie (6).

Source for ratings: TVTango.com

THE NICKEL RIDE. 20th Century Fox, 1974. Jason Miller, Linda Haynes, Victor French, John Hillerman, Bo Hopkins, Richard Evans, Bart Burns, Lou Frizzell. Screenplay: Eric Roth. Director: Robert Mulligan.

   There is a lot of similarity between The Nickel Ride and The Friends of Eddie Coyle (reviewed here ), but one of the differences is that the former takes place in LA and the latter in Boston. That’s only in terms of the weather: almost always sunny and warm in LA vs. crisp and chilly in Boston in the fall.

   But other than that, the lives of the lower and mid-level echelons of the underworld are very nearly the same. Not knowing when their lives are going to be cut out from under them at the whims of anyone at a higher level, for example, or pressured from all sides to close a deal and make the next one; pressures sometimes strong, others only subtle.

   Another big difference is that Jason Miller as Cooper, the man with the keys in The Nickel Ride, while extremely effective, is no Robert Mitchum, the lugubrious star of Eddie Coyle. As a much younger man, Miller has to work harder at it. To Mitchum, by the time he made Coyle, it seemed to come naturally.

   Miller’s career began with The Exorcist, the movie he made just before this one, in which he played Father Damian Karras. He won an Oscar nomination for that particular film, but his career faded badly, and I doubt that even the most ardent of movie fans know his name today.

   I’ll end any other comparisons between the two films here. Cooper is trying to make a deal involving a block of warehouses where stolen goods can be stored, and as hard as he tries, he can’t seem to get the other side to agree to terms, which keep changing. Cooper’s superior, John Hillerman (pre-Magnum) brings in a garrulous rowdy in a buckskin shirt (Bo Hopkins) to keep an eye on him, while Cooper has to keep his cool with his wife and close buddies, including a small-time boxing promoter who can’t follow through and make his protege take a dive.

   The plot seems to have confused a lot of people, basing that statement on the various online reviews and comments on IMDB that I’ve read. It’d true that it’s never quite clear what started Cooper’s downward spiral, you (the viewer) can sense it’s happening just as well as he can.

   This is neo-noir at its finest. Beautifully photographed by Jordan Cronenweth, who later worked on Blade Runner, which is the finest accolade I can give him, and directed by Robert Mulligan, of To Kill a Mockingbird fame, there is a lot to watch and see, and I know I’ll see more the next time I watch this movie.

PostScript:   Thanks to IMDB, I can tell you something interesting. I’ve been watching episodes of Mike Hammer, the 1950s series with Darren McGavin, and while I didn’t recognize him, Bart Burns, the guy who Cooper is trying to negotiate with, also played Captain Pat Chambers on the Hammer show.

PPS.   For an excellent analysis of The Nickel Ride, including details you never see by watching a movie only once, you might want to read Mike Grost’s comments on the film, found online here.