- My Friend Tony
-
My Friend Tony Genre Crime drama Created by Ivan Goff
Ben Roberts
Warren DuffStarring James Whitmore
Enzo CerusicoTheme music composer Earle Hagen Composer(s) Earle Hagen
Richard Shores
Hugo Friedhofer
Carl BrandtCountry of origin United States Language(s) English No. of seasons 1 No. of episodes 16 Production Executive producer(s) Sheldon Leonard Producer(s) Art Seid
Ernest FrankelRunning time 45–48 minutes Production company(s) Sheldon Leonard Productions, in association with NBC Broadcast Original channel NBC Picture format Color Audio format Monaural Original run January 5, 1969 – August 31, 1969 Chronology Related shows The Danny Thomas Hour My Friend Tony is an American crime drama that aired on NBC in 1969. The pilot originally aired as "My Pal Tony" on The Danny Thomas Hour on March 4, 1968.
Contents
Synopsis
The series features Enzo Cerusico as the title character, Tony Novello, and James Whitmore as John Woodruff, a professor of criminology who served in Italy during World War II. As a child, Novello had been a street urchin who survived as a pickpocket, with Woodruff being one of his intended victims. The premise of the series was that the adult (and reformed) Novello had emigrated to the United States to join Woodruff in a private investigation team. Novello handled the legwork and physical side of the investigations while Woodruff conducted painstaking analysis of the most obscure clues.[1]
My Friend Tony debuted on January 5, 1969. NBC slotted the program in the 10 p.m. Eastern timeslot on Sundays, following Bonanza.[2] The network ended production of the series after 16 episodes[3] but continued airing reruns of the show through that summer. The program aired for the last time on August 31, 1969.[4]
Reception
Despite having the highly successful Bonanza as its lead-in, Sheldon Leonard — who developed My Friend Tony and was its executive producer — attributed the program's low ratings to its timeslot.
"First, the 10-to-11 P.M. time spot didn't take full advantage of Enzo's youthful audience, as shown by his flood of fan mail, which exceeds anything in our experience," Leonard told TV Guide. "Second, because of the one-hour length and the network's commitment to 27 new projects all demanding air time, there was no 8 or 9 o'clock spot into which to move it."[5]
Critics had savaged My Friend Tony, calling the series "hackneyed and confusing" ... "the kind of minimal fare that has been ground out ad nauseam" ... "mundane" and "bilge."[6]
Episode list
Episode # Episode title Original airdate 1-1 "Corey Doesn't Live Here Anymore" January 5, 1969 1-2 "Death Comes In Small Packages" January 12, 1969 1-3 "Voices" January 19, 1969 1-4 "Let George Do It" January 26, 1969 1-5 "The Lost Hours" February 2, 1969 1-6 "The Hazing" February 16, 1969 1-7 "Encounter" February 23, 1969 1-8 "Dead Reckoning" March 9, 1969 1-9 "Wedding Cake Blues" March 23, 1969 1-10 "The Twenty-Mile Jog" April 13, 1969 1-11 "Molly" May 18, 1969 1-12 "Intermission" May 25, 1969 1-13 "Casino" June 1, 1969 1-14 "Kidnap" June 8, 1969 1-15 "The Shortest Courtship" June 15, 1969 1-16 "Welcome Home, Jerry Stanley" June 22, 1969 References
- ^ Brooks, Tim and Marsh, Earl. (1979) The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network TV Shows, p 427. Ballantine Books, New York.
- ^ Brooks and Marsh, op cit
- ^ Goodwin, Fritz. (1969, May 31-June 6). The operation was a failure ... but the patient survived, pp 12-14. TV GUIDE.
- ^ Brooks and Marsh, op cit
- ^ Goodwin, op cit
- ^ Goodwin, op cit
External links
Categories:- 1969 television series debuts
- 1969 television series endings
- 1960s American television series
- American drama television series
- Crime television series
- English-language television series
- NBC network shows
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