Incannerax What a waste of my time!!!

SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

Grimossfer Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

mraculeated The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

FootballFan201169 I had never seen 77 Sunset Strip before since it was on before I was born and somehow had never seen it in re-runs. I had heard many times the old song "Kookie, Lend Me Your Comb..." and from the short descriptions of its background i basically wrote the show off as a goof. Fast forward to December 2017, after a blowing winter wind woke me one night and unable to go back to sleep I started watching 77SS on MeTv and was amazed to find that this is a really good show! While of course it's slightly dated what with it being filmed in B&W, no computers, no cellphones, the old candlestick style phones showing up fairly frequently and oh! those gorgeous classic cars! The plots hold up extremely well and with a mix of action and just the right amount of cool comedy this show is very enjoyable. As I write this I'm enjoying a DECADES Tv 77 Sunset Strip binge marathon where the episode Strange Bedfellows with an obvious Zsa Zsa Gabor caricature of the "damsel in distress" has just finished up and Face In The Window which pairs up Richard Long (Rex) with Peter Breck a few years before they co-star together in The Big Valley is starting. While it's not horribly important with this particular series, it is very nice that both MeTv and Decades are playing these episodes in their proper order.

John T. Ryan This is a creation of the quite prolific Roy Huggins for Warner Brothers Television. Perhaps we could shorten this write-up, as well as so many others, simply by creating a list which would enumerate all of the Motion Pictures and TV Series which Mr. Huggins did NOT have a hand in creating. This man was simply prolific and, we presume, $ort of Wealthy.We really mean this. In looking over Mr. Huggins' resume, we find it to be not only extensive, but also quit eclectic; having credits in many genre and multi-media. The Huggins Output includes Motion Picture Comedies: THE FULLER BRUSH MAN (Columbia, 1948) with Red Skelton and THE GOOD HUMOR MAN (Columbia, 1950) with Jack Carson as well as such varied TV Series as: MAVERICK (Warner Brothers TV/ABC, 1957-60) with James Garner (Bret) & Jack Kelly (Bart), 77 SUNSET STRIP (Warners/ABC, 1958-64) co-starring Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., Roger Smith & Edd Byrnes, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE (Roncom/Universal TV/National Broadcasting Company, 1965-68) with Ben Gazzara, THE FUGITIVE (Quinn Martin Prod./United Artists TV/American Broadcasting Company, 1963-67) Mr. Huggins' Pinnacle with David Jansen, THE OUTSIDER (Universal TV/NBC, 1968-69) with Darren McGavin, CITY OF ANGELS (Roy Huggins-Public Art Prod./Universal/NBC, 1976) with Wayne Rogers, THE ROCKFORD FILES (Cherokee/Roy Huggins-Public Art/Universal TV/NBC, 1974-80) which is right up there with FUGITIVE & starred Jim Garner and HUNTER (Stephen J. Cannell Prod./Lorimar/NBC Network, 1984-91) with Fred Dryer & Stephanie Kramer.Additionally, when in-between projects, he contributed scripts to many an other series. So, here's the list-don't ask again! AS for 77 SUNSET STRIP, Mr. Huggins called upon his experience in mystery & hard-boiled detective Noir stories and novels to give Warner Brothers TV and we, the spoiled, pampered, oversexed, overpaid and under-appreciated Viewing Public a right now, happening and super-cool Private Detective show. Setting the show in Los Angeles; the creator disdained the obvious taking the sleazy route in favor of a couple of real "Class Guys" in Stu(art) Bailey (Mr. Zimbalist) and Jeff Spencer (Roger Smith). I mean these guys were smart William F. Buckley Jr., classy like Olivier but tough like Ralph Meeker.IN giving the series a comic relief component, young co-star Eddy Byrnes was recruited to portray 'Kookie" a young (but not that young) as a concession to the Female Teenie Boppers and to give us a character to assist the big guns and thus keep that old storyline moving along..Jacqueline Beer (love that surname!) appeared as "Fronch-speaking" secretary-receptionist, Suzanne and Louis Quinn as societal bottom feeder, Race Track hustler and first class informant, Roscoe! THE tone of the stories varied greatly from week to weekly episode. Some stories were deadly serious; whereas others were true Farce. Some scripts seemed to be strictly that; that is type of story that sort of marks time and operates like the menu in a Chinese restaurant. You know what we mean; two from column A, 1 from column B and before you know it, whah-lah, we have enough elements for a story.The second type is very serious; sort of like a big time Film Noir Movie that failed. Certain aspects are damn near brutal, too violent for TV. Murders abound and the Private "I" always seems to find himself out in a sort of limbo between the sleaze of the underworld and the bright light world of the straight and narrow.The third type is very similar to a typical MAVERICK Script in that it's all played for laughs; almost being a parody of the Detective Genre.Whatever the variety that we were shown on a particular week, it was a sure-fire, lead-pipe cinch that the combination of plot, characters & their interaction and some of the Coolest (though now seemingly badly dated) Music all added up to a great Friday's evening of enjoyable TViewing. (TV + Viewing = TViewing. We suspect it'll make it into Webster's this year.) BUT, if there's one thing that is certain in Television, it is that once "The Suits" in the front office start to monkey around with what has been a successful series; it usually means that the show is nearing the end of its run. We're not certain if the declining series prompts the changes or if the changes hurt the ratings of the show; although we suspect that either scenario is likely to occur and indeed has.IN its final season of 1963-64, the new Production Head of Warner Brothers' Television, old Sgt. Joe Friday (Himself!), Jack Webb decreed that two extreme changes should be implemented. First off, in order to attempt to ca$h in on the JAMES BOND Spy craze, Private Detective Stu Bailey (operating solo, without Jeff Spencer*), turned to international intrigue and espionage. Secondly, the story went to serialization. Though no Cliff Hanger Chapterplay type endings were employed, the stories continued from week to week. Also gone was any semblance of levity that had been a series hallmark for 77 SUNSET STRIP. The series left the air in February of 1964, pre-maturely cancelled.Mr. Jack Webb was soon shown the door at Warner Brothers as well; in no small way being due to that botched experiment of Detectives to Spies switcharoo.What with all of that adaption of old TV Series and Cartoon Shows into Live Action tidbits for the pleasure of a rapidly aging Baby Boomer Generation, we wonder if an adaptation of this great Detective Series can be far off! Whatta ya think, Schultz? NOTE: * Roger Smith had to leave the series and indeed all acting abruptly. He was compelled to go into an early retirement due to serious illness. About 20 years had passed and in 1985, he was pronounced as being in full remission.POODLE SCHNITZ!!

rcj5365 "77 SUNSET STRIP"-A Detective Drama produced by Warner Bors. for ABC-TV First Telecast: October 10,1958. Last Telecast: September 9, 1964THEME: "77 Sunset Strip" by Mack David and Jerry Livingston77 Sunset Strip was the prototype for a rash of glamorous private-detective teams in the late 1950's and early 1960's. Half the team was Stu Bailey(Efrem Zimbalist,Jr.),a suave,cultured former OSS officer who was an expert in languages. An Ivy League Ph.D.,he had intended to become a college professor but turned private investigator instead. The other half was Jeff Spencer(Roger Smith),also a former government undercover agent,who had a degree in law. Both of them were judo experts. They worked out of an office at No. 77 Sunset Strip,in Hollywood California.Though their cases took them to glamour spots all over the world.Next door to No. 77 was Dino's,a posh restaurant whose maitre d,Mario was seen occasionally in the series. Seen often was Dino's parking lot attendant,a gangling,jive-talking youth named Kookie(Edd Byrnes),who longed to be a private detective himself and who often helped Stu and Jeff on their cases. Kookie provided comic relief for the series,and his "Kookie-isms" became a trademark. Other regulars included Roscoe the racetrack tout(Louis Quinn)and Suzanne(Jacqueline Beer),the beautiful French switchboard operator. But it was Edd Byrnes' character of Kookie who caught the public's fancy and propelled the show into the top ten. In the first telecast of the 1959-1960 season he helped Stu Bailey catch a jewel thief by staging a revue,in which he sang a novelty song called,"Kookie,Kookie,Lend Me Your Comb". The song was released on record as a duet between Byrnes and Connie Stevens(who also starred on another Warner Bros. detective series,"Hawaiian Eye",which was on the same network),became a smash hit making Byrnes' character of Kookie,the "Fonzie" of his day,making him a very popular celebrity. Unsatisfied with his secondary role in the show,the young actor demanded a bigger part and eventually walked out. Warner Bors. first replaced him with Troy Donahue(of "Surfside Six")as a long-haired bookworm,about as far from the Kookie character as you could get. But Byrnes came back a few months later and was promoted to a full-fledged partner in the detective firm at the start of the 1961-1962 season. His permanent replacement at the parking lot was J.R. Hale(Robert Logan). Previously for a single season,Rex Randolph(Richard Long)had been seen as the third partner in the firm. Kookie was not the only one who tried paralaying the show's success into a hit record. The fingersnapping theme music from the series was into a best-selling album.By 1963 the novelty had worn off,and the show was in decline. In an attempt to save it,Jack Webb was brought in as producer,and William Conrad as director and drastic changes were made. This was at the start of the 1963-1964 season,which was the final season for the series. The entire cast was dropped with the exception of Efrem Zimbalist,Jr.,who became a free-lance investigator traveling around the world on cases. Lavish production values were featured. The final season of the series opened with a five part chase thriller featuring two dozen big-named guest stars and written by eight top writers. The rest of the season was spend on the road as well,with Stu Bailey requiring a permanent secretary named Hannah(Joan Staley)didn't help. On September 9, 1964,the series "77 Sunset Strip" came to an end after six seasons on ABC-TV. This was the longest running of the Warner Brothers produced detective shows that came during the late 1950's and ended toward the early 1960's. This one outlasted them all.

Jacquline As an English prepubescent girl in the early 1960s I loved all American TV series and my favourite was 77 Sunset Strip. Unlike my friends who swooned over Edd Byrnes I loved the suave Roger Smith with the lovely smile. He has made a lasting impression on my life. If I remember correctly, in the series he used to wear his watch with the face on the inside of his wrist. I adopted this curious habit and have worn my watch this way ever since. I would love to see the series again. Sadly, I read recently that Roger Smith is suffering from a disabling disease and is looked after by his wife Ann Margaret.