Sherlock Holmes, Nick Carter and Hildegarde Withers share an umbrella.
Late 1971, Universal Television senior vice president Frank Price proposed to U.S. network ABC the idea of a "wheel series" called The Great Detectives, in the manner of the successful NBC Mystery Movie (1971-1977) produced by the company. The "wheel" format consisted in series of various durations (1) rotating under an umbrella title or stars of the same series alternating each week. At first, The NBC Mystery Movie was composed of Columbo, McCloud and McMillan and Wife. NBC had already three other wheel shows from Universal: The Name of the Game (1968-1971), The Bold Ones (1969-1973) and Four in One (1970-1971).
Frank Price explained that the wheel format was more expensive than a weekly series but offered variations and attracted big names who only wanted to do a small number of episodes each year (2). He added that The Great Detectives would present an array of classic literary sleuths from any period (3). Sherlock Holmes, Nick Carter and Hildegarde Withers were chosen to test the waters with three pilot films, respectively starring Stewart Granger, Robert Conrad and Eve Arden and aired by ABC between February and March 1972: The Hound of the Baskervilles (February 12, 1972), The Adventures of Nick Carter (February 20, 1972) and A Very Missing Person (March 4, 1972). Their shooting, announced in January 1972, mostly took place at Universal Studios in Hollywood (4).
British-born Stewart Granger (The Prisoner of Zenda, King Solomon's Mines) plays Sherlock Holmes, the creation of writer Arthur Conan Doyle, in The Hound of the Baskervilles. Before that, Granger was the lead of The Men from Shiloh, the revamped final season of The Virginian (1962-1971) (5). Dr. John Watson, Sherlock's friend, is played by Welsh actor Bernard Fox (Bewitched, Hogan's Heroes). William Shatner (Star Trek) as George Stappleton, Anthony Zerbe (Dr. Mortimer), Sally Ann Howes (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) as Laura Frankland, Jane Merrow (Beryl Stappleton), Ian Ireland (Sir Henry Baskerville), John Williams (Arthur Frankland), Alan Caillou (Inspector Lestrade), etc.
In 19th century England, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson must protect the last heir of the Baskervilles from a family curse. This adaptation of Doyle's famous novel was written by Robert E. Thompson (They Shoot Horses, Don't They?) and directed by Barry Crane (Mannix, Mission: Impossible). Producer, director and Universal Television executive Richard Irving (Columbo) exec produces The Hound of the Baskervilles. Produced by Stanley Kallis (Hawaii Five-O, Mission: Impossible). Arthur D. Hilton is the associate producer. Musical supervisor Hal Mooney picked the stock music. The main theme is from The Night Walker (1964) by Vic Mizzy (The Addams Family). Special photographic effects by Albert Whitlock. His superb matte paintings cannot save this version, hampered by cheap-looking production values and the scenario.
The Adventures of Nick Carter (tentatively titled Nick Carter: Where is Evy Duncan?) is based on the character conceived by Ormond G. Smith and created by John R. Coryell for dime novels first published in 1886. In 1912 New York, private detective Nick Carter investigates the death of a friend when he's hired to find a missing woman from a rich family. Robert Conrad embraced the role of Carter as an opportunity to display his taste for action scenes and perform his own stunts, like what he did in The Wild Wild West (1965-1969). Ken Pettus, whose resume includes the latter, The Big Valley, The Green Hornet or Hawaii Five-O, wrote the script. Paul Krasny, one of Conrad's favourite directors since his guest spots on Mannix and Mission: Impossible, helmed The Adventures of Nick Carter.
Brooke Bundy plays Nick's secretary Roxy O'Rourke. With Shelley Winters (Bess Tucker), Broderick Crawford (Otis Duncan), Neville Brand (Laredo) as Captain Dan Keller, Pernell Roberts (Bonanza) as Neal Duncan, Pat O'Brien (Hallelujah Harry), Sean Garrison (Lloyd Deams), Laraine Stephens (Joyce Jordan), Dean Stockwell (Freddy Duncan), Sorrell Booke... Produced by Stanley Kallis. Arthur D. Hilton is the associate producer. Music by John Andrew Tartaglia. The Adventures of Nick Carter is basically Robert Conrad as James West AND his pal Artemus Gordon (Carter disguises himself) in an episode of Mannix. A Very Missing Person is set in contemporary New York, where schoolteacher turned private investigator Hildegarde Withers is asked by her friend Inspector Oscar Piper to locate a young heiress. Hildegarde hires Vietnam veteran Aloysius "Al" Fister to assist her.
Remembered for the role of a schoolteacher in the sitcom Our Miss Brooks (1952-1956), Eve Arden is the sardonic Hildegarde Withers. A Very Missing Person was adapted by Philip H. Reisman Jr. (P.J.) from Hildegarde Withers Makes the Scene, the last in the Hildegarde Withers book series (1931-1969) by Stuart Palmer. Fletcher Flora completed Palmer's manuscript after the author's death in 1968. Helmed by Russ Mayberry, the film is produced by Edward J. Montagne. Music by Vic Mizzy. Also starring James Gregory (Inspector Piper). Guest starring Julie Newmar (Batman) as Aleatha Westering and Ray Danton (Captain Westering). Co-starring Dennis Rucker (Al), Pat Morita (Delmar Faulkenstein), Ezra Stone (Judge), Woodrow Parfrey (Eberhardt) and Skye Aubrey (Lenore Gregory). A Very Missing Person is the best of the three pilots, Eve Arden and James Gregory are irresistible.
ABC chose not to go further with The Great Detectives and none of its pilots became series. The network opted instead for another umbrella programme, named The Men and composed of three hour-long series shown from September 1972 to April 1973: Jigsaw, Assignment Vienna and The Delphi Bureau. Created by Robert E. Thompson, Jigsaw was partly produced by Stanley Kallis for Universal Television. Robert Conrad was signed in July 1972 to star in Assignment Vienna, a MGM Television production, after Roy Scheider refused to continue beyond the pilot (Assignment: Munich). Paul Krasny directed a couple of episodes. Warner Bros. Television produced The Delphi Bureau. In France, the Première chaîne of ORTF aired The Adventures of Nick Carter on January 1, 1974. France 3 showed The Hound of the Baskervilles on June 30, 1997.
In 1973, Jacques Nahum (Arsène Lupin) produced for ORTF a 6 x 60-minute
anthology entitled Les Grands Détectives. The series adapted literary sleuths Inspector Wens (Stanislas-André Steeman), Slim Callaghan (Peter Cheney), Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Lecoq (Émile Gaboriau), Nick Carter and Auguste Dupin (Edgar Allan Poe). Two years earlier, Nahum did an adaptation of The Murders in the Rue
Morgue for the Première chaîne. Coincidentally, Poe was one of the authors envisioned by Frank Price for The Great Detectives (6). In 1989, Universal and ABC launched The ABC Mystery Movie with the return of Columbo (amongst others). It was cancelled after two seasons but Columbo continued occasionally until 2003.
(1) Usually 75-minute episodes (without commercials).
(2)(3)(6) American newspapers.
(4) The Hound of the Baskervilles was shot in three weeks from December 1971 to January 1972.
(5) Produced by Universal for NBC, The Virginian was the first 90-minute western series (75 minutes without commercials). Frank Price devised its format, was the executive producer and remolded it as a wheel series for its last season.
See:
https://nzpetesmatteshot.blogspot.com/2018/11/a-career-portrait-of-master-mattes.html (Albert Whitlock)
See also:
