Frankie and Annette as Murder Suspects? It's Burke's Law!

Could Annette be a murderer?

I've recently rediscovered Burke's Law, the 1963-65 TV series starring Gene Barry as the head of the LAPD homicide division--who also happens to be a millionaire. Last Friday, I randomly selected the episode "Who Killed the Strangler?", which opens with a wrestler (called the Strangler, of course) abruptly dropping dead in the ring.

As the camera panned the inevitable murder suspects in the crowd, a young man with glasses and a pretty brunette looked familiar. The show's title credits soon confirmed that those guest stars were indeed Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. As those of you who visit the Cafe regularly know, we love us some Beach Party movies. Thus, this episode of Burke's Law turned out to be an unexpected delight--even if it wasn't one of the series' better efforts. 

Barry as Amos Burke.

For the uninitiated, each episode of Burke's Law follows a similar structure. Typically, it begins with a homicide that interrupts Amos Burke, who almost always spends his leisure time in the company of an attractive woman. Captain Burke and his two subordinates, seasoned detective Les Hart (Regis Toomey) and the less experienced Tim Tilson (Gary Conway), then interview the suspects. These potential murderers are played by the guest stars, many of whom are veterans of classic Hollywood cinema (e.g., William Bendix, Joan Blondell, Elsa Lanchester, Dorothy Lamour, Walter Pidgeon, Ann Blyth, Jane Greer, etc.). At the climax, Amos comes to a startling conclusion that exposes the culprit. Oh, and I forgot to mention that every female in the cast swoons over Amos (to include Annette).

In addition to Frankie and Annette, "Who Killed the Strangler?" also featured Jeanne Crain (still radiant at 40), Una Merkel (who fought Marlene in Destry Rides Again), and Robert Middleton. Each guest star has about ten minutes of screen time--except for the murderer who gets unmasked in the climax (I guessed the culprit).

Annette, in fringe, with Gene Barry.

For the record, Annette plays an aspiring ballerina who moonlights as a go-go dancer because her brother, the Strangler, refused to give her any money. Beach Party fans are certain to enjoy watching Annette shake her fringe dress in the best Candy Johnson tradition (but let's admit it, Candy was in a class by herself). It's also fun listening to Annette spout "hip" dialogue about topics such as Squaresville!

Frankie looks suspicious in glasses!

Frankie doesn't fare as well as a sports journalist who uses a "method" technique (you know, like method acting) to write about horse racing, tennis, and wrestling. It may sound clever, but the idea wears thin quickly and Frankie tries too hard to make his scene funny.

Still, it's a fairly entertaining episode and par for the series. An added bonus for Beach Party fans is that Quinn O'Hara has a small role; she would go on to star in The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini. On the downside, I wish that Jeanne Crain had been given more screen time and a more interesting character.

My sister's Burke's
Law comic book.

The history of Burke's Law has always intrigued me. Playwright Frank D. Gilroy (The Subject Was Roses) created the the character of Amos Burke for the first episode of The Dick Powell Theatre in 1961. Titled "Who Killed Julie Greer?", it starred Dick Powell as the wealthy detective and featured a supporting cast comprised of Nick Adams, Ralph Bellamy, Ronald Reagan, Jack Carson, Edgar Bergen, Lloyd Bridges, Mickey Rooney, and Carolyn Jones (as the murder victim). Dean Jones and Edward Platt (Chief on Get Smart) played detectives.

Gene with Peter Barton in the
1994-95 revival.

It premiered as a regular TV series on ABC in 1963 with Gene Barry. Burke's Law was a solid ratings performer and even spun off the 1965-66 TV series Honey West; Anne Francis first appeared as Honey in the Burke's Law episode "Who Killed the Jackpot?" However, in 1965, at the height of the spy movie craze, the series was unwisely revamped as Amos Burke, Secret Agent. The new show was cancelled after 17 episodes. It went out with a bang, though, with a nifty two-parter called "Terror in a Tiny Town" which places Amos in a community filled with residents that inexplicably want to kill him.

In 1994, CBS revived Burke's Law with a new series about Amos (still played by Gene Barry) and his son Peter (Peter Barton). It maintained the lighthearted approach of the original series, but never captured much of an audience. It was cancelled after a single season.

George Maharis and Anne Francis Search for "The Satan Bug"

With its TV-quality cast and pedestrian source novel, The Satan Bug has no right to be a diverting, lively thriller. But director John Sturges works wonders with an implausible plot about a madman who steals a deadly virus from a chemical warfare research facility.

The staging of the theft is clever, but stretches credibility: The bad guys sneak into the lab by hiding in giant supply boxes. You’d think that the guards would have noticed something odd about those oversized cartons, although the boxes are delivered late on a Friday afternoon and everyone seems a little tired. In fact, the facility's head of security (John Anderson) comments ominously: "Tired men make mistakes. God help us if a mistake is made here."

Once the Satan Bug (the scientists’ nickname for the experimental virus) disappears, a game of cat-and-mouse commences. U.S. authorities tap former security expert Lee Barrett (George Maharis) to recover the lethal vials and find out who masterminded the heist.

Geroge Maharis and Anne Francis.

Sturges keeps The Satan Bug moving at a breakneck pace, which perfectly complements the time-sensitive nature of the plot. As Barrett and his companion Ann (Anne Francis) search frantically for the stolen virus, a mysterious millionaire named Charles Reynolds Ainsley threatens to release the virus unless the U.S. government destroys its chemical warfare facilities. To demonstrate his willingness to carry through on his threat, Ainsley has his cronies release a strain of botulinus (stolen along with the Satan Bug) in Florida, killing dozens of innocent people.

While the botulinus becomes harmless after eight hours, we learn that the Satan Bug is a self-perpetuating airborne virus that will kill all life in the U.S. within a week. As for an antidote, the solemn Dr. Hoffman notes: "Nothing can stop the Satan Bug."

Frank Sutton and Ed Asner as bad guys.

It won’t take you long to hone in on the identity of the villain—but that’s part of the fun. Equally entertaining is the cast of former and future TV stars. George Maharis had bolted from his hit TV series Route 66 to take a shot at big screen stardom. It didn’t work, though, and he was back on TV four years later. The villain’s henchmen include Frank Sutton (who would play Sergeant Carter on Gomer Pyle, USMC) and Edward Asner (Lou Grant on Mary Tyler Moore). Anne Francis, whose film career was fading a bit, tried her hand at TV that same year with the short-lived, private-eye series Honey West. And best of all, one of the suspicious scientists is played by Richard Basehart, who starred in my first favorite TV show, Irwin Allen’s Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.

Years after I first saw The Satan Bug, I found the novel at a library book sale. Knowing that author Alistair MacLean was also responsible for Where Eagles Dare and Ice Station Zebra, I was enthused about reading The Satan Bug. To my surprise, it was exceedingly dull with thin characters and trite dialogue. The film adaptation rates as a major improvement.


The soundtrack album cover--another
great score from Jerry Goldsmith.

Still, don’t expect an a top-flight suspense film along the lines of The Andromeda Strain. Keep your expectations reasonable and you'll find that The Satan Bug is an engrossing, entertaining thriller. And if you’re familiar with the TV stars in the cast, you’re certain to relish the film’s nostalgic appeal.

"Honey West" Kicked Open the Door for Female Action Stars on American TV

Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman) of The Avengers created a sensation on British television in the early 1960s with her fighting skills and stylish sense of fashion. Thus, it was inevitable that a U.S. television network would follow suit and launch its own action series with a strong heroine.

To test the concept, private eye Honey West (played by Anne Francis) was introduced in a 1965 episode of the Gene Barry detective series Burke's Law. The character had first appeared in the Honey West novels written by Gloria and Forest Fickling under the pseudonym "G.G. Fickling." There were eleven Honey West books, starting with 1957's This Girl for Hire.

Honey gets a massage from Sam
as she ponders a case.

Hoping to catch lightning in a bottle, ABC introduced the half-hour Honey West series on Friday nights in the fall of 1965. Francis headlined as Honey, who owned a private detective agency and shared a home with her Aunt Meg (Irene Hervey) and a pet ocelot named Bruce. John Ericson played her partner (and pseudo-boyfriend) Sam, whose overprotective nature is put to the test with Honey's confidence and independence.

Anne Francis was working mostly in television when she signed on to do Honey West. Still, she was big enough a star on the silver screen that she could snare an occasional lead role (The Satan Bug) or a juicy supporting part (Funny Girl). She had the charisma, spunk, and likability factor to make Honey West a success. It didn't hurt either that she looked great in her all-black sleuthing outfit.

Ericson's good looks and easy-going manner keep him steadily employed in television throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. He guest-starred in everything from Shirley Temple Theatre to The Fugitive to the Love Boat. He and Anne Francis had appeared together earlier, as brother and sister, in the 1955 Spencer Tracy classic Bad Day at Black Rock.

Unfortunately, the Honey West series lacked the clever plots and witty banter that made The Avengers a fan favorite. At times, Sam seems almost condescending in his treatment of Honey, which is odd considering that she's technically his boss and she's capable of pummeling the bad guys on her own. Meanwhile, Aunt Meg and Bruce rarely get involved in the plots, their roles relegated mostly to making amusing remarks and purring, respectively. Still, the series improved as the season progressed, with some of the best episodes being written by William Link and Richrad Levinson, the team later responsible for Columbo and Murder, She Wrote.

Bruce had a rare meaty part in
the episode "A Stitch in Crime."

It's unfair, of course, to compare Honey West  to The Avengers. Taken on its own terms, Honey West is a diverting half-hour detective show. The gadgets are fun (e.g., Honey and Sam frequently communicate with tiny transmitters) and the use of homonyms during scene transitions is borderline brilliant. And when the plots start to sag, there's always Ms. Francis to keep the action percolating.

Although Honey West was cancelled after just one season, its impact was almost immediate. In 1966, ABC began broadcasting the Diana Rigg episodes of The Avengers and NBC spun off The Girl from U.N.C.L.E. with Stefanie Powers. The female action star was here to stay and future series such as Get Christie Love, The Bionic Woman, and even Alias owe some of their success to Honey West.